The 2017–18 NCDC season was the inaugural season of the National Collegiate Development Conference (NCDC) Division of the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL). The regular season ran from September 2018 to March 2019 with a 50-game schedule. The Islanders Hockey Club won the regular season championship and went on to defeated the New Jersey Hitmen 2 games to 1 to capture the Dineen Cup.
Foundation In October of 2016, the USPHL announced that they had applied to USA Hockey for approval to add a Tier II junior league beginning with the 2017–18 season. Two months later, the petition was denied. Instead of ending their plans, the USPHL withdrew from USA Hockey oversight and organized the National Collegiate Development Conference. Once the league was formally established, the USPHL allowed any of their franchises to join the Tier II level or establish separate franchises and play in multiple divisions. The Connecticut Jr. Rangers, Islanders Hockey Club, New Jersey Hitmen, South Shore Kings and Syracuse Stars each founded new Tier II clubs. The Boston Junior Bruins and P.A.L. Jr. Islanders both promoted their Premier Division clubs to the NCDC. The Rochester Monarchs also joined from the Elite Division.
In addition to the internal changes, the USPHL also added the Boston Bandits, New Jersey Rockets and Northern Cyclones from the Eastern Hockey League.
Regular season
The standings at the end of the regular season were as follows:
Note: x = clinched playoff berth; y = clinched regular season title Standings Team xy – Islanders Hockey Club 50473094254107 x – Boston Junior Bruins 503611375186129 x – New Jersey Hitmen 503415169207127 x – South Shore Kings 502916563175165 x – Connecticut Jr. Rangers 502720357174155 x – Northern Cyclones 502421553165162 x – Syracuse Stars 501922947150199 x – Boston Bandits 502026444154175 P.A.L. Jr. Islanders 501927442142170 Rochester Monarchs 501430634109169 New Jersey Rockets 5064221496253
Dineen Cup playoffs At the conclusion of the regular season, the playoff matches were set. However, prior to the start of the postseason, the remainder of the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
References
General reference
External links Official website of the National Collegiate Development Conference