Elite League leaders Cardiff Devils suffered their first regulation time defeat for two months, going down 6-4 against Nottingham Panthers away.
Head coach Andrew Lord will expect a major reaction from his players when title rivals Fife Flyers play at Ice Arena Wales in Cardiff Bay this evening (Sunday, 6pm).
Devils have been on an astonishing run and now their task is to build again.
They were four goals down after the first period in Nottingham and Panthers coach Corey Neilson said: “We looked relentless, really wanted it.
“There was a whole bunch of desperation and a deserved win for a team who needed one.”
A terrible opening period left Devils in trouble, but they won both the second and third periods to make a fight of it.
Tim Billingsley opened the scoring after only 47 seconds, while Robert Farmer (11-57), David Clarke (14-46) and Raphael Bussieres (18-11) strengthened Panthers grip on the match.
Larne Ulmer pulled one back from a Joey Martin pass midway through the second, while Devils scored three goals in the final 20 minutes.
Devils found themselves killing a 5v3 penalty, but despite that Joey Martin was awarded a penalty shot at 43-13 after breaking free during the penalty-kill. He scored to make it 4-2 and give the Devils some hope.
Panthers remained on the two-man advantage and Clarke netted his second to restore their three-goal lead at 43-47.
Sean Bentivoglio scored on the powerplay with six minutes to play and then, with goalie Ben Bowns pulled, Matthew Myers scored at 59-06 to pull Devils within a goal.
Jeff Brown ended their comeback hopes when he netted into the empty net with 18 seconds left on the clock.
Match stats:
Scorers, Panthers: Tim Billingsley 1+0, Robert Farmer 1+1, David Clarke 2+0, Raphael Bussieres 1+1, Jeff Brown 1+2, Steven Lee 0+1, Dan Spang 0+1, Brett Perini 0+1, Mark Derlago 0+1, Alexander Mokshantsev 0+1, Mathieu Brisebois 0+1, Robert Lachowicz 0+1.
Devils: Layne Ulmer 1+0, Joey Martin 1+1, Sean Bentivoglio 1+1, Matthew Myers 1+0, Matt Pope 0+2, Andrew Hotham 0+1, Patrick Asselin 0+1.
Period scores (Panthers first): 0-4; 0-1 (4-1); 2-3 (4-6).
Shots on goal: Panthers (on Bowns) 17+14+9=40; Devils (on Galbraith) 5+7+20=32.
Penalties in minutes: Panthers 0+9+4=13; Devils 2+9+6=17.
Powerplays: Panthers 2/6; Devils 2/4.
Attendance: 6,555
Referee: Jan Schmejkal and Matt Thompson.
Stars of the game: Panthers, David Clarke; Devils, Joey Martin.
Note: delayed penalty to Myers for high sticks wiped out by Nottingham’s 4th goal at 18.11.
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Other results: Belfast Giants 7, Coventry Blaze 2; Braehead Clan 4, Edinburgh Capitals 3; Fife Flyers 6, Dundee Stars 7 (after overtime and penalty shots); Manchester Storm 3, Milton Keynes Lightning 1; Sheffield Steelers 7, Guildford Flames 3.
Sunday fixtures: Cardiff Devils v Fife Flyers (6pm), Coventry Blaze v Manchester Storm (5.15pm), Dundee Stars v Braehead Clan (6.30pm), Edinburgh Capitals v Sheffield Steelers (6pm), Guildford Flames v Belfast Giants (6pm), MIlton Keynes Lightning v Nottingham Panthers (6pm).
ELITE LEAGUE STANDINGS
| Rk | Team | GP | W | L | WPCT | Pts |
| 1 | Cardiff Devils | 34 | 25 | 7 | .765 | 52 |
| 2 | Belfast Giants | 36 | 25 | 10 | .708 | 51 |
| 3 | Fife Flyers | 31 | 22 | 8 | .726 | 45 |
| 4 | Sheffield Steelers | 34 | 20 | 11 | .632 | 43 |
| 5 | Manchester Storm | 35 | 19 | 11 | .614 | 43 |
| 6 | Guildford Flames | 35 | 18 | 11 | .600 | 42 |
| 7 | Nottingham Panthers | 33 | 19 | 11 | .621 | 41 |
| 8 | Braehead Clan | 36 | 15 | 17 | .472 | 34 |
| 9 | Coventry Blaze | 36 | 14 | 18 | .444 | 32 |
| 10 | Dundee Stars | 34 | 13 | 18 | .426 | 29 |
| 11 | Milton Keynes Lightning | 35 | 13 | 21 | .386 | 27 |
| 12 | Edinburgh Capitals | 35 | 4 | 30 | .129 | 9 |