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74-614: 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 ENIHL. During

148-431: A 5–4 aggregate victory, before they beat Cardiff 6–1 in the first leg of the final. A fight-strewn second-leg a week later saw Coventry battle under pressure to win the game 5–4; securing their first trophy of the season, 11–5 on aggregate. As Cardiff faltered, the league eventually became a two-horse race between Coventry and Belfast. Blaze eventually they had the chance to wrap up the title with three games to go in front of

222-495: A Blaze players number. The fan with the tennis ball numbered after the first player to score in that night's game will win a prize. During the second period break, scorch participates in chuck a puck. Scorch has been played by various volunteers over their twenty years in Coventry. Each person has kept up the persona of Scorch being mischievous and playful. Squad for 2024-25 Elite League season The Coventry Blaze head coach

296-562: A Cup competition involving eight teams. These are initially split into two groups of four, with each group containing two teams from each conference. The top two teams from each group go onto a single Cup Final Weekend held in a single venue, with semi-finals on the Saturday determining the two teams to play the final on the Sunday. In 2019, the EIHA announced a new National League to sit above

370-527: A career season, hitting 58 goals and 125 points in Elite League competitions as he ended the year the club's and the league's MVP. Blaze held off their challengers to finally seal a second successive, and third overall, Elite League title. By this time Coventry had also reached the Knockout Cup final against Basingstoke, but they needed a four-goal burst in the final period of the second leg to seal

444-582: A change in fortunes, with Coventry falling over two legs to the Giants again in the Challenge Cup semis before finishing 11 points behind Sheffield to take second in the Elite League title race. The last hope of a trophy came in the playoffs, but Nottingham provided a final devastation with a 6–2 defeat. Coventry Blaze celebrated their 10th anniversary season in 2009–10 with a third Elite League title in four seasons, making it 10 trophies in 10 seasons since

518-403: A five-year stay and was replaced by fellow British international Jonathan Weaver in the team's big transfer story, while sniper Curtis Huppe arrived from Belfast and past-servants of the club, Russ Cowley and Matt Soderstrom, returned to Coventry for the 2007–08 season. Despite relinquishing the Challenge Cup early on with failure to escape their group and make the semis, Blaze started strong in

592-516: A league format. Each team plays each of the other teams in their league a total of four times; twice home, twice away. Unlike the North, the South keep a two-legged home-and-away format throughout the playoffs. In Division 1, this is a three-rounded format, involving the teams who finished in the top 8 of the regular season. In Division 2, this is a two-rounded format, involving the teams who finished in

666-607: A lock-out deal by bringing in high-scoring centreman Chris McNamara. The turning point in Blaze's season came in November, as Thompson cut Slovak Michal Vrabel and brought in Toronto Maple Leafs ' NHL defenceman Wade Belak , sparking a run to the end of the regular season where they only lost once in regulation time. A Doug Schueller goal against Nottingham Panthers sent Coventry to their first Challenge Cup final with

740-418: A month later replaced by Chuck Weber who agreed to coach until the end of the season. After an initial tough start, Weber against all odds took Blaze to the play-off final beating favourites Sheffield Steelers 4–2. Weber subsequently signed for a further season and again reached the final of the playoffs however this time Blaze lost 2–0 to Nottingham Panthers. Weber's departure was announced soon after, and

814-715: A new record Skydome crowd, but resulted in another shootout loss. With a wholesale revamp of the team, the 2006–07 season saw Coventry taking to the ice vastly more experienced for the challenge from back to front. League All-Star Trevor Koenig to goal proved to be the team's key signing, and the partnership of the Grand-Slam year was reformed as Adam Calder and Dan Carlson both returned. They were combined with proven past winners like Sylvain Cloutier , Samy Nasreddine, former NHL player Rumun Ndur , Reid Simonton and Danny Stewart. Despite reigning champions Belfast pulling away at

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888-593: A new record crowd at the Skydome, Coventry dispatched of London Knights 5–1 and secured their place as the number one team in Britain. Now the bid was on to add the Playoff crown to their trophy cabinet. After qualifying from their playoff group for their first finals weekend, a Jody Lehman shutout helped Blaze beat Sheffield Steelers 3–0 in their semi-final. The Playoff Final against the home-town Nottingham Panthers

962-701: 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

1036-500: A professional team. Level League(s)/Division(s) 2 National League 11 clubs – no promotions, no relegations 3 Division 1 – North (Moralee) 7 clubs – no promotions, bottom club relegated to D2N Division 1 – South (Britton) 10 clubs – no promotions, bottom club relegated to D2S 4 Division 2 – North (Laidler) 8 clubs – champions promoted to D1N, no relegations Division 2 – South (Wilkinson) 12 clubs – champions promoted to D1S, no relegations Note

1110-655: A second trophy of the season – one which had proved elusive on two previous occasions. In the playoffs Blaze reached the final against league runners-up Sheffield, but a 2–0 shutout backstopped by Blaze's grand-slam goalie Jody Lehman eluded them of another treble. The 2008–09 season resulted in the club winning no major silverware for the first time in three years. The club reacted to losing key members of their team, in All-Stars Trevor Koenig and Neal Martin and captain Sylvain Cloutier, by building

1184-647: A second trophy was in the cabinet – a 5–1 win in Sheffield brought the Challenge Cup back to Coventry. The other two trophies eluded them thanks to the Cardiff Devils, with a 3–0 shutout on SkyDome ice in the Knockout Cup final followed up by a 3–2 success in the playoff semi-finals. Blaze entered the 2007 season with the majority of the Championship team retained. Captain Ashley Tait departed after

1258-604: A two-goal lead, but with a minute to go found themselves a goal down and the big title-decider against the Giants looked likely. But Captain Adam Calder tied the scores with only 28 seconds remaining and took the game to OT, before his hat-trick goal sealed the comeback and the league championship. However, despite making the Playoff Semi-Finals for a fourth year running, they were well-beaten in Nottingham by

1332-550: A young, mobile roster designed to last the distance. However, they lacked consistency in key areas and went through periods of poor form. All of Head Coach, Paul Thompson's new signings were familiar to British hockey bar two – Scott Kelman and Corey LeClair – who both arrived from the ECHL . The first half of the season saw good progress, with the club taking the Charity Shield in overtime against Sheffield and qualifying for

1406-654: Is a set of semi-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

1480-554: Is currently Kevin Moore. Former Coaches for the Blaze include Paul Thompson , who also coached the Great Britain men's national ice hockey team while Coach of the Blaze. Thompson stood down as coach in 2013 and former player Mathias Soderstrom took over but was replaced in 2014 by Sheffield Steelers Assistant Coach Marc Le Febvre. Le Febvre was then replaced by first Steven Goertzen in a short term role in November 2014, and then

1554-480: Is no promotion to or relegation from the National League. Below the National League, the leagues are split into two regions, North and South, meaning teams do not have to travel long distances for away games. Each region has 2 divisions, with promotion and relegation between the divisions in each region. The ENIHL was formed in 1996; following the dissolution of the British Hockey League (BHL), and

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1628-474: The Basingstoke Bison announced they would sit out the 2023/24 season due to rink upgrade works. As of the 2018–19 season, the divisions are the following: Each team plays each of the other teams in their league a total of four times; twice home, twice away. At the end of the regular season, the top 4 teams in the division take part in the Playoff weekend, which are one-off games, replacing

1702-561: The EPIHL , many teams were forced to enter a reserve team into the ENIHL . This increased the size of the league from 22 teams through to 30 teams for the 2007–08 season. Later in the 2007 off-season, the EIHA suggested introducing an under 25 age limit across the league. However, this age limit was removed within weeks in favour of a drive towards developing players. The ENIHL was restructured for

1776-464: The English National Ice Hockey League for its inaugural season; during which members of the higher division played a dual set of fixtures; one set amongst themselves and another amongst all of the teams within the ENIHL. This season was one of the most successful on record as Blaze were victorious in both competitions and their respective play-offs. Nine goals in each leg of the play off final against Chelmsford Chieftains gave Blaze their third trophy of

1850-441: The 1997-98 season the teams that constituted this division played dual schedules; a series of games solely amongst their own division, and another amongst all the teams that were playing under the ENIHL at that time. Each year, the league crowned a regular season champion, a post-season playoffs champion, and a knockout Cup champion. Solihull Blaze won the league and play-off trophies of both formats during this inaugural season. At

1924-630: The 2008/2009 season into two regional divisions North and South, with two leagues in each regional division. Following the 2012–13 the league was renamed the National Ice Hockey League , removing the word English due to non-English teams participating. In 2013, it was agreed at the EIHA AGM to restructure the Northern league into two conferences; Moralee and Laidler. The split was done primarily on regions and neither conference

1998-561: The Blaze matching new-boys Dundee Stars all the way. The Finals weekend of the Challenge Cup saw Blaze comeback from 3–0 down in the semi-final to beat Basingstoke Bison and go on to meet Fife in the final, which the Flyers went on to win. Returning to the league, and the Blaze continued in fine form throughout splitting results with the Stars. Stars greater consistency, and their ability not to drop points against mid-table teams left them top of

2072-433: The Cardiff Devils. The 2010–11 season resulted in no silverware for the Blaze. There were not many changes from the team that won the league championship the previous season. Brett Jaeger replaced Peter Hirsh in goal whilst Canadian blueliners Brad Zanon and Jeff Smith were signed in place of long-time defenceman Tom Watkins, who moved to Telford Tigers as player-coach, and the retiring Jason Robinson. Up-front Owen Fussey

2146-612: The Challenge Cup semi finals. A third representation by the club at the Continental Cup saw a winner-takes-all final game against hosts Bolzano , where a disallowed Coventry goal proved the major turning point in an eliminating 1–0 defeat. Come January 2009 though Blaze started to falter – Kelman and LeClair were replaced after failing to adapt to the British league and the Knockout Cup was relinquished against Belfast over two legs. The changes in personnel failed to bring enough of

2220-557: The Coventry Blaze in the Elite Ice Hockey League. Each season the club releases a new set of jerseys. The club always wear their blue jerseys for home games, this will consist of a royal blue for the main color along with a dark blue and white sections on the jersey. The away jersey will have the same base design but this jersey will be white for the main color and the royal blue replacing the white sections on

2294-521: The EIHA, which include; Coventry Blaze The Coventry Blaze are a British professional ice hockey team based in Coventry , England . They currently compete in the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) and play their home games at SkyDome Arena . The club was founded in 1965 as the original Solihull Barons and renamed the Solihull Blaze in 1996, before relocating to Coventry at

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2368-554: The EPIHL to take its place as the second tier of the national game. In 2017, the league was dissolved. The Milton Keynes Lightning and Guildford Flames joined the Elite League, Manchester Phoenix folded, and the remaining seven teams became part of the National Ice Hockey League . The league was ruled and governed by the English Ice Hockey Association . The last chairman of the EPIHL was Ken Taggart. English National Ice Hockey League The National Ice Hockey League ( NIHL )

2442-637: The Elite League's newly created 20–20 hockey tournament proved more of a success and Blaze were losing finalists to the Sheffield Steelers. With the cups removed from the priority list, the league became Coventry's main focus for six months, and the race for its title was to become one of the closest fought for years, going all the way to the final weekend. To avoid a final day showdown with second-placed Belfast, Coventry as narrow leaders needed to win their penultimate game in Edinburgh. Blaze gained

2516-633: The best possible way after the greatest seven months in the club's history. Although stalwarts such as netminder Jody Lehman and new captain Ashley Tait returned, coach Thompson changed many, bringing in more size, more speed and more quality. His greatest coup was signing former-Superleague defenceman Neal Martin , who went on to become the league's Player of the Year and selected to the EIHL All-Star Team . The brand-new first line of Dan Carlson, Adam Calder and Andre Payette proved potent all through

2590-541: The creation of the Ice Hockey Superleague and the British National League (BNL) as the top two tiers of British hockey. The ENIHL served as the third tier of hockey; operating below the BNL. Following its inaugural season, an upper tier within the ENIHL was founded, so as to serve as a league for the members of the BNL who could not afford to remain in that league due to the increased operating costs; but at

2664-596: The departed Roberts, and GB forward Ashley Tait joining the team. Blaze entered the Ice Hockey Superleague (ISL) Challenge Cup at the start of the season, and ran a couple of ISL teams close. The Findus Challenge Cup saw Blaze into the Finals where they met the Newcastle Vipers , but the result was a 0–3 loss. A run of form following the defeat saw the Blaze wrap up the league title with a victory in Dundee. This

2738-427: The dragon is the official Coventry Blaze mascot. Scorch is infamous for his unique dance moves, he interacts with fans of all teams when they visit the Skydome arena. Scorch can often be found before and during a game walking around the rink being mischievous with fans and taking photos. During the pre-game introduction Scorch skates onto the ice and throws tennis balls into the crowd for fans to catch, each ball contains

2812-635: The existing regional leagues. This mainly comprised the teams of the former EPIHL that had dropped into NIHL Division 1 in 2017. The competition Champions are as follows: Follows International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) rules, as used by countries in all major European leagues. There are significant differences between the National Hockey League rules and IIHF rules, including rink dimension, netminder puck handling, and icing. The ENIHL also operates under additional EIHA regulations. Additional discipline rules are also enforced by

2886-514: The following season Blaze returned to the BNL; and made a semi-final appearance in the 1999–2000 BNL play-offs, losing to eventual winners Fife Flyers , having finished in seventh position in their first year back at British National League level. In May 2000, the club announced that they would be heading to a new 3,600-seater stadium, the Coventry SkyDome Arena , for the 2000–01 BNL campaign; renaming themselves "Coventry Blaze" in

2960-425: The fourth level of Britain's ice hockey pyramid. However, in 2005 the BNL disbanded; leaving the EPIHL to take its place as the second tier of the national game and, consequently, re-establishing the ENIHL as the third tier of British ice hockey. In April 2007, the EIHA lowered the upper age limit within the junior leagues, abolishing the under 19 age limit to become under 18. Due to the large gap from junior level to

3034-476: The gaps on the blueline. The situation was just as bad in attack with goalscorer Owen Fussey sidelined after 34 games with a knee injury and Brad Cruikshank forced to serve a lengthy ban for his involvement in a bench clearance against rivals Nottingham in a game at the SkyDome. Away from the league there was just as little success. A strong start in the Challenge Cup soon faltered and Blaze failed to progress from

English Premier Ice Hockey League - Misplaced Pages Continue

3108-409: The group stage, and in the playoffs the team failed to reach the finals weekend in Nottingham after suffering a 3–4 overtime loss against Belfast in the quarter finals. As defending league champions Blaze once again were Britain's representatives in the Continental Cup, and made a strong bid to reach the superfinals of the competition with 6–1 victories in their first two group games before falling 3–7 to

3182-421: The home jersey and the dark blue sections remain the same. The challenge cup jersey is worn only during the team's home challenge cup games, these jerseys have the same design as the other two jerseys but the main color is now black with white sections on the bottom and sleeves of the jersey. The club wears special edition jerseys with different designs on them celebrating Christmas, Halloween, Easter etc. Scorch

3256-452: The hosts in Rouen. In December 2011, it was announced by the club that the Blaze were in financial difficulties due to the economic climate and events outside of their control. The Blaze issued a press statement announcing Blaze Action Month , asking the fans to get behind the club by purchasing game tickets and buying merchandise in order to raise funds. The 2012–13 was the 10th season for

3330-550: The league and kept going throughout the season. They were the British representatives in the Continental Cup once more, this time in Aalborg , Denmark , and although they ultimately missed out on a place in the next round, they produced one of the greatest results in the club's history – a 3–2 overtime comeback win against Austrian champions Red Bull Salzburg . Domestically, Adam Calder, ably assisted again by partner Dan Carlson, proved to be Blaze's main weapon. The Canadian scorer had

3404-672: The league saw another first for the club as they flew to their game in Belfast and beat the previous year's Superleague playoff champions. A 6–1 win over Sheffield in October and an 11–0 victory over Manchester Phoenix in December were highlights as the team stayed close the leaders at the top of the table up until Christmas. In the New Year, Blaze fell back and wins were hard to come by, but they still finished third in their first year in

3478-470: The league with the Blaze runners-up again. The play-offs saw the Blaze top their qualification group and then beat Guildford Flames over the two legged semi-final. The Final saw them take on the Stars and lose out by the narrowest of margins, 8–7, over the two legs, and for the third time in the season Blaze were runners-up. Season 2002–03 saw another evolution not revolution in the playing staff with Jody Lehman replacing Burt in goal, Joel Poirier replacing

3552-592: The main changes.) The Season started with a run of good results in the Findus Challenge Cup which saw Blaze qualify for the Semi-Finals. This run included the first return visit to Hobs Moat Road in Solihull to take on the reformed Barons (both games saw Blaze victorious). An injury to Andrew McNiven saw ex-Steeler/Panther/Giant Steve Roberts join up with the Blaze. An impressive October/November saw

3626-402: The move to the city in the summer of 2000. Coach Paul Thompson's new signings were key as Coventry recovered from being runners-up the previous year to title winners again. Peter Hirsch was added as netminder, Brian Lee was installed on the blue-line, whilst Greg Chambers and Luke Fulghum brought goals up front. The season started with a Challenge Cup run that fell at the group stage, but

3700-570: The odd-number of teams in the league, the Eastern Conference had six teams while the Western Conference had five teams. Both conferences were run completely separately and each winner was only regarded as being the conference winner, with no implication of one conference winner being regarded as the league winner. A two-round playoff format was introduced at the end of the season to determine a league-wide winner. The winner of

3774-450: The playoffs would then be the team promoted to Division 1. In 2017, the two conferences were reunited. The league itself is considered to be a development league, and as such the players are normally amateur. Many teams have affiliate teams in higher leagues. Other teams are aligned with junior ice hockey clubs, and exist to ensure that when players hit 18 there is still a possibility for them to play competitive hockey if they have not joined

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3848-491: The previous home/away format. There is not usually a third placed Playoff. Blackburn Hawks currently hold the record of most consecutive final appearances with four from 2011/12 to the present season, winning in 2012/13 and 2014/15. The rules regarding promotion and relegation between the Moralee and Laidler regularly change. There are occasional cup competitions, but the format changes in most seasons but usually takes part in

3922-509: The process. This was done for the purpose of attracting a larger fan base to the team. With eight new players on board the Blaze started their inaugural season at the Skydome with a decent run in the Benson & Hedges Cup and, after losing in their opening BNL game, proceeded to set an impressive pace in the league competition throughout October and November. The loss of key players, Craig Chapman (returned to US) and Steve Chartrand (injury) at

3996-463: The result was 6th in the league standings – Coventry's worst finish in their 11-year history. Injuries were blamed for the downturn, particularly to key imports, with defenceman Jeff Smith, Brian Lee and Jonathan Weaver all requiring lengthy lay-offs which resulted in Blaze calling up inexperienced players from their ENL team as well as bringing back Jason Robinson from retirement in America to help plug

4070-541: The same time played ice hockey to a higher standard that of the other ENIHL teams. This division was originally known as the National Division , and during the 1997–98 season the teams in this division played dual schedules; a series of games solely amongst themselves, and another amongst all of the teams which fell under the jurisdiction of the ENIHL at this time. Solihull Blaze won the league and play-off trophies of both formats during this inaugural season. At

4144-458: The season was non-viable without supporters being permitted to attend matches and unanimously agreed to a suspension. The season was cancelled completely in February 2021. Coventry were later announced as one of four Elite League teams taking part in the 'Elite Series' between April–May 2021, a total of 24 games culminating in a best-of-three play-off final series. Below is a list of all

4218-495: The season, as Carlson's speed and vision proved the perfect set-up for Calder's finishing and play around the net, while Payette angered many by clocking up almost 500 penalty minutes. The season started well as they qualified from their group for the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup , kept with the early pace-setters at the top of the league and even got over the disappointment of losing out on NHL forward Eric Beaudoin on

4292-767: The season. The Blaze left the ENIHL along with the rest of the national division during the course of the 1998–99 season, with the division becoming the English Premier League . In November 1998, they were losing finalists in the English Cup, but the side were once again crowned league champions in March with a victory in Chelmsford on 20 March. Play-off success followed in April with a 5–3 two-legged victory over season-long rivals, Milton Keynes Kings . For

4366-402: The second leg. The Devils wiped out the advantage, with the final goal 20 seconds from time, and were the only team to score in the deciding penalty shootout to win the competition. The remaining months offered little success as the team finished fourth and then failed to make the playoff semis. Their last chance at success came in the final of the newly created British Knockout Cup in front of

4440-409: The start of the 1998-99 season the divisions, whilst still both under the ENIHL umbrella, performed in their own separate competitions; and the national division adopted the name "premier division", and later on became known as the "premier league". By the end of the season the league had established itself outside of the ENIHL as the "English Premier Ice Hockey League". In 2005 the BNL disbanded; leaving

4514-555: The start of the 1998–99 season the divisions, whilst still both under the ENIHL umbrella, performed in their own separate competitions; and the national division adopted the name Premier Division , and later on became known as the Premier League . By the end of the season the league had established itself outside of the ENIHL as the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL); reducing the ENIHL to

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4588-532: The team began slowly, edging into the Challenge Cup semis whilst trying to keep with the early pace-setters in the league. The season high came when Blaze were British representatives in the Continental Cup group stages, winning and drawing their opening two games before falling to French hosts Grenoble in the final, deciding game. Blaze took a three-goal lead in a repeat of the previous year's Challenge Cup final against Cardiff, but could not defend this in

4662-403: The top 2 of their conference. In the semi-finals, the conference winners play the runners-up from the other conference with the final involving the winners of the two semi-finals. Division 1 has a Cup competition involving six of the teams. These are initially split into two groups of three, with the top two from each group going on to a knock-out, two-legged semi-final and final. Division 2 has

4736-522: The top flight of British ice hockey. Season 2003–04 saw another major change in the club's progress as they took part in their first season as a top-flight club in the newly formed Elite League. Coach Paul Thompson stayed true to the team which had won the double in the BNL the year before, replacing only three players; defencemen Steve O'Brien and Steve Gallace coming from the ECHL to replace Andreas Moborg and Ron Shudra and college-graduate Graham Schlender replacing folk-hero Kurt Irvine. The first game of

4810-537: The top flight. The playoffs however, got off to an awful start as they lost in Cardiff minus coach Thompson, serving a one match ban following a bench clearance against the Devils the weekend before. With only four games in the group stage, Blaze were unable to get going after that loss and ended the season by finishing winless in the post-season. If the previous season had finished disappointingly, season 2004–05 ended in

4884-469: The top of the league, Blaze quietly qualified for both cup finals without defeat and maintained a steady pace behind the Giants. Come early February, Blaze had cut the 11-point lead Belfast held at Christmas, and when the two met at the Skydome, an 8–0 win in Coventry's favour proved a massive turning point. They were run close, but a home win against Edinburgh with a few games remaining secured Blaze's second Elite League championship in three years. A week later

4958-416: The turn of the millennium. The Blaze have won four Elite Ice Hockey League Championships since the formation of the league in 2003. The Solihull Barons evolved into Solihull Blaze before the start of the 1996–97 season, finishing second in the southern division of the British National League during the league's inaugural season. For the following season the team joined the newly formed "national division" of

5032-560: The turn of the year were possible contributions to a dip in form which resulted in an eventual fourth-place finish. In the playoffs Blaze were unable to repeat the previous years semi-final appearance. However, the most important factor of the year was the growth in fan base from a few hundred at the start of the year to over 2000 by the end of the play-offs. Season 2001–02 saw few changes in the line up (Canadian Ian Burt replacing Henrik Sjodin in goal, Andrew McNiven joining in place of AJ Kelham and Steve Carpenter returning to Blaze colours being

5106-466: Was cancelled completely in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the league and play-offs concluded without a winner being crowned. The above stat line indicates Coventry's league position (3rd) at the time of the cancellation. Note: The 2020–21 Elite League season - originally scheduled for a revised start date of 5 December - was suspended on 15 September 2020, because of ongoing coronavirus pandemic restrictions. The EIHL board determined that

5180-484: Was followed up with an unbeaten play-offs run, the Final being contested against Cardiff Devils , and a narrow victory in Cardiff was followed by a first ever capacity crowd (2750) at the Skydome for a triumphant night that saw Blaze lift their second trophy of the year. Shortly after the final, Blaze announced their move into the newly formed Elite Ice Hockey League , and commenced preparations for their first ever season in

5254-642: Was regarded as being higher than the other. However, at the following year's AGM, it was agreed to return to a tiered Division 1 and Division 2 format. However, the conference names remained in place with Division 1 taking the Moralee Conference title and Division 2 the Laidler Conference title. In 2014, it was agreed at the EIHA AGM to restructure the Southern Division 2 league to have Western and Eastern Conferences. Due to

5328-438: Was signed from rivals Edinburgh Capitals to replace the team's highest goal scorer Adam Calder. The season did not start well with four consecutive defeats against Belfast and Nottingham leaving the Blaze at the bottom of the league table, but even a club record 12 game unbeaten run between the end of September and middle of November did not help them catch up with the leaders. From then on Blaze lost more games than they won and

5402-653: Was swiftly replaced by ex-player Danny Stewart who returned to the club from the Fife Flyers ahead of the 2016–17 season. Stewart moved on to the Nottingham Panthers in 2024. In May 2024, Coventry appointed the Nottingham Panthers assistant Kevin Moore as their new head coach. Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime Losses; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against Note: The 2019–20 season

5476-616: Was tight and eventually went into sudden-death overtime tied at 1–1. But just over three minutes into the extra session, captain Ashley Tait scored the game-winner, securing Coventry Blaze's place in British Ice Hockey history as winners of the elusive Grand-Slam. In the 2005–06 season, Coventry Blaze faced the enormity of trying to emulate their grand slam success, but before it had even begun they had suffered losses, with their entire first line and netminder moving on, as well as three key players retiring. With replacements acquired,

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