Youth hockey organization disputes heat up, antitrust grumblings

Beyond the Playing Field

By Brian C. Konkel

Brian C. Konkel is an attorney in the sports law practice group at Duggan, Bertsch LLC. The sports law practice group is all-encompassing but focuses on the litigation needs of players, coaches, teams and schools. He can be reached at bkonkel@dugganbertsch.com.

Posted March 18, 2019 3:29 PM

Youth hockey in Illinois has expanded tremendously over the past decade which can be attributed, at least in part, to the success of the Chicago Blackhawks since 2013.Participation grew by more than 18 percent between the 2013-14 and 2017-18 seasons to more than 23,000 youth players. Despite this rise in popularity, however, the participation opportunities are extremely limited and the cost remains prohibitive for many would-be participants.Two lawsuits filed over the past three months detail how the Amateur Hockey …

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