Usphl?

[iamthatguy]

Any idea what's going on with the USPHL?

This is what I've heard. 6-8 teams will be labeled premier, which they are "trying" to parallel the caliber of the ushl, which will be a high level of Jr A, probably better than the EJ. Then 18 teams, including some past EJ teams and some new teams like the Flyers and Suffolk PAL as well as some EJ south programs with be labeled ELITE which is basically replacing the EJ, also Jr A? Then there are 18u and 16u tier 1 programs under those. Is this info correct? Anyone have any other info? Will some teams like the hitmen have two jr A teams? Anyone with any info is appreciated

USPHL premier - Jr A
USPHL Elite - Jr A
18u - AAA
16u AAA
?????

Click to read more...

 

[JungleJON]

Here is an article from Junior Hockey.com which explains it a little bit.

http://thejuniorhockeynews.com/?p=14704

 

[3rd Guy High]

Check the FAQ. Those are the "Premier" teams. Everything below it is being worked out, none of that is official yet.

 

[JB51Hockey]

USPHL merges with Empire League and Eastern Elite League (EJHL + EJHL-S). USPHL will now have USPHL Premier Division, USPHL Elite Division, USPHL Empire Division, USPHL U18 Division and USPHL U16 Division.

 

[3rd Guy High]

USPHL merges with Empire League and Eastern Elite League (EJHL + EJHL-S). USPHL will now have USPHL Premier Division, USPHL Elite Division, USPHL Empire Division, USPHL U18 Division and USPHL U16 Division.

The Eastern Elite league is the EJ South. The Empire is the EmJHL.

The leftover EJHL teams and AJHL have merged to form the EHL.

As of right now, things look like this:

USPHL Premier
USPHL U18
USPHL Elite/Empire
USPHL U16

And then another group of junior leagues:

EHL
MJHL

Overall, I see it like this:

USPHL Premier
EHL

USPHL U18
MJHL/USPHL Elite/Empire (MJHL with a very slight edge)
USPHL U16

 

[IceHot22]

USPHL levels

The list 5 levels for the USPHL. Elite and Empire are separate.

Premier
Elite
Empire
U18
U16

So how do these compare to USHL NAHL NA3HL etc

 

[JB51Hockey]

The list 5 levels for the USPHL. Elite and Empire are separate.

Premier
Elite
Empire
U18
U16

So how do these compare to USHL NAHL NA3HL etc

Just an educated guess but I'd say..

1 - USHL
1.5 - NAHL
1.7 - Premier
2.3 - NA3HL
2.5 - Elite
2.5 - EHL
3 - Met
3 - U18
3.5 - Empire
5 - U16

 

[IceHot22]

Canadian leagues? Will he play in Canada?

I appreciate your opinion !
Could you put the Canadian leagues in there too?
OHL over USHL I would guess but then what about
the OJHL GOJHL etc. compared to the US leagues that
you ranked??

Also, I have been warned not to send my son to Canada
to play because he won't be treated fairly as far as ice
time goes. Doesn't seem right to me...if they aren't going
to play him why would they give him a spot on the roster?
Why not just fill it with a Canadian player?? Any truth to
this in your our anyone else's opinion??

 

[JB51Hockey]

Not something I'm familiar with. I don't think that's true but it could be. OJHL and other Junior A Canadian leagues would be in the middle of USHL/NAHL. The better leagues (BCHL, OJHL) would be as good as USHL and some bad major jr teams. The lesser Junior A leagues are in the middle of USHL/NAHL or on par with NAHL

 

[3rd Guy High]

Just an educated guess but I'd say..

1 - USHL
1.5 - NAHL
1.7 - Premier
2.3 - NA3HL
2.5 - Elite
2.5 - EHL
3 - Met
3 - U18
3.5 - Empire
5 - U16

Few things. I would stick the EHL up with the NA3, and drop the "Elite" to below U18 talent wise. Obviously Elite would be an older league, but there will be more movement from U18 to Premier than from Elite to Premier.

U18 will also be MUCH better than the Met. U18 was stronger than the Met/Empire last season, nevermind this upcoming season where younger players are flocking to the U18 level to put themselves in a position to move up to a Premier team.

 

[JB51Hockey]

Few things. I would stick the EHL up with the NA3, and drop the "Elite" to below U18 talent wise. Obviously Elite would be an older league, but there will be more movement from U18 to Premier than from Elite to Premier.

U18 will also be MUCH better than the Met. U18 was stronger than the Met/Empire last season, nevermind this upcoming season where younger players are flocking to the U18 level to put themselves in a position to move up to a Premier team.

There's obviously never going to be a clear list but I can agree with you on EHL up to NA3. I'm only giving Met and Elite the edge because of Elite and Met having older players. Time will tell.

 

[3rd Guy High]

There's obviously never going to be a clear list but I can agree with you on EHL up to NA3. I'm only giving Met and Elite the edge because of Elite and Met having older players. Time will tell.

Met was a junior B league and was weaker than most U18 teams last year even taking age into account. Juniors are going to be watered down even more this year with the addition of the Premier level, so I can see that taking a substantial hit.

Elite is essentially the same as Empire. It was the EJ South last year, which was notorious for losing games 10-0 and worse against EJ teams. Personally, I think it should have been matched up against Empire teams vs EJ teams, but I'm sure part of the branding agreement was that they would get to play EJ teams.

There might be a few teams added in that didnt make the jump to either the EHL or Premier and are stuck in the Elite or Empire, but most of their better players will most likely be moving to the EHL or Premier league if they can.

 

[iamthatguy]

I'm going to have to disagree with your rankings and agree more with jeben23's rankings. The elite division has the springfield pics ej team along with rocherster's ej team in that division as well as Syracuse's new Jr A team and the south teams, they didn't go into the ehl. The pics had multiple d1 commits and a handful of d3's. That alone is helping the elite. The EHL will probably be even with the elite. There is no way the met and emp are going to compare to the elite. Teams like Atlanta and East coast I heard are going to have very solid teams this year. Regardless all the responses were great thanks. Since the new statement from the USPHL has come out, there is more direction that before. I think the 18u league will be good but there are also going to be some weak players. Elite same thing but the south teams actually didn't fare as bad as you'd think playing against ej teams. Sure there were some blowouts but also some close games and wins. Ej south teams also had a handful of wins against AJ teams.

1. USHL
2. NAHL/USPHL Premier - edge to NAHL
3. USPHL Elite/EHL - maybe a slight edge to EHL
4. NA3HL
5. USPHL 18u
6. Met
7. Empire
8. USPHL 16u

 

[iamthatguy]

I appreciate your opinion !
Could you put the Canadian leagues in there too?
OHL over USHL I would guess but then what about
the OJHL GOJHL etc. compared to the US leagues that
you ranked??

Also, I have been warned not to send my son to Canada
to play because he won't be treated fairly as far as ice
time goes. Doesn't seem right to me...if they aren't going
to play him why would they give him a spot on the roster?
Why not just fill it with a Canadian player?? Any truth to
this in your our anyone else's opinion??

OJHL, CCHL, BCHL, AJHL are top leagues in Canada. BC and AJ probably best talent wise. CC and OJ are both very strong as well and probably is on par with NAHL.

As for what you've been told about sending your son to Canada, I've heard stories of both honestly. If your son is good, the team will sign him. They are a business, and as such they want to put the best players out there to win games. There are some ***holes out there who may do that every once in a while but its very slim. Most Canadian teams have US players and play them. What may happen is that they'll sign a player from the US and say if that kid isn't playing well, they will trade him or release him but I've never heard a coach deliberately not playing a US player. Hope that helps. If its a good situation for your son in Canada i'd say Go for it!

 

[3rd Guy High]

I'm going to have to disagree with your rankings and agree more with jeben23's rankings. The elite division has the springfield pics ej team along with rocherster's ej team in that division as well as Syracuse's new Jr A team and the south teams, they didn't go into the ehl. The pics had multiple d1 commits and a handful of d3's. That alone is helping the elite. The EHL will probably be even with the elite. There is no way the met and emp are going to compare to the elite. Teams like Atlanta and East coast I heard are going to have very solid teams this year. Regardless all the responses were great thanks. Since the new statement from the USPHL has come out, there is more direction that before. I think the 18u league will be good but there are also going to be some weak players. Elite same thing but the south teams actually didn't fare as bad as you'd think playing against ej teams. Sure there were some blowouts but also some close games and wins. Ej south teams also had a handful of wins against AJ teams.

1. USHL
2. NAHL/USPHL Premier - edge to NAHL
3. USPHL Elite/EHL - maybe a slight edge to EHL
4. NA3HL
5. USPHL 18u
6. Met
7. Empire
8. USPHL 16u

I would agree this is more accurate, but I would once again drop the Elite down to #4 with the NA3. The pics may have had multiple D1 commits in the past, but anyone with a D1 commit will find themselves a team in the USHL, NAHL, Premier league, or even U18 depending on their age.

No D1 commit is going to go back to a team to play in a league that is a tier below the top tier. The main reason Springfield and Rochester agreed to play at this lower level for this year is because The Premier league is looking to expand from 9 to 12 teams next year.

I think the Elite is going to be very weak next year, but will slowly grow in strength to the point where it is much like the AJ was in recent years. Could compete with the EJ, but didn't really draw the scouts and as much attention as the EJ. The EHL would be the EJ of this relationship, although obviously a tier lower because of the Premier which will be drawing most scouts.

The elite league is really the wild card in all of this. If I were a player without a contract right now, I would not want to commit to a Elite team for next year.

 

[iamthatguy]

I would agree this is more accurate, but I would once again drop the Elite down to #4 with the NA3. The pics may have had multiple D1 commits in the past, but anyone with a D1 commit will find themselves a team in the USHL, NAHL, Premier league, or even U18 depending on their age.

No D1 commit is going to go back to a team to play in a league that is a tier below the top tier. The main reason Springfield and Rochester agreed to play at this lower level for this year is because The Premier league is looking to expand from 9 to 12 teams next year.

I think the Elite is going to be very weak next year, but will slowly grow in strength to the point where it is much like the AJ was in recent years. Could compete with the EJ, but didn't really draw the scouts and as much attention as the EJ. The EHL would be the EJ of this relationship, although obviously a tier lower because of the Premier which will be drawing most scouts.

The elite league is really the wild card in all of this. If I were a player without a contract right now, I would not want to commit to a Elite team for next year.

I do agree that the NA3 and the Elite will probably be more similar than the elite and the EHL. I guess only time will tell. This next year should be interesting. EJ was a very good league that drew a lot of scouts, pretty selfish breaking up the leagues and causing problems for all the other players still looking for teams, IMO.

 

[JB51Hockey]

I remember back in the 2013 EJ Winter Showcase I recorded how the the three A leagues (EJ, EJ-South, and AJ) did against each other. Don't have the numbers anymore but it was something in this ballpark

EJHL vs. EJHL-S: 7-1-2
EJHL vs. AJHL: 6-3-1
AJHL vs. EJHL-S: 5-5-0

If we want to go ahead and rank in terms of advancement and exposure how would we do that? I would say...

A+: USHL
A: NAHL
B+: USPHL/U18
B: EHL/USPHL Elite/NA3
B-: Met/U16
C: Empire

 

[IceHot22]

Elite - GOJHL

Thanks so much for all of your opinions !! It has been very helpful.
Any opinion on what the best USPHL Elite teams will be...the ones
you would want to be on if you were in that league. (level of play,
coaching, advancement etc) Also, how do you think the GOJHL compares
to the USPHL Elite??

 

[JB51Hockey]

Thanks so much for all of your opinions !! It has been very helpful. Any opinion on what the best USPHL Elite teams will be...the ones you would want to be on if you were in that league. (level of play, coaching, advancement etc) Also, how do you think the GOJHL compares to the USPHL Elite??

The best USPHL Elite teams will be Springfield, New Hampshire, Rochester, Islanders, Jr. Bruins, Hitmen and South Shore. Can't really say for Suffolk Jr. Islanders or Syracuse because they are new. Portland will probably be the worst northern team in the Elite after a bad season last year. All the southern teams aren't as good but I'd rank them Atlanta, Hampton Roads, Florida, East Coast, Potomac, Tampa Bay, Space Coast then Palm Beach. I would say that USPHL Elite is on par with GOJHL for this season. Last season, the EJHL was better than the GOJHL but it lost some strong teams like Apple Core and Valley to the new EHL.

 

[iamthatguy]

The best USPHL Elite teams will be Springfield, New Hampshire, Rochester, Islanders, Jr. Bruins, Hitmen and South Shore. Can't really say for Suffolk Jr. Islanders or Syracuse because they are new. Portland will probably be the worst northern team in the Elite after a bad season last year. All the southern teams aren't as good but I'd rank them Atlanta, Hampton Roads, Florida, East Coast, Potomac, Tampa Bay, Space Coast then Palm Beach. I would say that USPHL Elite is on par with GOJHL for this season. Last season, the EJHL was better than the GOJHL but it lost some strong teams like Apple Core and Valley to the new EHL.

GOJHL is a jr B league, The ej was leaps and bounds above that in terms of placements ect. Also you had the 18u at a higher level than both the elite and ehl. I am very good friends some of the coaches in the 18u new league, such as Portland, new Hampshire, and Baystate and almost all of them said they aren't going to have the strongest rosters. Young players but not a lot of high quality kids. My guess is that many of the kids are decent empire, eshl players who are moving to this as well as some local good quality tier 1 players. Like I said though, placing the 18u in front of the elite but mostly the EHL isn't too accurate no offense.

 

[3rd Guy High]

GOJHL is a jr B league, The ej was leaps and bounds above that in terms of placements ect. Also you had the 18u at a higher level than both the elite and ehl. I am very good friends some of the coaches in the 18u new league, such as Portland, new Hampshire, and Baystate and almost all of them said they aren't going to have the strongest rosters. Young players but not a lot of high quality kids. My guess is that many of the kids are decent empire, eshl players who are moving to this as well as some local good quality tier 1 players. Like I said though, placing the 18u in front of the elite but mostly the EHL isn't too accurate no offense.

No. U18 teams would have smoked Empire teams last year, and that is even with the age difference. If you're a young talented player and can't make a Premier team, you will be on the U18 team, not the elite team.

The best USPHL Elite teams will be Springfield, New Hampshire, Rochester, Islanders, Jr. Bruins, Hitmen and South Shore. Can't really say for Suffolk Jr. Islanders or Syracuse because they are new. Portland will probably be the worst northern team in the Elite after a bad season last year. All the southern teams aren't as good but I'd rank them Atlanta, Hampton Roads, Florida, East Coast, Potomac, Tampa Bay, Space Coast then Palm Beach. I would say that USPHL Elite is on par with GOJHL for this season. Last season, the EJHL was better than the GOJHL but it lost some strong teams like Apple Core and Valley to the new EHL.

Honestly, no one knows what the elite level is going to look like. Some of those teams you mentioned wont even be fielding an elite team. Some will only be doing premier and u18/u16. Elite to me screams money grab for older players that can't play at the premier level.

I remember back in the 2013 EJ Winter Showcase I recorded how the the three A leagues (EJ, EJ-South, and AJ) did against each other. Don't have the numbers anymore but it was something in this ballpark

EJHL vs. EJHL-S: 7-1-2
EJHL vs. AJHL: 6-3-1
AJHL vs. EJHL-S: 5-5-0

If we want to go ahead and rank in terms of advancement and exposure how would we do that? I would say...

A+: USHL
A: NAHL
B+: USPHL/U18
B: EHL/USPHL Elite/NA3
B-: Met/U16
C: Empire

This is a very good post. I agree. Again, I could easily see the Elite level dropping down, and Premier rising up to or above the NAHL level. You have a much better shot of going to a Northeast school if you play in the premier league vs the NAHL. The Premier is going to be stronger than the EJ was from top to bottom. Didnt the EJ commit just as many kids to D1 and D3 as the NAHL?

I do agree that the NA3 and the Elite will probably be more similar than the elite and the EHL. I guess only time will tell. This next year should be interesting. EJ was a very good league that drew a lot of scouts, pretty selfish breaking up the leagues and causing problems for all the other players still looking for teams, IMO.

Agree with the bolded. Regarding the underlined, the breaking up of the leagues was done because the Islanders (Monarchs when Tremblay was there), the Hitmen and the Bruins were on a level of their own and winning the title every year. They wanted more parity and competition to draw scouts to every game and every team, not just the top 3 or 4. That's why this was done. If you belong at that level, chances are you have found a team.

 

[JB51Hockey]

Didnt the EJ commit just as many kids to D1 and D3 as the NAHL?

I think so. And if you want to go by an average, in the EJ it's like 1 out of every 2 players goes D3 of D1 where in the NA it's probably 1 in 4. Many people are saying the NAHL is better or on par with USPHL Premier. I say not even close. The Premier division will be giving the USHL a run for it's money. Why? Because the NAHL and USHL all stack their rosters with kids from the mid-west and west. Maybe 1 kid from the east coast. It's gonna be a good league.

 

[iamthatguy]

No. U18 teams would have smoked Empire teams last year, and that is even with the age difference. If you're a young talented player and can't make a Premier team, you will be on the U18 team, not the elite team.




Agree with the bolded. Regarding the underlined, the breaking up of the leagues was done because the Islanders (Monarchs when Tremblay was there), the Hitmen and the Bruins were on a level of their own and winning the title every year. They wanted more parity and competition to draw scouts to every game and every team, not just the top 3 or 4. That's why this was done. If you belong at that level, chances are you have found a team.

At this point speculating as to which level tops which isn't necessary. Time will tell. I already have a team for next year so this isn't an issue for me. Originally just tried to get a better overall feel of the new league, but since its been solidified, we should just wait and see.

Saying that all talented players will have a premier team or a better tier team isn't always the case. There will always be talented players in every league that will obtain commitments, so lets just hope that every level can have a successful upcoming year and then rankings can be established.

 

[iamthatguy]

I think so. And if you want to go by an average, in the EJ it's like 1 out of every 2 players goes D3 of D1 where in the NA it's probably 1 in 4. Many people are saying the NAHL is better or on par with USPHL Premier. I say not even close. The Premier division will be giving the USHL a run for it's money. Why? Because the NAHL and USHL all stack their rosters with kids from the mid-west and west. Maybe 1 kid from the east coast. It's gonna be a good league.

I don't think the premier will challenge the ushl this year. It will definitely take a couple years to compare that's for sure, but I do agree that this will probably happen in the future.

 

[3rd Guy High]

I think so. And if you want to go by an average, in the EJ it's like 1 out of every 2 players goes D3 of D1 where in the NA it's probably 1 in 4. Many people are saying the NAHL is better or on par with USPHL Premier. I say not even close. The Premier division will be giving the USHL a run for it's money. Why? Because the NAHL and USHL all stack their rosters with kids from the mid-west and west. Maybe 1 kid from the east coast. It's gonna be a good league.

I agree with this post. I don't think it is going to be as strong as the USHL this year simply because it is the inaugural season and many players from the east already have gone out and found a USHL team (which is free of course), but I can see it in the not-so-distant future when kids coming up would rather stay home and play right infront of northeast schools instead of going out west to some town in the middle of no where.

I will say the Premier league will probably be stronger overall than the NAHL though.