Leeds Knights 5 Sheffield Steeldogs 4: Knights enjoy home comforts over Steeldogs - but the main event is still to come

The Knights looked to be cruising to their first win on home ice in 2025-26 against their Yorkshire rivals when they took a 3-0 first period lead.

The Steeldogs hit back and were level inside five minutes of the third period however, the teams exchanging further goals before Oli Endicott popped up to seal a 5-4 win 68 seconds remaining.

Ahead of Saturday’s games, the win lifted the Knights above Hull Seahawks into third and just one point off second-placed Steeldogs.

Both men came into the game missing key individuals, with both coaches no doubt having one eye on the second leg of the NIHL National Cup Final which takes place at Ice Sheffield on Wednesday with the Steeldogs 3-1 ahead.

The Knights certainly came out of the blocks fastest and took an early lead when a long pass out from Danny Harrison was picked up by Endicott who rounded the net to set up Finley Bradon to beat Brady Parker five-hole at 1.45.

The Knights doubled their lead when Sam Cooper won the puck in the Steeldogs’ zone before quickly setting up Matt Bissonnette to fire home from the left circle at 14.56.

With just seconds of the period remaining, Bradon then took the puck from Harrison before blasting down the middle and beating Parker over his left shoulder to make it 3-0 – netminder Sam Gospel also picking up an assist.

The Steeldogs got themselves back in the game when a speculative effort from former Knights forward Michael Danecko off the left boards seemed to catch Gospel out at his near post in the 26th minute.

An indication, perhaps, of how careful both teams were being on the night - given what is at stake in midweek - came when the first penalty of the game wasn’t called until the 38th minute, Bradon sent to the box for holding.

The game had opened up more during the second half of the second period, though, and that trend continued into the third, the Steeldogs benefitting the most initially when Liam Steele showed his quality when working an opening for himself to beat Gospel from 10 yards and make it a one-goal game at 41.04.

Just over three minutes later, the Steeldogs were level when Ivan Björkly-Nordström was allowed time and space to beat Gospel down low to his right.

It was the Knights who struck next, Balint Pakozdi tipping in from Sam Dunn’s blast on the power play at 53.18.

But the Steeldogs levelled again when coach Slava Koulikov’s gamble of pulling Parker with more than five minutes to go paid off.

With Bailey Perre in the box on a slashing call, it gave the visitors a 6-on-4 power play, one that produced just over a minute in when Joonas Larinmaa scored in a similar fashion to how Danecko had earlier when he beat Gospel at his near post from out wide.

Overtime beckoned until a bit of quick-thinking settled the game once and for all.

Owen Sobchak nutmegged Nathan Ripley from a face-off in the right-circle before quickly sliding the puck to Endicott who showed neat hands to back-hand the puck over Parker from close-range.

Parker was pulled for a second time, but there was no way back for the visitors second time around.