How many of you actually saw London play last year? How many of you saw Denver play? Zine is right, that London team was one of the best ever but he is wrong in thinking that they would not have won a NCAA championship because of the age factor. Trust me, they would have been the favorite in the NCAA tourney as well.
Too much is made of the age factor. We are not talking about 28 year old pros here. The
FACT of the matter is that the majority of the better talent in the NCAA leaves school before their senior year. This leaves the less talented and smaller older NCAA player.
I have talked to players who played in both leagues. Not one ever said to me that the college game was more physical or tougher.
Look at what AJ Thelen had to say during an interview with H.F.
For Thelen, the league (sic the dub) is more unforgiving in two ways.
“I’d have to say it’s more physical,†he admitted. “It’s a quicker game and you have to make quicker decisions. It’s so much more NHL-like."
That is a pretty matter of fact statement, one made by many who played in both leagues.
Mueller also made the same comments one time and remember, Mueller did play more than a dozen games against NCAA teams during his stint with the NTDP.
As for those who say the NCAA is the safer option because of education, think again. There are now well over three hundred former CHL players playing University hockey and dozens more playing in the community college ranks. More CHL players who were not high round NHL draft picks are opting to use their education money from the CHL (varies from league to league - the dub is standard one year full tuition, books and fees for every year played - OHL gives more generous packages to higher round picks and the Q league gives a set amount to each player but then each team in the Q adds more money on top of that) to play CIS hockey rather than in the lower minor leagues.
There was a very interesting article about the dramatic change the education scholarships given by the CHL has had on the CIS. Here is a link to the story
http://www.universitysport.ca/e/m_icehockey/story_detail.cfm?id=6618
Interesting that both Alberta and Sasketewan are calling the NCAA out and boldly stating that they are as good as any of the top teams in the NCAA.
I talked recently with a member of the LSSU Lakers staff about their trip to Thunder Bay. He said Calgary was the strongest most physical and one of the most talented teams they played against this year. He said that were they in the CCHA and were they allowed to play their style of game (much more physical brand than the one currently being played in the NCAA), they would no doubt be the top team in the CCHA. He also made the comment that a small finese team like Michigan would have crapped their collective drawers playing any of the three teams the Lakers played in that tourney due to the physical nature of the games.
BTW, before any of you begin harping about the CHL/CIS being nothing but clutching, grabbing and goon hockey, this member of LSSU also stated he wished the game was played that way in the NCAA as it made for much less stopping and was very entertaining.