Players to watch are the ones with NCAA commitments.
USHL is always a good watch although some teams broadcasts are better than others. Omaha Lancers and Cedar Rapids are always a great watch. The Lincoln Stars seems improved and they now have a HD feed. The HD feeds are new this year on FastHockey, btw. Once the USHL gets past their showcase schedule we'll see what other teams have gone the HD route beside Lincoln and Dubuque.
A team I've been watching the past couple of seasons is the AJHL's Brooks Bandits. They have an HD feed this season which truly shows off the beauty of their arena and jerseys. The accompanying audio is the radio feed, which is the norm for the USHL, NAHL, BCHL, and AJHL. The guy doing the Brooks play-by-play calls a great game. Brooks has a fairly strong team this season as well. Currently, they have 8 NCAA commits. One of those is defenseman Cale Makar, who I would say is a good player for you to follow this season. The Fort McMurray Oil Barons have a decent broadcast as well, but they may be having a down year this season.
On any given Friday or Saturday night, the NAHL and BCHL will have great games available as well. For the NAHL, good team broadcasts: Bismark, Minot, Lone Star, and Austin. For the BCHL: Wenatchee, Penticton, and Langley.
USPHL Premier is great and you can find some good action in the Elite division as well. New Jersey Hitmen has the best broadcast presentation in those circuits.
The NOJHL and MHL (the Maritimes one, not the Manitoba one) are always entertaining as well. The MHL isn't the greatest of hockey, but the atmosphere in the arena comes off well in their broadcasts.
The club hockey (ACHA) games are a mixed bag in regards to broadcasts but the games are competitive. BCIHL (Canadian intercollegiate) games are normally good broadcasts as they are mostly in BCHL arenas. I believe the NCAA will have more games on FASTHockey, eventually. The women's NCAA broadcasts were excellent last season.
As you can see, I'm a big connoisseur of FASTHockey. There is something about the game closer to the grass roots level that the pro level seems to lack: the passion and the breakdown of structure when kids make mistakes.
I watch major junior as well and it's the same deal (for most teams). I dig the NHL but it's kind of boring on most nights.
