Tiers 1-3. However, the chances of recruitment are higher for the USHL than the NAHL. Entering its 13th season in 2022-23, the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL), is the only USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier III Junior league and serves as one of the top training grounds in the country by providing the best coaching, exposure and developmental vehicles available for student-athletes in its classification. 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. The USPHL Premier by volume leads the way in NCAA and ACHA College commitments. The first is through Major Junior, the second through the NCAA. Tier II From Tier III Comparing The USPHL And NA3HL Using Their Own Numbers, #USPHLPlayoffs Series Preview: New York Aviators vs. P.A.L. Rochester Grizzlies goalie Zach Wiese saved his best game of the 2022 Fraser Cup for last as he stopped all 29 shots that came his way to lead the Rochester Grizzlies to their first-ever NA3HL Fraser Cup National Championship as they defeated the Granite City Lumberjacks on Sunday, 4-0. No propaganda. The NAHL and now NCDC both claim that their Tier III leagues are a path to their Tier II leagues. The list below is not broken down by which league is best, it is simply a list of the league. With that being said I believe the biggest thing to look for is commitments. 20 years old. Both leagues reported numbers simply support that conclusion and can not be disputed. Any import goalie, including a Canadian goalie, counts as two players toward the four-player import limit. No marketing behind the presentation of facts. Players who are drafted or tendered by a team are that teams property in that league until released. And if it saves you a few bucks down the road, even better. In Canada, we have the Canadian Hockey League (the CHL) and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (the CJHL). The Western States Hockey League (WSHL) has promoted itself as a Tier 2 league, but it also is not sanctioned by USA Hockey, is not tuition free. Its NCAA college commitments are limited to D3 programs and lag well behind the top Tier 3 leagues such as the Eastern Hockey League and USPHL Premier. The NAPHL is operated by the NAHL's experienced staff and provides an organized and competitive experience guaranteed to benefit all of the participating student-athletes. the premier Midwest is really bad . The EHLP while trying to develop players simply doesnt have a talent pool developing for Tier II or NCAA levels that is measurable. USPHL - Elite Both leagues reported numbers simply support that conclusion and can not be disputed. 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? Once you complete your eligibility in the league, you must go on to play Professional hockey, or play U Sports in Canada (Canadas version of the NCAA in the US). They are also the best routes to the USHL or Major Junior Hockey. One concern about the NCDC has been the ability of the league to maintain its tuition free status over a long period of time without any real ticket sales to speak of and a reliance on revenue streams such as sponsorships, lower-level player tuition fees and camp fees. Youngstown is the eastern-most franchise, with other clubs in places such as Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin. 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? 2023 NA3HL Fraser Cup Championship to be held at St. Peters Rec-Plex in St. Peters, MO from March 22-26. Green Bay Gamblers 2021-22. The league has expanded into the Northeast in recent years and now has seven teams in its East Division with the additions of Maine, the Northeast Generals and the Maryland Black Bears over the past three years. . Cooper is an excellent resource for goalies, with a growing Youtube Channel. The USPHL has larger numbers because they have more leagues. Entering its third year of competition this month, the NCDC also is widely considered a Tier 2 league because it also is tuition free, holds a draft and offers tenders to players. The numbers support the argument that the USPHL is a better path to Tier II than the NA3HL. But they do in fact have a lot of showcases which will pull in a boat load of scouts from all college levels, so dont get too caught up in that, as they say if you are good enough you will be found regardless of where you play. The NA3HL has direct connections to the NAHL, which is a huge plus when deciding on where to play. The Junior Hockey News is the world wide leader in accurate, truthful, unbiased news reporting in Junior Hockey. 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. 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. USA Hockey has three tiers of junior hockey that they govern. The NCAA currently revokes eligibility for athletes that have played in the CHL. some of the East coast divisions have decent teams ..use this as a guide The numbers support the argument that the USPHL is a better path to Tier II than the NA3HL. I think its important for players to look at a programs matriculation list, said Lounsbury, former Walpole Express EHL coach and general manager. This is the USPHL Premier (Tier III) - Minnesota Moose (Junior Hockey) Men's Ice Hockey scholarship and program info page. Over the course of the last six seasons, 1,500+ NAHL players have made NCAA commitments and 32 have been drafted into the NHL. Programs such as the Junior Bruins, New Jersey Hitmen and Islanders Hockey Club might have as many as a dozen Division I commits on their rosters, so the level of play is high and more high-level talent from the East Coast is staying closer to home to play juniors every year. Currently at 20 teams, the OHL could very well be the highest profile league in the CHL due to its geographical positioning in comparison to the WHL and QMJHL. Teams must carry at least three 18U players on the active roster at all times. With dozens of different Junior Hockey Leagues throughout North America and hundreds of Junior Hockey teams, understanding it all can be a bit of a challenge to those not familiar with the system. How much does it cost to play in the USPHL Premier league? Yes, you can. The thing that jumped out is that they did so with less than half the number of Tier II teams in their league. Your choice of leagues or levels of play should not be made based upon emotion. Tuition Out of State: $1. The NA3HL also participates in the NAHL's wide menu of marketing partnerships, including its relationships with Bauer, the Official Equipment Supplier of the NAHL and HockeyTV, the Official Internet Broadcast Provider of the NAHL. 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. I played in the east and the mid-west during my junior hockey career. The NCDC is showing by its use of the USPHL Premier as its development pool that it is a proven recipe for successful promotion and growth of players. There are 52 USPHL Premier teams playing in eight divisions from Maine to Florida and New York to Indiana and Minnesota. 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. The real defining number that jumped out at me was not that the NCDC used three times the amount of Tier III players in their development model. It features 16 teams playing in two divisions mainly scattered around the Midwest. 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. Both leagues reported numbers simply support that conclusion and can not be disputed. 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. What is better NA3HL vs Usphl? People often ask whether or not the CHL is better than the CJHL. To note, the USHL only allows two tenders, and if a team uses one, they lose a 1st round draft pick. Simply the facts that you, the people trying to make educated and informed purchasing decisions need. Teams cannot carry more than four import (foreign) players at a time. 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. In fact, you only have to be 18 to play in the AHL. Remember that these are the NCDCs and the NAHLs own reported numbers. Depending on whose numbers you use, somewhere between 85 and 90 percent of all NCAA college hockey players played junior hockey first. Actually, for most Junior Leagues, 20 is the cut off. 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. amzn_assoc_linkid = "623b96a4ef8567d13d46f1d2c43f6b21"; The others likely will take a stab at pro hockey either in North America or abroad. Too many players spend thousands of dollars attending Tier 1 and Tier 2 junior predraft camps, main camps, combines and tryouts when they should be focusing on finding the right fit at the right level to give them the best chance of advancing to the highest level they can reach. 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. What is the best Tier 3 junior hockey league? What is the definition of a path or pipe line? Both leagues are a great place to end up. This league sends more players to Division 1 schools than any other league. The North American Hockey league is arguably the second best junior hockey league in North America. The NA3HL had over 80+college commitmentsin 2022, with almost 70% of those being NCAA commitments. To be fair, the top leagues in Canadien Junior A, those most comparable to the USHL / NAHL, are the BCHL and AJHL. Like the NCDC, the USPHL Premier and Elite are not sanctioned by USA Hockey, but they are considered reputable leagues that are well run and have solid track records. Those are the 4 top Junior Leagues in North America, without question. The EHL positions itself as a D3 developmental league and doesnt pretend to be anything else. Because of the location of the majority of NA3HL teams, it sends more players to the Division III NCAA programs in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois than the Northeast-based leagues. So they have more players and a higher level of play than the NA3HL. As most can agree both the USPHL and NA3HL have done plenty of great things to get themselves to the top of the tier 3 spectrum. Both leagues hold drafts to fill their rosters and also have a designated number of tender agreements that they can use to sign players. 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. The USPHL, is the benchmark in North America by which all other Tier III leagues should be measured. On paper, the CHL produces more immediate, NHL ready talent. Even most prep school players are spending time at the junior level before college these days, and what about those super-young Division I commits you read about? USPHL Premier and EHL are higher Tier 3 leagues than the NA3 if you compare the leagues. In this article, were going to do our best effort to clearly explain the levels of junior hockey, as well as the various junior hockey leagues throughout the USA and Canada. In cases where multiple leagues make up a greater league, strength of schedule and games versus teams in matching leagues is a major factor in ranking Junior Hockey Teams. Unlike Canada, The United States uses Tiers to discern competition level in its Junior Hockey system. So they have more players and a higher level of play than the NA3HL. As a league, we continually have discussions on ways to improve, and I think we have a lot of great hockey people in these meetings, which will help the league moving forward.. The NA3 isn't great, kind of a money grab league with the false promises of NAHL opportunities (which are few and far between unless your team or coach has direct connections to the NA). 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. As youre reading this, keep in mind, there are many different levels of Junior Hockey in North America. Goalies do not count toward this limit. The good news is that the USPHL Premier teams in other areas of the country are moving more and more kids on to NCAA hockey programs each year and do a great job of pushing kids to higher-level junior programs or other USPHL organizations that do get kids college opportunities. 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 (Eastern Hockey League) is a tier 3 junior hockey league that has a ton of history. As a rule of thumb, the advancement of players to leagues above their level of play is always a good thing. Turf shoes will be the preferred gear for this kind of field.