Tonight: Storm hoping to stay strong at home against leaders

Photo: Mark Ferris

It’s derby night at the Storm Shelter with the Manchester hoping to extend streaks both on and off the ice.

Storm have had over 1,600 fans crammed into the Shelter every game in 2022 and are expected to continue the trend with a near sell-out crowd against their rivals from across the Pennines. Over those games, Manchester fans have see their team win there of six, keeping their home record as one of the stronger among teams chasing the playoff places. In truth, they need to stay strong on their own ice as Ryan Finnerty’s team have picked up just six points from 36 available on the road, which has them currently sitting level on points with Dundee for the final playoff place but in ninth on the tie-breaker. Those sides will meet in Manchester on Sunday.

The Steelers saw their seven-game winning run come to an end midweek in Glasgow but stayed three points clear at the top thanks to it being a game in hand on Belfast and Cardiff slipping up. The Steelers have gone .500 through their last four road games and head into Manchester for the first time this season in league play. The two sides’ New Year’s clashes were postponed due to the steelers being in COVID-19 protocol.

Sheffield won both Challenge Cup fixtures in Manchester this season by a combined score of 15-7. The Storm’s last home win over the Steelers was in November 2019.