CAMBRIDGE, UK – We’re now a little over halfway through the season, so it’s a good point to take stock of the new NIHL National Division and reflect on predictions made back in September.
There have been some rumblings across the internet that at least one team owner is unhappy with the way the reclassification of who qualifies as a British player has been rolled out.
There have certainly been ‘winners’ with this ruling – Telford Tigers being able to play Jason Silverthorn who had previously counted as an import as a British player is probably the most high-profile example.
Having looked into this previously, there will always be players who, either by the current definition or the previous one, are clearly a step ahead by virtue of where they spent their formative hockey years effectively giving the teams that sign them a ‘free import’. Nothing really has changed, but clarifying the definition at least gives a single, consistent set of rules.
The Leeds rink saga looks like it’s about to draw to a happy close. When the Leeds team was announced, many people reasonably questioned where they would play. The Elland Road rink was, at that point, nowhere near ready.
Some sensible planning from the people doing the fixtures saw the Chiefs play their first few weeks on the road in preparation for a November opening date.
Unfortunately, construction schedules slipped and a further two months of games have been played on the road in Coventry, Basingstoke, Blackburn and Peterborough amongst others.
While the slipping of the schedule is regrettable, the ambition of the team to launch and be part of the inaugural National Division season is laudable, and the efforts Planet Ice have made to ensure minimum disruption to the league schedule is probably under appreciated.
At the time of writing this, the scheduled opening of the rink and the Chiefs’ first home game in Leeds is a little under three weeks away against Sheffield Steeldogs.
There have been some other comings and goings throughout the league, so let’s assess the latest state-of-play.
Leeds Chiefs – Predicted Placing: 9th – Current spot: 10th
Leeds have had a tough start to the season with a rookie coach, no home rink and an untested team. They’ve had some tough times, but it’s not been all darkness and doom.
Despite losing some experienced players in the first half of the season – Radek Meidl, James Archer and Andy Hirst – they’ve also gained some players, particularly the vastly experienced Ashley Calvert following his departure from the Steeldogs, (only for him to leave shortly afterwards).
While they are still running light in numbers and only just filled their second import slot with former Manchester Storm and Dubai Mighty Camels winger, Patrik Valcak, they’ve only had one real pasting with their 11-1 loss to Bracknell Bees.
Moving into their rink and building their own home support base could see them pick up some more good wins, but is unlikely to lift them out of tenth place.
Bracknell Bees – Predicted Placing: 8th – Current Spot: 9th
This is not where Bees’ head coach Doug Sheppard is used to his team being. A run of losses, injuries and a short bench have hurt the team’s chances of finishing much higher than eighth place.
On their day, the patented Sheppard style of play will see them win some clutch games against less motivated teams, however it isn’t sustainable as the results are showing.
If this form continues the Bees owners may look at a change in direction come the end of the season, although it is worth bearing in mind that coaches of this calibre are not that common.
Raiders IHC – Predicted Placing: 10th – Current Spot: 8th
Sean Easton was always going to have a tough challenge taking his squad into this division. The additional players he’s recruited have been smart picks and, while the wins haven’t been as common as he would have liked, there are maybe two games so far where the Raiders have not been competitive from the first drop to the final buzzer.
It’s unlikely that they will over take Sheffield in seventh, but they appear to have enough to keep themselves in or very close to eighth and a spot in the play-offs at the end of the season.
There’s not much else to say about this team, and it is a team rather than a group of players. They’ve gone about their business quietly and have taken some impressive scalps along the way including Telford, Swindon Wildcats and Hull Pirates.
One of the few predictions from the beginning of the season that still rings true is that the Raiders will be one of the teams that does as much to decide the eventual league winner as the top teams themselves, because any team facing the Raiders that thinks they’re in for an easy game will be sorely mistaken.
Sheffield Steeldogs – Predicted Placing: 3rd – Current Spot: 7th
Despite early season form which saw them leading the way, a run of injuries and call-ups have not helped the Steeldogs in the slightest.
Ben Morgan is continuing to show that he’s a decent coach who isn’t afraid to make hard decisions when they are needed. They’re a solid, competitive team who haven’t had any huge wins or any big losses, but keep grinding out the games where they need to.
Hull Pirates – Predicted Placing: 1st – Current Spot: 6th
Hull are a frustrating side to play against, to write about, and, if the internet is to be believed, a frustrating team to be a fan of.
They went from topping the league after a few weeks and looking like they would start pulling away from the chasing pack, to eighth after a run of four defeats early in the season.
While they’ve had little problem scoring, they have had an ongoing issue keeping the puck out of their own net. The fans have levelled their criticism at the goal tending, but a closer look indicates it’s a whole team problem.
A lack of back checking and poor defence have led to situations where while they can score 6-7 goals a game, they have conceded 7-8 goals a game too.
If they can sort their defending and netminding situations out, then a top three finish is still feasible, otherwise they’re likely to be left behind by Milton Keynes by the end of the season.
Milton Keynes Lightning – Predicted Placing: 6th – Current Spot: 5th
This is not the stunning prediction it seems. A lot of the original criticisms levelled at the Lightning are still valid. The team as a group are getting on, (they have the highest average ages in the league).
However, some smart personnel decisions by head coach Lewis Clifford that saw a few departures and very astute signings in the shape of Tom Carlon, Robin Kovar and Liam Stewart have given the team a mid-season boost.
Clifford has also answered one of the other doubts most satisfactorily – could he weld this group into a team? He seems to have done just that and created a spirit that even without the infusion of players would have seen them climb from the depths of ninth into their current spot.
With a wealth of players returning from injuries and suspensions, things are looking good for the Buckinghamshire side.
On current form they are very likely to climb a few extra places, and of they time it right, could see themselves as one of the favourites for the play-offs at the end of the season. The key will be not to burn themselves out too soon.
Peterborough Phantoms – Predicted Placing: 4th – Current Spot: 4th
The Phantoms are a team that have traditionally well-drilled and well-organised with an ability to pull out a clutch result when needed.
However recent form, which saw them lose three-in-a-row, especially in defence where their usual poise has been lacking, is now seeing a team that is under threat of dropping further down the table.
The ‘Christmas Slump’ has previously cost the team at least two league titles, (EPL and NIHL) in recent years, and this year seems to be following the same pattern.
On the plus side, their form usually begins to improve in January and tends to peak towards the end of March into the beginning of April making them strong play-off contenders.
This season though, they will be being chased hard by both Hull and Milton Keynes, and will be fighting to retake third position from Basingstoke Bison. If these fights are as hard as expected, this could cause them issues come the post-season.
Basingstoke Bison – Predicted Placing: 5th – Current Spot: 3rd
The Bison are no longer the ‘surprise contenders’ as it’s clear that Ashley Tait’s abilities as a player/coach have them where they are on merit alone.
For the second season running he has avoided recruiting a team of ‘stars’ and instead put his trust in his solid core of players. It’s a trust that has payed off nicely.
There’s not a lot to say about the Bison. They’re a mentally tough team, and are at the lower end of the scale when it comes to penalty minutes and they keep taking games quietly in a business like fashion.
The only real cloud for the team is the future of their rink, but that is a situation that is out of their hands.
Swindon Wildcats – Predicted Placing: 2nd – Current Spot: 2nd
The Wildcats have gone from being the team that always looked good on paper but never delivered, to a team that are consistently delivering league titles and cups.
Player/coach Aaron Nell has recruited well and been able to keep players for longer than you would normally expect by simply treating them properly instead of like property.
This stability has led to a long term consistency that many teams find difficult to keep up with on the ice. While at this point they are five points behind the Tigers, their consistency will see them mercilessly close that gap if the Shropshire side make the slightest mistake.
Telford Tigers – Predicted Placing: 7th – Current Spot: 1st
Without a doubt, the Tigers were probably the most underrated team at the beginning of the season. There is nothing in the line-up that screams ‘top-placed team’ and this is one thing that has helped Tom Watkins guide the Tigers into pole position at the halfway (and a bit), point.
Having Silverthorn reclassified as a British player hasn’t hurt them one little bit, and top scorers Dominik Florian and Scott McKenzie have done well, however it’s young players like Finley Howells who have underpinned the success of this team and are likely to for a number of years to come.
This success is in marked contrast to the success of the Wayne Scholes years, this is success that has been earned, not bought and is something that the coaches, players and fans alike should be thoroughly proud of.
Another prediction made in the original preview article was that the gap between first and last wouldn’t be as great as in previous years. At this stage, the run of losses from Leeds gives a spread that is not representative of the competitiveness of this league.
The NIHL management committee have done a good job of running the division as well as keeping their other divisions going. It’s a ‘good job’ quite simply because we haven’t heard anything from or about them.
All the news, all the publicity, has been about the teams and the players. The LMC have done nothing to shine a light on themselves which is exactly how these things should be.
Having been optimistic about the viability, sustainability and quality of this league when it was launched that is still the case now.
A few tweaks off the ice by the teams in terms of their media presentation could see the National Division very quickly eclipse the old EPL. However, that’s a thought for another day.
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