Up-and-coming hockey talent wasted little time reaching out to members of the Pueblo Bulls coaching staff in late June. About 50 players inquired about potentially playing for the Bulls after news broke that the club was moving into the National Collegiate Development Conference.
“The hockey community went wild,” Pueblo Bulls owner Jerry Wilhite said.
The Bulls play in the Premier Conference, a Tier III junior league, in the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL). The National Collegiate Development Conference (NCDC) is a step up to Tier II and the Bulls will integrate into the NCDC for the 2023-24 season.
The NCDC is considered a pathway to college hockey, most notably at the NCAA Division I level. It also can serve as a feeder program for the National Hockey League — four NCDC alumni were selected during July’s 2022 NHL Draft.
The Bulls will be joined by five other teams to form the NCDC’s Western Division. Three of those teams play in Utah, and the Northern Colorado Eagles, who play in Greeley, are the only other Colorado-based team. The division will be the westernmost Tier II Junior A Division in the United States, according to the USPHL.
“I think it’s incredibly exciting,” Pueblo Bulls General Manager Tyler Tuneberg told The Chieftain.
“With the Colorado Avalanche just winning the Stanley Cup and potentially working with players on their radar or draft or scouting board is exciting for us. The other thing that’s really exciting is giving our fans and supporters the opportunity to watch top-tier hockey.”
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In May 2023, the Pueblo Bulls will participate in the annual NCDC Entry Draft. The club can select players age 16 and younger and tender contracts to players ages 17 to 20.
It will be the first draft for the Bulls since their start in Pueblo — no draft is held in the Premier Conference — and the first opportunity for top-level talent. Last season, 48 players from the NCDC committed to play at NCAA Division I programs.
The club will host its first prospect and recruiting camps next summer and, since the announcement, has received considerable interest from players eyeing the NCDC ranks, Tuneberg said.
The Bulls employ two scouts and are exploring the addition of four to five more to monitor the US and Canada and two to watch players in Europe.
“We’re excited for this upcoming season and what it has to hold,” said Josh Allison, a Pueblo native and Bulls season ticket holder since 2019. “The jump to NCDC — it’s Division I and NHL talent coming to Pueblo to play hockey.” . It’s good for the team, the fans and for the city.”
Allison, 33, is an avid hockey and Avalanche fan. He became a season ticket holder the moment the package became available and watched the Bulls post back-to-back winning seasons and clinch their first playoff berth earlier this year.
“It’s a captivating environment,” Allison said. “We’ve brought people to games who never watched hockey once and said, ‘I need to become a season ticket holder.’ This is awesome.’”
The Bulls’ move to the NCDC comes with fan interest in hockey growing nationwide. Nearly 40% of NHL fans are younger than 50 and 37% are female, according to a report from The Associated Press, which cited NHL research. There has been a 26% growth in the sport among female fans since 2016, the report added.
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The Pueblo Bulls’ list of season ticket holders for the upcoming campaign totals about 560, including billet (host) parents, for an arena with a crowd capacity of roughly 1,000. After December last season, tickets for games on Friday and Saturday sold out each night for the remainder of the campaign.
“Now that the (2022) season is getting close, we get lots of phone calls everyday,” said Lori Guerrero, a club sponsor.
The Bulls’ 2022-23 season starts Sept. 30 and will be their last in the Premier Conference. Wilhite, who to date has invested $250,000 in the club’s promotion to the NCDC, said the club intends to market the move at a later date so the team can “focus and commit” to this season’s player group.
“I’m sure the Avs winning the Stanley Cup sparked some interest in hockey,” Allison said. “But the Bulls have definitely put hockey on the map in Pueblo.”
The Bulls on Monday during a Pueblo City Council work session proposed a five-year lease agreement with the city of Pueblo to manage, operate and promote the Pueblo Ice Arena, where the club plays. The city subsidizes nearly $300,000 for operations of the facility each year.
According to language within the proposal, the city through its general fund would pay the club — to offset losses — for four years (with no payment in the fifth year) before the club starts lease payments in year six.
City council is expected to vote on the proposal during a regular meeting on Sept. 12.
Chieftain reporter Josue Perez can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @josuepwrites.