AARON FOX said he was looking forward to the tough challenge awaiting his Sheffield Steelers team following the Champions Hockey League draw in Prague.

Placed in Pot D among the lower-ranked teams, the Steelers – who qualified by virtue of winning their first regular season Elite League championship since 2016 – face three home games and three road trips from early September.

They will come up against some of the best teams in Europe, including Swedish SHL champions Skellefteå AIK, who were also last season's CHL runners-up.

That represents one of the Steelers' three games at the Utilita Arena with visits to follow from Czechia’s HC Dynamo Pardubice and HC Sparta Prague.

EUROPE_BOUND: Sheffield Steelers' coaches Carter Beston-Wills and Aaron Fox with the Challenge Cup trophy their team won in March. Picture: Tony Johnson.

On the road, the Steelers face two trips to Switzerland, with league and play-off champions ZSC Lions from Zurich and HC Fribourg-Gottéron, who finished runners-up to the Lions in the regular season, lying in wait.

The Steelers other road trip will see them visit Växjö Lakers, last year's regular season runners-up in the SHL.

"We knew we were going to be drawn against some top-quality opponents,” said Fox. “But it’s an exciting challenge that we’re all looking forward to embracing.”

Sheffield Steelers coach Aaron Fox reacts to European Champions Hockey League draw