Photo by Michael Caples/MiHockey

MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase ready for 19th edition


By @MichaelCaples –

The 19th annual MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase is almost underway in Trenton.

One of the highlights of the high school hockey season each year, this year’s MIHL Showcase is set to fill up the Kennedy Ice Arena from Thursday, Jan. 31 through Saturday, Feb. 2.

“The main goal of the MIHL is to promote quality high school hockey, strong competition and sportsmanship,” said MIHL president Andy Weidenbach in a release. “The Showcase complements that mission. The first 18 Showcases were tremendous successes and we are very optimistic about this year’s event. High school hockey in Michigan has experienced tremendous growth; accordingly, the Showcase has expanded from 12 to 42 teams so that we can continue our mission of providing exposure of the best in high school hockey.”

Teams from Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio will all be in Trenton for the three-day event. The competitive level is always high; for the 2019 showcase, six of the ranked teams in Division 1, seven of the top 10 in Division 2 and nine of the top 10 in Division 3 will all be partaking.

Last year, two of the three MHSAA championship teams – Brighton and Hartland – competed in the event, while five of the state finalists and nine of the semifinalists all appeared at the showcase.

This year, Detroit Country Day, Alpena, Howell, Macomb Dakota, Woodhaven, Forest Hills Central and Midland Dow return to the showcase.

“Detroit Country Day is really excited and honored to be back in the Showcase,” said Frank Novock, head coach of the defending D3 state champs. “Having been involved in many facets including playing, recruiting, and now coaching in the MIHL Showcase,  I have seen first hand the tremendous opportunity these teams are presented. From the Junior, College, and NHL scouts that attend this awesome event, it gives these high school teams a chance to really show how good Michigan High School Hockey continues to be and improve their on-ice product. I also can’t fail to mention the amount of professionalism, organization, and hard work that so many people put into this event to make it such a first class stage to play on.”

The 2019 MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase Schedule: