Current season, competition or edition: 2025–26 WHL season | |
 | |
| Formerly | Canadian Major Junior Hockey League (1966–67) Western Canada Junior Hockey League (1967–68) Western Canada Hockey League (1968–1978) |
|---|---|
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Founded | 1966 |
| Commissioner | Dan Near |
| No. of teams | 23 (24 by 2027) |
| Countries |
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| Headquarters | Calgary, Alberta |
| Most recent champion | Medicine Hat Tigers (6) |
| Most titles | Kamloops Blazers &Medicine Hat Tigers (6) |
| Broadcasters | Canada TSN RDS CBC United States KRCW-TV KZJO |
| Streaming partner | Victory+ |
| Official website | whl |
TheWestern Hockey League (WHL) is ajunior ice hockey league based inWestern Canada and theNorthwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes theCanadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hockey inCanada, alongside theOntario Hockey League andQuebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Teams play for theEd Chynoweth Cup, with the winner moving on to play for theMemorial Cup, Canada's national junior championship. WHL teams have won the Memorial Cup 19 times. The WHL is composed of 23 teams divided into two conferences of two divisions, each. The Eastern Conference comprises 11 teams fromManitoba,Saskatchewan, andAlberta, while the Western Conference comprises 12 teams fromBritish Columbia,Washington, andOregon. The league will expand to 24 teams by 2026 with the addition of a team inChilliwack, British Columbia.
The league was founded in 1966 as theCanadian Major Junior Hockey League (CMJHL), with seven teams in Saskatchewan and Alberta. For its 1967 season, the league was renamed theWestern Canada Junior Hockey League (WCJHL). From 1968, the league was renamed theWestern Canada Hockey League (WCHL), and finally the Western Hockey League from 1978 after the admission of American-based teams to the league.
The league was the brainchild ofBill Hunter, who desired to build a western league capable of competing with the top leagues inOntario andQuebec. He partnered withScotty Munro, Del Wilson, and Jim Piggott to make this vision a reality. Originally considered an "outlaw league" by theCanadian Amateur Hockey Association, the western league was not sanctioned as a top junior league until 1970, when Canadian junior hockey was reorganized.
Despite winning the1966 Memorial Cup,Edmonton Oil Kings' owner Bill Hunter was growing concerned about the state of junior hockey in Western Canada. Each of the West's four provinces had its own junior league, and Hunter felt that this put them at a disadvantage when competing nationally against larger leagues based in Ontario and Quebec. Desiring stronger competition, Hunter's Oil Kings were competing in both theAlberta Junior Hockey League and the seniorCentral Alberta Hockey League.[1] During the 1966 Memorial Cup, Hunter made newspaper headlines when he outlined his vision for a nation-wide junior hockey league competing for theMemorial Cup. The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association's (CAHA) second vice-presidentLloyd Pollock responded by saying that the idea was a pipe dream, and was not feasible while the CAHA was re-negotiating a development agreement with theNational Hockey League (NHL).[2]
CAHA informed the Oil Kings that they were required to play full-time in a junior hockey league for the 1966–67 season or would be ineligible to compete for the Memorial Cup. This led Hunter to endorse the suggestion ofEstevan Bruins owner Scotty Munro to create a new Western regional junior league.[3] Five members of theSaskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL)—the Bruins,Moose Jaw Canucks,Regina Pats,Saskatoon Blades, andWeyburn Red Wings—left the SJHL and joined the Oil Kings and theCalgary Buffaloes in forming the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League (CMJHL). Despite concerns that the CMJHL would mean the demise of the Alberta and Saskatchewan leagues—the SJHL did immediately fold—the governing bodies in both provinces sanctioned the new league. However, CAHA did not sanction it, declaring the CMJHL to be an "outlaw league" and suspending its teams and players from participation in CAHA events, including the Memorial Cup.[4] The new league accused CAHA of overstepping its boundaries and, with the support of the players and their families, chose to play the season regardless.[5] The CMJHL began legal action against the CAHA executive in March 1967, fighting to regain eligibility to enter the Memorial Cup tournament.[6]
In May 1967, the CMJHL renamed itself to the Western Canada Junior Hockey League (WCJHL).[7] The league also added four new teams, including the Swift Current Broncos and three teams based in Manitoba—theBrandon Wheat Kings,Flin Flon Bombers, andWinnipeg Jets.[3] The new CAHA-NHL development agreement came into effect July 1, 1967. The new pact ended direct sponsorship of junior teams by the NHL, which shifted to paying development fees to CAHA, with junior players becoming eligible for theNHL entry draft at age 20.[8] With the agreement settled, CAHA finally sanctioned the WCHL, which allowed for the league champion Estevan Bruins to compete for the1968 Memorial Cup.[9] However, in May 1968, Hunter announced that the league would use an age limit of 21 in spite of the CAHA-NHL agreement. The WCJHL claimed that the lower age limit decreased its talent pool and negatively impacted ticket sales. In response, CAHA again suspended the league and its players.[10]
In June 1968, the WCJHL changed its name to the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), and announced that it was leaving CAHA to form the rivalCanadian Hockey Association (CHA). Hunter became chairman of the board for the WCHL, andRon Butlin became president of the WCHL and the CHA.[11] Concerns over the WCHL's relationship with CAHA and a desire to compete for the Memorial Cup led the Pats, Canucks, and Red Wings to withdraw before the1968–69 season, and join a revivedSaskatchewan Junior Hockey League instead.[9] At the conclusion of the season, the CHA organized its own national championship, which pitted the WCHL-champion Flin Flon Bombers against theSt. Thomas Barons from Ontario. The initiative was undermined when the Barons withdrew from the best-of-seven series during the fourth game in protest of alleged violent play on the part of the Bombers. The Bombers, who were awarded the title, proceeded to challenge the Memorial Cup champion-Montreal Junior Canadiens to a championship showdown, but the Montreal team declined.[12]
After years of disputes, Canadian junior hockey was reorganized in 1970, with CAHA absorbing the CHA and re-sanctioning the WCHL, making it one of three top-flight major junior leagues, along with theOntario Hockey Association—now theOntario Hockey League—and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League—now theQuebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League.[9] Then, in 1972, the format of the Memorial Cup was changed to become a tournament between the champion of each major junior league.[13]
The league's first decade saw constant expansion and franchise movement as the league spread throughout the west. The Flin Flon Bombers, led by future NHL starsBobby Clarke andReggie Leach, became the league's first powerhouse team, making three straight finals appearances and winning back-to-back championships in 1969 and 1970. The WCHL became a truly western league in 1971 when the Estevan Bruins moved to British Columbia to become theNew Westminster Bruins, joined by the expansionVictoria Cougars andVancouver Nats.[3]
In the mid-1970s, the Bruins established the WCHL's first true dynasty, capturing four consecutive championships between 1975 and 1978. The Bruins also won back-to-back Memorial Cup championships in 1977 and 1978.[14]
In 1976, the Oil Kings, facing pressure from the professionalEdmonton Oilers of theWorld Hockey Association, relocated to Oregon to become thePortland Winter Hawks, marking the WCHL's first American club.[15] With the addition of two more American teams in theSeattle Breakers andBillings Bighorns a year later, the WCHL shortened its name to the Western Hockey League.[3] Despite the Flin Flon Bombers' early success, the remoteness and size of the community increasingly posed a challenge, and in 1978 the team relocated to Edmonton in a brief revival of the Oil Kings—the team would move again a year later and become theGreat Falls Americans.
The 1980s were marked by several brawls that involved police intervention, one of the most bizarre trades in hockey history, and the tragic deaths of four players in a bus crash.
Early in the1980–81 WHL season, Medicine Hat Tigers manager and coachPat Ginnell traded blows with a linesman during a bench clearing brawl against theLethbridge Broncos. Ginnell was found guilty of assault, fined $360, and suspended for 36 games by the WHL. In March 1982, a violent brawl between theRegina Pats andCalgary Wranglers saw the two teams collectively fined $2,250 and players suspended for 73 combined games. Pats coachBill LaForge would end up in a courtroom later that season when he got into an altercation with a fan. LaForge was acquitted when the judge noted that it was hard to convict a man for assault when faced with "an obnoxious person trying to get into the coach's area."[citation needed] LaForge resigned following the season after serving three separate suspensions.
On January 19, 1983, theSeattle Breakers dealtTom Martin and $35,000 to theVictoria Cougars for the Cougars' team bus. The Breakers had been unable to sign Martin, who wanted to play in his home town of Victoria, and the Cougars were unable to use the bus, which they had purchased from the foldedSpokane Flyers, because they were unwilling to pay the taxes and duties required to register the vehicle in Canada.
On December 30, 1986, tragedy struck the Swift Current Broncos when their busslid off an icy highway and rolled on the way to Regina for a game. Scott Kruger, Trent Kresse, Brent Ruff, and Chris Mantyka were killed in the crash.[16] The Broncos retired their numbers and introduced a commemorative patch in remembrance of the four players; in 2016, a memorial was unveiled at the crash site.[17] The WHL later renamed its award for most valuable player as theFour Broncos Memorial Trophy in their honour.[18] In 1989, less than three years after the crash, the Broncos won the league title and the Memorial Cup.[19]
The 1990s saw another period of expansion and the return of the league to Western Canada's major cities. In 1991, theSpokane Chiefs became the second American team to win the Memorial Cup. TheKamloops Blazers established themselves as the WHL's second dynasty when they won both the WHL Championship and Memorial Cup three times in four years between 1992 and 1995.[20]
In 1995, theCalgary Hitmen, founded by a group of investors includingBret "the Hitman" Hart, from whom the team got its name, were granted an expansion franchise. Despite early fears that the WHL could not succeed in an NHL city, the Hitmen were a success, averaging as many as 10,000 fans per game by2004–05. The Hitmen were followed one year later by theEdmonton Ice, but that team failed after only two seasons because of conflicts with the Edmonton Oilers. The team became theKootenay Ice inCranbrook, British Columbia, and found better success—including winning the2002 Memorial Cup—despite being in one of the smallest markets in the league.
In the 2000s, the league expanded four more times. TheVancouver Giants joined in 2001, theEverett Silvertips in 2003, theChilliwack Bruins in 2005—the team relocated in 2011 and became theVictoria Royals—and theEdmonton Oil Kings in 2007. TheKelowna Rockets established a run of dominance, winning three WHL titles in 2003, 2005, and 2009, and winning the Memorial Cup as host in 2004.
2011 saw WHL teams participate in two outdoor games for the first time. The Spokane Chiefs hosted the Kootenay Ice on January 15, and on February 21, the Calgary Hitmen hosted the Regina Pats for a game in conjunction with the2011 Heritage Classic.[21][22] A third outdoor game was hosted by Regina as part of the2019 Heritage Classic, featuring a rematch against the Hitmen.[23]
The league was significantly disrupted by theCOVID-19 pandemic, which emerged in North America in early 2020. The 2019–20 season was cut short and its playoffs ultimately cancelled due to the pandemic, while the 2020–21 season was played in a modified format, with teams playing 24-game in-division schedules with no playoffs. As such, neither theEd Chynoweth Cup nor the Memorial Cup were awarded in 2020 or 2021.[24] The league returned to a regular schedule for 2021–22, and the Oil Kings became the first team to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup since the Prince Albert Raiders in 2019.[25]
The WHL comprises 23 teams divided into two conferences, making it the largest league in the CHL—the Ontario Hockey League has 20 teams and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League has 18. The WHL has member teams across four Canadian provinces and two American states. The Eastern Conference comprises teams fromManitoba,Saskatchewan, andAlberta. The Western Conference is made up of teams based inBritish Columbia,Washington, andOregon.
On March 24, 2025, the league announced that it had awarded anexpansion franchise to the City ofPenticton to begin play in the2025–26 WHL season; while an application process had begun for an expansion franchise in the City ofChilliwack to begin play in the 2026–27 WHL season.[26] The league subsequently announced that theChilliwack expansion franchise would debut in the2027–28 season.[27][28]
The top eight teams in each conference qualify for the playoffs, with the division winners declared the top two seeds in the first round of the post-season. In the playoffs, the four remaining teams in each conference are reseeded by regular season points in the second round.
* Indicates franchise was relocated from original location
| Team | City | Arena | Founded | Joining |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chilliwack | Chilliwack, British Columbia | Chilliwack Coliseum | 2025 | 2027 |
Note: Current teams are shown in dark blue, former teams in gray, and future teams in teal. Gold stars denote league championships.
TheWHL bantam draft is an annual event in which teams select players from bantam hockey league age groups (i.e. 14 or 15 years old). The order of selection depends on the league's standings.
Players aged 15 to 20 are eligible to play in the WHL, with some restrictions. 15-year-olds are permitted to play only five games, unless their midget team's season has ended. Meanwhile, each team is allowed to have only three 20-year-olds on their rosters, except for expansion teams, for which five 20-year-olds are eligible to play. Each team is permitted to carry only two non-North American players, and teams have the opportunity to select such players through theCHL Import Draft.[29][30]
Each of the CHL's three member leagues are granted exclusive territorial rights to players from within North America. The WHL holds rights to players from the four western provinces, the American Pacific Northwest, all other American states west of theMississippi River (except Missouri), and theYukon,Northwest Territories, andNunavut.
In 2005, the CHL introduced exceptional status, which could be conferred on select players to make them eligible to play full-time in a CHL league as a 15-year-old. In 2020,Connor Bedard became the first player to be granted exceptional status to play in the WHL, and the seventh player overall to have been granted exceptional status since 2005.[31] Bedard was selected by the Regina Pats in the 2020 bantam draft.[32] In 2024,Landon DuPont became the second player to be granted exceptional status for the WHL, and the ninth overall.[33] DuPont was selected by the Everett Silvertips in the 2024 bantam draft.[34]
With most players joining the league while still attending school, the WHL takes a role in its players educational needs. Teams maintain academic advisors, who monitor the academic progress of players along with the league's Director of Education Services.[35] The league also operates a scholarship program that offers one full year of Canadian university tuition, textbooks, and compulsory fees for each season played in the WHL. Since this program was introduced in 1993, more than 3,000 scholarships had been handed out at a total value ofCA$9 million by 2008.[36] Canadian universities and colleges thus recruit extensively from the WHL, affording graduating players the opportunity to continue playing hockey inU Sports competition as they attend post-secondary institutions.
Until 2024, theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) considered CHL players professionals—due both to the fact that they received stipends and that eligible players could sign National Hockey League contracts—and thus ineligible to participate incollege hockey programs in the United States. Players hoping to receive scholarships to American universities thus had to play Junior A hockey in theBritish Columbia Hockey League or theUnited States Hockey League, rather than major junior hockey, to retain NCAA eligibility.[37] However, in August 2024, a class action lawsuit was filed by a former CHL player, alleging that the NCAA ban on CHL players violated USanti-trust laws.[38] The following month, Regina Pats forward Braxton Whitehead became the first CHL player to verbally commit to an NCAA team.[39][40] In November 2024, amid increasing pressure, the NCAA voted to open eligibility to CHL players as of the 2025–26 season, marking a significant departure from longstanding policy.[41]
WHL teams earn the right to compete in the annualMemorial Cup tournament by winning the WHL playoff championship or, since 1983, by hosting the tournament. Altogether, the Memorial Cup has been won by WHL teams nineteen times since the league's founding.[42][43]
| Statistic | Total | Team | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most points | 125 | Brandon Wheat Kings | 1978–79 |
| Most wins | 60 | Victoria Cougars | 1980–81 |
| Most wins, inaugural season | 35 | Everett Silvertips | 2003–04 |
| Most goals for | 496 | Kamloops Blazers | 1986–87 |
| Fewest goals against | 125 | Kelowna Rockets | 2003–04 |
| Statistic | Player | Total | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most goals | Ray Ferraro | 108 | 1983–84 |
| Most assists | Rob Brown | 136 | 1986–87 |
| Most points | Rob Brown | 212 | 1986–87 |
| Most points, rookie | Petr Nedved | 145 | 1989–90 |
| Most points, defenceman | Cam Plante | 140 | 1983–84 |
