No different than canada now losing regularly in would junior tournaments. More competition. Same goes for NCAA. New programs with deep pockets, great facilities etc are going to change the landscape.
It's mainly because of the decline of high school hockey thanks to the USPHL. Fifteen players on University of Minnesota-Duluth last season are from Minnesota. Only two players on UMass were from Massachusetts. Hockey is no longer viable in New England.
Studs will be studs. They don’t play USPHL. That hasn’t changed. What has changes is the current dev model is about moving the masses to be good D3 college players. So overall, more players are developing, locally though, not a good option for the studs.
There are over 50 Mass players alone in HE, so development isn't really at the crux of why BU & BC have fallen off. To the OP's question, BU & BC seem to be recruiting all-stars vs teams. They were getting the most skilled players but you still need 3rd & 4th line guys and that can be a difficult transition for a kid whose been #1 on every team he's ever played on since he was six.
There are over 50 Mass players alone in HE, so development isn't really at the crux of why BU & BC have fallen off. To the OP's question, BU & BC seem to be recruiting all-stars vs teams. They were getting the most skilled players but you still need 3rd & 4th line guys and that can be a difficult transition for a kid whose been #1 on every team he's ever played on since he was six.