While much of the World awaits Y2K with a mix of anticipation and fear the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) eagerly awaits "YD3", the "Year of Division Three".  That's right, at the ACHA National Meeting in Naples, Florida, in May the membership voted unanimously to create a third division in the ACHA.  The need for a third division was apparent, given the growing number of teams at the Division II level (more than 90 teams registered with the ACHA D-II last season) and the growing disparity between the established programs from areas with rich ice hockey traditions and the up and coming programs that are flocking to join the largest collegiate ice hockey organization in North America.

 The purpose of the new ACHA D3 is to provide college students, primarily undergraduate students, from smaller colleges and universities, from geographic regions where ice hockey is a new adventure and from current ACHA D-II programs looking for an environment where they can compete more effectively, with an opportunity to play competitive, organized, college hockey.  The ACHA's goal is to create a Division Three with all of the benefits of the other two divisions, such as membership in the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA), a web page for the reporting of games, statistics and accomplishments of both teams and individuals, five (5) mid-season, regional rankings for comparison of ACHA members and the opportunity for post season play in a Division Three National Tournament.

 How the new Division Three shapes up, however, will in large part be determined by the teams that show an interest and sign on for the upcoming 1999-2000 campaign.  Programs that should consider joining the latest opportunity in college hockey include:

 1. Programs currently competing at the ACHA D-II level, but who have been members of the ACHA for three (3) or fewer years;

 2. Programs that have only recently organized or have never been members of the ACHA;

 3. Programs from institutions located in regions of the country where hockey is new to the area (i.e., the South, the lower Mid-West and South-West);

 4. Programs from institutions with small to lower, mid-sized undergraduate populations (10,000 students or fewer); and

 5. Programs that do not fit comfortably within any of the above four (4) groups, but who feel, for one reason or another, that they should be competing at the D3 level.

 Like all groups or organizations there are going to be criterion that will prevent some programs from inclusion in the new Division Three.  By instituting these selection criterion the ACHA hopes to maintain consistent competitiveness throughout the division, while providing the opportunity for movement to the ACHA D-II , and even the D-I, for programs that can compete at that level.  Some of these criterion which will prevent some programs from inclusion in the D3 ranks are:

 1. Membership at the ACHA Division I level during the season immediately prior to requesting D3 status; and

 2. Participation in the ACHA D-II National Tournament (or an invitation to participate if participation was declined) in any of the three (3) seasons immediately prior to requesting D3 status;

 Additional rules are available by clicking here.  ACHA is encouraging ALL programs who are interested in joining or moving to the ACHA Division Three click here and answer the following questions and either e-mail them to the Division Three Coordinator, Dan Doherty, at <navyhockey@toad.net> or to FAX them to him at (301) 858-0649.
 

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