Kozak had been banned for fighting a Nottingham player last month

Hull Stingrays' Rick Kozak returned from a six-match ban to score two goals but failed to halt the club's poor start to the season at the weekend.

The Rays lost 7-4 at home to Nottingham on Saturday and 7-3 at Coventry in the Challenge Cup the following day.

Forward Kozak told BBC Radio Humberside that he was glad to be back: "I got side-swiped with the suspension stuff.

"It's good to be back with the boys and I'm looking forward to getting back into the hockey mentality."

We got back into the game [against Nottingham] and it was there for the taking but the boys got too excited when we should have been patient Hull Stingrays coach Rick Strachan

The Rays were 3-0 down at the end of the first period against Nottingham but hauled themselves back into the game to trail 5-4 just a minute into the final period after Kozak's brace and further strikes from Jeff Glowa and Matt Reynolds but the Panthers showed their class to go top of the table with two late goals.

Stingrays coach Rick Strachan had little difficulty in pointing the way to the seeds of the defeat.

"Three down after the first period didn't do us any favours.

"After that we got back into the game and it was there for the taking but the boys got too excited when we should have been patient.

"We would have got the equaliser because we had the all the game and the scoring chances kept coming but we let Nottingham have two breaks and they have the forwards to make you pay."

At Coventry in the Cup, Jason Kostadine gave Hull an early lead but the response came before the first-interval buzzer from Barrie Moore as the Blaze levelled. Steve Slonina netted for the Rays in the second period but the shots reigned in at the other end from the home side as they went 5-2 up.

That was an unassailable lead going into the final period and Coventry stretched it out to 7-2 before Ukrainian Pavel Gomenyuk wrapped up the scoring 21 seconds from time for Strachan's out-gunned side.