Belfast Giants' home ice boost for Challenge Cup final

Head coach Adam Keefe is pleased that the Giants have secured home ice advantage going into the final.

He said: “We are delighted to be back in a cup final, especially as we get to play it in front of home fans at the SSE Arena.

“At the very start of the year we talked about the importance of getting ourselves into the best position possible in the cup.

“It is always our first goal to secure first place in the Challenge Cup. It is always a grind as you always find that others will have a great record and you need to go one better than them.

“Last year that team it was Sheffield and we just missed out on the top seeding spot.”

He added: “This year it is has been different. We have secured that first placed seed.

“We certainly wanted to make sure in the semi-final that we made use of it.

“It gives us an opportunity to award our fanbase here in Belfast with bringing the Challenge Cup final back to the city after its absence from last year.

“Bringing it back to Belfast comes with the added desire that we want to win that final and give our fans something to celebrate on the night.

“It is a case of a one off final, the game can always go either way. We want to make sure that we are good and well prepared ahead of the final.

“That will give is the best chance when we come up against the Cardiff Devils.

“Obviously it will be a great treat for the fans if we were to win the cup on home ice on Wednesday. But make no mistake, we want to win the cup.”

Keefe admits that cup finals at the SSE are always huge occasions, not only for fans but also for players and the organisation as a whole, but the Giants expect the Devils to play their top game.

He said: “We know that Cardiff are going to travelling over here and be keen to cause an upset.

“They will want to play well and win. We need to be at our best to beat the Devils and that is going to be our focus.”

For much of this season the Giants have had the upper-hand against the Devils.

He added: “They have had their share of injuries this season and we have caught them on those nights.

“In the other games that we have one, they were games that could easily have gone either way.

“By no means will be looking past the Cardiff Devils going into this final.

“They are a very good hockey team who lead the league in the early part of the season and have won the Continental Cup, so they are a team who knows what it takes to win.

“We need to be on our absolute best to give ourselves the best chance of winning.”