EPIHL
The English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) was an ice hockey league of 10 teams, all of which were based in England. Headquartered in Blackpool, the EPIHL was one of two professional ice hockey leagues in the United Kingdom (the other being the Elite Ice Hockey League). A total of 27 teams played in the league at one time or another. Swindon Wildcats were the only team to have consistently featured in the EPIHL from its inaugural season in 1997-98. In 2017, the league was disbanded, with its teams either joining the top-tier Elite Ice Hockey League or the second-tier National Ice Hockey League. History The league was founded in 1997, under the banner of "national division", as part of the English National Ice Hockey League in order to serve former members of the British National League who couldn't afford to remain in the latter as a result of increased operating costs; but who were capable of a level of play above the import-free English leagues that made up the rest of the E ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Peterborough Phantoms
The Peterborough Phantoms are a British ice hockey team that play at the Planet Ice Peterborough Arena, in Bretton, Peterborough. The Peterborough Phantoms ice hockey club was founded in 2002. It replaced the former city based team, the Peterborough Pirates, and plays in the same arena. The team currently competes in the semi-professional National Ice Hockey League, the second tier in British ice hockey below the fully professional Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). They previously played in the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL). The team won the English Premier League and Cup Double in its first season (2002–03) and retained the Cup the following year. After four years, they won the 2007–08 Knock-out Cup followed by the 2008–09 season in which the Phantoms won the English Premier League, English Premier Cup and the play-offs. In the 2018–19 season, the Phantoms won the NIHL 1 Autumn Cup, NIHL 1 South Cup and NIHL South Playoff competitions, and also finished a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Swindon Wildcats
The Swindon Wildcats are a professional ice hockey team based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. They play in the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL). Since their inception, the Wildcats have played their home games at the 1600-capacity Link Centre in West Swindon. The club was founded in 1986 as the Swindon Wildcats, shortly after the opening of the Link Centre. The Wildcats were members of the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) from 1997 to 2017. Due to the instability of the EPIHL following the culmination of the 2016–17 season, the Swindon Wildcats announced their intention to join the National League. In their first season competing in the National League, the Wildcats won both the Autumn Cup and National Cup competitions, securing the club's first silverware since the 2000-01 season. The following year the Wildcats won the regular season, becoming the 2018/2019 champions. Logos and uniforms Logos The Wildcats' logo is an animated wildcat in the team colours of red ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Milton Keynes Lightning
The Milton Keynes Lightning are an ice hockey team founded in 2002 in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. The Lightning currently play in Britain's second-tier professional league, the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL), since the 2019–20 season. The Lightning previously competed in the top tier Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) from 2017–2019, and the tier-3/tier-2 English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) from 2002–2017. Their home rink is 2,200-seat Planet Ice Arena Milton Keynes, known locally as the MK Arena or the Thunderdome. Club history Foundation Founded in 2002, MK Lightning moved into the empty space left by the departure of the Milton Keynes Kings. The MK Kings were involved in a dispute with rink operators Planet Ice, which led to their relocation to Solihull in May 2002. There they became the Solihull MK Kings before being wound up in April 2003, after a single season. 2002–2006: The early years The demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague in 2002/03 led to major re ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bracknell Bees
The Bees Ice Hockey Club are an ice hockey team from Slough, Berkshire, UK. They compete in the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) National League, the second tier of English Ice Hockey. History Early years The Bracknell Bees were formed in 1987, under the ownership of John Nike OBE. Bees began life in the Heineken League Division Two, under the leadership of former Durham Wasps and Nottingham Panthers forward, Jamie Crapper, where they finished 6th. The following season, Heineken withdrew their sponsorship of the second division, which was renamed the English League Division 1. Bees narrowly missed out on the championship to the Humberside Seahawks, but then won the league the following season, gaining promotion to the Heineken League Division 1. Having finished third, behind Humberside and the Slough Jets, Bees progressed to the top tier of British hockey, the Heineken Premier Division, via the play-offs, alongside the Seahawks. Once at the top, it was a struggle and Bees ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Ice Hockey League
The National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) is a set of professional ice hockey leagues administered by the English Ice Hockey Association. It is currently the second tier of British ice hockey, below the Elite Ice Hockey League. Formerly called the English National Ice Hockey League (ENIHL), it was renamed in 2012 to recognise the inclusion of several teams from Scotland and Wales. The English Ice Hockey Association announced a new structure of the men's senior league for the 2019/20 season, at a meeting of NIHL clubs in Warwickshire. A new ten-team division was approved to sit above the existing Division 1 in North and South, to be known as the National League. In the inaugural 2019–2020 season the National League comprised Basingstoke Bison, Bracknell Bees, Hull Pirates, Leeds Knights, MK Lightning, Peterborough Phantoms, Romford Raiders, Sheffield Steeldogs, Swindon Wildcats and Telford Tigers. There is no promotion to or relegation from the National League. Below the Natio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hull Pirates
The Hull Seahawks are an ice hockey team based in Kingston upon Hull and their home ice is the Hull Arena. They compete in the NIHL National Division. Formation The Hull Pirates were formed when the Hull Stingrays went into liquidation in June 2015. The Stingrays' place in the Elite Ice Hockey League was taken by Manchester Storm. On Friday 3 July 2015, Shane Smith, a 43-year-old Rotherham-based businessman, held a press day at the Hull Arena to announce the formation of the Hull Pirates and that they had been accepted into the EPIHL. It was also announced that former Hull Stingrays' forward Dominic Osman would become a player-coach and part-owner of Hull Pirates. A fans' forum was held on 15 July 2015 with the unveiling of the club's logo. The Pirates had six weeks to put together a team in time for the upcoming league campaign. In their first season as a club, Hull Pirates achieved a 9th-place finish in the EPIHL. For the 2016–17 season, the Pirates announced the re- ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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English National Ice Hockey League
The National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) is a set of professional ice hockey leagues administered by the English Ice Hockey Association. It is currently the second tier of British ice hockey, below the Elite Ice Hockey League. Formerly called the English National Ice Hockey League (ENIHL), it was renamed in 2012 to recognise the inclusion of several teams from Scotland and Wales. The English Ice Hockey Association announced a new structure of the men's senior league for the 2019/20 season, at a meeting of NIHL clubs in Warwickshire. A new ten-team division was approved to sit above the existing Division 1 in North and South, to be known as the National League. In the inaugural 2019–2020 season the National League comprised Basingstoke Bison, Bracknell Bees, Hull Pirates, Leeds Knights, MK Lightning, Peterborough Phantoms, Romford Raiders, Sheffield Steeldogs, Swindon Wildcats and Telford Tigers. There is no promotion to or relegation from the National League. Below the Natio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Basingstoke Bison
The Basingstoke Bison are an English Ice Hockey club from Basingstoke. They currently compete in the NIHL National League and have previously been members of the Ice Hockey Superleague and its successor the Elite Ice Hockey League. History Formed in 1988 as the Basingstoke Beavers, the club became the "Bison" in 1995. Their team logo is very similar to that used by the Buffalo Sabres from 1996–2006. Joining the Superleague in 1996, the Bison dropped out in 1998 and joined the British National League. In 2003 they joined the newly formed Elite Ice Hockey League. Despite being one of the lower-budget teams in the EIHL, the Bison maintained their fan base and greatly enhanced local sponsorships and doubled their season ticket sales. This success is mainly testament to the hard work of Mark Bernard, who occupied the general manager and head coach role with the club during the 2004/05 and 2005/06 seasons. Bernard also stepped into the netminder's role part way through the la ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guildford Flames
The Guildford Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Guildford, Surrey and they play their home games in the Guildford Spectrum. They compete in the top-tier of hockey in the United Kingdom, the Elite Ice Hockey League. Founded in October 1992, the Flames originally played in the second-tier leagues of British hockey, first the British National League (1996–2005), British National League until 2004, and subsequently the English Premier Ice Hockey League until 2017. On 24 February 2017 it was announced that the Flames would become the 12th Elite Ice Hockey League team, joining from the 2017–18 EIHL season, 2017–18 season. The team's head coach is Paul Dixon (ice hockey), Paul Dixon, who took over after Stan Marple retired in 2007. Formation Barry Dow, an American who sponsored and owned the basketball team Guildford Kings and Bill Hurley established and owned the team as management – the two were new to the sport of ice hockey, and brought in Mike Urquhart ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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British National League (1996–2005)
The British National League (BNL) was the second tier of the professional ice hockey league in the United Kingdom between 1996 and 2005. Although no formal promotion and relegation existed during its period of existence, it was considered to have been a standard below that of the Ice Hockey Superleague (later replaced by the Elite Ice Hockey League) and above that of the English National Ice Hockey League and the Scottish National League (and later, following its creation, the English Premier Ice Hockey League). Fife Flyers and Guildford Flames were the only two teams to consistently feature in the BNL during every season of the league's history. History The league was founded in 1996 to replace the first division of the British Hockey League following the split between the two divisions of the league; the premier division having been replaced by the Ice Hockey Superleague at the same time. For its first season only the BNL was split into the Northern Premier League and the Prem ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berkshire in 1957 because of the presence of Windsor Castle, and letters patent were issued in 1974. Berkshire is a county of historic origin, a ceremonial county and a non-metropolitan county without a county council. The county town is Reading. The River Thames formed the historic northern boundary, from Buscot in the west to Old Windsor in the east. The historic county, therefore, includes territory that is now administered by the Vale of White Horse and parts of South Oxfordshire in Oxfordshire, but excludes Caversham, Slough and five less populous settlements in the east of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. All the changes mentioned, apart from the change to Caversham, took place in 1974. The towns of Abingdon, Didcot, Far ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Telford Tigers
The Telford Tigers are a National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) ice hockey team that formed in 1985. After initially closing in 1999, a new team, under the name 'Telford Wild Foxes', was formed in 2001; and re-adopted the original name in 2005. The team is currently owned by Givarna Ltd. In November 2016, faced with mounting debts, the team began the process of entering creditors voluntary liquidation. A creditors' meeting, which would have decided the fate of the club, was scheduled for 30 November 2016, but on 25 November a consortium of local businesses intervened and acquired the club's assets, securing its future for the remainder of the season. History 1985–1988: Foundation and early years After the Telford Ice Rink opened in October 1984, several challenge games involving Altrincham Aces, Blackpool Seagulls, Nottingham Panthers and Solihull Barons were staged to see if a Telford team would be sustainable. Telford Tigers IH Club Ltd. was formed for season 1985–86 by Centra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |