The New Zealand Women’s Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL) starts off this weekend, and Hockey Hype Australia is pleased to provide a quick introduction to the league.

With four teams, the competition features a 12-game regular season leading up to Finals weekend in mid-September. The four teams are: Auckland Steel, Canterbury Inferno (Christchurch), Dunedin Thunder Women, and Wakatipu Wild (Queenstown).

Last season, the Wakatipu Wild led the league at the end of the regular season with five wins and one overtime loss. However, it was the Auckland Steel, finishing in third place during the regular season, who defeated the Wild in the Gold Medal match, 4-3.

Auckland’s win in the final ensured the Wakatipu Wild, 2022 champions, didn’t go back-to-back. It also secured a NZWIHL leading fifth championship for the Steel.

The league was established in 2014, and was first played during the Southern Hemisphere summer. Auckland, Canterbury, and Southern were the original three teams in the competition.

Similar to the Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League, the original summer schedule was to support the senior women’s national team (Ice Fernz) to prepare for International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships.

Now, the league has its season in the Southern Hemisphere winter.

When are the games, and how may I watch them?

For a complete schedule of the season’s games, click here.

This weekend the defending champion Auckland Steel play the Canterbury Inferno in a double-header in Auckland. Puck drop for both Saturday and Sunday is 4:15 pm NZST, which is 2:15 pm AEST.

Last season the Steel swept the season series, so the Inferno will be out for revenge, while the Steel will look to stamp their championship credentials.

The league will stream all of the games live and free via its YouTube channel, click here for the link and don’t forget to subscribe to the channel.

Hockey Hype Australia has received permission from the NZWIHL to promote the league using photos, logos, and highlights. We are also planning feature articles on some of the individuals involved.

Keep an eye out on our socials and our website for more NZWIHL news and analysis.