Jody Lehman | |||
---|---|---|---|
Born | North Battleford, Saskatchewan | 1 July 1975||
Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) | ||
Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) | ||
Position | Goaltender | ||
Caught | Left | ||
Played for | South Carolina Stingrays Rochester Americans Coventry Blaze Sheffield Steelers AaB Ice hockey Lloydminster Border Kings | ||
National team | Great Britain | ||
Playing career | 1997–2012 |
Jody Lehman (born 1 July 1975 in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada) is a retired Canadian-British professional ice hockey player, most recently playing for Lloydminster Border Kings.
He began playing for the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League in 1991-92, and stayed there until the 1995-96 season when he moved to the Brandon Wheat Kings (also of the WHL).
Following this season he moved on to the Wichita Thunder of the Central Hockey League, before his move to the South Carolina Stingrays for the 1998-99 season. This was a successful spell for Lehman, who in his 4 seasons for South Carolina won a Kelly Cup (2000–01) and also received a call up to the Rochester Americans of the AHL. [1]
But following the 2001-02 season Lehman moved across the Atlantic to play for the British side the Coventry Blaze. His first season was very successful as the Blaze won major honours, winning the league and the playoffs (the team went unbeaten winning the playoffs).
The next season the Blaze and Lehman moved into the newly formed Elite Ice Hockey League(EIHL) finishing 3rd in its inaugural season. The next season (2004–05) was a highly successful season for both Lehman and the Blaze as they dominated the league backed by the outstanding netminding of Lehman who had his best season for the Blaze. They went on to win the Grand Slam, winning the league, playoffs and the challenge cup. The goaltending of Lehman had been a key to this success, which was demonstrated in the playoff finals, where the Blaze won a tight game in overtime beating the Nottingham Panthers. [2]
Following the Grand Slam season, Lehman decided to move to fellow EIHL side the Sheffield Steelers. His first two season there were far less successful both stats wise and in terms of trophies (collecting just the British Knockout Cup, after beating the Blaze over two legs).
Things turned around in the 2007-08 season as the Steelers made a late challenge for the League title, only to fall just short after a tremendous late season surge in results. They did, however, go on to win the Playoff championship. In the quarter-finals they beat the Manchester Phoenix 9-8 over two legs to qualify for the Playoff finals weekend. Here Lehman played some of the best hockey of his career, first holding the Cardiff Devils to a single goal, and saving a penalty shot in a 2-1 win. Then in the final, the Steelers beat the League champions the Coventry Blaze (2-0), with Lehman shutting them out in a tremendous performance, particularly in the closing stages as the Blaze poured on the pressure. [3]
After speculation that Lehman would sign with another European side, he eventually re-signed for his fourth season with the Steelers. After a shakey start to the season, in which they were knocked out of both the Challenge Cup and Knockout Cup early, the Steelers settled down.
After a long season, the Sheffield Steelers won the Elite League for the first time in 5 years, thanks largely to Lehman's outstanding performances throughout the season. At the Steelers' final home game of the season on 21 March 2009, Lehman broke the British ice hockey goaltending record for most shutouts in a season. The 4-0 shutout of Basingstoke Bison was Lehman's 9th of the season. [4]
In April 2009, Lehman announced that he felt he had achieved everything possible in the British game, and saw his move to Denmark as a fresh challenge.
Lehman now resides in his hometown of North Battleford, Sask., with his wife and children.
The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to as the British Elite League or, for sponsorship reasons, the Premier Sports Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level of ice hockey competition in the United Kingdom.
The Nottingham Panthers are a British professional ice hockey club based in Nottingham, England. They are members of the Elite Ice Hockey League. Their main team sponsor is the Nottingham Building Society.
The Sheffield Steelers are a professional ice hockey team located in Sheffield, England. They were formed in 1991 and play their home games at the Utilita Arena. They are currently a member of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The club's main (title) sponsor is Sheffield Window Centre.
Coventry Blaze are an ice hockey team based in Coventry, England. They currently compete in the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) and play their home games at the SkyDome Arena. The club was founded in 1965 as the Solihull Barons and renamed to Solihull Blaze in 1996. At the turn of the millennium the club relocated to the SkyDome Arena, Coventry and became Coventry Blaze. Blaze have won four Elite Ice Hockey League Championships since the formation of the league in 2003.
Paul Thompson is a British ice hockey head coach and general manager. He was head coach of the Great Britain men's national ice hockey team from 2006 to 2011. As of 2018, he is the winningest coach in the Elite Ice Hockey League, and has received nine Coach of the Year trophies in his career. His teams have won three Challenge Cups, two British Knockout Cups, and he is the first coach to win five Elite League titles. In the 2004–2005 season, Thompson completed the British Hockey Grand Slam; winning the Challenge Cup, the EIHL title, and the EIHL playoff championship. He served as the general manager and head coach of the Sheffield Steelers from 2015 to 2018, and previously coached 19 seasons with the Coventry Blaze organisation. He has coached professional teams in Denmark, Germany, Italy and Sweden; and has been the head coach of the Odense Bulldogs since 2021. He is known by the nickname "Thommo".
The Challenge Cup, hosted annually by the Elite Ice Hockey League, is a cup competition for ice hockey clubs in the United Kingdom. It is one of three competitions run each season by the Elite League, the others being the league championship and the playoff championship. Prior to the formation of the Elite League in 2003, the Challenge Cup was organised by the Ice Hockey Superleague.
The 2006–07 Elite Ice Hockey League season commenced on September 9, 2006 and concluded on April 8, 2007. It was the Elite League's fourth season of competition.
The 2005–06 Elite Ice Hockey League season ran from September 9, 2005, through April 9, 2006. The Edinburgh Capitals and Newcastle Vipers joined the Elite League from the British National League while the Manchester Phoenix did not participate for a second season due to a lack of suitable ice facility.
The 2003–04 Elite Ice Hockey League season was the inaugural season of the Elite League. The season ran from September 12, 2003 until April 4, 2004.
The 2004–05 Elite Ice Hockey League season was the second season of the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). Manchester Phoenix did not ice due as they could not agree a deal with the Manchester Evening News Arena.
The 2002–03 Ice Hockey Superleague season was the seventh and final season of the Ice Hockey Superleague (ISL).
The 2008–09 EIHL season was the sixth season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. It began in September 2008, and ran through to April 2009. The ten clubs in the League competed for 4 different competitions: the Elite League, the Play-Offs, the Challenge Cup, and the Knockout Cup. The winners of the regular season will compete in the 2009–2010 Champions Hockey League. For this season, the Coventry Blaze represented Great Britain in the Continental Cup.
The 2009–10 EIHL season is the seventh season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. It began in September 2009 and concluded in April 2010.
The Cardiff Devils are a Welsh ice hockey team who play in the British Elite Ice Hockey League. The team play at Ice Arena Wales in Cardiff Bay.
Ashley Tait is a British ice hockey forward who is currently player/coach for the Basingstoke Bison of the National Ice Hockey League.
The 2010–11 Elite Ice Hockey League season started on 25 August 2010, with the annual Charity Shield match between Coventry Blaze and Belfast Giants. The game took place at 7.30 pm on 25 August 2010. The match ended in 4–2 victory for the Giants.
The 2010–11 Coventry Blaze season was the 8th season for the Coventry Blaze in the British Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL).
Chuck Weber is an American ice hockey coach.
The 2017–18 EIHL season was the 15th season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The regular season commenced on 9 September 2017 and ended on 25 March 2018. The reigning league champions were the Cardiff Devils, who won the championship for the first time in 2016–17. The Devils retained their regular season title, with a 3–2 victory away at the Belfast Giants on 16 March 2018. The Devils also won the playoff title, beating the Sheffield Steelers – who had defeated the Devils 12 months prior in a 6–5 double overtime game – 3–1 in the final, winning a first playoff title since 1998–99.
The 2018–19 EIHL season was the 16th season of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The regular season commenced on 8 September 2018 and ended on 31 March 2019, with the playoffs following in April 2019. The two-time reigning league champions were the Cardiff Devils, who won both the regular season and playoff titles in 2017–18.