Devils Debrief 2025/26 - Episode 32 - Devils 2-1 Coventry Blaze

Dan, Gaz and Franny give their instant analysis to the Devils beating the Coventry Blaze, and close out their home regular season 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Today's podcast is brought to you by Minerva Hearing. Hear the cheers, protect your ears. Shemai Powerback Royce. Hello, everybody. Welcome to Devil's Debrief. Gaz, Franny, and Dan sitting down after the Devils have beaten the Coventry Blaze by two goals to one in a highly entertaining game here at the Vindicoat to end the Devil's home regular season. Gaz, what what a game. I mean, it was it was great to watch as as of the last sort of three or four at home beam. But um, yeah, Devils, good for the win. I think they deserved it, but a really good performance by the Blaze to stick in with them.

SPEAKER_02 0:34

Oh, absolutely, yeah. Uh I think Blaze's best spell was that first 10 minutes of the second period where they came out flying after getting that goal late in the first. And uh I worried at that point whether which way it was gonna go, but I thought once the devils got some power play time, they they reasserted themselves. But uh yeah, fantastic uh game to watch, and uh just disappointing the devils couldn't take their chances because we have been taking our chances the last couple of weeks and getting those goals on the board and tonight, but for a bit of poor finishing and we have to say some absolutely incredible saves by uh Matt Robson. The score line probably should have been higher. So definitely deserved to get the two points. Uh, but yeah, stick tap to Robson and the Blaze defence who uh kept that score down.

SPEAKER_00 1:24

Yeah, in that first period, um the Devils would be kicking themselves for coming out of that tide at 1-1 with that late goal. It was quite heavily weighted, I think, in terms of the Devil's um possession and ozone time, and it there should have been another at least two, I think, uh that the Devils um should have had, didn't. And then what happens is if you don't take your chances, and there was a couple of failed clearances as well leading up to the Blaze goal, putting us under unnecessary pressure, and you know, the Blaze get one through a deflection that that uh that sneaks in and uh it's one-one. Then the Blaze came out, seemed to change their game plan, went uh a bit more aggressive, a bit more on the front foot. And the Devil struggled with it for a little bit, but you know, it was it was good to see how they did come back into their own. And um, one thing that stood out for me tonight was the number of block shots by the Devils. I mean, there was lots of guys going off wincing or playing the rest of the shift, actually, you know, limping around the ice. Um, I think we saw Capone, Brandt at least a couple of times, Richie. Uh, you know, there was lots and lots of bodies on the line and blocking shots. So that that was a good collective team effort. And you can see, you know, the guys were pushing hard because they wanted to finish in that second place.

SPEAKER_01 2:44

Yeah, let's chat. You mentioned the block shots. I think an important thing probably is the the first two periods were as we were kind of expecting from this game. The third, though, the big flashpoint, of course, is the major penalty. The Devils have to kill the five minutes. And on just on that peak here, I think there was Capone blocked one, Brandt blocked one, Helgerson blocked a few, Richardson blocked one, and looked like he was hurt by that as well. So huge props to the Devils for it. But that penalty kill, I think, if this if we do see these teams play each other next week in the quarterfinal, that's going to be a big, I feel, boost to the Devils is to know that they they killed off a major penalty against a dangerous team, a team who scored power play goals against them this year, and they look really good doing it.

SPEAKER_00 3:26

Yeah, and um, I was in the pregame meeting, and you know, the focus on the penalty kill, you know, the killers were in there for a sort of extended time, especially because of the goals that the Blaze scored um last weekend, and you know, there were some changes made, and uh, you know, it was good work by the coaching staff, I'll say that, because I thought the kill was really, really good tonight. There was gaps in it in Coventry, those gaps were closed tonight, and I felt the devils look, I mean, for a five a five-minute kill is is hard work because you know, you're normally rotating your killers for two minutes, this is five minutes, it's a it's a long time. Um, and I felt that the chances were pretty limited. Like you say, you've got those big blocks going in, but also the amount of times that the devils um, you know, uh they they took away the possession from the Blaze and then they killed the clock down then with some kind of passing back to the D, you know, going D to D, just running the clock down, managing that kill. I thought that was really good and really important if these guys match up because you know, that's the one area that the Blaze have been really hot against the Devils this year is on their PP.

SPEAKER_01 4:33

Guys, another thing I want to talk about after that game is is we won't call it the emergence, the re-emergence maybe of Nolan Yuremko. You know, the Devils lose Ryan Barron in a playoff, you know, run. That's tough. He's a player that embodies that kind of style. Yuremko, it feels almost like a whole late season signing for the Devils in how good he's been. Looked settled again tonight, looked like he was comfortable on a line that plays very quickly, maybe doesn't play as much the style that he would, but I think that's probably why it works. Should have scored the empty net at the end. And I was I was worried that it wasn't it was going to count for nothing in the end, but got another goal. That's two in a row for him now, and uh and we're really liking what we're seeing from him.

SPEAKER_02 5:10

Yeah, when he first came back uh a few couple of months ago, I think you could see in the way he was skating and and the way that he he was managing his game that he wasn't comfortable, he he wasn't flowing, uh, you know, it's something just seemed off. He was trying as hard as he could to get things going, but there was clearly something still not niggling there. But the last couple of weeks, I I haven't felt that. I felt that he's been skating really well, he's looking fluid, uh, you know, he's getting in those dirty areas, he looks like he's enjoying it. Had uh you know a little acquaintance with uh Matt Robinson in the second period and got himself a whack, which I I think he kind of enjoyed in a in a weird uh little sadistic way that he managed to get under his skin a little bit. Uh, but it's fantastic to see. Yeah, um, we said on cons losing Ryan Barrow is is is a big blow going into the playoffs, but is the the re-emergence of Nolan Iremko that little playoff gift uh for the Cardiff Devils that that maybe we weren't expecting um but but maybe did need a little bit. So uh yeah, great to watch him uh tonight. And I he was our pick of man of the match. Uh I know Jimmy Oligini got it and and great uh choice in his own right, but uh I would have agreed with you.

SPEAKER_01 6:25

Ricky Remko would have been mine tonight. Franny, he's been managed coming back, and I think that's the important thing. You know, he he played last weekend in the home game, didn't play then in Coventry, and Tom would just say you don't want to aggravate anything, you just want to bring him in slowly, and that's that's been a wise way, I think, way to play it.

SPEAKER_00 6:39

Yeah, I mean, like Gaz said, he came back from the injury once and it didn't work out. Uh he wasn't ready, he had no jump. You could see that. I mean, he's a really honest player, he's an incredible guy, a very, very honest player. And if he is not given it, it is not through lack of um want or lack of effort. It means he can't. And it that was quite obvious. So, you know, the medical team and the coaches took him out for another rehab period and bringing them back in. It's been one game at a time, not to overload him back to back. Um, because like Gaz said, especially with Barrow going down, having him back, it's so important that that he's ready for the playoffs, and that is kind of the goal with him. Um, I think, well, I'm hoping tomorrow we see him back to back because it's been a couple of weeks now of these one um one game on, one game off sort of thing. And uh yeah, I thought he was really good value tonight. You know, he's he's gone straight and gelled with his line. He offers you um a bit of everything. And tonight he was the great net front presence. And I mean, the goal itself was easy enough. It was uh, you know, a tap-in, but it was the work that he did leading up to that that earned him that right. And you know, two goals in two games, great reward for him with all the hard work he's done to get back from his injury.

SPEAKER_01 7:58

Yeah, not only the scourge of other teams' defenses at the moment, the scourge of myself and Gazon Comms because he and and Christoph Contos look so similar on the ice, it's hard to tell the difference between the two of them sometimes. But uh yeah, the Devils do win. We're gonna chat a little bit about what this means now, wider picture-wise. And the answer, I guess, the TLDR answer to this is we don't really know what this does because results tonight don't confirm that the Devils finished second. They got to nothing tomorrow, and those two teams won 73 and 72. So whoever wins between the two finishes second, unless we go to overtime in which the Devils on regulation wins, hold on to second, even if they lose. Looking further down the league, though, the Flames won in Belfast tonight, so they leapfrogged the storm 62 to 61 points. Despite the Blaze losing tonight, Glasgow also lost in Sheffield. They got absolutely hammered in Sheffield tonight, 8-1. So things can still move around. Gaz, we've spoken a lot about who we do and we don't want to play and all this kind of stuff. I'm just really glad that we're going into the final day of Elite League action, and there's still pretty much every position up for grabs.

SPEAKER_02 8:58

Well, what's crazy is had it been a Manchester goal in the third period other than a Nottingham goal, we'd now be playing the Coventry Blaze, and that'd be done and dusted. Now, by Nottingham winning, we've still got four potential options from one goal, one goal either side of Manchester and Nottingham. And that's that for me is is a great end to the season. I think that's a real boost for the league that we've got so many permutations at this point, because usually it's done and dusted. Um, at this point, there's in, you know, I mean, does it matter who you get in the next round? Everyone's got their positives and negatives, which we've gone over. Um, I think for me, the devils just have to focus on finishing as high as possible. I was surprised midweek to hear Aaron Fox say, I don't care about where we finish in the league. I know he was kind of saying that to say about the effort of his team, but that surprised me because I think you should. I think it is important for a whole host of reasons to care where you finish. I think it cares from a pride perspective, I think it cares from a seeding perspective from the playoffs. It cares, I think you owe your fan base to finish as high as possible. So for me, that that is uh the noise of everything else is irrespective. I want us to go into Nottingham tomorrow, aiming for that second place, because I think that will be a small consolation prize for not winning the league and a kind of boost and a foundation going into the summer that, yeah, you know, we're in the right place to build on what we have.

SPEAKER_01 10:26

Yeah, funny. Like Gaz says, Sheffield have had one school of thought on this. You guys and Tomo and the coaching staff and the team, you want second, and and then there's reasons for that.

SPEAKER_00 10:36

Yeah, you're not gonna celebrate getting second place because you want to win. We want to win as an organization, and anything less than first place is you know not what we want. However, you want to finish as high as possible. There's um ramifications when you come to the playoffs and um you know the seedings and things like that. In the you know, if you get through the the quarterfinals, then you would get you'd be the highest seed, so you'd have the home game in the semifinals, the last change, all things like that. But yeah, above everything else, it's pride. You want to finish as high as you can. First place is out of grabs. Absolutely gutted by that. But what's up for grabs is second place, and it comes down to that head-to-head tomorrow against the Panthers. And you know, maybe that is is a good thing, that it's a kind of mini championship game to go into an away ring knowing that you need to get something out of it to earn second place. I mean, we know now we can't finish in fourth place, so it's a top three finish, but you know, the coaching staff, the team, everyone in the organization wants to go one better and secure that second place.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Yeah, and of course, going up to Nottingham and playing in a big game, it sets you in a nice little pan for if you do make playoff weekend because you're gonna have to play probably two more big games if you want to win the lot. So, yeah, it sets that up nicely. The spread of games tomorrow is interesting as well. In the yeah, Nottingham and Cardiff play each other for second and third, but also Guildford and Manchester play each other for fifth and sixth. And should the Devils finish third, obviously they'll play one of those two teams. Guildford, of course, at the moment, the form team in the league, beating Belfast tonight 6'2 as well. So they're looking really dangerous as we go into that as well. But um, yeah, last note, I think, from me tonight, Jens, I just want to quickly mention, and then Tomo spoke about it in his post-game interview, last regular season game here at the Vinicle, of course, we have the quarterfinal. But a word on the crowd tonight. I think the Blaze bought numbers and it really contributed to a great atmosphere. But for me, especially over the last two months or so, the Vindico crowds have been really, really good. And it's helped the team, hasn't it, Franny?

SPEAKER_00 12:33

Yeah, it is honestly so important, and the guys really appreciate it. Um, yeah, good job in giving props to the commentary fans because I thought they brought the noise and you know they got behind their team. Um, but the Vindico has in this last month really appreciated that the effort the guys are putting in on the ice and the performances they put in. And, you know, it goes hand in hand, doesn't it? That the guys always want to play well, but it helps so much when you've got that kind of six-man in the stands, if you like. And uh, you know, when the Vindico is like that, it makes it an intimidating place to come and play. Um, it throws a little bit, I feel it throws a little bit of edge into the players' games. And we saw that when we come into the the game tonight. There were some bigger hits going in. There was a you know a few little kind of pushing and shoving bits, and it just, I don't know, it just um to me, that's what Carliff Devils hockey has always been about. It's always been about a great supportive home crowd getting behind their team and the team on the ice, really leaving everything on the line um for their fans. And you know, those block shots alone, I think that the fans really warmed and really appreciated that the Devils were just determined to grind out a result tonight.

SPEAKER_02 13:48

Yeah, I totally agree with the the five-minute penalty kill being uh a big example of how important the crowd is, because you you you could feel the cheers almost as big as a goal when you know big saves were happening or clearances were happening, or as Francis the block shots were happening uh as well. And you know, Dan, you can vouch for this. When we're commentating, when the crowd is up, it just you speak a little faster, you speak a little louder, you're almost on autopilot, I guess.

SPEAKER_01 14:19

Yeah, and it it brings you into the occasion, you you you feel the energy of it and you you you kind of work off of it.

SPEAKER_02 14:24

Yeah, you and and I feel that I it it kind of makes me react a lot more naturally, it weirdly. I I'm not trying to kind of pick a point of the game. And whenever that happens, I always wonder if I was a player, how would this feel the way I play? Would I play a little bit more naturally? Would I just be making that split second pass the the right way? Would I just be doing everything the right way? So it does make such a difference, and it just makes it an event in this building. And I totally agree with you. The last four or five games uh have been really, really top-notch.

SPEAKER_00 14:54

Yeah, I mean, what I would say is as a player, there's some subconscious things that go on. Uh, if a player on your team goes out and makes a big hit, you can almost guarantee that somebody follows up with another big hit. And tonight, if somebody on our team made a big block, the crowd reception was fantastic. And what happens? You get someone else diving in front of a puck for a big block. We saw, you know, multiple in a row, and it is infectious. And I think that's what the building can do. It can make those kind of unselfish plays that you know, the ones that hurt really infectious. And that is down to the crowd driving the team to do that.

SPEAKER_01 15:32

Yeah, well, uh, one more to go, guys, and get involved. Quarter final next weekend, Sunday. It's the last home game of the season. But for now, the Devils have beaten the Blaze 2 1. Like I said, up to Nottingham tomorrow, final game of the season. And then we're into the playoffs push. So get ready for it. It's going to be great. We'll see you very soon. Good night. Thank you very much once again to our sponsor, Minerva Hearing, for today's podcast. And remember, Minerva Hearing, hear the cheers, protect your ears.