The USA Hockey membership statistics were released yesterday and as always, I took a rather deep dive in to the numbers.
Across the board, USA Hockey Membership continued its steady climb up 1% by adding over 5,000 player memberships year over year. Here is an overview of the changes by State.
Raw membership by state
Major takeaways:
- Nevada added close to 1000 hockey players last year (61% increase year over year!). No doubt the Golden Knights arrival and massive success had a direct impact to the numbers.
- California continues to lead all states with new hockey memberships. Adding over 1000 hockey players year over year.
- With the growth, California is now the 5th biggest hockey playing state in the country, surpassing Illinois and Pennsylvania last year.
- Illinois saw a massive decline of 1,800 less memberships year over year. This is more than just the decline of the Blackhawks impact. There is probably a story here but it could be a big facility or league closing in an Illinois community.
All age groups saw the inclines except for the 13 to 14 age group.
