New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League
New Zealand's top-tier women's ice hockey league, founded in 2014.
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The New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL) is the country’s highest level of women’s ice hockey. It was founded in 2014 as the first national women’s league in New Zealand and operates as an amateur competition under the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation, which is part of the International Ice Hockey Federation. The league currently includes four teams from both the North and South Islands. Each season, the league champion receives the Championship Trophy and gold medals, while the league premier is awarded the Premiership Trophy.
History
The NZWIHL was created to support the national women’s team, the Ice Fernz, during their IIHF World Championship campaigns, and to give female players of all ages a chance to develop and compete together. It started with three teams: Auckland Steel, Canterbury Devilettes, and Southern Storm. Auckland Steel topped the standings in the first season, winning both the inaugural premiership and the first championship grand final in 2014. The league stayed at three teams from 2014 to 2019, with Auckland winning four titles during that stretch.
Canterbury claimed the championship in the second season, and Southern Storm won in 2018. In 2020, the Southern Storm was disbanded, and two new teams—Dunedin Thunder and Wakatipu Wild—were formed in Dunedin and Queenstown, joining the league for the 2020 season. Before the 2021 season, the Canterbury Devilettes renamed themselves the Canterbury Inferno to separate their identity from the men’s Red Devils team.
The 2021 season was cancelled midway through due to COVID-19 lockdowns, and the planned finals were also called off in November. In 2022, Wakatipu Wild became the first of the two new teams to win both the premiership and championship, going nearly undefeated in the regular season and winning both finals games. Founded in 2014, Auckland Steel is one of the three original NZWIHL teams. They play at Paradice Avondale in western Auckland.
Auckland Steel
The team has won four championships and one premiership. German coach Andreas Kaisser was their first head coach, with Canadians Garret Ferguson and Jonathan Albright as assistants. Philippa Kaisser served as the first general manager. Auckland played the league’s first game on 29 November 2014 against Southern Storm.
Lore & Background
The New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL) was established in 2014 as New Zealand's top level women's national league. The newly formed league was set up to support the National Women's team, the Ice Fernz, for their IIHF World Championship seasons. The league would provide opportunity for female players of all ages to develop their skills and play together in a competitive environment. The league was founded with three teams, including: Auckland Steel, Canterbury Devilettes and Southern Storm.
The Auckland Steel topped the league standings in the first season to claim the first league premiership before they won the inaugural 2014 NZWIHL season grand final, to become the league's first championship team. The NZWIHL remained a three team league between 2014 and 2019, with Auckland establishing itself as a dominant force in the league, with four championship titles during this time. Canterbury were crowned champions in the second NZWIHL season and Southern Storm won the 2018 season.
In 2020, a league decision saw the disbanding of the combined Southern Storm team and the establishment of two separate teams for the NZWIHL. The Dunedin Thunder and Wakatipu Wild were formed and based in Dunedin and Queenstown in the Otago region respectively. They joined the league and first competed in the 2020 NZWIHL season.
Before the 2021 season, in July 2021, the Canterbury Devilettes changed their name to the Canterbury Inferno to create a separate identity from the Red Devils men's team. In August 2021, the league had to be cancelled midway through the season due to the New Zealand Government lock-downs to help minimise the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally the league still hoped to play finals at a later date, but that too got cancelled in November 2021. In 2022, Wakatipu Wild was the first of the two new teams to claim a league premiership and championship, when it went almost undefeated for the regular season and then won both games in finals.
Reader's Guide
The NZWIHL is significant as New Zealand's first women's national ice hockey league, established in 2014 to support the national women's team, the Ice Fernz, for their IIHF World Championship seasons. The league provides a competitive environment for female players of all ages to develop their skills. The most successful team in NZWIHL history is Auckland Steel, who have claimed seven championship titles and are the current reigning champion. The league has evolved from three founding teams to four teams from both the North and South Islands.
The league champion is awarded the Championship Trophy and gold medals, while the league premier is awarded the Premiership Trophy. The NZWIHL has amateur status and is sanctioned by the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation, a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation. The league's history includes the disbanding of Southern Storm in 2020 and the formation of Dunedin Thunder and Wakatipu Wild, as well as the renaming of Canterbury Devilettes to Canterbury Inferno in 2021. The 2021 season was cancelled midway due to COVID-19 lockdowns.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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