Sheffield Steelers aiming to take it to the next level on European CHL return

Over the next couple of weeks – and for a couple of nights in mid-October – they are going to have to make further big strides if they want to compete with some of the best teams Europe has to offer.

The Champions Hockey League is the reward for winning the EIHL regular season championship, something the Steelers did in some comfort last season, adding the Challenge Cup before closing out their campaign in perfect style with the play-off trophy.

But facing off on the road against the likes of Switzerland’s Fribourg-Gottéron and Sweden’s Växjö Lakers as they will in the next few days will feel a whole lot different from taking on the likes of Fife Flyers or Dundee Stars on a cold Sunday night in January.

In the 10 years since the competition was first launched, it has been a story of struggle for UK teams, the one big exception coming in 2017-18 when Nottingham Panthers made it through the first phase as group winners before going out in the round of 16.

Belfast Giants and Cardiff Devils have both had impressive campaigns in other years, but neither has managed to make it through to the second stage.

The Steelers have twice played in the CHL – both times under former head coach Paul Thompson – only to fall at the first hurdle.

Their eight games in total have brought just the one win and it is a record they will be desperate to improve.

Head coach Aaron Fox acknowledges his team faces a tough challenge with home encounters against Czechia duo Sparta Prague and Dynamo Pardubice as well as Sweden’s Skelleftea AIK also in store, along with a return to Switzerland to face ZSC Lions Zurich.

But he is confident his players have enough about them to make themselves competitive over six big nights.

“From our point of view, we’re going off to compete against teams and players from leagues that are extremely well-regarded in Europe,” said Fox.

“And you look at some of these rosters and there are going to be a bunch of guys that have played at the highest level and, for good reason – these teams we’re facing are going to be very good, well-stocked and very deep.

“I think some of these teams will come with 30-35 people – it’s just a completely different structure in some of these places, so we know it’s going to be a challenge.

“They’ve all probably been on the ice since the end of July and we’re going to be three weeks or so behind them in that way, too, so it’s going to be tough but something that everyone is looking forward to.”

This weekend will see the Steelers take on Cardiff in back-to-back games as part of their final preparations for the CHL which sees them fly out to Switzerland on Wednesday morning ahead of their opener against Fribourg-Gottéron the following day.

Last weekend, after a week of training camp at Ice Sheffield, the Steelers lost 4-1 on the road at Manchester Storm before getting the better of the Panthers 48 hours later in a 5-1 home win.

The results and scorelines were irrelevant, as they often are in any team’s pre-season in virtually any sport.

But Fox got what he wanted across the two nights from his team, something that will be built on further through their two encounters with the Devils.

“This weekend is just going to be about getting the conditioning right, getting a feel for each other, the new guys digging into the system and then some guys from last year, too, remembering how we want to play and getting everybody dialled in,” added Fox, who has retained a large core of last season’s treble winners, while bringing in six new imports.

“In a few days we’re on a plane to Switzerland so it is crazy how fast this two-week pre-season is going to go before we’re at it for real.”

In years gone by, a lot has been made of the “difference” between European-style hockey and the North American style the EIHL is often labelled as preferring.

Fox, however, feels this is not the case any more.

“I think there is probably too much made of that, if I’m honest,” he countered. “For the most part, more times than not, everyone is kind of playing the same way these days.

“Some teams might be a little more in favour of a puck-possession through the neutral zone but, for the most part, when you get into the O-zone, there is not a ton of difference, at any level, from what you are trying to accomplish.

“It’s just about who can execute it better, who is willing to pay the price defensively and eat pucks. The reality is that the game is played pretty similarly these days.

“Maybe the difference in styles was the case in the old EIHL days, where this league was nasty and had tons of fighting and everything was overly-physical – but I think the rules of the game have just kind of taken that stuff out of most hockey.

“Now you’ve got to be able to play with more pace and skill, make plays and you can’t really bully teams that way any more because you’ll just end up in the penalty box.

“And that’s not something you want to happen in the CHL when, if you get scored on while on the penalty kill, the power play continues.”

Fox is confident that doing what made them so successful in 2023-24 will serve the Steelers well as they embark on their European journey.

“At the end of the day we’re going to have to be a team that plays like a team if we’re going to want to compete against these kinds of opponents.

“From a player to player top-end guy to bottom-end guy, we’re probably going to be out-matched, but there are certain things and tendencies that we can bring to the table that can hopefully level the playing field and give us a competitive edge.”