Why College Hockey?

The Incredible Journey

For more than 100 years, college hockey has been a development ground for outstanding hockey players and people. Today college hockey players make a bigger impact in the NHL and on the international stage than ever before. More than 30% of the NHL comes from the U.S. college ranks and NCAA stars are front and center during the Olympics and World Championships.

NCAA Division I men’s hockey is made up 64 member schools across six conferences: AHA, Big Ten, the CCHA, ECAC Hockey, Hockey East and the NCHC. The member teams range as far west as Alaska and as far south as Arizona.

NCAA Division I women’s hockey features 44 programs across five conferences: AHA, ECAC Hockey, Hockey East, NEWHA and the WCHA.

There are a number of reasons to consider the college hockey path:

NHL Opportunities: From Cale Makar to Connor Hellebuyck to Quinn Hughes, college hockey consistently produces NHL stars and its presence in the league continues to grow.
Player Development: With its style of play, emphasis on practice and opportunity for strength and conditioning, college hockey provides an unparalleled environment for player development.
Education: Some of the finest institutions in the world offer college hockey, providing young players exposure to elite educational programs while pursuing their hockey careers. Division I women’s hockey players boast a 98-percent graduation rate – tied for the best among women’s sports — while men’s hockey players have a 92-percent graduation rate, among the best of all Division I men’s sports.
Student Life: The off-ice experience of life on campus, surrounded by fellow students in a supportive environment, is unmatched and often considered the best time of a person’s life.
Special Events: Holiday tournaments, conference championships, outdoor games, the Beanpot and the NCAA Frozen Four provide college hockey players the opportunity to play in intense, high-profile special events.
History: With traditions unique to each school and a history that traces back to the 1800s, today’s college hockey players carry on a proud legacy.

College Hockey, Inc. believes there is no better place to build your skills than college hockey. That said we know young hockey players face difficult choices, and we hope this site helps answer questions you may have about such subjects as:

Recruiting: The college recruiting process can be exciting, nerve-wracking and – sometimes – confusing. We provide some background.
NCAA Eligibility: To play college hockey it’s important to succeed both athletically and academically. Find out what it takes to maintain your academic eligibility.
FAQ: We offer answers to many other common questions about recruiting, major junior, advisors and more.

Every Friday and Saturday night during the college hockey season, teams play in college arenas full of hyped-up fellow students, friends, family members and fans. Thousands of fans sing their school fight song after every goal. School spirit creates an atmosphere not experienced anywhere else in the world.

Those are memories college hockey players carry into their NHL careers, international competitions, and beyond. And all terrific reasons to play college hockey.