# 2018–19 EIHL season

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.
The Devils were unable to make it three regular season titles in succession, after a season-long battle for the top position with the Belfast Giants. The league title came down to the final day of the regular season; the Coventry Blaze's 3–1 victory over the Devils at the Coventry Skydome handed the league title to the non-playing Giants, on a regulation wins (by 39 to 38) tie-break. It was the Giants' fourth regular season title, and first since 2013–14. The playoff final resulted in a matchup between the Devils and the Giants in Nottingham; the Devils achieved their second consecutive playoff title with a 2–1 victory on Gleason Fournier's game-winning goal, with 7:33 remaining.

## Teams

After having twelve teams for the 2017–18 season, the league reduced to eleven for the 2018–19 season. This was due to the Edinburgh Capitals – who had finished bottom of the league with just five wins – losing the rights to use the Murrayfield Ice Rink to a consortium that was led by David Hand, the brother of former Capital Tony Hand. Hand's consortium revived the Murrayfield Racers name, with a similarly-named franchise having been active between 1952 and 1996, and attempted to join the league in place of the Edinburgh Capitals, but this request was denied. As a result, the Murrayfield Racers joined the Scottish National League. The Hull Pirates, from the National Ice Hockey League, also considered an application to the Elite League, but ultimately did not take up this option.
The league featured three conferences, just as it did in 2017–18. The Gardiner Conference remained fully Scottish but became a three-team division, with the demise of the Edinburgh Capitals; the Dundee Stars, the Fife Flyers and the renamed Glasgow Clan (formerly Braehead) making up the trio. The two other conferences remained unchanged, with four teams in each. These were the Patton Conference, consisting of the Coventry Blaze, the Guildford Flames, the Manchester Storm and the Milton Keynes Lightning; and the Erhardt Conference, consisting of the four "Arena" teams: the Belfast Giants, the Cardiff Devils, the Nottingham Panthers and the Sheffield Steelers.
| Team | City/Town | Conference | Arena | Capacity |
| Belfast Giants | Belfast | Erhardt | SSE Arena Belfast | 7,200 |
| Cardiff Devils | Cardiff | Erhardt | Ice Arena Wales | 3,088 |
| Coventry Blaze | Coventry | Patton | Coventry Skydome | 3,000 |
| Dundee Stars | Dundee | Gardiner | Dundee Ice Arena | 2,400 |
| Fife Flyers | Kirkcaldy | Gardiner | Fife Ice Arena | 3,525 |
| Glasgow Clan | Glasgow | Gardiner | Braehead Arena | 4,000 |
| Guildford Flames | Guildford | Patton | Guildford Spectrum | 2,001 |
| Manchester Storm | Altrincham | Patton | Altrincham Ice Dome | 2,000 |
| Milton Keynes Lightning | Milton Keynes | Patton | Planet Ice Arena Milton Keynes | 2,800 |
| Nottingham Panthers | Nottingham | Erhardt | National Ice Centre | 7,500 |
| Sheffield Steelers | Sheffield | Erhardt | Sheffield Arena | 8,500 |

## Standings
### Overall

Each team played 60 games, playing each of the other ten teams six times: three times on home ice, and three times away from home. Points were awarded for each game, where two points are awarded for all victories, regardless of whether it was in regulation time or after overtime or shootout. One point was awarded for losing in overtime or shootout, and zero points for losing in regulation time. At the end of the regular season, the team that finished with the most points was crowned the league champion.
The league title came down to the final day of the regular season; the Coventry Blaze's 3–1 victory over the Cardiff Devils at the Coventry Skydome handed the league title to the non-playing Belfast Giants, on a regulation wins tie-break. It was the Giants' fourth regular season title, and first since 2013–14.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Belfast Giants (C) | 60 | 39 | 6 | 2 | 13 | 238 | 147 | +91 | 92 | Regular season champions Qualification to playoffs |
| 2 | Cardiff Devils (Q) | 60 | 38 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 235 | 146 | +89 | 92 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 3 | Nottingham Panthers (Q) | 60 | 23 | 6 | 12 | 19 | 183 | 181 | +2 | 70 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 4 | Glasgow Clan (Q) | 60 | 28 | 3 | 5 | 24 | 202 | 186 | +16 | 67 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 5 | Guildford Flames (Q) | 60 | 22 | 8 | 7 | 23 | 189 | 180 | +9 | 67 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 6 | Fife Flyers (Q) | 60 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 24 | 188 | 204 | −16 | 66 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 7 | Sheffield Steelers (Q) | 60 | 23 | 7 | 4 | 26 | 183 | 203 | −20 | 64 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 8 | Coventry Blaze (Q) | 60 | 19 | 8 | 8 | 25 | 209 | 221 | −12 | 62 | Qualification to playoffs |
| 9 | Manchester Storm (E) | 60 | 21 | 6 | 5 | 28 | 179 | 208 | −29 | 59 | |
| 10 | Dundee Stars (E) | 60 | 16 | 7 | 12 | 25 | 169 | 201 | −32 | 58 | |
| 11 | Milton Keynes Lightning (E) | 60 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 41 | 148 | 246 | −98 | 34 | |

### Erhardt Conference

Only intra-conference games counted towards the Erhardt Conference standings. Each team played the other three teams in the Conference six times, for a total of 18 matches. The Belfast Giants won the Conference for the third time, after the Cardiff Devils lost 5–4 against the Sheffield Steelers at Sheffield Arena on 16 March 2019.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Belfast Giants (C) | 18 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 68 | 50 | +18 | 25 | Conference champions |
| 2 | Cardiff Devils | 18 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 65 | 51 | +14 | 22 | |
| 3 | Sheffield Steelers | 18 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 51 | 68 | −17 | 17 | |
| 4 | Nottingham Panthers | 18 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 48 | 63 | −15 | 17 | |

### Gardiner Conference

Only intra-conference games count towards the Gardiner Conference standings. Each team plays the other two teams in the Conference six times, for a total of 12 matches. The Glasgow Clan won the Conference for the fifth time, after a 5–1 win over the Dundee Stars at Braehead Arena on 12 February 2019.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Glasgow Clan (C) | 12 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 44 | 27 | +17 | 19 | Conference champions |
| 2 | Dundee Stars | 12 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 33 | 41 | −8 | 12 | |
| 3 | Fife Flyers | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 28 | 37 | −9 | 9 | |

### Patton Conference

Only intra-conference games counted towards the Patton Conference standings. Each team played the other three teams in the Conference six times, for a total of 18 matches. The Guildford Flames won the Conference for the first time, after a 1–0 win over the Manchester Storm at the Guildford Spectrum on 17 February 2019.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Guildford Flames (C) | 18 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 77 | 48 | +29 | 29 | Conference champions |
| 2 | Coventry Blaze | 18 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 75 | 73 | +2 | 22 | |
| 3 | Manchester Storm | 18 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 55 | 65 | −10 | 18 | |
| 4 | Milton Keynes Lightning | 18 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 50 | 71 | −21 | 12 | |

## Playoffs
### Bracket

| Quarter-finals (6–7 April) | Quarter-finals (6–7 April) | Quarter-finals (6–7 April) | Quarter-finals (6–7 April) | Quarter-finals (6–7 April) | | | Semi-finals (13 April) | Semi-finals (13 April) | Semi-finals (13 April) | Grand Final (14 April) | Grand Final (14 April) | Grand Final (14 April) |
| 1 | Belfast Giants | 5 | 7 | 12 | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Coventry Blaze | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Coventry Blaze | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | 1 | Belfast Giants | 2 | | | |
| | | | | | | | 5 | Guildford Flames | 1 | | | |
| 4 | Glasgow Clan | 3 | 0 | 3 | | | 5 | Guildford Flames | 1 | | | |
| 5 | Guildford Flames | 2 | 5 | 7 | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Guildford Flames | 2 | 5 | 7 | | | | | | 1 | Belfast Giants | 1 |
| (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | 1 | Belfast Giants | 1 |
| (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | (Pairings are reseeded after the first round) | 2 | Cardiff Devils | 2 |
| 3 | Nottingham Panthers | 3 | 3 | 6 | | | | | | | | | 2 | Cardiff Devils | 2 |
| 6 | Fife Flyers | 3 | 0 | 3 | | | | | |
| 6 | Fife Flyers | 3 | 0 | 3 | | | 2 | Cardiff Devils | 9 | Third place game (14 April) | Third place game (14 April) | Third place game (14 April) |
| | | | | | | | 3 | Nottingham Panthers | 4 |
| 2 | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 7 | 11 | | | 3 | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 3 | Nottingham Panthers | 9 |
| 7 | Sheffield Steelers | 5 | 3 | 8 | | | | | | 5 | Guildford Flames | 5 |

### Quarter-finals

The quarter-final schedule was announced after the conclusion of the final-day regular season matches.

#### (1) Belfast Giants vs. (8) Coventry Blaze

* Belfast Giants win 12–2 on aggregate.

#### (2) Cardiff Devils vs. (7) Sheffield Steelers

* Cardiff Devils win 11–8 on aggregate.

#### (3) Nottingham Panthers vs. (6) Fife Flyers

* Nottingham Panthers win 6–3 on aggregate.

#### (4) Glasgow Clan vs. (5) Guildford Flames

* Guildford Flames win 7–3 on aggregate.

### Semi-finals

The schedule for the Playoff Finals weekend was announced after the conclusion of the quarter-final matches.

### Grand Final
## Regular season statistics
### Scoring leaders

The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the regular season.
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Darcy Murphy | Belfast Giants | 58 | 39 | 40 | 79 | 20 |
| Ben Lake | Coventry Blaze | 60 | 34 | 43 | 77 | 103 |
| Charles Linglet | Cardiff Devils | 59 | 21 | 54 | 75 | 26 |
| Mike Hammond | Manchester Storm | 53 | 18 | 57 | 75 | 16 |
| Kyle Baun | Belfast Giants | 60 | 28 | 43 | 71 | 30 |
| Gleason Fournier | Cardiff Devils | 60 | 24 | 47 | 71 | 28 |
| Blair Riley | Belfast Giants | 60 | 33 | 36 | 69 | 68 |
| Matt Beca | Glasgow Clan | 60 | 26 | 43 | 69 | 18 |
| Joey Martin | Cardiff Devils | 60 | 30 | 38 | 68 | 38 |
| Tim Crowder | Coventry Blaze | 60 | 27 | 41 | 68 | 32 |

### Leading goaltenders

The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the conclusion of the regular season, while playing at least 1140 minutes.
| Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
| Tyler Beskorowany | Belfast Giants | 54 | 3221:51 | 42 | 11 | 121 | 3 | .921 | 2.25 |
| Ben Bowns | Cardiff Devils | 60 | 3572:00 | 43 | 14 | 138 | 8 | .916 | 2.32 |
| Chris Carrozzi | Guildford Flames | 34 | 2035:07 | 15 | 16 | 93 | 2 | .906 | 2.74 |
| Michael Garnett | Nottingham Panthers | 47 | 2784:29 | 22 | 22 | 135 | 2 | .908 | 2.91 |
| Travis Fullerton | Guildford Flames | 26 | 1541:13 | 15 | 11 | 76 | 4 | .910 | 2.96 |

## Playoff statistics
### Scoring leaders

The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the playoffs.
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Charles Linglet | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| Joey Martin | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| Mark Hurtubise | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 |
| Jordan Smotherman | Belfast Giants | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| Sean Bentivoglio | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 8 |
| Bryce Reddick | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| Kevin Raine | Belfast Giants | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| Chris Stewart | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| Alex Guptill | Nottingham Panthers | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| John Armstrong | Sheffield Steelers | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 |

### Leading goaltenders

The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the conclusion of the playoffs, provided they played 60 minutes.
| Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
| Travis Fullerton | Guildford Flames | 2 | 119:18 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | .965 | 1.01 |
| Tyler Beskorowany | Belfast Giants | 4 | 238:12 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 | .942 | 1.26 |
| Shane Owen | Fife Flyers | 2 | 119:25 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | .935 | 2.01 |
| Joel Rumpel | Glasgow Clan | 2 | 117:13 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | .910 | 3.07 |
| Ben Bowns | Cardiff Devils | 4 | 240:00 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 0 | .897 | 3.25 |