USHL teams to join OHL?

[jtechkid]

thats my argument do you really think local CHL teams with local fan base will have 6-8 USA players on their team taking spots from Canada kids . I dont see it - they want to grab top 40-60 USA players and thats it .

 

[Bjorn Le]

Muskegon and Youngstown technically work given that they're not much farther than Erie/Soo/Flint/Saginaw but would probably need a total OHL realignment to be a success (and maybe some new teams in Ontario to balance out).

Chicago and Green Bay be very difficult to make work without flights and a lot of missed school for the 16/17 year olds on Chicago/Green Bay.

 

[Kingpin794]

thats my argument do you really think local CHL teams with local fan base will have 6-8 USA players on their team taking spots from Canada kids . I dont see it - they want to grab top 40-60 USA players and thats it .

And that’s also going to vary from team to team. High end teams (London, Halifax, etc) will get more and the American team should have no problem get more Americans. But your Sudbury’s or Prince George might not land more than usual.

 

[jtechkid]

Muskegon and Youngstown technically work given that they're not much farther than Erie/Soo/Flint/Saginaw but would probably need a total OHL realignment to be a success (and maybe some new teams in Ontario to balance out).

Chicago and Green Bay be very difficult to make work without flights and a lot of missed school for the 16/17 year olds on Chicago/Green Bay.

Why would the CHL dilute their product right at the beginning of the process- ridiculous dumb decision and its not happening . Im sure couple USHL teams have called why woudnt they ? zero chance happening . Steel Owner sold at a great time and ushl team prices are falling fast .Poor Blackhawks cant catch a break lol. You could make a really low ball bid for Ushl 30-40 cent of previous value in hoping ushl gets a drop off but not as dramatic as feared.

 

[Bjorn Le]

Why would the CHL dilute their product right at the beginning of the process- ridiculous dumb decision and its not happening . Im sure couple USHL teams have called why woudnt they ? zero chance happening .

It depends. If the CHL grants waivers for USHL players to stay on their teams regardless of who drafted them in the CHL or what territory they are assigned to, it doesn't really dilute the product. Muskegon and Youngstown won't be contenders but coming with their own players won't affect the product. If they need to do an expansion draft it's not going to happen but an expansion draft is not going to happen anyways; no way would the elite OHL teams agree to it.

 

[Boonk]

In a place like Chicago metro, there are options though. The NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates for instance is where a G-League Basketball team plays and is only 30 minutes north of where they play now.

If the OHL demographics were to mirror NHL demographics because all the Americans in the region want to play in the OHL instead of the USNTDP or USHL, about 200 Canadian kids are getting cut from the OHL, and they'll need a place to play. It's likely the USHL exists in some capacity regardless of who slots where.

That would make the most sense then, its more than adequate size and location for OHL hockey and they'd still be able to use Fox Valley as their main practice facility