The Ontario Women's Hockey League U22 Elite (OWHL), 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 Canadian national team.

History

The league was founded in 2004 as the Provincial Women's Hockey League by the Ontario Women's Hockey Association (OWHA). 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 (OWHL).

Teams

Defunct franchises

Champions

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.

Awards

Regular Season champions

Scoring champion

Goaltending Award

Coach of the Year

Christie Rose Scholarship

For ten years, the PWHL awarded a scholarship in memory of former PWHL player Christie Rose. She was an 18-year-old young woman who died on June 24, 2008, as a result of her injuries suffered in a car accident. The scholarship is awarded on an annual basis to recognize a young woman who shares the same qualities and characteristics as Christie. The scholarship program was ended after it awarded its tenth recipient.

Recipients