(October 2011) - Founded in 2003, the Capital Hockey Conference (CHC) is celebrating its 9th season in 2011-12. The conference continues to have 14 members, comprised of 13 Columbus-based schools and Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller.
Last season’s highlight was the first “hat trick” in conference history as 4th year program Olentangy Liberty won the regular season (co-champs), the post season Blue Jackets’ Cup and the District Title, qualifying it for the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Frozen Four.
The Conference has enjoyed great growth, more than tripling since 2002 and mirroring the phenomenal growth in Columbus youth hockey. The last two years have been particularly successful for the CHC as
1) conference members Dublin Coffman (2010) and Olentangy Liberty (2011) advanced to the Ohio Frozen Four
2) Liberty accomplished the “hat trick”, and
3) Dublin Jerome was regular season co-champs in 2010-11 and District runner-ups, losing the District Final to Liberty in double overtime.
This year, the Conference has switched to a three (3) division format based on expected squad size and historical success. The divisions feature:
RED |
WHITE |
BLUE |
| Archbishop Moeller | Gahanna | Bishop Watterson |
| Dublin Coffman | Olentangy | Dublin Scioto |
| Dublin Jerome | Olentangy Orange | St. Francis DeSales |
| Olentangy Liberty | Thomas Worthington | Worthington Kilbourne |
| St. Charles | Upper Arlington |
Teams will play home-and-home against teams in their division, and 1 game against each non-division opponent.
Teams in the Red and White Divisions will play 17 CHC games; schools in Blue Division will play 16.
Moving forward, teams will be reshuffled every year. The winner of the White division will swap divisions with the 5th place Red team. The winner of the Blue division will swap divisions with the 5th place White team.
The post-season Blue Jackets Cup will be formatted as follows:
Championship Division (8) |
Consolation Division (6) |
| #1 Red | #5 Red |
| #2 Red | #4 White |
| #3 Red | #5 White |
| #4 Red | #2 Blue |
| #1 White | #3 Blue |
| #2 White | #4 Blue |
| #3 White | |
| #1 Blue |
A constant in the CHC is the fierce competition among its members. Conference highlights include:
• continued success by Dublin Coffman (3 regular season titles, 3 Blue Jackets Cups and a Frozen Four appearance); Dublin Jerome (1 regular season co-champ; 4 Blue Jackets Cups), Upper Arlington (3 regular season titles), and Olentangy Liberty (2 regular season titles, 1 Blue Jackets’ Cup and a Frozen Four appearance).
• Quick success by Olentangy Liberty, posting a 15-1 record in 2008-09 as a 2nd year team, a regular season championship in 2009-10, and the “hat trick” in 2010-11:
• Upper Arlington reaching the state Frozen Four in 2006 and 2007, followed by Dublin Coffman in 2010, and Olentangy Liberty in 2011.
The 13 Columbus-area schools are: Bishop Watterson, Dublin Coffman, Dublin Jerome, Dublin Scioto, Gahanna Lincoln, Olentangy, Olentangy Liberty, Olentangy Orange, St. Francis DeSales, St. Charles, Thomas Worthington, Upper Arlington and Worthington Kilbourne. Cincinnati is represented by Cincinnati Moeller. The Conference is an outgrowth of the Southwest Ohio High School Hockey League (SWOHSHL), which continues to thrive in the Greater Dayton/Cincinnati area.
Team |
Year team joined CHC |
Year team became OHSAA Varsity |
| Upper Arlington | 2003 *founding member | 1977 |
| Thomas Worthington | 2003 *founding member | 1998 |
| Worthington Kilbourne | 2003 *founding member | 1998 |
| St. Charles | 2003 *founding member | 1999 |
| Dublin Coffman | 2003 *founding member | 2002 |
| Dublin Scioto | 2003 *founding member | 2002 |
| Gahanna Lincoln | 2003 *founding member | 2002 |
| Dublin Jerome | 2004 | 2004 |
| St. Francis DeSales | 2006 | 2006 |
| Olentangy Liberty | 2007 | 2007 |
| Olentangy | 2008 | 2008 |
| Olentangy Orange | 2008 | 2008 |
| Bishop Watterson | 2009 | 2009 |
| Cincinnati Moeller | 2009 | 1982 |
Historically, Upper Arlington is the Conference's oldest OHSAA team, becoming a varsity sport in 1978. In the 1990's, programs began at Thomas Worthington and Worthington Kilbourne (1998), followed shortly thereafter by St. Charles (1999). Teams formerly played in SWOHSHL, then a Columbus-Dayton-Cincinnati league.
In fall 2002, the SWOHSHL experienced rapid growth with the addition of Dublin Coffman, Dublin Scioto, and Gahanna Lincoln. As a result of having 7 teams, those schools banded together to form the CHC in 2003. The Conference then added Dublin Jerome in 2004 and St. Francis DeSales in 2006, Olentangy Liberty in 2007, Olentangy and Olentangy Orange in 2008, and Bishop Watterson and Archbishop Moeller in 2009.
The Conference has also been part of an OHSAA shift to Columbus, the home of the NHL Columbus Blue Jackets. Originally, Columbus-based teams were sent to their regional tournament at Bowling Green or Toledo. The tournament then moved to Troy, Ohio. Finally, in 2006, the Regional Tournament was moved to the Blue Jackets' practice facility, the Dispatch Ice Haus in Columbus, and remains there. The Ice Haus is also the site of the annual Blue Jackets Cup Tournament.
The highlight of the Regional Tournament's move to Columbus has been the Regional Final, consistently played before SRO overflow crowds.
The Conference and its teams have a rich history of success. Olentangy Liberty (2011), Dublin Coffman (2010), Upper Arlington (2006, 2007), and Thomas Worthington (2003) have made Frozen Four appearances.
The CHC also has great depth in coaching, as head coaches Jay Graham (Upper Arlington) played NCAA Division I hockey for The Ohio State University; Jack Hoogeveen (Olentangy Liberty) played for Bowling Green University; and Pat Murphy (Dublin Jerome) played at Hamilton College and professionally in Europe.
The Conference in 2011-12 welcomes Eric Park as the new head coach at Dublin Coffman. Eric, who played in the North American and American Frontier Hockey Leagues, and coached in the Central States League, succeeds Perry Pooley, former Ohio State All-American and Coffman’s coach for the first nine (9) years of the program.
The Conference also congratulates Dublin Coffman, Dublin Scioto and Gahanna on their 10th Seasons as OHSAA Varsity squads.
League Contacts |
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inquiries should be directed as follows |
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| Adam Smith Commissioner - (Scheduling, Hockey issues) |
614-223-8800 | asmith@kaynelaw.com |
| Greg Kirstein Commissioner - (Referees, OHSAA/CBJ Liason) |
614-246-4052 | gkirstein@bluejackets.com |
| Bruce McClary Asst. Commissioner - (Treasury) |
614-729-5400 | bruce.mcclary@alliancedata.com |
| Scott Sharkey Asst. Commissioner - (Website) |
614-313-6063 | ssharkey@lanshark.com |
| Gary Wilkins Asst. Commissioner / Head Referee |
740-965-5004 | gary.wilkins@mt.com |
| Chris Kahn JV Commissioner |
614-832-3647 | ckhan@dublinhockey.org |
| Doug Cathis JV Assistant Commissioner - (Website) |
614-266-8988 | dcat@dublinhockey.org |
| Joel Siegman Blue Jackets Cup Director |
614-246-4158 | jsiegman@bluejackets.com |
| JD Kershaw (ex-officio) Columbus Blue Jackets Director of Marketing |
614-246-4159 | jkershaw@bluejackets.com |
Previous Varsity Champions |
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| Season | Regular Season Champ. | CBJ Cup Champ. |
| 2010-11 | Olentangy Liberty / Dublin Jerome |
Olentangy Liberty |
| 2009-10 | Olentangy Liberty | Dublin Jerome |
| 2008-09 | Dublin Coffman | Dublin Coffman |
| 2007-08 | Dublin Coffman | Dublin Jerome |
| 2006-07 | Upper Arlington | Dublin Jerome |
| 2005-06 | Upper Arlington | Dublin Jerome |
| 2004-05 | Dublin Coffman | Dublin Coffman |
| 2003-04 | Upper Arlington | Dublin Coffman |
| 2002-03 | Thomas Worthington | |
| 2001-02 | Thomas Worthington | |
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