Leeds Knights 3 Sheffield Steeldogs 2: Knights edged out derby rivals to book place in NIHL National play-off final

Matt Bissonnette scored the winning goal in the third period, the Knights twice coming from behind and then holding off strong pressure from the Steeldogs to see the game out.

Once again, the Knights were reliant on three juniors to bulk out their gameday roster, Evan Bradon, Josh Hartley and Jake Wigginton reprising the roles they had last weekend when the Knights sealed top spot in Group B with wins over Milton Keynes Lightning.

The Steeldogs were more or less at full strength but, as the Lithgning found out last week, the body count was largely irrelevant.

Saying that, the Steeldogs got off to the perfect start when, just 36 seconds in, Nathan Ripley fired through traffic, the puck seeming to take a deflection past Sam Gospel and into the roof of the net.

As a shell-shocked Leeds tried to gather themselves, they almost fell 2-0 behind, only for Bailey Yates’ second-minute effort from the the bottom of the right-circle to cannon off the foot of Gospel’s left-hand post.

After killing a penalty for a slashing call on Finley Bradon, Leeds’ first chance came in the fifth minute when Oli Endicott forced Dmitri Zimozdra into a sharp save with his left pad.

But it wasn’t long before the teams were level.

Just after a rampaging Liam Steele had been denied by Gospel, Kieran Brown broke down the left, rounded the net before coming out with a clear sight of goal in centre ice, his effort through traffic looping up off Zimozdra’s right shoulder and, under pressure from Bálint Pákozdi, the puck bouncing over the line.

The goal was credited to the Knights’ captain after a video review.

Leeds came into the game more, although the best they could muster were a couple of long-range efforts from Sam Dunn which were comfortably dealt with by Zimozdra.

Brady Doxey was denied by Gospel after creating space for himself at the bottom of the left circle, the Knights’ stopper then having to be alert to deny Steele from the other side of the ice.

Liam Peyton ran out of room after darting towards goal from the right boards, the puck breaking to Bair Gendunov who was denied when Gospel met him head on to smother the puck.

It was another poor start to a period that saw Leeds fall behind a second time.

Gospel had already been asked to make back-to-back saves, first from Jonathan Kirk and then Kyle Watson, but he could do nothing to stop Steel’s blast into the roof of the net from the right circle at 20.50.

The Steeldogs ran into penalty trouble around the halfway point, first Yates for tripping and then Zimozdra for the same infraction, one which cost his team when Brown fired past him at his near post into the roof of the net from the right circle for a power play equaliser at 31.25.

There was genuine concern a few minutes later when Gendunov drove down centre ice and, as he tried to round Gospel, the two collided.

After some attention from the medics, the Knights goalie got to his feet.

There were fewer chances in the third as the pace relented slightly, Sommer fired into Gospel before the crucial moment came at the other end.

Bow Neely worked the puck over to Sam Cooper at the top of the right circle, he unleashed a shot through traffic which Zimozdra saved, only for the puck to come loose and drop kindly for Bissonnette to tap home at 47.42.

The Steeldogs pushed hard in the last 10 minutes or so but it was the other end where a goal nearly came.

Brown looked certain seal his hat-trick and put some added breathing space between the two teams when he combined with Sobchak in a 2-on-1 but was somehow denied from close range by a stunning save from Zimozdra with around two minutes remaining.

The goalie was pulled soon after, but the Knights held firm, twice coming close to scoring an empty-net insurance marker - including hitting the post with one long-range effort - but Bissonnette’s strike proved to be enough.