2007–08 WHL season explained
The 2007–08 WHL season was the 42nd season of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The regular season began on September 20, 2007, and ended on March 16, 2008. The Tri-City Americans won the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy for the best regular season record. The playoffs began on March 21, and ended on May 7, with the Spokane Chiefs defeating the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the championship series to claim their second Ed Chynoweth Cup and a berth at the 2008 Memorial Cup tournament, which Spokane would go on to win.[1]
The Edmonton Oil Kings joined the league as an expansion club—their name paying homage to Edmonton's original WHL team—bringing the WHL to 22 teams.[2]
League notes
- The WHL had announced at the 2007 Memorial Cup tournament that it would rename its championship trophy—until then, known as the President's Cup—after Ed Chynoweth.[3] The Chiefs 2008 championship was thus the first featuring the renamed trophy.
- The Edmonton Oil Kings joined the Central Division of the Eastern Conference, bringing the Eastern Conference to twelve teams, while the Western Conference remained at ten.
- The playoff format was revised so that the top eight teams in each conference qualify for the playoffs, as opposed to the top four in each division. Division winners are guaranteed a top two seed in each conference.
Final standings
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; SOL = Shootout losses; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points; x = Clinched playoff berth; y = Clinched conference title
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|
| | 72 | 27 | 74 | 101 | 40 |
| | 72 | 31 | 69 | 100 | 41 |
| | 67 | 48 | 49 | 97 | 63 |
| | 70 | 43 | 48 | 91 | 42 |
| Steve DaSilva | | 68 | 40 | 49 | 89 | 47 |
| | 72 | 34 | 55 | 89 | 72 |
| | 72 | 31 | 54 | 85 | 116 |
| Dan Gendur | | 60 | 29 | 55 | 84 | 68 |
| | 70 | 43 | 40 | 83 | 55 |
| Chilliwack Bruins | 63 | 39 | 44 | 83 | 42 | |
Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; SOL = Shootout losses ; GA = Goals against; SO = Total shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | Min | W | L | OTL | SL | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
|---|
| | 62 | 3678 | 43 | 11 | 2 | 6 | 116 | 9 | .911 | 1.89 |
| | 30 | 1693 | 20 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 56 | 3 | .916 | 1.98 |
| | 45 | 2543 | 30 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 87 | 6 | .922 | 2.05 |
| | 27 | 1529 | 18 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 54 | 1 | .911 | 2.12 |
| | 33 | 1840 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 66 | 2 | .915 | 2.15 | |
2008 WHL Playoffs
Conference quarter-finals
Eastern Conference
| Moose Jaw vs. Calgary |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Moose Jaw 1 | 5 Calgary | | March 23 | Moose Jaw 4 | 2 Calgary | | March 25 | Calgary 8 | 3 Moose Jaw | | March 26 | Calgary 3 | 1 Moose Jaw | | March 28 | Moose Jaw 4 | 2 Calgary | | March 30 | Calgary 4 | 2 Moose Jaw | | Calgary wins 4–2 | |
| | Swift Current vs. Regina |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Swift Current 1 | 2 Regina | | March 22 | Swift Current 5 | 3 Regina | | March 25 | (OT) Regina 4 | 3 Swift Current | | March 26 | Regina 4 | 5 Swift Current (2OT) | | March 28 | Swift Current 6 | 3 Regina | | March 29 | Regina 2 | 5 Swift Current | | Swift Current wins 4–2 | |
|
| Brandon vs. Lethbridge |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Brandon 1 | 2 Lethbridge | | March 22 | Brandon 3 | 4 Lethbridge | | March 25 | Lethbridge 4 | 3 Brandon | | March 26 | Lethbridge 1 | 5 Brandon | | March 28 | Lethbridge 3 | 4 Brandon | | March 30 | Brandon 0 | 4 Lethbridge | | Lethbridge wins 4–2 | |
| | Kootenay vs. Medicine Hat |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Kootenay 5 | 2 Medicine Hat | | March 22 | (OT) Kootenay 4 | 3 Medicine Hat | | March 25 | Medicine Hat 1 | 2 Kootenay | | March 26 | Medicine Hat 5 | 3 Kootenay | | March 28 | Kootenay 3 | 1 Medicine Hat | | Kootenay wins 4–1 | |
| |
Western Conference
| Kamloops vs. Tri-City |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Kamloops 1 | 6 Tri-City | | March 22 | Kamloops 1 | 4 Tri-City | | March 25 | Tri-City 4 | 3 Kamloops | | March 26 | Tri-City 6 | 2 Kamloops | | Tri-City wins 4–0 | |
| | Chilliwack vs. Vancouver |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Chilliwack 1 | 2 Vancouver | | March 22 | Chilliwack 2 | 3 Vancouver | | March 25 | (3OT) Vancouver 4 | 3 Chilliwack | | March 26 | Vancouver 2 | 1 Chilliwack | | Vancouver wins 4–0 | |
|
| Everett vs. Spokane |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Everett 2 | 5 Spokane | | March 22 | Everett 1 | 4 Spokane | | March 26 | Spokane 4 | 1 Everett | | March 28 | (OT) Spokane 3 | 2 Everett | | Spokane wins 4–0 | |
| | Kelowna vs. Seattle |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| March 21 | Kelowna 3 | 2 Seattle | | March 22 | Kelowna 3 | 1 Seattle | | March 24 | (OT) Seattle 3 | 2 Kelowna | | March 25 | Seattle 6 | 4 Kelowna | | March 27 | Kelowna 2 | 6 Seattle | | March 29 | Seattle 3 | 4 Kelowna (OT) | | April 1 | Kelowna 2 | 4 Seattle | | Seattle wins 4–3 | |
| |
WHL Championship
| Lethbridge vs. Spokane |
|---|
| Date | Away | Home |
|---|
| May 2 | Lethbridge 1 | 4 Spokane |
| May 3 | Lethbridge 2 | 5 Spokane |
| May 6 | (OT) Spokane 2 | 1 Lethbridge |
| May 7 | Spokane 4 | 1 Lethbridge |
| Spokane wins 4-0 | |
Memorial Cup
See main article: 2008 Memorial Cup.
The 90th Memorial Cup was held in Kitchener, Ontario.[4]
WHL awards
All-Star Teams
- source: Western Hockey League press release
2008 Bantam Draft
First round[5]
See also
References
External links
Notes and References
- News: 2008-05-25 . Spokane Chiefs win Memorial Cup . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20131006095604/https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/spokane-chiefs-win-memorial-cup-1.757728 . 2013-10-06 . 2024-06-03 . CBC Sports.
- News: 2006-03-17 . Edmonton joins WHL as 22nd franchise . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240514204442/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/edmonton-joins-whl-as-22nd-franchise/article704953/ . 2024-05-14 . 2024-05-14 . . The Canadian Press.
- News: Vanstone . Rob . 2017-01-29 . Ed Chynoweth was an early architect of Canadian junior hockey . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20170205000900/https://leaderpost.com/sports/hockey/ed-chynoweth-was-an-early-architect-of-canadian-junior-hockey . 2017-02-05 . 2024-06-07 . Regina Leader-Post.
- Web site: Kitchener Rangers to Host 2008 MasterCard Memorial Cup. October 28, 2008. May 9, 2007. Ontario Hockey League (OHL).
- Web site: 2008 WHL Bantam Draft: Round 1 . November 11, 2008 . WHL . https://web.archive.org/web/20080225092718/http://www.whl.ca/hm/draft.php . February 25, 2008 . dead .
