WEEK 12 of the 2025/26 Elite Ice Hockey League season and the Flyers are in action on Friday night as they travel for the final time this season to meet the Manchester Storm. The Flyers are at home on Sunday as they entertain familiar foes the Cardiff Devils with the teams meeting for the 3rd time in as many weekends.
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 28th MANCHESTER STORM v FIFE FLYERS @ PLANET ICE ALTRINCHAM – FACE OFF 7.30pm
Introducing the opposition & One to Watch!
In a quirk of the scheduling the Storm complete their home fixtures against the Flyers without having yet made a trip to the Kingdom. The Storm have won the first two matches between the sides in convincing fashion and in are one of 6 teams who have a greater than 0.500 record in league play so far. One of the reasons the Manchester Storm have picked up so many vitals points so far this term is the production from dynamic Canadian forward Gary Haden Gary Haden who comes into the weekend as joint leader for the Storm with 12 goals and 14 assists across all competitions in his 23 games. Hailing from Airdrie, Alberta, the 26-year-old brings an impressive mix of speed, scoring touch, and leadership to the Storm, with a proven track record both in the UK and across Europe. Haden previously starred in the EIHL with the Glasgow Clan, where he quickly became one of the league’s most prolific forwards. In his two seasons with the Clan, Haden tallied a combined 51 goals and 54 assists in 115 regular season games, earning back-to-back Player of the Year honours and widespread recognition for his on-ice impact. His standout performances were acknowledged when he was named to EIHL Second All-Star Team in 2023-24. After a successful stint with Glasgow, Haden explored opportunities abroad, suiting up for the Florida Everblades in the ECHL and most recently joining Lausitzer Füchse in Germany’s DEL2. Despite the overseas experience, Haden was eager to return to the EIHL and the Storm fought off competition from arena based franchises to secure his signature in the summer. Haden commenced his professional career in the EIHL and prior to his arrival at the Clan the left-handed forward was with the University of Alberta where he was a winner of the USports Canada West division and playoffs. Before that he made just under 250 appearances in the WHL, icing for Medicine Hat Tigers, Saskatoon Blades and Victoria Kings. In 248 total appearances, he scored 82 goals and made 92 assists combined for 174 points in four years at that level.
Last League Visit to Storm
GALLERY
Pic Credits – Manchester Storm
Overall Away League Record Against Storm
P 30 W 10 L 20 F 84 A 117
Number Crunching
The Flyers have lost on their last 3 visits to the Storm Shelter and have only one win in there in their last 9 visits against the Storm.
In the two previous visits to Altrincham this season the Flyers have been outscored 2-11.
The Flyers have killed 8 of 10 Storm powerplays (81.8 percent) so far this term whilst they have scored 2 of their 5 powerplay goals on 5 opportunities (40 percent) against Manchester.
Overall the Storm have scored 19 goals with the man advantage so far this term in all EIHL competitions which is joint most with Belfast and Nottingham.
The Flyers 5 goals scored on the powerplay is the lowest of all teams so far this term across all competitions.
The Storm have also given up 19 goals on the penalty kill which is second most only to Dundee’s 20 and one more than the Flyers in all competitions this season.
The Storm have not been ahead in any of their last 3 games whilst the Flyers have spent no time ahead in their last 6 outings.
Manchester in games beyond regulation this season in all competitions are 4 for 4 and the only team with a 100 percent record.
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 30th FIFE FLYERS v CARDIFF DEVILS @ FIFE ICE ARENA – FACE OFF 5.00pm
Introducing the opposition & One to Watch!
The Devils also start the weekend on Friday night when they host the Guildford Flames as they look to stay on the coat tails of both the Sheffield Steelers and Nottingham Panthers who top the table a couple of points ahead of the Welsh side. Someone who has been prominent against the Flyers this season is a returnee from last term, Kohen Olischefski, who has 4 goals and 2 points in the two games this term. Prior to joining Cardiff at the start of last season the 27-year-old Canadian forward played in the top league in Germany (DEL) the previous season with Dusseldorf. In 52 games, he scored 11 goals and 9 assists for 20 points. Olischefski spent four seasons at the University of Denver, one of the top hockey programmes in the United States before finishing his amateur career at Providence College. He turned pro with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL), the top affiliate of the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. He split the 2022-23 season with Rochester in the AHL and the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL where he scored 9 goals and 17 assists in 43 games before Dusseldorf came calling. Olischefski is a right shot forward who can play wing or centre. At 6’1 and 190 lbs, he is a big body and skates extremely well. With 18 goals and 27 assists in his 70 games in all EIHL competitions last term for the Devils he is the definition of a two-way forward. He plays a strong defensive game but has the speed and the shot to be an offensive threat. He brings an incredible work rate to every game and is one of the best penalty killers in the league. Olischefski was voted as the team’s ‘Unsung Hero’ by his teammates at the Devils Annual Awards in April 2025.
Last League Visit from Devils
GALLERY
Pic Credits – Jillian McFarlane and Derek Young
Overall League Home Record Against Devils
P 34 W 9 L 25 F 86 A 131
Number Crunching
The Flyers currently have an 8 game winless streak against the Devils which is the best sequence for the Welshmen against the Flyers in all EIHL competitions.
During that stretch the Flyers have been outscored 13-46.
The Devils Joey Martin has 28 goals in all EIHL competitions against the Flyers which is second most for any player against Fife.
The Devils have given up the fewest first period goals in all EIHL competitions this term and on the road it is a miserly 2 from their 13 games so far.
The flip side is that the Devils have given up 17 goals in the second period on the road which is the same number as the Flyers on their travels and is second most only to the Steelers with 18.
The Flyers are 0 for 4 with the man advantage against Cardiff so far this season and have given up 2 on 5 penalty kills (60 percent) against the Devils.
Click the image below for your downloadable gamesheet for Sunday’s game against Cardiff Devils
