2019–20 WHL season
Sports season
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The 2019–20 WHL season was the 54th season of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The regular season began on September 20, 2019, and was scheduled to end on March 22, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in North America the regular season was suspended on March 12 and cancelled six days later along with the playoffs. The post-season had been scheduled to begin on March 27, in which sixteen teams would have competed for the Ed Chynoweth Cup.
| 2019–20 WHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | Western Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | September 20, 2019 – March 18, 2020 |
| Teams | 22 |
| TV partner(s) | KRCW-TV, KZJO, Sportsnet |
| Regular season | |
| Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy | Portland Winterhawks (4) |
| Season MVP | Adam Beckman (Spokane Chiefs) |
| Top scorer | Adam Beckman (Spokane Chiefs) |
| Playoffs | |
| Finals champions | None (cancelled) |
September 2019 – March 2020
QMJHL
September 2019 – March 2020
WHL
September 2019 – March 2020
| 2019–20 CHL seasons | |
|---|---|
| League | Canadian Hockey League |
| Sport | Hockey |
| Duration | OHL September 2019 – March 2020 QMJHL September 2019 – March 2020 WHL September 2019 – March 2020 |
| Teams | 60 |
| TV partner(s) | TVA Sports, Rogers Sportsnet, Rogers TV, Shaw TV |
| Season MVP | Alexis Lafrenière (Rimouski Océanic) (QMJHL) |
| Top scorer | Marco Rossi (Ottawa 67's) (OHL) |
| Memorial Cup | |
| Finals champions | None (cancelled) |
This was the first season for the Winnipeg Ice after being moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba, from Cranbrook, British Columbia.
Suspension and cancellation of season
On March 12, the WHL suspended the season until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] Six days later, on March 18, the WHL cancelled the remainder of the regular season, but stated its intention to hold playoffs at a later time. The final WHL standings are based on win percentage for all clubs.[2][3] The Portland Winterhawks were awarded the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy as regular season champions.[4]
Cancellation of playoffs and Memorial Cup
On March 23, the WHL announced that it had cancelled the playoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[5] The Canadian Hockey League cancelled the 2020 Memorial Cup, which had been scheduled to take place in Kelowna, British Columbia.[6]
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x, y – Edmonton Oil Kings | 64 | 42 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 239 | 167 | 94 |
| 2 | x – Medicine Hat Tigers | 63 | 41 | 19 | 2 | 1 | 265 | 182 | 85 |
| 3 | x – Lethbridge Hurricanes | 63 | 37 | 19 | 2 | 5 | 249 | 193 | 81 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x, y – Prince Albert Raiders | 64 | 36 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 210 | 160 | 82 |
| 2 | x – Winnipeg Ice | 63 | 38 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 231 | 207 | 77 |
| 3 | x – Brandon Wheat Kings | 63 | 35 | 22 | 4 | 2 | 227 | 173 | 76 |
| Pos | Div | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cen. | x – Calgary Hitmen | 64 | 35 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 219 | 201 | 75 |
| 2 | East | x – Saskatoon Blades | 63 | 34 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 211 | 197 | 73 |
| 3 | Cen. | Red Deer Rebels | 63 | 24 | 33 | 3 | 3 | 181 | 250 | 54 |
| 4 | East | Regina Pats | 63 | 21 | 34 | 6 | 2 | 183 | 258 | 50 |
| 5 | East | Moose Jaw Warriors | 62 | 14 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 146 | 291 | 32 |
| 6 | Cen. | Swift Current Broncos | 63 | 10 | 48 | 2 | 3 | 129 | 298 | 25 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x, y, z – Portland Winterhawks | 63 | 45 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 270 | 164 | 97 |
| 2 | x – Everett Silvertips | 63 | 46 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 228 | 142 | 96 |
| 3 | x – Spokane Chiefs | 64 | 41 | 18 | 4 | 1 | 258 | 179 | 87 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x, y – Kamloops Blazers | 63 | 41 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 271 | 166 | 86 |
| 2 | x – Victoria Royals | 64 | 32 | 24 | 6 | 2 | 176 | 190 | 72 |
| 3 | x – Vancouver Giants | 62 | 32 | 24 | 4 | 2 | 189 | 166 | 70 |
| Pos | Div | Team | Pld | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B.C. | x – Kelowna Rockets | 63 | 29 | 28 | 3 | 3 | 181 | 208 | 64 |
| 2 | U.S. | x – Seattle Thunderbirds | 63 | 24 | 32 | 4 | 3 | 175 | 240 | 55 |
| 3 | B.C. | Prince George Cougars | 62 | 20 | 34 | 4 | 4 | 144 | 205 | 48 |
| 4 | U.S. | Tri-City Americans | 63 | 17 | 40 | 4 | 2 | 157 | 302 | 40 |
Statistics
Scoring leaders
Players are listed by points, then goals.[8]
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts. = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Beckman | Spokane Chiefs | 63 | 48 | 59 | 107 | 18 |
| Seth Jarvis | Portland Winterhawks | 58 | 42 | 56 | 98 | 24 |
| James Hamblin | Medicine Hat Tigers | 63 | 36 | 56 | 92 | 35 |
| Zane Franklin | Kamloops Blazers | 63 | 29 | 62 | 91 | 89 |
| Connor Zary | Kamloops Blazers | 57 | 38 | 48 | 86 | 51 |
| Eli Zummack | Spokane Chiefs | 64 | 22 | 64 | 86 | 18 |
| Dylan Cozens | Lethbridge Hurricanes | 51 | 38 | 47 | 85 | 38 |
| Orrin Centazzo | Kamloops Blazers | 63 | 44 | 37 | 81 | 33 |
| Aliaksei Protas | Prince Albert Raiders | 58 | 31 | 49 | 80 | 8 |
| Brett Kemp | Medicine Hat Tigers | 62 | 30 | 47 | 77 | 43 |
Leading goaltenders
These are the goaltenders that lead the league in GAA that have played at least 1500 minutes.[9]
Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; SOL = Shootout Losses; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; Sv% = Save percentage
| Player | Team | GP | Mins | W | L | OTL | SOL | SO | GAA | Sv% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dustin Wolf | Everett Silvertips | 46 | 2713 | 34 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1.88 | 0.935 |
| Shane Farkas | Victoria Royals | 28 | 1585 | 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2.20 | 0.929 |
| Dylan Garand | Kamloops Blazers | 42 | 2443 | 28 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2.21 | 0.921 |
| Sebastian Cossa | Edmonton Oil Kings | 33 | 1880 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2.23 | 0.921 |
| David Tendeck | Vancouver Giants | 35 | 2017 | 18 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2.29 | 0.920 |
WHL awards
All-Star teams
Eastern Conference
| First Team[10] | Pos. | Second Team[11] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Player | Team | |
| Jiri Patera | Brandon Wheat Kings | G | Max Paddock | Prince Albert Raiders |
| Calen Addison | Lethbridge Hurricanes | D | Alex Cotton | Lethbridge Hurricanes |
| Braden Schneider | Brandon Wheat Kings | D | Matthew Robertson | Edmonton Oil Kings |
| Dylan Cozens | Lethbridge Hurricanes | F | Mark Kastelic | Calgary Hitmen |
| James Hamblin | Medicine Hat Tigers | F | Peyton Krebs | Winnipeg Ice |
| Aliaksei Protas | Prince Albert Raiders | F | Riley Sawchuk | Edmonton Oil Kings |
Western Conference
| First Team | Pos. | Second Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Player | Team | |
| Dustin Wolf | Everett Silvertips | G | Joel Hofer | Portland Winterhawks |
| John Ludvig | Portland Winterhawks | D | Bowen Byram | Vancouver Giants |
| Ty Smith | Spokane Chiefs | D | Jake Christiansen | Everett Silvertips |
| Adam Beckman | Spokane Chiefs | F | Zane Franklin | Kamloops Blazers |
| Seth Jarvis | Portland Winterhawks | F | Bryce Kindopp | Everett Silvertips |
| Connor Zary | Kamloops Blazers | F | Eli Zummack | Spokane Chiefs |
Attendance
| Team | Home average[12] |
|---|---|
| Edmonton | 7,008 |
| Calgary | 6,742 |
| Everett | 5,730 |
| Spokane | 5,709 |
| Portland | 5,540 |
| Kelowna | 5,136 |
| Seattle | 4,735 |
| Regina | 4,710 |
| Victoria | 4,638 |
| Kamloops | 4,178 |
| Lethbridge | 3,969 |
| Red Deer | 3,963 |
| Vancouver | 3,919 |
| Tri-City | 3,729 |
| Saskatoon | 3,605 |
| Brandon | 3,489 |
| Moose Jaw | 2,981 |
| Medicine Hat | 2,946 |
| Prince Albert | 2,641 |
| Prince George | 2,433 |
| Swift Current | 1,953 |
| Winnipeg | 1,512 |
| Total Average | 4,153 |
| Total | 2,882,799 |
| total games | 694 |