Andrew Lord returns to the ice for Cardiff Devils in their final Elite League match of the season this evening.

Player-coach Lord took part in the warm-up before Devils 8-1 win against Belfast Giants on Saturday, but was on the bench for the match.

Now, though, Lord has confirmed he will play against Milton Keynes Lightning at Ice Arena Wales in Cardiff Bay tonight (Sunday, 6pm).

The Canadian forward has stepped back from playing over the second half of this season, but has been training hard and wants to be ready if he is needed over the next couple of weeks.

Lord will also meet Devils supporters after the match, signing autographs and posing for photographs.

League champions Devils play MK Lightning to complete their regular season fixtures, while they play Coventry Blaze in the play-off quarter-finals next weekend.

Blaze host the first leg at their Skydome Arena on Good Friday, April 30 (7.30pm), while the return is at the IAW on Sunday, April 1 (6pm).

Cardiff had eight different goalscorers in their 8-1 win against Giants last night, while they shut out Belfast’s powerplay.

Devils did not concede against seven Giants powerplays, while the Welsh team broke down the visiting penalty kill to score four goals from seven opportunities.

“The guys played great tonight,” said Lord. “They played hard, details were great and it’s fun to be involved when they play with that pace, intensity and puck management.

“We are a really good team with everybody going like that.

“It’s eight days since we won the League title and it feels like weeks already.”

Lord described the performance of Josh Batch as ‘phenomenal’, while Toms Rutkiss hit good form.

“Drew Paris was great, while Paul Crowder is getting his swagger back, his confidence back,” said Lord. “Ben Bowns was extremely good, particularly on the powerplay,

“We gave up too many shots at times, but Bownsy gives guys so much confidence. He’s confident, big, composed and reads the game so well.

“His hockey IQ is getting better and better, while he knows the shooters around the league so well now. That’s another factor that helps him subconsciously.”

Final Elite League regular season fixtures 2017-18, all being played on Sunday, March 25: Belfast Giants v Dundee Stars, Coventry Blaze v Guildford Flames, Manchester Storm v Sheffield Steelers, Cardiff Devils v MK Lightning, Edinburgh Capitals v Nottingham Panthers.

There are only 24 tickets left for today’s clash with Lightning. Tickets for the match on Sunday or the play-off quarter-final home leg can be purchased by CLICKING HERE or by ringing 0800 0842 666.

ELITE LEAGUE STANDINGS

Regular 2017/18 – all teams play 56 matches

Rk	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	SOL	WPCT	Pts
1	Cardiff Devils	55	40	12	1	2	.755	83
2	Manchester Storm	55	35	15	3	2	.682	75
3	Sheffield Steelers	55	33	19	2	1	.627	69
4	Nottingham Panthers	55	32	18	2	3	.627	69
5	Belfast Giants	55	33	20	2	0	.618	68
6	Fife Flyers	56	33	21	1	1	.607	68
7	Guildford Flames	55	29	17	5	4	.609	67
8	Coventry Blaze	55	25	25	4	1	.500	55
9	Braehead Clan	56	24	26	5	1	.482	54
10	Dundee Stars	55	22	29	3	1	.436	48
11	Milton Keynes Lightning	55	20	33	1	1	.382	42
12	Edinburgh Capitals	55	5	49	0	1	.100	11