The William Ryan Trophy is a Canadian

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

series to determine the

Northwestern Ontario Northwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Northern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north and west of Lake Superior and west of Hudson Bay and James Bay. It includes most of subarctic Ontario. Its western boundary is the ...

seed of the

Keystone Cup The Keystone Cup is the Junior B ice hockey championship and trophy for Western Canada. From 1983 to 2017, the championship was the culmination of the champions of 12 hockey leagues in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Northwe ...

- the

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

Junior "B" Hockey championship.

Hockey Northwestern Ontario Hockey Northwestern Ontario (HNO) is the governing body of all ice hockey in Northern Ontario, Canada. Hockey Northwestern Ontario is a branch of Hockey Canada. Jurisdiction Empowered by Hockey Canada, Hockey Northwestern Ontario has control of ...

sanctioned league winners play-off for the trophy.

History

From 1997 until 2004, the right to compete in the

was an epic battle between the champions of the

Thunder Bay Junior B Hockey League The Lakehead Junior Hockey League is a Canadian Junior ice hockey league in Northwestern Ontario, sanctioned by Hockey Northwestern Ontario and Hockey Canada. An earlier edition of this league existed in the 1970s. The Thunder Bay-based league ...

and the

North of Superior Junior B Hockey League The North of Superior Junior B Hockey League (NSHL) is a defunct Junior ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada, sanctioned by Hockey Canada. The league used to be a part of the Northern Ontario Hockey Association. History The North of Superior Jun ...

. After six championships competed for, each league had three Northwestern Ontario titles each, but in the last two years of competition the TBJBHL won both years. As the NSHL folded in 2004, the TBJBHL won the eight-year series five championships to three. With Junior "A" hockey expansion in the region (from just the

Thunder Bay Flyers The Thunder Bay Flyers were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. History On July 6, 1980, the Degagne Buccaneers and Thunder Bay North Stars were informed by the TBAHA that they would not be permitted to field teams i ...

in 2000 to the

Superior International Junior Hockey League The Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL) is a junior A ice hockey league and a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) and Hockey Canada. The league operates in the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. states of M ...

in 2007) the local talent pools have been severely taxed making the Junior "B" teams less dominant at the national level. The result has been the contraction of the TBJBHL. The only time the Northwestern Ontario champion has ever won the Western Canadian title was in 1999 when the Fort William Hurricanes went the distance. The region has hosted the

five times.

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

hosted the Cup in 1994, 1999 and 2009.

Schreiber, Ontario Schreiber is a municipal township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located on the northernmost point of Lake Superior along Highway 17. The town, with a population of approximately 1100 people, is almost completely located inside the geogr ...

hosted the second-ever tournament in 1984 and again in 2004.

Champions

There has been no trophy competition since the demise of the NSHL after the 2003–04 season.

External links

Hockey Northwestern Ontario

Northern Ontario Hockey Association
{{Keystone Cup Ice hockey in Ontario Ice hockey tournaments in Canada

History

Champions

See also

External links