200×85 20th Anniversary – Part II
As we continue down memory lane, we can’t help but feel so proud of our 200×85 team and be thankful for the youth hockey community that has been part of our journey. As our brand has expanded and changed, the hockey community and our mission keeps us moving forward and in the right direction. Growing the game, developing the futures of our sport, and bringing the hockey community together has been both our mission, and our greatest reward.
After much success from our events during those early years, we expanded our hockey experience offerings by adding developmental programs. Our CCM Selects came about in 2005, with the goal of getting these elite athletes training on the ice together for more than just a few days, with the teaching and guidance from some of the top coaches in the game. Today, our CCM Selects consists of multiple boys and girls teams, who train and compete together at elite tournaments throughout the Spring and Summer seasons. The father of Tyler Carpenter, freshman forward for Notre Dame, told 200×85, “The Selects Program over the years was a critical part of my son Tyler’s development. Not only was he able to play alongside some of the best players in the country, but he was also able to gauge his ability against athletes from all over the world.” Having the opportunity to watch elite players, like Tyler, develop within 200×85’s programs, and then be a force at the next level, is something that our team will never get sick of.
Later on, in 2014, we utilized our connections with the top coaches in the NHL, AHL, and NCAA, and put together the first-ever CCM 68 program. This invite-only combine would not only showcase and give exposure to the top talent in the world, but give these athletes once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to develop their game, on and off the ice.
Over the years, the CCM 68 has become the premier Bantam Major camp in America, and for good reason. We pride ourselves on not being a ‘buy your way in’ program, and have scouts working diligently to find the cream of the crop players across the nation to receive our exclusive invite. When the athletes arrive, they compete in a pro-style training camp, undergoing combine testing, battling it out on the ice against top competition, and receiving one-on-one instruction from professionals. With the top boys and girls hockey players in the nation all training under one roof for three straight days, the atmosphere is bound to be electric.
Since its creation, the CCM 68 has served as a launch pad for more than 100 Division I players, 32 members of USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program players, and 15 NHL draftees. At the 2022 NHL Draft alone, four out of the seven Americans drafted in the first round were CCM 68 Alumni, including Logan Cooley, Cutter Gauthier, Frank Nazar, and Rutger McGroarty, followed by nine more CCM 68 alumni in the subsequent rounds. The proof is in the pudding.
In 2020, 200×85 introduced the CCM 68 Futures program for Bantam Minor players, as a stepping stone to prepare for the CCM 68. This year, we’re inviting sixty-eight of Canada’s Best 14-year-old players to train and compete in Chicago for our first-ever Two Nation Event. 200×85 continues to be a trailblazer in the youth hockey industry, and has no plans of slowing down. “As the game changes, we’ve adapted our approach and found the best ways to identify, develop, and expose elite hockey players to higher level advancement,” Justin Lewandowski, 200×85 Vice President of Hockey Operations, said. “200×85 will continue to be a catalyst for players to accelerate their development path.”
As we look back at these years that built, developed, challenged, and inspired our brand, we’re humbled and grateful, and move forward satisfied, yet never settled. Follow along as we celebrate 20 years of 200×85.