LRThe Long RoadNHL pathwaysPathway comparison lab

Comparison lab // mature cohorts only

Put the paths side by side.

Compare observed NHL outcomes across complete league-season cohorts. Young cohorts stay visible in league files, but they do not distort this board. Five European top leagues now use the same maturity rule.

27tracked leagues
328mature cohorts
195,289eligible cohort entries

Build a comparison

Choose three leagues.

Load the European top-three comparison →
Primary developmentCanada + United States

AHL

American Hockey League

29.2%reached the NHL
Established
15.1%
Reached
2,639
Eligible entries
9,038
Mature cohorts
11
Season conversion
30.0%
29.4%
27.7%
26.0%
26.4%
25.3%
Open AHL league file →
Major juniorCanada + United States

WHL

Western Hockey League

13.9%reached the NHL
Established
7.3%
Reached
2,129
Eligible entries
15,273
Mature cohorts
25
Season conversion
8.6%
9.1%
10.8%
12.5%
12.3%
13.7%
Open WHL league file →
Division I collegeUnited States

NCAA

NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey

8.4%reached the NHL
Established
4.1%
Reached
2,848
Eligible entries
33,999
Mature cohorts
22
Season conversion
6.8%
7.0%
7.6%
7.6%
8.5%
8.6%
Open NCAA league file →
Read the board as observed history, not a league-quality ranking.

These leagues serve different ages and stages. A player may appear in multiple league-season cohorts, so eligible entries are not unique people across the whole board.

See every rule and known gap →

All-league board

The mature conversion file.

Ordered by pooled reached-NHL rate across cohorts with at least five completed seasons of follow-up.

RankLeagueLevelCohortsEligibleReachedEstablished
01AHLAmerican Hockey LeaguePrimary development119,03829.2%15.1%02OHLOntario Hockey LeagueMajor junior2312,57115.8%9.3%03WHLWestern Hockey LeagueMajor junior2515,27313.9%7.3%04SHLSwedish Hockey LeagueTop professional166,00811.3%6.3%05USHLUnited States Hockey LeagueTier I junior198,87810.4%5.0%06QMJHLQuebec Maritimes Junior Hockey LeagueMajor junior3215,8058.5%4.1%07NCAANCAA Division I Men's Ice HockeyDivision I college2233,9998.4%4.1%08LIIGALiigaTop professional166,6176.0%2.5%09ECHLECHLAA professional2617,9333.8%1.3%10HAHockeyAllsvenskanSecond-tier professional167,8073.3%1.4%11ELHCzech ExtraligaTop professional166,9722.7%1.1%12NLNational LeagueTop professional134,2782.2%0.9%13BCHLBritish Columbia Hockey LeagueIndependent junior63,4361.4%0.3%14OJHLOntario Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A1514,0511.2%0.6%15AJHLAlberta Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A63,4100.8%0.3%16DELDeutsche Eishockey LigaTop professional165,4130.6%0.4%17CCHLCentral Canada Hockey LeagueJunior A52,1470.5%0.1%18MJHLManitoba Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A62,2130.2%0.1%19U SPORTSU Sports Men's Ice HockeyUniversity1210,1520.1%0.0%20LHJAAAQLigue de hockey junior AAA du QuébecJunior AAA51,4150.0%0.0%21MHLMaritime Hockey LeagueJunior A31,1110.0%0.0%22NAHLNorth American Hockey LeagueTier II junior18760.0%0.0%23NOJHLNorthern Ontario Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A62,2900.0%0.0%24SJHLSaskatchewan Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A62,4840.0%0.0%25SIJHLSuperior International Junior Hockey LeagueJunior A61,1120.0%0.0%—ELJExtraliga juniorůElite junior U20—————MAXAMaxa LigaSecond-tier professional————