Continental Elite Hockey League

Continental Elite Hockey League
Sport	ice hockey
Founded	2001
No. of teams	6
Country(ies)	United States
Ceased	2004
Last champion(s)	Metro Fighting Moose
Official website	CEHL website

The Continental Elite Hockey League was a Junior A league that existed from 2001 - 2004. The league was an independent Junior ice hockey league that did not operate under USA Hockey. There are now plans for the league to be "reborn" for the 2009-2010 as a low-minor pro league. The new Continental Elite Hockey League plans to have five to six teams ready to play in the league's first pro season.

League History

The Continental Elite Hockey League was a Junior A league that existed from 2001 - 2004. The league did not operate under the watch of USA Hockey as all other significant Junior leagues in the United States do. This led many to refer to the CEHL as the "rebel league," which may have contributed to the quick decline.

Hockey Weekly and Michigan Hockey joined newspapers around Michigan and Ohio in announcing the formation of a controversial new independent Junior A-level hockey league for the 2001-02 season.

The Continental Elite Hockey League (CEHL) played three seasons without any affiliation with USA Hockey to create opportunities for 21-year-olds. Using many Canadians on rosters allowed the CEHL to create a strong league. A long list of CEHL players moved on to the pro ranks, including Steven MacIntyre who was signed by the New York Rangers after two seasons as the most feared fighter in the United Hockey League (UHL). MacIntyre later made it to the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers in 2009. He made the Oilers for the 2009-2010 season and was then traded in November to the Calgary Flames.

MacIntyre came to the CEHL after a reputation as one of Canada's best fighters in Major Junior circles. He was recruited to play for the Tri-City Hurricanes in Bay City, Michigan, who later became the Bay County Blizzard after a mid-season sale of the team by original owner Mike Killbreath. MacIntyre led the CEHL in penalty minutes and received a lifetime ban late in the season for his part in a nasty brawl with the Detroit Lightning. Banned by the CEHL, MacIntyre signed with the Muskegon Fury of the UHL and he helped them win the UHL's Colonial Cup as playoff champions.

The CEHL championships were won by the Detroit Lightning, Toledo Jr. Storm and New Jesey's Metro Moose.

The Traverse City Enforcers had the best attendance in the CEHL all three seasons by playing to near capacity crowds every game under the leadership of long-time minor league sports owner Barry Soskin. The Tri-City Hurricanes/Bay County Blizzard had the CEHL's second-best crowds during the first season, but no other CEHL club was ever to do well at the gate with the Junior A level game.

The first CEHL Commissioner was Kevin Shanahan and he was replaced by Gord Young. The CEHL was founded by Shanahan of Fraser, Michigan; Bob Clouston of Troy, Michigan; Barry Soskin of Chicago, Illinois; Mike Killbreath of Grand Blanc, Michigan; Carl Voelker of Fraser, Michigan; Bill Cherfoli of Fraser, Michigan; and Jamie Graves of Fraser, Michigan.

Voelker, Graves and Cherfoli were the owners of the Detroit Lightning, and also Great Lakes Sports Arena in Fraser. Clouston was a long-time owner and General Manager of hockey clubs, including the Port Huron North Americans of Major League Roller Hockey and many Junior A ice hockey teams. Killbreath was a long-time newspaper executive who became involved with Clouston and others in the pro roller hockey ranks. Killbreath was also one of the co-founders of the Great Lakes League in roller hockey with his team at Port Huron's McMorran Arena remaining the only USA club ever to participate in roller hockey's Major Junior version of the OHL. The league continues to play to this day, but Killbreath's Port Huron North Americans played only one season. He launched the Tri-City Hurricanes but sold them at mid-season to concentrate on establishing a CEHL team with Clouston in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Killbreath left the CEHL instead to launch a new low-level pro league known as the International Independent Hockey League (IIHL), which began play in 2003 but ceased operations in 2004.

The CEHL officially suspended play on October 4, 2004. The league caused controversy due to preparing for the 2004-05 season by holding tryouts and charging players to participate. The CEHL folded shortly after Soskin pulled the plug on his club. Soskin resurfaced as operator again in Toledo with the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) club he originally established as one of the most successful in all of minor league hockey under his ownership during the 1990's. Some of the former teams joined other junior hockey leagues while many other franchises folded.

League Champions

• Toledo Jr. Storm (2001-02)
• Detroit Belle Tire Lightning (2002-03)
• Metro Fighting Moose (2003-2004).

Former Players

Using many Canadians on rosters allowed the CEHL to create a strong league. A long list of CEHL players moved on to the minor pro ranks. One ex-CEHL player, Steven MacIntyre was signed by the New York Rangers after two seasons as the most feared fighter in the United Hockey League (UHL). He was recruited to play for the Tri-City Hurricanes in Bay City, Michigan by Owner & General Manager Mike Killbreath and Head Coach Kurt Walson. The Tri-City Hurricanes later became the Bay County Blizzard after a mid-season sale of the team by original owner Mike Killbreath. MacIntyre led the CEHL in penalty minutes and received a lifetime ban late in the season for his part in a nasty brawl with the Detroit Lightning. Banned by the CEHL, MacIntyre signed with the Muskegon Fury of the UHL and he helped them win the UHL's Colonial Cup as playoff champions. He was eventually drafted by the New York Rangers and after spending several seasons in the minor leagues, MacIntyre made the NHL in 2009 with the Edmonton Oilers. He's currently on the roster of the Calgary Flames of the NHL and is one of the top fighters in all of hockey.

Members

Team	Centre	Arena	Tenure	Status
Bay County Blizzard	Bay City, Michigan	Bay County Civic Arena	2001-2002
Detroit Lightning	Fraser, Michigan	Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena	2001-2004
Downriver Lumberjacks	Trenton, Michigan	Kennedy Ice Arena	2001-2002	renamed Brownstown Bombers
Jackson Prowlers	Jackson, Michigan	Jackson Sports Arena	2001-2002
Toledo Storm	Toledo, Ohio	Team Toledo Ice House	2001-2002	renamed Toledo Ice Diggers
Traverse City Enforcers	Traverse City, Michigan	Centre ICE Arena	2001-2004	fold
Brownstown Bombers	Brownstown Township, Michigan	Ice Box Sports Center	2002-2004	suspend operations before league disbands
Dayton Jr. Gems	Dayton, Ohio	Hara Arena	2002-2003	withdrew
Massillon	Massillon, Ohio		2002-2002	announced but don't play
Port Huron Ice Cutters	Port Huron, Michigan	N/A	2002-2002	announced but don't play when can't secure lease at McMorran Place
Toledo Ice Diggers	Toledo, Ohio	Team Toledo Ice House	2002-2003	renamed Toledo Wolf Pack
Utah Wings			2002-2002	announced but don't play
Youngstown Phantom Rockets	Boardman, Ohio	Boardman Ice Zone	2002-2003	withdrew when unable to work travel deal with airline
Metro Fighting Moose	?, New Jersey		2003-2004	relocated to Staten Island, New York; renamed Staten Island Fighting Moose; join Continental Hockey Association
Michigan Stars	Brighton, Michigan	Kensington Valley Ice House	2003-2004
Toledo Wolf Pack	Toledo, Ohio	Team Toledo Ice House	2003-2004	relocated to Findlay, Ohio renamed Findlay Wolfpack
Louisville Storm	Louisville, Kentucky		2003-2003	announced but don't play when arena wasn't ready for season
Findlay Wolfpack	Findlay, Ohio	Clauss Ice Arena	2004-2004	league folds
Staten Island Fighting Moose	Staten Island, New York	Staten Island Skating Pavilion	2004-2004	league folds; join Continental Hockey Association

Seasons

• 2001-02 CEHL Season
• 2002-03 CEHL Season
• 2003-04 CEHL Season