Championship experience dots the Shiga Lakestars roster.

From head coach Koto Toyama's stint as an assistant coach for the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix's 2009-10 title-winning team to veteran forwards Ray Nixon and Jeff Parmer teaming up to help lead the squad to a second championship under Kazuo Nakamura in May 2011, those experiences serve as building blocks for the Lakestars.

Toyama, 32, is a bench boss for a fourth franchise in as many seasons.