Top women’s pre-college hockey league in the world

Junior Women’s Hockey League

By: Emily Laurenzi and Kelsey Lynch

NEW YORK---With four years under its belt, the Junior Women’s Hockey League has developed into the top league for AAA girl’s ice hockey in the world.

The league is broken down into two divisions based primarily on location. Each year, teams from the western division and the eastern division travel across the continent to compete in league play, showcases and the year end tournament. 

All ten teams of the JWHL

All five east teams will meet five times to play a total of twenty games. While the east are competing against one another, teams from the west are as well. All ten teams will also participate in three cross-over weekends where all the east teams will go head to head with the west teams.

These eight meetings comprise most of the league schedule.   

As if traveling across the country every weekend wasn’t enough, most players feel the added pressure of often having thirty or more college scouts watching their every move.

Seven out of the eight weekends in the JWHL are played on college campuses. This gives an opportunity for  all players to tour campuses and be able to play in college arenas. It addition it creates an easier and more convenient way for college coaches to recruit.

The JWHL’s most competitive games are played in Arlington, Virginia every February at the Kettler Capitals Ice Complex. The best teams that aren’t normally in the JWHL are invited to compete in the Challenge Cup as well. There are a total of sixteen teams vigorously fighting to make it to the championship game.

The JWHL is the only pre-college girls league to play the length of a college hockey game. Each game is broken down into three twenty-minute periods.

In the past two years, The Mountaineers have placed fourteen players to D1 and D3 schools. Out of those fourteen, six players received full athletic scholarships. 

NSA goal against North American Hockey Academy

Last year National Sports academy clinched third place in the east division, battling out until the very end. With only one league weekend to go, and a team goal still left unaccomplished, the Mountaineers left everything they had on the ice, sweeping all five games they played. 

As the 2011-2012-hockey season begins, NSA welcomes ten new faces to their team. With a new team and a new year the Mountaineers are anxiously anticipating the start of the first JWHL weekend. 

New NSA student, Kelsea Williams, made the decision to transfer from a team in the west division this year.

"It is a greater opportunity for college exposure than the west division," Williams said.  "To me, the east seems to be where the heart of women's hockey is in North America."

The JWHL’s opening games take place in Boston for the start of the 2011-2012 season. Both divisions will make the trip to begin a long strenuous season. “There will be sixty or more scouts watching this weekend,” commented head coach Bill Ward. “Hopefully we will sweep the first games.”