Elite Ice Hockey League

Rapid Solicitors Elite Ice Hockey League
2023–24 EIHL season
Sport	Ice Hockey
Founded	2003
Inaugural season	2003–04
No. of teams	10
Continent	Europe
Most recent champion(s)	Sheffield Steelers
Most championship(s)	Belfast Giants Sheffield Steelers (6 titles)
TV partner(s)	Premier Sports
Official website	eliteleague.co.uk

The Elite Ice Hockey League is a professional ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level of ice hockey competition in the United Kingdom.

The league currently consists of ten teams, with representation from all four Home Nations - the only league in any sport to do so. In seven completed seasons, the league has been won by three different teams. As of the 2012-13 Season the league will feature a northern conference (Gardiner Conference, named for Scottish-born former NHL goalie Charlie Gardiner) featureing Braehead (SCO), Dundee (SCO), Edinburgh (SCO), Fife (SCO) and Hull (ENG) and a Southern conference (Erhardt Conference, named for 1936 English Olympic Hockey Gold Medalist Carl Erhardt) featuring Belfast (NIR), Cardiff (WAL), Coventry (ENG), Nottingham (ENG) and Sheffield (ENG). Teams play each team in their conference 4 times at home and 4 times away from home, and each team in the other conference twice at home and twice away.

Since 2012, the ten teams are split into two conferences, Gardiner and Erhardt – while previously all 10 teams competed in a single division, similar to most British sports. The top eight teams in the overall league standings qualify for the Elite League playoffs. The Elite League post-season is considerably shorter than playoff tournaments in North America; in the first round teams play a two-leg game (one home, one away) and the semi-finals and final take place over the course of a single weekend at the National Ice Centre in Nottingham.

Overview

Several competitions fall under the jurisdiction of the Elite League. In 2006–07, the EIHL ran a total of four competitions: the league, playoffs, Challenge Cup and Knockout Cup. The league consists of a single division, each team playing three home games and three away games against the other teams in the league. Two points are awarded for a win and one for an overtime or penalty shootout defeat. Overtime consists of five minutes of four-on-four hockey and ends immediately if a goal is scored. The team that has most points after all fixtures are completed is declared champion.

After the regular season is complete, the teams with the best regular season records enter the playoffs, the winner of which receives the British Championship. The number of teams competing in the playoffs has varied, the first two seasons saw six teams qualify, while the demise of the London Racers in November 2005 saw all eight teams qualify. Prior to the 2006–07 season, the teams were divided into two groups, with the members of each group playing on a round-robin basis. The top two teams in each group qualify for the semi-finals, which are straight knockout matches. However, since the 2006–07 season, the top eight teams of the regular season have qualified for the quarter-finals with the team finishing first playing the eighth-placed team, second vs seventh, third vs sixth and fourth vs fifth, with all ties being played on a two-legged, home and away game basis with the four winners qualifying for the semi-finals. Both the semi-finals and the final take place over a single weekend in April at the National Ice Centre in Nottingham.

The Challenge Cup has taken a number of different formats, ranging from a table formed from the results of designated league fixtures to four team groups played on a round-robin basis at the beginning of the season. The semi finals and final are two-legged games, the winner being the team with the highest aggregate score at the end of the second game.

The Knockout Cup was created in 2005 after the London Racers withdrew from the league. The Cup is a knockout tournament in which teams are randomly drawn to face one another in two-legged games, with aggregate scoreline determining the winner of each tie.

The Elite League is governed by a board of ten directors: the owners of the eight participating teams, plus the owners of the London Racers and Milton Keynes Lightning, who maintain the right to join the league without making an application. The day-to-day operation of the league is overseen by Chairman Eamon Convery and Director of Hockey Andy French. Disciplinary matters are handled by Director of Discipline and former referee Simon Kirkham. The level below the Elite League is the English Premier Ice Hockey League. A system of promotion and relegation is not operated by the Elite League; teams enter the league on the basis of a decision by the Board of Directors. In 2006 the Hull Stingrays, the club which finished eighth in the EPIHL during the 2005–06 season, were elected into the Elite League.

At the end of the 2008-09 season, two teams, the Basingstoke Bison and Manchester Phoenix, withdrew from the EIHL largely due to financial difficulties.

History

British ice hockey's structure underwent major reorganisation in 1996. The British Hockey League (the highest senior competition since 1982) was disbanded and replaced by the Ice Hockey Superleague and British National League.

The loss of the Cardiff Devils and Newcastle Jesters in 2001 reduced the membership of the Superleague to seven and when the Manchester Storm and Scottish Eagles collapsed within a week of one another at the beginning of the 2002–03 season, there were just five remaining teams. In December 2002, the Bracknell Bees announced their intention to resign from the league to join the BNL at the end of the season and uncertainty surrounded the future of the London Knights and their London Arena home. Owing a large debt to Ice Hockey UK and facing the prospect of having only three members, the league put itself into liquidation on 30 April 2003.

The three remaining clubs (the Belfast Giants, Nottingham Panthers and Sheffield Steelers) began considering the formation of a new league with a lower wage cap and larger commitment to British players in order to attract other clubs into joining them. In the weeks that followed they were joined by the Basingstoke Bison, Cardiff Devils and Coventry Blaze of the British National League and two new organisations from London and Manchester. A team based in Glasgow was also planned, but did not come to fruition. The new league met considerable opposition from the British National League and the governing body Ice Hockey UK. IHUK wished the remaining Superleague clubs to integrate themselves into the BNL and initially refused to grant the new league affiliation. The Superleague clubs were reluctant to join the predominantly British trained league after several years of playing in an import-dominated league where British players were seldom able to step up to the standard of their North American and European counterparts. The Elite League instead preferred a twelve import limit with the rest of the team comprising British-trained players.

The refusal to grant affiliation caused a bitter row to ensue that showed little sign of being resolved. Despite not having the support of the governing body, the new league continued their plans regardless. No affiliation would have meant that the clubs would have problems attaining work permits for their signings and finding officials to referee their matches. The row also threatened the future of the Nottingham Panthers, as the National Ice Centre were reluctant to allow a team from an unaffiliated league hire their arena. The issue was resolved in August 2003 when the Panthers and the NIC announced an icetime agreement. The EIHL finally agreed affiliation in August 2003, with only weeks to go before the beginning of the new season.

The new league began on 12 September 2003 when the Sheffield Steelers, who went on to become the inaugural league champions, defeated the newly formed London Racers 6–1 at Alexandra Palace. The Racers endured a difficult first season, moving to a different rink only weeks into the season and having to wait 40 games to record a win, a 3–0 victory over the Cardiff Devils. The Racers finished the season with ten points, thirty-eight points behind second bottom Basingstoke. The other new team, Manchester Phoenix fared slightly better, qualifying for the playoff finals after finishing sixth in the league, where they were defeated 6–1 by Nottingham in the semi final. The club played at the 17,500 capacity MEN Arena which had been home to the Manchester Storm, but Phoenix crowds averaged 2,250, well below the break-even mark of 3,000. Late in the season, the Phoenix choose to play a game at IceSheffield rather than pay the considerable cost of hiring the arena for a mid week game (which usually had lower attendances). In the close season they allowed fans to vote on the option of either suspending playing operations while a new rink was constructed or playing in exile away from Manchester while a new rink was built. Supporters opted to suspend playing operations pending the construction of a new facility.

The second season of the EIHL saw a series of games between the EIHL clubs and the members of the BNL. In addition to three home games and three away games against their Elite opponents, each club also played one home game and one away game against the BNL clubs in crossover matchups. Results in these crossover games would count towards a team's points tally. The NHL lockout also saw a number of NHL players join British clubs. Coventry won a Grand Slam of all three titles, winning the Championship with an overtime victory over the Nottingham Panthers.

The crossover games with the BNL clubs were seen by many to be the first stage towards the amalgamation of the two organisations into one league. However, early in the season it was revealed that teams including the Edinburgh Capitals and Newcastle Vipers were seeking to resign from the BNL and join the Elite League. A withdrawal of the these clubs would leave the British National League with only a small number of participating teams. This situation led to the resigning teams temporarily withdrawing their Elite League applications and entering into collective discussions on the entire BNL joining the EIHL instead. The Elite League offered the BNL clubs invitations to join the EIHL structure, which were declined due to unfavourable terms. Subsequently Edinburgh and Newcastle resubmitted individual applications to the Elite League, both of which were accepted. A combination of this and Bracknell Bees owner John Nike's announcement that he was withdrawing funding from the BNL team prompted the collapse of the BNL at the end of the 2004–05 season.

With the Edinburgh Capitals and Newcastle Vipers becoming the ninth and tenth members of the league, the 2005–06 season began with nine clubs (Manchester had opted to take another season out with no rink yet constructed). However, in November 2005 the London Racers withdrew their team from competition and immediately ceased operations. From their formation the Racers had suffered problems finding a rink with comparable facilities to those of their rivals and maintained only a very small fan base. The club had made the Lee Valley Ice Centre their home after playing only a small number of games at the Alexandra Palace in their first season. The facilities were very basic, seating only 900 people with an overall capacity of barely 1000. In November 2005, during a game against Nottingham, Panthers player Blaž Emeršič suffered a serious facial injury after colliding with a protruding object in the boardings. Further concerns were raised when a game against the Sheffield Steelers was abandoned after a piece of plexiglas shattered in an irregular manner, injuring a spectator. When a similar event took place during practice a few days later, the Racers management began to question seriously the safety of the rink. With the Ice Centre unable to ensure the safety of players and spectators at Elite League games, the Racers were forced to suspend team operations with immediate effect.

In January 2006, the Manchester Phoenix were granted planning permission to construct a new rink in Altrincham. A few weeks later the Cardiff Devils also received planning permission for the construction of a new rink. The Wales National Ice Rink was earmarked for demolition and a campaign for the council to provide a new facility proved successful. With both clubs confirming their intent to take part the following season, speculation began about the possible inclusion of a tenth team to replace London. After the season was over, rumours about the possible admission of either Hull or Dundee became more and more widespread. On 22 June 2006, the Hull Stingrays were formally elected into the Elite Ice Hockey League as the tenth active member.

In June 2006 the EIHL announced the adoption of the 'zero tolerance' interpretation of the rules with regard to holding, hooking and interference implemented in the National Hockey League during the 2005–06 season. These rules had proved highly successful in the NHL, increasing the pace of the game and leading to a rise in spectator numbers.

On 25 August 2006, the Elite League announced a sponsorship deal with the low cost airline bmibaby. The agreement sees the company's name incorporated into the league's title and the airline's branding at each of the league's ten arenas. The deal was set to last for seven seasons, but the deal ended prematurely, during the 2008-09 season.

On 30 April 2009, the Manchester Phoenix announced that they would be withdrawing from the league, and would play instead in the English Premier Ice Hockey League, due to cost issues. This news followed the announcement that the Basingstoke Bison were also leaving to play in the EPL for the 2009-2010 season.

After losing two teams at the end of the 2008/09 season the Elite League was boosted by a new franchise joining the league. The Braehead Clan were announced as the ninth team that would compete from the 2010/11 season. On April 27, 2010, the Dundee Stars were unanimously accepted into the League by the EIHL board. They will compete from the 2010/11 season.

The Hull Stingrays withdrew from the League on August 11, 2010, which was announced via the club's official website, and later confirmed on the BBC's site. However, after a takeover from Coventry Blaze on August 17, 2010, the Hull Stingrays confirmed that they would indeed be participating in the League for the 2010/11 season. The Stingrays again withdrew on 24 June 2015, as the club announced on its official website that it has been placed into liquidation.

From the 2013–14 season onwards, the league has consisted of two conferences; each consisting of five teams. These are the Erhardt Conference and the Gardiner Conference. These can roughly be split into north and south, with the Erhardt featuring the teams from Belfast, Cardiff, Coventry, Nottingham, and Sheffield; and the Gardiner featuring the teams from Dundee, Edinburgh, Fife, and Glasgow along with Hull Stingrays until 2015, and their replacements Manchester Storm from 2015 onwards.

On the 27 April 2017 it was announced with Milton Keynes Lightning and Guildford Flames joining for the start of the 2017–18 season that the league will be upped to 56 games in the regular season with 3 new conferences of 4 teams. Conference 1 would consist of Braehead Clan, Dundee Stars, Edinburgh Capitals and Fife Flyers known as the Scottish conference. Conference 2 would consist of Coventry Blaze, Guildford Flames, Manchester Storm and Milton Keynes Lightning known as the southern conference. Conference 3 would consist of Belfast Giants, Cardiff Devils, Nottingham Panthers and Sheffield Steelers known as the arena teams. This meant that teams would play teams in their own conference 8 times (4 home & 4 away) totalling 24 games and play other conferences teams 4 times (2 home & 2 away) totalling 32 games, giving the league a total of 56 games.

In April 2018, Murrayfield Ice Rink asked for bidders for the Ice time at the arena, Edinburgh Capitals and Murrayfield Racers (a new formed team) bidded for the rights with the Racers winning the opportunity, the racers asked for permission to join the league but on April 30 the league refused their application. On May 4 the EIHL released a statement explaining that they would have to move forward without the Edinburgh Capitals with a board meeting on May 22 to discuss the league future format and decide on any clubs wishing to participate in place of Edinburgh.

After the conclusion of the 2018-19 season, the Milton Keynes Lightning officially left the EIHL after just two seasons in the league and moved to the newly created National Ice Hockey League returning the number of teams to 10.

The 2019–20 EIHL season was cancelled in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Only the Challenge Cup (won by Sheffield Steelers) was awarded with both the league and play-offs cancelled.

The 2020–21 EIHL season, originally scheduled for a September start, was suspended indefinitely on September 15, 2020, due to ongoing coronavirus restrictions and continuing social distancing which made the league season a non-starter.

While there were tentative plans for a shortened league season, featuring a handful of sides to potentially begin play in January 2021, this idea - and the prospect of a 2020–21 season - were shelved by the league in February 2021 due to concerns around funding.

Then, in March 2021, the Elite League announced that four of the English teams (Coventry, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield) would take part in the 'Elite Series' between April–May 2021, a total of 24 games to be played at Nottingham's Motorpoint Arena, culminating in a best-of-three play-off final series. Nottingham claimed the trophy by virtue of a 2–0 series win over the Sheffield Steelers in the final, winning game one 5-3 and game two 5-2.

In the 2021–22 EIHL season, the first full season to be completed since 2018–19 due to the impacts of the Covid pandemic, the Belfast Giants won both the Elite League title and the Challenge Cup, while the Cardiff Devils won the play-offs.

In May 2022, all ten Elite League clubs agreed to increase the gameday roster size from 19 to 20 - to take effect from the 2022–23 season. Import numbers in a gameday squad were once again capped at 14.

In April 2023, the league announced that the end of season play-off final weekend would continue to be played at Nottingham's Motorpoint Arena until at least 2029.

In the 2022–23 EIHL season, the Belfast Giants became the first team since Nottingham in 2013 to complete the Elite League grand slam, after winning the league title, Challenge Cup and play-offs. The Giants finished ahead of second placed Guildford in the league, and defeated the Fife Flyers and Cardiff Devils in the Challenge Cup and play-off finals respectively.

The following season, 2023–24, the Sheffield Steelers won their first league title since 2016, the Challenge Cup and the play-offs to complete a grand slam of their own. It was Sheffield's first grand slam in the Elite League era and first since 2001.

In May 2024, the Elite League announced a new Challenge Cup format, taking effect from the 2024–25 season. All 10 clubs agreed to scrap the cup quarter-finals, with a group stage feeding straight into the semi-finals.

Media coverage

Ice hockey receives little national media coverage in the United Kingdom. Some national newspapers list results and provide short summaries of the league's news but more extensive coverage remains minimal. There was a small surge in interest during the 2004–05 season when newspapers such as The Times reported on the NHL players playing the Elite League as a result of the lock-out but since the lock-out ended, coverage has returned to its previous levels.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Sky Sports and the BBC's Grandstand programme covered the British Hockey League and Superleague and their important games and competitions regularly. However, in 2001 the Superleague sold its broadcasting rights to 'Premium TV Ltd' who planned to set up a new sports channel, which never materialised. British ice hockey was left without coverage from any television network. This situation continued through the final seasons of the Superleague and into the first seasons of the Elite League. In 2005, Elite League officials concluded an agreement with the North American Sports Network to provide a weekly highlights and news programme. These usually provide highlights from a game recorded the previous weekend and are an hour in length. In September 2007 the Elite League announced a deal with Sky Sports for a weekly show of Elite League highlights. In 2010 Sky Sports showed the playoff final between the Belfast Giants and Cardiff Devils live, this was the first time sky had shown a live game for several years. Sky Sports have recently announced plans to show 8 live games along with a weekly highlight show during the 2010/2011 season. In season 2013/2014 Premier Sports acquired the rights to film and broadcast 23 games from the Elite League with a live game shown every Saturday night from 23 November onwards. Live coverage will also include the playoffs and playoff final.

Of the national newspapers only the Daily Star has a regular ice hockey column which appears on Tuesday and Sunday.

Coverage in the towns and cities where Elite League clubs are based is more extensive, and local newspapers have dedicated ice hockey reporters who cover the local team. Local radio stations such as BBC Coventry & Warwickshire, BBC Radio Nottingham and BBC Radio Sheffield all provide live commentary of matches. These are either broadcast live on the stations themselves or are webcast through the stations' websites. Radio Sheffield also provides a weekly ice hockey programme Iceline while Radio Nottingham has broadcast a similar programme, Powerplay since the later stages of the 2005–06 season, and has a fifteen-minute weekly preview of games on a Saturday evening during the ice hockey season after the station's coverage of the local football teams is completed. BBC Coventry & Warwickshire have also followed suit with Faceoff, a program broadcast on the first Thursday of the month during the season. Video footage can also be viewed from the website.

Clubs

EIHL clubs
Club	Established	City	Stadium	Capacity*	First Season
Belfast Giants	2000	Belfast	SSE Arena Belfast	9,000	2003
Cardiff Devils	1986	Cardiff	Ice Arena Wales	3,088	2003
Coventry Blaze	1965	Coventry	SkyDome Arena	3,000	2003
Dundee Stars	2001	Dundee	Dundee Ice Arena	2,300	2010
Fife Flyers	1938	Kirkcaldy	Fife Ice Arena	3,525	2011
Glasgow Clan	2010	Glasgow	Braehead Arena	4,000	2010
Guildford Flames	1992	Guildford	Guildford Spectrum	2,200	2017
Manchester Storm	2015	Altrincham	Silverblades Ice Rink Altrincham	2,400	2015
Nottingham Panthers	1946	Nottingham	National Ice Centre	7,500	2003
Sheffield Steelers	1991	Sheffield	FlyDSA Arena Sheffield	9,500	2003

Former clubs

	Club	Founded	City	Arena(s)	Capacity	Years in EIHL
	Basingstoke Bison	1988	Basingstoke	Planet Ice Silverdome Arena	2,000	2003–2009
	Edinburgh Capitals	1998	Edinburgh	Murrayfield Ice Rink	3,800	2005–2018
	Hull Stingrays	2003	Kingston upon Hull	Hull Arena	3,750	2006–2015
	London Racers	2003	London (Waltham Forest)	Alexandra Palace Lee Valley Ice Centre	1,200	2003–2005
	Manchester Phoenix	2003	Manchester Altrincham	Manchester Arena Altrincham Ice Dome	17,643 2,400	2003–2004 2006–2009
	Newcastle Vipers	2002	Newcastle upon Tyne Whitley Bay	Metro Radio Arena Whitley Bay Ice Rink	5,500 3,200	2005–2011
	Milton Keynes Lightning	2002	Milton Keynes	Planet Ice Milton Keynes	2,800	2017–2019

Potential future clubs

Aberdeen Lynx (currently competing in the Scottish National League) have stated that their ambition is to establish an Elite League team in the city in the future.

Nottingham Panthers and Glasgow Clan owner Neil Black is rumoured to be setting up a new EIHL franchise in London, playing out of the Wembley Arena. Black has also stated in the past that he would like to see franchises in Manchester (which has now been achieved) and Dublin.

Wayne Scholes, owner of the Telford Tigers (currently in the English Premier League) has stated that his organisation doesn't have any immediate plans to make the step up, but has not ruled out the possibility of joining the EIHL in the future, saying that “We have had conversations with the Elite League before but they have to invite you. You can’t approach them. It is one of those things where they want to see that you have got two or three years of really good solid success. They want to see that it is sustainable and that you are up to a certain standard, and then they will reach out. At that point, it’s a discussion that we will have but right now we are pretty happy where we are."

Champions

The following table sets out the League champions, National champions and Challenge Cup winners of the EIHL era only. Several previous top-tier leagues, such as the Sekonda Super League have also existed, in which some EIHL clubs competed successfully, and the end-of-season play-offs and Challenge Cup both have a long history prior to the founding of the EIHL, again feature many of the teams currently in EIHL.

Only four teams have won a domestic grand slam in the EIHL era; Coventry Blaze in 2004–05, Nottingham Panthers in 2012–13, Belfast Giants in 2022–23 and Sheffield Steelers in 2023-24. By contrast, teams have come within one match of a treble on no less than 13 occasions, beginning with the very first season when Panthers denied Sheffield Steelers by the odd goal in seven in the Challenge Cup final, and including the four completed seasons before last where Belfast Giants twice and Cardiff Devils twice, have been denied a 'Grand Slam' by losing in either the Challenge Cup or play-off final. Although dominated as might be expected by the English teams that represent the majority of the clubs in the league (winning 34 of 55 available trophies up to 2023), the sole entrants from Northern Ireland and Wales, Belfast (13 trophies) and Cardiff (eight trophies), have both enjoyed significant success across all competitions in the EIHL era. In 2023 Fife Flyers became the first Scottish team in the EIHL era to reach a major final, losing 9-3 to Belfast Giants in the Challenge Cup final.

Season	Regular Season	Playoffs			Challenge Cup
		Winners	Score	Runners-up	Winners	Score	Runners-up
2003–04	Sheffield Steelers	Sheffield Steelers	2–1	Nottingham Panthers	Nottingham Panthers	4–3 (Agg)	Sheffield Steelers
2004–05	Coventry Blaze	Coventry Blaze	2–1	Nottingham Panthers	Coventry Blaze	11–5 (Agg)	Cardiff Devils
2005–06	Belfast Giants	Newcastle Vipers	2–1	Sheffield Steelers	Cardiff Devils	4–4 (Agg) 1–0 (PSO)	Coventry Blaze
2006–07	Coventry Blaze	Nottingham Panthers	2–1	Cardiff Devils	Coventry Blaze	9–4 (Agg)	Sheffield Steelers
2007–08	Coventry Blaze	Sheffield Steelers	2–0	Coventry Blaze	Nottingham Panthers	9–7 (Agg)	Sheffield Steelers
2008–09	Sheffield Steelers	Sheffield Steelers	2–0	Nottingham Panthers	Belfast Giants	6–5 (Agg)	Manchester Phoenix
2009–10	Coventry Blaze	Belfast Giants	2–2 1–0 (PSO)	Cardiff Devils	Nottingham Panthers	8–7 (Agg)	Cardiff Devils
2010–11	Sheffield Steelers	Nottingham Panthers	5–4	Cardiff Devils	Nottingham Panthers	4–3 (Ag)	Belfast Giants
2011–12	Belfast Giants	Nottingham Panthers	2–0	Cardiff Devils	Nottingham Panthers	10–4 (Agg)	Belfast Giants
2012–13	Nottingham Panthers	Nottingham Panthers	3–2	Belfast Giants	Nottingham Panthers	5–3 (Agg)	Sheffield Steelers
2013–14	Belfast Giants	Sheffield Steelers	3–2	Belfast Giants	Nottingham Panthers	6–6 (Agg) 1–0 (PSO)	Belfast Giants
2014–15	Sheffield Steelers	Coventry Blaze	4–2	Sheffield Steelers	Cardiff Devils	2–1	Sheffield Steelers
2015–16	Sheffield Steelers	Nottingham Panthers	2–0	Coventry Blaze	Nottingham Panthers	1–0 (OT)	Cardiff Devils
2016–17	Cardiff Devils	Sheffield Steelers	6–5	Cardiff Devils	Cardiff Devils	3–2	Sheffield Steelers
2017–18	Cardiff Devils	Cardiff Devils	3–1	Sheffield Steelers	Belfast Giants	6–3	Cardiff Devils
2018–19	Belfast Giants	Cardiff Devils	2–1	Belfast Giants	Belfast Giants	2–1 (OT)	Guildford Flames
2019–20	Season curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no titles awarded.				Sheffield Steelers	4–3	Cardiff Devils
2020–21	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2021–22	Belfast Giants	Cardiff Devils	6–3	Belfast Giants	Belfast Giants	3–2 (OT)	Cardiff Devils
2022–23	Belfast Giants	Belfast Giants	4-1	Cardiff Devils	Belfast Giants	9–3	Fife Flyers
2023–24	Sheffield Steelers	Sheffield Steelers	3-1	Belfast Giants	Sheffield Steelers	3-1	Guildford Flames

Most trophies

	Club	League	Playoffs	Challenge Cup	Total
1	Nottingham Panthers	1	5	8	14
	Sheffield Steelers	6	6	2	14
2	Belfast Giants	6	2	5	13
3	Coventry Blaze	4	2	2	8
	Cardiff Devils	2	3	3	8
4	Newcastle Vipers	0	1	0	1

Records

• Most regular season titles: Belfast Giants, Sheffield Steelers (6)
• Most play-off championship titles: Sheffield Steelers (6)
• Most Challenge Cup titles (EIHL era): Nottingham Panthers (8)
• Most Knockout Cup titles: Belfast Giants, Cardiff Devils, Coventry Blaze, Sheffield Steelers (1)
• Most wins in regular season: Belfast Giants (46) (2011–12, 54-game season)
• Most ties in regular season: London Racers (9) (2004–05, 50-game season)
• Most losses in regular season (inc. Overtime): London Racers (51) (2003–04, 56-game season)
• Most goals scored in regular season: Cardiff Devils (269) (2010–11, 54-game season)
• Most goals allowed in regular season: Edinburgh Capitals (418) (2010–11, 54-game season)
• Most points in regular season: Belfast Giants (95) (2011–12, 54-game season)
• Most shutouts in regular season: Ervins Mustukovs (Sheffield Steelers) 10 (2010–11)
• Highest attendance in regular season: 9,289 (Sheffield Steelers vs. Guildford Flames, 24 March 2024)
• Most goals in a single game (team) (regular season): Sheffield Steelers (18) (Sheffield Steelers 18–1 Edinburgh Capitals, 15 January 2011)
• Largest winning margin (regular season): Sheffield Steelers (17) (Sheffield Steelers 18–1 Edinburgh Capitals, 15 January 2011)

See also

• British National League (1954–1960)
• British Hockey League
• Ice Hockey Superleague
• British ice hockey league champions
• British Championship

External links

• Elite Ice Hockey League

European Hockey Overview

Top-Level Leagues

International Alps Hockey League - BeNe League - Erste Liga - International Hockey League - Kontinental Hockey League National Andorra - Armenia - Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany - Greece - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - United Kingdom

Second-Level Leagues

Belarus - Belgium - Bulgaria - Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Russia - Slovakia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine

Third-Level Leagues

Austria - Belgium - Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Italy - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Russia - Scotland - Slovakia - Sweden - Switzerland

Fourth-Level and lower Leagues

Austria - Belgium (4, 5) - Czech Republic (4, 5) - Finland (4, 5, 6, 7) - France - Germany (4, 5) - Hungary - Italy - Netherlands (4, 5, 6, 7) - Norway (4, 5, 6, 7) - Poland - Russia (Night League, Amateur Leagues) - Sweden (4, 5, 6, 7, 8), Switzerland (4, 5, 6, 7)

Cup Competitions

Cups Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Czech Republic - Denmark - East Germany - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Netherlands (Cup, Ron Berteling Schaal) - Norway - Poland - Romania - Scotland - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Soviet Union - Spain - Switzerland - Ukraine - Yugoslavia Supercups Belgium - Estonia - Hungary - Italy - Poland - Netherlands - Slovenia - Spain

Defunct Leagues

Soviet Union - Russia - Czechoslovakia - Yugoslavia - West Germany - East Germany - Ireland - Luxembourg - Macedonia - Malta - Portugal - Alpenliga - Interliga - Inter-National League - North Sea Cup - Panonian League - Eastern European - Balkan League (1994-1997) - Baltic League (2001) - Baltic Hockey League (2020) - Carpathian League - Slohokej Liga - Balkan Ice Hockey League - English League - English National League - Scottish National League - British Hockey League - Ice Hockey Superleague - German Championship - Swedish Championship - Klass I - Svenska Serien - Elitserien - Swedish Division I - SM-sarja - Swiss National Championship - Swiss International Championship

Women's Leagues

International leagues European Women's Hockey League - EWHL Super Cup National leagues Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bulgaria - Croatia - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland (1, 2, 3, U20, U18, U16) - France - Germany (1, 2, 3, Cup) - Great Britain (England U16) - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Russia (U18) - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden (1, 2, 3, 4, U20) - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine Defunct leagues Czechoslovakia - Interliga - Low Countries Cup

Junior Leagues

Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia - Czech Republic (Czechoslovakia) - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany (East Germany) - Great Britain - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Russia (Soviet Union) - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - Yugoslavia

University Leagues

European University Hockey League - Czech Republic - Great Britain - Netherlands - Russia (RSHL, MSHL, SHLC, SHLMO, SibSHL, SPSHL) - Sweden

Elite Ice Hockey League seasons
2003–04 - 2004–05 - 2005–06 - 2006–07 - 2007–08 - 2008–09 - 2009–10 - 2010–11 - 2011–12 - 2012–13 - 2013–14 - 2014–15 - 2015–16 - 2016–17 - 2017–18 - 2018–19 - 2019–20 - 2020–21 - 2021–22 - 2022–23 - 2023–24

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