The Southern Stampede's season is back on track and coach Steve Reid hopes his side can continue its good form for the last double-header at home this weekend.
The Queenstown players come off a competition bye, but a weekend spent in Tekapo playing for the historic Erewhon Cup means they are fresh off the ice and hungry for wins against the Botany Swarm.
The cup has been going for 75 years and the Stampede grabbed first and second place at the 10-team tournament as the over-23s beat their younger team-mates 8-2.
"It was a big sigh of relief for the old heads in the team and it'll leave the young guys hungry for another year," Reid said.
"The Erewhon Cup is near and dear to a lot of the boys and it was a good weekend for the boys to not only play a bit of light-relief hockey, but let their hair down a bit too."
The Stampede is second from bottom in the national league and still has some serious ground to make up if it is to grab a place in the final.
Reid said the Auckland-based Swarm was one of the most unpredictable teams in the competition. The key to beating a side loaded with Ice Blacks was to keep the pressure on them and keep the puck in the opposition half.
He saw only positives two weeks ago when the Stampede beat the Dunedin Thunder 6-3 and 6-2 and has felt confident since.
The "clean weekend" has meant no suspensions or injuries for the Stampede. This weekend, Callum Burns and Max Macharg are available after returning from a youth development camp in Canada.
Reid is quietly hoping the Thunder and Red Devils will split their double-header in Christchurch, enhancing the Stampede's chances of moving up the table.
