Contact: Todd Bell, Marketing & Communications Manager /O: 952-681-7668 / C: 972-825-6686 / Email: [email protected] Website: wcha.com / Twitter: @wcha_whockey / IG: @wcha_whockey / FB: facebook.com/wchawomenshockey / Watch on FloHockey.tv

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WCHA IMPLEMENTING THREE-ON-THREE PERIOD FOR WOMEN’S LEAGUE GAMES IN 2019-20 WCHA will be the first women’s league to feature three-on-three as part of its league overtime procedure

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Sept. 13, 2019 – Overtime will have a new look in the Women’s League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association in 2019-20. The WCHA will implement a three-on-three overtime period in league games should contests remain tied following the five-minute five-on-five overtime period. Teams would move to a sudden-death shootout should the game not be decided after the two overtime periods. The change will only affect League contests.

“We’re excited that the WCHA will be the first women’s league in the country to use the three-on-three format in the second overtime period,” WCHA Women’s League Commissioner Jennifer Flowers said. “We believe this brings more excitement to our game and aligns us with international rules, which is outstanding for our student-athletes.”

The overtime procedure will mirror the existing overtime rules in the WCHA Men’s League. Following the conclusion of the third period, teams will switch ends and play one five-minute five-on-five sudden-death period. If the period ends without a , the game will be recorded as a .

In WCHA regular season Women’s League contests that are tied after the five-on-five overtime period, teams will change ends following the conclusion of the first overtime period and play a second five-minute three-on-three sudden- death period to determine the recipient of the extra in the League standings.

If the game remains tied following the second overtime period, the teams move to a sudden-death shootout to determine the recipient of the extra point in the League standings. The will remain in the goals they defended in the second overtime.

The home team has the option of shooting first or defending first. Each team has an equal number of chances to shoot before a winner is declared. The first team to have its shooter score and hold the other team without a goal, in succession, wins. If the shootout progresses past a first round, shooters that have already taken a shot are ineligible until all other bench players have attempted a shot, if necessary.

The WCHA opens its 21st season the weekend of Sept. 21-22 as Minnesota hosts the Toronto Aeros and Minnesota Whitecaps in a pair of exhibition games. The first opportunity for the new overtime rules to be used will occur Oct. 4-5 when league play opens with Ohio State at St. Cloud State and Minnesota at Minnesota State.

About the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Women’s League The Women’s League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association will mark its 21st season in 2019-20. The nation’s premier women’s hockey conference, WCHA member institutions have won a record 17 national championships since the league’s inception in 1999 (including 16 of a possible 19 NCAA titles), while producing seven Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winners, 101 All-Americans and numerous Olympic and national team members. The seven-team, NCAA Division I conference consists of: Bemidji State University (Beavers), the (Golden Gophers), the University of Minnesota Duluth (Bulldogs), Minnesota State University (Mavericks), Ohio State University (Buckeyes), St. Cloud State University (Huskies) and the University of Wisconsin (Badgers). For more information, visit wcha.com.

- WCHA –