Ontario Women's Hockey League
The Ontario Women's Hockey League U22 Elite, formerly the Provincial Women's Hockey League, is a women's junior ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada. Founded in 2004, it is considered to be the highest level of amateur women's ice hockey in Ontario, and is sanctioned by Hockey Canada and the Ontario Women's Hockey Association.
OWHL alumni have gone on to play in the Professional Women's Hockey League, National Collegiate Athletic Association, and U Sports, and for the Canada women's national [ice hockey team|Canadian national team].
History
The league was founded in 2004 as the Provincial Women's Hockey League by the Ontario Women's Hockey Association. It is the women's equivalent to men's junior hockey, but is officially classified by the OWHA as "Intermediate AA," as the OWHA does not have an official "junior" classification system. Despite this, its teams market themselves as women's junior hockey.In the early years of the league, when PWHL teams had to compete for OWHA provincials they would do so with representatives of the Ottawa District. The PWHL franchises proved much more competitive than their Ottawa counterparts and after two seasons Ottawa applied to and joined the PWHL. By the 2009 league playoffs, the Ottawa Senators beat the league powerhouse Toronto Jr. Aeros to win its first league championship.
In the 2019–20 season, the playoffs were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The following season was not played due to coronavirus-related restrictions.
At some point following the pandemic, the league was renamed to the Ontario Women's Hockey League.
Teams
Defunct franchises
Championships by year
Championships by team
"Triple Crown" winners
Two teams have won the regular season, league championship, and provincial championship in the same season. The first to do it was the Toronto Jr. Aeros, accomplishing the feat back-to-back in the league's first two seasons.- 2005 Toronto Jr. Aeros
- 2006 Toronto Jr. Aeros
- 2017 Oakville Jr. Hornets
- 2018 Toronto Jr. Aeros
Awards
Regular Season champions
Scoring champion
Goaltending Award
| Season | Player | Team | GAA |
| 2004–05 | Melissa John/ Jamie Miller | Toronto Jr. Aeros | 1.50 |
| 2005–06 | Christina Kessler/ Jamie Miller | Toronto Jr. Aeros | 0.93 |
| 2006–07 | Jamie Miller | Toronto Jr. Aeros | 1.28 |
| 2007–08 | Cassandra McNichol | Mississauga Jr. Chiefs | 1.13 |
| 2008–09 | Cassie Seguin | Ottawa Senators | 1.34 |
| 2009–10 | Olivia Ross | Mississauga Jr. Chiefs | 0.98 |
| 2010–11 | Ali Binnington/ Bridget Smith | Mississauga Jr. Chiefs | 1.00 |
| 2011–12 | Taylor Hough | Toronto Jr. Aeros | 0.71 |
| 2012–13 | Jackie Rochefort | Durham West Jr. Lightning | 0.94 |
| 2013–14 | Kira Bombay | Nepean Jr. Wildcats | 0.82 |
| 2014–15 | Sarah McDonnell | Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres | 1.03 |
| 2015–16 | Danika Ranger | Durham West Jr. Lightning | 0.83 |
| 2016–17 | Makenzy Arsenault | Whitby Wolves | .84 |
| 2017–18 | Natalie Thompson | Toronto Aeros | .71 |
| 2018–19 | Andrea Fausto | Stoney Creek Sabres | 1.04 |
| 2019–20 | Michelle Pasiechnyk | Nepean Wildcats | 1.33 |
Coach of the Year
| Season | Coach | Team |
| 2004–05 | Paul Rockett | Brampton Jr. Canadettes |
| 2005–06 | - | |
| 2006–07 | - | |
| 2007–08 | - | |
| 2008–09 | - | |
| 2009–10 | Dave Gwyn | Etobicoke Jr. Dolphins |
| 2010–11 | Rick Sullivan | Bluewater Jr. Hawks |
| 2011–12 | Christina Jolliffe | London Jr. Devilettes |
| 2012–13 | Wayne McDonald | Durham West Jr. Lightning |
| 2013–14 | Bruce MacDonald | Nepean Jr. Wildcats |
| 2014–15 | Jessica Turri | Etobicoke Jr. Dolphins |
| 2015–16 | Kim McCullough | Leaside Wildcats |
| 2016–17 | Troy Sweet | Kingston Jr Ice Wolves |
| 2017–18 | Geoff Haddaway | Cambridge Rivulettes |
| 2018–19 | Chad Campbell | Waterloo K-W Rangers |
| 2019–20 | Stacey Marnoch | Stoney Creek Sabres |