Team BC round-robin schedule for the 2019 WHL Cup is:
October 23 - 2pm PT - Team Saskatchewan
October 24 - 2pm PT - Team Manitoba
October 25 - 5pm PT - Team Alberta
The semi finals are scheduled on October 26, 2019 with the gold and bronze medal games on October 27, 2019.
The WHL Cup, formerly known as the Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup, features the highest-rated players in the under-16 age category from the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The four (4) team round robin format is the first step in the Hockey Canada Program of Excellence (POE) and assists the four (4) western provincial hockey Branches in evaluating the top prospects in this age group for future high-performance programs.
The WHL Cup is made possible through financial support provided by the WHL. The majority of players participating in the event were selected in the WHL Bantam Draft in May 2019 and many of these top prospects will play major roles with WHL clubs in the seasons ahead.
Team BC captured the gold medal in 2012 for the first time in the history of the tournament. Their tournament finish was then followed up with a silver medal in 2013 and another gold in 2017.
Some notable players that have participated as part of Team BC include:
- Mathew Barzal – New York Islanders
- Morgan Rielly – Toronto Maple Leafs
- Sam Reinhart – Buffalo Sabres
The U16 Program is the second stage in the BC Hockey POE, which exposes players, coaches and officials to short term competition. The U16 Program also acts as a precursor to the Hockey Canada U17 POE, which is used to identify and train players and team personnel for provincial, regional and national teams.
