NCAA vote to be made in November

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We'll have to wait another few weeks for the NCAA's decision on Canadian Hockey League player eligibility.

The NCAA announced Tuesday evening that the proposed rule change will be considered during a meeting next month. If approved, CHL players – who the NCAA currently considers to be professionals – would become eligible for college hockey beginning Aug. 1, 2025.

Here's the NCAA's statement on the proposal:

The Division I Council on Tuesday introduced a proposal to change rules for preenrollment activities in men's ice hockey and skiing, which would enable prospects who participate in major junior ice hockey or on professional teams to retain NCAA eligibility as long as they are not paid more than actual and necessary expenses as part of that participation.

The introduction of the legislation is not final until the council's meeting concludes Wednesday.

"As the council continues its review of the full spectrum of NCAA eligibility rules, this proposal, focused on a singular issue, represents a pragmatic step in aligning skiing and men's ice hockey with other sports in terms of allowable preenrollment activities," said Josh Whitman, athletics director at Illinois and chair of the council.

The proposal will be considered during the council's November meeting. If approved, the proposed effective date would be Aug. 1, 2025.

There was a chance the proposal was going to be looked at this week but pushing it a month doesn't change much. Most believed CHL players would not become eligible until next season at the earliest.

College hockey teams are already preparing for the rule change, which could dramatically shift the hockey development ecosystem.

Regarding the impending CHL-NCAA news: Not only are schools already calling agents to gauge interest on their young clients, they're also calling CHL teams right now to get phone numbers for kids.

— Ryan Kennedy (@THNRyanKennedy) October 8, 2024

It will be interesting to see how the CHL responds to these changes. In public, league officials have endorsed the idea of giving players as many options as possible. Behind the scenes, there are no doubt concerns over losing elite talent early. We'll see how this all shakes down.