In a past life, when I was a full-time sportswriter going to games and not just spewing nonsense into a Google Doc from my couch, I once had a moral quandary that I still think about to this day. During my tenure covering the Everett Silvertips and the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the Daily Herald in Everett, there was a time when, due to injuries, a local goalie prospect was asked to fill in for the Silvertips for a game on an emergency basis. 

The player’s name wasn’t made public. As a journalist, that immediately caused alarm bells to go off in my head, but when I asked then Silvertips general manager Garry Davidson why that was the case, he said it was because that kid might want to retain his NCAA eligibility. Even suiting up in a WHL game could jeopardize it. 

That rationale made perfect sense, and in the interest of not torpedoing a player’s career, I decided not to disclose his name.

But I was conflicted, and I know I wasn’t the only WHL writer in that situation. Rumblings about this topic could one day eliminate awkward conundrums like this one.

On the 32 Thoughts Podcast on Feb. 5, Sportsnet’s Eliotte Friedman said the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) and NCAA are contemplating an agreement to allow CHL players to play in the NCAA.

“I think we are getting there, I really do,” Friedman said. 

NCAA players could always pivot to the CHL – Exhibit A: Kiefer Bellows, who left Boston University after one season and joined the Portland Winterhawks for the 2017-18 season. Exhibit B: Kraken prospect Tyson Jugnauth left the Wisconsin Badgers earlier this season and also joined the Winterhawks. It doesn’t happen often, but that’s an option for players.

Due to NCAA amateurism rules, though, CHL players can’t do the reverse (outside of a few random, mysterious exceptions that seemingly slipped through the cracks, like Austin Swankler). Once players sign a contract with a CHL team, their NCAA eligibility is gone because they receive per diems and play against players who have signed professional contracts. 

The agreement between the CHL and NCAA is far from a done deal, and it may be an uphill battle to get this over the line. According to a tweet from Jimmy Connelly of USCHO.com, NCAA coaches have little support for letting CHL players play college hockey. 

According to a source familiar with the discussions, the potential @NCAA legislation that would allow @CHLHockey players to play @collegehockey after playing Major Juniors does not have strong support among NCAA D1 coaches and athletic directors. Likely a dead issue. @USCHO

— Jimmy Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) February 13, 2024

However, with name, image, and likeness (NIL) rules offering monetary options, most notably with college football and college basketball, it’s hard to see this issue dying immediately. 

Here’s what something like this would mean for the hockey world if an agreement was enacted. 

Who benefits more: NCAA or CHL? 

There are multiple trains of thought on this subject. 

The consensus seems that this wouldn’t be good for NCAA programs because they are already getting the top American players, and the level of play is already high. 

In other words, they don’t need the CHL’s player pool, and it might make recruiting more complicated than it is now. Although there are exceptions to this rule, generally, the top Americans play college hockey, and the top Canadians play in the CHL (I wrote a story for the Herald years back about how complex recruiting American players is for WHL teams like the Silvertips, and it’s one I’m really proud of!).

Now, you would think that NCAA programs would love a second chance at landing top American players like former Everett Silvertips goalie and California native Dustin Wolf, because, under the current rules, once he plays in a CHL game, he’s ineligible to play in an NCAA game.

However, the upside of stealing a CHL player once they can enroll in college doesn’t outweigh the risk of top Americans eventually staying in the CHL. 

Maybe it’s paranoia, but perhaps there’s some truth to it. Good friend of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast Chris Peters mentioned on his podcast, Talking Hockey Sense, that a benefit to drafting CHL prospects is that NHL teams can sign them and keep them in junior hockey. NCAA athletes can’t sign professional contracts and maintain eligibility. Peters cited Shane Wright as an example, as Seattle signed him and gave him a chance to make the NHL roster before eventually sending him back to junior hockey. 

For CHL teams, this is less complicated. 

Yes, losing a top player to college hockey as soon as they’re drafted would sting – could you imagine Mathew Barzal leaving the Seattle Thunderbirds for the University of Denver right after being drafted by the Islanders? But getting players like Macklin Celebrini to play their 16- and 17-year-old seasons for the Thunderbirds – Seattle drafted him in the 2021 U.S. WHL prospects draft – before heading to college at 18 would likely outweigh those downsides for CHL teams.

Could this help NCAA hockey expand to the West Coast? 

Perhaps. With the player pool expanding, thus creating more pathways to compose competitive rosters, it could create a push for some schools to make the leap and add men’s hockey. 

However, as Darren Brown reported on Sound Of Hockey in his story wondering if the University of Washington could add men’s hockey, the logistics are extremely difficult and unrealistic for many universities. 

What happens to other junior leagues like the BCHL? 

Unfortunately, the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) and other junior leagues like the United States Hockey League (USHL) will be collateral damage if this agreement is ever implemented. 

Since the BCHL and USHL don’t allow players with professional contracts, several college-bound players gravitate toward these leagues as stepping stones from youth hockey to college hockey. Currently, players typically have a two-to-three-year window from when they are 16-to-18 years old to play in these leagues. 

Without current restrictions in place, the talent of these leagues will dip quite a bit, as the CHL is viewed as a more advanced and prestigious league. 

The agreement would also hurt teams in “U Sports,” Canada’s collegiate athletics governing body, whose teams typically receive the CHL players who either aren’t good enough for professional hockey or aren’t interested in it. With any agreement, CHL players have more options post-playing career. 

Who would this agreement benefit the most? 

Such an agreement would benefit the players, and that’s what makes this nearly a no-brainer in my mind. 

Overall, I am intrigued by the potential benefits for players, who would no longer need to decide and commit to a path by the time they are 16. They can keep their options open while putting themselves in the best position possible.

You’ve seen a “player empowerment” movement in college sports, allowing athletes to earn what they’re worth through NIL deals and more freedom on where to play with the “transfer portal.” These new standards have created some consternation, though, particularly for head coaches in college football and basketball having to navigate a new reality.

NCAA coaches won’t like this. BCHL and USHL programs will take a significant hit. Some CHL franchises will hate seeing their players plucked by NCAA teams. “U Sports” won’t have the same CHL pipeline it’s used to seeing. 

But ultimately, player development wins from all of this. That’s all that should matter. 

Header photo by Brian Liesse. Photo courtesy of the Seattle Thunderbirds.