All over the map: you won't see action in NHL arenas soon, but there's still plenty of hockey being played in North America. You just have to know where to find it

Sporting News, The, Nov 1, 2004 by Kara Yorio

Looking for hockey on the road or on the Internet? In search of a good game in your area, a road trip or the best stories to follow while the NHL tells its sorry tale? You have come to the right place. We'll start with the top minor league in North America and work our way around the continent in no particular order.

American Hockey League

This is where fans can find their favorite young , NHLers, such as Panthers defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, who is playing for the San Antonio Rampage. It wasn't two months ago that Bouwmeester was on the Team Canada roster that won the World Cup. Now he's in the AHL, a league he was too good to play in on his way to the NHL. Before now, the third overall pick in 2002 had played only two games in the AHL--and those were to rehab an injury.

Bouwmeester won't be lonely at his new home--in San Antonio or the AHL. Panthers teammates Nathan Horton and Stephen Weiss also are playing for the Rampage. Elsewhere, young NHL stars are dotting the AHL map.

Senators center Jason Spezza is playing in Binghamton, N.Y., Hurricanes center Eric Staal is in Lowell, Mass., and the Penguins' Marc-Andre Fleury is in net for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pa.). Devils center prospect Zach Parise, who was expected to earn a spot on the NHL team this season, will show River Rats fans in Albany, N.Y., whether New Jersey really made a steal when it selected him 17th overall in the 2003 draft.

This influx of NHL talent should be fun for fans in AHL cities, but it isn't all good. There is only so much these players can get from competing at a lower level, and there are developing players whose growth will be slowed because their minutes will go to an NHL player. Organizational development could suffer because of this lockout.

But that's a concern for the future. In the present, the level of AHL play will rise, and the intensity will be up as minor leaguers try to prove they can play with and against the players who already have made it.

United States Hockey League

For years, young American players didn't have much of a choice. They could go to one of the Canadian major junior leagues or stay in high school in the United States, which didn't have a top-level junior league. But that's not the case anymore. In August 2002, the USHL was classified as a Tier 1 junior league, the only one in the United States. A Tier 1 classification requires a certain level of coaching, facilities, education and off-ice support. It means proper development and has made the USHL a major player in junior hockey. At the end of last season, the NHL's Central Scouting ranked more players from the USHL than the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. This American developmental league is now churning out and taking in NHL draft picks.

Players can play for the USHL and retain college eligibility, and most players go on to college after a season; the league has a 65 percent turnover rate. Brian Rafalski, Ruslan Fedotenko, Shjon Podein and Ty Conklin are alumni of the league, which is becoming a stop for big-time prospects. This season, Coyotes prospect Blake Wheeler, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2004 draft, is playing for Green Bay. He plans to attend the University of Minnesota next year.

There are some great players and future NHLers skating in college arenas. Now is a good time to check them out. As with the USHL, Division I teams are good places to find players and follow them to their NHL dreams.

Boston College, North Dakota, Michigan, Minnesota, Minnesota-Duluth, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Maine are among the top schools this season, and the defending national champion, the University of Denver, is strong enough to repeat. Boston College's roster includes forward Patrick Eaves, a first-round pick by the Senators in 2003. Michigan has Rangers goaltender prospect Al Montoya, the sixth overall pick in June, and 2003 Kings first-round pick Jeff Tambellini, a winger.

Regional rivalries, particularly in the Northeast and Midwest, always are good for high-intensity games. The first two Mondays of February are the best time to be a college hockey fan in Boston. The Beanpot tournament, involving Boston College, Boston University, Harvard and Northeastern, takes over the Fleet Center and takes rivalry and intensity to high levels. For teams not harboring national championship hopes, the season highlight is ruining a rival's Beanpot.

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League

The QMJHL has a lot of future NHL players but only one superstar-in-waiting. Center Sidney Crosby of Rimouski Oceanic, who is expected to go No. 1 in the next NHL draft, is a scoring machine and will own most of the spotlight this season. His play demands new adjectives to describe the passes he makes and the vision he displays. Now, if his teammates could only convert some of his magic ...

The comparison of Crosby to Wayne Gretzky--which also is made by Gretzky himself--is well-known. Wouldn't you like to say you saw him when?

Ontario Hockey League

The London Knights, led by centers Robbie Schremp and David Bolland and right winger Corey Perry, are expected to be the best team this season. Schremp dropped to the 25th spot in the first round, where he was selected by the Oilers, because of concerns about his attitude. Bolland, a player in the Blackhawks' organization, is a goal scorer who gets the job done by being smart, not slick. And Perry, a first-round pick by the Mighty Ducks in 2003, is a playmaker who has skill and size.