COLLEGE HOCKEY SOUTH (CHS) ANNOUNCED A MAJOR NAME CHANGE AND REBRAND DURING ITS 14TH SEASON IN 2021-22. FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE SOUTH EASTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY CONFERENCE (SECHC), THE LEADERSHIP GROUP ANNOUNCED THE NAME CHANGE FOR THE PURPOSE OF BEING MORE INCLUSIVE TO ALL MEMBER TEAMS DUE TO HALF OF THE MEMBER TEAMS NOT BEING FROM SEC SCHOOLS. 

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THE CHS COMPETED IN ONE DIVISION FOR SCHEDULING PURPOSES IN 2021-22 TO ASSIST TEAMS RETURNING FROM COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS. CHS WILL RETURN TO THE 3-DIVISION FORMAT DURING THE 2022-23 SEASON. 

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The top-8 teams advanced to the CHS Playoffs 4-6 March 2022 at the Huntsville Ice Sports Center-Huntsville, Alabama with The University of Georgia winning their 4th conference championship after an exciting 4-2 win over Florida Atlantic University. 

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The 19 CHS teams prior to the start of the 2022-23 season are Alabama (Joined CHS 2008-09) Conference championships 1 (2011-12) Auburn (Joined CHS: 2010-11), Florida (Joined CHS: 2008-09), Georgia (Joined CHS: 2008-09), Conference Championships 4 (2016, 2017, 2019, 2022) Ole Miss (Joined CHS 2009-09) Conference Championships 1 (2019-20) South Carolina (Joined CHS: 2008-09), Tennessee (Joined CHS: 2008-09), Conference Championships: 1 (2009) and Vanderbilt (Joined CHS: 2008-09). Alabama-Huntsville, Clemson, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kennesaw State, Lynn, and Middle Tennessee State joined in the 2019-20 season. The University of Central Florida, The University of South Florida and The University of Miami joined during the spring of 2022. Beginning in 2021-22, The University of Florida added a second CHS team who will compete as a CHS/CHF D3 program. The University of South Florida will also have a second team competing at the CHS/CHF D3 level. 

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Former CHS member Arkansas (Joined CHS 2008-09) won 6 Conference Championships in 2009-10, 2010-11, 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, and 2017-18. Due to a majority of the CHS teams not being allowed to participate during the 2020-21 season as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the conference canceled the regular season and subsequently canceled the 2020-21 CHS Playoffs.

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In the inaugural year of 2008-2009, eight teams participated in the CHS Playoffs, hosted by the University of Alabama in Pelham, AL. The teams were seeded by their final rankings within the South region, and by their record within the CHS. Tennessee and Georgia met in the first championship game, with Tennessee, coached by Steve Durrigan taking home the inaugural CHS Playoffs Championship. The original members of the CHS reached out to former longtime assistant coach and business manager of Georgia Tech Hockey, Kenny “Sarge” Day to serve as the first CHS commissioner. Prior to his 10-year coaching career at Georgia Tech; Day also served as Co-head coach of the University of California at Davis Aggies (UC-Davis) for two seasons in 1996-97 and 1997-98. Day served as CHS Commissioner for 8-seasons. Former Tennessee Head Coach Steve Durrigan served as CHS commissioner during the 2016-17 season and former commissioner Justin Bradford served as the CHS leader from the 2017-18 season to the start of the current 2021-22 season. During the 2021-22 season, former NHL executive with the NY Rangers and Florida Panthers (and former ECHL executive of the year), Matt Loughran served as acting commissioner until the completion of the 2021-22 season. Kyle Knell, a former standout University of Tennessee hockey player (top 10 leading scorer) was appointed by the CHS board of directors to serve as CHS commissioner for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.   

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The CHS Championship Cup is named for Sarge Day who continues to serve the conference as Commissioner Emeritus, and Director of Hockey Operations. The conference is further served by John Camp as Assistant Commissioner, David Brooks as the CHS Chief Financial Officer, Dr. Ted Curtis (Lynn University) as the conference’s legal advisor and Hana Donnelly serves to update multiple social media platforms such as the CHS website, Facebook and Twitter accounts. 

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As the CHS continues to expand and grow its fan base, teams are seeking out larger and more exciting venues; conference games and the championship playoffs are becoming sought-after events. The CHS has hosted its conference championship playoffs in Pelham, AL at the Pelham Ice Complex; Columbus, GA at the Columbus Civic Center; Huntsville, AL at the former Benton H. Wilcoxon Municipal Ice Complex and at the Ford Ice Centers at both Antioch, TN, and Bellevue, TN respectfully. (Co-sponsored by the Nashville Predators). Additionally, CHS teams play games in exciting areas such as the Bridgestone Arena, Ford Ice Centers, Von Braun Center, Knoxville Coliseum, Mid-South Ice House, the Pavilion, Palm Beach Ice Works, Florida Panthers Ice Den, Advent Health Center Ice, DeSoto Civic Center, Clearwater Ice Arena, Lexington Ice Center, the Savannah Civic Center and soon, the brand new Savannah EnMarket  Arena, among others. In the spring of 2014, The Classic Center Exhibition Hall with seating capacity exceeding 2,000 became the University of Georgia’s new home arena in Athens, GA becoming the first on-campus hockey facility specifically constructed for a CHS hockey program. 

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We are extremely proud of our outstanding student-athletes, coaches, volunteers, interns, family members, club sports and rec sports directors and fans of our 19 member teams.   

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And remember…“You Can’t Step out of Bounds in Hockey!”