Manchester Phoenix was a semi professional ice hockey team from Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey to bring top-level ice hockey back to Manchester after Manchester Storm folded in 2002.
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 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.
The Milton Keynes Lightning are an ice hockey team founded in 2002 in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. The Lightning currently play in Britain's second-tier professional league, the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL), since the 2019–20 season. The Lightning previously competed in the top tier Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) from 2017–2019, and the tier-3/tier-2 English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) from 2002–2017. Their home rink is 2,200-seat Planet Ice Arena Milton Keynes, known locally as the MK Arena or the Thunderdome.
The British National League (BNL) was the second tier of the professional ice hockey league in the United Kingdom between 1996 and 2005. Although no formal promotion and relegation existed during its period of existence, it was considered to have been a standard below that of the Ice Hockey Superleague and above that of the English National Ice Hockey League and the Scottish National League. Fife Flyers and Guildford Flames were the only two teams to consistently feature in the BNL during every season of the league's history.
The English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) was an ice hockey league of 10 teams, all of which were based in England. Headquartered in Blackpool, the EPIHL was one of two professional ice hockey leagues in the United Kingdom. A total of 27 teams played in the league at one time or another. Swindon Wildcats were the only team to have consistently featured in the EPIHL from its inaugural season in 1997-98. In 2017, the league was disbanded, with its teams either joining the top-tier Elite Ice Hockey League or the second-tier National Ice Hockey League.
Slough Jets are an ice hockey team from Slough, Berkshire, England playing in the NIHL South Division 1. The team was founded in 1986 after the construction of the Slough Ice Arena in Montem Lane in Slough and joined the first division of the British League. With the help of Gary Stefan who had previously been with Streatham Redskins, the Slough Jets were formed.
The Peterborough Phantoms are a British ice hockey team that play at the Planet Ice Peterborough Arena, in Bretton, Peterborough. The Peterborough Phantoms ice hockey club was founded in 2002. It replaced the former city based team, the Peterborough Pirates, and plays in the same arena. The team currently competes in the semi-professional National Ice Hockey League, the second tier in British ice hockey below the fully professional Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). They previously played in the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL).
Milton Keynes Kings were an Ice Hockey team based in Milton Keynes.
The Telford Tigers are a National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) ice hockey team that formed in 1985. After initially closing in 1999, a new team, under the name 'Telford Wild Foxes', was formed in 2001; and re-adopted the original name in 2005.
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 National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) is a set of 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.
Planet Ice is a chain of ice rinks in the United Kingdom (UK). The company has historically had a working relationship with the English Ice Hockey Association (EIHA) and several Planet Ice facilities have served as home ice to EIHA teams.
The British ice hockey league champions are the winners of the regular season of the highest ice hockey league in the United Kingdom, currently the Elite Ice Hockey League. Previously, the highest league has been the British National League (1954–60), the Premier Division (1983–96) and the Ice Hockey Superleague (1996–2003).
Blackpool Seagulls are an English ice hockey team, founded in 1951, who played at the Pleasure Beach Ice Rink, Blackpool. They folded in 1993.
Milton Keynes Thunder are an ice hockey team from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, they are known stylistically as the Milton Keynes Rightmove Thunder for sponsorship purposes, and the team currently competes in the Britton Conference, of the National Ice Hockey League Division 1 South. The team was founded in 2001 predominantly to provide competitive hockey and further development opportunities for players leaving the Milton Keynes Junior Ice Hockey system. Their home rink is the refurbished and renamed Planet Ice Arena, known locally as the Thunderdome. It has a capacity of circa 2,500.
Nick Whyatt is an English former professional ice hockey player. In 2002 he began his career, lining up for his local team, the Nottingham Lions, playing 25 times at ENIL level. The English National Ice Hockey League is regarded as the third tier of ice hockey in the U.K.
Rhys McWilliams is an English professional ice hockey player, currently playing with the Coventry Blaze organisation at ENIHL level. In the year 2000 he began his professional career, making his debut for the Solihull Barons as a young forward having also featured for their U-19 team, the Solihull Knights. Whilst playing for the Knights, McWilliams managed the astounding total of 55 points in just 17 games. He went on to become much more of a regular for the Barons in the following season and showed enough promise to play for the England U-18 team. McWilliams remained in Solihull through the name and league changes, icing 32 times for the Solihull MK Kings.
Planet Ice Arena Milton Keynes is a 2,800-capacity multi-purpose ice rink/hockey rink located in Milton Keynes, England, as part of the Leisure Plaza complex.
Leigh Jamieson is an English professional ice hockey player currently playing for Milton Keynes Lightning in the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL).
Relocation of professional sports teams in the United Kingdom is a practice which involves a sports team moving from one metropolitan area to another, although occasionally moves between municipalities in the same conurbation are also included. For relocations in other part of the world see Relocation of professional sports teams.
