Friday: Playoffs start now!

Photo: Dean Woollry

It's playoff time in the Elite Ice Hockey League's 2024 season.

10 teams started the campaign, two have been eliminated, and now eight will fight it out across Quarter-Final aggregate-scoring series to decide who'll play at the 2024 Playoff Finals Weekend.

On Friday night, action starts in Sheffield. With the shortening of the season by a week to accommodate extra practice for Team GB ahead of the World Championships, Sheffield Steelers will play their home leg at IceSheffield. The league and cup champions, who are the top seeds for the post-season, face Fife Flyers. The Steelers opted to play the first leg at home.

Click here to watch Steelers vs. Flyers

The Flyers achieved something this season that few Elite League teams managed - to beat the Steelers. They also did it with the Steelers as a road team, something even fewer managed over the 54-game regular season. Fife's task will be to go back to Kirkcaldy with something to play for, and while it sounds simple history is not in their favour. The Flyers have lost their last 15 games straight games in Sheffield (albeit at the Utilita Arena) with no win since February 2018 - even the famous Cup Semi-Final ended with the Steelers winning the game through 60 minutes.

Sheffield had not played in IceSheffield for some six years until a re-arranged cup fixture in November that they won. 

The second leg takes place on Sunday evening.