The 1988–89 WHL season was the 23rd season of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

(WHL), featuring fourteen teams and a 72-game regular season. Less than three years after the 1986 team bus crash that killed four players, the Swift Current Broncos put together the best season in the club's history. The Broncos won their first Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy for the best regular season record, and in the playoffs defeated the Portland Winter Hawks to win their first President's Cup as league champions—the Broncos went undefeated throughout the playoffs. This earned the Broncos a berth in the 1989 Memorial Cup tournament, which was hosted in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

. At the tournament, the Broncos defeated the host

Saskatoon Blades The Saskatoon Blades are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Founded in 1964, the Blades were a charter team of the then-Western Canada Junior Hockey League in 1966, and are the only club that has played ev ...

to win the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

title. This was the first season for the

Tri-City Americans The Tri-City Americans are an American major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League and based in Kennewick, Washington. Founded in 1966 as the Calgary Buffaloes, the team settled in Kennewick in 1988 after a number of re ...

after the

New Westminster Bruins The New Westminster Bruins were a Junior ice hockey#Major junior, major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League. There were two franchises that carried this name: * 1971–1981 (formerly the Estevan Bruins, now the Kamloops Blazers) * ...

relocated to

Kennewick, Washington Kennewick () is a city in Benton County, Washington, Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. It is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, just southeast of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima ...

prior to the season. The Americans became the fourth WHL club based in the United States.

Team changes

*The

relocate to

, becoming the

Regular season

Final standings

Scoring leaders

''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes''

1989 WHL Playoffs

First round

* Swift Current earned a bye * Saskatoon earned a bye * Lethbridge defeated Prince Albert 3 games to 1 * Moose Jaw defeated Medicine Hat 3 games to 0

Division semi-finals

* Swift Current defeated Moose Jaw 4 games to 0 * Saskatoon defeated Lethbridge 4 games to 0 * Portland defeated Tri-City 5 games to 2 * Kamloops defeated Victoria 5 games to 3

Division finals

* Swift Current defeated Saskatoon 4 games to 0 * Portland defeated Kamloops 5 games to 3

WHL Championship

* Swift Current defeated Portland 4 games to 0

All-Star game

On January 24, the West Division defeated the East Division 5–1 at

Brandon, Manitoba Brandon () is the second-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the southwestern corner of the province on the banks of the Assiniboine River, approximately west of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and east of the ...

before a crowd of 2,933.

WHL awards

All-Star Teams

References

* 2005–06 WHL Guide {{DEFAULTSORT:1988-89 Whl Season Western Hockey League seasons WHL WHL