On February 4, 1922, the Vancouver Amazons women’s hockey team became the first B.C. team to win the Alpine Cup, the women's hockey championship of western Canada. Some at the time considered the Alpine Cup the equivalent of the Stanley Cup for women’s teams in Canada.
Playing in bitterly cold minus-30-degree temperatures on an outdoor rink on the Bow River in Banff, Alberta, the Amazons defeated the defending champion Calgary Regents 2-1 in overtime.
Both Amazons goals were scored on blistering long shots by Kathleen Carson. The championship game was the highlight of the women’s hockey tournament that took place annually at the Banff Winter Carnival.
Before defeating the Regents in the final, earlier in the tournament the Amazons faced the Calgary Byngs, although shortly before puck drop it was decided the game would be an exhibition only and not count towards the tournament. Good thing because Amazons captain Phebe Senkler went down with a fractured kneecap and the Byngs prevailed 1-0. Meanwhile, the Regents defeated a team from Red Deer resulting in the Vancouver-Calgary final match-up.
Lights strung up around the boards of the outdoor rink provided a picturesque scene in the shadow of Banff's Mount Rundle for the crowd of hardy, bundled-up spectators. The Amazons, in their signature red and white ‘VA’ sweaters with matching toques, found themselves trailing the Regents 1-0 early in the final as Amazons goaltender Amelia Voitkevic made many great saves to keep them in the game. Penalties and injuries left the Amazons playing with just six skaters (teams played seven-person hockey at that time) for part of a period.
Momentum later swung in Vancouver’s direction as they peppered the Regents goalie with shots. But it wasn’t until the third period when Carson collected the puck in her own end, skated up ice with purpose, broke through the Calgary defense, and scored on a wicked long shot to tie the game at 1-1. It only took three minutes of overtime before Carson fired another shot from distance to give Vancouver the victory.
Besides Carson, Voitkevic, and Senkler (the Banff Winter Carnival Queen that year), the Amazons players included Norah Senkler (sister of Phebe), Florence Johnson, Nan Griffith, Lorraine Cannon, Mayme Leahy, and Elizabeth ‘Betty’ Hinds.
Mrs. Beatrice Green travelled with the women by train as their chaperone and Guy Patrick served as the team’s manager. Guy was the brother of Lester and Frank Patrick and worked as the manager of the Patrick Family’s Denman Arena in Vancouver. Later that year, Guy and Kathleen Carson were married.
In addition to claiming the Alpine Cup, for their victory, the Amazons also received a $1,200 stuffed buffalo head donated by the Canadian federal government and gold medals featuring a big horn ram embossed on the front. After returning to Vancouver by train with the Alpine Cup, the champion Amazons were celebrated by family and friends while prominent newspaper headlines trumpeted their triumph.
The Alpine Cup was put on display in the window of the O.B. Allan jewelry store in the Rogers building at Granville and Pender streets alongside other prominent sports trophies for the public to view.
Formed in 1918 by King George High School students in Vancouver’s West End, the Amazons first fell in love with hockey through skating at nearby Denman Arena on Friday nights and watching Cyclone Taylor and the Vancouver Millionaires play on weekends.
Although 1922 ultimately remained the only year the Amazons won the Alpine Cup, they continued to travel to the Banff Winter Carnival until 1927 and competed locally into the mid-1930s. At a time when few BC women’s teams in any sport travelled far for games, the Amazons were likely the first B.C. women’s team to travel and compete outside of B.C. on a regular basis.
Over a century after their greatest triumph, the Amazons were inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2024 as one of BC’s great pioneering women’s hockey teams.
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