Hockey On The Horizon

Little over a week before the Belfast Giants return to action, Paddy Sloan shares his thoughts from the off season and his anticipation for what’s to come.

Ok so lets forget Norn Irons annual dose of sun allocation and talk HOCKEY.

The Belfast Giants of course.

First things first. Let’s acknowledge the selfless act of Paxton Schulte, donating his retired #27 jersey to new D man Kendall McFaull, who requested to wear the jersey in honour of his good friend who tragically passed away recently. Also AVFTB’s equally humble act of setting up a Packer Wall to fly him home to the land of the Giants to watch his #27 in our barn again this season, this time from outside the plexi.

So with the season all but ready to get going, it’s good to know we will do so with the backing of some TV coverage from FreeSports this year. The success of Pete Russell’s GB squad alongside Coach Keefe and Cory Neilson at the World Championships has drawn some well-deserved attention to the UK and rightly so. It’ll also give Belfast fans, and the like, a good look at games around the league and the ability to see how other team’s play is shaping up in comparison with our own.

With the name of Rich Chernomaz floating round the locker room of the NIC now, it’s clear to see the strength in depth in the Panthers lines, through the added attraction of working with Chernomaz, showing in their recruitment of some solid names.

And with Coach Keefe’s landmark recruitment of a certain Pat Dwyer, former NHLer of 400+ games combining invaluable experience with a spectacular skill set, alongside a few quick and body throwing youngsters, namely Darcy Murphy, we can visualise the physical nature shaping up rightly amongst the Giants roster. I have a feeling it’s going to be a good year to be a Giant.

It’s obvious that a few players don’t think Belfast is the place for silverware this year, as confirmed by a ‘ladder climbing’ Goaltender’s move to Sheffield, and the month to month contractor who backed him up.

Bring on the bitter rivalries.

So, with preseason against Manitoba only a number of days away, what do you think is a successful year for the Giants in terms of trophies?

For me it’s a League and a Cup, but I want to be greedy and say I want all 4. Let’s go Giants, there’s a Teal Army behind you.

Paddy Sloan

Paddy got in touch with us to share his thoughts by e-mailing the website. If you’d like to get involved, please just drop us a line at articles@kingdomofthegiants.com . We want to be your platform for Belfast Giants and Hockey opinions.

A site by the fans for the fans.

(Title Pic: PressEye)

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