Breakdown of leagues

[gman 0]

I know the NHL is the top dog. But there are about ten different leagues below that (in North America) and it seems like there are divisions in all of those leagues. I've seen EIHL, OHL, AHL, UHL, CHL, LNAH, CIS, SPHL, and a bunch more. I do not even know what alot of these names are. Can someone give me a rundown as to where guys start at the lowest level and how they move up league by league to eventually make it to the show? Also, who are the farm club affiliates of each team? This seems like a huge question, so a link or a series of links even would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[Jbone 0]

I think it goes like NHL-->AHL-->East Coast League, then to like WHL and OHL being equal, then like Junior A, but not like B or C becuase Midget AAA is better than them. And theres also University teams. They're high up there to. I don't know how correct that is though.

[--notorious 0]

OHL, WHL, QJMHL= Junior

AHL: Is farm teams

thats all i know

[gman 0]

Is the complete farm organization on the NHL site somewhere? I cannot find it. Or do you have to go to each team's site to see who their farm organizations are? Is the AHL the only farm league or is there a farm league for them? Who plays the junior league? Where do those kids hope to immediately go, except for the obvious-- NHL... Do the guys playing in the ECHL, UHL, and CHL hope to move up to the AHL?

EDIT: I found the affiliate section on NHL.com. Is the Elite the European league? The teams seem to have city names that I recognize from my soccer days. It seems pretty obvious, but you never know. ALso, is one of the non-AHL leagues considered superior to the others??

[indaslot 0]

Try this site for some interesting info.Does not go into AHL,Farm teams and the like,though.

http://www.playyourgame.com/nepsiha.html

[gman 0]

Awesome!! That covers alot of ground. Thank you.

[Datsyukiandeek 0]

The way I view it, which is possibly wrong:

1. NHL

2. Russian Super League/Swedish Elite League/Finnish/Czech leagues.

3. AHL

4. CHL(OHL, WHL, QMJHL)

5. US and Canadian, moreso US college leagues

6. ECHL

7. Foreign tier 2 leagues

8. USHL

9. Junior B

10. US Under 18 developmental

11. US Highschool

Probably forgot a few steps but thats my take on it.

[--notorious 0]

The way I view it, which is possibly wrong:

1. NHL

2. Russian Super League/Swedish Elite League/Finnish/Czech leagues.

3. AHL

4. CHL(OHL, WHL, QMJHL)

5. US and Canadian, moreso US college leagues

6. ECHL

7. Foreign tier 2 leagues

8. USHL

9. Junior B

10. US Under 18 developmental

11. US Highschool

Probably forgot a few steps but thats my take on it.

junior A between 4 and 5?

[Datsyukiandeek 0]

The way I view it, which is possibly wrong:

1. NHL

2. Russian Super League/Swedish Elite League/Finnish/Czech leagues.

3. AHL

4. CHL(OHL, WHL, QMJHL)

5. US and Canadian, moreso US college leagues

6. ECHL

7. Foreign tier 2 leagues

8. USHL

9. Junior B

10. US Under 18 developmental

11. US Highschool

Probably forgot a few steps but thats my take on it.

junior A between 4 and 5?

Many of the top players in junior usually make the jump straight to the NHL while others get AHL seasoning. When a "prospect" hits the ECHL thats usually a very very bad sign in their development. So I think the CHL fits in that spot.

[gman 0]

So a guy in the ECHL is essentially dead-ended? Do they make enough money in the ECHL to live on or do most of those players have "day jobs" as well.?

Also, what are the OHL, WHL (world hockey league or western hockey league?), and QMJHL?

[Datsyukiandeek 0]

So a guy in the ECHL is essentially dead-ended? Do they make enough money in the ECHL to live on or do most of those players have "day jobs" as well.?

Also, what are the OHL, WHL (world hockey league or western hockey league?), and QMJHL?

They earn a living. I know a few of the Wings top prospects, Hudler and Filpulla make something like $60,000 a year in the AHL but since since they have two way contracts they make a lot more when they're called up.

Im sure the ECHL guys make enough to live off of, probably not enough to support a family.

WHL= Wester Hockey League

OHL= Ontario Hockey League

QMJHL= Quebec Major Junior Hockey League

[w1zard 0]

QJMHL is Quebec Major Junior Hockey League i think

[JR Boucicaut 3803]

Okay, way off...no need to link juniors/college in there, as they are a different tier than pro.

NHL

AHL (all AHL teams are farm teams for NHL teams)

ECHL (some NHL farm teams)

UHL/CHL/WPHL

SPHL

The AHL guys have two-way contracts for the most part because they belong to the parent club.

I've known guys in the UHL and ECHL who got some sweet deals under the table so it is possible to make a living being a career minor-leaguer.

[gman 0]

Thanks again JR. What is the SPHL?

How do the big US colleges compare to say the AHL or ECHL? Schools like Boston, Michigan, North Dakota...

[Chadd 916]

Thanks again JR. What is the SPHL?

How do the big US colleges compare to say the AHL or ECHL? Schools like Boston, Michigan, North Dakota...

I really don't see a college team beating an AHL or ECHL team. It may happen a couple times out of a hundred but it would be very unlikely.

[hawks19 0]

Okay well JR obviously knows what hes talking about with the professional breakdown, i can attempt the junior/college breakdown.

- Major junior (CHL= WHL, OHL, QMJHL)(USHL?) These teams are made up of players 20 and under, and is one of the top "feeders" to the NHL draft. Also, as soon as a player plays in this league, they loose their "amateur" title and can no longer receive a US college scholarship, but every year you play in the CHL you get a year of Canadian University payed for.

- Tier II junior (Junior A) a level below major junior, but not necessarily having players less talented, just some players may choose this route to keep their US college scholarship eligibility. Also made up of players younger, and, though not as many, but players still get drafted to the NHL.

- As for CIS (assuming you mean the Canadian university leagues, I think it stands for Canadian Interuniversity Sports or something) it is a league that is not thought of as high as NCAA, and this is for players who want an education and are either ineligible, or cannot obtain an NCAA scholarship, or view education as more important than hockey, there are very few NHL'ers who have taken this route (only three i think currently playing NHL)

- Also a few random points, SPHL stands for Southern Professional Hockey league. And ECHL players are not dead end as there are players who will possibly still play in the NHL, and they do make a decent living, as I know one guy who plays for the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL, and has been called up to Omaha Of the AHL, and maybe his contract may be different as he might have a two way contract, but apart from what he gets paid, he has most of his living expenses paid for by the team, so its not a bad deal to play hockey. And as far as ECHL/AHL teams stacking up to NCAA teams, there really isnt much comparison. NCAA players are younger and, once done school, if skilled enough, they will make it onto a ECHL/AHL team.

I hope i may have cleared up maybe a little confusion, hopefully i didnt cause more.

[indaslot 0]

USHL is a non pro league which I believe is the only tier 1 in North America (a cut above Junior A)Players often go between prep( or instead of prep) and D1 College to mature and play more games (60-80?)yet maintain NCAA eligibility.Quebec has Junior AAA which is like Junior A (maybe closer to Junior B)In Quebec, "Junior A" is a rec league.

[Project824 0]

Okay, way off...no need to link juniors/college in there, as they are a different tier than pro.

NHL

AHL (all AHL teams are farm teams for NHL teams)

ECHL (some NHL farm teams)

UHL/CHL/WPHL

SPHL

The AHL guys have two-way contracts for the most part because they belong to the parent club.

I've known guys in the UHL and ECHL who got some sweet deals under the table so it is possible to make a living being a career minor-leaguer.

Pretty much right on - although the UHL and CHL sometimes have a more refined game compared to the ECHL due to the higher amounts of veterans. The ECHL is a true developmental league for the AHL, they only dress 3 lines and most of the league is pretty young, fresh out of junior or NCAA. Most ECHL teams have an affiliation, and the few that don't still farm players for NHL teams. The younger guys in the league are often on 2 way contracts, and can make very good money. That only lasts a few years if you don't develop and move up. If your contract is up and you haven't developed the way the team wanted, or if you're just a 3rd liner coming in without a contract, the pay ranges from $350-$1000 a week. Most guys who aren't on a two way and aren't top veterans in the ECHL make money in the $500 a week range. It's not much but all of the pro leagues in North America generally provide housing (provided you are willing to have a roommate from the team), as well as per diem for road trips. Still doesn't make $350-500 a week go very far, but you'll play for peanuts when it's the only thing you can do.

Pay in the UHL and CHL is usually a little better for the average player, and they throw a lot of cash under the table. The WPHL is now merged with the ECHL, so you have teams in California playing in the East Coast Hockey League. Once you drop to the UHL, CHL or the SPHL, it's pretty hard to work your way back up to the AHL or NHL, because it generally means you aren't property or have been dropped as property.

There are too many different leagues and levels of leagues in Europe to list, but the best few are generally the Russian Super League, the DEL (Germany), Swedish Elite, English Elite and the Swiss League. The Russian Super League pays its top players very well, as exhibited by the lockout year, and has some talents that rival NHL players. It's probably the second best league in the world. The Swedish, German and Swiss Leagues are probably a step below AHL talent as a whole, but obviously there is talent that moves up to the NHL from there. The Swiss League happens to pay very well, probably the best in Europe on average. The English Elite League is about a UHL/CHL level of talent.

As for NCAA or Major Junior being better than ECHL teams, completely untrue. The top few players in NCAA each year will land in the NHL or AHL, and almost all of them have been drafted. A slightly higher number of the top Canadian Major Jr. players will also go in the draft. The middle pack D1 and undrafted overage Major Jr. guys will get shots with ECHL, UHL or CHL teams, and the low rung 4th line type guys from college or Major Jr. will struggle to make it out of training camp. No matter what program you come from, jumping to the pros is still a step up, unless you're a top player.

As for the hierarchy of Junior A/College, I'd put it something like this:

Major Junior

NCAA D1

US NTDP

(Major Jr. & NCAA D1 are pretty close - the top players in either will be top draft picks and step right into a shot in the NHL after a year or so, Major Jr. is slightly better due to the sheer numbers dominating the draft, as well as the fact that they're 18-19 year old kids, compared to the average 22 year old NCAA player. NTDP is just an anomaly because USA Hockey has just pulled it's best 40 players and put them all in the same place, they're all talented and will get looks for the draft.)

USHL

NCAA D3

Canadian Tier II Jr. A

NAHL

EJHL

The USHL sends a lot of kids to the draft and most of their kids sign NCAA D1. NCAA D3 probably has a few teams that have kids with similar talent, but again, most of those kids are past the junior age, while USHL, CA Tier II, NAHL and EJHL kids are all under 20. There are obviously players in CA Tier II, NAHL and EJHL who are quite a bit better than NCAA D3 and sign NCAA D1 scholarships, along with the ones who don't get offers and end up at D3 schools.

USHL is a non pro league which I believe is the only tier 1 in North America (a cut above Junior A)Players often go between prep( or instead of prep) and D1 College to mature and play more games (60-80?)yet maintain NCAA eligibility.Quebec has Junior AAA which is like Junior A (maybe closer to Junior B)In Quebec, "Junior A" is a rec league.

USHL is Tier I Junior A in the United States. Canadian Major junior is considered the Tier I Junior A in Canada. After that you have Tier II Junior A, which is NAHL in the US, and then the provincial leagues in Canada: BCHL, AJHL, ManJHL, NOHL, OPHL, MarJHL, and LJAAA Quebec.

[indaslot 0]

Sure you didn't miss anything?LOL-that was mind boggling.How did you learn all of that,put it in order and explain it so succintly?