Grey,Maine: What is the major difference between major junior hockey and NCAA and could the new major junior team here in Lewiston beat UMAINE if they were ever allowed to play ?
Kyle Woodlief: The major difference is that the NCAA is run by a bunch of antiquated dinosaurs and fossils whose main interest is in short-sighted and narrow-minded protectionism of their own little fief-doms.
Major Junior hockey is faster and more physical, and there's a lot more depth in quality, skilled players.
The other problem in scouting college hockey is that nowadays, most U.S. kids don't enter college until they are 20 or 21 years old and have played a couple of years in junior leagues in the U.S. (usually at the request of the college coaches who are recruiting them). Therefore, most college kids are no longer eligible for the draft. True freshmen such as Vanek, Parise, Jessiman, Stuart, Kessler, and Eaves are the exceptions today, rather than the rule. It's much more common to watch 24 and 25-year-old seniors than it is to watch an 18 year-old freshman.