Recruits 2026 and Beyond

[adamw]

Apparently hockey (like all of hockey...the NCAA hockey programs, junior leagues, NHL, etc.) is lobbying the NCAA to push back the start of 5-year eligibility by one season. Per Mike McMahon: "In its place, hockey's brass offered a counter-proposal: start the eligibility clock the season following an athlete's 19th birthday, or upon college enrollment—whichever comes first." If this happens, scratch what I said about the Ivies being well positioned, and flip that on its head--the Ivies, which are among the very few schools that don't permit grad students, would be uniquely poorly positioned in such a world.

I mean, does that change a lot? Eligibility clock starts in your 20yo season. That's when a lot of our guys come in anyway. It's 5 years, okay, more grad transfers maybe, but I'd say for the most part in a post-pandemic world, grad transfers aren't that important. Q's run excepted.

More of our players come in at 18 or 19. Now those players will play a grad year at Q or Duluth or something. So will other teams' players. Or Q's players will stay at Q for five years. Fifth year seniors were a big factor in the post-COVID years so I don't see why it would be any different if the rule becomes permanent.

It seems probably moot anyway since I don't really see why the NCAA would go along with hockey's proposal. So many more kids in other sports would do post-grad years. It would significantly increase the number of 19-y/o freshmen in other sports. One of the purposes of the rule change was to bring down the age of college athletes so I don't know why the NCAA would agree to hockey's proposal.

why would so many kids in other sports do post-grad years when they don't do so now?

I don't see the new proposal hurting Ivies any more than the NCAA proposal, given that the Ivy coaches were all firmly behind it and Casey was one of the most outspoken speakers at the coaches conference in trying to plead college hockey's case to the NCAA lawyers.

[The Rancor]

I feel like there can't be many 5th year graduate school hockey players, now or in the future. I could be wrong. Mitch Gilliam was one at Notre Dame, right?

[scoop85]

I feel like there can't be many 5th year graduate school hockey players, now or in the future. I could be wrong. Mitch Gilliam was one at Notre Dame, right?

Galadja