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 (the other being the Elite Ice Hockey League ). 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 .
7-724: English Premier Ice Hockey League 1998-1999 Milton Keynes Kings were an Ice Hockey team based in Milton Keynes . The MK Kings originally played in various divisions of the British Hockey League (BHL) from 1990 until 1996. In 1998, two seasons after the closure of the BHL, they joined the English Premier Ice Hockey League (EPIHL) for a season before moving into the higher level British National League for four consecutive seasons between 1999 and 2003. Following
14-742: A dispute with the owners of the Planet Ice Arena in Milton Keynes in 2002; combined with the dissolution of the second incarnation of the Solihull Barons , the team relocated to the Blue Ice Plaza in Solihull , where they rebranded themselves the Solihull MK Kings for the 2002-03 BNL season; effectively merging the Milton Keynes and Solihull franchises in that league. Around the same time that
21-497: A reformed Solihull Barons who again joined the EPIHL for two seasons between 2005 and 2007; before settling into the lower English National Ice Hockey League from 2007 onwards. This article about an English sports club is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This European ice hockey team-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . English Premier Ice Hockey League The league
28-742: The move to Solihull occurred, the owners of Planet Ice Arena formed the Milton Keynes Lightning ; whom joined the EPIHL shortly after their formation. Following the culmination of the Kings' first season in Solihull in May 2003; the team resigned from the BNL and was dissolved. Following their dissolution; they were first replaced in Solihull by the newly formed Solihull Kings , who joined the EPIHL for two seasons between 2003 and 2005 before dissolving; and later replaced by
35-457: The start of the 1998-99 season the divisions, whilst still both under the ENIHL umbrella, performed in their own separate competitions; and the national division adopted the name "premier division", and later on became known as the "premier league". By the end of the season the league had established itself outside of the ENIHL as the "English Premier Ice Hockey League". In 2005 the BNL disbanded; leaving
42-423: The teams that constituted this division played dual schedules; a series of games solely amongst their own division, and another amongst all the teams that were playing under the ENIHL at that time. Each year, the league crowned a regular season champion, a post-season playoffs champion, and a knockout Cup champion. Solihull Blaze won the league and play-off trophies of both formats during this inaugural season. At
49-547: Was founded in 1997, under the banner of "national division", as part of the English National Ice Hockey League in order to serve former members of the British National League who couldn't afford to remain in the latter as a result of increased operating costs; but who were capable of a level of play above the import-free English leagues that made up the rest of the ENIHL. During the 1997-98 season
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