Great Britain’s recent rise to the highest tier of international ice hockey is undoubtedly one of the biggest sporting success stories of the past few years.
In a country where the top league is awash with import players, the fact that GB will share the same ice as the likes of the United States and Sweden in May is an achievement in itself.
A quick look at the hockey betting for the upcoming International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championship tournament highlights the size of the task GB face.
With the bookies predicting GB will finish bottom of their group, the players could be in for a tough couple of weeks in Finland.
Having earned the opportunity to face the best teams on the planet, it will be difficult to be too critical of GB given they are currently ranked 18th in the world.
However, with plenty of veterans amongst the current roster, fans are rightly concerned about what the future may hold at international level.
One of the biggest issues ice hockey continues to face is the fractured nature of the leagues and governance structure in the UK.
While the Elite League serves as the top flight of the structure, its import-heavy nature does little to promote the progression of homegrown talent.
Their cause is not helped by the nature of the set-up underneath, which is not fit for purpose in terms of providing a UK-wide sports development pathway.
The current second tier division – the National League – is somewhat of a misnomer, given its most northerly club is located in Leeds.
The north east’s two senior clubs – Whitley Warriors and Billingham Stars – currently ply their trade in the third tier, with little sign of them being handed the opportunity to move up.
Things are even worse in Scotland, with their three Elite League clubs offering extremely limited opportunities to British players.
The only other option north of the border is the Scottish National League, which effectively contains a mix of third and fourth tier clubs.
The lack of a viable second tier set-up north of Leeds is unquestionably a major issue for GB at international level in the future.
Many promising players are lost to the sport due to the lack of a proper pathway in the northern half of the UK, which is hugely detrimental to GB’s hopes of progression.
Ultimately this situation must be addressed if GB are to have any hope of building on what they have achieved over the past few years.
The creation of a bona-fide second tier should be high on the agenda of issues that must be resolved, preferably sooner rather than later.
Responsibility for change rests not only with the various governing bodies who oversee ice hockey in the UK, but also the Elite League.
Most of its clubs pay lip service to development, despite it being in their best interests to ensure there is a steady flow of talent coming through the system.