Double Overtime, March 30th...

You lucky people...you get a double burst of song to sum up the post this time round...with a rude word or two included...

For the on-ice action...

"here I am, a poster-board pin-up for you to hate"
Walls of Jericho: "There's No "I" In "F*** You!"...

Yup...playoff quarter-finals weekend is now over, and the teams still playing in the EIHL have been cut from eight to four. The EIHL hierarchy will be breathing a quiet sigh of relief this evening, as the form-book and league position held true for all of the quarter-finals bar one (that of Belfast v Cardiff, which was the most-closely matched by league position going into the weekend) and the "biggest rivalry in Europe" (nope, we're not going to let that one go) has a chance of one more meeting this season in the playoff final. Unfortunately, for every other British hockey fan the big Nottingham weekend smacks of déja vu, as once againt it's Sheffield, Nottingham, Coventry and Cardiff who will play for the playoff trophy, with only Nottingham being different from last season's line-up (as Yotes correctly points out, Newcastle were there last season along with the other three teams) with the rest of the league spectating...

Now, far be it from me to pour, if not cold water, than at least lukewarm water on British ice-hockey's premier even at the start of the build-up, but I can't shake the feeling that this is...well, somewhat of a let-down for many, particularly fans of, say, Manchester. Obviously, the fans of the four teams present at the weekend are happy, the EIHL are happy because the arena is likely to be the most full it was going to be with both Nottingham and Sheffield present, but looking at the line-up, are the four most exciting (not best, you'll notice) or even the four most deserving teams there?

Sheffield we can instantly discount from this conversation...they have clearly been the best team in the league this season by some distance, as shown by their somewhat relaxed stroll to the title. Cardiff, traditionally stronger in the latter part of the season, have once again demonstrated their knack of hitting their stride at just the right moment...plus they provide the compelling storyline of "will the traditional bridesmaids finally shake their playoff curse this year"?

You can make convincing arguments for both Coventry and Nottingham-the Blaze have battled confidence issues in certain areas this season (and, arguably, have rode their luck like a rented donkey in order to get through to the final, down to the point where Newcastle were the width of JF Perras' left butt-cheek from equalising and forcing overtime on Sunday night after being the better side for five out of the six periods) but are still a team built of hard-working, skilful players who have battled criticism from all sides (including their own fans), signings that didn't turn out and still finished second in the league. As for Nottingham-when they're on form they're one of the most exciting teams in the league to watch-trouble is they very rarely turn on the skill they can, particularly when it comes to PO time...

Look at who's missing-Belfast (dynamos going forward-even if they've resorted more and more to rough-housing at times recently, meaning that Cardiff were heavily supported by neutrals in the quarter finals) and Manchester, who have had the kind of luck recently that can only be caused by smashing a mirror over the head of a black cat while walking under a ladder, as well as a horrific schedule, not all of which was due to poor planning on their part. Then we have Edinburgh, who had the misfortune to meet an imperious Steelers when you'd have at least put a couple of quid on them against any other side in the league.

I reckon that what I'm trying to say is that, even though the league has been the most-evenly matched for some seasons (well, behind Sheffield) and there was genuine hope that any one of the eight teams could have made it to Nottingham and provided the "biggest spectacle of European hockey" with something new and genuinely exciting to watch in a time when British hockey really needs something new both on and off the ice to restore many fans' faith, it's ended up being a case of "same old, same old".

And this is fine...but watching the EIHL playoffs this weekend, many will not be able to shake a slight twinge of déja vu. And that's slightly sad.

To sum up-this year's EIHL playoff experience will, at least for some, be like winning the lottery and buying a new VW Golf GTi when you could have a Bugatti Veyron...you know you'll still get a lot of enjoyment out of it, but there'll always be this little thought that it could be so much better...

And now for the second burst of song as we move off-ice...

"I always say how I don't need you
But it's always gonna come right back to this
Please don't leave me"

Pink: "Please Don't Leave Me"

With Basingstoke already an EPL team as announced last week, Newcastle rumoured to be in trouble (this press release implies that the decision over whether or not they'll be around next season is still not complete with the talk of needing "further commitment from fans and partners") and Manchester also rumoured to be considering jumping ship from the EIHL in order to ensure the long-term survival of hockey in the North West (owner Neil Morris has said in an interview with the Phoenix podcast that they are looking at "all options") the EIHL is fast reaching a crisis point in its history. Much has been made by those who follow the sport of the perceived "arrogance" of the "Big Four" (Sheffield, Nottingham, Belfast, and Coventry) with claims and counter-claims flying back and forth over who holds sway in decisions about the league's future-the latest discussion is once again over import limits, as some teams argue for a drop to the BNL days of eight imports and others reportedly resist. Depending on who you talk to, it's the "Big Four" resisting change from the smaller teams in order to protect their dominance of the league or the other six doing their best to undermine whatever strides the other teams attempt to make by refusing to compromise.

All that, to me, is immaterial-there are two truths, and only two, staring us in the face here:

Unless something changes, then the EIHL will lose, at a minimum, two more teams.

If that happens, the league is screwed.

All the arguments about who or what is responsible for the situation need to stop. Right now.

The EIHL has been a brave experiment in its current format, but it's failed. It's gone as far as it can go with 10-import hockey.
The fact that one team is already gone and two more are having to consider dropping a level just to survive, because they can't compete, must show something to the "big four". The ticket prices are too high-driven by the arena teams needing to pay the best players, success automatically being considered a licence to print money, and the change at some clubs (even in these credit crunch times) seemingly deciding to openly exploit and make as much money as those coming into the building as possible without realising that this will drive fans away (and the prices will be ridiculously too high to attract newbies to what is still a relatively small-time sport-people will simply not pay them for an unknown quantity, and free tickets don't equal automatic returns). And, as is always the case, it's the smaller teams, who are forced to spend far more of their budget just to compete with, never mind beat, the big teams who suffer first.

And yet it seems, from rumblings I've heard about the treatment of certain of these smaller clubs at EIHL board meetings, that the "big" teams care little as long as they survive themselves, and indeed are doing everything they can to keep control of the league in their own image. The head-in-the-sand mentality of some fans on both sides is breathtaking, as every club in the league depends on every other...and if Manchester and Newcastle decide that the EIHL is no longer workable, then change will no longer be an option to considered and be dismissed by those few clubs making a decent fist of things as they are now...it'll be a necessity in order to survive.

And on that sobering thought, we'll finish for today
Tomorrow, the Breakaway joins up with Five Minute Major to begin the countdown to Nottingham by creating the ultimate Playoff Playlist CD...ideal for listening to in your cars/trains or buses (or, in one epic Sheffieldian's case, taxi followed by plane followed by train on the way to the NIC this weekend...or even just to get you in the mood...check back tomorrow evening...