Lawsuit challenging NCAA's ban of Canadian Hockey League players could upend college hockey

London Knights goalie Michael Simpson stops a shot by Saginaw Spirit's Alex Christopoulos during Memorial Cup hockey action in Saginaw, Mich., on May 29, 2024. (Duane Burleson/The Canadian Press)

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The NCAA was accused of boycotting Canadian Hockey League players from Division I competition in a class-action lawsuit filed on Tuesday that, if successful, could end college hockey’s longstanding ban on players deemed to be professionals.

The implications of the lawsuit could be far-reaching. If successful, the case could increase competition for college-age talent between North America's two top producers of NHL draft-eligible players. And it has the potential of creating a talent drain among the CHL’s three associations — the Ontario, Quebec Major Junior and Western hockey leagues — which could lose players at the junior prime age of 18 to the college ranks.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Buffalo, N.Y., on behalf of Rylan Masterson by the New York City firm of Freedman Normand Friedland. Masterson, of Fort Erie, Ontario, lost his college eligibility two years ago when, at 16, he appeared in two exhibition games for the OHL's Windsor Spitfires.

The CHL's three associations are categorized as professional leagues under NCAA bylaws, barring their players from competition.

CHL players receive a stipend of no more than $600 per month for living expenses, which is not considered as income for tax purposes. College players receive scholarships and now can earn money through endorsements and other use of their name, image and likeness (NIL).

The suit lists 10 Division 1 schools, including the three closest to Fort Erie: Canisius, Niagara and the Rochester Institute of Technology. Other schools named range from Denver to Boston College. They were selected to show they follow the NCAA’s bylaws in barring current or former CHL players.

The NCAA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Atlantic Hockey commissioner Michelle Morgan, whose league represents the three western New York schools, declined to comment, telling The Associated Press she was seeking more information.

CHL spokesman Christopher Seguin declined comment.The lawsuit cites news articles in alleging that the NCAA has maintained its boycott by forcing players as young as 16 to make decisions about their future, deterring them from joining the CHL. Another concern is that the NCAA bylaws suppress compensation for players by preventing competition between the CHL and NCAA for top-end talent.

The lawsuit suggests that lifting the ban would likely result in CHL teams increasing compensation to players in a bid to retain them.

The suit notes that NCAA bylaws allow the participation of professionals with the exception of men’s ice hockey and skiing. It also points out that players who competed professionally in Europe don't face the same restrictions, citing Boston University’s Tom Willander, who appeared in two Swedish Elite League games last year.

The lawsuit argues Masterson and the class have “suffered injury the type the antitrust laws were intended to prevent” and calls the NCAA’s conduct “unlawful.”

The attorneys are asking a judge to certify the members of the class, which would include anyone who played in the CHL or for a Division I school since Aug. 12, 2020.

Such legal action was considered inevitable by many in college hockey circles, especially after the NCAA determined in a 2023 review of its bylaws that its the rule barring CHL players was vulnerable to a legal challenge.

According to the lawsuit, NCAA hockey coaches chose in May not to vote on whether to retain the bylaws, but instead decided to form a committee to monitor potential legal challenges.