This is what the announcement says on their website:
Walpole, MA - The Walpole Express are excited to announce their acceptance into the Elite 9 (E9) / Boston Hockey League (BHL) for the 2017-2018 season. The E9 / BHL provides high level hockey for the top youth organizations in the area, and are considered one of the best leagues in New England. The Walpole Express will be hosting 2003-2009 Elite level teams.
and this on the about us page:
Where do the teams play?
New for 2017, our Premier teams have been accepted to participate in the E9/BHL! The E9/BHL is considered one of the top leagues in New England and we are proud to be joining the league. We will also continue to host Elite & Select teams within the Premier Hockey League of New England (PHL-formerly MPDHL). We are allowed to place multiple teams at each level and therefore will make as many competitive teams as possible. The three levels of play provide opportunities for various skill levels to compete at the proper level of play.
So to me, it looks like Walpole Express will be in the BHL- the premier level teams only. No announcements have been made on the BHL site about new teams since December 2016. The premier teams from the PHL will be more than competitive in the BHL. Express may be a money grab organization, but don't think they would flat out lie about what leagues the kids were playing in.
This is the message that went out to families back in Feb from the Express:
First, in terms of the E9 and the BHL. This league will be for our Premier teams. All premier teams will have the opportunity to play in the parity round the first weekend of the season for entrance into the E9 division. The parity weekend will consist of 4-5 games against other teams vying for E9 status. Should your team play in the parity but not qualify for the E9, the team will then play in the Boston Hockey League (BHL). For those teams who do not wish to play during the parity round, you will be placed in the BHL and start the season right away.
Secondly, in terms of the MPDHL, we are keeping our Elite teams in this league. This is a great league for our Elite teams and we firmly believe that all our levels will be highly competitive in the upcoming season. The scheduling has been a bit challenging this season, however, the kinks have been worked out and we are very much excited for the 2017-18 season.
Finally, in terms of this past season, we were told by the MPDHL that they were going to have a “Select” division for our teams to play in. As they did not have enough programs with Select teams, it was too late for us to get into a different league. We are not going to have second Elite teams for the 2017-2018 season, we will definitely have Select teams. If the MA Premier League does not have a Select division we will play in the Valley League to properly place our Select teams in a competitive and successful situation.
This is the message that went out to families back in Feb from the Express:
First, in terms of the E9 and the BHL. This league will be for our Premier teams. All premier teams will have the opportunity to play in the parity round the first weekend of the season for entrance into the E9 division. The parity weekend will consist of 4-5 games against other teams vying for E9 status. Should your team play in the parity but not qualify for the E9, the team will then play in the Boston Hockey League (BHL). For those teams who do not wish to play during the parity round, you will be placed in the BHL and start the season right away.
Secondly, in terms of the MPDHL, we are keeping our Elite teams in this league. This is a great league for our Elite teams and we firmly believe that all our levels will be highly competitive in the upcoming season. The scheduling has been a bit challenging this season, however, the kinks have been worked out and we are very much excited for the 2017-18 season.
Finally, in terms of this past season, we were told by the MPDHL that they were going to have a “Select” division for our teams to play in. As they did not have enough programs with Select teams, it was too late for us to get into a different league. We are not going to have second Elite teams for the 2017-2018 season, we will definitely have Select teams. If the MA Premier League does not have a Select division we will play in the Valley League to properly place our Select teams in a competitive and successful situation.
Lets see how this works out for WE, seeing as how their "premier" teams are made up of kids cut from BHL National and Tier 1 White teams.