As players choose the right place to develop their game for college and beyond, having only accurate information about the facts of junior hockey in the USA is key.  

The RMJHL is a proud member of USA Hockey as a sanctioned Tier-3 Junior league. So what does this mean?..

The following information is made available in the USA Hockey Annual Guide. For more information, please go to www.usahockey.com.

JUNIOR HOCKEY PROGRAM AND PHILOSOPHY:

The goals of junior hockey are to promote, develop, and administer the domestic USA Hockey program for junior ­aged players, teams, and leagues. USA Hockey's Junior Program is available to athletes who are at least 16 years of age and no older than 20 as of the 31st day of December of the current season of competition (provided that, pursuant to USA Hockey Rules & Regulations, Section XI: Junior Hockey, Subsection C, Junior Age Players and Citizenship, players that are 15 years of age on or before December 31st of the current season may be permitted to play Junior Hockey upon submission and approval of a petition).  The principal purpose of this development program is to prepare the athlete for career advancement either in a collegiate program or a professional opportunity.

JUNIOR HOCKEY PURPOSE & GOALS:

The purpose of Junior hockey is essentially two­fold:

1. Provide an opportunity for players in this age group to play organized hockey
2. Development of the skills and abilities of all the participants, including players, coaches, and officials.

The goals of Junior hockey are as follows:

1. Skill Development: To provide talented young players with the opportunity to develop in an organized, structured, competitive and supervised environment.
2. Quality Coaching: To provide considerable training time, quality coaching instruction, and concerned oversight.
3. Social Maturity: To provide players with a healthy, constructive environment in which to develop socially.
4. Educational Advancement: To provide assistance and opportunities for the accomplishment of the participant's educational goals.
5. Recruiting Exposure. To provide players with exposure to collegiate and professional scouts and recruiters.
6. Advanced Competition. To provide players with exposure to national and international competition.
7. Protection of Amateur Status. To protect, most importantly, the amateur status of all participants under the rules and guidelines established by the International Ice Hockey Federation, USA Hockey, Hockey Canada, the NCAA, the NAIA, and the National Federation of High Schools.

JUNIOR HOCKEY CLASSIFICATIONS:

 USA Hockey supports and promotes the Ladder of Development in junior hockey, providing for developmental advancement opportunities based upon skill level. All leagues and teams are certified, annually, by the USA Hockey Junior Council in three (3) classifications: Tier I; Tier II; Tier III; and provisional for any of the foregoing classifications.

TIER 1: 

The Tier I program is a player development concept designed to become the best amateur hockey league in the world which will attract the top 16­20 year ­old players and further develop its players, coaches, and officials through the highest level of competition. This will be accomplished by fan support and a market­ driven ownership of leagues and teams with sound financial backing committed to its mission, and fans in conjunction with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program and USA Hockey support. GOALS OF TIER 1: maintain the eligibility of all athletes for NCAA competition; offer quality academic development; allow players to achieve maximum skill development at the highest competitive level of junior hockey; broaden the base of development in coordination with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program.

STRATEGIES OF TIER 1: attract the best players, coaches, and officials in the United States; attract solid investors as team owners and operators; market the league, teams, players, coaches, and officials to the most aggressive degree possible while ensuring that all future development and movement options (NCAA included) remain open and available; manage the business from a profit­driven perspective in order to invest back into the league; strengthen relationships in the hockey community by promoting the league as the vehicle to do so; become the most successful junior hockey league in the world; focus on a national presence.

KEY DIFFERENTIATING FACTORS OF TIER 1: Free Tuition. All training, coaching, and developmental services are covered by the team and the league. Free Equipment. Equipment costs covered by team through a partnership with an equipment manufacturer. Each player has access to skates, sticks, protective equipment, and training apparel at no cost. Free Housing. Housing costs covered by team through a network of billet homes in the local community. Each player is afforded their own private sleeping area, meals, laundry, and other family services. Free Travel. All Tier 1 teams are required to provide motorcoach ground transportation, hotel rooms, and meals for away games when applicable (some away games are local).

There is one league certified by USA Hockey for competition at the Tier I Level: UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE (USHL)

TIER 2:

 The Tier II league and teams provide a competitive opportunity for the elite player on a nationwide basis. The Tier II model features teams located in fan ­driven markets operated by owners with sound financial backing. Their role in the development of players, coaches, and officials involved is clearly defined. GOALS OF TIER 2: maintain the eligibility of all athletes for NCAA competition; offer quality academic development; allow players to achieve maximum skill development at the second ­highest competitive level of junior hockey; STRATEGIES OF TIER 2: attract solid investors as franchise owners and operators; market the league, teams, players, coaches, and officials to the most aggressive degree possible while ensuring that all future development and movement options (NCAA included) remain open and available; manage the business from a profit ­driven perspective in order to invest back into the league; strengthen relationships in the hockey community by promoting the league as the vehicle to do so; operate under the USA Hockey Ladder of Development

KEY DIFFERENTIATING FACTORS OF TIER 2: Free Tuition. All training, coaching, and developmental services are covered by the team and the league. Equipment. All players are provided with sticks, pants, gloves, helmets, jerseys, and socks at no cost. Free Travel. All teams are required to provide motor-coach ground transportation and hotel rooms for away games when applicable. Housing Stipend. Housing costs are supplemented through team relationships with a network of billet homes in the local community.

There is one league certified by USA Hockey for competition at the Tier II level. NORTH AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE (NAHL)

TIER 3:

The Tier III leagues and teams provide a competitive opportunity for the elite player on a regional and localized geographic basis. There are currently eight leagues certified by USA Hockey for competition at the Tier III level. A highly structured Tier-3 national championship tournament hosted by USA Hockey concludes the season and is conducted after all eight league playoffs are settled.  

The ROCKY MOUNTAIN JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE provides elite competition within a very responsible geographic footprint. The six Tier-3 Junior teams in Colorado share company with three highly respected Division-1 NCAA teams, numerous ACHA programs, a professional minor league team and the Avalanche NHL franchise.  Along with the gorgeous views throughout the footprint, ALL players in the RMJHL are provided outer equipment including: helmets, gloves, jerseys (practice, home, away), pants/shells, socks, workout gear, warm-up gear, and casual-wear.  All RMJHL teams are required (when necessary) to provide players with adequate housing with host families (which includes: a private sleeping area, meals, laundry, and other family services), an education coordinator and access to an accredited academic institution.  All teams traveling more than 70 miles provide team transportation, hotel accommodations, and nutrition during overnight road trips.  All players have access to an off-ice/weight training facility throughout the week, and teams must practice at least four hours per week. Players are required to either enroll in classes for academic credit or gain part time employment, and are required to perform volunteer community service regularly. Other than the league-established team fees, operators/owners/coaches are not allowed to collect money from players for any operational expense, with the exception of potential travel expenses to the USA National tournament.

TIER-3 JUNIOR LEAGUES:

1. Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League (RMJHL)
2. Northern Pacific Hockey League (NPHL)
3. North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL)
4. North American 3 East Hockey League (NA3EHL)
5. Eastern Hockey League (EHL)
6. United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL)
7. Metropolitan Junior Hockey League
8. Empire Hockey League

RMJHL TEAMS: Aspen Leafs, Breckenridge Bucks, Glacier Yetis (Grand Junction), Pikes Peak Miners (Colorado Springs), Colorado Rampage (Monument), and the Colorado Thunderbirds (Littleton).  

Contact: RMJHL Commissioner Mike Gempeler -- Commissioner@RMJHL.com