Colonial States College Hockey Conference

The Colonial States College Hockey Conference (CSCHC) is a college ice hockey league based in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The conference is part of the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division 2 and is made up of ten teams from colleges and universities based in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

History
The conference was formed on April 14, 2014 by programs previously associated with the Great Northeast Collegiate Hockey Conference (GNCHC). The original seven members consisted of Millersville University, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Princeton University, Seton Hall University, The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), the University of Pennsylvania, and West Chester University. The founder and first president of the conference was Tom Hench (2014-2016). Andrew Ducko (2016-) currently resides as the conference president.

Prior to the 2015–16 season Monmouth University joined the conference from the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Hockey Association (MACH), raising the total number of teams to eight. In November 2015, the ACHA granted the CSCHC an automatic bid into the ACHA D2 Regional Tournament.

In March 2016, Rutgers University and the University of Scranton were accepted into the conference from the GNCHC following the 2015–16 season.

For the 2018–19 season the conference adopted a new shootout rule for regular season games that were tied at the conclusion of overtime, eliminating the "tie" entirely from CSCHC play. The first game to implement this new rule was on October 26, 2018 where The College of New Jersey defeated Millersville University, 5–4 (2:1 in SO), after five shootout rounds.

Following that season the CSCHC took part in the 2019 Men's Division 2 All Star Challenge, along with 12 other DII leagues and one group representing independent programs, which was hosted at West Chester's Ice Line Quad Rinks. The team finished 12th with a record of 1-3-1. In August 2019, TCNJ was announced as a 2020 ACHA Men's Division 2 Regional host, with Loucks Ice Center in Lawrenceville, New Jersey acting as the site for the Southeast tournament between February 28 and March 1. This was the first time that a team from The Colonial acted as an official host for an official ACHA event. The two teams that advanced to the 2020 National Tournament from this were #3 University of Cincinnati and #7 Miami University. The 2020 ACHA National tournament was later canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In April 2020, Stockton University was announced at the conference's 11th member ahead of the 2020–21 season. The Ospreys became the first member to jump into Division 2 with its move, most recently playing in the Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference's (DVCHC) National Division at the Division 3 level. The team also rejoined the ACHA as the DVCHC, at the time of the 2019–20 season, was playing under the Collegiate Hockey Federation, a separate non-varsity governing body.

Playoff Format
Teams within the conference will play one-another twice a season, once at home and once on the road. The results of these games will count towards league standings and determine the playoff seeds. The top six teams at the conclusion of the regular season will qualify for the conference playoffs, which are held at a single venue over the course of one weekend.

The top two seeds receive a bye in the first round. The third seed faces the sixth seed, while the fourth seed faces the fifth. The second round sees the top seed take on the lowest remaining seed, and the second seed take on the highest seed remaining. The two teams that advance will face each-other in the championship game, with the winner receiving both the conference trophy and a birth in the ACHA Southeast Regional Tournament.