Josh Phillips posted 62 points for Kimball Union this winter. (Brian Kelly/NEHJ)
The last two months have been busy with all levels of hockey in full swing.
New England prep and high school seasons just wrapped. USA Hockey Nationals are currently going on. Junior hockey leagues are nearing the finish. The NCAA men’s hockey tournament is underway.
We’re nearing the conclusion of the 2025-26 season.
That doesn’t mean that college hockey recruiting stopped — quite the opposite, actually. The last two months have been very busy as teams fill their commitment lists. For many, it was about locking up ’05s and ’06s for next season, while some teams jumped on ’07s, ’08s and ’09s for future seasons.
Schools are increasingly recruiting from the CHL (Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League and Western Hockey League). Since the CHL ruling, Canada’s junior leagues have so much untapped talent that college coaches have been taking from.
Of the 39 players who have committed to local colleges since Jan. 9, 19 are playing in the CHL this season. That’s almost half.
Let’s dive in and examine how active teams have been.