Elite 9 Hockey League

The Elite 9 Hockey League (E9HL) is a youth ice hockey league composed of nine clubs: six charter members and three Boston Hockey League qualifiers. Headquartered in New England, the E9 is widely considered to be the premier youth ice hockey league in the region.

Elite 9 Hockey League

Current season or competition: 2016–17 E9HL season
Countries	United States of America
Region(s)	New England
Founded	January 22, 2014[1]
First season	2014–15
Divisions	6 age groups
No. of teams	9 (6 charter members, 3 qualifiers)[1]
Feeder League(s)	Boston Hockey League[1]
Website	elite9hockey.com

The league was organized on January 22, 2014, in New England, after the suspension of operations of its predecessor organization, the New England Hockey League (NEHL), which had been founded in 2009. The E9HL immediately took the NEHL's place.

The league draws many highly skilled players from all over New England.

Teams

The Elite 9 Hockey League originated in 2014 with four Massachusetts teams and two New Hampshire teams. The Elite 9 has six charter members plus three teams that qualify from the Boston Hockey League parities. In 2015, five teams at four different age levels were granted qualifying exemptions, therefore they automatically qualify for the Elite 9. It also limits the space for qualification to two spots.[2]

All of the league's teams are located in the Eastern Time Zone.

Charter members

Team	City/Area	Arena	Founded	Joined
Boston Advantage	Hingham, Massachusetts	Pilgrim Skating Arena	2009	2014
Boston Junior Rangers	Tewksbury, Massachusetts	Breakaway Ice Center	N/A	2014
East Coast Wizards	Bedford, Massachusetts	Edge Sports Center	N/A	2014
New Hampshire Avalanche	Hooksett, New Hampshire	Ice Den Arena	N/A	2014
Seacoast Spartans	Exeter, New Hampshire	The Rinks At Exeter	N/A	2014
Valley Jr. Warriors	Haverhill, Massachusetts	Haverhill Valley Forum	1996	2014

Rules

The league uses National Hockey League standard (200 feet (60.96 m) by 85 feet (25.91 m)) hockey rinks.

Each regulation game is played between two teams and is 45 minutes long, composed of three 15-minute periods with an intermission of 1 minute. At the end of the 45-minute regulation time, the team with the most goals wins the game. If a game is tied after regulation time during the regular season, the result is recorded a tie. In the playoffs, the game would go into overtime and shootouts, composed of a five-minute overtime period and then a five-man shootout.

There is no checking allowed in Peewee divisions and below, per USA Hockey rules.

Season structure

The league season is divided into a regular season (from the third week in September through early to mid-March) and a postseason. During the regular season, clubs play each other in a predefined schedule of 32 games. All teams play every team in their conference twice, at home and on the road. The league's standings are based on a point system instead of winning percentages. Points are awarded for each game, where two points are awarded for a win, one point for a tie, and zero points for a loss in regulation. At the end of the regular season, the team that finishes with the most points in each division is crowned the regular season champion.

The playoffs, held in March, is an elimination tournament of single elimination games until the final remaining team is crowned the champion. The top six teams in each league qualify for the playoffs. The top two league winners with the best record in the conference receive byes to the semifinals. The first round of the playoffs, or quarterfinals, consists of the third seed playing the sixth seed, while the fourth seed plays the fifth seed. Winners then advance to the second round, or semifinals, and then the finals. In all rounds, the higher-ranked team is awarded home-ice advantage.

References

1. "Elite 9 Hockey League Announced". Elite 9 Hockey League. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
2. "Elite 9 Qualifying Exemptions". Elite 9 Hockey League. 11 February 2015. Archived from the original on 11 March 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.