Coventry Blaze coach Danny Stewart insists it’s too soon to start talking about his team’s identity as they started their pre-season campaign.
The Skydome side lost both games to Nottingham Panthers over the weekend, but Stewart was upbeat by what he saw from his team.
And he reserved special praise for the staff at Coventry’s rink after an issue with the ice put Sunday’s game in doubt at one point.
“It was a good work out for us,” he said. “We’ve had four skates together as a team and due to unforeseen circumstances, we couldn’t get on the ice on Friday, which I’ve has never happened.
“A lot of credit should go to the Planet Ice staff for getting the game on and working hard to make it happen. We could have been in trouble if the game couldn’t have gone ahead.
WATCH: Coventry coach Danny Stewart post game on Sunday
“For the games, we showed some good stuff early on, but there was some obvious pre-season mistakes which is normal. We also fatigued a bit at times and it will take time to gel.
“We didn’t give up too much, which was good for us and for the most part, we skated and competed well, but the little things will come.
“We’ve got a lot of new faces and we have a team that can skate and we haven’t lost too much speed. There’s still a lot to learn abut these guys as a group so it’s too soon to start talking about an identity.
“There’s a lot to cover in a week so we didn’t get through it all. We were meant to cover powerplays, but had to cancel the practice on Friday so the first one they got was tonight. They didn’t get one on Saturday.
“Once the guys get on the same page, they can make better reads as they get to know each other. It’s only pre-season.”
