Ryan Tait says the Sheffield Steelers cannot afford to panic after Saturday night’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester Storm denied them the chance to move to the top of the Elite League.

The Steelers went into the game knowing victory would have put them at the summit, but despite enjoying long spells of possession and pressure, they were unable to find enough of a cutting edge in front of goal.

Tait admitted it was a frustrating opportunity missed.

“It was a good opportunity to cement ourselves at the top of the league,” he said.

“They’re a good team and they came out hard. I thought for a few periods we were dominating the run of play, but you switch off for one second and every team in this league can make you pay.

“Hockey is a momentum sport and they switched the momentum. We just couldn’t really find a way to finish and get it back on our side.”

Tait believes the Steelers are doing plenty of good work in the offensive zone, but need to be more direct when the chances arrive.

“We get a lot of offensive-zone possession time, but it’s just getting into the interior,” he explained.

“Teams know we like to possess the puck in the offensive zone, but we’ve got to penetrate and get to those hard areas.

“We did create some good chances and their goalie played very well, but at the end of the day it comes down to work ethic, compete and execution. I think we were just a little bit off.”

The forward also admitted that frustration can sometimes lead to players forcing the issue when goals are not coming.

“Everyone wants to score and we all want to help the team win,” he said. “You get paid to convert and create chances, so it’s tough when those don’t go in.

“When you’re trying so hard and you want to score, you can start gripping the stick a little bit.

“For myself, I thought things were going in and now they’re kind of not, so you just have to relax, trust yourself and stay confident.”

Despite the disappointment, Tait insists there will be no overreaction inside the Steelers dressing room.

“It’s a long season,” he added.

“We’ve got to stick with it. We can’t hit the panic button. We’ve got to learn from our mistakes and try to get better.”