The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is enterting its 36th season in 2011-12. It is currently the only Junior A Tier II league, sanctioned by USA Hockey. The NAHL currently acts as an alternative to the United States Hockey League (USHL). The NAHL is the oldest and largest junior hockey league in the United States.
The league currently consists of five divisions with a total of 28 teams. The teams span the United States from New York in the East to California in the West; from Alaska in the North to Texas in the South. The teams play a 58-game regular season, starting in mid-September and ending in early April. The winner of each division will join the host team of the Robertson Cup Championship Tournament, a six team round-robin event.
From its beginning in 1975, the NAHL was primarily a 6-12 team league based in the Midwest. All that changed in 2003 when the league and the defunct America West Hockey League merged to form a 19-team league, which has since grown to an all-time high of 28 for the 2011-12 season
As of the 2012-2013 season the Soo Eagles of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League will leave the NOJHL and join the NAHL.
Read more about North American Hockey League: Current Teams, Past Teams, League Changes, Robertson Cup Winners
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