GOJHL Continues Pursuit Of ‘Junior A’ Tag

The Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL) will make its case, again, this month to earn Junior A classification from the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA).

The OHA has turned down requests from the GOJHL in recent years for Junior A classification, and also turned down a proposal by multiple GOJHL teams to join the Junior A OJHL.

The OJHL is the Southernmost Tier II Junior A league governed by Hockey Canada in Ontario, a Province which includes several “A” loops including the OJHL, NOJHL, SIJHL, and CCHL.

Many hockey scouts and observers would argue the level of play in the GOJHL is on par, if not better than a large portion of teams and leagues already classified as Junior A in Ontario.

Perhaps one of the largest cases for the GOJHL in 2016 was the selection of Leamington Flyers goaltender Tyler Wall by the NHL’s New York Rangers in the 2016 NHL Draft. This distinction puts the GOJHL in line with the CCHL and OJHL, who both had players selected.

For many, the GOJHL far surpasses the majority of teams in the NOJHL and SIJHL in calibre.

The Chatham Maroons are Chatham-Kent’s only member of the GOJHL. Chatham lost multiple players this season to Junior A teams.