Joint NHL/CWHL Canadian Championship The Concept This three-city* Canadian hockey championship would see women’s CWHL teams and men’s NHL teams from Toronto, Montreal, and Calgary visit each other for afternoon, evening doubleheaders to be played at the Air Canada Centre, Bell Centre and Scotiabank Saddledome respectively. These games would take place during the on-going regular seasons of both leagues. Total points per city (men’s and women’s results would be combined) over the course of this 12-game series would decide the annual champion. CALGARY TORONTO MONTREAL vs. vs. vs. DOUBLEHEADER #1 vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. DOUBLEHEADER #2 vs. vs. vs. *To make the proposal more palatable to Scotiabank for a potential Hockey Day in Canada tie-in: If, in addition to Calgary, Toronto & Montreal, a fourth team was added combining the CWHL’s Markham Thunder & a Canadian NHL team with an interest in testing the market for a future CWHL franchise (Ottawa, Winnipeg, Edmonton or Vancouver), 4 games (2 CWHL & 2 NHL) could be played on Hockey Day in Canada as the last leg of the Rhéaume Cup Trophy Name? The Rhéaume Cup Canadian Olympic silver medal-winning goaltender Manon Rhéaume is the only woman to play an NHL game (a 1992 pre-season game with the Tampa Bay Lightning). Manon’s brother, Pascal (a Stanley Cup champion in 2003), played 10 NHL seasons. The Moore Cup Dickie Moore played 14 NHL seasons, winning the Stanley Cup 6 times with Montreal Canadiens. Dickie’s sister, Dolly, played with the Montreal Maroons and won the 1936 Romeo Daoust Trophy (eastern Canada women’s hockey cham- pionship). Dolly taught Dickie to skate and Dickie called his sister his inspiration and “the real athlete in the family.” The Apps Cup Gillian Apps is a 3-time Olympic gold medalist. Her father, Syl Jr., played 700 games in the NHL. Her grandfather, Syl, is a Hockey Hall of Famer and was named one of the “100 Greatest NHL Players” in 2017. The Payette Cup Both the NHL and CWHL championship trophies (Stanley Cup and Clarkson Cup, respectively) were donated by the Governor Gen- eral of Canada. It would only be fitting for this championship to have its trophy donated by current Governor General, Julie Payette. Other Options: Fan Generated Name, Sponsor Generated Name, Donor Generated Name Dan Harbridge (@danharbridge): NHL Fan & Women’s Hockey Advocate | Katrina Galas (@katrinagalas): Sports Strategist Joint NHL/CWHL Canadian Championship Why Now? 1. A Championship Every Year for a Canadian NHL City The Montreal Canadiens were the last Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup (1992-93). A Canadian hockey championship would ensure one of three cities (to start) could celebrate a championship every season. (Canadian professional soccer franchises have been playing for a Canadian Championship every year for the last decade.) What franchise owner/management group could say no to those kinds of odds of hoisting a trophy every year? 2. Trophy/Championship Naming Rights The Stanley Cup has become an icon in professional sport. This is a chance for an authentic name to be created for a new championship (ie., selling naming rights and/or having the name be fan generated). In a country where millions of dollars are spent every season on hockey sponsorship deals, what company wouldn’t jump at the opportu- nity to be the title sponsor of a national championship? 3. Strengthening Canadian Rivalries Storied rivals, the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs, haven’t faced off in the playoffs since 1978–79. While being reunited in the same division in 1998-99 has improved the odds of the teams facing off in the playoffs, misaligned team fortunes have prevented them from truly reigniting their rivalry. The Calgary Flames have never been considered rivals of either franchise. A Canadian championship with droves of traveling fans uniting for 12 doubleheaders would certainly add fuel to the fire (Flames pun absolutely intended) and add a level of gravity to regular season games usually reserved for playoff match-ups. How could the NHL say no to strengthening bonds between franchises and offering more impactful regular season games? 4. Relevant Precedents In 2017, Hugh Weber and the New Jersey Devils committed to a multi-year partnership with the NWHL’s Metropolitan Riveters that included hosting a wildly successful afternoon/evening Riveters/Devils doublehead- er at the Prudential Centre. “They are marketing us like a real sister team — everything from the website, social media, to the broadcast and in arena,” said the league to The Associated Press. On January 27, 2018, Hilary Knight, Amanda Kessel and Meghan Duggan from the U.S. Women’s Olympic team demonstrated three skills competitions at the NHL All-Star Game. Their participation not only showcased their depth of skill as players, but their intrigue to fans in the stands, on social media, and watching the highlights broadcast on Sportsnet, CBC and TVA in Canada and NBCSN in the United States. Historical Precedent: 1930- Bobbie Rosenfeld, star player for the Toronto Patterson Pats, leads her team to a 4-0 victory over Chalk River for the Ladies Ontario Hockey Association (LOHA) Championship at the Montreal Forum just prior to a Stanley Cup final game between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens. Conclusion In proposing this Canadian championship, an attempt has been made to focus on the benefits to the NHL and NHL sponsors, the ones that in all likelihood would be the catalysts behind turning this idea into a reality. This championship would grow the game and cultivate fan bases by creating new and exciting opportunities for families to engage with both the men’s and women’s game in Canadian communities. Of course, there are count- less benefits to the women’s game that haven’t been touched upon: increased visibility, inevitably stronger ties to NHL partners for CWHL teams, and the potential for CWHL league growth to cities with NHL franchises but no CWHL team that would surely want to be involved in a Canadian championship… And that doesn’t even begin to explore the ways it would inspire girls and boys across Canada to take up the game!! Dan Harbridge (@danharbridge): NHL Fan & Women’s Hockey Advocate | Katrina Galas (@katrinagalas): Sports Strategist Joint NHL/CWHL Canadian Championship Partner Momentum “I think you’re embarking upon a very inspiring journey... We will be undertaking a project in June to evaluate our portfolio and can definitely consider this – potentially as an extension of our involvement in the NHL.” - Visa Canada Consumer Credit & Sponsorship Marketing “Thanks for sharing…it’s an interesting concept... If this event should come together at some point down the road, we would be happy to review any sponsorship opportunities that may be available.” - Canadian Tire Sports Partnership Group “Thank you for sharing this well thought out and intriguing concept. You can clearly see you have a passion for this by how well this is thought out. If your concept does get to the next stage, we would be interested to see what would be available and if it would fit within our Sponsorship Strategy.” - Molson Coors Sports & Entertainment Partnerships “As a partner of the NHL, we open to listening to any proposal that would help us continue to leverage that relationship. Please reach out to me when details are available.” - Honda Canada Sales & Marketing “I have no doubt that your event is unique and would be a great success...” - Scotiabank Hockey Sponsorship “Thanks for sharing... I am a big supporter of female hockey and would love to see their game grow.” - Rogers Communications Cable “This is a really interesting idea strictly in terms of growing sports and highlighting oppor- tunities for women. I think the opportunity, particularly in the cities you mention, could provide a real boost to youth and women’s sports. You Can Play certainly would be supporting of the effort.” - You Can Play Project Dan Harbridge (@danharbridge): NHL Fan & Women’s Hockey Advocate | Katrina Galas (@katrinagalas): Sports Strategist Joint NHL/CWHL Canadian Championship Player Feedback “Thank you for sharing this initiative! It’s a wonderful one and would be terrific for our game!... Would love to help if I can.” - Caroline Ouellette, 4-time Olympic Gold Medalist. Forward, Montreal Canadiennes “I like the timing of this with an Olympic year ahead. The visibility that the women’s game will get here shortly should be a good platform to build a sound business case off of. ” - Sydney Kidd, 2014-15 CIS champion (University of Western Ontario). Defenceman, Toronto Furies “Some good ideas...out of my hands but appreciate the passion!” - Hayley Wickenheiser, 6-time Olympian, 4-time Olympic gold medalist. Member, International Olympic Committee (IOC) “As a player, this sounds like so much fun. As a female hockey player, this sounds incredible! This is exactly the kind of visibility we need to show to people that our games are just as exciting as the men’s.” - Melanie Desrochers, 2016-17 Clarkson Cup champion. Defenceman, Montreal Canadiennes “I think it’s a great proposal. I love the doubleheader concept. Very good for women’s hockey and getting use of media coverage.” - Katia Clément-Heydra, 2016-17 Clarkson Cup champion. Forward, Montreal Canadiennes Conceptual Promo Videos MONTREAL (EN) MONTREAL (FR) TORONTO CALGARY Shared & Gaining Traction - This proposal has been directly shared with 275 people (via LinkedIn/email) to date - The concept was first shared as a 240 character tweet with a graphic. That tweet has recieved 21,000 impressions