UK ice hockey is back! This weekend saw the first games in the Elite Ice Hockey League’s 2021 Elite Series - a short season featuring four teams (Coventry Blaze, Manchester Storm, Nottingham Panthers and Sheffield Steelers) to both give the fans some cheer after a year without a game, and to help prepare the British international players ahead of this summer’s World Championship.
The EIHL is a ten team division (the aforementioned four plus Belfast Giants, Cardiff Devils, Dundee Stars, Fife Flyers, Glasgow Clan and Guildford Flames) but there has long been talk of expansion. There is no promotion or relegation from this level of UK Ice Hockey, so teams must show either continued success, or a sufficient catchment area for fans.
To help the league decide where may be ripe for expansion, I’ve opened my atlas and looked where may be suitable for an Elite League team.
There are four regions with no EIHL representative at all. The North East, the South West, the East of England and London.
In the North East, Newcastle stand out as a key regional city without any EIHL representation. This was not always the case. Newcastle Vipers were an Elite League side between 2005 and 2011 - being Elite League Champions in 2005-06 - before withdrawing from the league and folding due to financial difficulties. The Vipers no longer play, but hockey in the region dates back to the 1950s - when the still active Whitley Warriors were formed. The Warriors have a local fan base and an existing and long standing record of playing, so would be the most likely local side to step up.
In the South West, Bristol and Plymouth are two cities which have expansion potential. In Bristol, the city’s local team, Bristol Pitbulls, have to travel to Oxford to play since the local rink closed in 2012. A new ice rink is being built in the city, by Planet Ice, which will be the new home of the Pitbulls. Planet Ice operate the home arenas of Coventry Blaze and Manchester Storm, so Bristol Pitbulls - with a bit more success and local backing - could be a target for the league.
In Plymouth the local arena (at Plymouth Pavillions) is completely unsuited to hockey - it is both too small and the wrong shape. This has forced the Plymouth Pirates to take a 350 mile round trip to Gosport for their training sessions. Like Bristol, Plymouth has a new ice arena under construction. The Pirates coming home and developing a local following would be something to keep an eye on.
The East of England has little history of hockey - the key settlements of Ipswich and Norwich do not have a rink, and the closest sides are the Peterborough Phantoms and the Chelmsford Chieftains. Expansion here would need a rink, but an ambitious owner (or rink operator) could spot a gap in the market and build a community facility. A local side could then develop.
Finally, London. The capital not having a team is a big hole in the Elite League’s offer, but this was not always the case. The London Racers played in the EIHL between 2003 and 2005, before folding in 2006 after failing to find a new venue after safety issues at their Lee Valley home. London has a range of ice hockey rinks and teams, with the Romford Raiders, Streatham, Haringey Huskies, and Lee Valley Lions playing at various lower levels of the British Ice Hockey system.
Owing to its size, London has the ability to draw fans to larger venues which would open the opportunity to host games at venues such as Wembley Arena - a 2016 suggestion by Nottingham Panthers and Glasgow Clan owner Neil Black for the Arena to house a reformed Wembley Lions side (who date back to 1934) did not come to fruition. But London is clearly on the agenda and it seems an obvious expansion target for the league.
In addition to leagues without an EIHL presence, there is also regions with expansion potential, with towns or cities well suited for a hockey team. One of these regions is the North West. Manchester Storm provide an existing EIHL presence, but where there is Manchester, you usually find Liverpool - everywhere except the EIHL. An expansion side on Merseyside would bring a new rivalry to the league, and bring pro hockey back to the city for the first time since 1982 (when the Liverpool Leopards folded). In terms of facilities, and if there was demand, a Liverpool side could play out of the Echo Arena, or share the ice with nearby Widnes Wild.
Scotland has three EIHL teams - Dundee Stars, Fife Flyers, and Glasgow Clan - but it isn’t done there. Sitting below the EIHL (in Scotland) is the Scottish National League with a range of teams. Some have EIHL ambitions - with Aberdeen Lynx owners stating they want to estalish an EIHL presence in the city in some capacity.
The EIHL was also home to the Edinburgh Capitals between 2003 and 2018 - before withdrawing from the league after losing their Murrayfield Ice Rink contract to a rival team. That rival team - the newly formed Murrayfield Racers - in fact applied to join the EIHL, but were turned down, and now play in the Scottish National League. Whether Aberdeen or Edinburgh, there is no shortage of ambition in terms of expanding the EIHL.
The South of England is home to one team. Guildford Flames. Which means the region is ripe for expansion. One city with ice hockey pedigree is Southampton whose former side - Southampton Vikings - folded in 1988 when Southampton Ice Rink closed. The city remains rinkless, but nearby Basingstoke Bison played in the EIHL between 2003 and 2009 before leaving after financial difficulties, so the city could be an area with potential for the league.
It’s hard to believe the whole of Yorkshire only has one team - the Sheffield Steelers. Two cities stand out as areas for expansion - Leeds and Hull. Hull previously hosted the EIHL through the Hull Stingrays, playing in the top league between 2006 and 2015 before folding through financial difficulties. A new side playing out of Hull would likely need a new business model, but sustaining a side at this level for so long shows there is a fanbase there should a side to return to Hull.
Ice hockey in the UK dates back to 1938 - when the Fife Flyers were founded - but it took until 2019 for the city of Leeds to host a team at any level. The Leeds Chiefs now play out of Planet Ice Leeds in the National League - one step below the EIHL. Leeds is an obvious area for expansion and - with a bit more ambition - Yorkshire could bring in a county rival to the Steelers.
The Elite League is the only professional sports division with representatives from all four nations of the UK. But there has been talk about opening a new franchise in Dublin. There is unlikely to be enough interest in ice hockey for an Irish league outright (the ill fated Irish Ice Hockey League only survived for three years before collapsing in 2010), but there is likely to be enough support locally for a new professional side in the Irish capital.
The only problem is the lack of an ice rink, with the only full-time ice rink on the island of Ireland in Dundonald, just outside Belfast. But an entrepreneur could spot a gap in the market and provide a community facility like many Elite sides play out of. Dublin is certainly there for a committed owner.
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