| Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League | |
| |
| Sport | Ice Hockey |
| Founded | May 2, 2014 |
| No. of teams | 5 |
| Country(ies) |  United States
|
| Most recent champion(s) | Aspen Leafs (2015-16) |
| Most championship(s) | Aspen Leafs (1) |
| Official website | RMJHL.co |
The Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League (RMJHL) is an American junior ice hockey league. It is classified as a Tier III Junior A league by USA Hockey, which now sanction eight leagues at the level. The RMJHL was approved for play starting in the 2015-16 season.
History
The league was announced and sanctioned by USA Hockey on May 2, 2014.[1][2][3] Six teams will play in the inaugural season. The league is scheduled to begin play in the fall of 2015.[4]
2016 Off-season
The league had filed a request with USA Hockey to expand by two teams for 2016-17 with the planned locations being in Vail, Colorado and Pueblo, Colorado. In May of 2016 the league announced an expansion team to be based in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The team announced its' first head coach Misko Antisin was announced as the head coach and general manager. Troy Mick was announced as the president and managing partner of the team. The ownership is the same ownership as the Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the British Columbia Hockey League.
In early May 2016, the Aspen Leafs announced they were changing arenas for the 2016-17 season. The would be moving to the Lewis Arena which is part of the Aspen Recreation Center. The new arena holds over 500 fans and was the team's practice facility for the 2015-16 season.
On May 31, 2016 it was announced the Breckenridge Bucks withdrew from the league to join the Western States Hockey League for the 2016-17 season.
On July 11, 2016 the league announced that a new franchise would be located in Breckenridge, Colorado. The team will be based out of the Stephen C West Ice Arena in Breckenridge; apparently sharing the building with the Bucks franchise. The team is primarily owned by Joe Dibble who is the GM and head coach of the Janesville Jets of the North American Hockey League.
On September 9, 2016 the league announced that the Glacier Yetis would go dormant for the season. The release stated that the team was struggling to recruit players and that the league was not comfortable letting the team go forward for the season. The league stated that they were hopeful that the organization could resume play for 2017-18. For this to occur, the RMJHL bylaws require a formal request with an updated business plan and budget, which is reviewed and voted on by the Board of Directors. “Although we are all very disappointed with this outcome, we hope to see the Glacier Yetis rebound and remain a long-term partner of the RMJHL. We are fully committed to provide the assistance needed to ensure a stable and strong program exists in Grand Junction in 2017-18 and beyond” stated RMJHL President Shaun Hathaway. [5]
In late September the Breckenridge Bears were quietly removed from the league after having their first couple weeks games pushed back in an attempt to save the team. The team was hampered by the head coach quitting claiming he was not being paid and the team's owner being tied up with coaching another team in the league that he owns.
On June 8, 2017 the league announced the addition of another team to be based out of Breckenridge, Colorado. The team will be known as the Breckenridge Bolts and will based out of the Stephen C West Ice Arena.
Member Teams
Former/Inactive Teams
| Team | Location | Home Arena | Played | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breckenridge Bears | Breckenridge, Colorado | Stephen C West Ice Arena | 2016 (Do not play) | Quietly removed from schedule late September 2016 |
| Breckenridge Bucks | Breckenridge, Colorado | Stephen C West Ice Arena | 2015-16 | joined Western States Hockey League |
| Glacier Yetis | Grand Junction, Colorado | Glacier Ice Arena | 2015-16 | Pulled from active play for 2016-17 September 9, 2016 |
note: The Glacier Yetis were originally announced as the Grand Junction Coyotes
Champions
| Year | Champion | Runner Up | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | Aspen Leafs | Pikes Peak Miners | 4-3 (ot) |
| 2016-17 | Pikes Peak Miners | Steamboat Wranglers | 2 games to 1 |
References
- ↑ USA Hockey Tier III Expansion, Daily Report (2 May 2014).
- ↑ Junior Hockey League coming to Aspen ’15-16 (10 June 2014).
- ↑ RMJHL given the Green Light (11 December 2014).
- ↑ Rocky Mtn. Junior Hockey League approved (9 December 2014).
- ↑ RMJHL hopeful Grand Junction will resume play in 2017-18 (9 September 2016).
External links
| This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League (2015-). The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Ice Hockey Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA). |