5 Alberta junior hockey teams joining BCHL in 2024-25, league announces
![BCHL leaves Hockey Canada BCHL leaves Hockey Canada](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2023/5/1/bchl-leaves-hockey-canada-1-6379544-1682992812084.jpg)
The British Columbia Hockey League will be adding five Alberta-based teams for its 2024-25 season.
The league, which broke away from BC Hockey and Hockey Canada last year, announced Saturday that it has come to terms with the Blackfalds Bulldogs, Brooks Bandits, Okotoks Oilers, Sherwood Park Crusaders and Spruce Grove Saints, all of which currently play in the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
As of Saturday, the Bandits, Crusaders, Oilers and Bulldogs were the top four teams in the AJHL standings, in that order.
"Further information, such as league structure, will be announced in the coming weeks," the BCHL said in its statement, adding that it would not be making any further comments on the situation "until more information is available."
Currently, the BCHL consists of 17 teams separated into Interior and Coastal divisions.
All of the league's franchises began operating outside Hockey Canada's system on June 1, 2023.
At the time, the BCHL said the move would allow its teams to recruit 16- and 17-year-olds from other provinces, which is currently against Hockey Canada regulations.
The league said that would allow players without a competitive junior A option in their own provinces to remain in Canada while maintaining their NCAA availability.
Hockey Canada rules state that players looking to play junior A hockey must do so in their own province.
That rule does not apply to the major junior teams under the Canadian Hockey League umbrella, but CHL players are ineligible from participating in NCAA hockey. The NCAA considers the CHL to be a professional league because it includes players that have signed NHL contracts.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6945600.1719608806!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
'We need new leadership': Liberal MP writes to caucus, says Justin Trudeau should resign
A sitting Liberal MP has written to the federal caucus to say he thinks Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should resign. 'For the future of our party and for the good of our country we need new leadership and a new direction,' said New Brunswick MP Wayne Long in the brief note.
WestJet warns of travel disruption as mechanics union opts to 'continue with strike action'
WestJet says it is 'outraged' after its airline maintenance engineers went ahead with their previously threatened strike on Friday evening.
Minivan slams into a Long Island nail salon, killing 4 and injuring 9, fire official says
A minivan slammed into a Long Island nail salon Friday, killing four people and injuring 9, a Suffolk County fire official said.
Ontario MPP removed from PC caucus over 'serious lapses in judgment'
Premier Doug Ford has removed a member of his caucus due to what he’s describing as 'serious lapses in judgment.' In a statement released Friday morning, the premier’s office said MPP Goldie Ghamari had been removed from the Progressive Conservative caucus 'effective immediately.'
Martin Mull, hip comic and actor from 'Fernwood Tonight' and 'Roseanne,' dies at 80
Martin Mull, whose droll, esoteric comedy and acting made him a hip sensation in the 1970s and later a beloved guest star on sitcoms including 'Roseanne' and 'Arrested Development,' has died, his daughter said Friday.
Lt.-Gen. Jennie Carignan to become first woman to lead Canadian Armed Forces
Lt.-Gen. Jennie Carignan will be named Canada's new Chief of the Defence Staff, CTV News has learned, making her the first woman to lead the Canadian Armed Forces.
Multivitamins don't help you live longer, study suggests
Millions of people who take multivitamins everyday may not be reaping the perceived health benefits, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Is marriage harder than it was 10 years ago? Why one psychologist thinks so
Marriage might be the oldest institution in the world, but it's struggling to adapt to the pressures of modern life. Registered psychologist Adisa Azubuike explains why it's more difficult today.
Five survivors from Sudbury, Ont., rescued in human trafficking investigation
Six people have been charged in a provincial human trafficking investigation that identified five survivors from Greater Sudbury.