Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Template:Short description Template:Redirect Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox sports league
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) is a college ice hockey conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a women's-only conference.
From 1951 to 1999, it operated as a men-only league, adding women's competition in the 1999–2000 season. It operated men's and women's leagues through the 2020–21 season; during this period, the men's WCHA expanded to include teams far removed from its traditional Midwestern base, with members in Alabama, Alaska, and Colorado at different times.<ref name="History"/> The men's side of the league officially disbanded after seven members left to form the revived Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA); the WCHA remains in operation as a women-only league.<ref name=Christensen>Template:Cite news</ref>
WCHA member teams won a record 38 men's NCAA hockey championships, most recently in 2011 by the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs. A WCHA team also finished as the national runner-up a total of 28 times.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> WCHA teams also won the first 13 NCAA women's titles, which were first awarded in 2001.<ref name="Women's national champs">Template:Cite web</ref>
History
The league was founded in 1951 as the Midwest Collegiate Hockey League (MCHL),<ref name="History">Template:Cite web</ref> then was known as the Western Intercollegiate Hockey League (WIHL) until 1958. The WIHL disbanded in 1958 after Minnesota and the three Michigan schools withdrew in protest of Colorado College, Denver and North Dakota recruiting overage Canadians. While this didn't violate NCAA rules, the four "M" schools felt it violated the spirit of intercollegiate athletics.<ref name="History"/> The current Western Collegiate Hockey Association was founded for the 1959–60 season after the former WIHL schools concluded that the region needed a strong league. Despite this, Denver and Minnesota would not play each other until 1973, when the league took over scheduling from the individual members.<ref name="History"/> The 2005 NCAA Frozen Four hockey tournament finals were noteworthy when all four teams came from the WCHA.
WCHA teams also won the first 13 NCAA women's titles, which were first awarded in 2001.<ref name="Women's national champs" /> In 2006, WCHA member Wisconsin was the first school to capture both the men's and women's Division I ice hockey championships in the same season.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The men's regular season conference champion was awarded the MacNaughton Cup,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> while the league's tournament champion winning the WCHA Final Five took home the Broadmoor Trophy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2013 realignment
Template:Main On March 22, 2011, Minnesota and Wisconsin announced that their men's teams planned to leave the league in order to form a hockey Big Ten Conference in 2013–14, along with Penn State, which would start a varsity hockey program in 2012–13, and Central Collegiate Hockey Association members Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In response to the creation of the Big Ten men's hockey conference, Denver, Colorado College, North Dakota, Omaha, Minnesota Duluth, and St. Cloud State left the WCHA to join Miami University and Western Michigan of the CCHA to create the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Facing membership at 4 teams for the 2013–14 season, the WCHA conference added one of its former members, Northern Michigan of the CCHA, on July 15, 2011.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On August 25, 2011, the WCHA announced that it had invited the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Bowling Green, Ferris State, and Lake Superior State to join beginning in the 2013–14 season. On August 26, 2011, Alaska-Fairbanks, Ferris State, and Lake Superior State accepted their invitations and joined Northern Michigan in the WCHA in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After much deliberation, on October 4, 2011, Bowling Green decided to join the WCHA as well in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On January 17, 2013, the WCHA admitted Alabama–Huntsville to the league, effective in the 2013–14 season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
This realignment activity only affected the men's side of the WCHA. Even after Penn State took the ice with both men's and women's teams, the Big Ten still had only four members with varsity women's hockey (Michigan and Michigan State field only men's teams). This meant that the women's side of the WCHA remained intact for the immediate future.
After realignment
Template:Seealso The next change in the conference membership came shortly after the 2016–17 season, when North Dakota announced that it would drop women's hockey.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>
During the 2019 offseason, the future of the men's side of the WCHA fell into serious doubt when its seven Midwestern members—Bemidji State, Bowling Green, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, and Northern Michigan—notified the WCHA that they would leave the league after the 2020–21 season, potentially forming a new men's hockey conference.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> In February 2020, these seven schools announced they would form a new CCHA.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
At the time the seven Midwestern members announced their plans to leave, the two Alaska teams were facing a crisis following the veto by state governor Mike Dunleavy of over $100 million in funding for the University of Alaska system, a move that was seen as potentially ending intercollegiate athletics entirely at both the Anchorage and Fairbanks campuses.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The cuts led the UA system to start the process of consolidating the three-campus system into a single accredited institution (though retaining the existing campuses), with the system president telling local media that a single accreditation would likely lead to the Anchorage and Fairbanks athletic programs being combined into a single program. While both campuses continued to sponsor men's ice hockey in the 2019–20 season, the future of at least one of the teams beyond that point was then seen as uncertain at best.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later developments saw many of the budget cuts pulled back, as well as a temporary halt to work on a single UA system accreditation; this led the UA system to announce that athletics at both campuses would continue as is through the 2020–21 school year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In November 2019, Alabama–Huntsville submitted a withdrawal letter to the WCHA, stating that it also planned to leave after the 2020–21 season. At the time, UAH was discussing potential future options with the two Alaska campuses.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, UAH subsequently dropped hockey effective immediately on May 22, 2020, due to the financial impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on its athletic department.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On May 29, 2020, UAH President Darren Dawson announced that men's hockey would return for the 2020–21 season after more than $750,000 in private contributions were made in the week prior.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This reprieve proved temporary, as the school and its hockey supporters agreed that the continuation of the sport beyond 2020–21 would be contingent on finding a new conference home; when no conference move materialized, the hockey program was dropped again (although UAH officially called it a "suspension").<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In August 2020, Alaska Anchorage announced that it would drop hockey after the 2020–21 season.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The University of Alaska Board of Regents offered the hockey team a chance at reinstatement in September if they could raise 2 seasons worth of expenses, approximately $3 million, by February 2021. The fundraising was divided into 2 parts: $1.5 million in cash, and the remainder in firm pledges. As of December 2020, the team had begun fundraising for the needed money.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The men's WCHA would fold after the 2020–21 season,<ref name=Christensen/> but the women's WCHA announced a further expansion effective in 2021–22 with the arrival of St. Thomas, a Twin Cities school that received NCAA approval to directly transition from Division III to Division I. St. Thomas had been expelled from its longtime D-III home of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference effective with the end of the 2020–21 school year due to perceptions by many members that it had grown too strong for that conference in multiple sports.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The Summit League offered the Tommies a D-I home, and backed the school's bid to directly transition from D-III.<ref>Template:Cite press releaseTemplate:Dead link</ref>
Members
The now women-only WCHA has 8 members following the 2021 arrival of St. Thomas. The men's side of the conference had 10 members in its final season of 2020–21, at which time only two schools, Bemidji State and Minnesota State, had both men's and women's teams in the conference.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Colors | NCAA women's Championship |
Primary conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bemidji State University | Bemidji, Minnesota | 1919 | 1999 | Public | 5,198 | Beavers | Template:College color boxes | 0 | Northern Sun (D-II) |
| Template:Sort | Minneapolis & Saint Paul, Minnesota | 1851 | 51,848 | Golden Gophers | Template:College color boxes | 6 | Big Ten | ||
| Template:Sort | Duluth, Minnesota | 1947 | 11,168 | Bulldogs | Template:College color boxes | 5 | Northern Sun (D-II) | ||
| Minnesota State University, Mankato | Mankato, Minnesota | 1867 | 14,712 | Mavericks | Template:College color boxes | 0 | |||
| Ohio State University | Columbus, Ohio | 1870 | 59,837 | Buckeyes | Template:College color boxes | 2 | Big Ten | ||
| Template:Sort | Template:Sort | 1869 | 14,615 | Huskies | Template:College color boxes | 0 | Northern Sun (D-II) | ||
| Template:Sort | Saint Paul, Minnesota | 1885 | 2021 | Private | 9,878 | Tommies | Template:College color boxes | 0 | Summit League |
| Template:Sort | Madison, Wisconsin | 1848 | 1999 | Public | 43,820 | Badgers | Template:College color boxes | 8 | Big Ten |
Final men's members
Other former men's members
| Institution | City | State | Joined | Left | NCAA championshipsTemplate:Efn | Subsequent conference |
Current conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado College | Colorado Springs | Colorado | 1951 | 2013 | 2 (1) | NCHC | |
| Denver | Denver | 10 (7) | |||||
| Michigan | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 1981 | 9 (5) | CCHA | Big Ten | |
| Michigan State | East Lansing | 3 (1) | |||||
| Minnesota | Minneapolis & St. Paul | Minnesota | 2013 | 5 (5) | Big Ten | ||
| Minnesota Duluth | Duluth | 1966 | 3 (1) | NCHC | |||
| Omaha | Omaha | Nebraska | 2010 | 0 (0) | |||
| North Dakota | Grand Forks | North Dakota | 1951 | 8 (7) | |||
| Notre Dame | Notre Dame | Indiana | 1971 | 1981 | 0 (0) | CCHA | Big Ten |
| St. Cloud State | Template:Sort | Minnesota | 1990 | 2013 | 0 (0) | NCHC | |
| Wisconsin | Madison | Wisconsin | 1969 | 6 (6) | Big Ten | ||
Former women's member
| Institution | City | State | Joined | Left | NCAA championshipsTemplate:Efn | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | Grand Forks | North Dakota | 2004 | 2017 | 0 (0) | North Dakota terminated its women's ice hockey program. |
Membership timeline
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bar:Names color:lightgrey width:15 from:07/01/1951 till:07/01/1958 bar:Names color:lightgrey width:15 from:07/01/1959 till:end at:01/01/1951 shift:(-4) text:MCHL at:07/01/1953 mark:(line,black) shift:(10) text:WIHL at:07/01/1959 text:WCHA
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</timeline>
Conference arenas
| School | Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Bemidji State | Sanford Center | 4,700 |
| Minnesota | Ridder Arena | 3,400 |
| Minnesota Duluth | AMSOIL Arena | 6,764 |
| Minnesota State | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center | 5,280 |
| Ohio State | Ohio State University Ice Rink | 1,415 |
| St. Cloud State | Herb Brooks National Hockey Center | 5,763 |
| St. Thomas | Lee and Penny Anderson Arena | 4,000 |
| Wisconsin | LaBahn Arena | 2,273 |
Championships, Frozen Fours, and NCAA Tournament Appearances
Former Members
| School | Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | 2 Template:Small |
Awards (men's)
At the conclusion of each regular season schedule the coaches of each WCHA team vote which players they choose to be on the two to four All-Conference teams:<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> first team and second team with a rookie team added in 1990–91 and a third team added in 1995–96. Additionally they vote to award up to 5 individual trophies to an eligible player at the same time. The WCHA also awards a Most Valuable Player in Tournament, which is voted on at the conclusion of the conference tournament. Only the Coach of the Year award has been bestowed in each year of the WCHA's existence, making it the oldest continually-awarded conference award in Division I ice hockey.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Template:Col-start
All-Conference teams
| Award | Inaugural year |
|---|---|
| First Team | 1959–60 |
| Second Team | 1959–60 |
| Third Team | 1995–96 |
| Rookie Team | 1990–91 |
| All-Tournament Team | 1988 |
Individual awards
Team awards
| Award | Inaugural year |
|---|---|
| MacNaughton Cup | 1951–52* |
| Broadmoor Trophy | 1985 |
National Championships
Template:Col-start Template:Col-2 WCHA schools have won 37 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey National Championships.
| Year | School |
|---|---|
| 1951* | Michigan |
| 1952* | Michigan |
| 1953* | Michigan |
| 1955* | Michigan |
| 1956* | Michigan |
| 1957* | Colorado College |
| 1958* | Denver |
| 1960 | Denver |
| 1961 | Denver |
| 1962 | Michigan Tech |
| 1963 | North Dakota |
| 1964 | Michigan |
| 1965 | Michigan Tech |
| 1966 | Michigan State |
| 1968 | Denver |
| 1969 | Denver |
| 1973 | Wisconsin |
| 1974 | Minnesota |
| 1975 | Michigan Tech |
| 1976 | Minnesota |
| 1977 | Wisconsin |
| 1979 | Minnesota |
| 1980 | North Dakota |
| 1981 | Wisconsin |
| 1982 | North Dakota |
| 1983 | Wisconsin |
| 1987 | North Dakota |
| 1990 | Wisconsin |
| 1991 | Northern Michigan |
| 1997 | North Dakota |
| 2000 | North Dakota |
| 2002 | Minnesota |
| 2003 | Minnesota |
| 2004 | Denver |
| 2005 | Denver |
| 2006 | Wisconsin |
| 2011 | Minnesota Duluth |
* Prior to 1959 the teams that formed the WCHA played in the MCHL or the WIHL.
Template:Col-2 WCHA schools have won 19 NCAA Women's Ice Hockey National Championships.
| Year | School |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2002 | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2003 | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2004 | Minnesota |
| 2005 | Minnesota |
| 2006 | Wisconsin |
| 2007 | Wisconsin |
| 2008 | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2009 | Wisconsin |
| 2010 | Minnesota Duluth |
| 2011 | Wisconsin |
| 2012 | Minnesota |
| 2013 | Minnesota |
| 2015 | Minnesota |
| 2016 | Minnesota |
| 2019 | Wisconsin |
| 2021 | Wisconsin |
| 2022 | Ohio State |
| 2023 | Wisconsin |
| 2024 | Ohio State |
| 2025 | Wisconsin |
References
External links
Template:Western Collegiate Hockey Association men's navbox Template:Western Collegiate Hockey Association women's navbox Template:WCHA men's ice hockey tournament Template:NCAA Division 1 hockey conferences