THE NA3HL UNVEILS DIVISIONAL ALIGNMENT, SPECIAL EVENTS FOR THE 2016-17 SEASON JR. THUNDERBOLTS TO CONTINUE ARCHRIVALRIES IN MIDWEST DIVISION FOR 2016-17 ELITE JUNIOR LEAGUE’S ANNUAL SHOWCASE EVENT SET FOR DEC. 16-18 IN BLAINE, MN
EVANSVILLE, IN— The elite junior hockey circuit, the North American Hockey League (NA3HL), in concert with the Evansville Jr. ThunderBolts, has announced its teams, divisional alignment and upcoming special events’ activities for the 2016-17 season. The 48-teams’ league will be set up in the form of eight divisions. Those divisions will include the Central, Coastal, East, Frontier, Midwest, Northeast, South and West Divisions. There will be 22- states represented for the new campaign, stretching from Montana to Maine.
The Jr. ThunderBolts will continue to compete in the fiercely-competitive, hotly-contested Midwest Division where they made their debut in their inaugural season of 2015-16. Widely-recognized as the NA3HL’s most formidable divisional alliance, the Midwest Division will, again, consist of the same five teams as last season with geographic proximity accentuated. The geographic distance proximity will continue to foster and promote some of the best arch- rivalries in the entire elite junior circuit. The Jr. ThunderBolts will be aligned with such foes as the defending Midwest Division Champions, the St. Louis Jr. Blues along with the Cincinnati Thunder, Nashville Jr. Predators and the Peoria Mustangs. In addition, the Jr. ThunderBolts are expected to sustain their rivalries against South Division opponents the Atlanta Capitals and reigning South kingpins, the Point Mallard Ducks.
Jr. ThunderBolts General Manager/Head Coach Mark Cody is eagerly looking forward to his club’s second season in the Midwest Division. “I believe that we are in one of the strongest divisions in the entire NA3HL. The competition level was hard and intense last season, and with one year under our collective belts, the returning players now know what to expect and they are looking forward with great anticipation to the challenges the lie ahead. In looking back to year one, our players fought hard all season long. I know the guys are excited to get a chance to redeem themselves against last season’s divisional teams.â€
Once again for this newly-approaching season, the Jr. ThunderBolts will join all 48-NA3HL member clubs in participating in the League’s annual NA3HL Showcase Event, which will be held from December 16-18 at the Schwan Super Rink Arenas in Blaine, Minnesota. Also included on the League’s special events’ calendar will be the annual Top Prospects Tournament from February 26-28 at the USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. The 2016-17 campaign will be culminated in the NA3HL Silver Cup Championship, March 29-April 2 at the Cantan Ice Sports Complex in Romeoville, Illinois.
The NA3HL has continued its extraordinary growth in recent years, having added 14-teams for the 2016-17 season, which are in addition to the 34-teams that competed during the past 2015-16 campaign. Thirteen of those teams were added back on March 4th when the NA3EHL announced that it was merging with the NA3HL. The NA3HL also
recently announced that the expansion Missoula Jr. Bruins had been accepted into the loop as the circuit’s 48th member club.
NA3HL Commissioner Denny Scanlon has expressed elation with the League’s positive direction. “The NA3HL set new records for scout attendance last season and our priority is to build on that momentum. With 48-teams in the League, our exceptional events will continue to showcase players and attract college scouts from across the country.â€
The NA3HL will be entering its 17th season of operations in the upcoming 2016-17 season and serves as one of the top training grounds in the entire country by providing the best coaching, exposure and developmental vehicles available for student-athletes in its classification. During the 2015-16 season, well over 100 NA3HL players made college commitments in both the NCAA as well as the ACHA.
2016-17 NA3HL DIVISIONAL ALIGNMENT
MIDWEST DIVISION: (5-Teams) EVANSVILLE JR. THUNDERBOLTS, Cincinnati Thunder, Nashville Jr.
Predators, Peoria Mustangs, St. Louis Jr. Blues.
SOUTH DIVISION: (6-Teams) Atlanta Capitals, College Station Spirit, Euless Jr. Stars, Louisiana Drillers, Point Mallard Ducks, Texas Jr. Brahmas.
CENTRAL DIVISION: (5-Teams) Chicago Bulldogs, La Crosse Freeze, North Iowa Bulls, Rochester Ice Hawks, Wisconsin Whalers.
COASTAL DIVISION: (7-Teams) Cape Cod Islanders, East Coast Minutemen, L/A Fighting Spirit, Long Beach Sharks, Maine Wild, New England Stars, Northeast Generals.
EAST DIVISION: (6-Teams) Metro Jets, Pittsburgh Vengeance, Southern Tier Xpress, Toledo Cherokee, West Michigan Wolves, Wooster Oilers.
FRONTIER DIVISION; (8-Teams) Billings Bulls, Bozeman Ice Dogs, Gillette Wild, Glacier Nationals, Great Falls Americans, Helena Bighorns, Missoula Jr. Bruins, Yellowstone Quake.
NORTHEAST DIVISION: (6-Teams) Binghamton Jr. Senators, Jersey Shore Wildcats, Lockport Express, Roc City Royals, Skylands’ Kings, Syracuse Stampede.
WEST DIVISION: (5-Teams) Alexandria Blizzard, Breezy Point North Stars, Granite City Lumberjacks, Minnesota Flying Aces, New Ulm Steel.
