Man of the match Joey Haddad led the charge during Cardiff Devils 5-2 Elite League win against Guildford Flames at the Spectrum.

Power forward Haddad scored a penalty goal after nine minutes after he was tripped after skating through alone on goalie Chris Carrozzi.

Devils forward Haddad netted from the penalty shot and set Cardiff on the path to a fourth successive victory.

Kevin Phillips levelled the scored at 10-38, but Haddad struck again less than two minutes later and the visitors led 2-1 going into the second.

Rhett Rachinski tied the game for Flames on the powerplay at 23-20 with Andrew Hotham sitting in the penalty box for tripping, but Devils kept pressing and were clinical with their chances.

Justin Faryna (34-05), Layne Ulmer (48-13) and Joey Martin (49-51) completed the scoring and a 5-2 Devils away win.

“Cardiff does a great job taking advantage of their best opportunities and they certainly deserved to win,” said Flames coach Paul Dixon.

“I don’t think 5-2 was necessarily a good reflection of the game and when they led 3-2 we had some really high quality chances and hit a post.

“We gave a good effort against an extremely good team who lead the league. There is no reason to hang our heads.

Match stats:

Scorers, Flames: Kevin Phillips 1+0, Rhett Rachinski 1+0, Charles Wells 0+1, Mikael Lidhammer 0+1, Brett Ferguson 0+1, Geoff Walker 0+1.

Devils: Joey Haddad 2+1, Justin Faryna 1+0, Layne Ulmer 1+0, Joey Martin 1+1, Matt Pope 0+1, Paul Crowder 0+1, Bryce Reddick 0+1, Tyson Strachan 0+1, Matthew Myers 0+1, Josh Batch 0+1.

Period scores (Flames first): 1-2; 1-1 (2-3); 0-2 (2-5).

Shots on goal: Flames (on Bowns) 4+7+14=25; Devils (on Carrozzi) 9+12+14=35.

Penalties in minutes: Flames 4+4+4=12; Devils 2+2+2=6.

Penalty totals: Guildford Flames 12 minutes on 6 infractions Cardiff Devils 6 minutes on 3 infractions.

Powerplays: Flames 1/3; Devils 0/4.

Referee: Mike Hicks and Matt Thompson.

Attendance: 1,687

Stars of the game: Flames, Brett Ferguson; Devils, Joey Haddad.

Other Elite League results: Belfast Giants 6, Dundee Stars 4; Coventry Blaze 3, Manchester Storm 4; Edinburgh Capitals 2, Sheffield Steelers 7.

Brendan Connolly scored a hat-trick, including an empty netter, in Belfast’s 6-4 win against Dundee Stars, while Manchester Storm defeated Coventry Blaze 4-3.

Coach Ryan Finnerty and his Storm team have won seven successive matches.

David Phillips, Mathieu Roy and Ben O’Connor each registered three points as Sheffield Steelers defeated Edinburgh 7-2 at the Fly DSA Arena.

Nottingham Panthers have announced that head coach Corey Neilson will leave the club at the end of this season.

The 41-year-old will end a 12-year association with the club with whom he has enjoyed domestic and European success as a player and coach.

“My contract concludes at the end of this season and it’s been decided that it’s time for a change,” said Neilson. “I leave immensely proud of how far we’ve come and I thank all those fans who’ve supported me both in the good and bad times.”

Neilson is intent on winning a trophy in his final season in Nottingham, saying: “Catching Cardiff in the league is improbable, but making a great run and finishing second is a more realistic goal.

“We need to get on a big run of performances and earn a final play-off championship which would be the most fitting way to end my term. I’m committed to everything that needs to be done.

“Nottingham will always hold a special place in my heart. I will watch from afar and cheer the Panthers on.”

ELITE LEAGUE STANDINGS

Regular 2017/18

Rk	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	SOL	WPCT	Pts
1	Cardiff Devils	43	33	7	1	2	.802	69
2	Belfast Giants	44	29	13	2	0	.682	60
3	Manchester Storm	44	27	12	3	2	.670	59
4	Sheffield Steelers	42	25	14	2	1	.631	53
5	Fife Flyers	39	25	12	1	1	.667	52
6	Guildford Flames	43	23	14	4	2	.605	52
7	Nottingham Panthers	40	22	15	2	1	.588	47
8	Braehead Clan	44	19	21	3	1	.477	42
9	Dundee Stars	42	17	22	2	1	.440	37
10	Coventry Blaze	44	16	24	3	1	.409	36
11	Milton Keynes Lightning	43	15	27	1	0	.360	31
12	Edinburgh Capitals	42	4	37	0	1	.107	9