2023-24 Junior Hockey Expansion, Relocation, and Retraction

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I'm always prone to a chuckle - often with an eye roll - when I read the USPHL opinion of its premier U.S. presence: "The USPHL Premier of 2023-24 is a 61-team league with a completely national footprint in the United States, ranging from Maine to Miami, and Seattle to San Diego." ...

USPHLPremierMap2324-2-1024x637.png
 
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I'm always prone to a chuckle - often with an eye roll - when I read the USPHL opinion of its premier U.S. presence: "The USPHL Premier of 2023-24 is a 61-team league with a completely national footprint in the United States, ranging from Maine to Miami, and Seattle to San Diego." ...

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I bet the Cincinnati Cyclones sure appreciate their old logo being used TWICE.
 
I bet the Cincinnati Cyclones sure appreciate their old logo being used TWICE.
Assuming the ECHL 'Clones (or the League?) still own the logo rights, it wouldn't be worth the legal costs to challenge.
I can’t speak to the Northern Cyclones… but the Cincinnati Jr. Cyclones are sponsored by the ECHL franchise and the owner Ray Harris is part of their leadership group.
 
I’m going to say we can classify Watertown, SD to the NAHL as confirmed. This Twitter page has come online recently, followed by the NAHL, and a few teams and people related to the league and its teams

Still no clear indication of who owns & who is turning the gears for the NAHL Watertown Lakers. But the "soft opening" of the new Prairie Lakes Ice Arena was last night, and videos of the interior spaces reveal a very attractive facilility.
 
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I can’t speak to the Northern Cyclones… but the Cincinnati Jr. Cyclones are sponsored by the ECHL franchise and the owner Ray Harris is part of their leadership group.
I believe @GindyDraws reference to "their old logo" was referring to the Northern Cyclones & the Palm Beach Typhoon.
 
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I’m going to say we can classify Watertown, SD to the NAHL as confirmed. This Twitter page has come online recently, followed by the NAHL, and a few teams and people related to the league and its teams

This twitter page was taken down. Not sure if that is a bad omen or they are just getting ready to officially launch the team.
 
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This twitter page was taken down. Not sure if that is a bad omen or they are just getting ready to officially launch the team.
Interesting catch. They were tweeting generally about NAHL commitments and things like that. I would say likely they are preparing for a more official launch given the amount of leaks about a team coming there and the new arena opening recently.

But crazier things can happen in junior hockey than the rug being pulled on a team before it even exists
 
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Expansion, yes. 33 teams, yes, as long as no existing teams close up shop this summer.

Shamrocks' F/B page ... https://m.facebook.com/watertownshamrocks
Ah, thanks.

I'm all for more juniors options for kids, but is that big of a league sustainable, being a big step down from the USHL? There are only so many scholarships on 64 NCAA teams, and a large portion of those go to the USHL, Canadian and European kids.

If it's working for the NAHL great, but with travel, ice time, etc., being so expensive, 33 teams in that league seems like a lot.
 
... I'm all for more juniors options for kids, but is that big of a league sustainable, being a big step down from the USHL? There are only so many scholarships on 64 NCAA teams, and a large portion of those go to the USHL, Canadian and European kids.

If it's working for the NAHL great, but with travel, ice time, etc., being so expensive, 33 teams in that league seems like a lot.
As with all pay-to-play junior hockey business models, it's sustainable for however long parents/benefactors are willing to shell out the money for a chance to grab the brass ring of a college commitment opportunity. 🎠 And as long as there are 33 ownership groups willing to lose annual money to keep the merry-go-round running (their motivations ranging from civic development to corporate-based tax strategies to unrealized hockey dreams of their own), the NAHL carnival sites will remain open for business. Coming to a town near you ... 🎢
 
Ah, thanks.

I'm all for more juniors options for kids, but is that big of a league sustainable, being a big step down from the USHL? There are only so many scholarships on 64 NCAA teams, and a large portion of those go to the USHL, Canadian and European kids.

If it's working for the NAHL great, but with travel, ice time, etc., being so expensive, 33 teams in that league seems like a lot.

Sustainable financially? Hit or miss.

Most NAHL franchises aim to break even, anything more is gravy. They maximize their two main revenue sources, ticket sales and sponsorships. There are a bunch of exceptions out of the NAHL East Division where the NAHL team draws flies due to the plethora of other hockey and entertainment options. However those teams are used as the proverbial carrot for a number of other teams under their organizational umbrella. If you can operate a NA3HL team as well as half season and full season teams at the U14, U15, U16, and U18 levels by having the NAHL as the (unachievable) end goal, you have nine teams worth of revenue which more than offsets the costs of the NAHL team.

Sustainable for attracting kids? Definitely yes. Kids want to play free to play hockey and they want to advance to college hockey. Kids go in knowing they might not go NCAA DI. A lot of them are happy to play higher end NCAA DIII, which is a fantastic option and the top 10-15 would give the bottom 10-15 NCAA DI teams a good game. Will they be an option over the USHL? Zero chance. But they are well set up to get the best of what remains, which as of right now is around 200 NCAA DI commitments and about 10 NCAA DIII commitments, which will exponentially increase after the season ends.
 
Ah, thanks.

I'm all for more juniors options for kids, but is that big of a league sustainable, being a big step down from the USHL? There are only so many scholarships on 64 NCAA teams, and a large portion of those go to the USHL, Canadian and European kids.

If it's working for the NAHL great, but with travel, ice time, etc., being so expensive, 33 teams in that league seems like a lot.
You have to realize that it's not like every team is going to ever play against one another except in the Robertson Cup. The idea is to build regions of teams to minimize travel costs, particularly in the case of the Alaskan and Southwest teams. And this also makes it so it allows players feel more comfortable with playing for a team so they don't have to worry about homesickness.
 
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