There’s a reason I don’t want the USHL in the Memorial Cup.

It’s not because of blind Canadian nationalism.

It’s because American youth #hockey has been captured by private equity companies. Players in the American junior hockey system have to pay to participate. And this is how the entirety of American youth hockey works. Parents foot the bill.

Understand that, in Canada, major junior players are paid—they do not pay. Not a lot of money. No one’s getting rich. But kids are developed and compensated, not customers that are billed.

This is a big reason why the best American youth players end up playing in Canadian leagues. Even the best American major junior teams wind up in the #CHL. Seattle, Portland, Saginaw—all in Canadian leagues.

In fact, the reason why USA was even able to win an Olympic gold medal is because American youth players were able to participate in the CHL. Matthew Tkachuk, J.T. Miller, and Vincent Trocheck all benefitted from playing in Canadian major junior hockey leagues.

USHL wants to be let into the Memorial Cup because, as far as major junior hockey is concerned, they lack prestige. When it comes to making #NHL superstars, it lags behind the CHL. And now that NCAA is allowing CHL players into colleges, its reputation is further diminished.

But if you let the USHL into the Memorial Cup, you’re letting US private equity into the Memorial Cup—and the best round robin tournament in hockey becomes compromised.

Screw that. The American youth hockey system doesn’t need the marketing lifeline of Canadian major junior hockey. And American private equity—go to hell!

youtu.be/JetP-W5azNA

Did you know that Canada has a second major hockey league?

And that this league actually has more teams than the #NHL?

Of course, I’m talking about the Canadian Hockey League. If you don’t often hear about it, it’s because it’s actually an umbrella league for three other leagues: the #WHL, #OHL, and #QMJHL.

Think of the #CHL kind of like the MLB. In the MLB, there’s the National League and the American League. Just as the NL and AL champs play each other in the World Series, the CHL has a similar thing going on.

Each year, the WHL, OHL, and QMJHL all go through their respective playoffs. Once each league has its champion, the compete—with the host city’s team—in an event known as the Memorial Cup.

The majority of the 61 teams in the CHL are Canadian. But there are also 9 American teams that compete in it: 6 in the WHL, and 3 in the OHL.

The CHL is a major junior hockey league. To compete in it, a player has to be between the ages of 16-20.

While the CHL is usually deemed an amateur league, many people disagree—and this has proven to be a contentious issue.

Specifically, the NCAA used to label the CHL has a professional league. Which is why they disallowed CHL players from NCAA eligibility. This policy changed when American courts pointed out NCAA’s own issues.

Nevertheless, many believe CHL is a pro league since players earn a salary.

The CHL is a major source for NHL talent. Wayne Gretzky, Sidney Crosby, and Conor Bedard all played in the CHL.

In fact, the CHL is so dominant in the world of junior hockey that most American and European NHL superstars once played in there too. This includes Patrick Kane, Matthew Tkachuk, and Leon Draisaitl.

It is so successful that the USA’s own major junior hockey league is begging—hoping and praying—to join the CHL. The USHL is lobbying hard to be the 4th CHL league because it means they’ll be able to compete in the Memorial Cup.

And this is because, try as they might, they just can’t compete with the CHL, and this is reflected each year in NHL draft picks.

Huge crowds attend CHL games. Even in cities with small populations, only with 30,000 people, you get thousands of people showing up—packing arenas.

The Memorial Cup itself is a huge event, gets broadcast nationally on TSN. It sells out arenas. At the upcoming 2026 Memorial Cup in Kelowna, ticket packages start at C$767 for the round robin event.

People travel from across Canada and the USA to attend the Memorial Cup. It contributes up to $40M to a host city. Which is a huge windfall for small towns.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian…