2015-16 USPHL-Midwest Season

This is the 2015-16 USPHL Midwest Division season. This is the league's only season of operation. The USPHL announced on December 18, 2014 the formation of a Midwest Division to begin in the 2015-16 season by adding several teams from the Minnesota Junior Hockey League. By the end of the season, the Midwest Division would add all but one active MnJHL team causing the MnJHL to disband for the following season. On March 10, 2014, the USPHL also added the entire Midwest Junior Hockey League to its new Midwest Division for the 2015-16 season.USPHL Midwest will mark the fourth Tier III division under the USPHL umbrella. After the completion of the season the member teams were divided up into the USPHL Elite Division and the United States Premier 3 Hockey League.

The Wooster Oilers later withdrew from the league before playing after the organization also obtained a North American 3 Hockey League franchise when the organization purchased and relocated the Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks organization during the 2015 off-season.

The month of August was not kind to the membership of the league as the Ironwood Fighting Yoopers suspended operations on August 17th. On August 20, the Soo Firehawks announced they were suspending operations. The St. Louis Storm folded the next day and the Minnesota Owls suspended operations on August 25th. And then the Indiana Attack suspended operations on September 10th forcing the league to re-write the schedule.

On February 21, 2016, 20 year old Chicago Cougars captain Matt Olson caught an edge while reacing for a puck behind the net during a game and was seriously injured. The fall resulted in very serious spinal injury and pemanant damage. The team and family have a gofundme.com page set up to help with the expenses.

USPHL Heritage Classic
On December 23rd the league announced plans for the first ever outdoor game involving the USPHL. The game is scheduled to be held January 29, 2016 at Clark Park Arena in Detroit. The game will be between the Motor City Hawks and the Detroit Fighting Irish.

Member Teams
The USPHL-Midwest had 17 teams located in the Midwestern US spanning from Michigan to Minnesota. Due to losing several teams the league went with 2 conferences after originally planning on two divisions in each conference

Standings
note: One game between Illiana and Decatur was cancelled late in the season and not made up as it had not affect on the final standings.

Playoffs
Prior to the season when the league had over twenty teams the league planned on having the top 8 teams in each division qualify for the playoffs. The league decided to keep the format so the only team that did not qualify for the playoffs was the 9th place team in the Western Conference.

Format
Top 8 teams in each conference qualify for the playoffs. The conference quarterfinals and semifinals are best-of-three. The four Division Semifinal round winners advance to the 8 team championship tournament also involving  the remaining 2 teams from both the USP3HL's North and South Divisions.

Western Division Quarterfinals

 * Forest Lake Lakers defeated Decatur Blaze 2 games to none (7-1, 11-1)
 * Chicago Cougars defeated Steele County Blades 2 games to none (3-1, 8-4)
 * Dells Ducks defeated Illiana Blackbirds 2 games to 1 (3-0, 1-2, 3-2 (ot))
 * Wisconsin Rapids RiverKings defeated SCV Magicians 2 games to 1 (3-5, 4-3, 5-1)

Eastern Division Quarterfinals

 * Tri-City Ice Hawks defeated Michigan Wild 2 games to none (5-1, 10-2)
 * Traverse City Hounds defeated Alpena Flyers 2 games to none (5-4 (ot), 5-1)
 * Detroit Fighting Irish defeated Motor City Hawks 2 games to none (5-2, 5-4)
 * Marquette Royales defeated Kalkaska Rhinos 2 games to none (1-2, 0-4) the first game was turned into a forfeit loss for the Rhinos as the team dressed an ineligible player

Western Division Semifinals

 * Forest Lake Lakers defeated Wisconsin Rapids RiverKings 2 games to 1 (3-4 (ot), 5-1, 3-2 (ot))
 * Dells Ducks defeated Chicago Cougars 2 games to 1 (2-1 (ot), 1-2 (ot), 3-2)

Eastern Division Semifinals
The four division semifinal winners advance to the USP3HL Championship tournament held March 9-12, 2016 at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, Massachusetts.
 * Tri-City Hawks defeated Marquette Royales 2 games to none (7-1, 7-1)
 * Traverse City Hounds defeated Detroit Fighting Irish 2 games to none (3-2, 3-2)

Format
The four remaining teams from the USP3HL playoffs and the four remaining teams from the USPHL Midwest playoffs were put into a tournament held March 9-11, 2016 at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The teams were placed in two pools of four teams (2 from each league per pool). The teams played a single round robin over two days with the top two teams moving the semifinal round with the top team from one pool playing the second place team in the other pool in the single game semifinal round, the semifinal winners met for the championship later that day.

Round Robin Games
The game between the two Midwest teams in each pool were not played.
 * Dells defeated Hampton Roads 3-0
 * Jersey Shore defeated Tri-City 5-2
 * Jersey tied Traverse City 2-2
 * Florida defeated Forest Lake 3-1
 * Hampton Roads defeated Jersey Shore 3-1
 * Dells defeated Jersey Shore 6 to 1
 * Hampton Roads defeated Tri-City 5-3
 * Jersey defeated Florida 5-4
 * Jersey tied Forest Lake 2-2
 * Florida defeated Traverse City 3-0

Semifinals

 * Dells defeated Florida 5-2
 * Hampton Roads defeated Jersey 4-3 (ot)

Final

 * Dells defeated Hampton Roads 5-0