The
WHA Junior Hockey League was an independent
Canadian junior ice hockey league based out of
British Columbia,
Canada. The league marketed itself as a Junior A league, but was an unsanctioned independent loop with its own rules, processes and procedures, and was marked by franchise instability. Its team logos were based on the old WHA pro league of the 1970s.
History
The first game in league history (when it was known as the
WHA Junior West Hockey League) took place on September 21, 2006, between the Lumby Fighting Saints and the Armstrong Sharks in
Armstrong, British Columbia. The result of the game was a 6-4 victory for Lumby.
On November 15, 2006, the
Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League announced its affiliation with the
World Hockey Association and the creation of the "National Junior Hockey Alliance," an agreement to play for the "Alliance Cup" between the GMHL playoff champion and the winner of the WHA Junior West Hockey League. On March 2, 2007, the JWHL final was awarded to New Westminster after winning the best of five series. Lumby pulled out of the league final after a financial dispute between Lumby's coach and the league; the league chose to remove Lumby's coach and continued the series without him. The Whalers won the last two games to take the league title. The Whalers moved on to compete for the Alliance Cup against the Greater Metro League's
Bradford Rattlers, and were swept three games straight by the GMJHL champion.
On March 2,...
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