Sheffield Steelers’ 2022/23 EIHL fixtures released

In the EIHL fixtures published on Friday morning, Sheffield must take to the road for four out of six games in the opening month of September.

After facing off the league season at home to Cardiff Devils they face trips to Guildford Flames, Dundee Stars, Glasgow Clan and Nottingham Panthers, as well as a Challenge Cup home date with Manchester Storm.

In October, they have a run of games that includes three consecutive away games at Dundee, Cardiff and Fife Flyers.

But November is kinder to the team and their Orange Army of supporters - Sheffield have seven fixtures, six of them at home.

Amongst that list are back-to-back games against the reigning champions Belfast Giants.

That runs into the busy month of December, when the new team will have 13 outings, if you include the Cup quarter finals.

Christmas is always a massive ticket sales driver for the Sheffield club.

And Boxing Day and December 27 mirror last year's schedule of Nottingham, home and then away.

Coach Aaron Fox certainly wouldn't mind a replica of the results from that year too - Sheffield won 5-3 and 4-1, successes which saw them briefly go eight points clear at the top of the table.

The New Year sees the team bus hit the motorways again, with four of the first five matches being away.

February's business is punctuated by a Great Britain international break.

But the run-in for the regular league title that has escaped Steelers since the 2015–16 campaign is an intriguing one.

In the last four games straddling March and April Sheffield will play at Belfast and also home and away encounters with Cardiff...the two teams that gave Sheffield the most to worry about last term.

The Play off quarter finals commenced on April 8, and Steelers will certainly be aiming to do better than their spectacular fall from grace at the same stage, against Dundee Stars 12 months earlier.

The dates for live midweek televised performances - an issue which triggered quite a response from fans when The Star revealed the notion recently are down provisionally as October 6 (Guildford) and February 15 (Dundee) both at the Arena.

Next week, the Steelers' team that will go into the 2022-23 season - which starts with five exhibition games - should start to become clearer.

The club is not normally coy about naming signed players; there are six unidentified incomers who have committed for the upcoming season.

Coach Fox says work permits and visas are being processed but the names of those should be declared from early next week.

More additional signings are "expected shortly” he says.