DOUG CHRISTIANSEN'S Capitals bit the Elite League play-off dust last night – but his troops went down fighting.
Now Christiansen's priority is to sit down with Edinburgh owner Scott Neil and talk about his future.
The rookie director of coaching has guided the Murrayfield men into the play-offs, the last four of the Knockout Cup and to a club-record poi
nts tally.
And, if a few bounces had gone Capitals' way last night during the 3-2 defeat to Coventry Blaze at The Skydome – which completed a 4-2 aggregate loss – then it could have been Edinburgh facing Newcastle Vipers in the play-off semi-final at Nottingham on Saturday.
Christiansen, who turns 30 on May 23, has undoubtedly raised the profile of Capitals but admitted: "There is nothing left in the tank and, at the end of the day, that's all you can ask.
"The guys gave everything. Just like it's been since early December, the guys played with heart and they dug deep. Unfortunately, if we had had one or two bounces going the other way we may have won, but it was not meant to be."
The loss of Mike Stutzel in Saturday's 1-0 defeat by the treble-chasing Midlands club at the Riversdale rink, was a massive blow. The 29-year-old's eyeball was scratched in a freak accident as Ben O'Conner and the former Phoenix Coyotes forward tussled for the puck with an opposing player.
The Blaze man's stick struck Stutzel and it was a bitter blow for the popular playmaker, who is expected to hang up his skates and move into the mortgage business in North America.
To lose a player of his calibre was also a major setback for Capitals on special teams.
Stutzel is second in Capitals' individual scoring charts and has dovetailed well with linemates Colin Hemingway and Martin Cingel.
The player travelled with the team to Coventry to support the cause but it would have been so much easier with him in the side.
Christiansen said: "The guys did a fantastic job but we had a number of power players and, possibly if we'd had Mike (Stutzel) then it might have been a different story. Injuries are part of sport and the most important thing is that Mike (Stutzel) will have his vision.
"He has cuts on his eyeball. They will heal."
Looking back at the action, Christiansen said: "We were still in the game at 2-2 but when they scored that third goal we did not respond."
Capitals played seven forwards against Blaze and, in the third period, iron man Adam Stefishen received a ten-minute misconduct which made the task even tougher. Christiansen added: "We worked hard and did all the things we could have done.
"As I told the guys, I was extremely proud of the effort we had out there.
"They gave 100 per cent. It's unfortunate for us that we didn't turn it on until December but I'm thankful for the effort the guys made. It's been a special time for me."
The club travelled with optimism for last night's second leg but Capitals suffered an early blow.
Barrie Moore scored short-handed after 2min 16sec to put the newly-crowned league and Knockout Cup champions 2-0 ahead on aggregate. Never-say-die Capitals refused to buckle and Christiansen netted on the power play just under five minutes later.
Hemingway and skipper Martin Cingel assisted on the goal but Capitals' joy was short lived as former Scottish Eagles and Fife Flyers hit-man Jonathan Weaver netted on the power play in the tenth minute.
Back came Capitals and Hemingway's 41st goal of the season brought them back into contention. Edinburgh-born Ross Dalgleish and defenceman Ryan Crane helped set up the strike.
However, it was all over when Danny Stewart scored Coventry's go-ahead goal in the 36th minute to take the aggregate score to 4-2.
On Saturday, Capitals lost a tight game at Murrayfield.
Having qualified for the post-season play-offs for the first time, they were in no mood to make it easy for coach Paul Thompson's men.
The opening session was goalless but Blaze stepped up the pace in the middle session and had far more of the play.
They were rewarded at 29min 38sec as Curtis Huppe's 36th goal of the season hit the rigging. The assists came from Sylvain Cloutier and Barrie Moore.
Capitals upped the pressure in the third and the play became chippy but Coventry No.1 Trevor Koenig was in unbeatable form however and, despite all Capital's efforts, the home side were unable to beat the All-Star goaltender.
He had 29 shots to deal with while his opposite number, JF Perras, had 33. Disappointingly, Capitals failed to convert any of their five power plays, which proved costly. Coventry failed on three opportunities when they had a man over.
Elsewhere in the play-offs, Edinburgh-born player-coach Tony Hand was also eliminated 9-8 on aggregate despite Manchester Phoenix drawing 4-4 with Sheffield Steelers in the second leg last night.
The Steelers square up to Cardiff Devils in the last four.
The full article contains 874 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
