Hockey Rules
Visit Women's:
Basketball Page
Soccer Page
Cool Links
Return to the Homepage
Most people are surprised when they learn that women's ice hockey has a history that dates back more than 100 years, beginning with a movie of women playing hockey in 1890.
The first newspaper account of a women's game appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on Feb. 11, 1891. After much research, that game, is now regarded as the start of women's ice hockey. - A look back over the years reveals greater changes and growth in ice hockey.
- During the 1990-91 season, 5,573 female ice hockey players registered with USA Hockey.
- Since then, that number has increased with more than 39,000 registered women playing in the U.S.
In 1993, a survey was conducted to gain an accurate estimation of the sports holding the most interest for women.
- On March 21, 1994, the state of Minnesota was the first state to sanction girls' ice hockey as a varsity sport.
- In the 1994-95 season, 24 schools formed girls' varsity teams.
- In the second season the league grew to 47 teams, and at last count, 83 teams were at the varsity level.
US women's ice hockey is also growing at the collegic level. Organizations such as USA Hockey, the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the United States Olympic Committee are helping to advance the game to new levels. - In the 1999-2000 season the Western Collegiate Hockey Association joined the Eastern collegiate Athletic Association as the second league in the nation to offer women's Division I competition.
- Overall, more than 100 women's teams (Division I, Division III and club) currently compete at the collegiate level.
- In August 2000, the NCAA announced it would hold its first Division I Women's Ice Hockey National Championship.
Over the span of a century, women have pursued their interest in Hockey, and today they continue to be one of the fastest growing among USA Hockey membership registration categories.