Dundee Stars head coach Marc LeFebvre wants to take out the rubbish.
“I thought we were garbage from start to finish,” the Canadian said of his squad’s 7-2 loss to the Glasgow Clan on Saturday [27 February].
LeFebvre has often criticised his team this season, but his disdain reached new levels in Glasgow.
“Maybe four or five guys showed up and it just wasn’t good enough,” he continued.
“We played one good game last night and suddenly we think we’re world-beaters. You can’t play like that and can’t have four guys show up. It was all done and dusted after the first period. It was an easy victory for the Clan.”
Welcome to Around the Rinks, our daily summary of every Elite League team’s post-game media remarks.
Around the Rinks: Saturday, 28 February
Cardiff Devils 5-0 Fife Flyers
Ben Bowns, Cardiff Devils (Image: James Assinder)
Paul Thompson, Cardiff Devils:
I just said to the boys that it was a good, professional performance: we were strong around both nets, played hungry, and won second pucks. I know they’re missing a couple of guys, but we also have a few out, so it’s a pleasing home win.
Mike Courts, Fife Flyers:
We’ve had a rough couple of days and a long bus journey. I thought the guys competed well, with a couple of individual mistakes costing us. We need to be better at the offensive zone blueline because we created a couple of turnovers there and that hurt us.
If we tighten up those areas, it’s probably not a 5-0 game, but odd-man rushes hurt you and they have a lot of depth and talent. If you give them opportunities, they’ll capitalise and that’s what happened tonight.
Coventry Blaze 2-3 Guildford Flames
Justin Fazio, Guildford Flames (Image: Scott Wiggins)
Kevin Moore, Coventry Blaze:
I thought we played pretty well: we through everything but the kitchen sink at them and had the puck for pretty much all of the third period. There was a lot of five-on-five and I think we controlled that. Overall, I thought we played great. It’s unfortunate that the third goal was a weird one off the skate. It’s one of those games of inches. I was happy with how we played, but unhappy with the result.
Paul Dixon, Guildford Flames:
It’s a huge two points for us. It’s a tough building to come into and you have to be on your details. Defensively, we were very good tonight, especially on the penalty kill. The powerplay got it done tonight and that’s sometimes the difference in these games.
I’m very happy with our overall compete level against a very good Coventry team. It’s a great two points.
Glasgow Clan 7-2 Dundee Stars
Brett Neumann, Glasgow Clan (Image: Al Goold)
Mike Sirant, Glasgow Clan:
First of all, we can’t thank our fans enough for the support we’re getting: another sellout is incredible. It’s so exciting for our players to play in front of this atmosphere and it certainly helps our performance. Thank you to the Purple Army!
Reflections on the game: we scored some nice goals tonight and executed well, offensively. The powerplay was big for us tonight, which we’ve been struggling with for a while. We had some different units out there tonight and both played really well for us.
What I liked tonight was how we closed out the game in the third period. We didn’t just go for goals, we we were smart defensively and played an efficient third period.
Chris McKay and Austin Mitchell-King had some big blocks, which are sometimes overlooked, but were the difference for us tonight. I just wanted to point that out, so that those guys, and others, get the recognition.
Marc LeFebvre, Dundee Stars:
I thought we were garbage from start to finish. Maybe four or five guys showed up and it just wasn’t good enough. We played one good game last night and suddenly we think we’re world-beaters. You can’t play like that and can’t have four guys show up.
It was all done and dusted after the first period. It was an easy victory for the Clan.
Nottingham Panthers 2-1 Manchester Storm (Overtime)
Mitchell Fossier, Nottingham Panthers (Image: Panthers Images)
Danny Stewart, Nottingham Panthers:
In the second and third period, we had a lot of puck possession. We had a lot of great opportunities and shot volume. To not score, you’ve got to credit [Drew] DeRidder: he was phenomenal tonight.
It took us a while to get into the game, but we turned up our game midway through the second. We really had a lot of good opportunities and possession. It was a great kill to kill off the five-on-three.
What I loved tonight was the guys didn’t start cheating the game. They played the right way, stuck with it, and were rewarded for it. It was a beautiful play for [Mitchell Fossier] seal the deal.
Cam Critchlow, Manchester Storm:
I think we played an excellent road game: I’m really happy with our compete and commitment to our game plan. It would’ve been nice to get a second goal, it would’ve been nice to extend our lead, but the Panthers pushed us and it’s tough to beat them back to back.
It’s unfortunate, but that’s the game. We’ve got a big tilt against Glasgow tomorrow and I think everyone knows how important those games are. We’ve got to keep our chins up and be ready to go tomorrow.
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