Leeds Knights

The Leeds Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team is a member of the National League and plays at Planet Ice Leeds.
==History==
The team was announced, along with the new National League, on 16 March 2019. However, rumours of a Leeds-based team playing out of the 1800 capacity Planet Ice Leeds arena were circulating months beforehand. In joining the league, they became the first ever hockey team to play out of the city.
The Chiefs name was selected by Planet Ice following the results of a fan poll. The 'Chiefs' moniker won the poll, results of which were announced on 16 May 2019, having beaten the alternatives; Cotton Kings and Mighty Mammoths.
Former Whitley Warriors Defenceman Sam Zajac was announced as Player-coach of the team on 10 May 2019. Zajac's first signing for the Chiefs was former Manchester Phoenix captain, Defenceman Luke Boothroyd.
In November 2019, head coach Sam Zajac launched an urgent appeal after a large amount of the team's equipment was stolen from an apartment block in Batley. This included new helmets that hadn't even been worn yet, along with sticks and gloves used by the players all season. Despite this, the Chiefs confirmed their weekend games would go ahead as planned via a statement on Twitter.
In their first National League season, the Chiefs finished 10th. They won 13 games, losing 36, achieving 28 points overall. The season was curtailed in March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the first five months of the season, the Chiefs were required to play home games elsewhere, due to a delay in the opening of their rink. The first game at their Elland Road arena was against Sheffield Steeldogs on 31 January 2020.
In 2021, the club rebranded and changed their name from Leeds Chiefs to Leeds Knights due to a change in ownership. The new name has ties to Leeds Armouries. David Whistle arrived as Head Coach and General Manager, but departed in January 2022. Former Swindon Wildcats coach Ryan Aldridge was then appointed as interim coach until the end of the 2021/22 season.
==Club roster 2022–23==
(*) Denotes a Non-British Trained player (Import)
Netminders	Netminders	Netminders 	Netminders	Netminders 	Netminders 	Netminders 	Netminders	Netminders	Netminders	Netminders
No. 	Nat. 	Player 	Catches 	Date of birth	Place of birth 	Acquired 	Contract 	 	 	
31 	 	Sam Gospel 	L 	 	Nottingham, England	2021 from Manchester Storm	23/24 	 	 	
32 	 	Harrison Walker	L 	 	England 	2022 from Widnes Wild 	22/23 	 	 	
Defencemen	Defencemen	Defencemen 	Defencemen	Defencemen 	Defencemen 	Defencemen 	Defencemen	Defencemen	Defencemen
No. 	Nat. 	Player 	Shoots 	Date of birth	Place of birth 	Acquired 	Contract 	 	
3 	 	Bailey Perre 	L 	 	England 	2022 from Swindon Wildcats 	22/23 	 	
4 	 	Sam Zajac 	R 	 	Whitley Bay, England 	2019 from Manchester Storm 	22/23 	 	
8 	 	Tommy Spraggon 	R 	 	England 	2022 from Billingham Stars 	Two-Way 	 	
14 	 	Lewis Baldwin 	R 	 	Billingham, England 	2019 from Solway Sharks 	22/23 	 	
17 	 	Ethan Mayoh 	R 	 	Horwich, England 	2022 from Blackburn Hawks 	Two-Way 	 	
21 	 	Archie Hazeldine 	R 	 	Nottingham, England 	2021 from Nottingham Lions 	Two-Way 	 	
24 	 	Dylan Hehir 	 	2002 (age 20)	England 	2022 from Whitley Warriors 	22/23 	 	
44 	 	Jordan Griffin 	R 	 	Crewe, England 	2020 from Sheffield Steelers	22/23 	 	
73 	 	Joshua Hodgkinson	L 	 	Belfast, Northern Ireland	2022 from Belfast SNL Giants	23/24 	 	
Forwards	Forwards	Forwards 	Forwards	Forwards 	Forwards 	Forwards 	Forwards	Forwards	Forwards	Forwards
No. 	Nat. 	Player 	Shoots 	Date of birth	Place of birth 	Acquired 	Contract	 	 	
6 	 	Ethan Hehir 	R 	 	England 	2019 from Billingham Stars 	22/23 	 	 	
9 	 	Grant Cooper* 	L 	 	Cornwall, Ontario, Canada	2022 from Reading Royals 	22/23 	 	 	
10 	 	Carter Hamill 	L 	 	Belfast, Northern Ireland	2022 from Belfast Giants 	22/23 	 	 	
11 	 	Matthew Haywood 	L 	 	Doncaster, England 	2022 from Glasgow Clan 	22/23 	 	 	
12 	 	Kieran Brown 'C'	L 	 	Bradford, England 	2021 from Widnes Wild 	23/24 	 	 	
25 	 	Zachary Brooks* 	L 	 	Bromont, Quebec, Canada 	2022 from Trois-Rivières Lions	22/23 	 	 	
27 	 	Cole Shudra 	L 	 	Rotherham, England 	2021 from Sheffield Steelers 	Two-Way 	 	 	
28 	 	Tate Shudra 	L 	2004 	England 	2022 from Sheffield Titans 	22/23 	 	 	
33 	 	Finley Bradon 	R 	 	Darlington,England 	2022 from Billingham Stars 	Two-Way 	 	 	
43 	 	Damarni James 	- 	2005 	England 	2022 from Bradford Bulldogs 	Two-Way 	 	 	
88 	 	Adam Barnes 	L 	 	Manchester, England 	2021 from Widnes Wild 	22/23 	 	 	
Team Staff	Team Staff	Team Staff 	Team Staff 	Team Staff	Team Staff 	Team Staff 	Team Staff	Team Staff	Team Staff	Team Staff
No. 	Nat. 	Name 	Position 	Acquired 	Place of birth 	Joined From 	 	 	 	
 	 	Ryan Aldridge 	Head coach 	2022 	Swindon, England	Okanagan Hockey Academy U18, England U18	 	 	 	
 	 	Stephen Nell 	General manager/Owner 	2021 	England 	Swindon Wildcats, NIHL 	 	 	 	
 	 	Warwick Andrews	Technical director 	2022 	England 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	Jason Thomas 	Equipment/Team Manager	2019 	Swindon, England	N/A 	 	 	 	
Source:
== 2021/22 Departures ==
Outgoing	Outgoing	Outgoing 	Outgoing	Outgoing 	Outgoing 	Outgoing 	Outgoing	Outgoing	Outgoing	Outgoing
No. 	Nat. 	Player 	Shoots 	Date of birth	Place of birth 	Leaving For 	 	 	 	
9 	 	Joe Coulter 	R 	 	Dumfries, Scotland	Widnes Wild, NIHL 1 	 	 	 	
15 	 	Jamie Chilcott	R 	 	Hull, England 	Hull Seahawks, NIHL 	 	 	 	
22 	 	Jordan Fisher 	R 	 	Hull, England 	Hull Seahawks, NIHL 	 	 	 	
55 	 	Ross Kennedy 	R 	 	St Asaph, Wales 	Deeside Dragons, NIHL 1	 	 	 	
80 	 	Bobby Streetly	R 	 	Leeds, England 	Hull Seahawks, NIHL 	 	 	 	
==References==
==External links==
* NEWS
Category:Ice hockey teams in England
Category:Ice hockey clubs established in 2019