2023-24 American Premier Hockey League season

This is the 2023-24 American Premier Hockey League originally the Union Hockey League season. This is the league's first season. The league would be re-named the American Premier Hockey League in early March of 2024.
The league was originally announced as a hybrid men's senior and semi-pro hockey league announced in September of 2022 as the North Eastern Hockey League. On August 2, 2023 the league announced on a new website that the league was was called the Union Hockey League. It begins play with the 2023-24 playing season in October of 2023. With the change over to the new name the league is now listed as being a "Senior A" level playing league.
==Announcement of Teams==
A July 14th posting on the league Facebook announced 5 teams (Boston Gold Kings, North Shore Nighthawks, Pittsburgh River Monsters, Rockland Polar Bears, and Soo Apollos) with a planned additional 7 or more teams for the inaugural season.https://www.facebook.com/NorthEasternHockeyLeague/posts/pfbid0GDHF67WyFsKHCodLd2X3JjH2bczt59nPYX8GWjKACvf1FvtYAQfoozNp2f9xwWgsl 
By July 23rd the Soo Apollos were not listed on the league teams page with the Holyoke Royals, New Jersey Hockey Club, Philadelphia Frozen Fury and Poughkeepsie Vikings being added.
As part of the league branding announcement, the league announced that eight teams will compete for the 2023-24 season. The posting affirmed the Boston Gold Kings, Holyoke Royals (later renamed the Holyoke Papermen, North Shore Nighthawks, Pittsburgh River Monsters, and Poughkeepsie Polar Bears (changed from the Poughkeepsie Vikings and/or Rockland Polar Bears) teams, while adding the Dyer, Indiana based Midwest Mammoths, Chelsea, Michigan based Motor City Apollos (apparently changing from being located in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan), and Niagara Falls, New York based Niagara Falls Buffalos. The New Jersey and Philadelphia teams are no longer listed on the website.
On October 2nd the league would announce the addition of four additional teams for the 2023-24 season, adding the Canton, Massachusetts based Canton Mallards, the East Rutherford, New Jersey based Mid-Atlantic Frozen Fury, the Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan based Soo Nordiques, and the Sun Prairie, Wisconsin based Sun Prairie Killer Bees.https://www.facebook.com/TheUnionHockeyLeague/posts/pfbid0prFTqh5RYkeCRTnRWcPDRF3hVruDE6zYGRHR9BTzyJz1PfXAHEHumjuZSaCJUEnl
On October 10th the league would announce the addition of another four teams for the 2023-24 season with the addition of the Holland, Michigan based West Michigan Sentinels, the Cincinnati Pilots, the Waterbury, Vermont based Vermont Loggers, and the Conway Yetis
https://www.facebook.com/TheUnionHockeyLeague/posts/pfbid09yHzM3xKEMVEZuR3jYYELE9nL66kgcp89GSTdDM9q6YWcqtCKkxvbnBYcvDGs3Brl The Sentinels would end up playing out of the Cedar Rock Sportsplex in Cedar Springs, Michigan.
On November 16, 2023 it was announced that the Mid-Atlantic Frozen Fury would be taking a leave of absence citing looking for a new rink to play out of. The same announcement introduced the addition of the Norwich Whalers who would likely be based out of the Norwich Municipal Ice Rink.https://www.facebook.com/TheUnionHockeyLeague/posts/pfbid02Kj2E8AvetgndFjLLPN3bqx4jSVQjXu52cuYGsBMBza94hX3ay55pLdfY5s8jJF5ql
The Pittsburgh River Monsters would have to change home rinks for the season when they relocated from the Printscape Arena in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania to the Beaver County Ice Arena in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.
The Poughkeepsie Polar Bears would be renamed the Hudson Valley Vipers. The Midwest Mammoths would be renamed the Chicago Mammoths.
The Motor City Apollos would relocate from Chelsea, Michigan to Royal Oak, Michigan and be renamed the Motor City Generals. The name change is apparently due to a name swap with the 2024-25 expansion team planned on being called the New Jersey Apollos.
The league has the Cleveland, Ohio based Lake Erie Voyagers, Newark, New Jersey based New Jersey Apollos, Philadelphia Frozen Fury, and St. Louis Wranglers listed as 2024-25 expansion teams as of mid-November 2023.
By Christmas the Chicago Mammoths, Cincinnati Pilots, Norwich Whalers, and Vermont Loggers would be listed as inactive for the season.
By opening day the Canton Mallards relocate their home games to the Joseph J. Zapustas Arena in adjacent Randolph, Massachusetts and are renamed the Norfolk Mallards. The Conway Yetis are no longer listed on the league website, with the Niagara Falls Buffalos being shifted to the Eastern Division to replace them and the Toledo Mobsters are added to the Western Division.
In January 2024 the Kenosha Americans were announced as joining the league for the 2024-25 season.https://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/weekly-sports-league-and-franchise-report/n-6054781
On February 6, 2024 the league announced it would be going from 12 teams to 48 teams across the country and is declaring itself as Senior AAA for the 2024-25 season, indicating the announcement of further teams on May 6th.https://www.facebook.com/TheUnionHockeyLeague/posts/pfbid04fw94ToYgWNE3yvsidz3K1KHhQesRmyaG5RurxayR6XtJqZCEj9B1hzioxfC1tztl
The league would rename itself in early March of 2024 to the APHL and declare that it was Senior AAA already and that all but the Motor City Generals made the jump to the league under the new name. The Generals team would be referred to as the "Outlaws" and would begin forfeiting games (according to the league schedule) with their February 24th game. The team actually played four games with an 0-4-0 record and scored 15 goals while allowing 63.
On April 11, 2024 the league announced that the Sun Prairie Killer Bees had been suspended for the league for the remainder of the 2023-24 season due to multiple concerns. On April 30, 2024 the team was accepted as a new member of the Great Lakes Hockey League for the 2024-25 season.http://theglhl.com/news.php?news_id=2038662
On May 7, 2024 the Holyoke Papermen announced that they will no longer be a member of the American Premier Hockey League effective immediately.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0LpgRbHnNFpB3Gayk2hMZbWzECu7yFZ3J7ZZ3vymU5osTXNHmXQXxKHTCsub4ZC9zl&id=61552125044876 
On May 16, 2024 the Boston Gold Kings announced they were withdrawing from the league. With the announcement of Holyoke and Boston from the league and a statement indicating that a new league was being formed in the greater Boston area it also indicated that the Norfolk Mallards and North Shore Nighthawks are no longer going to be in the league.https://www.facebook.com/BostonGoldKings/posts/pfbid0381coGiSgqoH4DaHB1Bfb5sddyMnULfn8X6Lfb4pSZNTZejEY3pPe2DJXSFn6DCfKl
On June 6,2024 the league announced the addition of the Rochester Arrival to the league for the 2024-25 season.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid022wxu8K8bZK5f9dubGKnUeHEbXTLnhhFzTTKnu94HZX8zgueCJXfpssKcis43KGFhl&id=61559674010612
On June 12, 2024 the league announced the addition of the Salt City Storm based out of Syracuse, New York for the 2024-25 season.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0233yW6aQ7B5LBJ8JSFuGXuYSLdPMBj6JZ9Nfrr3JvH1dQGhvMDJG7G1ca3YS74Yyxl&id=61559674010612
On June 25, 2024 the league announced the addition of the Connellsville, Pennsylvania based Fayette Firebirds.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid035g13tTxwJezZEyAHAYzzFyTSNKe6Jngf4PgjUNsCB2Wh5xfoTBJSeSBZQYz65nVtl&id=61559674010612
On June 27, 2024 the Flint Lumberjacks were announce as joining the league for the 2024-25 season.
On June 27, 2024 the league announced the addition of the Fort Wayne, Indiana based Summit City Distillers to the league for the 2024-25 season. The team will be based out of the SportONE/Parkview Icehouse.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0MNNzkpWkjafcLUsdM8k4NYu9CXKxZ3337Dt6RTNJ8Y5kv4uh7PmhT86HdgXzkZVyl&id=61560159604830
On July 1, 2024 the Niagara Falls Buffalos announced that they were withdrawing from the league to form the Eastern Legacy Hockey League for the 2024-25 season.https://www.facebook.com/laurenalaskacoaching/posts/pfbid0VVJA28mYuGvD3mYLYWh8rYykWTE7od4gkz93KX7uGuD4APPW8iEfxdGMJKFdbBNPl As part of the same announcement the Rochester Arrival and Salt City Storm were also announced as joining that league.
On July 1, 2024 the Gaylord Grenadiers were announced as joining the league for the 2024-25 season.https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0V7zzNcbVsNWnwH2QmoFYYaorRZh7h75jyoWYUniUagsQqQ7Ci6DzGqikJDrpReZCl&id=61560781785678 The team will be based out of the Otsego County Sportsplex in Gaylord, Michigan.
On July 2, 2024 the Kalkaska Battlers announced they were leaving the Michigan Independence Hockey League to join the American Premier Hockey League for the 2024-25 season.https://www.facebook.com/KalkaskaBattlers/posts/pfbid0HoRrxB8SWeomDD9WqfdgKsG1KTWCJYhUK7bx65FYmTHDG3H9M4d1R6i7GZ36fd8Wl
==Teams==
===East Division===
Team 	City 	Arena 	Joined
Boston Gold Kings 	Watertown, Massachusetts	John A. Ryan Arena 	2023
Holyoke Papermen 	Holyoke, Massachusetts 	Fitzpatrick Arena 	2023
Hudson Valley Vipers 	Poughkeepsie, New York 	McCann Ice Arena 	2023
Niagara Falls Buffalos	Niagara Falls, New York 	Hyde Park Ice Pavilion 	2023
Norfolk Mallards 	Randolph, Massachusetts 	Joseph J. Zapustas Arena	2023
North Shore Nighthawks	Middleton, Massachusetts	Essex Sports Center 	2023
===West Division===
Team 	City 	Arena 	Joined
Motor City Generals (out of league March 2024) 	Royal Oak, Michigan 	John Lindell Ice Arena 	2023
Pittsburgh River Monsters 	Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania	Beaver County Ice Arena	2023
Soo Nordiques 	Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan	Chi Mukwa Arena 	2023
Sun Prairie Killer Bees (out of league April 2024)	Sun Prairie, Wisconsin 	Sun Prairie Ice Arena 	2023
Toledo Mobsters 	Toledo, Ohio 	Team Toledo Ice House 	2023
West Michigan Sentinels 	Cedar Springs, Michigan 	Cedar Rock Sportsplex 	2023
==Standings==
===East Division===
Team 	GP	W 	L 	T	OL	GF 	GA 	Pts.
Hudson Valley Vipers 	21	15	5 	1	0 	112	95 	31
Niagara Falls Buffalos	19	14	5 	0	0 	101	81 	28
Holyoke Papermen 	18	12	4 	0	2 	113	78 	26
Norfolk Mallards 	19	8 	8 	1	2 	60 	86 	19
Boston Gold Kings 	20	7 	12	0	1 	85 	95 	15
North Shore Nighthawks	20	5 	15	0	0 	85 	107	10
===West Division===
Team 	GP	W 	L 	T	OL	GF 	GA 	Pts.
Toledo Mobsters 	23	18	5 	0	0 	111	56 	36
Pittsburgh River Monsters	19	10	6 	0	3 	101	55 	23
Sun Prairie Killer Bees 	14	10	4 	0	0 	77 	56 	20
Soo Nordiques 	18	10	8 	0	0 	101	80 	20
West Michigan Sentinels 	22	6 	15	0	1 	41 	135	15
Motor City Generals 	4 	0 	4 	0	0 	15 	63 	0
Outlaws 	15	0 	15	0	0 	0 	15 	0
==Playoffs==
===West Division Semifinal===
Soo vs West Michigan (May 4 later changed to May 5 and then cancelled due to ice issues at Chi Mukwa Arena and no other suitable location was available so the league had the Soo Nordiques advanced to the division semifinal due to the game being unable to be played)https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0pqqRfxMVV8VCHvnMkWQ9MpWAqm4XsCFXgRF1kM7HyZVqd47quoHobWipSHQKu7mrl&id=61552607398508
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===East Division Final===
*Hudson Valley Vipers defeated Niagara Falls Buffalos 8-6
===West Division Final===
*Toledo Mobsters defeated Soo Nordiques 12-0
==Final==
*Hudson Valley Vipers defeated Toledo Mobsters 7-4
==References==
Category:2023-24 in American ice hockey by league
Category:2023-24 in ice hockey
Category:Union Hockey League seasons
Category:American Premier Hockey League seasons