Sheffield Steelers v Sparta Prague - Kevin Tansey assesses the Steelers' Champions Hockey League campaign
Sheffield Steelers’ Kevin Tansey assesses the team’s first two Champions Hockey League games and looks ahead to this weekend’s clashes against Sparta Prague and Skellefteå AIK
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00:00Just a quick reflection on the weekend just gone, it must have been immensely satisfying
00:11on the plane home given what you managed to achieve.
00:14Yeah, I mean, satisfying, I wouldn't say immensely satisfying, we won one out of two games so
00:20we obviously had a goal of winning both games but we were happy with our results even in
00:23the loss.
00:24But you know whenever you go into these tournaments you think of yourself as you made the tournament,
00:29the other team has made the tournament so you want to get as many points as you can
00:31so satisfying, I don't know if immensely satisfying is the right word though.
00:36You probably go in as underdogs given the history of elite league teams in the Champions
00:40Hockey League, did that leave you as a group of players perhaps with a feeling of something
00:46to perhaps prove at that level?
00:48Yeah, I mean I think a lot of outside people thought we were underdogs, I think there was
00:53a belief in our team with what we did last year and the group of guys that we brought
00:57back and the new guys that we brought in, we knew we had a really good team that had
01:02a chance to compete and a chance to do well in this tournament so we were looked at as
01:07underdogs by other people but in our locker room we had a lot of belief there that we
01:10were right there with every team that's in that tournament.
01:12Yeah, because in both games you kind of matched the opponent didn't you and gave as good as
01:16you got for the large part.
01:18Yeah, I mean absolutely, Freiburg was a good team, they basically just ended up scoring
01:23one more goal, I know it's kind of a dumbed down version of it but it was a pretty evenly
01:28matched way the whole time and some penalties at the end and just leave that comment at
01:35that and it is what it is, they ended up scoring one in the third period and we didn't match
01:41that and then we had the chip on our shoulder because of that I think going into Saturday's
01:45game and we just wanted to take it to them from the puck drop and I think we really did
01:49a good job of that.
01:51Do you think prior to the weekend perhaps other teams in the competition may have taken
01:55yourselves lightly in some respects?
01:57Yeah, I mean possibly, I'm not sure.
02:00I like to think that other teams wanted to go on and compete but I don't think that we
02:05saw bad games from the other teams, I mean they were doing well, I think we were just
02:09matching their effort and even sometimes doing better than their effort and playing to our
02:13system perfectly.
02:14And obviously having such a great win in Sweden, Sparta Pride Friday, Skellefteå on Sunday
02:20goes without saying another two tough games but given what you achieved while you were
02:24away with the win in Sweden, it must do absolute wonders for your confidence as a group.
02:29Yeah, I mean we're in that playoff spot right now, I think we're in the 15th spot right
02:34now so we're going to like to hold on to that.
02:38We worked hard for the first two games and we're going to keep on working hard and it's
02:41a good test, it's fun hockey, it's some of the highest level hockey that a lot of us
02:45have played over here and you want to grab those opportunities and you want to be a big
02:49game player and that's what these games are and you want to bring your best to those.
02:52And given that, is that the challenge for a lot of players in that room, like you say,
02:57it's probably the highest level a lot of them have played at and therefore you automatically
03:00just raise your game.
03:01Yeah, I mean that's kind of how we all got here right, we all had to be the best at our
03:06level at some point, that's how you become a professional athlete, you know you have
03:10to show that you're better than other people constantly throughout your life and we have
03:13the chance to do that at the highest level in European hockey so I think a lot of guys
03:17look forward to raising their game to that level, showing what they can prove and maybe
03:24getting a team that looks at them and they like the way they play and some guys are young
03:28on the team and have chances to go play other ways and after this season it's a great way
03:33to showcase your skill and what you can bring to the table.
03:36Also given what you achieved last season in the Grand Slam Winners League Cup play-offs,
03:40there's no reason why you should go into any game really, it's your own confidence isn't
03:44it?
03:45Or self-belief?
03:46Yeah, I mean we've got the best goalie in the EIHL, I think we have the best decor and
03:51the best group of forwards and I think we're showing that we can play with any team at
03:56any level so yeah we're definitely flying high on the confidence because we've been
04:00through a lot as a team and we've grown a lot together and it's the same as last year
04:05where everybody in that room is friends and want to work for each other so it's fun to
04:09go to battle with a group of guys that you really love.
04:11Half a dozen or more sort of changes or key changes in personnel over the summer, it looks
04:16like the sort of chemistry and the coming together of this new look team is going pretty
04:21well so far, so early in the season yeah?
04:23Yeah I mean you know we brought in a bunch of good guys, I mean everybody sort of knows
04:28everybody in the hockey world so it wasn't like there was anybody that we really didn't
04:31know, I mean from just knowing you know the two Finns that came in, we're friends with
04:37Nicholas and Mikko from our team this year and last year and then you know Levins is
04:42a Toronto guy who's played with a bunch of guys and you know Marco and Michele are guys
04:47who a lot of us have played against in the Austrian League and you know playing international
04:52hockey and then the same with Sasha too so they're all familiar faces and I think they
04:57all came in here knowing that you know we don't just want to play hockey this year to
05:02collect a paycheck, we came in to win trophies and we came in here to compete every day and
05:07on the ice, off the ice and you know they're fitting in perfectly doing that.
05:10There's a lot to look forward to this year, there's a lot that you'll want to achieve,
05:14how much would it mean to you as a group at this early stage to make it through to the
05:17next phase of the Champions Hockey League?
05:19Yeah I mean like I said there's a belief in this team, we know the talent that we have,
05:25we know the chemistry that we have and you know we just want to win and you know we've
05:31been doing a good job of doing that, sticking to our systems and it would definitely mean
05:35a lot but you know we just want to prove to people that we're a good hockey team.