The Maryland Black Bears are excited to announce its affiliation with Team Maryland (EHL), Team Maryland AAA and The Mercer Chiefs AAA.  Team Maryland AAA is a USA Hockey sanctioned Tier I youth hockey club based out of the Piney Orchard Ice Arena in Odenton, Maryland. The Mercer Chiefs are a USA Hockey sanctioned Tier I and Tier II travel hockey club based out of the Ice Land Skating Center in Hamilton Township, New Jersey.  Team Maryland (EHL) is the EHL’s newest franchise which will also play at Piney Orchard in Odenton, Maryland.

“This is a very exciting step for Team Maryland.  We are committed to building a premier program and creating a pyramid for our players to advance to college hockey,” said Executive Director of Team Maryland, Mike Weiss. We are developing many talented youth hockey players, but Maryland lacked quality Junior Hockey options for local players requiring them to leave the area.  Not anymore.”

“The Mercer Chiefs have taken pride in doing things the right way”, said Mercer Chiefs’ Hockey Director Chris Barcless. With the addition of the NAHL and EHL program, we now have additional opportunities to offer our players.” General Manager of the Mercer Chiefs, Rob Broderick, commented “We are developing more talented players in the state of New Jersey than ever before and the Chiefs organization is looking forward to offering opportunities to advance to the EHL and NAHL.”

To facilitate the affiliation with Team Maryland AAA, Team Maryland’s U-18 team will move to Piney Orchard for the 2019-20 season and will share a 7,000-sq. ft. complex with dedicated locker rooms for midgets and junior teams, a hockey-specific training gym, coaches’ room, film room and more.  NAHL and EHL coaches and players will be heavily involved with the skill development of Team Maryland’s youth teams

The path to college hockey in the Mid-Atlantic now runs through Team Maryland and the Mercer Chiefs.