Stay cool in Columbus this summer with the Cap City Elite Hockey League

The Stanley Cup has been awarded, the entry draft has come and gone and free agency has all but wrapped up. Welcome to mid-July, the dog days of summer as well as the hockey offseason.

Don’t get me wrong, I love summer, but I might love hockey a little bit more, so the months without hockey tend to drag on a bit. If you’re anything like me, and really craving a hockey fix mid-summer, look no further than the newly formed Cap City Summer Elite League.

The league features four teams with a mix of local talent ranging from current and former Blue Jackets, NHL/AHL/ECHL veterans, and a bunch of NCAA players with Ohio State very well represented. League rules state that a player must have played at least a year of junior hockey to qualify.

In its infancy still, the league saw game action for the first time on Tuesday at Chiller North in Lewis Center. Games are scheduled to run every week until the end of August. Cam Atkinson scored the inaugural goal of the league as captain of the Battery team.

The goal is to present a fun, skilled brand of hockey showcasing the talent in the community, while also making it accessible to all by streaming all games and providing free admission.

Rules

The CCSEL is a non-checking, non-contact league that will abide by current NHL rules – for the most part. The games are divided into two 25-minute halves with a running clock, only using stop time in the last two minutes of each half. Pucks into the netting are still considered live, so the games will have a good pace to them.

Games started as 3v3 while players were still arriving into town, but will grow until they reach full 5v5 games once the season is in full swing.

More interesting is how penalties will be handled. Any penalty will result in a “jailbreak” penalty shot, meaning the player on the receiving end of the penalty will take the shot, and all other players line up on the opposite blue line. Once the shooter touches the puck, play is live, and if no goal is scored, the puck is back in play and rebound goals can be scored.

My favorite rule is the “Money Puck Red Light” that allows each team to flip on a light located on the bench for a full two minutes, giving them the chance to score up to two goals that will be worth double.

Teams

As mentioned earlier there are currently four teams in the league, all named after league sponsors:

Battery

It should come as no surprise this team features former Jacket, Cam Atkinson, as he is co-owner of the Battery Hockey Academy. Current Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner, as well as Jack Johnson are also on the team. I’m going out of a limb and say, they’re probably the favorites with the most NHL star power.

614 Hockey

The Columbus hockey apparel company is repped by Sean Kuraly and Jack Roslovic. Patrik Laine is also listed on the roster, but has not arrived in town yet to suit up. It will be pretty cool to have an NHL super star headlining the league.

High Bank

The Columbus-based High Bank Distillery sweater is worn by Carson Meyer and Justin Richards. Kiefer Sherwood is also slated to skate for them as well, but didn’t appear in their first game. I’m going to say this team is the underdog in the league with the least number of recognizable names. I had a tough time finding a good shot of their jerseys.

BladeTech

Toronto’s BladeTech, makers of skate blades apparently designed to help you skate faster, is the fourth and final team in the league. Gus Nyquist and Cole Sillinger  headline the BladeTech team. AHL players Chase Gresock and Will Reidell also play for the team.

It’s safe to say the hockey scene in Columbus is healthy and thriving and only going to get bigger.