| U Sports women's ice hockey | |
| Formerly: | CIAU women's ice hockey, CIS women's ice hockey |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Founded: | 1997 |
| Teams: | 35, in four conferences |
| Country: | Canada |
| Champion: | Mount Royal Cougars |
| Most Champs: | Alberta Pandas (8) |
| Website: | U Sports women's ice hockey |
U Sports women's ice hockey is the highest level of play of women's ice hockey at the university level under the auspices of U Sports, Canada's governing body for university sports. Women's ice hockey has been played in U Sports since the 1997-98 season, when the governing body was known as the Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union, following a long stint of teams only competing in the OUA. There are 35 teams, all of which are based in Canada, that are divided into four conferences that are eligible to compete for the year-end championship. As these players compete at the university level, they are obligated to follow the rule of standard eligibility of five years.
The 1890s marked the beginning of the first women's ice hockey teams in Canadian universities. These universities included the University of Toronto in Toronto, Queen's University in Kingston, and McGill University in Montreal.[1] In 1908, other schools such as the Calgary Collegiate Institute and Mount Royal University began to ice competitive teams as well.[2] In the early years, teams played behind closed doors and men were not authorized to attend the matches. The referee was the only man present during the matches.[1] Starting in 1900, male spectators were authorized to assist in women's matches in most of the Canadian provinces and some university teams. During this time, there was no university women's league and some university women's teams competed against rivals representing cities. Sometimes, they were forced to cross big geographical distances by train in order to participate in tournaments
The first provincial women's championship took place in 1914 in Picton, Ontario. Six teams participated in the event, including the University of Toronto.[3] In 1921, the University of Toronto bested McGill University during the first Canadian women's university championship. The Toronto Lady Blues would gain 11 championship titles, compared with two titles for the Queen's Golden Gaels before the women's university league dissolved in 1933[4] During this time period, Elizabeth Graham, a Queen's University goaltender, carried a fencing mask during matches in 1927.[1] She would be the first goaltender in ice hockey, before the famous Jacques Plante, to carry a protective face mask.[5] On December 16, 1922, the Ladies Ontario Hockey Association (LOHA) was formed, and included several Ontario university teams[6] In 1923, the Women's Intercollegiate Athletic Union (WIAU) is created with the aim of offering sporting events to students in Ontario. The WIAU coordinated the programs of the students,[7] and several university women's teams were members there.[7] In the autumn of 1923, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association held its annual meeting in Port Arthur, Ontario. It was here that the association decided not to give to the women official recognition as hockey players. From 1931 until 1941, the non-university team Preston Rivulettes were unbeaten in the LOHA and won ten consecutive championships. Numerous university women's teams are reluctant to join the LOHA because they estimated that they would be unable to compete against the Rivulettes. Due to the Great Depression, several university women's teams were dissolved. Consequently, ice hockey teams became rarer for numerous women's teams.
In 1941, the LOHA was dissolved and, in the aftermath, several teams begin to disappear. The Second World War also affected the level of participation in women's ice hockey in Canada. From 1936 to 1948, and from 1951 to 1960, there was no WIAU official women's competition.[8] Women’s ice hockey would not return until the 1960s at the Canadian university level.[9]
The revival in the 1960s resulted in the creation of new women's teams in several Canadian universities. In 1969, the Canada West Universities Athletic Association, with a mission to organize championships in multiple sports for women university students in Western Canada, presented a proposal which eventually led to the creation of the Canadian Women's Intercollegiate Athletic Union (CWIAU). The first recognized national women's championship was in volleyball, presented in March, 1970 at the University of Waterloo.[7] [10] While the CWIAU had been created, university women's ice hockey was still not prevalent outside Ontario, where the Women's Intercollegiate Athletic Union (WIAU) merged with the Ontario-Quebec University Athletic Association (OQUAA) to form the Ontario Women's Interuniversity Athletic Association (OWIAA) in 1971.[7] [10] This resulted in university women's teams multiplying and several American university tournaments inviting Canadian teams. Regional women's university ice hockey championships began to grow elsewhere in Canada, and in March 1998, the first Canadian national university championship in women’s ice hockey took place. The Concordia Stingers, in Montreal, hosted the event and won the first U Sports championship.
In the U Sports regular season, 36 teams play between 20 and 28 matches in their respective regional conferences. At the end of the season, qualifying rounds (in each regional conference) determine the champion team in each of the four Canadian regions. Afterwards, a national tournament takes place consisting of eight teams: the winning team in each of the four regional championship conferences; (Atlantic University Sport, Quebec Student Sports Federation (in French, Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec), Ontario University Athletics and Canada West Universities Athletic Association). In addition, the organizing team of the national tournament (the university which hosts the annual event) and the defending champion, as well as the finalist from all four conferences qualify.
As of the 2023–24 season, the Canadian university women's ice hockey competition consisted of four conferences and 35 teams. In recent history, the Lethbridge Pronghorns dropped their program following the 2019-20 season.[11] The Bishop's Gaiters program joined the RSEQ conference in 2020–21 while the Trinity Western Spartans and MacEwan Griffins programs became members of the Canada West conference that same year.[12] [13] However, following the cancellation of the 2020–21 season, the Laurentian Voyageurs discontinued their women's ice hockey program in 2021.[14]
| University | Varsity Name | City | Province | School Founded | Arena | Arena Capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dalhousie University | Tigers | Halifax | NS | 1818 | Halifax Forum | 5,600 | |
| Université de Moncton | Aigles Bleues | Moncton | NB | 1864 | J. Louis Levesque Arena | ||
| Mount Allison University | Mounties | Sackville | NB | 1839 | Tantramar Veterans Memorial Civic Centre | 750 | |
| University of Prince Edward Island | Panthers | Charlottetown | PEI | 1969 | MacLauchlan Arena | ||
| Saint Mary's University | Huskies | Halifax | NS | 1802 | Alumni Arena | 1,000 | |
| St. Francis Xavier University | X-Women | Antigonish | NS | 1853 | Charles V. Keating Centre | 1,500 | |
| St. Thomas University | Tommies | Fredericton | NB | 1910 | Grant • Harvey Centre | 1,500 | |
| University of New Brunswick | Reds | Fredericton | NB | 1785 | Aitken University Centre | 3,278 |
| University | Varsity Name | City | Province | School Founded | Arena | Arena Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Alberta | Pandas | Edmonton | AB | 1908 | Clare Drake Arena | 3,000 |
| University of British Columbia | Thunderbirds | Vancouver | BC | 1906 | Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre | 5,054 |
| University of Calgary | Dinos | Calgary | AB | 1966 | Father David Bauer Olympic Arena | 1,750 |
| MacEwan University | Griffins | Edmonton | AB | 1971 | Downtown Community Arena | 1,000 |
| University of Manitoba | Bisons | Winnipeg | MB | 1877 | Max Bell Centre | 2,121 |
| Mount Royal University | Cougars | Calgary | AB | 1931 | Flames Community Arenas | 500 |
| University of Regina | Cougars | Regina | SK | 1974 | The Co-Operators Centre | 1,300 |
| University of Saskatchewan | Huskies | Saskatoon | SK | 1907 | Merlis Belsher Place | 2,300 |
| Trinity Western University | Spartans | Langley | BC | 1962 | Langley Events Centre | 5,300 |
| University | Varsity Name | City | Province | School Founded | Arena | Arena Capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Division | |||||||
| Brock University | Badgers | St. Catharines | ON | 1964 | Seymour-Hannah Sports & Entertainment Centre | 1,400 | |
| University of Guelph | Gryphons | Guelph | ON | 1964 | Gryphon Centre Arena | 1,400 | |
| University of Waterloo | Warriors | Waterloo | ON | 1957 | Columbia Ice Field | 680 | |
| University of Western Ontario | Mustangs | London | ON | 1878 | Thompson Arena | ||
| Wilfrid Laurier University | Golden Hawks | Waterloo | ON | 1957 | Waterloo Recreation Complex | 3,400 | |
| University of Windsor | Lancers | Windsor | ON | 1857 | South Windsor Arena | 1,000 | |
| East Division | |||||||
| 1992 | 4,246 | ||||||
| Ontario Tech University | Ridgebacks | Oshawa | ON | 2002 | Campus Ice Centre | 800 | |
| Queen's University | Gaels | Kingston | ON | 1841 | Kingston Memorial Centre | 3,300 | |
| Toronto Metropolitan University | Bold | Toronto | ON | 1948 | Mattamy Athletic Centre at the Gardens | 2,796 | |
| University of Toronto | Varsity Blues | Toronto | ON | 1827 | Varsity Arena | 4,100 | |
| York University | Lions | Toronto | ON | 1959 | Canlan Ice Sports – York | 1,200 | |
| University | Varsity Name | City | Province | School Founded | Arena | Arena Capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop's University | Gaiters | Sherbrooke | QC | 1843 | Jane & Eric Molson Arena | 800 | |
| Carleton University | Ravens | Ottawa | ON | 1952 | Ice House | 500 | |
| Concordia University | Stingers | Montreal | QC | 1896 | Ed Meagher Arena | ||
| McGill University | Martlets | Montreal | QC | 1821 | McConnell Arena | 1,500 | |
| Université de Montréal | Carabins | Montreal | QC | 1821 | CEPSUM | 2,461 | |
| University of Ottawa | Gee-Gees | Ottawa | ON | 1894 | Sport Complex Arena | 850 |
See main article: U Sports women's ice hockey championship.
The U Sports women's ice hockey championship is awarded annually to Canada's women's ice hockey champions at the university level. The championship has been competed for since 1998, when the sport was established in the league. Previously, the most important Canadian university women's ice hockey championship was the one from the Women's Intercollegiate Athletic Union (WIAU) (from 1921 till 1971), along with that of the Ontario Women's Interuniversity Athletic Association (OWIAA) (from 1972 till 1997) which awarded the Dr. Judy McCaw trophy to the team champion.
The governing body was known as the Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union (CIAU) when women's hockey was added to its championship roster. The body's name changed to Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) in 2001 and the current U Sports in 2016.
1997-98 Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
1998-99 Lori Shupak, Alberta Pandas
1999-00 Kim St-Pierre, McGill Martlets
2000-01 Jen Rawson, Toronto Lady Blues
2001-02 Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
2002-03 Lori Shupak, Alberta Pandas
2003-04 Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
2004-05 Ashley Stephenson, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
2005-06 Tarin Podloski, Alberta Pandas
2006-07 Lindsay McAlpine, Alberta Pandas
2007-08 Cathy Chartrand, McGill Martlets
2008-09 Catherine Ward, McGill Martlets
2009-10 Stephanie Ramsay, Alberta Pandas
2010-11 Jordanna Peroff, McGill Martlets
2011-12 Amanda Tapp, Calgary Dinos
2014-15 Kelly Campbell, Western Mustangs
2015-16 Marie-Pier Chabot, Montreal Carabins
2016-17 Lindsey Post, Alberta Pandas
2017-18 Lauryn Keen, Manitoba Bisons
2018-19 Jade Downie-Landry, McGill Martlets
2019-20 None (Tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[15]
2020-21 None (Tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[16]
2021-22 Stéphanie Lalancette, Concordia Stingers
2022-23 Kaitlyn Ross, Mount Royal Cougars
1997-98 Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
1998-99 Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
1999-2000 Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
2000-01 Brandy West, Regina Cougars
2001-02 Lori Shupak, Alberta Pandas
2002-03 Kim St-Pierre, McGill Martlets
2003-04 Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
2004-05 Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
2005-06 Kate Allgood, Brock Badgers
2006-07 Lindsay McAlpine, Alberta Pandas
2007-08 Brayden Ferguson, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2008-09 Tarin Podloski, Alberta Pandas
2009-10 Liz Knox, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
2010-11 Hayley Wickenheiser, Calgary Dinos
2011-12 Ann-Sophie Bettez, McGill Martlets
2012-13 Melodie Daoust, McGill Martlets
2013-14 Katia Clement-Hydra, McGill Martlets
2014-15 Iya Gavrilova, Calgary Dinos
2015-16 Valerie Lamenta, Guelph Gryphons
2016-17 Sarah Bujold, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2017-18 Daley Oddy, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2018-19 Alex Poznikoff, Alberta Pandas
2019-20 Tyra Meropoulis, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2020-21 None (Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[16]
2021-22 Jade Downie-Landry, McGill Martlets
2022-23 Kendra Woodland, New Brunswick Reds
1999-00 Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
2000-01 Erin Tady, Regina Cougars
2001-02 Cindy Eadie, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
2002-03 Lindsay Taylor, Saint Mary's Huskies
2003-04 Cecilia Anderson, Concordia Stingers
2004-05 Courtney Schriver, Saint Mary's Huskies
2005-06 Karissa Swan, Regina Cougars
2006-07 Catherine Ward, McGill Martlets
2007-08 Ann-Sophie Bettez, McGill Martlets
2008-09 Marie-Andrée Leclerc-Auger, McGill Martlets
2009-10 Caitlin MacDonald, Manitoba Bisons
2010-11 Alex Normore, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2011-12 Mélodie Daoust, McGill Martlets
2012-13 Christine Grant, Guelph Gryphons
2013-14 Kaitlin Willoughby, Saskatchewan Huskies
2014-15 Alanna Sharman, Manitoba Bisons
2015-16 Mélodie Bouchard, Ottawa Gee-Gees
2016-17 Tricia Deguire, McGill Martlets
2017-18 Maria Dominico, Nipissing Lakers
2018-19 Erika Crouse, Ryerson Rams
2019-20 Madison Willan, Alberta Pandas
2020-21 None (Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[16]
2021-22 Abby Lewis, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
2022-23 Sydney Mercier, Calgary Dinos
1997-98 Karen Kendall, Concordia Stingers
1998-99 Bridget Bates, Toronto Lady Blues
1999-00 Karina Verdon, Ottawa Gee-Gees
2000-01 Virginie Bilodeau, Patriotes de UQTR
2001-02 Lauren Houghton, Concordia Stingers
2002-03 Jenny McRae, Toronto Lady Blues
2003-04 Janna Gillis, Concordia Stingers
2004-05 Sue McCutcheon, Toronto Lady blues
2005-06 Leah Kutcher, Dalhousie Tigers
2006-07 Taryn Barry, Alberta Pandas
2007-08 Shauna Denis, McGill Martlets
2008-09 Danika Smith, Ottawa Gee-Gees
2009-10 Kaitlyn McNutt, Dalhousie Tigers
2010-11 Andrea Switalski, Mount Allison Mounties
2011-12 Jill Morillo, UOIT Ridgebacks
2012-13 Kayla Blackmore, St. Thomas Tommies
2013-14 Nicole Kesteris, Toronto Varsity Blues
2014-15 Nicole Kesteris, Toronto Varsity Blues
2015-16 Janelle Froehler, Alberta Pandas
2016-17 Sarah Weninger, Mount Royal Cougars
2017-18 Ailish Forfar, Ryerson Rams
2018-19 Jenna Gray, York Lions
2019-20 Emilia Cotter, McGill Martlets
2020-21 None (Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[16]
2021-22 Jana Headrick, New Brunswick Reds
2022-23 Eve Leblanc, St. Mary's Huskies
1999-00 Les Lawton, Concordia Stingers
2000-01 Karen Hughes,Toronto Lady Blues
2001-02 Howie Draper, Alberta Pandas
2002-03 Peter Smith, McGill Martlets and Lisa MacDonald, Saint Mary's Huskies
2003-04 Howie Draper, Alberta Pandas
2004-05 Todd Erskine, Brock Badgers
2005-06 Lesley Jordan, Dalhousie Tigers
2006-07 Rhéal Bordage, Moncton Aigles Bleus
2007-08 Peter Smith, McGill Martlets
2008-09 Howie Draper, Alberta Pandas
2009-10 Steve Kook, Saskatchewan Huskies
2010-11 Jim Denham, Brock Badgers
2011-12 Peter Smith, McGill Martlets
2012-13 Graham Thomas, UBC Thunderbirds
2013-14 Steve Kook, Saskatchewan Huskies
2014-15 Chris Higgins and Dave Barrett, Western Mustangs
2015-16 Chris Larade, Saint Mary’s Huskies
2016-17 Chris Larade, Saint Mary’s Huskies
2017-18 Jon Rempel, Manitoba Bisons
2018-19 Howie Draper, Alberta Pandas
2019-20 Vicky Sunohara, Toronto Varsity Blues
2020-21 None (Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)[16]
2021-22 Vicky Sunohara, Toronto Varsity Blues
2022-23 Vicky Sunohara, Toronto Varsity Blues
Reference[18]
G: Lesley Jordan, Saint Mary's Huskies
G: Shelly Campbell, Windsor Lancers de
D: Alana Mullins, Acadia Axewomen
D: Delaney Collins, Concordia Stingers
D: Ali MacMillan, Toronto Varsity Blues
D: Colleen Sostorics, Calgary Dinos
F: Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stringers
F: Kelly Bechard, Calgary Dinos
F: Tasha Noble, Saint Mary's Huskies
F : Coley Dosser, Guelph Gryphons
F: Anne Rodrigue, Concordia Stingers
F: Sue Ann Van Damme, Toronto Varsity Blues
Reference[19]
G: Kim St-Pierre, McGill Martlets
G: Robyn Rittmaster, Calgary Dinos
D: Genevieve Fagnan, Concordia Stingers
D: Sandra Hustler, Windsor Lancers
D: Leanne MacDonald, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
D: Colleen Sostorics, Calgary Dinos
F: Lisa Backman, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
F: Urszula May, Toronto Varsity Blues
F: Lori Shupak, Alberta Pandas
F: Caroline Proulx, Patriotes de UQTR
F: Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
F: Brandy West, Regina Cougars
Reference[20]
G: Kim St-Pierre, McGill Martlets
G: Stacey McCullough, Alberta Pandas
D: Heather Vance, Toronto Varsity Blues
D: Virginie Bilodeau, Patriotes de UQTR
D: Carol Scheibel, Calgary Dinos
F: Jen Rawson, Toronto Varsity Blues
F: Guylaine Haché, Moncton Anges Bleus
F: Brandy West, Regina Cougars
F: Corinne Swirsky, Concordia Stingers
F: Lisa Backman, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
F: Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
Reference[21]
G: Kim St-Pierre, McGill Martlets
G : Alison Houston, Toronto Lady Blues
D: Leanne MacDonald, St. Francis Xavier X-Women
D: Virginie Bilodeau, Patriotes de UQTR
D: Susie Laska, Lady Blues de Toronto
D: Joell Fidler, Regina Cougars
F: Brandy West, Regina Cougars
F: Lisa Backman, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
F: Lisa-Marie Breton, Concordia Stingers
F: Tasha Noble, Saint Mary's Huskies
F: Jen Rawson, Toronto Lady Blues
F: Krysty Lorenz, Alberta Pandas
Reference[22]
G: Cindy Eadie, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
G: Stacey McCullough, Alberta Pandas
D: Judy Diduck, Alberta Pandas
D: Suzanne Kaye, Concordia Stingers
D: Alison Goodman, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
D: Melanie Roach, York Lions
F : Lori Shupak, Alberta Pandas
F: Marie-Claude Allard, Concordia Stingers
F: Kerri-Ann Rudaniecki, Guelph Gryphons
F: Danielle Bourgeois, Alberta Pandas
F: Sophie Acheson, McGill Martlets
F: Tasha Noble, Saint Mary's Huskies
Reference[23]
In 2003, U Sports, then known as Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), added an All-Stars category for the playoffs.
Reference[24]
In 2004, the then-CIS began selecting two All-Star teams (first All-Stars and now second All-Stars) and an All-Rookie Team, as well as maintaining the selection of All-Stars Team for the playoffs tournament.
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