Dundee Stars coach Omar Pacha is pleased to see his team back in the play-off running
Dundee Stars coach Omar Pacha says losing to Braehead Clan was not an option as they gave their play-off hopes a massive shot in the arm.
Their first win in eight games moved them to within three points of eighth spot, currently occupied by the Clan, who have now lost four in a row.
And Pacha praised the effort put in.
"It was no secret it was the biggest game of the year for us and we knew this weekend would be massive," he said.
"We played a good game on Friday (losing 3-1 to Nottingham Panthers), but didn't get the result so we had to go out on Saturday and leave it all out there.
"I'm proud of the guys for what they did. They battled hard for the whole game and it's a huge win that keeps us in the race.
"It wasn't an option to lose against Braehead and with 10 games left, we're in with a chance to be in there right to the end."
The Stars are still tenth in the table, with Coventry Blaze in between them as the race for the top eight intensifies in the final weeks of the regular season.
Their loss to the Panthers on Friday was the latest setback, despite good spells of play in the game that saw Jordan Cownie open the scoring for Dundee in the 3-1 loss.
Panthers hit back through Raphael Bussieres, Eric Lindhagen and Mike Vaskivuo and their three-game trip to Scotland started with two points on the board.
Stars made their way to Glasgow on Saturday in a must-win game and finally ended that long, miserable run with a 4-3 win to put Braehead's play-off hopes in jeopardy.
Dundee struck first through Chris Lawrence after 50 seconds, but Adam Brace had levelled by the end of the first before putting the Clan in front early in the second.
Jimmy Jensen equalised before Brace completed his hat-trick to put them in front going into the third period, but two from Marc-Olivier Mimar turned the game for Stars to take the win.
The result leaves Braehead with four straight defeats and looking to turn it around when they take on Sheffield Steelers next Saturday.
Fife Flyers celebrated their Gardiner Conference win when they were presented with the trophy at the conclusion of their nail-biting penalty shots win over Panthers on Saturday.
Carlo Finucci and Ricards Birzins traded goals with Dan Spang and Evan Mosey of Nottingham in the first period before Brett Perlini edged the visitors in front.
Fife hit back as Finucci not only made it 3-3 with an equaliser, but put them ahead in the third, only for Vaskivuo to draw level again in the final minutes.
The game went to penalty shots, where Peter LeBlanc scored the only one to take the result for the Flyers as they were presented with the Gardiner Conference trophy afterwards.
Todd Dutiaume's side went to Sheffield to face the Steelers on Sunday, but it was a more sobering experience as they went down 8-1.
Injuries depleted their line-up, with four missing from Saturday's game and another two added to the casualty list, including netminder Andy Iles on a forgettable night.
Steelers went seven up without reply, including two from Colton Fretter before Fife got one on the board by James Isaacs. Tim Wallace tied up the result late on for Sheffield.
Nottingham Panthers concluded their weekend in Scotland with a visit to Edinburgh Capitals at Murrayfield, 24 hours after another English team were humbled there in the Six Nations.
But the chances of another Scottish triumph in the shadow of the stadium never looked on as Panthers completed their triple header in emphatic style.
It finished 10-1 and was another night to forget for the Caps faithful as Nottingham went 5-0 after the first, with a double from Jeff Brown among the goals.
While Edinburgh held their own for much of the second, three late goals quickly turned a rout into a shellacking, with Luke Pither, Mathieu Gagnon and Ollie Betteridge all on target.
Josh Tetlow and Robert Lachowicz took the score into double figures, with Ainars Podzins hitting back with a consolation for the Caps.
WEEKEND RESULTS (all league games unless stated)
Friday
Dundee Stars 1-3 Nottingham Panthers
Saturday
Braehead Clan 3-4 Dundee Stars
Fife Flyers 5-4 Nottingham Panthers (PS)
Sunday
Edinburgh Capitals 1-10 Nottingham Panthers
Sheffield Steelers 8-1 Fife Flyers
