Guildford Flames square-up to Fife Flyers in a double-header this weekend, with the first fixture at Kirkcaldy on Saturday (face-off 19.15).
And Flyers’ head coach Todd Dutiaume believes it is a good time to face the English combine as two key crocked players could make their comebacks.
The experienced Canadian said: “That has been the biggest factor right from the beginning of the season.
“We had a lot of talented guys in our line-up, and we have been missing two of our big engines, forwards Dillon Lawrence (cor) and Mikael Johansson (cor). You inject those two bodies into the line-up and you look formidable.
“We have a good chance of seeing Johansson in some capability and Lawrence has responded well in training this week and there is an outside chance we may see him as well. This would be very welcome.”
Flyers were edged 3-2 at Coventry Blaze on Sunday, but Dutiaume stressed there were positives.
He said: “We have shown the players the game tape and we clearly came out a little flat for whatever reason we are putting it down to extended minutes.
“I had some players are icing for long minutes (to cover for injured men) and that is ridiculous and there were moments in the second period and certainly in the third we continued to push right to the buzzer.
“Character in the team was shown again and it is easy to throw in the towel when you are up against it and short of bodies, it is easy to come out and not give 100 per cent because you know how tired you are going to be at the end of the game, but these guys keep going.
“What we have to address is our start. We need to start better and be thoroughly engaged for 60 minutes and we are working on that.”
The return is at Guildford on Sunday (18.00).
Meanwhile, Flyers and local radio station, Kingdom FM, have formalised their partnership for the season.
Messages from players, news stories, exclusive offers and updates about the team will be aired.
Tony Chalmers, the station’s commercial manager, said: “Both brands share the same core values and vision to engage with our audiences as we’re both fully committed to serving our local community so the synergy couldn’t be better.”
Todd Dutiaume, Flyers’ general manager and head coach, said: “The opportunity to reach an expanded audience and increase our fan base is exciting.”
PICTURE: Flyers training in midweek. Picture by Nigel Duncan
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