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By Pete McIntyre

Junior hockey

WHL final features Winterhawks and Warriors

May 8, 2024 | 9:40 AM

The Western Hockey League has announced the schedule for the 2024 WHL Championship Series between the Western Conference champion Portland Winterhawks and Eastern Conference champion Moose Jaw Warriors.

The series, presented by Nutrien, will follow a 2-3-2 series format, with Game 1 scheduled for Friday, May 10 in Portland. All seven games will be broadcast live by TSN.

This marks the first time in WHL history in which the Winterhawks and Warriors will face off for the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

2024 WHL Championship Series presented by Nutrien
Game 1 – Friday, May 10 at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum) – 7 p.m. PT
Game 2 – Saturday, May 11 at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum) – 7 p.m. PT
Game 3 – Tuesday, May 14 at Moose Jaw (Moose Jaw Events Centre) – 8 p.m. MT
Game 4 – Wednesday, May 15 at Moose Jaw (Moose Jaw Events Centre) – 8 p.m. MT
Game 5* – Friday, May 17 at Moose Jaw (Moose Jaw Events Centre) – 8 p.m. MT
Game 6* – Sunday, May 19 at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum) – TBD
Game 7* – Monday, May 20 at Portland (Veterans Memorial Coliseum) – TBD

* = if necessary

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The Winterhawks advanced to the championship on May 6 following a double overtime victory over the Prince George Cougars.

This marks the 17th trip to the WHL championship for the Winterhawks, and their first since making four consecutive appearances from 2011 to 2014. They last won the WHL title in 2013, defeating the Edmonton Oil Kings in six games. The Winterhawks have won five WHL championships, including two dating back to the franchise’s early days as the original Edmonton Oil Kings (1971, 1972).

Finishing atop the WHL’s U.S. Division, the Winterhawks knocked off the No. 7 seed Victoria Royals in four games before finishing off the No. 3 seed Everett Silvertips in a second consecutive sweep. Portland then eliminated the B.C. Division champion Prince George Cougars in six games in the Western final.

The Winterhawks finished first in the WHL’s U.S. Division, going 48-15-4-1 during the 2023-24 WHL Regular Season.

The Moose Jaw Warriors advanced to the WHL championship on May 7 following a dramatic Game 7 overtime victory over the Saskatoon Blades to claim the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship.

This marks the second appearance in the WHL championship for the Warriors. The first was in 2006, where they fell to the Vancouver Giants in four games. The Warriors will look to win the franchise’s first title in its 40-year WHL history.

Over the course of WHL history, one Moose Jaw-based WHL franchise has won a WHL Championship. In 1967, the Moose Jaw Canucks won the first-ever WHL title, defeating the Regina Pats in five games. An original founding member of the WHL, the Canucks spent two years in the League before returning to the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League for the 1968-69 season, where they remained until 1984. The Canucks folded following the 1983-84 campaign to make room for the relocation of the Winnipeg Warriors. The Moose Jaw Warriors have operated in the Friendly City ever since.

The Warriors battled through the 2024 WHL playoffs by knocking off the No. 6 seed Brandon Wheat Kings in a four-game sweep prior to defeating the Swift Current Broncos in an exciting five-game series. The Warriors then eked out the WHL Eastern Conference Championship in nail-biting fashion, skating past the Saskatoon Blades in seven games.

The Warriors finished second in the WHL’s East Division with a regular season record of 44-21-0-3.

The winner of the 2024 WHL Championship Series wil advance to the 2024 Memorial Cup in Saginaw, Mich., from May 24 to June 2.