Nominate your local legend for the E.H.C. Leadership Award

The E.H.C Leadership Award was established five years ago to recognize the work of those whose leadership has made a difference in their clubs, and by extension, their cities and countries.

To be word perfect, it is “awarded annually to a distinguished leader in European club ice hockey for their outstanding sportive, commercial and social accomplishments within their club and their community. “

In hockey, leadership is a valued attribute. Teams have leadership groups, players who show leadership become stars, and vice versa, star players are also expected to show leadership qualities. Behind the bench, there’s another person, the head coach, who is also expected to provide leadership to the team.

Take a few steps away from the rink, and you’ll find the people who have so much leadership in them that they become legends. You know them, every club has their legends, people who have often either “always been there” – like the inaugural winner Mikko Leinonen whose Tappara has become a juggernaut in Finnish hockey – or have managed to pull off an incredible turnaround, a comeback, that has brought his or her club from the brink of ruin back to the glory, like the 2022 and 2021 winners, Pea Israelsson (Skelleftea) and Philipp Walter (Kölner Haier) did.

“I’m happy to see that in just a few years, the E.H.C Leadership Award has earned its place because there are so many people worthy of the recognition for their work in European club hockey,” says E.H.C. Managing Director Caroline Jonsson.

“Admittedly, the previous winners have set the bar high, but we’re fortunate because there are great leaders all over Europe, doing good work year in, year out,” she adds.

Last year, the E.H.C. Leadership Award went to Gaby Sennebogen, the long-time CEO of Straubing Tigers in the smallest DEL market, and the first woman to head a DEL team. She also became the first woman to win the E.H.C Leadership Award.

In 2023, the award went to Robert Fitzpatrick for his and the Belfast Giants’ outstanding social work when they managed to make the hockey arena the place where the city’s two communities, Catholics and Protestants, come together to cheer for their beloved Giants.

Who will receive the 2025 E.H.C. Leadership Award?

We are now looking to receive nominations for the 2025 E.H.C. Leadership Award and asking clubs to submit names and relevant merits of worthy candidates, and it’s probably someone sitting close to you.

Your local legend.

The nomination period for the 2025 E.H.C. Leadership Award will run from the 31st of January until the deadline, the 30th of March.The winner will be presented on the 11th of June at the 2025 Fenix Outdoor European Hockey Awards in Prague.

For more information or questions, please contact: caroline@hockeyclubs.eu