Coventry Blaze ended their Challenge Cup campaign with a 2-1 win over Manchester Storm at the AO Arena on Friday night. It was Coventry’s first visit to Storm’s new home.
Brett Perlini opened the scoring at 13:11, reacting quickly after Connor Russell’s attempt from the point was intercepted before shooting past the Manchester netminder from an angle. The second period was scoreless.
Matthew Gleason doubled Coventry’s lead 86 seconds into the third period, deflecting Nick Grima’s shot into the net at 41:26. Manchester cut the deficit at 56:06 through Kyle Locke, setting up a tense finish, but could not find another goal. Coventry held on to secure the victory in their final Challenge Cup game of the season.