NOTTINGHAM Panthers players were back on the ice today after a well-earned day off.

Despite starting with two fine victories against highly-rated Belfast (4-3) and Coventry (7-4) last weekend, player-coach Corey Neilson saw plenty to work on this week.

Panthers face Cardiff Devils at the National Ice Centre on Saturday (7pm) before Sunday's trip to Dundee.

And Neilson says he will be looking for an improvement in specific areas.

"Before last weekend, we worked hard on getting the guys to knows their jobs when they didn't have the puck," he said.

"We developed that and succeeded in getting them to play without the puck in the offensive zone.

"But we are still not too good at defending the opposition non-puck carriers and are working on that.

"To be honest, we made a ton of mistakes but I'm proud that we did so well to cover up those errors.

"The relentless pressure we put on the other teams is paying off for us.

"And what was particularly pleasing was that we won all the battles on the boards, which is not usually our strength.

"But it's not all grind as we have a nice balance with our top-end finesse guys."

Panthers two tough guys, last signing Guillaume Lepine, aged 23, and Alex Penner, 24, have come in for some praise from Neilson for adding more to the team than just the intimidation factor.

In terms of what jobs they do, they are both relatively young and Neilson said: "Lepine came in late, but from what I have seen already, he completes the puzzle.

"I have the experience to help him along and develop, but he has come in and added a lot to our blue line."

Neilson says Penner, who had a fight in each of the first two games, reminds him of former Coventry and Newcastle forward Andre Payette.

"Penner is a real character, just like the old Payette," said Neilson.

"He is getting the opportunity to play big minutes for us because he's doing well. He will get points, no doubt about that."

And Neilson also issued a veiled warning to the other teams. He added: "Right now, Penner is playing as disciplined and controlled as I want him to play, right on the edge."