Deeside Dragons’ head coach Lol Paul labelled Sunday’s 6-4 victory at Altrincham Aces “a real character win”.
The Deesiders found themselves in the lead after just a minute at the Ice Dome, although the hosts equalised later in the opening period.
A two-way battle saw both sides swap momentum, with the final goal coming just before the end of the game – thanks to an Altrincham open net.
Paul believes a strong performance in the final session – when Deeside were handed a string of penalties – was the key to their latest Laidler Conference victory.
He said: “In the third period, we were five on three for six minutes and five on four for about five minutes. So I am really proud with how the guys handled it.
“It was a real character win from them and they showed great heart, especially in the third period. It was all the things you can’t teach them.
“You can run through drills and systems in training, but sometimes it is just down to pure grit and determination.”
Deeside scorers in Altrincham were Filip Supa (4), Aled Roberts and Alex Parry.
Paul added: “Everyone put in a good shift and the fact that we did it without Adrian Palak means we’ll be even stronger next time.
“To grind out a win like that will do a lot for their confidence. Sometimes you have to win ugly if you want to win the league, and we did that.
“The guys are starting to look like themselves again, which is great for this team.”
The Dragons are back in action next weekend, when they make the trip to face bottom side Bradford Bulldogs on Saturday (4.45pm).
