2023–24 EIHL season
Sports season / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2023–24 EIHL season was the 20th anniversary season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The regular season commenced on 23 September 2023, and the final match day was on 7 April 2024; the playoff quarter-finals were held over the weekend of 14 April and the Playoff final weekend was held the following weekend.[1]
2023–24 EIHL season | |
---|---|
League | Elite Ice Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration |
|
Number of matches | 330 |
Number of teams | 10 |
Total attendance | 1,133,816 |
Average attendance | 3,532 |
Regular season | |
Season champions | Sheffield Steelers |
Season MVP | Matt Greenfield (Sheffield Steelers) |
Top scorer |
|
Challenge Cup | |
Winners | Sheffield Steelers |
Runners-up | Guildford Flames |
Playoffs | |
Champions | Sheffield Steelers |
Runners-up | Belfast Giants |
EIHL seasons | |
← 2022–23 2024–25 → |
The Sheffield Steelers won their sixth league title – and first since 2015–16[2] – having opened up an unassailable 14-point lead over the Cardiff Devils with a 7–3 victory over the Guildford Flames on 24 March 2024. The Steelers had also won the Challenge Cup 11 days earlier, beating the Flames 3–1 in the final.[3] The Steelers ultimately completed their first Grand Slam in the EIHL era, defeating the Belfast Giants 3–1 in the playoff final.[4]
The season was marred by the death of Nottingham Panthers forward Adam Johnson during a Challenge Cup match between the Panthers and the Sheffield Steelers,[5] held on 28 October, at the Sheffield Arena.[6] Johnson had suffered a cut to his neck by the blade of a skate,[7] and received emergency treatment on the ice before being transferred to the Northern General Hospital, but died from his injuries.[6] The EIHL postponed all scheduled matches for the following day, 29 October,[8] and subsequent matches on 31 October and 1 November were also postponed.[9][10] Teams returned to action on 4 November, with the exception of Sheffield and Nottingham,[10] who returned to the ice a week and two weeks later.