Ed Chynoweth Cup

Last updated
Ed Chynoweth Cup
Ed Chynoweth Cup.JPG
Sport Ice hockey
Competition Western Hockey League
Awarded forPlayoff championship
History
First award1966
First winner Moose Jaw Canucks
Most wins Kamloops Blazers & Medicine Hat Tigers (6)
Most recent Medicine Hat Tigers (6)

The Ed Chynoweth Cup is an ice hockey club championship trophy awarded to the playoff champion of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Originally called the President's Cup when the league was founded in 1966, the trophy was renamed in 2007 to honour Ed Chynoweth's long service to junior ice hockey in Canada. The WHL champion earns a berth into the Memorial Cup tournament, Canada's major junior hockey championship. The Kamloops Blazers and Medicine Hat Tigers have won the most WHL championships, with six each. The Spokane Chiefs were the first team to win the renamed trophy in the 2007–08 WHL season. The current (2024–25) holders of the Ed Chynoweth Cup are the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Contents

History

The Western Hockey League was founded in 1966 by seven teams from Saskatchewan and Alberta who were hoping to improve the quality of junior hockey in western Canada. [1] Despite gaining approval from the governing bodies of both provinces, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) objected to the formation of the interprovincial league, refusing to sanction the circuit and suspending all players and officials who participated in the league from participation in any CAHA league or event. [2] Declared an "outlaw league" by the CAHA, the WHL's founders chose to play on, though the league was ruled ineligible to participate in the Memorial Cup, Canada's national junior championship. [1]

The first President's Cup champion was the Moose Jaw Canucks in 1967. [3] In 1971, CAHA reorganized the top level of junior hockey into two tiers, sanctioning the WHL as the top league in western Canada and one of three leagues that formed the Major Junior tier, along with the Ontario Hockey Association—now the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)—and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League—now the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Together, these three leagues form the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The 1971 WHL champion Edmonton Oil Kings faced the Quebec Remparts in the 1972 Memorial Cup final, which nearly failed to materialize as the OHA and QMJHL initially refused to face the western champion. The Oil Kings were ultimately defeated by Quebec in an abbreviated best-of-three series, as opposed to the normal best-of-seven. [4] Three years later, in 1974, the Regina Pats became the first WHL champion to win the national title. [5]

The New Westminster Bruins emerged as the first dynasty in WHL history, winning four consecutive championships between 1975 and 1978, along with two Memorial Cups in 1977 and 1978. [3] [6] In 1976, the Portland Winter Hawks became the first American-based team in the WHL, and six years later, the 1981–82 Winter Hawks recorded more firsts, becoming the first American team to win the President's Cup and the first American team to compete for the Memorial Cup. [7] [8] One year later, the Winter Hawks won the 1983 Memorial Cup to become the first American champions, and the first to win the Memorial Cup without winning its own league title; Portland participated by virtue of hosting the tournament despite losing the WHL final to the Lethbridge Broncos. [9]

On December 30, 1986, four members of the Swift Current Broncos—Scott Kruger, Trent Kresse, Brent Ruff, and Chris Mantyka—were killed when the team bus crashed outside Swift Current. [10] The community rallied around the team, and less than three years later, the Broncos emerged as the top team in the CHL. Featuring Scott Kruger's younger brothers Darren and Trevor, the 1988–89 Broncos became the first team in WHL history to sweep their way through the playoffs, winning the President's Cup without losing a single game in the post-season. [11] The Broncos faced the host Saskatoon Blades in the 1989 Memorial Cup final, defeating their provincial rivals in the first all-WHL national championship. [12] The Kamloops Blazers dominated the WHL in the early 1990s, capturing four league championships between 1990 and 1995 and three Memorial Cups to cap a period where WHL teams won seven Memorial Cup championships in a nine-year period between 1987 and 1995. [3] [5]

In 2007, the league renamed the championship trophy the Ed Chynoweth Cup in honour of Ed Chynoweth's long tenure with the league. [3] Chynoweth had served as president of both the WHL and CHL, from 1972 and 1975 respectively, until leaving both posts in 1995 to form the Edmonton Ice. He remained with the franchise through its transfer to Kootenay and until his death in 2008. [3] Chynoweth was described by OHL commissioner David Branch as being "the architect of the Canadian Hockey League as we know it today". [13] Chynoweth was posthumously elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008. [14]

List of winners

The Calgary Hitmen celebrate after winning the 2010 championship Hitmen 2010 WHL Champs.png
The Calgary Hitmen celebrate after winning the 2010 championship

By season

SeasonWinning team [3] Finalist [15] Games [15] [a] Memorial Cup result
1966–67 Moose Jaw Canucks (1) Regina Pats 4–1Ineligible [b]
1967–68 Estevan Bruins (1) Flin Flon Bombers 4–0–1Estevan lost final [16] [b]
1968–69 Flin Flon Bombers (1) Edmonton Oil Kings 4–2Ineligible [b]
1969–70 Flin Flon Bombers (2) Edmonton Oil Kings 4–0Ineligible [b]
1970–71 Edmonton Oil Kings (1) Flin Flon Bombers 4–1–1Edmonton lost final [17]
1971–72 Edmonton Oil Kings (2) Regina Pats 4–1Edmonton finished third [18]
1972–73 Medicine Hat Tigers (1) Saskatoon Blades 3–0–2Medicine Hat finished third [19]
1973–74 Regina Pats (1) Calgary Centennials 4–0Regina won Memorial Cup [6]
1974–75 New Westminster Bruins (1) Saskatoon Blades 4–3New Westminster lost final [20]
1975–76 New Westminster Bruins (2) Saskatoon Blades 4–2–1New Westminster lost final [21]
1976–77 New Westminster Bruins (3) Brandon Wheat Kings 4–1New Westminster won Memorial Cup [6]
1977–78 New Westminster Bruins (4) Billings Bighorns 4–0New Westminster won Memorial Cup [6]
1978–79 Brandon Wheat Kings (1) Portland Winter Hawks 4–2Brandon lost final [22]
1979–80 Regina Pats (2) Victoria Cougars 4–1Regina finished third [23]
1980–81 Victoria Cougars (1) Calgary Wranglers 4–3Victoria finished third [24]
1981–82 Portland Winter Hawks (1) Regina Pats 4–1Portland finished third [25]
1982–83 Lethbridge Broncos (1) Portland Winter Hawks 4–1Portland won Memorial Cup [c]
Lethbridge finished fourth [26]
1983–84 Kamloops Junior Oilers (1) Regina Pats 4–3Kamloops finished third [27]
1984–85 Prince Albert Raiders (1) Kamloops Blazers 4–0 Prince Albert won Memorial Cup [6]
1985–86 Kamloops Blazers (2) Medicine Hat Tigers 4–1Kamloops finished third [28]
Portland finished fourth [d]
1986–87 Medicine Hat Tigers (2) Portland Winter Hawks 4–3Medicine Hat won Memorial Cup [6]
1987–88 Medicine Hat Tigers (3) Kamloops Blazers 4–2Medicine Hat won Memorial Cup [6]
1988–89 Swift Current Broncos (1) Portland Winterhawks 4–0Swift Current won Memorial Cup [12]
Saskatoon lost final [e]
1989–90 Kamloops Blazers (3) Lethbridge Hurricanes 4–1Kamloops finished fourth [29]
1990–91 Spokane Chiefs (1) Lethbridge Hurricanes 4–0Spokane Won Memorial Cup [6]
1991–92 Kamloops Blazers (4) Saskatoon Blades 4–3Kamloops won Memorial Cup [6]
Seattle finished third [f]
1992–93 Swift Current Broncos (2) Portland Winter Hawks 4–3Swift Current finished fourth [30]
1993–94 Kamloops Blazers (5) Saskatoon Blades 4–3Kamloops Won Memorial Cup [6]
1994–95 Kamloops Blazers (6) Brandon Wheat Kings 4–2Kamloops won Memorial Cup [6]
Brandon finished third [g]
1995–96 Brandon Wheat Kings (2) Spokane Chiefs 4–1Brandon finished third [31]
1996–97 Lethbridge Hurricanes (1) Seattle Thunderbirds 4–0Lethbridge lost final [32]
1997–98 Portland Winter Hawks (2) Brandon Wheat Kings 4–0 Portland won Memorial Cup [6]
Spokane finished third [h]
1998–99 Calgary Hitmen (1) Kamloops Blazers 4–1Calgary lost final [33]
1999–2000 Kootenay Ice (1) Spokane Chiefs 4–2Kootenay finished fourth [34]
2000–01 Red Deer Rebels (1) Portland Winter Hawks 4–1Red Deer won Memorial Cup [6]
Regina finished third [i]
2001–02 Kootenay Ice (2) Red Deer Rebels 4–2Kootenay won Memorial Cup [6]
2002–03 Kelowna Rockets (1) Red Deer Rebels 4–2Kelowna finished third [35]
2003–04 Medicine Hat Tigers (4) Everett Silvertips 4–0Kelowna won Memorial Cup [j]
Medicine Hat finished third [36]
2004–05 Kelowna Rockets (2) Brandon Wheat Kings 4–1Kelowna finished fourth [37]
2005–06 Vancouver Giants (1) Moose Jaw Warriors 4–0Vancouver finished third [38]
2006–07 Medicine Hat Tigers (5) Vancouver Giants 4–3Vancouver won Memorial Cup [k]
Medicine Hat lost final [39]
2007–08 Spokane Chiefs (2) Lethbridge Hurricanes 4–0Spokane won Memorial Cup [6]
2008–09 Kelowna Rockets (3) Calgary Hitmen 4–2Kelowna lost final
2009–10 Calgary Hitmen (2) Tri-City Americans 4–1Brandon lost final [l]
Calgary finished third
2010–11 Kootenay Ice (3) Portland Winterhawks 4–1Kootenay finished third
2011–12 Edmonton Oil Kings (1) Portland Winterhawks 4–3Edmonton finished fourth
2012–13 Portland Winterhawks (3) Edmonton Oil Kings 4–2Portland lost final [m]
Saskatoon finished fourth
2013–14 Edmonton Oil Kings (2) Portland Winterhawks 4–3Edmonton won Memorial Cup
2014–15 Kelowna Rockets (4) Brandon Wheat Kings 4–0Kelowna lost final
2015–16 Brandon Wheat Kings (3) Seattle Thunderbirds 4–1Brandon finished fourth
Red Deer lost semifinal
2016–17 Seattle Thunderbirds (1) Regina Pats 4–2Seattle finished fourth
2017–18 Swift Current Broncos (3) Everett Silvertips 4–2Swift Current finished fourth
Regina lost final
2018–19 Prince Albert Raiders (2) Vancouver Giants 4–3Prince Albert finished fourth
2019–20 WHL playoffs cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic — Ed Chynoweth Cup not awarded [40]
2020–21 WHL playoffs cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic — Ed Chynoweth Cup not awarded [41]
2021–22 Edmonton Oil Kings (3) Seattle Thunderbirds 4–2Edmonton finished fourth
2022–23 Seattle Thunderbirds (2) Winnipeg Ice 4–1Seattle lost final
2023–24 Moose Jaw Warriors (1) Portland Winterhawks 4–0Moose Jaw lost semifinal [42]
2024–25 Medicine Hat Tigers (6) Spokane Chiefs 4–1Medicine Hat lost final [43]

By team

TeamWonLostYears WonYears LostFinals Appearances
Kamloops Blazers [n] 631983–84, 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–951984–85, 1987–88, 1998–999
Medicine Hat Tigers 611972–73, 1986–87, 1987–88, 2003–04, 2006–07, 2024–251985–867
Edmonton Oil Kings [o] 531970–71, 1971–72, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2021–221968–69, 1969–70, 2012–138
New Westminster Bruins 401974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1977–78—4
Kelowna Rockets 402002–03, 2004–05, 2008–09, 2014–15—4
Portland Winterhawks 3101981–82, 1997–98, 2012–131978–79, 1982–83, 1986–87, 1988–89, 1992–93, 2000–01, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2023–2413
Brandon Wheat Kings 351978–79, 1995–96, 2015–161976–77, 1994–95, 1997–98, 2004–05, 2014–158
Swift Current Broncos 301988–89, 1992–93, 2017–18—3
Kootenay Ice 301999–2000, 2001–02, 2010–11—3
Regina Pats 251973–74, 1979–801966–67, 1971–72, 1981–82, 1983–84, 2016–177
Seattle Thunderbirds 232016–17, 2022–231996–97, 2015–16, 2021–225
Flin Flon Bombers 221968–69, 1969–701967–68, 1970–714
Spokane Chiefs 231990–91, 2007–081995–96, 1999–2000, 2024–255
Calgary Hitmen 211998–99, 2009–102008–093
Prince Albert Raiders 201984–85, 2018–19—2
Lethbridge Hurricanes 131996–971989–90, 1990–91, 2007–084
Red Deer Rebels 122000–012001–02, 2002–033
Vancouver Giants 122005–062006–07, 2018–193
Victoria Cougars 111980–811979–802
Moose Jaw Warriors 112023–242005–062
Moose Jaw Canucks 101966–67—1
Estevan Bruins 101967–68—1
Lethbridge Broncos 101982–83—1
Saskatoon Blades 05—1972–73, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1991–92, 1993–945
Everett Silvertips 02—2003–04, 2017–182
Calgary Centennials 01—1973–741
Billings Bighorns 01—1977–781
Calgary Wranglers 01—1980–811
Tri-City Americans 01—2009–101
Winnipeg Ice 01—2022–231

See also

Notes

References

General
Specific
  1. 1 2 "CMJHL may play without official sanction of CAHA". Calgary Herald. October 5, 1966. p. 55.
  2. ↑ "Buffaloes continue program". Calgary Herald. October 4, 1966. p. 14.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Ed Chynoweth Cup". Western Hockey League. Archived from the original on April 5, 2009. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
  4. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.158
  5. 1 2 Flett, Corey; Watts, Jessie, eds. (2008). 2008–09 WHL Guide. Western Hockey League. p. 206.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "Memorial Cup Winners". Slam! Sports. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
  7. ↑ Matheson, Jim (1976-05-26). "Oil Kings get CAHA nod for move to Portland". Edmonton Journal. p. 67.
  8. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.204
  9. 1 2 The Memorial Cup, p.208
  10. ↑ Naylor, David; Leriche, Timothy (December 31, 1986). "Tragedy hits hockey club". Calgary Sun. p. 5.
  11. ↑ The Memorial Cup, pp. 236–237
  12. 1 2 3 The Memorial Cup, p.238
  13. ↑ "Former WHL President Chynoweth passes away". TSN. April 22, 2008. Archived from the original on May 22, 2011. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
  14. ↑ "Hockey Hall of Fame Announces 2008 Inductees". Hockey Hall of Fame. June 17, 2008. Archived from the original on October 27, 2011. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
  15. 1 2 Flett, Corey; Watts, Jessie, eds. (2008). 2008–09 WHL Guide. Western Hockey League. pp. 146–186.
  16. 1 2 The Memorial Cup, p.145
  17. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.159
  18. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.163
  19. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.166
  20. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.174
  21. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.178
  22. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.191
  23. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.197
  24. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.202
  25. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.206
  26. ↑ The Memorial Cup, pp.210–211
  27. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.216
  28. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.225
  29. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.242
  30. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.257
  31. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.271
  32. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.277
  33. ↑ Sportak, Randy (1999-05-24). "'I'm in shock'". Calgary Sun. p. S2.
  34. ↑ Cook, Jon (2000-05-24). "Colts win Memorial Cup marathon". Slam! Sports. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  35. ↑ "The 2003 Memorial Cup". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  36. 1 2 "The 2004 Memorial Cup". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  37. ↑ "The 2005 Memorial Cup". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2009-03-03. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  38. ↑ "The 2006 Memorial Cup". Canadian Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  39. ↑ "Giants crowned 2007 Memorial Cup Champions". Slam! Sports. 2007-05-29. Archived from the original on 2007-06-23. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  40. ↑ Johnston, Patrick (March 23, 2020). "COVID-19 forces cancellation of CHL playoffs and 2020 Memorial Cup". The Province . Archived from the original on April 9, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
  41. ↑ "WHL cancels 2021 playoffs, citing COVID-19 challenges". Sportsnet.ca. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
  42. ↑ Palmer, Randy (May 31, 2024). "Warriors see magical season come an end with loss in Memorial Cup semifinal". Moose Jaw Today. Archived from the original on June 1, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  43. ↑ "London Knights win 2025 Memorial Cup". Daily Faceoff. Retrieved 2025-06-17.
  44. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.141
  45. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.223
  46. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.251
  47. ↑ The Memorial Cup, p.264
  48. ↑ Weaver, Dan (December 3, 1996). "A Memorial Day Spokane Awarded The Final Four Of Major Junior Hockey For 1998". The Spokesman-Review. Archived from the original on May 14, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  49. ↑ "Regina to host 2001 Memorial Cup". CBC News. December 6, 1999. Archived from the original on May 14, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  50. ↑ "Competing Teams Announced for MasterCard Memorial Cup". WHL. May 15, 2007. Archived from the original on May 14, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  51. ↑ "Saskatoon Blades to host 2013 Memorial Cup". Sportsnet.ca. October 12, 2011. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2011.
  52. ↑ Lapp, Richard M.; White, Silas (1993). Local Heroes: A History of the Western Hockey League . Madeira Park, British Columbia: Harbour Publishing. pp. 74–77. ISBN   1-55017-080-5.

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