The 2010–11 CWHL season is the fourth in the history of the

Canadian Women's Hockey League The Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL; french: Ligue canadienne de hockey féminin ‒ LCHF) was a women's ice hockey league. Established in 2007 as a Canadian women's senior league in the Greater Toronto Area, Montreal, and Ottawa, the league ...

but was considered a reboot for the league after a major restructuring as an organization. For the season, the league was to run on a budget of $500,000 and players will pay for their own equipment. As part of the restructuring, officially, all five CWHL teams in the 2010–11 season were referred to by the league as their locations without any monikers and were considered "new" teams. However, since most of the locations had teams in the previous seasons, they were still commonly referenced as their monikers. The league returned to the team name usage for the following season.

Offseason

Prior to the season, the league underwent a structural reorganization. The CWHL considered the restructure a relaunch of the league. Among the changes included the

Mississauga Chiefs The Mississauga Chiefs were a professional women's ice hockey team that played in the Canadian National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) and the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). They played in Mississauga, Ontario at the Hershey Centre and the ...

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

and

Vaughan Flames The Vaughan Flames was a professional women's ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). The team played its home games at Vaughan Sports Village in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. History In 1995 the Vaughan Flames joined the Ontari ...

teams ceasing operations, adding a new team in Toronto, and expanding into the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

with a team in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. The relaunch also branded the five teams after their respective locations, simply calling them Boston CWHL, Brampton CWHL, Burlington CWHL, Montreal CWHL, and Toronto CWHL. However, the CWHL teams that were playing in previous markets were commonly referred to as their former names, the Boston team called itself the

Boston Blades The Worcester Blades were a professional women's ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League, based in Worcester, Massachusetts, and played their home games at the Fidelity Bank Worcester Ice Center. The team began play in the 2010–11 ...

, and the new Toronto team was sometimes called Toronto HC. The league held its first player draft on August 12, 2010, although it was only for the three

Greater Toronto Area The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater T ...

teams as the league decided that since they do not pay a salary, it would be unfair to force players to be based outside their hometown. The event was held at the

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

in Toronto. On September 11, the

Centre Etienne Desmarteau Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics * Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentric ...

in Montreal, Quebec, named one of the rinks in the arena in

Caroline Ouellette Caroline Ouellette (born May 25, 1979) is a Canadian retired ice hockey player and current associate head coach of the Concordia Stingers women's ice hockey program. She was a member of the Canadian national women's ice hockey team and a member ...

's honour. On September 17, former

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

goaltender

Erin Whitten Erin Hamlen (born October 26, 1971) is an American retired ice hockey goaltender and the current head coach of the Merrimack Warriors women's ice hockey program in the Hockey East (HEA) conference of the NCAA Division I. She was among the first ...

was named head coach of the Boston expansion franchise.

News and notes

*November 20–21: Montreal swept Brampton in a two-game series. The battle between the top two teams in the Canadian Women's Hockey League resulted in Montreal remaining undefeated. The November 20 game involved a pre-game salute. Montreal recognized

Angela James Angela Diane James (born December 22, 1964) is a Canadian former ice hockey player who played at the highest levels of senior hockey between 1980 and 2000. She was a member of numerous teams in the Central Ontario Women's Hockey League (COWHL) ...

, the head coach of Brampton for her historic induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and held a minute of silence for the passing of Pat Burns at the Étienne Desmarteau Arena. *December 19: Boston came from behind to defeat Montreal. In doing so, they broke up Montreal's bid for an undefeated season. Boston goalie Mandy Cronin stopped 74 shots to lead Boston to victory. Montreal had an early 2-0 lead. In the second period, Blades' player Sam Faber scored on an assist by Jess Koizumi. In the third period, Koizumi would tie the game. With 3:24 to play in the game,

Angela Ruggiero Angela Marie Ruggiero (born January 3, 1980) is an American former ice hockey defenseman, gold medalist, and four-time Olympian. She was a member of the International Olympic Committee from 2010 to 2018 and served as a member of the Executive Bo ...

scored the game-winning goal. She was assisted by Sam Faber and Haley Moore. *January 16:

Gillian Apps Gillian Mary Apps (born November 2, 1983) is a women's ice hockey player. Apps was a member of the Canadian National Hockey Team that won back to back Gold Medals in three consecutive Olympic Games. As a psychology major at Dartmouth College in ...

scored her seventh goal of the season 2:42 into overtime as Brampton defeated Boston by a 4–3 tally. The win was the fifth in a row for Brampton and 11–6 on the season. The five game win streak was the best in the league. Brampton had yet to lose a game in 2011. In addition, they outscored their opponents 23–9 during the streak. *January 18, 2011: Brampton competed against Montreal at the Invista Centre in Kingston, Ontario. This was team captain

Jayna Hefford Jayna Hefford (born May 14, 1977) is a Canadian retired ice hockey player and current chairperson of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association. During her career, she won multiple medals at the Winter Olympics and IIHF World Women's C ...

's hometown and her number 15 was raised to the rafters of the Invista Centre on behalf of the Kingston Area Minor Hockey Association. As of 2012, no sweaters bearing Hefford's number will be used in Kingston Minor Hockey. Boston -Montreal 29 janvier 2011 009

*January 21:

Georgetown, Ontario Georgetown is a large unincorporated community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada, in the Regional Municipality of Halton. The town includes several small villages or settlements such as Norval, Limehouse, Stewarttown and Glen William ...

, hosted a game between Brampton and Toronto. The game featured eight former Olympians (from Brampton, Gillian Apps, Jayna Hefford, Lori Depuis, Delaney Collins and Molly Engstrom, and from Toronto, Sami Jo Small, Tessa Bonhomme and Jennifer Botterill). Brampton prevailed by a 5–2 tally. *January 29: Montreal raised awareness and funds for the Fondation du cancer du sein du Québec (FCSQ). The game featured the Montreal club in pink at

versus Boston. Montreal prevailed by a 3–0 score (goals scored by: Stephanie Denino,

Sarah Vaillancourt Sarah Marie Vaillancourt (born May 8, 1985) is a Canadian women's ice hockey player. She is a member of the Canada women's national team and a member of Montreal Stars (CWHL). 2-time Olympic Gold Medallist / World Championships Gold / 4-time Wo ...

and Tawnya Davis). 800 persons came to support the cause. *February 12:

Brampton Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#Lower-tier municipalities, lower-tier municipalit ...

topped

for tenth straight victory, Montreal and Toronto win one game each. *February 19: at the Mastercard Centre,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

faced off against

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

for a special event for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind. There were over 500 people in attendance and many fun events for all those involved. *February 27: For their last match of the regular season, Montreal ended up on the winning side, defeating Boston 4–1 solidifying their hold on first place in the league.

Team captains

Board of directors

*January 25, 2011: The CWHL announced its board of directors for the upcoming season.

Final standings

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, OTL = Overtime Losses, SOL = Shootout Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points.

Statistics

Scoring leaders

Goaltending leaders

Attendance

Awards and honors

Source: * Most Valuable Player:

, Montréal *

Angela James Bowl The Angela James Bowl was a women's ice hockey trophy introduced in 2007-08 to recognize the top points scorer in the newly formed Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). The trophy was donated in order to help preserve the statistical history of th ...

: Top Scorer

, Montréal * Outstanding Rookie:

, Montréal * Coach of the Year: Patrick Rankine, Montréal

CWHL Top Players

* Top Forward:

, Montréal * Top Defender:

, Boston * Top Goaltender:

Kim St-Pierre Kim St-Pierre (born December 14, 1978 in Châteauguay, Quebec) is a Canadian ice hockey player. She is a three-time Olympic gold medallist and five-time IIHF world champion. She was announced as a Hockey Hall of Fame inductee on June 24, 2020. ...

, Montréal

CWHL All-Stars

First Team All-Stars * Goaltender:

, Montreal * Defender:

, Boston * Defender:

Annie Guay Annie Guay (born June 29, 1985) is a Canadian ice hockey player. She is a member of the Canadian national women's hockey team and a member of Montreal Stars (CWHL). Her first tournament for the senior Canada women's national ice hockey team was ...

, Montreal * Forward:

, Brampton * Forward:

, Montreal Second Team All-Stars * Goaltender: Laura Hosier, Brampton * Defender: Britni Smith, Toronto * Defender:

Molly Engstrom Molly Marie Engstrom (born March 1, 1983) is an American retired ice hockey player and the cuurent head coach of the Maine Black Bears women's ice hockey program in the Hockey East (HEA) conference of the NCAA Division I. During her playing care ...

, Brampton * Forward:

Jennifer Botterill Jennifer Botterill, (born May 1, 1979) is a Canadian former women's hockey player and current hockey broadcast television analyst who played for Harvard University, the Canadian national team, the Mississauga Chiefs, and the Toronto Aeros. Sh ...

, Toronto * Forward:

Sam Faber Samantha Faber (born May 8, 1987) is an American ice hockey player. Faber competed for the New Hampshire Wildcats women's ice hockey program in Hockey East. During the 2007–08 season, Faber set an NCAA record (since tied) for most game-winning ...

, Boston * Forward: Noemie Marin, Montreal

CWHL All-Rookie Team

* Goaltender:

Christina Kessler Christina Kessler (born May 28, 1988) has competed for the Canadian National women's ice hockey team. Her debut with Team Canada was at the 2010 Four Nations Cup where she was part of the gold medal-winning squadron. She played for th ...

, Burlington * Defender: Britni Smith, Toronto * Defender:

Kacey Bellamy Kacey Lee Bellamy (born April 22, 1987) is an American ice hockey defender for the Calgary section of the PWHPA, an Olympic Silver medalist, and seven-time IIHF World Women's Championship winner. She currently plays for the Boston Pride in the ...

, Boston * Forward:

, Montreal * Forward:

, Boston * Forward:

Kori Cheverie Kori Cheverie (born June 18, 1987) is a Canadian retired ice hockey player, currently serving as assistant coach of the Canadian national women's ice hockey team and of the Ryerson Rams men's ice hockey team. She was the first woman to be hired ...

, Toronto

CWHL Monthly Top Scorer

* October:

Noémie Marin Noémie Marin (born April 5, 1984 in Acton Vale, Quebec) is a former two-sport athlete that played ice hockey and softball. She was a four-time Clarkson Cup winner and she retired as the CWHL's all-time leading goalscorer. Softball In soft ...

, Montreal * November:

, Montreal * December:

, Montreal * January:

, Montreal * February:

, Montreal

Postseason

Brampton travelled to Montreal and Toronto went to Boston for the first round of the playoffs. Montreal and Toronto won each of their matches against their opponents to participate in the Clarkson Cup Championship.

Clarkson Cup

The 2011 Clarkson Cup was held March 24–27, 2011. The four competing teams included three from the

and the champion team of the

Western Women's Hockey League The Western Women's Hockey League (WWHL) was a women's hockey league in Canada. The league was established in 2004, and consisted of teams in Canada (some former National Women's Hockey League teams) and one from the United States. The league offic ...

, the

Minnesota Whitecaps The Minnesota Whitecaps are a professional ice hockey team in the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF; formerly known as the National Women's Hockey League). They play in Richfield, Minnesota, part of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, at ...

Championship game

March 27: The final game concluded with the Montreal team defeating Toronto 5–0. Montreal got off to a 2–0 lead in the first period with the first goal scored by Noemie Marin on a backhand shot as she converted a pass from

and the second goal scored off a face off in the Toronto end when Dominique Thibault took the draw and Vanessa Davidson put a shot behind goaltender

Sami Jo Small Sami Jo Small (born March 25, 1976) is a Canadian former ice hockey goaltender. As a member of the Canadian national team, she was a three-time Olympic medallist and four-time World Championship medallist. One of the founders of the now defun ...

. The lone goal of the second period was scored by

Sabrina Harbec Sabrina Harbec (born March 20, 1985) is a hockey player and the third winner of the Angela James Bowl after leading the CWHL with 15 goals and 39 assists in 29 games. Her performance helped the Stars finish first overall in league standing ...

on an outside drive cutting by

. Harbec drew the goalie across the crease and put the puck in the top corner. The shots at the end of the second period were 34 to 17 in favour of the Montreal. Montreal added two more goals in the third period to win 5–0. At 5:33,

Julie Chu Julie Wu Chu (born March 13, 1982) is an Americans, American-Canadians, Canadian retired Olympic ice hockey player who played the position of Forward (ice hockey), forward on the United States women's national ice hockey team, United States wome ...

passed to

and made a low shot for a goal. The final goal of the game was scored with 2:42 left as

picked up a pass from Ouellette and scored from about five feet out. Toronto goalie

played well in defeat as Montreal controlled the game outshooting Toronto 51 to 26. Toronto did threaten offensively early in the game and could have turned the contest around but Montreal goalie,

, came up with exceptional saves to earn the shutout and ultimately crown

Montreal Stars Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

as the 2011 Clarkson Cup Champions.

Awards and honors

References

External links

CWHL.ca

External news story

* Cassie Campbell-Pascall, 2010 helped grow women's hockey o

February 9, 2011.
Montreal hopes Clarkson Cup win promotes women's hockey league
in Globe and Mail, March 27, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:2010-11 CWHL season 1

Offseason

News and notes

Team captains

Board of directors

Final standings

Statistics

Scoring leaders

Goaltending leaders

Attendance

Awards and honors

CWHL Top Players

CWHL All-Stars

CWHL All-Rookie Team

CWHL Monthly Top Scorer

Postseason

Clarkson Cup

Championship game

Awards and honors

See also

References

External links

External news story