It's well done Weldon as he closes in on 400 appearances

The hard-working forward is fast closing in on the milestone of 400 appearances for the city club. He currently sits on 393 according to the sport’s online database ‘Elite Prospects’.

Weldon, now 25, joined Phantoms as a teenager and has become part of the furniture at Planet Ice.

His lengthy stint in Bretton has included the high of play-off glory in 2015 and the low of agonisingly missing out on silverware last term.

He insists there is no pressure on a young roster in the current campaign, but also reckons they possess the quality to challenge for honours.

“I came here as an 18 year-old and it is a great place to play,” said Weldon.

“Put it this way, I’m never looking to play hockey anywhere else as long as I’m wanted in Peterborough.

“I’m 25 now and I’m already up in the top five on the all-time appearance list for Phantoms.

“That’s not the sort of thing you spend too much time thinking about, but it’s certainly something I can be proud about when I take a step back.

“It was a huge disappointment for everyone to walk away from last season empty-handed, but it is a different situation this season.

“We have a young roster with an average age of around 21 so there is no pressure on us, but we’re already into a semi-final in one cup, we’re climbing the league table and we’re winning games of hockey.

“I certainly don’t feel we are out of the conversation when talking about teams capable of winning the title, but I’m also happy for us to go under the radar for as long as possible.”

Weldon modestly described himself as ‘someone who doesn’t expect to get noticed’ during the course of this interview, but his contribution so far this season has certainly caught the eye of Phanoms’ head coach Slava Koulikov.

Speaking after the 13-1 demolition of Invicta last Sunday, Koulikov said: “I could sit here and praise many guys right now, but no-one has been more impressive than Will.

“He has been absolutely amazing so far this season and every single guy in that locker room appreciates the jobs he does for the team.

“We’re not just talking about his goals and assists, but blocking shots, back-checking, winning his individual battles, double-shifting and being a great role model for all of our younger guys in the team.”