Devils tackle Blaze in start to Play-Off title bid

Cardiff Devils begin their play-off campaign this weekend in hot form and aiming to win their first domestic trophy for four years.

They travel to Coventry Blaze for the first leg of their quarter-final on Saturday, with the return in Cardiff 24 hours later.

The winners will progress to the Elite League (EIHL) Play-Off Finals weekend in Nottingham on 18-19 April.

Cardiff approach the season's finale having won seven of their past eight games - albeit that one defeat was a 5-4 loss at Coventry.

And that surge of form came from a 5-3 loss to Glasgow Clan in mid-March which infuriated head coach Paul Thompson.

"I was really upset with the display up in Glasgow, the effort and the commitment that I'd got from the group, and we all got together and told a few home truths," said former GB coach Thompson.

"It's been a bit of tough love over this period to get us back on track and the players have to take the plaudits because they've delivered."

Despite that narrow defeat at the Skydome Arena on 29 March, Cardiff will be facing a side they have beaten five times out of six in the league, though many who have seen Coventry this season will be surprised they ended the regular EIHL campaign only seventh.

"They're a much better team than that represents and we're going to have to be ready for that," said Devils' captain Joey Martin.

"They have a good mix of skill. They're physical, their structure is really good, I think they're pretty dialled into their systems, and they're well coached.

"So, it's a tough match-up, especially when you go and play in Coventry."

The season could already have been very different for Kevin Moore's side after a strong campaign in the Challenge Cup, which included beating Devils home and away in the group games.

Blaze's crack at the title, however, finally fell short when they lost the final to Nottingham Panthers in overtime.

That loss means the four-time EIHL champions are looking to claim a first trophy since 2015, so will not be lacking any motivation to reach the Finals weekend.

"I think we have to be ready for that," added Martin.

"We're going in game one into their arena, it's a smaller rink, it's not an easy arena to play in.

"We need to be ready right off the hop because last time we went there we weren't very good in the first period and they put up four goals on us.

"Hopefully we've learnt that lesson that we need to be ready for when the puck drops."

Cardiff have not won the league since back-to-back successes in 2017 and 2018, which were followed by three-straight Play-Off trophies.

They were in the running for the 2025-26 regular season title until mid-campaign disappointments - as Belfast Giants stretched their lead over all their other rivals.

One thing the Devils have done throughout the season is hit a high volume of shots. However, Thompson feels they have not converted enough of those efforts into goals.

"When you're putting 55 shots on teams and you're giving up 17 shots and you're losing, you have to find ways to win, and we didn't do that enough when we were in the ascendancy for the league," lamented the head coach.

"We didn't win the league, and we have to accept that, but we wanted to be the best of the rest and I think that our form coming into this play-off shows that we have been."

Thompson, who won numerous trophies when previously at the helm of both Coventry and Sheffield Steelers, could become the first coach to win a domestic title with three different clubs.

"We now have a one-in-eight chance to win a trophy, and there will be no one more delighted than me if we do it, but there's a long way to go," added the 58-year-old vastly-experienced coach.

"We're excited by the challenge. We know we're up against a good team in Coventry and we have to be at our best.

"And, you know what, over this last month, we have been."

(Seeding in brackets)

Saturday, 11 April

Belfast Giants (1) v Glasgow Clan (8) 19:00 BST

Coventry Blaze (7) v Cardiff Devils (2) 19:00 BST

Manchester Storm (6) v Nottingham Panthers (3) 19:00 BST

Guildford Flames (5) v Sheffield Steelers (4) 18:00 BST

Sunday, 12 April

Glasgow Clan (8) v Belfast Giants (1) 19:00 BST

Cardiff Devils (2) v Coventry Blaze (7) 17:00 BST

Nottingham Panthers (3) v Manchester Storm (6) 16:00 BST

Sheffield Steelers (4) v Guildford Flames (5) 16:00 BST