The hockey landscape might change when the CHL allows players who have finished their careers to continue to play in the NCAA.
"I think it's great to tell you the truth," NHL Hall Of Famer Jeremy Roenick told the SportsCage. "It gives young players much more of an advantage in terms of playing hockey and still having the ability to get a good education. We've seen colleges are putting more people in the National Hockey League year in and year out."
According to Let's Play Hockey, 327 players in the 2023-2024 NHL season were from the NCAA, and 65 percent played at least three seasons of NCAA hockey.
The current rule as stated by College Hockey: "NCAA student-athletes are amateurs and cannot have played for a professional sports team prior to enrolment. In hockey, specifically, this means that anyone who signs a contract with or plays for a team in the Canadian Hockey League -- OHL, QMJHL, or WHL -- forfeits their NCAA eligibility."
According to CEO Trailblazer Hockey advisor Wayne Kosior, there could be an official decision in November from an NCAA coaching meeting and the new rule come in to effect for the 2025-26 NCAA academic year.
Roenick knows the differences between the CHL and the NCAA and why both are important.
"It's a great way to allow a player to get ready for the league," Roenick said. "If you're in America, some kids might not have that goal of going to the NHL."
The idea for making CHL players eligible to play in the NCAA came about due to a class action lawsuit filed in Buffalo, New York.
Regina Pats forward Braxton Whitehead verbally agreed to play for the University of Arizona State Hockey team for the 2025-2026 NCAA academic year.
Roenick will be in Weyburn, SK Thursday for an event hosted by the Weyburn Red Wings. Saskatchewan has always had a place in his heart.
"I love the people, I love the mentality, I love the hockey. I wish the NHL could be supported in Saskatoon because that would have been great," Roenick said. "I've had friends in Moose Jaw, one of my favourite teammates of all time is Dirk Graham from Regina -- I love it."
