Any program that competes in the CHL in Canada is an elite program capable of sending players to the NHL and professional ranks. The Junior Hockey News is the world wide leader in accurate, truthful, unbiased news reporting in Junior Hockey. Youngstown is the eastern-most franchise, with other clubs in places such as Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin. USA Hockey sanctions just one Tier 1 league, the USHL and 1 Tier 2 league, the NAHL in the United States. With that in mind, here is a look at the current junior hockey structure in the United States. I also think that the annual number of roster transactions is a huge part of the decision-making process. Understanding levels of junior hockey leagues is confusing and in this guide, were going to unpack every level of junior play. How much does it cost to play in the USPHL Premier league? The EHL also continued to move players on to Tier II when those opportunities were presented, yet they do not match the volume of the USPHL. Junior C Hockey is a level of Canadien Hockey that is thought of largely as a developmental league for Canadien Junior A and Junior B clubs. As mentioned previously, the WSHL is another junior league that has positioned itself as a Tier 2 league that operates more like a Tier 3 pay-to-play league. While many gimmicks are in place to make it appear that players are getting more opportunity in the NAHL, the numbers of call ups and actual games played do not support that idea of promotion. Its important to remember that hockey is a game we are lucky to play. At the end of the day the number of commitments each league has is not as relevant as some other variables that should be included in a players decision on where to play. Both leagues reported numbers simply support that conclusion and can not be disputed. Statistically speaking, players playing in their age out year in one of these four leagues are more likely to go on to play NCAA than the CHL, as eligibility in the CHL has also run out. I decided to put those claims to the test. Those are the 4 top Junior Leagues in North America, without question. The numbers would also support that AAA, High School, and Prep School are clearly the best routes to Tier II. Since 2020, no other USA Hockey Midget Tier I league has had more players play in the NAHL than the NAPHL. Since the USPHL is not under USA Hockey its written in the contract, and that's no different than any other business. Those numbers are pretty far apart, however there are reasons for that. At the end of the weekend, we will know the 20 teams advancing to the 2023 Fraser Cup Playoffs, and the five divisional champions as well. . I think its important for players to look at a programs matriculation list, said Lounsbury, former Walpole Express EHL coach and general manager. This league sends more players to Division 1 schools than any other league. Depending on whose numbers you use, somewhere between 85 and 90 percent of all NCAA college hockey players played junior hockey first. In my opinion yes, just because you play Tier Three Hockey does not mean youre not any good. Get our FREE TRAINING APP (join over 12k other goalies, parents and coaches). Some players just want to play competitive hockey for a few more years and there is nothing wrong with it at all. Is the USPHL better than NA3HL? The numbers would also support that AAA, High School, and Prep School are clearly the best routes to Tier II. Add School to Favorites Email the Coaches. And of those, only four are still in the NHL: Graves, Daniels, Boston goaltender Jeff Hackett and Buffalo winger Rob Ray. As with most things in life, if an opportunity seems too good to be true, it probably is. French combined for a .670 GAA, .937 SV% and added three shutout wins in over the month. It was hoped that establishing a tuition free junior league within driving distance of the majority of hockey-playing colleges in the country would help persuade some of the top Division I prospects who were leaving the area for the USHL and NAHL to stay home to play and create a highly competitive Division I prospect league. amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; Never heard of the league? We will take younger kids who still need to develop and give them an opportunity to play at the Premier level, DeCaprio said. All 13 NCDC teams have Premier-level teams in their organizations that serve as direct affiliates, allowing players on those teams to practice and possibly play with the higher-level team to get a taste of Tier 2 hockey in hopes of eventually earning a permanent spot at that level. That said, the NA3HL has done a better job of moving players to Canadian Junior A leagues like the NOJHL, SIJHL, CCHL and OJHL. If you look at the numbers a little more closely, the bulk of the NCAA commits are coming from teams in the Northeast that play most of their games within driving distance of Division III programs and from teams in the Midwest that are in close proximity to the numerous D3 programs in that region. Most teams bring 30-35 players to training camp, with the NCDC cutting down to their final 23-man rosters early in September and the NAHL franchises doing the same by October 1. A round-robin format with two pools will be implemented, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the Semi-Finals, where they will then cross over to play the other top two teams from the other pool. The level of play in the USPHL can vary widely from program to program and division to division. Look for those teams that have a history of moving players on. The NA3HL is trying to change its image. Canadien Junior A hockey (which consists of 10 leagues) is comparable to the USHL and NAHL, though many would argue most USHL teams produce more NCAA D1 players than any CJHL team. Do not assume that just because one team is in one league or another, that the leagues results are representative of each teams ability. NA3HL - North American "Tier 3" Hockey League (Tier 3) EHL - Eastern Hockey League "Tier 3" USPHL NCDC - United States Premier Hockey League "National Collegiate Development Conference" (Not Sanctioned) Other Junior Hockey Leagues - Canada Junior B / C, WSHL, and Others Canada Junior B, C, D What are the levels of Junior Hockey? Your choice needs to be based on facts. Since writing this, Ive still been getting the question of, what is the best junior hockey league in North America? If youre being recruited to play in a Junior Hockey League, doing a little research is always a wise idea. Similar to the USHL, these camps and the predraft camps help fund the Tier 2 programs yearly budgets. The list below is a list of the top junior hockey leagues in North America. Younger and less experienced, EHLP players are seeing some players moved up to the EHL. All Right Reserved. NCDC teams also have USPHL Premier affiliates from which they can move players up and down, while NAHL teams have affiliations with North American Tier 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) teams and working arrangements with some Eastern Hockey League (EHL) organizations. 62 Players from High School or Prep School are on NAHL rosters. The Junior Hockey News Ranks USPHL Premier No. The difference between east coast and mid west junior hockey is simply location, in the USPHL the teams are much more condensed in the sense that the teams are very close to surrounding colleges. The league does have its share of D1 commits, although it hasnt quite played out as planned. How many players can be on a NA3HL roster? These cities often times host Junior B or Junior C competition. Division: JC. amzn_assoc_title = "Want To Play Hockey At An Elite Level? The NA3HL also continues to make its mark and is one of the leaders in junior hockey with the advancement of players onto the NCAA. While USA Hockey does a good job of classifying its member leagues into a three-tier system, there are reputable leagues that operate outside the jurisdiction of USA Hockey and are doing a great job of developing players and moving them on to collegiate hockey. The NA3HL has a direct affiliation with the NAHL, with some owners controlling teams in both leagues and using the Tier 3 club to develop players for the future and as a place for players who didnt quite make the parent club to play in case there is a need for an in-season call-up. The NCAA currently revokes eligibility for athletes that have played in the CHL. And if a lot of promises about playing time and role on the team are being made, the situation should be approached with caution. amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; USHL United States Hockey League (Tier 1), NAHL North American Hockey League (Tier 2), BCHL British Columbia Hockey League (Canadien Junior A, Tier 1), AJHL Alberta Junior Hockey League (Canadien Junior A, Tier 1), QMJHL Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, SIJHL Superior International Junior Hockey League, NOJHL Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League, QJAAAHL Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League, NA3HL North American Tier 3 Hockey League (Tier 3), USPHL NCDC United States Premier Hockey League National Collegiate Development Conference (Not Sanctioned), Other Junior Hockey Leagues Canada Junior B / C, WSHL, and Others, Major Junior the CHL contains three leagues, the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League, and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Tier 1 technically, Canadien Junior A leagues fall into this category, also, the USHL is Tier 1. There is only one USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier 1 junior league in the U.S., and that is the United States Hockey League (USHL). Radchenko has played in 42 games this season and has racked up 51 points. 3. Aside from comparing the number of NHL players this league has produced and the number of Memorial Cup victories for the OHL, there is no great comparison of its level of play to other CHL leagues. deadlytortilla466 2 yr. ago Players who are drafted or tendered by a team are that teams property in that league until released. On paper, the CHL produces more immediate, NHL ready talent. If they use two, they lose both a 1st and 2nd round draft choice in their league draft. These players are moving on to the USHL and NAHL as well as NCDC. eams cannot carry more than five 20-year-olds (age-outs) at a time, which must be reduced to four by the third weekend of the season. Unfortunately, this filters down, with many players who thought they had made a Tier 3 junior roster getting released, sent down to a lower-level team or traded within their league as room is cleared for the new arrivals from Tier 2 programs. Could it be defined by the way Tier II views and uses Tier III in their development model? Players must pay tuition whether they stay or go based on USA Hockey tuition guidelines. Congratulations. Inside the CJHL, weve got several leagues. Its hard to say what the appropriate level for any player to pursue is, said former Tier 3 junior hockey coach and general manager Jon Lounsbury, now an assistant with the Holy Cross NCAA Division I program. At Tier 3 you really should look at the program though as that is more important than league. A 2016 study done by NeutralZone.net confirmed this, finding that a 72 percent of all D3 commits were age-outs and that 92 percent were in their final or second-to-last-year of junior hockey. Established to take advantage of the numerous NCAA Division I, II and III hockey programs in close proximity to its teams in the Northeast, the league extends from Maine west to Rochester, N.Y., and south into New Jersey. How old are the Green Bay Gamblers players. Tiers 1-3. The numbers support the argument that the USPHL is a better path to Tier II than the NA3HL. In terms of which league sends more players to the NCAA, the NAHL is consistently 2nd in North America behind only the USHL. In 2007, the CSHL changed from Junior B to Tier III Junior A under the USA Hockey classification system. The AHL under 20 rule was created for CHL teams to attract top talent back. Teams continue to feed NCAA D1 programs with talent. Yes, they too are being told and sometimes placed by their future college coaches to play in high-level junior hockey leagues so that they can develop as players and physically by competing against bigger, stronger and older opponents on a daily basis. The EHL (Eastern Hockey League) is a tier 3 junior hockey league that has a ton of history. So the AHL Under 20 rule is actually only the AHL Under 20 if youre on a CHL team, rule. The others likely will take a stab at pro hockey either in North America or abroad. No matter how you slice it, you are looking at a financial commitment beyond $10,000 in most instances for a year of Tier 3 junior hockey when all is said and done. But while more opportunities mean that more players can keep their hockey dreams alive for a least a little while longer, not every opportunity is one that will keep a player moving in the right direction if the ultimate goal is playing NCAA college hockey. There are 52 USPHL Premier teams playing in eight divisions from Maine to Florida and New York to Indiana and Minnesota. The NA3HL, a feeder league to the NAHL, is sanctioned by the North American Hockey league as well as USA Hockey, as one of the only Tier 3 Junior Hockey Leagues in North America. Rating The Junior Hockey Leagues 2021 Tier III Edition, #USPHLPlayoffs Series Preview: New York Aviators vs. P.A.L. Drafted players, tendered players and other invited or recruited players will attend summer main camps, with many of those in attendance paying several hundred dollars to participate in hopes of being selected for a teams training camp roster. This isnt to say that a league not sanctioned by either is a bad league (see, Adam Vay, Minnesota Wild Prospect of the WSHL), but as a rule of thumb the baseline for how good a league is, is based off of its sanctioned counterpart. To note, the USHL only allows two tenders, and if a team uses one, they lose a 1st round draft pick. The Butte Cobras and Willmar Warhawks both clinched a spot in the Fraser Cup Playoffs with wins on Friday. A league that used to be primarily based in the Northeast, but has expanded all over the country is the USPHL. So they have more players and a higher level of play than the NA3HL. Do you get paid for playing junior hockey? Here are more facts regarding incoming NAHL and NCDC players; The NAHL and NCDC each had more than 100 first year players come from AAA programs. When compared side by side with Canada, it would seem that with just a few junior hockey leagues, the United States and USA Hockey have almost nothing. The USPHL Premier is equivalent to the NAHL and the USPHL Elite is equivalent to the NA3HL in levels of play. The Washington State native totalled a jaw-dropping 25 points that included 8 goals and 17 assists with a +17 rating for the Cobras. Do many NCAA student-athletes go on to play professionally? This created a domino effect, with other coaches saying, If theyre going to do it, were going to do it. That philosophy ultimately filtered down to the Division II and III levels, where coaches decided it was best for them to wait on the older kids who dont quite pan out at the Division I level. Junior Hockey leagues are feeder leagues designed to develop players for success at the next level. The EHLP, the second division under the EHL is better classified as a league for players with little to no AAA hockey experience. A skilled player needs to be able to be that type of player against our level of competition for us to compete and for him to get opportunities at higher levels. Depends on the division in the USP. Hockey Canada structures its Junior Hockey in a slightly different fashion than USA Hockey. The U.S. National Team Development Program also enters a team in the USHL each year. The NAHL and USPHL are pretty even. The WHL, as you can imagine, holds most of its teams in Western Canada and the Northwest United States. Not a picture painted by one league or another. In addition to its regular-seasonscheduleand playoffs, the NA3HL, which boasts ageographical footprintwith 34 teams in 16 states (Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming) allowing players to compete and excel academically at home, will participate in the NAHL's high-exposure events, which attract hundreds of college, junior and professional coaches and scouts. The numbers would also support that AAA, High School, and Prep School are clearly the best routes to Tier II. There are generally two routes to professional hockey in North America. Helena goaltender Keaton French was fantastic in net during the month of February with a 4-1 record. For example, in Canada, the CHL is known as the top junior league, even though the NCAA does not recognize CHL players as eligible for NCAA participation. The teams with direct NAHL affiliations seem to have more success promoting players, although that is not always the case. The Best Tier 3 Junior Hockey League In The Nation, Eastern Hockey League. This past season not only did 34 NA3HL players sign tenders to play in the NAHL for the 2022-23 season, but 27 more players were selected in the 2022NAHL Draft. average NCAA student-athletes graduate at a higher rate than the general student body. The two Clubs in each division that won a division semifinal series shall compete in a best-of-three series against each other in the division finals. Other older players from around the NCDC do end up making Division I commitments while playing in the league, but the majority of the teams in the NCDC still send their players to Division III programs. French turned away 142 of the 146 shots he faced over the course of 5 games. Teams must carry at least three 18U players on the active roster at all times. Competition wise, Junior B hockey in Canada is generally thought of as a step down from Junior A. Runner-Up: Colin Hedland, Mason City Toros, Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Dylan Cunningham, Helena Bighorns Will Falconer, Oregon Tradesmen Tim Hayden, Norwich Sea Captains Wyatt Johnson, Alexandria Blizzard Davis Kinne, Northeast Generals Jameson Klein, New Mexico Ice Wolves Logan Kroyman, Rochester Grizzlies Alex Leaf, Great Falls Americans Austin Micale, Atlanta Capitals Kyle Mortenson, Granite City Lumberjacks Nick OBrien, New Ulm Steel Kyle Portlock, Texas RoadRunners Makhai Sparks, Sheridan Hawks Carson Streich, Butte Cobras Bryce Sturm, Bozeman Icedog. average NCAA student-athletes graduate at a higher rate than the general student body. Note, the NCAA will allow players who have played in any league but the CHL to compete in the NCAA. Teams in the CHL play for their respective league trophies, with the winner of each league moving on to play for the Memorial Cup (one team from each league in the CHL plus a host city plays for the Memorial Cup). Thanks to additional and enhanced initiatives that were put in place this season in cooperation with the NAHL, more players from the NA3HL play, practice, and earn NCAA Division I scholarships with the NAHL than any other league. The thing that jumped out is that they did so with less than half the number of Tier II teams in their league. If your son or daughter has been approached by a junior hockey team, the number one thing you can do to determine the leagues legitimacy is looking up advancement. The USPHL, is the benchmark in North America by which all other Tier III leagues should be measured. While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $80,000 and as low as $14,000, the majority of Junior Hockey salaries currently range between $34,000 (25th percentile) to $50,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $65,000 annually across the United States. However, the two top junior leagues in Canada, the BCHL and AJHL, as well as the United States only sanctioned Tier 2 league the NAHL, are right behind it. Players let go at the end of September are on their own to find somewhere to play and are often scooped up immediately by teams in the Tier 2 North American Hockey League (NAHL), which is the other USA Hockey-sanctioned tuition free junior league, or the National Collegiate Development Conference (NCDC), a tuition fee Tier 2 league not sanctioned by USA Hockey. Turf shoes will be the preferred gear for this kind of field. Its called Major Junior as it is a level above Canadien Junior A. There also are two teams in Alaska. Over the course of the last six seasons, 1,500+ NAHL players have made NCAA commitments and, At what age do hockey players get scouted? As these young players move up in the ranks of hockey, it just gets more difficult and intense. Leagues that consistently send its ex-players to the CHL / NCAA / CIS / ECHL ranks and beyond are generally pretty quality leagues. In this last season, they have committed 100+ players to NCAA D1, D2, and D3 programs in the 2016-17 season. Several NCDC teams have strong relationships with Division I programs and are able to keep some of the younger D1 commits in the area to develop in their organizations. No matter what a coach tells you in a recruiting pitch, his job is to win and develop players so that he can move as many kids as possible on to higher levels of junior hockey or to college programs. Over the course of the last six seasons, 1,500+ NAHL players have made NCAA commitments and 32 have been drafted into the NHL. These can be difficult conversations as no one wants to be told that they arent good enough to play in the USHL or at an NCAA Division I school, but it is extremely important to understand from educated observers where a player realistically projects when making decisions about junior hockey. Note: there are cases of CHL players playing in the NCAA (albeit rare). The criteria that was used in rating these six leagues, was how do teams within the leagues compare when developing players who move on to the NHL, NCAA, USHL, NAHL, NCDC, and Canada Junior A hockey programs. Some of the New York-based NA3HL organizations also do a pretty good job moving players on to play for D3 programs in upstate New York. These players, as well as others from around North America and Europe, are invited to participate in summer main camps that are highly attended to compete for spots at training camp in early September. The EHL, is a top producer of NCAA D-3 prospects at the Tier III level. The league also moves players on to the USHL. As far as development for play at the Collegiate (NCAA) level, the majority of Division 1 hockey players that play Junior Hockey in Canada play in just a few different leagues inside the CJHL. The EHL also has a lower-level, developmental Tier 3 affiliate league called the EHL Premier (EHLP) that allows younger players and players who havent been exposed to AAA-level club hockey but want to keep playing a place to develop with the possibility of getting called up during the season or moving up to the EHL the following year. The EHL, also known as the Eastern Hockey League, is a Tier 3 junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey based on the East Coast of the United States. Once drafted, a player is property of that USHL franchise until he is released. The North American Hockey league is arguably the second best junior hockey league in North America. Many players on Elite teams are getting called up to USPHL Premier teams, and many are getting opportunity with NCDC clubs, while some are still going directly to College hockey. What is better NA3HL vs Usphl? As far as the NCAA is concerned here in the states, players who play in the CHL do not retain their amateur status. Is Cornell hockey good? Butte Cobras forward Luke Schleusner lit the scoresheet over the month of February playing in 8 games. This league has several teams in Michigan and one in Pennsylvania. How many AAA hockey players make the NHL? Is USPHL better than NAHL? The numbers support the argument that the USPHL is a better path to Tier II than the NA3HL.