New England Hockey Conference (formerly the ECAC East) is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division III as a hockey-only conference.
History
The New England Hockey Conference began as ECAC East in 1984 when ECAC 2 was split in two and both new conferences dropped down to Division III. The conference was fairly stable for the first decade but began to grow in the mid 1990s. In 1998 four teams left to become Division I programs in the new MAAC conference. A year later, nine more teams split off to join their primary athletic conference, NESCAC, followed by the women's programs in 2001. Membership numbers held steady over the succeeding 15 years, though several teams came and went. In 2015 the conference rebranded itself as the New England Hockey Conference, but no internal changes occurred. Two years later 6 women's and 2 men's programs left to join a variety of conferences, dropping league membership to 11 schools, the lowest number in conference history.
Standings
From the time it formally split from ECAC 2 until 1992 all games played between members of ECAC East and ECAC West counted for conference standings. In 1992, after the ECAC West split into two conferences, ECAC East only counted games within their conference for the standings, but because a formal schedule was not yet in place all games between members were still counted. For the 1993-94 season ECAC East had its first official conference schedule with all 18 teams playing each other once. Teams could schedule additional inter-conference games but only one would count in the standings. In 1999, when 9 teams left to form the ice hockey division of the NESCAC, the two conferences continued to count games between one another in their respective standings. This arrangement continued even after the addition of more programs.
NEHC Tournaments
Current members
There are 12 member schools; the men's division has ten members, while the women's division has nine members. (as of November 2018)
New England Hockey Conference
[Interactive fullscreen map + nearby articles]
Locations of NEHC members, 2021-2022
men's only member,
women's only member
men's and women's member
Institution
|
Location
|
Founded
|
Joined
|
Enrollment
|
Nickname
|
Primary Conference
|
Colors
|
(M)
|
(W)
|
Babson College
|
Wellesley, Massachusetts
|
1919
|
1984
|
3,340
|
Beavers
|
NEWMAC
|
|
|
|
Castleton University
|
Castleton, Vermont
|
1787
|
2004
|
2,399
|
Spartans
|
Little East Conference
|
|
|
|
Elmira College
|
Elmira, New York
|
1855
|
2021
|
768
|
Soaring Eagles
|
Empire 8
|
|
|
|
Hobart College
|
Geneva, New York
|
1822
|
2017
|
2,337
|
Statesmen
|
Liberty League
|
|
|
|
Johnson & Wales University
|
Providence, Rhode Island
|
1914
|
2018
|
5,676
|
Wildcats
|
Great Northeast Athletic Conference
|
|
|
|
University of Massachusetts Boston
|
Dorchester, Massachusetts
|
1964
|
1984
|
16,259
|
Beacons
|
Little East Conference
|
|
|
|
New England College
|
Henniker, New Hampshire
|
1946
|
1984
|
4,327
|
Pilgrims
|
New England Collegiate Conference
|
|
|
|
Norwich University
|
Northfield, Vermont
|
1819
|
1984
|
2,000
|
Cadets
|
Great Northeast Athletic Conference
|
|
|
|
Plymouth State University
|
Plymouth, New Hampshire
|
1871
|
2015
|
4,491
|
Panthers
|
Little East Conference
|
|
|
|
Salem State University
|
Salem, Massachusetts
|
1854
|
2018
|
7,242
|
Vikings
|
Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference
|
|
|
|
Skidmore College
|
Saratoga Springs, New York
|
1903
|
1998
|
2,500
|
Thoroughbreds
|
Liberty League
|
|
|
|
University of Southern Maine
|
Gorham, Maine
|
1878
|
1995
|
8,022
|
Huskies
|
Little East Conference
|
|
|
|
Future members
Former members
|
Location
|
Athletic nickname
|
Colors
|
Founded
|
Joined (M)
|
Left (M)
|
Joined (W)
|
Left (W)
|
Current Conference†
|
(M)
|
(W)
|
American International College
|
Springfield, Massachusetts
|
Yellow Jackets
|
|
1885
|
1984
|
1998
|
–
|
–
|
Atlantic Hockey (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Amherst College
|
Amherst, Massachusetts
|
Mammoths
|
|
1821
|
1992
|
1999
|
1995
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
Bowdoin College
|
Brunswick, Maine
|
Polar Bears
|
|
1794
|
1984
|
1999
|
1984
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
Colby College
|
Waterville, Maine
|
Mules
|
|
1813
|
1984
|
1999
|
–
|
–
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
University of Connecticut
|
Storrs, Connecticut
|
Huskies
|
|
1881
|
1984
|
1998
|
–
|
–
|
Hockey East (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Connecticut College
|
New London, Connecticut
|
Camels
|
|
1794
|
1991
|
1999
|
1997
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
Franklin Pierce University
|
Rindge, New Hampshire
|
Ravens
|
|
1962
|
–
|
–
|
2014
|
2017
|
NEWHA
|
|
|
Hamilton College
|
Clinton, New York
|
Continentals
|
|
1793
|
1992
|
1999
|
1996
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
College of the Holy Cross
|
Worcester, Massachusetts
|
Crusaders
|
|
1843
|
1984
|
1998
|
1999
|
2017
|
Atlantic Hockey (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Manhattanville College
|
Purchase, New York
|
Valiants
|
|
1815
|
–
|
–
|
1999
|
2017
|
UCHC
|
|
|
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
|
North Adams, Massachusetts
|
Trailblazers
|
|
1894
|
1984
|
2003
|
–
|
–
|
Dropped Program
|
|
|
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
|
Cambridge, Massachusetts
|
Engineers
|
|
1861
|
–
|
–
|
1984
|
2009
|
Dropped Program
|
|
|
Merrimack College
|
North Andover, Massachusetts
|
Warriors
|
|
1947
|
1984
|
1989
|
–
|
–
|
Hockey East (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Middlebury College
|
Middlebury, Vermont
|
Panthers
|
|
1800
|
1984
|
1999
|
1984
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
University of New England
|
Biddeford, Maine
|
Nor'easters
|
|
1831
|
2009
|
2016
|
2009
|
2018
|
CCC
|
|
|
Nichols College
|
Dudley, Massachusetts
|
Bison
|
|
1815
|
–
|
–
|
2008
|
2017
|
CHC
|
|
|
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
|
Troy, New York
|
Engineers
|
|
1824
|
–
|
–
|
1995
|
2005
|
ECAC Hockey (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Rochester Institute of Technology
|
Henrietta, New York
|
Tigers
|
|
1829
|
–
|
–
|
1984
|
2007
|
CHA
|
|
|
Saint Anselm College
|
Goffstown, New Hampshire
|
Hawks
|
|
1889
|
1984
|
2017
|
2004
|
2017
|
Northeast–10 (men) (NCAA D-II) NEWHA (women)
|
|
|
Saint Michael's College
|
Colchester, Vermont
|
Purple Knights
|
|
1904
|
2001
|
2017
|
2001
|
2017
|
Northeast–10 (men) (NCAA D-II) NEWHA (women)
|
|
|
Salem State University
|
Salem, Massachusetts
|
Vikings
|
|
1854
|
1984
|
2009
|
–
|
–
|
MASCAC
|
|
|
Salve Regina University
|
Newport, Rhode Island
|
Seahawks
|
|
1934
|
–
|
–
|
2015
|
2018
|
CHC
|
|
|
Suffolk University
|
Boston, Massachusetts
|
Rams
|
|
1906
|
2018
|
2021
|
2018
|
2021
|
CCC
|
|
|
Trinity College
|
Hartford, Connecticut
|
Bantams
|
|
1823
|
1991
|
1999
|
1998
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
Union College
|
Schenectady, New York
|
Dutchwomen
|
|
1795
|
–
|
–
|
1999
|
2003
|
ECAC Hockey (NCAA D-I)
|
|
|
Wesleyan University
|
Middletown, Connecticut
|
Cardinals
|
|
1831
|
1995
|
1999
|
1996
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
Westfield State University
|
Westfield, Massachusetts
|
Owls
|
|
1874
|
1984
|
1989
|
–
|
–
|
MASCAC
|
|
|
Williams College
|
Williamstown, Massachusetts
|
Ephs
|
|
1793
|
1984
|
1999
|
1994
|
2001
|
NESCAC
|
|
|
† (as of November 2018)
Membership timeline
Men Women Both
See also