Exciting opportunity opens up for this Sheffield Steelers forward

Owens was suspended for three games after a high-hit last Saturday and completes is suspension against Belfast Giants and Cardiff Devils this weekend.

It's not the weekend anybody in sheffield would have picked to be without Owens.

Barrasso said: "It is never easy to take a top six player from your line up.

"Owens' absence provides an opportunity for (Tom) Zanoski to step up his game and show us if he is capable of not just providing offence, but being able to shut down other teams' top lines, defensively."

Barrasso knows the scale of the challenge ahead, but says: "Our team has played very hard against Belfast. All of the games have been very close affairs.

"We have had less success against Cardiff.

"(But) I believe the players are committed to the work required to compete against these two teams. It will be a demanding weekend."

Steelers back-room staff are keeping an eye on the fitness of Jonas Westerling, who suffered a head injury last Sunday at Manchester Storm.

"He is optimistic about his chances to play the weekend" said the coach.