When one door closes, another one opens. Or, in the case of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association this season, when 17 doors close, many others fly wide open, inviting opportunistic players to make their mark on the league.
The eye-catching statistic around the WCHA at the dawn of this season isn’t about who’s back; it’s about who’s not. The final count of players with eligibility remaining who left league teams to sign a pro contract was 17, a WCHA record.