The Provincial Women's Hockey League (or PWHL) is a
Junior
Junior or Juniors may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959
* ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009
* ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010
* ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019
Films
* ''Junior'' (1994 ...
women's
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 h ...
league in
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 C ...
, Canada that was founded in 2004. It is considered to be the highest level of
junior
Junior or Juniors may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959
* ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009
* ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010
* ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019
Films
* ''Junior'' (1994 ...
women's amateur ice hockey in Ontario, and is sanctioned by
Hockey Canada and the
Ontario Women's Hockey Association.
The PWHL provides alumni to the
Canadian Interuniversity Sport
U Sports (stylized as U SPORTS) is the national sport governing body of university sport in Canada, comprising the majority of degree-granting universities in the country. Its equivalent body for organized sports at colleges in Canada is the Ca ...
,
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
,
the Professional
National Women's Hockey League
The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), formerly the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL), is a women's professional ice hockey league located in the United States and Canada. The league was established in 2015 with four league-owned teams and ha ...
, as well as the
Canada women's national ice hockey team
The Canadian women's national ice hockey team is the ice hockey team representing Canada in women's hockey. The team is overseen by Hockey Canada, a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and participates in international competition ...
.
History
![Kingston Ice Wolves skater 2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Kingston_Ice_Wolves_skater_2013.jpg)
The PWHL was founded in 2004 by the
Ontario Women's Hockey Association. The PWHL is the women's equivalent to men's
junior hockey
Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...
, but is classified by the OWHA as Intermediate AA officially as the OWHA does not have an official "junior" classification system. Despite this, the teams of the PWHL market themselves as women's junior hockey.
One of the league's most notable alumni is
Meghan Agosta
Meghan Christina Agosta (born February 12, 1987) is a Canadian women's ice hockey forward, who last played for the Montreal Stars of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. Agosta plays for the Canada women's national ice hockey team and is a gol ...
who played for the
Windsor Wildcats. She went on to play professional with the
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-pe ...
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 leag ...
and is a member of two Olympic championship teams.
In the early years of the league, when PWHL teams had to compete for OWHA provincials they would do so with representatives of the
Ottawa District
The Ottawa District was a historic district in Upper Canada which existed until 1849. It was created in 1816 by splitting the counties of Prescott and Russell from the Eastern District. The district town was L'Orignal.
In 1838 Gloucester towns ...
. The PWHL franchises proved much more competitive than their Ottawa counterparts and after two seasons Ottawa applied to and joined the PWHL. By the 2009 league playoffs, 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 ...
beat the league powerhouse
Toronto Jr. Aeros
The Toronto Jr. Aeros are a junior ice hockey, Junior women's ice hockey team based in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Aeros are members of the Provincial Women's Hockey League of the Ontario Women's Hockey Association. The Aeros are five ...
to win its first league championship.
The most dominant franchise in league history is the
Toronto Jr. Aeros
The Toronto Jr. Aeros are a junior ice hockey, Junior women's ice hockey team based in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Aeros are members of the Provincial Women's Hockey League of the Ontario Women's Hockey Association. The Aeros are five ...
. The Aeros have won five league championships, including the first three consecutively, two Silver Medal finishes and a single Bronze medal finish in league playdowns. The Aeros have also won five regular season championships. Additionally, the Aeros have won three Golds at provincials, as well as two silvers and a bronze. The Aeros have also twice accomplished the PWHL's "triple crown" winning the regular season title, playoff championship, and provincial championship all in one year in both 2005 and 2006.
In 2019-2020, the Etobicoke Dolphins finished the regular season in first place. Eight teams advanced to the quarter-final round of the playoffs: Etobicoke, Cambridge, Burlington, Kingston, Stoney Creek, Oakville, Toronto and Ottawa. Due to the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic, the remainder of the playoffs were cancelled.
Teams
Defunct franchises
*
Chatham Outlaws (2004-2006)
*
Hamilton Hawks Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
(2004-2011)
*
Markham-Stouffville Stars (2004-2009)
Alumni Cup Playoff Champions
The winner of the final four is awarded the Alumni Cup.
Provincials
The OWHA runs a second run of playoffs that determines Provincial champion. These are not operated by the PWHL, but have all PWHL teams participating.
National team and professional alumni
![Wildcats goalie 2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wildcats_goalie_2013.JPG)
The following PWHL alumni have represented Canada in international tournaments and in Professional leagues.
*
Meghan Agosta
Meghan Christina Agosta (born February 12, 1987) is a Canadian women's ice hockey forward, who last played for the Montreal Stars of the Canadian Women's Hockey League. Agosta plays for the Canada women's national ice hockey team and is a gol ...
(Windsor Wildcats), 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 Winter Games
*
Courtney Birchard (Toronto Jr. Aeros)
*
Mellissa Channell (Burlington Jr. Barracudas)
*
Mallory Deluce
Mallory Deluce (born April 13, 1989) is a Canadian ice hockey forward for the Wisconsin Badgers women's ice hockey
The Wisconsin Badgers women's ice hockey team is the hockey team that represents the University of Wisconsin in Madi ...
(Bluewater Jr. Hawks)
*
Laura Fortino (Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres) 2014, 2018 Winter Games
*
Brittany Haverstock (Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres)
*
Haley Irwin (Toronto Jr. Aeros) 2010, 2014, 2018 Winter Games
*
Laura McIntosh (Mississauga Jr. Chiefs) Canada Under-22/Development Team
*
Stefanie McKeough (Ottawa Senators)
*
Isabel Menard (Ottawa Senators)
*
Jamie Miller (Toronto Jr. Aeros)
*
Carolyne Prevost (London Jr. Devilettes),
Canada women's national under-18 ice hockey team
The Canadian women's national under-18 ice hockey team is the national under-18 ice hockey team for women in Canada. The team represents Canada at the International Ice Hockey Federation's IIHF World Women's U18 Championships.
World Women's U18 ...
*
Ashley Riggs (Durham West Jr. Lightning)
*
Jillian Saulnier
Jillian Pauline Saulnier (born March 7, 1992) grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. She was the first female ice hockey player to represent Nova Scotia at the IIHF Women’s World Championship in 2015. She is a two-timOlympianfoTeam Canada w ...
(Toronto Jr. Aeros) 2018 Winter Games
*
Britni Smith (Markham-Stouffville Stars)
*
Natalie Spooner (Durham West Jr. Lightning) 2014, 2018 Winter Games
*
Jennifer Wakefield
Jennifer Dorothy June "Jenn" Wakefield (born June 15, 1989) is a Canadian ice hockey player and coach, currently playing in the Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL) with MoDo Hockey Dam. She has served as an assistant coach to the Netherlands' ...
(Durham West Jr. Lightning) 2010, 2014 Winter Games
*
Tara Watchorn (Durham West Jr. Lightning) 2014 Winter Games
*
Catherine White (Mississauga Jr. Chiefs)
*
Jessica Wong (Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres)
*
Celine Frappier (Southwest Wildcats/Toronto Jr. Aeros)
Awards
Regular Season champions
Scoring champion
Goaltending Award
Coach of the Year
Christie Rose Scholarship
![Sharks players 2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Sharks_players_2013.JPG)
For ten years, the PWHL awarded a scholarship in memory of former PWHL player Christie Rose. She was an 18-year-old young woman who died on June 24, 2008, as a result of her injuries suffered in a car accident.
The scholarship is awarded on an annual basis to recognize a young woman who shares the same qualities and characteristics as Christie. The scholarship program was ended after it awarded its tenth recipient.
Recipients
References
External links
Provincial Women's Hockey League WebsiteOntario Womens Hockey Association Website
{{Womens Hockey
4
Ice hockey leagues in Ontario
Amateur ice hockey