ACHA

[jon93 0]

just wondering if anyone plays in the acha? if so, who do you play for?

for being club is it organized well?

just looking for some feed back.

[kovyperron5727 0]

just wondering if anyone plays in the acha? if so, who do you play for?

for being club is it organized well?

just looking for some feed back.

I would have next year, but quit hockey due to my back. It all depends on the school and division really. It's more just for fun than going to the next level, but some guys have advanced to pro leagues from the ACHA. Where do u plan on playing?

[Moose 1]

I played d1 and coached d2. Depends on where you go. Some teams in the ACHA are just some guys playing hockey, but there are some high quality programs/ leagues in the ACHA. It's hard to call it a club sport in the same breath as other college club sports like ultimate frisbee and hackeysack, the ACHA holds teams to a very high standard especially in d1.

[Trooper 8]

I have been coaching there for the last seven years. As for organization, nationally it's pretty organized. Individual leagues vary. Competition ranges from very good to pathetic. I can see the very top end schools breaking off at some point and starting something a step up.

[raganblink 82]

What school(s) were you looking at? Each divison has their legit teams and organized and healthy teams, and their horrible and disorganized teams.

[jon93 0]

i'll be attending kutztown next year.

Last year my team followed a coach into another organization but then left us to be the hockey director. We fell apart and our dedication just went down hill. I had interest from a hand full of mjhl teams and a few for the aj. But i thought id just skip all of that and decided on getting an education instead. I've heard from UMBC, Slippery rock, Drexel, iup and all of the other local schools in the past two years.

I started going onto some of the bigger schools website and i saw all of the private locker rooms and more luxury items towards college hockey and i wish i would have wanted that before i made my commitment to Ku.

[Moose 1]

I'm sure by commitment you mean sent in your check to enroll there, as there are commitments, letters of intent and that sort of thing for ACHA hockey.

Every school is different, not just in their luxury stuff. In acha, you really need to match the type of program to what you want. How into it are they, how much funding/ support do they get. Even within the programs you listed there are major, major differences UMBC is a top southeastern D2 team, DU and SRU are D1 teams, KU is a D2 northeast team. All have different kind of support fromt their school, conference, and within the organization they all run differently.

[raganblink 82]

From what I recall you can still switch schools and get all your $$ back.

[kovyperron5727 0]

i'll be attending kutztown next year.

Last year my team followed a coach into another organization but then left us to be the hockey director. We fell apart and our dedication just went down hill. I had interest from a hand full of mjhl teams and a few for the aj. But i thought id just skip all of that and decided on getting an education instead. I've heard from UMBC, Slippery rock, Drexel, iup and all of the other local schools in the past two years.

I started going onto some of the bigger schools website and i saw all of the private locker rooms and more luxury items towards college hockey and i wish i would have wanted that before i made my commitment to Ku.

UMBC contacted me last year, they're a pretty solid program for D2. What division is kutztown in?

[raganblink 82]

I'm sure by commitment you mean sent in your check to enroll there, as there are commitments, letters of intent and that sort of thing for ACHA hockey.

Every school is different, not just in their luxury stuff. In acha, you really need to match the type of program to what you want. How into it are they, how much funding/ support do they get. Even within the programs you listed there are major, major differences UMBC is a top southeastern D2 team, DU and SRU are D1 teams, KU is a D2 northeast team. All have different kind of support fromt their school, conference, and within the organization they all run differently.

[kovyperron5727 0]

UMBC contacted me last year, they're a pretty solid program for D2. What division is kutztown in?

Edit: Missed that, thanks ragan for pointing that out

[Trooper 8]

A couple of things. UMBC contacts everyone and has been doing mass mailing recruiting for years. There is no letter of intent of anything remotely equivalent for ACHA hockey. Lastly, choose where you go based on the school. If hockey's a factor, fine, but don't ever choose a school because of the hockey program.

[flyers10 57]

Penn State has a decent program and good academics.

[jon93 0]

i meant my commitment to the school, not the hockey program.

[raganblink 82]

yeah since your not getting a scholie or something you can go wherever the hell you want. just because you made a commitment to the school doesn't mean you have to honor it.

atleast from where im from and when I went to college, I could drop from the school for free in like mid-August. And the latest they could add people was the same time.

[Moose 1]

It all depends on the school's deadlines and guidelines. You might lose your deposit or may get back a percentage, but it's all on the school.

[jon93 0]

our deadline was may 1st and ive had a few payments along the way. So i would be out around 600 bucks

[raganblink 82]

our deadline was may 1st and ive had a few payments along the way. So i would be out around 600 bucks

That's killer. Sorry to hear that.

[DEATHTRON 19]

Ive played ACHA, and what most everyone else says is spot on. After highschool I had the chance (who doesnt with enough $$$ these days really..) to go play Jr's. I was burnt out on hockey at that point and just went to college. One of the best decisions I have ever made. I still like to see the guys come back in the summer who are living off their parents, and see that I am vastly ahead of them in terms of my professional career.

Like the others have said, some ACHA teams are very well organized and supported...some are not. My team went from really well organized, to a joke.

If you have picked a college to go to, thats fine, be glad they have a club team. It seemed after my freshman year, hockey was just something we did before partying. You know what though, I was OK with that. Its college, go learn and have fun...play some hockey too, but dont take it too seriously.

Zach

[#44wannabe 4]

Im playing in australia wiht an SJSU grad ad a current SJSU player (Ryan Lowe, goalie and Sean Scarborough, forward) and they're pretty darn good!

[jon93 0]

Ive played ACHA, and what most everyone else says is spot on. After highschool I had the chance (who doesnt with enough $$$ these days really..) to go play Jr's. I was burnt out on hockey at that point and just went to college. One of the best decisions I have ever made. I still like to see the guys come back in the summer who are living off their parents, and see that I am vastly ahead of them in terms of my professional career.

Like the others have said, some ACHA teams are very well organized and supported...some are not. My team went from really well organized, to a joke.

If you have picked a college to go to, thats fine, be glad they have a club team. It seemed after my freshman year, hockey was just something we did before partying. You know what though, I was OK with that. Its college, go learn and have fun...play some hockey too, but dont take it too seriously.

Zach

Very good review, thats something i was looking for.

thanks.

[Fisticuffs 0]

Its not really the same thing, but I was in a somewhat similar spot leaving High School. I had been playing hockey for 15 years, and intended to continue, but knew I had no chance at playing professionally. As difficult as it was to do so, I picked a school based on what was the best fit for me academically. The school I settled on didn't have ice hockey in any capacity, so I played club inline for 4 years, and ice when I could.

They were the best 4 years of my life. I got a great education, had a blast, and 5 years later, I'm still very close with my teammates. Was it the same experience as playing NCAA ice hockey? No. Then again, from talking with my friends who played NCAA ice hockey and have since given up the dream of playing hockey for a living, I probably had more fun than they did.

[kovyperron5727 0]

Im playing in australia wiht an SJSU grad ad a current SJSU player (Ryan Lowe, goalie and Sean Scarborough, forward) and they're pretty darn good!

Ya, I remember reading that he was the practice goalie for the SJ Sharks during some summer sessions last year. I think he may have played in the ECHL at one point as well. Also, SJSU is a Division 2 school, so even though it's "club" hockey, there is still some good talent

Side note, SJSU looks like a beautiful campus, I was seriously considering going there but decided on moving back home to St.Louis

[Harv 86]

I play ACHA D3. Which I guess you could say is the lowest level.

But hell, there are some very talented players in my league. One player in my league was a 2nd Overall pick in the OHL draft, lots of Jr. A players from the AJHL, kids who average 5 points a game over 20 games in the High School league, etc etc. This is just in my 10 team league.

In general this is what I've found. This is just what I've experienced. The NCAA caliber players will party on friday night, then get up the next day and hit the gym and go skate. The ACHA player will party friday and saturday night until he passes out, sleep til noon, go eat brunch at McDonalds, then go play a game on Sunday relying on talent alone. If some of the kids in the ACHA took hockey very seriously with their training, focus, and so on they could probably crack an NCAA team. (Probably not D1).

The ACHA carries a TON of talent, but it always varies by your region and league.

[JMart10 0]

I play for Michigan State (d2), definitely well worth it. Coming out of h/s I intended to go to juniors, but my parents weren't feeling letting me skip a year or two of college to go play. In my own opinion it's a pretty good caliber of hockey depending on where you play and the teams you play against. The ACHA as a whole is really well organized too IMO. How well organized any given team is though is a different story. It's pretty expensive for us to play because the university doesn't help us out with anything, whereas schools like uofm and a few others don't have to pay for much and are even supplied jerseys by their respective varsity teams (so I've heard). I would highly recommend playing though if given the chance, mixing hockey with the college experience is a great combination