By Andrew Phillip Chernoff | CanucksBanter
September 13, 2024
According to Greg Wyshynski of ESPN, Braxton Whitehead of the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats has received a verbal commitment for the 2025-26 season from Arizona State University’s Division I program despite NCAA eligibility rules that prevent any player who has appeared in a major junior hockey game from playing college hockey.
This is the first NCAA commitment for a Canadian Hockey League player since a proposed class action suit was filed against the NCAA and 10 universities in August claiming that the eligibility rules violate antitrust laws.
The suit seeks to allow players to play hockey in both major juniors and college, which would be a dramatic shift in the player development landscape, says Wyshynski.
Whether or not that suit is successful, Whitehead and Arizona State are both confident those restrictions will be lifted before he joins the Sun Devils in 2025.
Source: ESPN.com
