UBC favoured in bid for CW three-peat

A new Canada West women's hockey season begins Friday night with no shortage of intriguing storylines.

UBC has once again topped the pre-season coaches poll coming off their second consecutive CW championship last year. Defending national champion Mount Royal University were ranked second in the poll, one point ahead of third place Alberta.

The road to the CW crown still runs through Vancouver as the T-Birds return a dynamic offence, led by fourth-year forward Chanreet Bassi, who was second in conference scoring with 28 points last season.

Meanwhile, MRU will hang a banner in their home opener after an incredible national championship win last March. The Cougars fell to the T-Birds in a tight CW final last season, but went on a magical run as the eighth seed at nationals to claim the first U SPORTS championship in their school history.

Cougars head coach Scott Rivett will count on fourth year goaltender Kaitlyn Ross to provide another season of big stops, as she returns after posting a .935 save percentage and a 22-11 record last season.

Another storyline to watch is how two storied programs will fare with new coaches at the helm, after it was recently announced that Alberta's Howie Draper and Calgary's Carla MacLeod accepted head coaching positions with the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).

The regular season runs through Feb. 10, with the Canada West Final scheduled to begin March 1.

All eyes will then turn to Saskatoon from March 14-17, 2024, as the University of Saskatchewan prepares to host the U SPORTS national championship. A veteran Huskies squad, who ranked fourth in the pre-season coaches poll, will look to defend home ice and make a run of their own at the event.

For the complete Canada West women's hockey schedule, click here.

2023-24 CW WHKY PRE-SEASON COACHES POLL 

Team - Points (First-place votes)

1. UBC Thunderbirds - 72 (8)
2. Mount Royal Cougars - 60
3. Alberta Pandas - 59 (1)
4. Saskatchewan Huskies - 49 
5. Calgary Dinos- 47
6. Manitoba Bisons - 39
7. Trinity Western Spartans - 27
8. Regina Cougars - 22
9. MacEwan Griffins - 20

WOMEN'S HOCKEY ON CANADA WEST TV

Fans can catch all the action through the new look CanadaWest.TV, which now allows fans to watch games on popular Connected TV apps like Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV.

Team by Team Preview

1. UBC Thunderbirds

Key Performer: F Chanreet Bassi (Fourth Year, Lake Country, B.C.)

2022-23 Stats: 8 G, 20 A, 28 PTS, +20

Pacing the T-Birds with 28 points in 2022-23, Bassi finished the regular season second in Canada West scoring while leading the conference with a plus-20 rating. The fourth year veteran was named a First Team conference All-Star and is consistently one of the most dangerous offensive threats on the ice every shift.

2. Mount Royal Cougars

Key Performer: G Kaitlyn Ross (Fourth Year, Redcliff, AB)  

2022-23 Stats: 22 -11-0 / .935 SV% / 1.42 GAA

Kaitlyn Ross, our 4th-year goaltender with a .935 save percentage and a 22-11 record, is the key returning player who provides unwavering consistency and stability from the goal line out.

3. Alberta Pandas

Key Performer: G Halle Oswald (Fifth Year, Sanford, MB)

2022-23 Stats: 18-5-1, 1.19 GAA, .942 SVP, 6 Shutouts

One consistency in the Pandas 25-year run of success in Canada West has been their outstanding goalies, with Halle Oswald being the latest to excel in the Pandas crease. The fifth-year netminder led the conference in wins last season with 18, finishing second with six shutouts and a 1.19 goals against average. The 2023 CW Goalie of the Year now has one thing missing from her illustrious resume — a U SPORTS title. This may be Oswald's best shot, starting for a Pandas team who didn't lose a single player this summer to graduation.

From the Coach: "We will be relying on experience this season as we return 98% off our group from the previous season. Halle Oswald continues to play an important part for Pandas Hockey having agreed to return to play out a 6th season with the team.  Despite the CW Playoff Semi-Final loss to the eventual National Champions in last year's post season, the team had a strong 2022-23 showing, possibly surprising many with a second overall finish at the end of regular season play.  With that experience under our belt, we're ready to make a strong push to get back to Nationals," - Howie Draper (Note: Coaches Poll was completed prior to Draper being named head coach of PWHL's New York franchise. Long-time assistant coach Darren Bilawchuk will start the season as the Pandas acting head coach.

4. Saskatchewan Huskies

Key Performer: G Camryn Drever (Fifth Year, Edmonton)

2022-23 Stats: 11 W, 3 Shutouts, .942 SV%

"Camryn was arguably the MVP during the Huskies playoff run in 2021-22 which led to the program's last National Championship appearance and a bronze medal finish. With that experience and her FISU gold medal from last season, Camryn's strength is her ability to compete in pressure situations with incredible composure. Competing in a highly competitive and extremely balanced conference, we'll look to her stability throughout the season," - Head Coach Steve Kook

From the Coach: "The Huskies return a veteran squad looking to have a strong season leading up to hosting the National Championships in March. Always a defensively sound team, they look to find ways to create more scoring chances this season in order to separate themselves from an always balanced and competitive CW conference," -Steve Kook

5. Calgary Dinos

Key Performer: F Elizabeth Lang (Fifth Year, Edmonton)

2022-23 Stats: 8 G, 9 A, 17 PTS

Elizabeth Lang is the engine that drives the Calgary Dinos. The leader on and off the ice helped the Scarlet & Gold return to the postseason in 2023, racking up 17 points (8 goals, 9 assists) - good for third-most on the team.

6. Manitoba Bisons 

Key Performer: D Camile Enns (Fourth Year, Linden, MB)

2022-23 Stats: 3G, 5A

Camille Enns had a breakout year in 2022-23 and has become one of the steadiest defenders in Canada West. Her durability, toughness, physical strength as well as vision and ability to create offence make her a dynamic player. She played the most shifts and logged the most ice time of any player on the team last year and delivered in every situation 

7. Trinity Western Spartans

Key Performer: F Brooklyn Anderson (Third Year, Shellbrook, SK.)

2022-23 stats: 9 G, 8 A, 17 PTS

Brooklyn Anderson is a leader on the ice by being a threat to score every shift and makes players around her better.

From the Coach: "Trinity Western University has a large returning group that found its way into the playoffs last season. That experience from a very hard-working group along with some key additions results in a competitive team that will be prepared to play every game. TWU will be a win-by-committee type of team. TWU will be aggressive but disciplined," – Peter Hay

8. Regina Cougars 

Key Performer: D Hannah Pennell (Fourth Year, Kamsack, SK.)  

2022-23 Stats: 28 GP, 6 G, 4 A, 10 PTS 

Hannah Pennell is coming off a breakout offensive season which saw her score six goals and add four assists for a total of 10 points in 28 Canada West games. All six of her goals were scored on the power play, giving her a school single season record for the most power play goals by a defender. Pennell will be one of the team's alternate captains this year. 

9. MacEwan Griffins

Key Performer: G Brianna Sank (Fourth Year, Ardrossan, AB)

2022-23 Stats: 6W, 2.66 GAA, .913 SV%, 1377:04 minutes, 641 saves

No goaltender in MacEwan program history has more saves in a season than Brianna Sank had in 2022-23 as her 641 total was the second-most in Canada West. That speaks to how important she was to the Griffins' efforts and will be again as the team enters its third season in the conference, aiming to take the next step towards earning a playoff spot. Sank also set a program standard for minutes played in a season in 2022-23 (1,377:04) and will again be relied upon heavily to give the Griffins a chance to win.

From the Coach: "Settling into the league the past few years has given perspective on what it takes to compete at this level. Continuing to grow our level of competitiveness weekly and the execution of our style of play will allow us to leverage our strengths to begin finding more opportunities to be successful as a team," -Chris Leeming