The NCDC, and the expansion west in the United States was a plan that was in the works for roughly two years before it actually happend. Preparing the ground, and ensuring stable and secure operations was very methodical and deliberate.
When teams left the WSHL for the USPHL Premier, there was a promise that they would be elevated to the NCDC when they had proven they were ready. At the end of the 2022-2023 season it became clear to everyone that the Mountain Division was more than ready to make the rise to Tier II.
The 2023-2024 season, the first for the Mountain Division in the NCDC was nothing short of a tremendous success. With sell out crowds, and more NCAA scouting than could have been anticipated, some people were taken by surprise. Those of us familiar with the Mountain Division teams were not surprised though.
Great arenas, with great training facilities, combined with solid ownership, and stable billet programing are the keys to any successful operation. The NCDC Mountain Division has shown it has all of those qualities and more.
Now, with the NHL coming to Salt Lake City, the NCDC Mountain Division is preparing for more eyes by way of NHL scouts attending more games.
When the Colorado Avalanche came to Denver, hockey took off like never before. The NHL had failed in Denver once with the Colorado Rockies club that lasted six years. The return of the NHL to Denver with stronger ownership, and better television deals changed the fate of hockey in Colorado.
Colorado regularly produces some of the United States best players who move on to NCAA Division One programs and then on to the NHL. For the last decade or so, the AAA development programs have also been moving a lot of local players on to junior hockey.
Salt Lake? They have shown they can support hockey. The ECHL club playing in Salt Lake since 2005 known as the Utah Grizzlies averaged over 6000 fans per night this season. And the NHL club has already received more than twenty thousand season ticket deposits for next season.
Imagine the grass roots growth that is about to take place in Utah. If the growth in Las Vegas is to be used as a measuring stick, the NCDC teams positioned in the Mountain Division will soon be developing local players for NCAA hockey.
Its funny how I was hearing a lot of people questioning the viability of the Mountain Division when it was announced. Those people that were laughing sure arent laughing now.
This division has the business model that is ideal for Tier II junior hockey. Tickets, merchandise, and sponsorship sales are the life blood of each club. When you add in the scouting from NCAA programs that was very heavy in this inaugural season, you have a group of clubs that is going places.
The Moutain Division is not only strong from a business and ownership standpoint, they are the dominant group of teams in the Western United States. This will only become a more dominant group with more expansion within the division.
No less than nine cities have been identified as potential expansion locations for the NCDC Mountain Division. Yes, nine. How many will end up within the fold is still to be determined, but you can bet that there will be expansion, it is not a matter of if, only of when.
Exciting times are ahead for the NCDC and the Mountain Division.
Joseph Kolodziej – Publisher
