2022–23 EIHL season
2022–23 EIHL season | |
---|---|
League | Elite Ice Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration |
|
Number of matches | 330 |
Number of teams | 10 |
Total attendance | 1,004,000 |
Average attendance | 3,148 |
Regular season | |
League champions | Belfast Giants |
Season MVP | Scott Conway (Belfast Giants) |
Top scorer | Scott Conway (Belfast Giants) |
Challenge Cup | |
Winners | Belfast Giants |
Runners-up | Fife Flyers |
British Championship | |
Champions | Belfast Giants |
Runners-up | Cardiff Devils |
The 2022–23 EIHL season was the 19th season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The regular season commenced on 10 September 2022, and finished on 2 April 2023; the playoffs were then contested over 7 to 16 April 2023.[1]
The Belfast Giants became the first team since the Nottingham Panthers in 2012–13, and third overall,[2] to win a Grand Slam of titles – winning the league, playoff and Challenge Cup titles. Either side of their 9–3 Challenge Cup final victory over the Fife Flyers,[3] the Giants won 25 of their last 30 league games to overhaul long-time league leaders, the Guildford Flames, to win the regular season title for a record sixth time – taking the title with a 6–1 home victory over the Flames.[4] After seeing off the Glasgow Clan and the Panthers in the first two playoff rounds, the Giants met the Cardiff Devils for the third consecutive final, with the Devils having won the previous two meetings.[5] Having fallen behind to Mark Richardson's first-period goal, the Giants then scored four goals without reply to take their first playoff title since 2009–10 to complete the Grand Slam.[2]
Teams
The same ten teams that competed in 2021–22 competed in the 2022–23 season.
Team | City/Town | Arena | Capacity |
---|---|---|---|
Belfast Giants | Belfast | SSE Arena Belfast | 8,700 |
Cardiff Devils | Cardiff | Ice Arena Wales | 3,088 |
Coventry Blaze | Coventry | Coventry Skydome | 3,000 |
Dundee Stars | Dundee | Dundee Ice Arena | 2,400 |
Fife Flyers | Kirkcaldy | Fife Ice Arena | 3,525 |
Glasgow Clan | Glasgow | Braehead Arena | 4,000 |
Guildford Flames | Guildford | Guildford Spectrum | 2,001 |
Manchester Storm | Altrincham | Altrincham Ice Dome | 2,351 |
Nottingham Panthers | Nottingham | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham | 7,500 |
Sheffield Steelers | Sheffield | Utilita Arena Sheffield | 9,300 |
Regular season
League standings
Each team played 54 games, playing each of the other nine teams six times: three times on home ice, and three times away from home.[6] Points were awarded for each game, where two points were awarded for all victories, regardless of whether it was in regulation time or after overtime or game-winning shots. One point was awarded for losing in overtime or game-winning shots, and zero points for losing in regulation time. At the end of the regular season, the team that finished with the most points was crowned the league champion, and qualified for the 2023–24 Champions Hockey League. The top eight teams qualified for the playoffs.
The Belfast Giants won a record third consecutive Elite Ice Hockey League regular season title (and sixth overall), with a 6–1 home victory over their closest rivals, the Guildford Flames on 1 April 2023.[4][7]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Belfast Giants (C) | 54 | 37 | 4 | 2 | 11 | 231 | 120 | +111 | 84 | Regular season champions Qualification to playoffs |
2 | Guildford Flames | 54 | 31 | 9 | 2 | 12 | 209 | 159 | +50 | 82 | Qualification to playoffs |
3 | Sheffield Steelers | 54 | 32 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 190 | 129 | +61 | 77 | |
4 | Cardiff Devils | 54 | 29 | 6 | 5 | 14 | 192 | 142 | +50 | 75 | |
5 | Coventry Blaze | 54 | 25 | 8 | 6 | 15 | 200 | 161 | +39 | 72 | |
6 | Manchester Storm | 54 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 28 | 163 | 203 | −40 | 48 | |
7 | Nottingham Panthers | 54 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 28 | 149 | 191 | −42 | 47 | |
8 | Glasgow Clan | 54 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 34 | 134 | 203 | −69 | 35 | |
9 | Fife Flyers | 54 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 34 | 118 | 193 | −75 | 34 | |
10 | Dundee Stars | 54 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 36 | 142 | 227 | −85 | 31 |
Rules for classification:
- In-season: 1) Points; 2) Fewest games played; end of season criteria as below.
- End of season: 1) Points; 2) Games won in regulation time; 3) Number of games won; 4) Head-to-head results, ranked by criteria 1 to 3; 5) Fewest regulation losses; 6) Away game results, ranked by criteria 1 to 3; 7) Goals scored; 8) Goal difference; 9) Fewest penalty minutes; 10) Drawing of lots.
(C) Champion
Results
Statistics
Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points, at the conclusion of the regular season.[8] If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scott Conway | Belfast Giants | 51 | 40 | 50 | 90 | +53 | 56 |
Daniel Tedesco | Guildford Flames | 53 | 31 | 49 | 80 | +25 | 16 |
David Goodwin | Belfast Giants | 53 | 15 | 55 | 70 | +53 | 8 |
Brett Ferguson | Guildford Flames | 53 | 22 | 45 | 67 | +32 | 90 |
Trevor Cox | Cardiff Devils | 53 | 16 | 50 | 66 | +33 | 14 |
Cole Sanford | Cardiff Devils | 52 | 38 | 27 | 65 | +34 | 38 |
Ryan Tait | Guildford Flames | 54 | 28 | 34 | 62 | +19 | 6 |
Philippe Sanche | Dundee Stars | 49 | 24 | 36 | 60 | −10 | 39 |
Marcus Crawford | Cardiff Devils | 54 | 9 | 48 | 57 | +47 | 87 |
Joey Martin | Cardiff Devils | 53 | 22 | 34 | 56 | +23 | 27 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average, provided that they have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, at the conclusion of the regular season.[9]
Player | Team(s) | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Taran Kozun | Cardiff Devils | 25 | 1368:01 | 16 | 6 | 50 | 3 | 92.80% | 2.19 |
Matt Greenfield | Sheffield Steelers | 53 | 3176:49 | 36 | 17 | 117 | 7 | 92.01% | 2.21 |
Jackson Whistle | Belfast Giants | 26 | 1424:07 | 17 | 7 | 53 | 3 | 91.76% | 2.23 |
Taz Burman | Guildford Flames | 22 | 1322:52 | 19 | 3 | 59 | 3 | 90.48% | 2.68 |
Paavo Hölsä | Coventry Blaze | 47 | 2824:15 | 28 | 18 | 128 | 6 | 90.72% | 2.72 |
Playoffs
Bracket
In the two-legged quarter-finals, the highest-ranked team met the lowest-ranked team, the second-highest-ranked team met the second-lowest-ranked team and so forth. The winners of each tie was determined by aggregate scoring over the two games. In the semi-finals, the highest remaining seed was matched against the lowest remaining seed, with the other two teams facing off. The winners of the semi-finals progressed to the Final, with the losers playing in the third-place match.
Quarter-finals (7–9 April) | Semi-finals (15 April) | Final (16 April) | ||||||||||||||
1 | Belfast Giants | 4 | 3 | 7 | ||||||||||||
8 | Glasgow Clan | 2 | 4 | 6 | ||||||||||||
1 | Belfast Giants | 6 | ||||||||||||||
7 | Nottingham Panthers | 3 | ||||||||||||||
2 | Guildford Flames | 1 | 5 | 6 | ||||||||||||
7 | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 3 | 7 | ||||||||||||
1 | Belfast Giants | 4 | ||||||||||||||
(Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Cardiff Devils | 1 | ||||||||||||||
3 | Sheffield Steelers | 2 | 5 | 7 | ||||||||||||
6 | Manchester Storm | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||||||||||||
3 | Sheffield Steelers | 2 | Third place | |||||||||||||
4 | Cardiff Devils | 3 | ||||||||||||||
4 | Cardiff Devils | 5 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Sheffield Steelers | 7 | |||||||||
5 | Coventry Blaze | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | Nottingham Panthers | 4 |
Quarter-finals
The quarter-final schedule was announced after the conclusion of the final-day regular season matches.[10]
(1) Belfast Giants vs. (8) Glasgow Clan
8 April 2023 | Belfast Giants | 4–2 | Glasgow Clan | SSE Arena Belfast | Recap | |||
Mark Cooper (1) – 5:35 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
Steven Owre (1) – 0:16 | Second period |
| ||||||
|
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
Tyler Beskorowany (16 shots / 14 saves) | Goalie stats | Ty Taylor (42 shots / 38 saves) |
9 April 2023 | Glasgow Clan | 4–3 | Belfast Giants | Braehead Arena | Recap | |||
|
First period |
| ||||||
Kevin Massy (1; PPG) – 5:52 | Second period | 4:54 – Will Cullen (1) | ||||||
Jeff Solow (1) – 8:00 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
Ty Taylor (35 shots / 32 saves) | Goalie stats | Tyler Beskorowany (24 shots / 20 saves) |
Belfast Giants win 7–6 on aggregate. | |
(2) Guildford Flames vs. (7) Nottingham Panthers
8 April 2023 | Nottingham Panthers | 4–1 | Guildford Flames | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham | Recap | |||
Stephen Anderson (1) – 6:43 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
|
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
David Levin (1) – 6:36 | Third period | 11:24 – Daniel Tedesco (1) | ||||||
Peyton Jones (33 shots / 32 saves) | Goalie stats | Eamon McAdam (30 shots / 26 saves) |
9 April 2023 | Guildford Flames | 5–3 | Nottingham Panthers | Guildford Spectrum | Recap | |||
|
First period |
| ||||||
No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
|
Third period | 2:31 – Albin Lindgren (1) | ||||||
Taz Burman (23 shots / 20 saves) | Goalie stats | Peyton Jones (40 shots / 35 saves) |
Nottingham Panthers win 7–6 on aggregate. | |
(3) Sheffield Steelers vs. (6) Manchester Storm
7 April 2023 | Manchester Storm | 2–2 | Sheffield Steelers | Altrincham Ice Dome | Recap | |||
No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
No scoring | Second period |
| ||||||
|
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
Jeremy Brodeur (42 shots / 40 saves) | Goalie stats | Matt Greenfield (26 shots / 24 saves) |
8 April 2023 | Sheffield Steelers | 5–2 | Manchester Storm | Sheffield Arena | Recap | |||
|
First period | 3:09 – Anthony DeLuca (1; PPG) | ||||||
|
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
Danny Kristo (2) – 8:16 | Third period | 5:39 – Cole Carter (1) | ||||||
Matt Greenfield (23 shots / 21 saves) | Goalie stats | Jeremy Brodeur (39 shots / 34 saves) |
Sheffield Steelers win 7–4 on aggregate. | |
(4) Cardiff Devils vs. (5) Coventry Blaze
8 April 2023 | Coventry Blaze | 1–5 | Cardiff Devils | Coventry Skydome | Recap | |||
John Curran (1) – 13:12 | First period | 17:42 – Brodie Reid (1) | ||||||
No scoring | Second period |
| ||||||
No scoring | Third period | 16:34 – Trevor Cox (1) | ||||||
Paavo Hölsä (34 shots / 29 saves) | Goalie stats | Ben Bowns (32 shots / 31 saves) |
9 April 2023 | Cardiff Devils | 1–2 | Coventry Blaze | Ice Arena Wales | Recap | |||
No scoring | First period | 6:19 – Kim Tallberg (1; PPG) | ||||||
No scoring | Second period | 3:05 – Tyler Kirkup (1) | ||||||
Jake Coughler (1; ENG) – 18:00 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
Ben Bowns (40 shots / 38 saves) | Goalie stats | Miklós Rajna (25 shots / 25 saves) |
Cardiff Devils win 6–3 on aggregate. | |
Semi-finals
The schedule for the Playoff Finals weekend was announced after the conclusion of the quarter-final matches.[11]
15 April 2023 15:00 | Belfast Giants | 6–3 (3–1, 1–1, 2–1) | Nottingham Panthers | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham |
Game reference | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tyler Beskorowany | Goalies | Peyton Jones | Referees: Matt Rose Andy Dalton Linesmen: Scott Rodger Ilia Kisil | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 min | Penalties | 4 min | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
24 | Shots | 41 |
15 April 2023 19:00 | Sheffield Steelers | 2–3 (OT) (2–1, 0–0, 0–1, 0–1) | Cardiff Devils | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham |
Game reference | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Matt Greenfield | Goalies | Ben Bowns | Referees: Tom Pering Liam Sewell Linesmen: Danny Beresford Lee Young | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
6 min | Penalties | 4 min | |||||||||||||||
30 | Shots | 36 |
Third-place match
16 April 2023 13:00 | Sheffield Steelers | 7–4 (3–2, 1–1, 3–1) | Nottingham Panthers | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham |
Game reference | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalies |
| Referees: David Good Daniel Ferguson Linesmen: Ethan Hardy Lewis Dolan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 min | Penalties | 0 min | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
36 | Shots | 35 |
Final
16 April 2023 17:00 | Belfast Giants | 4–1 (0–1, 1–0, 3–0) | Cardiff Devils | Motorpoint Arena Nottingham |
Game reference | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tyler Beskorowany | Goalies | Ben Bowns | Referees: Tom Pering Liam Sewell Linesmen: Lee Young Ilia Kisil | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
2 min | Penalties | 8 min | |||||||||||||||
42 | Shots | 27 |
Statistics
Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points, at the conclusion of the playoffs.[12] If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steven Owre | Belfast Giants | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | +7 | 2 |
Scott Allen | Sheffield Steelers | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
Stephen Anderson | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | +3 | 0 |
Scott Conway | Belfast Giants | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | +7 | 6 |
Danny Kristo | Sheffield Steelers | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | –1 | 2 |
David Goodwin | Belfast Giants | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | +9 | 0 |
Mike Hammond | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | +3 | 0 |
Cole Sanford | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 0 | 5 | 5 | +2 | 2 |
Ryan Tait | Guildford Flames | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | +1 | 0 |
Brett Neumann | Sheffield Steelers | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average, provided that they have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, at the conclusion of the playoffs.[13]
Player | Team(s) | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Miklós Rajna | Coventry Blaze | 1 | 55:51 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100.00% | 0.00 |
Ben Bowns | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 239:31 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 94.41% | 2.00 |
Matt Greenfield | Sheffield Steelers | 3 | 182:07 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 91.76% | 2.31 |
Tyler Beskorowany | Belfast Giants | 4 | 240:00 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 90.83% | 2.50 |
Taz Burman | Guildford Flames | 1 | 60:00 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 86.96% | 3.00 |
References
- ^ "Fixtures for 2022/23 published". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. 15 August 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
- ^ a b Marsh, Philip (16 April 2023). "Elite League play-offs: Belfast Giants beat Cardiff Devils to complete Grand Slam". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- ^ "Giants win 2023 Viaplay Challenge Cup!". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- ^ a b McKinley, Stuart (1 April 2023). "Belfast Giants make history as they win third Elite League title in a row after hammering Flames". Belfast Telegraph. Mediahuis Ireland. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
- ^ "Playoff Final: Grand Slam or Four-peat?". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. 16 April 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- ^ "Elite League Info". Nottingham Panthers. Nottingham Panthers Limited. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ "Giants beat Flames to win third title in a row". BBC Sport. BBC. 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
- ^ "Statistics: Players". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ^ "Statistics: Goalies". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ^ "Welcome to the 2023 Viaplay Elite League Playoffs!". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. 2 April 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ^ "Semi-Final Line-up Confirmed". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. 9 April 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
- ^ "Statistics: Players". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- ^ "Statistics: Goalies". Elite Ice Hockey League. Pendulum Management. Retrieved 16 April 2023.