You might think that Tier II junior leagues and U Sports teams would be devastated by the decision allowing CHL players to now play NCAA hockey.
That’s not how it is at all. At least it’s not what the two groups are saying for public consumption.
“This decision puts the development of the athlete at the forefront, and we are enthusiastic about the bright future it holds for players in our province,” said Marty Savoy, Commissioner of the Ontario Junior Hockey League.
Prior to the Nov. 7, 2024 ruling by the NCAA that CHL players would be eligible going forward to play college hockey in the USA, Tier II junior leagues like the OJHL, Alberta Junior Hockey League, Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League and BCHL were the main options in Canada for young Canadian players seeking to maintain their US college eligibility.
Once those shackles were removed, there was instant upward movement of players within all of these leagues jumping to the CHL.
From the BCHL alone, there were 37 players making the move into the CHL. Surrey Eagles coach and former NHL player Scott Gomez acknowledged that the hockey development landscape has been forever altered by this NCAA ruling.
“The path and the pipeline is going to change as to how you get (to the NCAA),” Gomez told Black Press Media.
Still, those in charge of these Tier II junior leagues are of the opinion that what leads to the betterment of young players is also better for them. After all, they are in the business of developing hockey talent.
“This is good for players because now you’re not going to force players to make decisions when they’re young and not informed and they’re not pressured to make certain choices that are going to impact their future,” SJHL Commissioner, Kyle McIntyre said. “It puts the players first.”
Another concern for the Tier II leagues may be the loss of franchises. Two BCHL teams are heading to the WHL. The Penticton Vees will be given an expansion franchise in 2025-26, with the Chilliwack Chiefs slated to make the move in 2026-27.
U Sports Recruiting Will Be Altered
In past years, CHL players who didn’t earn pro contracts would often wind up playing U Sports hockey at one of Canada’s universities. However, a number of those players who would traditionally follow that route are now instead heading south of the border on US college hockey scholarships.
“I know it’s going to affect my recruiting 100 percent,” Queen’s University coach Brett Gibson told Sportsnet. “I know it’s going to affect the landscape of U Sports. But we just don’t know to what extent it’s going to affect it.
“I’m a firm believer that I think the NCAA is holding the cards right now and I’m just playing with them. That’s the hard part.”
Playing a significant role in encouraging CHL players to go the U Sports route in the past was the CHL Scholarship And Development Agreement. Under the standard CHL Player Agreement, a player gets credited with one year of post secondary tuition, books and fees paid for each year they play in the CHL. The amount is based upon the costs to attend the university closest to their home.
With the change that now enables players to go from CHL teams to play NCAA hockey, the money the player has earned from the CHL Scholarship And Development Agreement can be utilized to cover any costs they incur while playing college hockey in the US.
Recognizing that the landscape is changing, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold assistant coach Michael Fine arranged a game last January between the Bold and the OJHL 20’s selects team. The Bold were 2-0 winners, opening the eyes of the OJHL players to the quality of play in U Sports hockey.
The session also included a seminar explaining to the players the advantages of choosing the U Sports path.
“It’s going to be human nature that those (NCAA) D1 teams look to the CHL guys first, just because of how they look at the league,” Fine told theeyepener.com. “OJHL guys might start having to look at U Sports a bit earlier.”
Gardiner MacDougall, who coached the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Reds to five U Cup championships before moving to the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats, is confident that U Sports hockey will be fine in the long run.
“U Sports is still going to find their players, just maybe initially not the pedigree that they normally would have,” MacDougall said.
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