BELFAST Giants captain David Goodwin says they don't want to come away from Sheffield this weekend with any regrets - and ideally they'll be returning to Belfast International Airport with an extra passenger on Monday afternoon.
The league-leading Giants head to the Utilita Arena for a potentially season-defining double-header against the Sheffield Steelers tonight (7pm) and tomorrow (4pm) with only one point between the two sides at the top of the table heading into the penultimate weekend of the season, with plenty for both teams to gain and lose.
For the Giants, two wins - one of which has to be in regulation - would see them lift the Premier Sports Elite League trophy tomorrow. Lose both, however, and the Steelers could win the title with victory in Glasgow on Tuesday.
It is delicately poised between the two teams, who also meet in Belfast on Friday in a game that could yet prove important if they each win once this weekend, and Goodwin maintains they don't want to come away from Sheffield wondering 'what if?'
"There's been a buzz around the locker room this week. Guys are a bit more crisp, a bit more energetic knowing what's coming up this weekend," says the winger, who has scored 27 goals and 77 points this season for the Giants.
"We don't want to do too much different, we've got to this point doing what we do for a reason. There's similarities between this and the Challenge Cup final, we need to be more diligent in our day-to-day so we're ready to go come puck drop on Saturday.
"I want to make sure I'm at my absolute best come Saturday. I don't want there to be any regrets. I want to be as prepared as possible and lay it all on the line on Saturday both from an individual standpoint and as the leader of this team."
The head-to-head this season has seen the two sides face-off three times with the Steelers winning two and the Giants winning one, although the only other time they played in Sheffield the Giants were subjected to a heavy 7-1 loss.
But there is a steely focus within this team that means they are not concentrating on what has gone before, according to Goodwin, and instead they are only concentrating on one game at a time, starting with tonight.
"Personally, I'm viewing it as let's win on Saturday. We're not even worrying ourselves by trying to work out what we need in the standings, otherwise we could get distracted about looking ahead and not focusing on the job right in front of us," he insists.
"Keefer (head coach Adam Keefe) has done a great job of that this season, making sure we're only looking at the next game and making sure we have our minds solely on that.
"We are confident that if we win this game on Saturday, it'll be very tough to stop us getting the job done on Sunday. It's not a play-off mentality, it's a we have a big game on Saturday so let's get it done there mentality."
Goodwin did reserve some praise for their opponents, who led the league for the majority of the season before a brief stumble allowed the Giants to pull ahead, but the praise only went so far.
"They're a very dangerous, offensive team. We need to be dialled in from the very start, from puck drop, and we need to make sure we don't take any needless penalties. But most importantly we need to play confidently," adds the skipper.
"We absolutely feel if we bring our 'A' game, we will be bringing some hardware home on Monday."
