The NCAA and CHL have operated as two completely separate entities for many years now. But a rumour is swirling that the NCAA and CHL may be in discussion about a potential merger to allow CHL players to go play NCAA hockey after they age out of the league.
Currently, the rules are very simple. As soon as you play a single game for a CHL team you are unable to go play in the NCAA. With the rise of the NCAA and USA hockey in the past ten years, many more Canadians have been opting out of the CHL at sixteen years old and are playing major junior instead (junior A, junior B, etc) allowing them to go play in the NCAA.
So after decades of operating separately, why merge now?
Well, the recent NIL rule that has been reached, which allows players in the NCAA to make money off their name, image, and likeness can be a big recruiting aspect for all schools across the USA now. Instead of starting to play in the CHL at 16 years old, why wait a couple of years, go play in the States and make money off of your NIL?
The CHL may see this as a threat to their talent pool and thus they would like to work out a deal with the NCAA.
For the NCAA, a merger would benefit them because they would be able to recruit players after they have played a few seasons in the CHL. It would expand their recruitment pool and lead to high competition.
But in the case a merger does occur U Sports would get the short end of the stick. Currently, USports is where many former CHL players come to play if they do not have any intriguing pro offers. They come to further their education and playing abilities in hopes of going pro after or moving into the workforce. If the NCAA were able to recruit CHL players as well, it would diminish the level of hockey in U Sports.
U Sports would most likely lose many of their players to the NCAA because they have better programs than Canadian universities. This would be detrimental to U Sports as programs across Canada have started to produce professional talent with many players each year moving on to play in the ECHL (East Coast Hockey League).
If the NCAA and CHL were to merge and form an agreement that would allow players to play in both leagues, it would likely set back U-Sports in terms of the level of competition and individual talent.
