Volume 14 Issue 3 | March 2026

NOMINATIONS FOR AHAI BOARD OF DIRECTORS

This notice is being sent to Affiliate Presidents made available to the Membership.

Nominations of potential candidates are now open for the AHAI Board of Directors.

The date for the Annual AHAI meeting is Saturday, May 30, 2026.

AHAI Rules and Regulations

4.4 NOMINATING COMMITTEE.

d. No later than twenty-one (21) days, three (3) weeks, before the Annual Meeting,

the AHAI Nominating Committee shall disseminate to all Affiliate Organizations of

AHAI, by electronic mail and by publication on AHAI's website, a list of all names

submitted accompanied by their respective biographies.

e. The AHAI Board of Directors or any AHAI participant/member may issue an

endorsement of or opposition to any candidate so long as said endorsement or

opposition does not disparage or demean any candidate.

f. The AHAI Board of Directors may issue a position paper on any candidate or

group of candidates in the mailing to the Affiliate Organizations. If an individual AHAI

member wishes to submit an endorsement of or opposition to any candidate(s),

AHAI agrees to include said position statement with the Initial AHAI electronic

mailing only. The individual member who submits a position paper agrees to pay

his or her proportionate share for the expenses of creating and mailing the position

paper. Any position paper submitted by the AHAI Board or any AHAI individual

member shall be limited to one communication to AHAI Affiliate Organizations.

g. All of the above may be submitted electronically.

4.4.3 At the AHAI Annual Meeting, present Affiliate Organizations shall vote for up to

five (5) individuals from the list of nominations. The vote may be an individual vote for

each candite or a “slate” vote at the discretion of the AHAI Board of Directors. The votes

shall be counted by members of the Nominating Committee and overseen by an AHAI

Officer. The top five (5) individuals garnering the most votes shall be elected as Directors

to the AHAI Board

Board Member Recommended Qualifications

Each Director must be a member in good standing of USA Hockey and must be in complete.

compliance with all USA Hockey mandates currently in effect. These include Safesport, Background Screen, and free of financial obligations to any AHAI member organization.

In order to submit your name for consideration as an AHAI Director, the individual :should ideally:

1.    Be in good standing with the affiliate they are currently a member of (if this applies)

2.    Have previously held a leadership position within an AHAI Affiliate/League/Officiating i.e, president, board member, registrar, hockey director, etc. or been a member of an AHAI Standing Committee.

3.    Have been in this role for at least 2 years

4.    Provide at least two references to the nominating committee

5.    Not have any past disciplinary action against them from AHAI, their Affiliate, or IHOA

Bill Crowley, AHAI Nominating Committee Chairperson

treasurer@ahai2.org and John.dunne@ahai.org

AHAI Nominating Committee

Bill Crowley, Chairman

Gino Cavallini

Keri Zschach

NOTICE OF AHAI ANNUAL MEETING AND LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

This notice is being sent to Affiliate Presidents made available to the Membership.

The 2026 Annual Meeting of the Amateur Hockey Association of Illinois, Inc. (AHAI) will take place on Saturday, May 30, 2026 at 8:30 a.m.

The event will be held at Westin Chicago Northwest, 400 Park Blvd., Itasca, IL 60143.

Further information regarding the Annual Meeting schedule will be distributed to Affiliate Presidents.

Any individual who wishes to submit a new By-Law proposal or make a change to an existing By-Law must submit their proposal(s), in writing, to the President of AHAI, Kevin Bolger at president@ahai.org, no later than Wednesday, April 30, 2026 by 5PM.

Thank you for all your help and cooperation in the furtherance of youth hockey in Illinois.

 AHAI Board of Directors

To all our players – As our regular season has come to an end, it’s time to reflect, relax, refuel/rehab your bodies and minds. Your body needs time to heal and restart. Your mind needs to decompress and recharge.

Remember the Athlete’s plate while you enter your spring sports:

Taking care of yourself builds a better athlete from the inside out. Everyone needs time away from an activity that involves a high level of intensity. Your overall development relies on your ability to reenergize.

To all our parents in the hockey community – Help your athlete recover from the season just completed and prepare for the next. Give them the time to relax then restart. The summer months are a great time to consider Baseline Testing for Concussions. We never want to see any player suffer a concussion; this testing can assist in the diagnosis and recovery. Any preventative measures that can be taken when it comes to injuries should be utilized for our young athletes. Concussions and injuries do not label players; they help to define them by how they bounce back when they are properly cared for and not rushed in their rehabilitation. 

Enjoy Summer! Get outside & have fun!!

Anita Lichterman

AHAI Player Safety Coordinator

The Annual CSDHL All-Star game was held on Sunday, March 15th for the 18U, 16U, 15U and 14U divisions. Congratulations to all players and coaches who were selected to compete. Thank you to everyone who contributed to ensure the event was a huge success: Fox Valley Ice Arena, Stream Sports Midwest, Christina Bailitz Photography, Cyclones Amateur Hockey Association, and Jerry's Hockey.

Congratulations to our State Champions and best of luck to our teams advancing to compete in USA Hockey Nationals!

Congratulations to the 2026 Jim Clare Coaches of the Year and the High School Players of the Year.

Pictured above from left to right: Youth Coach of the Year, Brittany Aiello - Franklin Park Panthers; High School Boys Coach of the Year, Evan Poulakidas - York; JJ O'Connor Red Division Player of the Year, Jack Hirschtritt - New Trier; Mike Mullally Combined Division Player of the Year, Cameron Christopher - BGHW

Pictured above from left to right: Girls Coach of the Year, Chris Lichterman - Northwest Chargers; Girls High School Coach of the Year, Erin Stoney - Lake Forest Academy; Girls High School Player of the Year, Kate Mulvihill - Fenwick

Congratulations to the following teams

competing at Nationals!

Tier I Youth

14U Chicago Mission

150 Chicago Mission

16U Chicago Reapers*

Tier I Girls

14U Chicago Mission*

16U Chicago Mission

19U Chicago Mission

High School

High School 2A BGHW Stampede

High School 3A St. Viator Lions

Tier II Youth

14U Glenview Stars

16U Naperville Sabres

18U West Dundee Leafs

18U Chicago Hawks*

Tier II Girls

14U Northshore Warhawks

14U St. Jude Knights

16U Northshore Warhawks

19U Chicago Hawks

* Teams who received an at-large bid to Nationals.

Building the Future

By Chicago Wolves

The Chicago Wolves have made a major commitment toward helping cultivate youth hockey in Illinois and to that end, the organization hosted the AHAI Illinois State High School Championships on March 6 and March 15, respectively, at Allstate Arena.

In January, the Wolves and the Amateur Hockey Association of Illinois (AHAI) announced that the American Hockey League franchise is the new host of the boys and girls state championships and when the dust settled, it was clear the events were a rousing success with players, coaches and fans.

Hosting the championships gave the student-athletes an opportunity to compete on the same ice used by the Wolves throughout the AHL season, elevating the experience for both the boys and girls competing for state titles. That atmosphere was felt across all three championship games, as players took in the full professional setting—from the pregame introductions to the in-game presentation.

Included in the festivities was a special appearance by two-time Olympic gold medalist for Team USA and PWHL star Kendall Coyne Schofield, who dropped the ceremonial first puck prior to the Girls State Championship on March 15, won by New Trier over Fenwick.

“It’s important that both the boys and the girls are playing in the same building,” Coyne Schofield said. “For a lot of the kids growing up here, they’ve been to Allstate Arena plenty of times and seen those fiery paws (from mascot Skates) before Wolves games. I remember that profoundly from my childhood. For a lot of

the kids, it’s very awesome to be able to play in this building and it’s awesome for the Wolves to step up and host them and make it feel better than their daily games.”

On March 6, the boys took center stage with two championship games. In Game One, BGHW–featuring players from Buffalo Grove, Hersey and Wheeling–defeated Maine, with players from Maine East, Maine South and Maine West for the Combined Varsity title.

“This was a great game-day experience,” BGHW coach Chris Waters said. “The scoreboard, the lights around the banners, the pregame experience. This is the first time we’ve done it here. It was a great experience for the players, the coaches, and the fans. To do it here in this environment makes it that much more special.”

The second boys event featured the Red Varsity championship, which St. Viator took home by topping New Trier.

“Incredible—just incredible to give them the pro experience,” St. Viator coach Tim Benz said. “The way we were treated (at Allstate Arena) was second to none, so it was fantastic for these kids.”

For many players, skating in a professional arena made the moment even more memorable. For seniors especially, it provided the chance to close out their high school careers, competing for a state championship in an unforgettable atmosphere.

“They’re in a big, professional arena, so it makes it special. And it should be special, it’s the State Championship games,” Coyne Schofield said.

10U AA Wilmette

10U A Yellowjackets

10U B Vikings

12U AA Chicago Blues

12U A Vikings

12U B Wilmette

14U AA Glenview Stars

14U A Chicago Hawks

14U B Chicago Jets

16U AA Sabres

16U A Leafs

18U AA Leafs

Girls 10U Chargers

Girls 12U Sabres

Girls 14U Northshore Warhawks

Girls 16U Northshore Warhawks

Girls 19U Chicago Hawks

9U Team Illinois

10U Chicago Fury

11U Chicago Fury

12U Chicago Reapers

13U Chicago Mission

14U Chicago Mission

15O Chicago Mission

16U Chicago Reapers

18U Windy City Storm

Girls 12U Chicago Mission

Girls 14U Chicago Mission

Girls 16U Chicago Mission

Girls 19U Chicago Mission

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