Cardiff Devils are EIHL Playoff Championship winners for 2025/26, dismantling the Sheffield Steelers 5-2 at the Motorpoint Arena to lift their first playoff title since the 2021/22 season. It was a performance full of character, composure, and — at crucial moments — outright brilliance.
EIHL Playoff Championship Opens With Devils Drawing First Blood
Cardiff could not have asked for a better start. A double-minor for high-sticking against Mitchell Heard just 60 seconds in handed the Devils a man-advantage, and Kohen Olischefski made them pay at 02:41. Brandon Estes picked out Olischefski at the left circle, and he drilled it past Matt Greenfield’s blocker to open the scoring. Sheffield pushed hard throughout the opening period, forcing Christian Stoever into a string of point-blank stops — but the Devils’ netminder was immense, and Cardiff took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
The Steelers returned with serious intent in the second. Evan Jasper rattled the bar at 22:40, and moments later the pressure told — Kevin Tansey collected a behind-the-net feed from Samuel Tremblay and drilled a tight-angle finish past Stoever to level at 22:52. However, Cardiff refused to let Sheffield seize momentum. Nolan Yaremko restored the lead at 38:32, cutting past the defence after Gleason Fournier carried the puck over the blue line, then beating Greenfield from the high slot. Incredibly, Yaremko struck again just 85 seconds later — Cole Sanford forced a turnover behind Greenfield’s net and fed a charging Yaremko, who finished in close at 39:57 for his second of the night. Heading into the third, Cardiff led 3-1.
Sheffield Fight Back but Devils Hold Their Nerve to Seal the Title
The Steelers have never known when to quit, and this final was no different. Ryan Tait — scoring his third goal of the weekend — pulled it back to 3-2 at 53:25, converting from the high slot after a Tremblay set-up through heavy traffic. Cardiff felt the squeeze, but as Elite League veterans will tell you, composure wins championships.
Brett Ferguson, who spent seven seasons with the Guildford Flames before joining Cardiff, spoke with real emotion after the final whistle. “That’s what Sheffield do — they’re never out of the fight and keep coming back at you. We were telling each other on the bench that we’ve got this, just stick with it and keep it going,” he said. “Obviously, I would’ve loved to have won a trophy in Guildford. We played in a couple of finals but just couldn’t get the win. This is amazing — anywhere you can win a trophy is an incredible feeling.”
Ultimately, Sheffield’s late charge came to nothing. Greenfield was pulled with two minutes remaining, but Josh MacDonald and Olischefski both converted into the empty net to make it 5-2 and seal Cardiff’s night in style. Yaremko was equally magnanimous: “The last couple of days I’ve been shooting pucks that just haven’t been going in, but our team is great and we have a lot of skill, so I’m fortunate to play with such a great group of players.”
Cardiff Devils. Playoff champions. Again. Want a piece of the action? Check out our EIHL Playoff Finals Goal Pucks raffle for the chance to win authentic memorabilia from this unforgettable weekend.