Last weekend saw Flyers go down to another 2 losses after the 7-2 home defeat at the hands of Belfast Giants, and then a 5-0 away loss to Sheffield Steelers. If that wasn’t bad enough, Flyers are also nursing injuries to 2 key personnel, starting netminder Garrett Zemlak and British defenceman Tommy Muir.

Despite this player/coach Todd Dutiaume is still looking on the positive and has taken more positives from the weekends performances. “Until we start winning games I will be demanding a whole lot more from my players, but the positive thing is that I can now see us starting to get in to the shape that is required to compete in this league. Some of our Brits in particular are beginning to show the quality that I knew they had, to be able to handle themselves in the [Rapid Solicitors] Elite Ice Hockey League”.

“It is easy for the players heads to go down defeat after defeat, but our performances a few weeks back, with the exception on the away trip to Belfast, showed that we have what it takes to compete in this league. The win over our rivals Edinburgh Capitals gave us a huge lift, and despite the losing in the shoot-out at Hull Stingrays, we came away from that game with our heads held high.”

There has also been recent speculation about the arrival of new players being brought in but Dutiaume would not speculate on this; however he has confirmed that he is constantly looking to find players who could bring something to the team but that won’t mean the club go over their budget.

“I am constantly looking, compared to others in this league we are down on our import numbers. We are always talking to agents, friends and other connections about potential players, but just like with the guys who we have brought in, we will take our time before making any decisions. The guys we have brought in are settling in really well and yes I would like to bring in another import, but I appreciate that we have a budget to stick to, particularly in this first season as we are building our foundations at the moment.”

“We are not bringing in anyone new this week, and it is difficult to commit to a position to strengthen, our forwards are starting to produce the calibre of performances I believe they are capable of, but I still expect more from them. Mike [Hamilton], Danny [Stewart] and Sids [Matt Siddall] might be feeling the pressure of playing for a team like Fife with the history and expectation of our fans. I do feel we are lacking a little in defence, so I would ideally like to look for an offensive mobile d-man who can read the ice and move the puck well.”

This weekend sees Fife taking on Welsh side the Cardiff Devils and Dutiaume is aware that this will be another tough game. “Cardiff are always up there challenging, so we are under no illusions that it is going to be a tough game, but if we can get the crowd behind us on Saturday night, we know we can push them and we will be looking to make it tough.”

Sunday night sees Flyers visit Murrayfield Ice Rink as they take on rivals Edinburgh Capitals in the Challenge Cup, and with Flyers winning the first meeting between the two sides 2 weeks ago, Edinburgh will be looking to revenge the defeat in their our rink.

“We always have a good travelling support, and we hope that we can get a few fans with us on Sunday in Edinburgh who will be getting behind the team on the ice, and we will be doing our damndest to make sure they go home happy again.” Dutiaume confirmed.

Fife Flyers take on Cardiff Devils on Saturday 8th October at Fife Ice Arena, face-off 7:15pm. Season tickets are valid for this EIHL match.