Ice Hockey: An empty space in rollcall of champions

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The final moments of the 2019-20 ice hockey season came , not on the ice pad, but in a conference call of league owners.
With coronavirus prompting a premature halt to the EIHL season, the matter of who should be named champions - if only for the record books - was discussed, and dismissed.
The stats will simply show an asterix and the the words along the lines of *no champions due to coronovirus"

 Picking a team  when there were a cluster of potential candidates was never going to work, and would simply drag the sport into a never-ending debate from which there was no escapes. The 'whataboutery' on social media would have been as painful as it would have been pointless. A bit like a dog chasing its own tail ...
Just four points separated the four four, from Cardiff Devils in top spot to Coventry Blaze - a possible wild card, and a team in red hot form - in fourth.

 The decision  came from the most recent update from the league.
There wasn't much else of substance to announce, other than it was  agreed that Cardiff Devils, as the team in first place and with the highest winning percentage of 70 per cent when the league’s remaining games were cancelled,  would get the league's place in the  Champions Hockey League.

 The issue of greatest interest to supporters - namely ticket money for the aborted play-off finals weekend - has still to be finalised.

 An update is due on Monday, with talk of a 'Magic 5' event featuring all ten teams by way of a replacement for the lost weekend - and to kick-start the sport, hopefully in September, but with the coronavirus lockdown impacting on every facet of our lives, that timescale is something outwith the control of everyone.





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