The Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL) is an American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division I level ice hockey league. The GLCHL is made up of nine schools, including one in Indiana, one in Illinois, and seven in Michigan.
 | |
| Conference | ACHA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010 |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Division | Division I |
| No. of teams | 9 |
| Region | Great Lakes |
| Most recent champion(s) | Grand Valley State Lakers (1st title) |
| Most titles | Adrian Bulldogs (7 titles) |
| Official website | Official website |
History
The league was announced in late 2009 and began play in the Fall of 2010 with six member teams, all located within the state of Michigan.[1] Eastern Michigan, Michigan-Dearborn and Western Michigan all joined the league after competing as members of the Central States Collegiate Hockey League. Oakland and Adrian College previously competed as ACHA Division 1 Independents. Davenport joined after making the transition from ACHA Division 2 to Division 1.[1] In 2012, Kent State announced they would move from the CSCHL to the league beginning in the 2012-13 season. Indiana Tech and Rochester College joined the league in the 2015-16 season. Before the 2017-18 season Indiana Tech left to join the newly formed NAIA Division. Calvin College moved up from ACHA Division 3 to fill the spot left by Indiana Tech. In 2019, Rochester and Michigan-Dearborn left the conference after the NAIA Division consolidated into the Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC), the all-sport conference for both RU and UMD.[2] In recent years, though, the league has been able to supplement its membership with programs making the transition from ACHA D2 to D1, adding Grand Valley State for the 2020-2021 season,[3] and Purdue University Northwest for the 2022-2023 season.[4]
Adrian College has won the most regular season and playoff titles with seven regular season and five playoff titles.
Format
The conference plays a 16-game league schedule, two games against each team—home team alternates each season. In addition team schedules will include other ACHA Division I opponents. The GLCHL holds a league championship tournament at the end of the regular season in February.[5]
Member schools
Current members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Team Nickname | Primary conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adrian College | Adrian, MI | 1859 | Private/Methodist | 1,800 | Bulldogs | MIAA (D-III) |
| Calvin University | Grand Rapids, MI | 1876 | Private | 3,918 | Knights | MIAA (D-III) |
| Davenport University | Grand Rapids, MI | 1866 | Private | 12,471 | Panthers | GLIAC (D-II) |
| Eastern Michigan University | Ypsilanti, MI | 1849 | Public | 22,974 | Eagles | Mid-American (D-I) |
| Grand Valley State University | Allendale, MI | 1960 | Public | 24,406 | Lakers | GLIAC (D-II) |
| Oakland University | Rochester, MI | 1957 | Public | 20,169 | Golden Grizzlies | Horizon League (D-I) |
| Purdue University Northwest[6] | Hammond, IN | 2016 | Public | 9,363 | Pride | GLIAC (D-II) |
| Roosevelt University | Chicago, IL | 1945 | Private | 6,391 | Lakers | CCAC (NAIA) |
| Western Michigan University | Kalamazoo, MI | 1903 | Public | 24,576 | Broncos | Mid-American (D-I) |
Note: Adrian has NCAA Division III hockey competing in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association. Western Michigan has NCAA Division I hockey competing in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.
Former members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Nickname | Joined | Left | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana Institute of Technology | Fort Wayne, Indiana | 1930 | Private/Nonsectarian | Warriors | 2010 | 2017 | Wolverine–Hoosier (NAIA) |
| University of Michigan–Dearborn | Dearborn, MI | 1959 | Public | Wolverines | 2010 | 2019 | Wolverine–Hoosier (NAIA) |
| Rochester College | Rochester Hills, MI | 1959 | Private | Warriors | 2015 | 2019 | Wolverine–Hoosier (NAIA) |
| Kent State University | Kent, OH | 1910 | Public | Golden Flashes | 2012 | 2020 | Mid-American (D-I) |
Conference arenas
| School | Hockey Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Adrian | Arrington Ice Arena | 500 |
| Calvin | Eagles Ice Center | |
| Davenport | Patterson Ice Center | 1,200 |
| Eastern Michigan | Ann Arbor Ice Cube | 1,000 |
| Grand Valley State | Griff's Georgetown | |
| Oakland | Onyx Rochester Ice Arena | 750 |
| Purdue Northwest | Kube Sports Complex | |
| Roosevelt | Edge Ice Arena | 3,000 |
| Western Michigan | Wings West Arena | 1,000 |
Past champions
| Regular season | Tournament | Tournament site | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Adrian College[7] | Oakland[8] | The Peak Ice Arena, Romulus, Michigan |
| 2012 | Oakland[9] | Adrian College[10] | Arrington Ice Arena, Adrian, Michigan |
| 2013 | Adrian College | Davenport | Patterson Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2014 | Adrian College | Adrian College | ONYX Ice Arena, Rochester, MI |
| 2015 | Adrian College | Adrian College | The Rink, Battle Creek, MI |
| 2016 | Davenport | University of Michigan-Dearborn | University of Michigan-Dearborn Fieldhouse, Dearborn, MI |
| 2017 | Adrian College | University of Michigan-Dearborn | KSU Ice Arena, Kent, OH |
| 2018 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Ann Arbor Ice Cube, Ann Arbor, MI |
| 2019 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Arrington Ice Arena, Adrian, MI |
| 2020 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Patterson Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2021 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Griff's Georgetown, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2022 | Adrian College | Grand Valley State | Griff's Georgetown, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2023 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Eagles Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
National tournament results
- 2011: #2 Davenport won the 2011 ACHA Men's DI National Championship defeating #1 Lindenwood 3-2 in overtime; #4 Adrian defeated 4-5 in 2ot by #5 Delaware in Quarter-final Round; #11 Oakland defeated 2-6 by #3 Ohio in Quarter-final Round.[11]
- 2018: #2 ranked Adrian College won the ACHA Men's Div. I National Championship against #5 Illinois, defeating them 8-1.