Ice Hockey: Capitals want Horne back in their line-up

Published on Monday 9 November 2009 08:56

DOUG CHRISTIANSEN hopes to have Great Britain defenceman Kyle Horne back in his line-up for tomorrow night's TV clash with high-flying Nottingham Panthers.

The club's director of hockey wants to see Horne skating today following his recent absence because of concussion.

The Fife-born blue-liner missed Saturday's disappointing 4-3 defeat at rock-bottom Hull Stingrays, Capitals' third defeat in four games, but Hull's first win in nine starts.

Capitals have nine points from ten starts while Stingrays have eight from 14 games following yesterday's 5-2 defeat at Coventry Blaze.

And Capitals' second defeat on Humberside – the first was a 4-1 reverse on 3 October – was a crushing blow as Christiansen travelled hoping to record a second confidence-boosting road win to back-up the 9-2 victory on 19 September, Capitals' first game of the season.

A late strike from Konstantin Kalmikov proved fatal and the giant American playcaller admitted: "Saturday was a real disappointment.

"We made a mistake and you can't do that in this league. The difference between first and eighth in this league is not very much.

"We gave the puck away in the offensive zone and we lost the game."

Christiansen acknowledged that Hull's much-hyped netminder Tommy Sandahl had a fine game but added: "We had a chance to win the game.

"We have to find a way to beat Hull Stingrays. We were three points ahead of them before the game and winning down there on Saturday would have given us a cushion.

"They are the last-placed team and they have beaten us twice in four games. That means they have earned four of their eight points from us. I said before the game that they would be dangerous and they were.

"We have two days rest which is good but we know Nottingham will come into Murrayfield looking for a result."

That is underlined following Nottingham's 2-1 defeat last night at Newcastle Vipers.

Saturday's game started badly when Lee Esders netted unassisted after 2min 42sec but Capitals battled back and Neil Hay levelled unassisted in the 26th minute.

Kalmikov put the home side ahead for a second time five minutes later on the power play but Simon Lambert equalised after 37 minutes.

It was another ten minutes before Hull found the net again through Adam Knight but Owen Fussey levelled matters 103 seconds later. Enter Kalmikov after 55min 35sec to seal the win and Christiansen said: "With around four minutes left you must get a point."

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