Esmark Kosice

Jerguš Spodniak In 2025 he built HK Esmark Košice himself, bringing in the American industrial firm Esmark Inc. as partner — its chairman, Jim Bouchard, signed on as co-owner and sponsor. The club made a point of saying it was not a reserve side for HC Košice, the city's Extraliga institution, but its own project, entering the 2. hokejová liga, the third tier of Slovak hockey, in the Eastern Group.

The roster reflected the founder's intent: around 95 percent of the squad grew up in Košice, many of them returning from spells at other Slovak clubs. The nickname Zubry, bisons, was chosen for that reason — local talent coming home, much as the animal itself came back from near extinction in the region. Brown, white and black became the club's colours, and the team took up residence at the Steel Aréna.

That gap between ground and level nearly closed in the first attempt. In the 2025–2026 season, its debut, Esmark finished second in Group B of the regular season and fought through to the 2. hokejová liga final, where Dukla Senica beat them in three straight games. Igor Halás carried the scoring through that run, and Spodniak himself pulled on the pads for the club he had founded. Miroslav Ihnačák took over as head coach for the following season, with the final defeat still fresh.

No rivalry has had time to set in. Esmark's opponents in the Eastern Group are clubs like Bardejov, Kežmarok, Sabinov and Trebišov — functional fixtures rather than grudges.