Spanish men's ice hockey league
The National Ice Hockey League (Spanish: Liga Nacional de Hockey sobre Hielo) is the top men's professional[1] ice hockey league in Spain. Its governing body is the Royal Spanish Ice Sports Federation.
History
Liga Nacional de Hockey Hielo was established in 1972 as the Superliga Española de Hockey Hielo. There were six founding teams which participated in the first season, 1972–73: Real Sociedad, CH Jaca, CH Valladolid, CG Puigcerdà, CH Madrid and CF Barcelona.[2]
In 2011, the league was composed of eight teams, but due to financial problems in almost all clubs, the league has reduced the number of participants year after year until only five of them were left. In the season 2021/2022 in order to grow ice hockey in Spain, two teams composed of non-Spanish people, and one composed of Spanish players, joined the league, bringing the number of teams back to eight, with the door open to new ones in the future.
Competition
Format
The regular season of Liga Nacional de Hockey Hielo takes place between September and February, with every team playing each other three times (two in home and one away or one home and two away) for a total of 21 matches. Points are awarded according to the following:
- 3 points for a win
- 2 points for a win in extra time
- 1 point for a loss in extra time
- 0 points for a loss
Playoffs
Upon completion of the regular season, the top four teams play in the championship playoffs. The playoffs are a best of three series, in the semifinals (where 4th plays against 1st, and 3rd plays against 2nd), and a best of five in the final.
2023–24 Liga Nacional de Hockey Hielo season
Spain