skip navigation

Short Shifts: 2024-25 EHL Season Preview

By Anthony Di Paolo, 09/18/24, 9:00AM EDT

Share

The Puck Drops Tomorrow in the EHL, Friday in the EHLP

BOSTON, MA -- We are days away from the start of the 2024-25 Eastern Hockey League (EHL) season.

After a lengthy off-season, the EHL will soon begin its 12th season while the Eastern Hockey League Premier (EHLP) Division will start its 10th season. As the games get underway this weekend, here is the first 'Short Shifts' of the season and a look at some key storylines and players to watch.

A League Stronger Than Ever

  • The offseason was a chaotic and tumultuous one for the EHL, but the league is back, Stronger Than Ever.
     
  • Coming into the 24-25 season, 21 teams will be competing in the EHL, while 16 teams are in the EHLP.
     
  • The EHL will have four divisions; the East will have six teams while the North, Central, and South have five each. The EHLP will have three divisions; the North and East Divisions have five teams each, while the South has six.
     
  • New teams include the Boston Jr. Eagles, the Boston Dukes, and the Connecticut Nor’Easter.
     
  • With the league’s new look, it will be interesting to see which teams will come out of the gate strong.

Starting Up in the North

  • The New Hampshire Avalanche kept up their streak of making the Frozen Finals last year. In a crowded North Division, the Avs will look to continue their dominance with returning players such as defenseman Ryan Dann, and forwards AJ Guzzardi and Jake Hines among others.
     
  • The New England Wolves also have a plethora of players returning; defenseman Marek Herda will be back for his third season, and last year he put up 19 points (8g, 11a) in 45 games. Cam Reardon, who led the EHL with over 1,200 saves last year will backstop the Wolves again in 24-25.
     
  • Harrison Kramer, who put up 38 goals and 70 points last year in the EHLP will also be a player to watch for the Wolves’ EHL team this year.
     
  • The Valley Jr. Warriors also have some players coming up from the Premier Division who will look to make an impact. Owen Walsh had 39 points (17g, 22a) in 35 games last year, while Colin Chrisom put up 30 points. They were both vital to Valley’s excellent EHLP offense last year and will look to make an impact with the EHL.
     
  • Last season, the Vermont Lumberjacks made a late-season push, but fell just short of the playoffs. As they look to bounce back, they could have one of the stronger tandems in goal with Cam Wickens, who went 16-14-1 with a .926 save percentage last year, and 2024 EHLP champion Christopher Gingras.

Beasts in the East?

  • The East Division was by far the strongest in the 23-24 campaign; three different teams finished with a points percentage over .600. The question is, can they keep that going from last year?
     
  • Last season, the Express finished with the best record in the division. Hudson Perry, who notched 33 points (17g, 16a) last season, and will return to the team as the Express will try to replicate last year’s success.
     
  • The East Coast Wizards turned a lot of heads last season, and they’ll have players like J.J. Alger and Daxton St. Hillaire leading the offensive attack for the 24-25 season. Charles Lowndes, who had 20 points from the blue line last year, will also be back for the Wizards.
     
  • The Boston Jr. Terriers had a solid first season in the EHL last year, going 22-20-4. Kenny Thurston and Joey Pankowski are some notable returners as the Terriers look for an even better sophomore campaign.

A Wide-Open Central Division

  • One of the most interesting stories coming into the 24-25 season is the Central Division. This year it is completely up for grabs.
     
  • New York Apple Core had a Cinderella season by going 34-11-1, but fell short of a Frozen Finals appearance. This year’s roster is completely new with the exception of forward Tyler Gobel, and former New Jersey 87’s EHLP coach Conall McNelis will man the bench in Brewster.
     
  • The Providence Capitals, who ditched the Hockey Club moniker this season, will try to build off their 20-win inaugural season. Their leading scorer from a year ago, Deaglan Kelly, will return and look to do some damage in his age-out season.
     
  • H.C. Rhode Island wasn’t far behind their new intra-state rival last season. This year’s roster looks fresh, but goaltender Clayton Elsbree could have a big season. He seemed to fly a bit under the radar last year, going 11-9-1 with a .915 save percentage, and a strong sophomore season could bode well for the Rhode Island squad.
     
  • The Connecticut RoughRiders and Nor’Easter round out the Central Division; both teams from the Nutmeg State have faced some ups and downs over the last few seasons, but have also maintained consistent NCAA Commitment numbers along the way. Perhaps one of them could take a big advantage of the new-look division this year.

Chaos in the South

  • Over the last few seasons, the South Division has shown to be the tightest with every team hovering right around the .500 mark.
     
  • The Little Flyers had a remarkable run last season, going from the play-in game to the Frozen Finals. Christian Kinsler, who had 26 points (11g, 15a) in 25 games last season, will return to lead the offense. Defenseman Cyril Jebousek will be back for his third EHL season and second with the Little Flyers.
     
  • Last year the New Jersey Bears finished with the number one seed; they’ll have the Kondrashov brothers, Artem and Artur, back to lead the team. They also have the Benkovitz brothers, Christopher and Michael, who were both part of Apple Core’s incredible 23-24 season.
     
  • The New Jersey 87’s finished second in the South last year and played a defense-first style of hockey that resulted in low-scoring games. That could turn on its head this year with a much younger squad, and returning players such as Aidan Lasky, Alex Haar, and Nikita Sobolev will lead the offensive attack.
     
  • Philadelphia Hockey Club and the Pennsylvania Huntsmen finished fifth and sixth in the Division respectively last year. That could change as both teams will each return with a veteran-heavy roster.
     
  • Connor Movalli is back for another season, he put up 18 goals and 26 points in just 25 games for PHC last year.
     
  • The Huntsmen, who fell just short of the playoffs in their first EHL season, will see four of their top five scorers from last year returning; Damon Warren, John Manzi and the Hellyer brothers, Liam and Aidan, will all be back for the 24-25 campaign.

Around the EHLP

  • Two EHL programs are adding a Premier team this season; the Providence Capitals and New Jersey Bears will now have teams in both divisions.
     
  • The East Division will be up for grabs, and an early favorite is the Express Hockey Club. Last year, they went 29-10-2 and put up 182 goals.
     
  • Meanwhile up in the North, the Adirondack Jr. Thunder had a great second season by going 28-8-6. The question is, can they finally take that next step and make it to the Frozen Finals this year?
     
  • The New Jersey 87’s reached the Frozen Finals for the third time in four seasons at the EHLP level. Between the Bears coming into the EHLP and the Huntsmen building off two strong seasons, will the South Division be as tight as its EHL counterpart?

Watch Live on FloHockey

The first games will begin on Thursday, with three EHL games all starting at noon.

All EHL and EHLP games will be streamed live, all season long, on FloHockey.

Comments