Dmitri Khristich, Capitals’ coach, who masterminded the Edinburgh club;’s win at Dundee

Omar Pacha has slammed his misfiring Dundee Stars squad after their 7-2 Elite League capitulation to Edinburgh Capitals.

The crestfallen coach apologised to fans and said he was lost for words after the defeat at the Dundee Ice Arena which sees Stars anchor the 12-strong league with only two points from four league games.

He claimed it was the toughest defeat of his coaching career and he branded the performance on the club’s own TV channel as being totally unacceptable.

Pacha added that the game was “a complete disaster.”

He alleged his men refused to shoot, made plays they should not have done and added: “Days like today you can’t forgive.”

The coach has lately been on a PR offensive to boost attendances and he appealed to new fans to “give us a second chance.”

The Canadian-born playcaller said: “It’s probably the toughest defeat of my coaching career.
“It’s really frustrating.”

Asked what went wrong he said: “Everything. The first period we refused to shoot, we had guys thinking they could make plays.

“We’re a good team when we keep things simple, if we drive the net and put pucks on the net.

“We refused to do that in the first period and it cost us a goal on a PK (penalty kill) and we told them (the players) not to give them any second chances.

“The second goal was a complete breakdown defensively in respect of our assignments and in the second period we decided to play run-and-gun with them.

“That is exactly what we said not to do throughout the league.”

The former Manchester Storm coach added: “It is really frustrating as a coach and disappointing as you will have bad days, but a day like today you can’t forgive.

“I can say we can learn but it is unacceptable to do that at home, especially in front of our own fans.

“On a night when there are new people in the stands, it hurts the club not only on the ice but off it.

“It is a complete disaster.”

He added: “It is up to them (the players) to pick it up. Listen, this is a business, you are here play hockey, you are paid to play and you have to perform.

“It is not OK to perform like they did tonight (SAT). Guys have to be accountable and they have to be responsible.

“We talked about consistency from the first day (of pre-season training camp) and we saw the complete opposite.”

He added: “It’s a really, really bad night, its unacceptable and I can only apologise to the fans that paid and I really hope the new fans give us a second chance.”

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