| Revision as of 19:19, 19 November 2009 editFJM (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users2,152 edits →Stanley Cup← Previous edit |
Latest revision as of 04:47, 3 May 2024 edit undoKoavf (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users2,174,994 edits ←Changed redirect target from Ice hockey in the United States to Ice hockey in the United States#Ice hockey structureTag: Redirect target changed |
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The '''United States ice hockey structure''' is arguably the most complicated sporting structure in the world. It includes elements from traditional American scholastic ] and ] athletics, affiliated and independent ]s, academy teams of professional senior teams, and the unique "]" leagues. |
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{{rcat shell|{{r with history}} |
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{{r to section}}}} |
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== Minor Hockey == |
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{{main|Minor ice hockey}} |
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Minor hockey in the United States is played below the junior age level (16 years old). Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from class to class. Unlike most American sports, athletes participate as part of clubs as opposed to schools. |
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== Junior and Major Junior Hockey == |
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{{main|Junior ice hockey}} |
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Junior hockey is played by athletes between 16 and 20 years old. The leagues are normally organized on a franchise system, and can play many more games than are normally played at the ] or ] level. ] hockey is organized into three leagues run by the ] with most teams in Canada, but with teams in the states of ], ], ], ] and ]. Two "Junior A" leagues based in the United States, ] and ], are run in a similar fashion to the Major Junior teams except that the teams keep ] eligibility for their players. The majority of current ] players played Major Junior hockey. |
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== High School Hockey == |
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]s in some states compete in sanctioned ice hockey leagues, with the ] league most often cited as competition with Junior hockey. There are also leagues in ], ], ], ], ] (with teams in ]), and ]. These competitions are usually outside of the ], with Minnesota and New Jersey being notable exceptions. Other states are sanctioned directly by ]. Also, unlike most sports in ], some high school ice hockey organizations ] based on athletic performance. |
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== College Hockey == |
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{{main|College ice hockey}} |
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Ice hockey's role within the United States ] system is closest to ] in that most ] hockey players play ] hockey, and so aren't eligible for NCAA play. The ] currently has two divisions for ice hockey, Division I and Division III. There are multiple leagues, all of which sponsor only ice hockey. None of the traditional multi-sport conferences sponsor ice hockey, with only the ] coming close, with 6 of the 8 schools sponsoring a Division I ice hockey program. The separate ] was formed in 1991 in order to support uniform standards for college and university non-varsity club teams. |
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== Minor League Professional Hockey == |
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{{main|Minor league hockey#Minor professional}} |
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There have been professional ice hockey leagues of varying levels since the invention of the sport, and over time the leagues have settled into an informal hierarchy. Today, the 29 teams of the ] have affiliation agreements with ] teams, so it is considered to be the highest-level minor league. Most of the 20 teams of the ] have affiliation agreements with NHL and AHL teams, and some of the ] and ] are affiliated. Players are often sent from an NHL team to an AHL team, but teams are not normally ]. |
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== National Hockey League == |
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{{main|NHL}} |
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The ] is widely considered to be the premier professional ice hockey league in the world, and one of the North American major professional sports leagues. The ], the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. |
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] |
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