| 1971–72 WCHL season | |
| League: | Western Hockey League |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Playoffs: | Playoffs |
| Finals Champ: | Edmonton Oil Kings (2) |
| Finals Runner-Up: | Regina Pats |
| No Of Teams: | 12 |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Season Champ Name: | Season champions |
| Season Champs: | Calgary Centennials (1) |
| Mvp Link: | Four Broncos Memorial Trophy |
| Mvp: | John Davidson (Calgary Centennials) |
| Top Scorer Link: | Bob Clarke Trophy |
| Top Scorer: | Tom Lysiak (Medicine Hat Tigers) |
| Seasonslistnames: | WHL |
| Prevseason Year: | 1970–71 |
| Nextseason Year: | 1972–73 |
| 1971–72 Canadian major junior season | |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| No Of Teams: | 32 |
| Season: | OHA |
| Season2: | QMJHL |
| Season3: | WCHL |
| Playoffs: | Memorial Cup |
| Finals Champ: | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| Num Championships: | 1 |
| Finals Runner-Up: | Peterborough Petes (OHA) |
The 1971–72 WCHL season was the sixth season of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL). It featured twelve teams and a 68-game regular season. While the Calgary Centennials topped the season standings with 49 wins, the Edmonton Oil Kings won their second consecutive President's Cup, defeating the Regina Pats in the championship series.
This season also saw the league expand into British Columbia, becoming a truly Western Canadian organization. On the national scene, 1972 also marked the beginning of a new era as it was decided that the Memorial Cup would be contested through a round robin tournament featuring the champions from the country's three major junior leagues—the WCHL, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and the Ontario Hockey Association.[1] The Oil Kings became the WCHL's first participant under this new format at the 1972 Memorial Cup tournament.
| East Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Regina Pats | 68 | 43 | 23 | 2 | 88 | 287 | 225 |
| x Saskatoon Blades | 68 | 37 | 28 | 3 | 77 | 312 | 258 |
| x Brandon Wheat Kings | 68 | 35 | 33 | 0 | 70 | 338 | 331 |
| x Flin Flon Bombers | 68 | 31 | 36 | 1 | 63 | 265 | 307 |
| Swift Current Broncos | 68 | 25 | 42 | 1 | 51 | 252 | 311 |
| Winnipeg Jets | 68 | 24 | 43 | 1 | 49 | 238 | 273 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Calgary Centennials | 68 | 49 | 16 | 3 | 101 | 296 | 169 |
| x Edmonton Oil Kings | 68 | 44 | 22 | 2 | 90 | 320 | 246 |
| x New Westminster Bruins | 68 | 40 | 27 | 1 | 81 | 285 | 240 |
| x Medicine Hat Tigers | 68 | 35 | 30 | 3 | 73 | 351 | 312 |
| Victoria Cougars | 68 | 18 | 48 | 2 | 38 | 215 | 321 |
| Vancouver Nats | 68 | 17 | 50 | 1 | 35 | 213 | 379 |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 68 | 46 | 97 | 143 | 96 | |||
| 68 | 58 | 75 | 133 | 77 | |||
| 68 | 60 | 66 | 126 | 125 | |||
| 65 | 53 | 73 | 126 | 54 | |||
| 68 | 56 | 67 | 123 | 115 | |||
| 68 | 59 | 57 | 116 | 99 | |||
| 60 | 51 | 63 | 114 | 29 | |||
| 68 | 50 | 64 | 114 | 54 | |||
| 63 | 59 | 53 | 112 | 29 | |||
| 67 | 44 | 62 | 106 | 52 |
The 1971–72 WCHL All-Star Game was held in Vancouver, British Columbia, with the East Division All-Stars defeating the West Division All-Stars 4–2 before a crowd of 5,783.
| Most Valuable Player: John Davidson, Calgary Centennials | |
| Top Scorer: Tom Lysiak, Medicine Hat Tigers | |
| Most Sportsmanlike Player: Ron Chipperfield, Brandon Wheat Kings | |
| Defenseman of the Year: Jim Watson, Calgary Centennials | |
| Rookie of the Year: Dennis Sobchuk, Regina Pats | |
| Goaltender of the Year: John Davidson, Calgary Centennials | |
| Coach of the Year: Earl Ingarfield, Sr., Regina Pats | |
| Regular Season Champions: Calgary Centennials |
| First Team | Second Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goal | Regina Pats | ||||
| Defense | Edmonton Oil Kings | ||||
| Saskatoon Blades | |||||
| Center | Regina Pats | ||||
| Left Wing | Edmonton Oil Kings | ||||
| Right Wing | Edmonton Oil Kings | ||||