Friday, June 7, 2013

United States Premier Hockey League Announces Formation of Elite and Empire Junior Divisions

Press Release

The United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL), the Eastern Elite Junior Hockey League and Empire Junior Hockey League have agreed to merge operations into the USPHL.  The USPHL will maintain its current 9 team Premier Junior Division and its 16U and 18U Midget Levels and add USPHL Elite and USPHL Empire Divisions to bring the total USPHL League count to five divisions.  Upon completion of this process, the USPHL membership will consist of approximately 30 members fielding over 70 teams with a geographic reach that spans the complete Eastern Seaboard.

The merger with the Eastern Elite provides an expansion of the USPHL junior hockey footprint to the Southeastern United States, from Virginia to Florida.  The purpose of this merger is to extend the USPHL player development model to the rapidly growing southern hockey marketplace through eight extremely successful organizations.   Members of the Eastern Elite Division will participate in USPHL Showcases and play the northern USPHL Elite clubs in league play.  This format will allow the USPHL southern franchises extensive exposure to NCAA and NHL scouts currently enjoyed by the USPHL.  The USPHL Elite Division will also stage a divisional All-Star Game in conjunction with the USPHL Premier Division All-Star Classic.

The merger with the Empire Junior Hockey League consolidates the Empire League into a structure which will provide clarity and efficiency in the Eastern Seaboard Junior market.   The Empire merger is a natural extension of the USPHL/Eastern Elite merger and will provide all existing Empire Junior League teams their best opportunity to showcase their talents to NCAA hockey programs in the East.

The USPHL members have each developed a complete player development model where, at present, over 2,000 boys and girls train, compete and enjoy the sport of ice hockey. These programs go beyond the on-ice experience to include education, leadership and community service components to help foster a complete student-athlete. The member organizations believe the USPHL will provide the next step in high performance training and competition and will provide unmatched exposure to NCAA hockey programs for young aspiring hockey players.

The USPHL will commence competition in September of 2013.  Please visit the USPHL website at www.usphl.com or the member organizations for specific information regarding team registration and tryout process.

 (Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)

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