The AIHL is celebrating 25 years since it’s founding. The league and all ten teams released the first information about Season 2025 tonight. So, what’s in store for the AIHL in 2025?
Conferences scrapped
The controversial conference system that has been a mainstay of the league over the past two seasons is no more. The AIHL is reverting to a single standings-table of ten teams with the top six teams qualifying for the AIHL Finals in 2025.
This change will likely strike a positive tone with fans, who had been calling for changes to the conferences. It highlights the league’s adaptability to try something and switch it up when it does not work out. We’ve seen similar instances of this with the Finals format.
Schedule released
Each of the ten AIHL teams have released their Season 2025 regular season schedules tonight on their socials. The entire league schedule will soon be available on the AIHL website, once IT asset upgrades are complete.
The season runs from the start of April till the end of August. The regular season runs between 5 April to 24 August. Finals is yet to be announced. There are two mid-season all team breaks.
Some of the interesting scheduling points for 2025 include the first Friday night games for Perth Thunder and Adelaide Adrenaline. Both non-east coast teams will travel to NSW at different times and take on the Ice Dogs at Macquarie on a Friday night.
The Adrenaline, Thunder, and Northstars draw some tough road trips. Newcastle gets to experience the tough single weekend road trip split between Adelaide and Perth in August 2025. The fixture has been a schedule feature for a few years now. Like clockwork, it is rotated around the east coast teams.
The Adrenaline and Thunder, on the other hand, get tricky three-game-in-three-day road trips to NSW in July and August. Adelaide will travel to Sydney and play the Dogs and Bears before heading up the coast to Erina to play the Rhinos. The Thunder will touch down in Sydney to play the Dogs before travelling up to sunny Newcastle and Erina to play the Northstars and Rhinos.
The extended trips will save the Adrenaline and Thunder from additional NSW trips in 2025, a big plus for their finances. However, it will be gruelling on players and likely require time off work. Speaking of time off work, the super road trips do offer an amazing opportunity for Adrenaline and Thunder fans to experience some awesome extended away days.
Changes to mid-season breaks
Compared to 2024, next season the all-team byes will change. In 2025, all teams will break for the Easter long-weekend between 18-21 April. They will then return for a round, with no games in Melbourne. Before breaking once more for the climax to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships Division 2A on the weekend of 3-4 May. Everyone can get to Melbourne to cheer on Australia.
It’s nice to see a break incorporated for Worlds, which will be hosted in Melbourne and feature the Mighty Roos (Australia’s men’s team). Not having games at Easter is also a smart idea. I know some people would love holiday hockey, but lots of others will have family plans and be unavailable to make games.
Regular season game distribution
The ten AIHL teams will once again play 150 games across the regular season. These will be broken up into 30 games for each team, 15 at home and 15 away.
Unlike 2024, with no conferences, teams will not be restricted to playing conference teams four times and non-conference teams less. However, the ratio of games per team will remain the same. Each team will play four teams four times, four teams three times and one team twice. So, check your team’s schedule closely, your fav team’s schedule might look quite different compared to the last two years.
AIHL Finals schedule and qualification
With no more conferences, the top six teams from the regular season standings will qualify for the 2025 AIHL Finals weekend. The AIHL is yet to announce the final format, host venue and city. Keep your eye out for future announcements, the league has said this decision will be made before the end of 2024.
For more AIHL news and stories like this one on what’s in store for the AIHL in 2025? Please check out Hockey Hype Australia’s AIHL News section.
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