Steelers Progress After Sharpe Eyed Joe Makes the Call
Sheffield Steelers head coach Aaron Fox has praised the work of video coach Joe Macaig after a crucial third-period review helped preserve the Steelers’ lead on the way to a 5-2 Challenge Cup victory over Manchester Storm.
Sheffield led 4-2 when Manchester appeared to score again and cut the deficit to one.
But before the celebrations had settled, the Steelers bench had already been alerted to a possible offside in the build-up.
Macaig quickly sent footage down to the coaching staff, Sheffield challenged the play and, following review, the goal was overturned.
It proved a pivotal moment.
Instead of suddenly facing a 4-3 game with Manchester pushing hard for an equaliser, Sheffield were restored to a two-goal advantage before eventually closing the contest out and securing their place in the Challenge Cup semi-finals.
“We got a great call from Joe,” said Fox.
“The staff got the video down to us quickly so we could take a look. We challenged it, it went back to 4-2 and then we closed it out really nicely.”
Fox explained that the Steelers had already spotted something on the play before the puck crossed the line.
“Carter and I both saw it live and immediately yelled to Mike to have Joe check it before the goal even went in,” he said.
“Any time we think there is a fifty-fifty call, Mike immediately texts Joe to check the offside and send it down.
“He sent us a clip and a still shot, gave us the thumbs up that he felt it was offside, we watched it on the iPad and decided to challenge it.
“It was a good challenge.”
Fox believes the rule changes introduced this season around missed stoppages and offsides have made the work carried out away from the bench even more important.
“The new rules this year put a little more onus on the video we can get and how quickly we can get it,” he said.
On a night when both sides needed the points, Sheffield had put themselves in a strong position with an excellent opening period.
Ryan Tait scored twice as the Steelers raced into a 4-1 advantage after 20 minutes.
“The start was important for us,” Fox said.
“Both teams needed the points to continue on this Cup path and we felt they were going to come hard, but I thought we were outstanding in the first 20 minutes.
“We took a couple of penalties and did a great job killing them off. They got a little bit of life after that, but I thought our second period was really good and we knew they would push back.”
Tait’s two-goal performance also earned praise from Fox, who believes the forward is now getting the offensive rewards his performances have deserved.
“Ryan is such a pace-driven guy and I’m really happy to see him getting rewarded,” he said.
“When you can skate like that, you are always going to be effective.
“Even when he isn’t producing, he does a lot in different areas of the ice, but his expected goals and shot creation last year were right up there.
“We felt he would find the back of the net more this year and he has definitely done that. He is playing with confidence.”
The victory means Sheffield avoid the Challenge Cup play-in round and advance directly to the semi-finals.
Fox admitted that was a significant reward for the group.
“Not having to play that play-in game was huge,” he said.
“If that was what we got, we would have taken it, but I’m happy that we are now two games away from playing for a trophy.
“We’ll see who we end up playing. There are still a number of different things that can happen, but it should be exciting.”