Playing D3 as true freshman Vs. Juniors...

[mxihockey 0]

So I'm in my senior year of high school, spent 2 years at a prep school, and then full season U-18 last year and this one as well. I had solid grades all A's and B's at my prep school, but then when I went to U-18 I switched to online school which is surprisingly harder, and I will most likely graduate with somewhere around a 3.0 GPA. Here is my issue: I have the opportunity to go to an average academic/above average D3 hockey program, where I am told I will step in and play as a true freshman. My other option is to play for a USHL, NAHL or EJ team for most likely 2 more years trying to play D1. I sort of feel if I go D3 right away I am giving up on my dream.. This is what I have come up with so far.

D3 college as a true freshman

Pros:

Get a head start on my education, (Which I am struggling with right now)

Play as a true freshman

Very competitive schedule, play every NESCAC school

College is only 20 min. from my home.

Have friends on the team.

Have a nice rink.

Cons:

D3 level is much lower level of play then D1

It is not a very selective school, easy to get in.

Will be giving up on my dream of D1 and pro hockey

Will be done playing competitive hockey in 4 years.

Playing Juniors for 2 years, at a chance of going D1 (I am a 92)

Pros:

Continue to work towards making my dream a reality

Get to live in another part of the country (Hopefully USHL or NA)

Play in front of fans.

Play for free.

Will not look back when older and say "what if"

Cons:

Will be putting my education on hold for a while.

There is a good chance I could play 2 years and still only go D3

Any suggestions? I am sure some people on this board have been in the same situation.. thanks.

[lampliter87 8]

My personal opinion? Play juniors, hands down. What are the chances you will make a top level Jr. A team?

[adam14 182]

Honestly, you're only 18, don't rush into university, I made that mistake. I was way too immature for university last year and it showed in my grades. I would reccomend taking a year or 2 off, see where junior takes you. Have you looked at playing Junior A in canada?

[avery16 5]

Pros:

Will not look back when older and say "what if"

[Krev 86]

Play juniors. If you end up going D3 anyway, you'll have an additional 2 years experience of hockey going into it, thus standing out even more. D3 players move on. Not at the same rate as D1 players, but they still move on.

[BuckleyHockey15 0]

My brother plays D3 for Plymouth State in MASAC and there have been kids that have played with him the past few years that have gone on to play competitive after college, one kid was even given an ECHL contract right after the college season ended, and right now my brother has been thinking about playing in Europe, so dont think just because its D3 you wont be going anywhere, but honestly if you want to play D1 and try to go the show, Juniors is a great idea, ive known kids who needed to develop out of high school, go play Juniors and ended up going D1, but its all up to what you think is the smartest decision.

[The Mafia Line 0]

If you can make a USHL team, I'd go that way. You'll get 6 good years of hockey (2 then 4), a great experience and a college degree from a good school. However, you need to be honest with yourself about how good you are. Can you really play USHL?, Can you really play DI? If you think you can't go the safe route and play DIII. Work your ass off playing hockey, maybe you'll make the show, but a college degree is MANDATORY for someone your age, and it's a hell of plan B.

I kinda know a kid who played in the NAHL, who was a good 1st liner for 2 seasons. He was accepted to a DI school(2010 Frozen Four team) and only played 15 games his freshman year and non in the tourney. Theres never more than a few NAHL players on any team, he's the only one on his team. If you don't make the USHL where %80 to %90 of the players go on to DI, your chances of DI get a lot smaller.

The NAHL is still a great experience you'll never forget, but a college degree should be the end goal.

[raganblink 82]

Here's the deal though, if you play ushl you'll Atleast play d3. So you have nothing to lose. Go play juniors even if you play na you'll play d3 it get recruited for acha d1

[tareatingrat 4]

No idea how it works with the levels down there, but if I were you and thought I were honestly good enough to have a shot at the higher level of hockey, I'd go for that.

You can always go back to school (and should), but my biggest regret is not playing hockey as a kid. I just never know what may have happened.

[mxihockey 0]

My personal opinion? Play juniors, hands down. What are the chances you will make a top level Jr. A team?

I have a tender offer already in the NAHL, but my goal is make a USHL team if I go the junior route. I was invited to a main camp for a USHL team last season, but didn't go. I haven't really gotten any interest from USHL teams, it honestly seems like you need a D1 commitment BEFORE even going to the USHL or a lot of connections...

Honestly, you're only 18, don't rush into university, I made that mistake. I was way too immature for university last year and it showed in my grades. I would reccomend taking a year or 2 off, see where junior takes you. Have you looked at playing Junior A in canada?

I have looked at junior A in Canada, mostly the BCHL which I would be thrilled to play in, but have been told there is a large bias towards American players when trying to make a team..

[bostonjuniorblackhawks 1]

what ever happened to the AJ?

College gets my vote.

[mxihockey 0]

Went to training camp, had second thoughts, and asked to be released.

[Krev 86]

I have a tender offer already in the NAHL, but my goal is make a USHL team if I go the junior route. I was invited to a main camp for a USHL team last season, but didn't go. I haven't really gotten any interest from USHL teams, it honestly seems like you need a D1 commitment BEFORE even going to the USHL or a lot of connections...

Not true, at all. A lot of players, the non superstars basically, in the USHL don't get college offers until half way through the first season. Sometimes not even until the start of the second season.

I have looked at junior A in Canada, mostly the BCHL which I would be thrilled to play in, but have been told there is a large bias towards American players when trying to make a team..

Also, not true. The only thing is they have a limit on the number of 'import' players they can have. Other than that, bias exists on a much more minor level. For example, two of my buddies who are both American players are currently captains for two seperate BCHL teams, and one is headed off to UConn in D1 next year. Spent the past 3 years in the BCHL working his way up and working his ass off, and he was rewarded.

You gotta work for it, and you have to want it bad enough. Go play juniors. NAHL, USHL, BCHL. 2 years in those leagues will give you so much more back if you put in the time than going and playing college right now.

[skyscrape 5]

A friend of mine played in the NAHL and because of his time in the NA he is now getting a full paid scholarship to Bentley. Which is D1.

[coryroth24 15]

Pros:

Will not look back when older and say "what if"

Exactly. Play Juniors. If you're really worried about your education slipping, find a community college and take a couple basic online courses. This way you can at least stay in the habit of being "in school" while getting some basic credits out of the way...

[sickwilly 37]

My vote is to play juniors, for a lot of reasons that have been mentioned already (no "what ifs"., more hockey, new experiences, possibly playing D1 or beyond). How do you argue with the chance to play more hockey?

I think that taking some college classes is a great idea. I'd suggest taking core classes from an acredited university, as they may be easier to transfer and get credit for. It might also give you some insight into what you might want to study when you settle on a school.

[Jason Harris 31]

As much as any athlete would want to play sports at a competitive level for as long as possible, the reality is the odds of being able to make a living while playing sports are so long that the focus has to be on going down the path of making a living after schooling, because if an athlete is good enough, it almost doesn't matter what path they take -- think about it, teams have open skates where virtually anyone is invited. Consequently, I think your question shouldn't be which path gives me a greater chance to play at a D1 school, but which path gives me a greater chance at attending a better academic school. (Of course, one qualifier is it really won't matter where you went to college three jobs into your career -- it's your references that matter then -- but it will often impact what job you get immediately out of college.)

If playing juniors helps you attend a better academic school, plus possibly play at a higher level, that's a great bonus. If playing juniors doesn't change the choice of schools you currently have, then it's not worth risking an injury and losing all choice. It's hard to predict the future, but I think those are the questions you need to ask.

[forbs02 20]

My vote is to play juniors, for a lot of reasons that have been mentioned already (no "what ifs"., more hockey, new experiences, possibly playing D1 or beyond). How do you argue with the chance to play more hockey?

I think that taking some college classes is a great idea. I'd suggest taking core classes from an acredited university, as they may be easier to transfer and get credit for. It might also give you some insight into what you might want to study when you settle on a school.

You have to be careful with taking college classes when playing jrs though. Depending on where you take them from you can start your NCAA eligibility clock ticking without even knowing it. Make sure you talk to an academic counselor from a prospective school to see if it will affect you at all.

I think you should go ahead and play jrs. You will enjoy your time playing and when you are done you can still play D3 if your D1 dream doesn't pan out. When I was in collge (D3) about 3/4 of the guys had played a year or two in the NAHL.

[gerbe3:16 19]

First, forbs makes a good point about watching what you take for classes and starting your clock on eligibility.

Second, this whole thing is a tough call. It's basically either giving up the dream vs. getting on with your life. What do you have to lose? You could waste two years and be in the same spot you are now.

I have a cousin who almost got a D1 schollie, got passed on for another guy that made the NHL, and he never got the chance. Ended up at D3 as a 21yo freshman, graduated I think at 25yo and I'm sure he'd like to have those years back but at the same time it's nice not wondering "what if?"

Just some food for thought. No one will blame you for chasing after the dream. I surely wouldn't. Life is too short. I say go for it as long as you have the means to do so.

I hope things work out for you.

[frankie56 0]

Don't take too many classed or you will lose a tear of NCAA eligible

[lampliter87 8]

I have looked at junior A in Canada, mostly the BCHL which I would be thrilled to play in, but have been told there is a large bias towards American players when trying to make a team..

Yes and no. Given two players of equal ability, they make take the Canadian, but if you're good enough to stand out you won't have a problem.

[shooter27 116]

I faced pretty much the same decision as you're contemplating (although it was a decade ago). I had played 3 years of prep school and had a D1 school that wanted me to commit, but they were going to require me to play a year in the USHL after graduation. At the end of the day I went the D3 route. For me, the decision came down to a few factors:

1. I was pretty sure that if I needed a year in the USHL as a 19 year old just to play D1 then I clearly wasn't going to play in the NHL (it used to be more common to make the jump from preps direct to D1)

2. After I realized factor #1, it really didn't make sense to me to be a 20 year old freshman

3. The schools that I was looking at in D3 where much, much better academically than the D1 school that wanted me to commit (I was talking to other D1 schools, but only one was 100% ready to commit to me at the time)

Those factors, plus the fact that my dad was completely against the juniors idea (mostly because of fact #1) pretty much made the decision for me. Are there times I regret the decision? I wouldn't say regret, but there is a little part of me that thinks "What if?" at times. However, at the end of the day I got a diploma from one of the top schools in the country, played every game my Freshman year, and ended up with a great job, making a lot more money out of college than I would have if I had been playing in the minors or had gone to the other school and graduated without a chance to play pro.

To be completely fair, 10 years ago the juniors picture wasn't nearly as clear as it is today. The USHL wasn't clearly a cut above the NAHL and EJHL and it wasn't a Tier 1 league. It was also not nearly as common to play a full prep career and then go play juniors, you generally did one or the other. Would I make a different decision today? I really can't answer that because I can't put myself back in the same frame of mind that I was at 18.

Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss it further.

[IniNew 53]

What's with the rush to get into to college? I personally was not ready for college right out of high school, and took 2 years off to work, earn a bit of money and prepare myself for the challenge that a full time schedule provides. I say take the junior's route and if it doesn't work out, start attending school.

[Jason Harris 31]

IWe've taken on our nephew for his senior year, who is a bright boy but a terrible student. Because of that, he wants to take a year off from school, but our biggest fear is one year off becomes sixty. Only 27% of Americans graduate from college, so it's not uncommon for teenagers to tell themselves they're "only going to take six months off." There is no doubt that many will return to college, but not enough.

[chippa13 1844]

Plus, they fall out of practice in their study/homework habits and that can be a tough thing to get back into.