USA Hockey Magazine

There are play- ers coming out of high school or junior hockey that might want something competitive, or maybe aca- demics is the priority and playing hockey isn't as big of a deal, but they still want to be able to play. We have programs at that level as well." — C RA I G BA R N ET T, EX ECU T I V E D I R EC TO R O F T H E AC H A is why you are seeing an increase in the level of competition." B a r n e t t s a i d t h a t c a n a l s o b e attributed to opportunity. There are only so many programs and roster spots available in NCAA hockey, be it Division I or Division III, and the ACHA gives players more options. "There are a lot of players capa- ble of playing at the top level of col- lege hockey, but not as many spots," Barnett said. "It's in the best interest of players to know the landscape and know there are options like the ACHA. It offers so many opportuni- ties for players to go to college, earn a degree and play hockey." And it's hockey at a high level. "Club hockey is probably not the best way to describe it," Barnett said. " You look at the [ACHA] nation- al tournaments and the hockey is extremely good. Our top men's level, the top 20-25 teams, have budgets that would surprise a lot of people. The coaching is phenomenal and the facilities they have are great." When Barnett, a former NCAA hockey coach and athletic admin- istrator, took the job as executive director in 2018, he took a look at Newsweek magazine to see its list of the top 25 universities in the world. Seventeen of those are in the United States, and 14 have ACHA programs. The ACHA has been a long-time member of USA Hockey and recently a five-year extension of their part- nership centered around supporting players and teams across the coun- try. The agreement includes support of ACHA National Championships a n d p r o v i d e s o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r ACHA men's and women's players to represent the U.S. in the World University Games. The ACHA and its member pro- grams also benefit from the work being done by USA Hockey programs at the grass-roots level to develop more high end hockey players in places that have been bolstered by NHL expansion " T h e N H L d o e s a g r e a t j o b o f working where they are, growing the sport in many non-tradition- al markets, and they go into those communities and have youth pro- grams," Barnett said. " What you are seeing at the college level now is a lot of good players have been developed through those programs. " We 'r e f o r t u n a t e t o w o r k w i t h these teams and their community development departments to put on showcases, which allows us a chance to talk with families and tell them the story of the ACHA and the oppor- tunities it provides." And there is no shortage of oppor- tunities for players, no matter what they're looking for. "There are players coming out of high school or junior hockey that might want something competitive, or maybe academics is the priority and playing hockey isn't as big of a deal, but they still want to be able to play," Barnett said. "We have programs at that level as well. I don't think any other association can compare." The travel aspect is an appealing factor as well. "One of the things that makes it special, something we talk about on the recruiting trail, is that you get to see different parts of the country," Lowes said. "A lot of leagues play more regional [schedules], but if you look at my team, we have been up and down the East Coast, but we've also been to Colorado, North Dakota, Missouri, Illinois, Michigan and Texas. That offers a really unique experience for the athletes." Lowes and Astalos both said they e x p e c t t h e A C H A t o c o n t i n u e t o experience growth. Barnett does as well and is always looking at how things can continue to move forward. " I l i k e t o a s s e s s a n d r e a s s e s s things, and look at how we are doing things," Barnett said. "Ultimately, we are working for our student ath- l et e s, a n d w e wa n t t o m a ke s u r e w e p r ov i d e t h e m w i t h a p o s i t i ve environment to move on to college and play hockey, and have a great experience doing it." P Brian Lester is a freelance writer based in Pensacola, Fla. The quality of play at all levels of the ACHA is due in large part to the continued improvment of youth hockey programs around the country. 34 // AUGUST 2022 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM

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