COVENTRY Blaze suffered a fourth defeat from six Elite League matches after losing 5-2 against Nottingham Panthers.
Goals from Matthew Gleason and Grayson Constable proved in vain as Blaze slipped to defeat at Motorpoint Arena.
The result means Coventry sit eighth in the Elite League table.
Both teams exchanged early chances as Panthers netminder Kevin Carr twice denied Constable inside the opening five minutes.
The game burst into life at 4.39 as Didrik Henbrant opened the scoring for Nottingham with a shot from the blue line.
However, Blaze equalised just 14 seconds later when Gleason’s effort deflected off a Panthers stick and past Carr in the Nottingham net.
The home side reclaimed the lead at 12.04 as Chase Pearson scored on the powerplay to leave Blaze one goal behind at the end of the first period.
And Nottingham struck again at 21.33 when Mitch Fossier’s one-timer extended the Panthers’ lead.
Blaze responded at 25.31 as Constable redirected Connor Russell’s shot past Carr to reduce the deficit.
Coventry failed to convert a couple of powerplay opportunities before the end of the second period as Carr stood tall to keep Nottingham in front.
And the home side restored their two-goal cushion at 40.39 courtesy of Brendan Harris’s solo effort.
Consecutive penalties proved costly for Blaze later in the half as Ross Armour completed the scoring for Nottingham at 50.45 on the powerplay.
Coventry are next in action against Guildford Flames on Wednesday, November 5 with the face-off at 7.30pm at the Skydome Arena.
