Schedules for the 9U-18U Parity event are now up on the website. Updates have been made to the 9U (2014) and 11U (20212) Parity schedules. This event, which is set to take place on April 22-23, 2023, will give teams the opportunity to showcase their abilities prior to the THF seeding every team in the league. With each team playing three 30-minute games, the Parity event provides an excellent opportunity for teams to compete against a range of opponents in a shorter amount of time.
The main goal of the Parity event is to ensure that each team is seeded properly, based on their current level of play. This information will ultimately be used to create a more competitive schedule for each team, minimizing lopsided scores throughout the season.
The schedules for the Parity event can be found on the THF website, specifically on the Parity event page or the Parity tab under Game Center.
The Tri-State Spartans, a regional AAA hockey team based out of Cincinnati, Ohio, are making a major leap in their hockey program. The team has announced that they will be joining the Tier 1 Hockey Federation for the 2023-24 season.
Entering into their 10th season, the Spartans offer a regional AAA option for players at 10U-15U as well as the 18U Black team. The 18U Gold and 16U teams are academy model teams based out of Cincinnati. The program has been able to attract talented players from across Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. Many players have gone on to play at the Junior and College levels.
The team utilizes several facilities across the region, including Goggin Ice Arena at Miami of Ohio, Parkview Ice House, Perry Park Ice Rink, Sports Plus, South Metro, and Thunder Ice Arena at Trine University. The team’s coaching staff is led by head coach Ryan McGinnis and includes Casey Osting, Ron Leef, Iain Fraser, Andrew Kremer, Taylor McConnell, Derek Crouch, and Brett Annetts.
The Spartans have seen notable alumni such as Gavin Morrissey (Minnesota State), Dashel Oliver (Omaha), and Hunter Ramos (Lake Superior State) make their way to the college ranks. Additionally, Cooper Pierson (Denver), Owen West (Des Moines USHL), Klayton Knapp (Cedar Rapids USHL), Ryan Austin (Shreveport NAHL), Adam Shankula (Maryland NAHL), Trayce Johnson (Maryland NAHL), Andrew Stacey (Springfield NAHL), Gage Parillo (Corpus Christi NAHL), and Evan West (Philadelphia) have all gone on to play junior hockey.
Starting in the 2023-24 season, the Spartans will join the Tier 1 Hockey Federation, a highly competitive league that includes some of the best AAA teams in the United States. This move will provide the Spartans with increased exposure and will give their players the opportunity to compete against some of the top talent in the country.
The Tri-State Spartans have come a long way in their 10 years of existence, and joining the Tier 1 Hockey Federation is a significant step forward for this organization. With talented players and a dedicated coaching staff, the Spartans are poised to make some noise in the coming years. Make sure to follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
The Tier 1 Hockey Federation is proud to announce the newest member of their league – the Soo Indians. Hailing from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, the Indians bring with them a Tier 1 18U AAA team for the 2023-2024 season. This news comes as a great achievement for the Soo Indians, who have been working hard to establish themselves as a prominent 18AAA team in Michigan.
The Soo Indians are led by a team of experienced and dedicated coaches, including Jerry Lortie Jr, John Ferroni, and Rick Corbiere, all highly respected figures in the Michigan hockey community. Jerry, a Sault Ste Marie native, has extensive connections in the area and has worked in recruiting, development, and scouting in the Northern Ontario and USA Midwest region. John, born in Ste. Marie, Michigan, played for the Soo Indians as a kid and is now the head coach for the 2022-2023 AAA Soo Indians. Ferroni, who was also the Sault High School Hockey coach from 2011-2018, brings a wealth of experience to the team. Rick, head of player personnel for the Soo Indians, is an assistant coach for the 22-23 AAA Soo Indians. Corbiere worked as an assistant from 1995-2022 before coaching the Northern Michigan Black Bears in the NOJHL. He came back to being an assistant in 2021 for the 18U AAA team.
The Soo Indians have produced two standout alumni – Ryan Miller and Scott Parse – who have significantly impacted the program and left a great legacy behind. Ryan Miller, now with the Buffalo Sabres organization, played at Michigan State. Scott Parse, now with the LA Kings organization, played at Nebraska-Omaha.
As the only Midget AAA team left in the Upper Peninsula, the Soo Indians are proud to be one of the longest-running programs in Michigan. The Indians play out of Taffy Abel Arena on the Campus Lake Superior State and work closely with the Soo Eagles of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League.
Tier 1 Hockey Federation (“THF”) is a USA Hockey Sanctioned Elite Tier-1 Youth Hockey League, managed by full-time professional staff. With over 200 elite or AAA teams from 9U-18U, the THF provides elite-level competition through an unbalanced schedule among Tier 1 and elite clubs across the U.S. Bringing together clubs from multiple leagues and states, the THF is the only organization whose members operate franchises in the top junior hockey leagues in the US for NCAA Division I commitments: USHL, NAHL, NCDC, and the top junior hockey leagues for NCAA Division III commitments, the USPHL Premier Division and the Eastern Hockey League.
The Soo Indians’ acceptance into the THF is a significant achievement, and the team is looking forward to the opportunities that membership in the league will bring. The THF is a highly competitive league, and the Soo Indians will have the chance to compete at the highest level against some of the best teams in the country.
Don’t forget to follow the Soo Indians on Facebook and witness their journey to even greater success in the Tier 1 Hockey Federation.
Be on the lookout as All Season Teams will be announced weekly by divisions. Posting schedule is below
Congratulation to Rockets Hockey Club as their 15U and 16U teams head to the 2023 USA Hockey Nationals the last weekend of March!
The Rockets organization is committed to providing leadership, focus, and the drive to push each player beyond their perceived limitations in order to maximize their abilities and potential as complete hockey players. The organization also places a strong emphasis on skill development, sportsmanship, teamwork, and a thorough understanding of, and appreciation for the sport of hockey.
Tier 1 Hockey Federation is excited to announce the Pittsburgh Predators as a new member for the 2023-2024 season. The Predators play out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at Ice Castle Arena with eight teams including 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 15U, 16U, and 18U. The Pittsburgh Predators are responsible for advancing more than 150 hockey players to Junior A, Major Junior, NCAA Division One and Three, and Professional Hockey, in addition to moving on many more players to various Junior Leagues and Collegiate teams.
The Pittsburgh Predators are led by some of the top coaches in Pennsylvania including Tyler Murovich, Mason Murovich, Nicholas Kuqali, and Gary Klapkowski.
Tyler Murovich played for the Predators as a kid with his brother Mason. Tyler then went on to play in the USHL, and OHL for a couple of years before playing in the ECHL and AHL. He is now coaching the 13 and 14U AAA teams for the Predators. He has a youtube channel called IC Hockey where he posts videos, highlight videos, rink updates, and anything related to hockey.
Mason Murovich played within the NAHL and now coaches and works with his brother. They both play within the ICE 3-on-3 hockey league which was “announced in January 2020. It is a league that sought to capitalize on the kinetic qualities of the NHL’s 3-on-3 overtime format that was adopted in 2015. Initially, the plan was to have eight teams named for different sponsors. That became six teams named for the former NHL players coaching them.” There are different rules than normal hockey games but they love it and are now playing this while helping coach the Predators.
Nicholas Kuqali played at Univ. of Wisconsin-Eau Claire for his four years in college and went on to play in the SPHL, ECHL and internationally in Hungary, Austria and Budapest. He is now the coach for the 14U AAA Predators team.
Gary Klapkowski played within the NAHL, OHL, ECHL and FHL before beginning his coaching career in 2015. He has coached in the NJPHL with the 18U AAA team and now is with the 16 and 18U AAA team.
The Pittsburgh Predators Hockey Club have had a lot of standout alumni within their program. Examples of those are Tyler Murovich, Matt Bartkowski, Vince Trocheck, John Gibson, Alexander Kuqali, Mason Murovich, Logan Cooley, Thomas Olczyk and Eddie Olczyk.
Be sure to follow the Pittsburgh Predators on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Tier 1 Hockey Federation (“THF”) is a USA Hockey Sanctioned Elite Tier-1 Youth Hockey League. The THF provides elite-level competition through an unbalanced schedule among Tier 1 and elite clubs across the U.S. The THF is managed by full-time professional staff and has over 200 elite or AAA teams from 9U-18U. The THF brings together clubs from multiple leagues and states and is the only organization whose members operate franchises in the top junior hockey leagues in the US for NCAA Division I commitments: USHL, NAHL, NCDC, and the top junior hockey leagues for NCAA Division III commitments, the USPHL Premier Division and the Eastern Hockey League.
Tier 1 Hockey Federation has concluded their 2022-2023 regular season with the USPHL Cup. The cup brings the THF South, USPHL North, and THF West conferences together for the season-ending Championship for 15U, 16U, and 18U.
Sunday Recaps:
15U: The Rockets Hockey Club Elite took home the USPHL Cup 15U AAA title after defeating the Jersey Hitmen 3-2. The Hitmen came out strong with the first goal but the Rockets bounced back to tie it up before the start of the second. The Hitmen tried to come back after the Rockets scored two goals in the second but couldn’t after Deryk Jones scored the final goal for the Rockets.
16U: Islander Hockey Club beat the Boston Junior Bruins 4-1 to take home the USPHL 16U AAA Cup. They scored two in the first and then one in the second and third periods. Brock Wakeland scored the game-winning goal for the Islanders. Islander Hockey Club won the game against the Golden Stars Elite on Saturday to advance to the championship game.
18U: The Esmark Stars defeated the Jersey Hitmen for the USPHL 18U AAA Cup on Sunday, March 12. After only one goal in the first and one goal in the second, this game ended in a shootout. Neither team was able to capitalize during overtime and Cole Bianchin took it home for the Stars. Nikita Volski had 5 saves in the shootout to help his team Defeat the Jersey Hitmen.
The USPHL Cup brings the THF South, USPHL North, and THF West conferences together for the season ending Championship this weekend. The following teams will compete in a 3 game round robin with the top 2 teams facing off in the finals.
18U – THF Champions Esmark and Hitmen
16U – THF South Champion, THF West Champion, and 2 USPHL representatives
15U – 2 THF South teams and 2 USPHL representatives
Schedule is posted under the Playoffs tab in Game Center here
Congratulations to Rockets Hockey Club on having their 14U, 15O, and 18U teams advance to the Atlantic Amateur Hockey Association (AAHA) Tier 1 Championships!
3 out of 4 Rocket teams who played in the National Bound Qualifiers last weekend are heading to Championships this weekend at Ice House. The 12U District Championship also takes place this weekend in Hackensack, NJ.
The Rockets organization is committed to providing leadership, focus, and the drive to push each player beyond their perceived limitations in order to maximize their abilities and potential as complete hockey players. The organization also places a strong emphasis on skill development, sportsmanship, teamwork, and a thorough understanding of, and appreciation for the sport of hockey.
Congratulations to our 2023 THF Playoffs Weekend 2 All Tournament Teams! These teams showcase top performers from the past weekend.
10U Major Super 6
James Sanger #10 Woodbridge Wolfpack
Harry Shribman #22 CT Jr Rangers Elite
Ethan Ling #92 CT Jr Rangers Elite
Charlie Gunning #40 CT Jr Rangers Elite
Mark Morav #91 Revolution Elite
G – William Rothman #90 CT Jr Rangers Elite
10U Major Frozen 4
Lucas Timparas #87 Mercer Chiefs
Benjamin Pitman #8 NY Aviators
Anthony Tyler #66 Mercer Chiefs
Rocco Sampogna #16 NY Aviators
Santino Bumbolo #36 Utica Jr. Comets
G – Maximillian Schneider #34 Mercer Chiefs
10U Minor Super 6
Anna Delaura #6 Jersey Hitmen
Robert Mastellone #93 Woodbridge Wolfpack
Noah Maree #97 Woodbridge Wolfpack
Mavrk Bailey #72 Jersey Hitmen
Connor Calli #97 Utica Jr Comets
G – Arabella Dekorte #32 Jersey Hitmen
10U Minor Frozen 4
Brayden Bitely #17 CP Dynamo
Roman Ilyaich #11 NY Aviators
Brody Schulte #87 CT Jr Rangers
Nicholas Tarantino III #22 CT Jr Rangers
Hanley Hauge #7 CP Dynamo
G – Liam Keegan #22 CP Dynamo
12U Major Super 6
Robert Dekleine #34 Rockets Hockey Club
Colin Nigro #2 CT Jr. Rangers
Ryan Barcomb #11 CP Dynamo
Sean Dzhugostran #5 Rockets Hockey Club
Rees Johnston #24 CT Jr. Rangers
G – Justin Madiso #29 Rockets Hockey Club
12U Major Frozen 4
James Mavrides #18 Jersey Hitmen
Cullen Gullott #91 Team Maryland
Ryan Brusch #13 Team Maryland
Michael Monda #20 Jersey Hitmen
Charles Debassio #8 Hartford Jr Wolfpack
G – Brendan Diminni #35 Jersey Hitmen
12U Minor Super 6
Christopher Bruno #17 Mercer Chiefs
Jude Sestito #43 Utica Jr Comets
Patrick Kocik #14 Mercer Chiefs
Brayden Mccree #88 Woodbridge Wolfpack
Alex Wolanski #18 Woodbridge Wolfpack
G – Colton Iannacone #30 Mercer Chiefs
12U Minor Frozen 4
Samuel Herring #3 New Jersey Jets
Cohen Biddle #13 Esmark Stars
Austin Keiper #71 New Jersey Jets
Harshil Pahwa #12 CP Dynamo
Elias Khodadadian #36 NY Aviators
G – Mark Dybas #30 New Jersey Jets