East Coast Super League

Sport| Ice hockey
Founded| 2002
First season| 2002
No. of teams| 6
Country| Australia
Most recent
champion(s)| Polyflor Raptors
Most titles| Newcastle North Stars (3)
Reach Rebels (3)
Sydney Sting (3)
Related
competitions| Australian Ice Hockey League
Official website| ECSLhockey.com

The East Coast Super League (ECSL), is an ice hockey league in New South Wales, Australia. The league was formed in 2002 by New South Wales Ice Hockey's amalgamation of the former Junior and Senior A leagues. It is Australia's second highest level of ice hockey, and acts as a bridge between junior leagues and the AIHL. Five of the teams are based in Sydney and one is based in Newcastle.

## History

[edit]

The East Coast Super League (ECSL) was formed in 2002 by New South Wales Ice Hockey following the amalgamation of the former Junior and Senior A leagues.[1] The league started with four clubs, with the Raptors winning the inaugural title.[2] The 2003 ECSL finals were won by the Sydney Heat and in 2004 the Raptors won their second title.[2] In 2005 the ECSL expanded to six clubs and also marked the first expansion outside of Sydney, with the Australian Ice Hockey League's (AIHL) Newcastle North Stars entering a farm team into the competition.[1] The North Stars went on to win in their debut season and won again in 2007, with the Ice Breakers winning the 2006 ECSL final in between the North Stars two years of titles.[2] After expanding in 2006 the league dropped back down to four teams with two teams leaving the league including the previous ECSL champions the Raptors.[3] The Ice Breakers won their second title in 2008 and in 2009 the Sting won the first ECSL final.[2] The 2009 season also saw the Penrith Raptors enter the league, taking on the name of the previous Raptors club.[4] In 2010 the Central Coast Rhinos entered the league after leaving the AIHL before the start of the 2009 season.[5] They finished the regular season in first place however were knocked out of the playoffs in the semifinal round, with the Penrith Raptors going on to win the 2010 playoffs.[2][5] The Rhinos and Ice Breakers both left the league at the end of the season and were replaced by the Vipers and Reach Rebels respectively for the 2011 season.[1][5][6] The Rebels won the finals in their debut season and in 2012 the North Stars won their third title.[2] In 2013 the Sting won the playoffs, their first since 2009.[2] The Vipers folded at the end of the 2013 season and were replaced by the Blueline Bombers for the start of the 2014 season.[7] The 2014 regular season was won by the Reach Rebels who also went on to win the playoffs, defeating the Sting two games to one.[8][9] The Rebels claimed back to back regular season titles, finishing the 2015 season in first place with 31 points.[10] The Rebels advanced to the grand final series after defeating the Penrith Raptors in the semifinals and faced off against the Sting who had beat the Newcastle North Stars in their semifinal.[11] The Sting went on to defeat the Rebels in two games, claiming their third Championship title.[12]

In February 2016 it was announced that the Sydney Heat had folded following an instruction from Ice Hockey NSW to the ECSL to reduce the league to five teams for the 2016 season.[13][14] Some of the Heat's former players were signed by the other clubs in the league including the Blueline Bombers who picked up eight players.[13] The Heat also announced their intention to return to the league in the future.[13] The Sting changed their name to the Sydney Sting for the start of the 2016 season and introduced a new logo and jersey.[15] The 2016 regular season was won by the Rebels who claimed their third title overall.[16] The Rebels advanced to the grand final series after defeating the Blueline Bombers in the semifinals.[17] They faced off against the Sydney Sting who had defeated the North Stars to advance.[17] The Rebels were awarded the cup following the forfeit of the Sting for playing an ineligible player in Game 2 of the series.[18][19]

## Rules & season structure

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The ECSL is played under International Ice Hockey Federation rules and incorporates some modifications from Ice Hockey Australia as well as some of its own special rules.[20] Games are played with three twenty minute running time periods with only the last five minutes using a stop clock.[14] Team rosters must have at least 40% of their players aged 25-and-under. Players aged 23 or older are limited to playing five Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL) games.[14] Once they have exceeded this limit they are not permitted to return to the ECSL until the following season.[14] There is no cap on the number of AIHL games a player under the age of 23 can play.[14] The minimum age for players to compete in the ECSL is 17. Midget-aged players playing in both the ECSL and in Midget competition must prioritise Midget competition if there is a schedule clash.[14] Full-time rostered players must have competed in a minimum of seven ECSL regular season games to be eligible for the playoffs.[14] Players competing in either the AIHL or a Midget competition must have played a minimum of five games in the ECSL and seven games in their other league to be eligible for the playoffs.[14]

The league runs a 20-game season followed by a playoff series.[20] The semifinals are a two-game series which uses a cumulative aggregate format to determine the winner. The grand final series uses a best of three game format.[20] If after Game 2 in the semifinals or after Game 3 in the grand finals the series is a draw the games will go into continuous overtime.[20]

## Teams

[edit]

Team  | City  | Joined  | Notes

|
|
|

Sydney Bombers | Liverpool, New South Wales | 2014 |
Sydney Heat | Mascot, New South Wales | 2002 | Returned in 2021 after hiatus from 2015-2020
Newcastle North Stars | Newcastle, New South Wales | 2005 |
Polyflor Raptors | Penrith, New South Wales | 2009 |
Reach Rebels | Sydney, New South Wales | 2011 |
Sydney Sting a | Sydney, New South Wales | 2002 | Formally known as the Sting from 2002–2015

a: Currently dormant

### Former teams

[edit]

* Central Coast Rhinos, 2010
* Ice Breakers, 2002–2011
* Raptors, 2002–2006
* Vipers, 2011–2013

## Season results

[edit]

See also: List of ECSL seasons

The ECSL championship has been won 20 times by seven different clubs.[2]

* 2002 – Raptors
* 2003 – Sydney Heat
* 2004 – Raptors
* 2005 – Newcastle North Stars
* 2006 – Ice Breakers
* 2007 – Newcastle North Stars
* 2008 – Ice Breakers
* 2009 – Sting
* 2010 – Penrith Raptors
* 2011 – Reach Rebels
* 2012 – Newcastle North Stars
* 2013 – Sting
* 2014 – Reach Rebels
* 2015 – Sting
* 2016 – Reach Rebels
* 2017 – Sting
* 2018 – Newcastle North Stars
* 2019 – Raptors
* 2020 – Polyflor Raptors
* 2021 – Season not completed due to COVID-19 pandemic
* 2022 – Polyflor Raptors
* 2023 – Newcastle North Stars
* 2024 – Sydney Bombers

## See also

[edit]

* Ice hockey portal
* Australia portal

* Australian Ice Hockey League

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "About the ECSL". East Coast Super League. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
2. ^ a b c d e f g h "History". East Coast Super League. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
3. ^ "ECSL". New South Wales Ice Hockey. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
4. ^ "About". Penrith Raptors. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
5. ^ a b c "Bears v Rhinos - Game 2 Announced". Ice Hockey News Australia. 10 February 2014. Archived from the original on 14 March 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
6. ^ "ECSL Ice Breakers". Elite Prospects. Archived from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
7. ^ "2014 ECSL Season to Start". Ice Hockey News Australia. 15 March 2014. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
8. ^ "2014 Regular Season Standings". East Coast Super League. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
9. ^ "Rebels win the 2014 ECSL Finals". Ice Hockey News Australia. 28 September 2014. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
10. ^ "2015 ECSL season: Round 24". Ice Hockey News Australia. 19 September 2015. Archived from the original on 26 September 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
11. ^ "2015 ECSL Playoffs: Semifinals". Ice Hockey News Australia. 26 September 2015. Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
12. ^ "2015 ECSL Playoffs: Grand Final Series". Ice Hockey News Australia. 3 October 2015. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
13. ^ a b c "ECSL news: 24 February 2016". Ice Hockey News Australia. 24 February 2016. Archived from the original on 3 June 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
14. ^ a b c d e f g h "Season 2016 Members Handbook and Rulebook" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
15. ^ "2016 ECSL season: Round 1". Ice Hockey News Australia. 13 March 2016. Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
16. ^ "2016 ECSL season: Round 26". Ice Hockey News Australia. 11 September 2016. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
17. ^ a b "2016 ECSL Playoffs: Semifinals". Ice Hockey News Australia. 18 September 2016. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
18. ^ "2016 ECSL Playoffs: Grand Final Series". Ice Hockey News Australia. 25 September 2016. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
19. ^ "Reach Rebels win the 2016 ECSL playoffs". Ice Hockey News Australia. 1 October 2016. Archived from the original on 1 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
20. ^ a b c d "By-Laws & Policies". East Coast Super League. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.

## External links

[edit]

* ECSL Official Website

* v
* t
* e

Ice hockey in Australia

National teams|

* Men's national team
* Women's national team
* Men's under-20 national team
* Men's under-18 national team
* Australian men's national para ice hockey team
* Women's under-18 national team

National leagues|

* Australian Ice Hockey League
* Australian Women's Ice Hockey League
* Australian Junior Ice Hockey League

Governing bodies|

* Ice Hockey Australia
* Australian Capital Territory Ice Hockey Association
* New South Wales Ice Hockey Association
* Ice Hockey Queensland
* South Australia Ice Hockey Association
* Ice Hockey Tasmania
* Victorian Ice Hockey Association
* Western Australian Ice Hockey Association

Awards and trophies|

| Current|

* Goodall Cup
* H Newman Reid Trophy
* Wilson Cup
* Joan McKowen Memorial Trophy
* Stephanie Boxall Trophy
* Jim Brown Shield

|

Former|

* F.C. Brown Memorial Shield
* V.I.P. Cup
* West Lakes Trophy

Ice skating venues|

| Current|

* The Big Banana Fun Park
* Canterbury Olympic Ice Rink
* Cockburn Ice Arena
* Erina Ice Arena
* Hunter Ice Skating Stadium
* IceArenA
* iceHQ
* Ice World Boondall
* Liverpool Catholic Club Ice Rink
* Macquarie Ice Rink
* O'Brien Icehouse
* Perth Ice Arena
* Phillip Ice Skating Centre

|

Former|

* Adelaide Glaciarium
* Glenorchy Ice Skating Rink
* Melbourne Glaciarium
* Penrith Ice Palace
* St. Moritz Ice Rink
* Sydney Glaciarium
* Sydney Ice Arena

Other tournaments|

* Pacific Hockey League
* Australian International Ice Hockey Cup

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