Challenge Cup: Cardiff Devils face hosts Belfast Giants in Wednesday’s final

This year’s Challenge Cup showdown has some similarities to the 2022 final – and not just the same teams facing each other in the same venue.

This season, just like in 2022, the Devils have struggled with injuries and their form has been erratic.

Since Cardiff won the Continental Cup in January, they have struggled in the league posting seven wins and eight losses.

In the same period the Giants have won ten and lost five and just like three years ago are league leaders.

So again, Cardiff go to Belfast very much as underdogs.

This Devils squad, now coached by Pete Russell, does seem though to have a knack of being able to pull out a result from nowhere.

In the middle of the recent dismal run of results Russell’s side overturned a two-goal deficit in the second leg of the Challenge Cup semi-final to beat Sheffield Steelers.

This team does not go away quietly.

“Yeah, definitely and there was the last group game of the Challenge Cup group when we were 4-0 down to Nottingham and we came back to win that,” said Batch.

“When we’re on our game, there’s a belief amongst us that we can beat anyone on any given day.

“The struggle for us has been finding that top performance consistently week to week, period to period.”

The Giants will take confidence from knowing that they have won all five meetings between them and Cardiff this season including two comprehensive wins in February.

Despite losing 4-1 then 6-0 in a Belfast-weekend double-header, Batch is quick to point out that the gap between the two last month was not as big as people might think.

“The game on the Friday in Belfast was a one-goal game before we pulled the goalie, we hit the crossbar so that could have gone either way really,” he said.

“They got a couple of empty net goals which made it a bit more flattering, but on the Saturday, we got shellacked, there’s no arguing that one.”

Batch, who recently passed the 800-mark for league appearances, is confident of a different outcome on Wednesday.

“Hopefully we’ve learnt a few things after our two games there a couple of weeks ago and we’re able to make a few adjustments to put us in a better position to win.

“And we also have a few more bodies back which is going to be useful because those games are very intense, very physical and you need all the energy you can get on the ice.”

“This game coming up, there’s a lot on the line. It’s a game everyone’s going to be up for on both sides.”