CHL Logo Maps
Saturday · Jul 24 · 2010 | 10:57 AM PDTThe original plan was to put all 60 Canadian Hockey League teams in the same map, but that was just too overwhelming to look at. Instead, I've given all three leagues their own logo maps.
OHL Logo Map
View OHL Map in a larger map
Despite its name, the Ontario Hockey League does branch out into the United States, Pennsylvania and Michigan, to be exact. And aside from Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury and Ottawa, it's a rather tight-knit league. The two closest teams, in Brampton and Mississauga, are literally down the road from one another.
Basically, this map tells me that if you live in or around Toronto, there is absolutely no shortage of hockey games to attend. Probably why the NHL is reluctant to let Jim Balsillie put a franchise in Hamilton.
QMJHL Logo Map
View QMJHL Map in a larger map
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is the smallest and most compact of the Canadian leagues. Seven of the 18 teams play outside Quebec's provincial borders, including New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. There's even an American team in Maine.
The Huskies and Foreurs are the most removed from the rest of the league. The Voltigeurs and Tigres are the closest neighbors. And the Olympiques play just across the river from the OHL's Ottawa 67s.
WHL Logo Map
View WHL Map in a larger map
We finish up with the Western Hockey League, the most spread out league in the CHL. The Prince George Cougars and Brandon Wheat Kings appear to be the most remote clubs. Lucky for them, the groupings throughout the rest of the league must certainly help with travel costs. The closest teams are probably the Pats and Warriors.
One more thing. If you really want to see all 60 teams in one single map, I recommend saving all three to My Maps and viewing them together that way. It's actually quite a sight.
Reader Comments (18)
As I've said in your previous three installments, I love these maps. Especially being able to stack all the other maps together makes for quite a sight.
Sorry for the double post, but I just noticed that the Thunder Bay area of northwestern Ontario is surprisingly lacking of any minor league or major junior hockey team. You'd think that a city of over 100,000 people in Canada would be a no duh location for a major junior hockey team. Looking into it, it seems they have a junior a level team, but still kind of surprising to me given the fact that they're a bit of a distance from the nears major junior team. Seems like it'd be an ideal location for either the westernmost OHL team or the easternmost WHL team.
Yeah. The OHL has no plans to expand, so it would be nice if the WHL added a team in Thunder Bay,
I'd also like see the QMJHL return to Cornwall, Ontario. I'd like me some good junior hockey to go see.
So... why are there teams in the QUEBEC MJHL not in Quebec?
And why is there a team in the CANADIAN Hockey League not in Canada?
These are really cool.
Kevin Y, that's the way it is. Look, there are Canadian Teams in the AHL.
@Chicagolander - I don't know if you noticed, but the Soo, and Sudbury are pretty detached from the remainder of the League as it is. Thunder Bay is a four hour drive, I think, from the Soo, think of the travel havoc that it would play for the rest of the League. Erie and the Soo already do enough of that as it is (though North Bay's relocation to Sagniaw helped the Soo out significantly).
The CHL has some of my favorite jerseys/logos in hockey. When you're really curious like me, you end up looking up half of these places but to see them all together and just take a look at the league spread, it's very cool.
Coming from the Thunder Bay area there is a lot of of back story behind Thunder Bay and junior hockey. Thunder Bay is a large city and market. But the bus drive from the Soo alone is a full day's drive, and it would be a full 12 to 18 hour drive for the rest of the OHL teams to get to T-Bay. Having a team in the WHL would multiply that by 2 to 3 days. Thunder Bay had the Thunder Bay Flyers for 20 years in the USHL up until 2000 and concurrently had the minor pro Thunder Cats of the UHL for a number of years. Currently the area is served by the Superior International Junior Hockey League which is luring interest from Minnesota and Wisconsin, as well as Lakehead University which can draw 3,000 plus per game. The main obstacle right now is arena facilities. The Ft Williams Gardens is 50+ years old and not attracting any ownership. The city is looking into investing in a new facility and Ice Edge Holdings (yes, THAT Ice Edge) has expressed interest in placing an AHL team in Thunder Bay if they get an arena built.
I would think the closest two teams in the Western League would actually be Vancouver and Chilliwack.
A bus ride from Chilliwack to Vancouver could take up to 1.5 hours depending on traffic. A drive from Moose Jaw to Regina probably wouldn't take over an hour. So the debate is open to which teams are closer.
It would be awesome to see another AHL team in Canada, especially Thunder Bay home of the Staal boys.
Btw the Vancouver Giants have their practice facility in Ladner which is about 45 mins from Chilliwack, and unless the team deliberately travels during rush hour, the drive from the coliseum to Chilliwack would only take 50-55 minutes
According to recent local news, Ice Edge Holdings is in talks with the ECHL to bring a team to Thunder Bay. Part of the terms would be a new arena - a team could exist in Fort William Gardens for a maximum of one year. The city has put aside some money for a new arena. At this point though it's all 'pie in the sky' like the AHL in Thunder Bay idea was.
As far as travel times the closest cities (other than Duluth, Minnesota) are a 7-8 hour drive away (Sault Ste. Marie, Winnipeg, and Minneapolis). Would love to have an OHL or WHL team in Thunder Bay, but because of Thunder Bay's smaller size (110,000) and long travel times, among other reason$, it would never happen.
Love the maps, always look forward to the newest one.
Thunder Bay is 8 hours west of the Soo and 8 hours east of Winnipeg. It's a long long long long way from anywhere. They've had various high level junior teams, but are just too far away from both the OHL and WHL to compete. The main hockey there is the Lakehead varsity team, and there's a Junior A team that competes in the SIJHL, which is a small 6 team league with teams in small Northwestern Ontario communities, as well as Dululth MN and Spooner WI.
I grew up in Thunder Bay and Played youth hockey up to the Juvenile level, for the Hornets.
I moved away from Thunder Bay A few Years ago.
Hockey beyond the youth level of any real stature has always been a tough thing.
The last real team was the Thunder Bay Twins (remember them?) Played in the now defunct CASH league.
That was when the FW Gardens held upwards of 5,000 people, before modifications.
Thunder Bay actually had the Thunder Bay Hornets Junior A team. For one season. They played in the WHL.
They also had the Thunder Bay Senators, which was the ECHL level affiliate of the Ottawa Senators. Pretty sure that was Pre ECHL
They were there for 4 seasons.
The problem was time. Travel is just too many hours.
This just highlights the real problem with the area, and that is one of infrastructure.
Once you leave Minneapolis, north of Duluth, it is a two lane undivided highway, (Highway 61) notoriously dangerous any time of year.
Coming from Winnipeg, there is a two path divided highway up to the Manitoba/ Ontario Border, then it is a winding dangerous two lane undivided highway to Thunder Bay.
Once you leave the Soo from the East, that road is very beautiful but deadly. Two lane undivided highway again.
The distances are really not that great, but the roads just suck!
Add to that passenger trains no longer run through Thunder Bay either.
So, the only real viable transport is to fly, that would probably not happen.
The project to build a divided highway from Thunder Bay to Nipigon has been going for years. That is only a short distance and I believe it is a 30 year project.
Geology and Topography are tough opponents.
The area, because of it isolation is becoming like the Appalachia of Canada.
Lakehead Thunderwolves are an interesting team. I have been to a few games when I am in Thunder Bay.
They are very popular, and really bring in the hockey hungry fans.
One more little peave with that team:
Try to get a Thunderwolves hockey jersey online.
Here is the website:
http://www.thunderwolveshockey.com/
I challenge anyone to even find where to purchase anything on this website.
After much Googleing, I came up with this:
http://www.thunderwolveshockey.com/products.asp?id=1
However, if you actually try to purchase anything you get an error message.
This website has been this way for several months.
I have emailed the website admin many times, with no response.
I even emailed the Lakehead university althetics dept many times, but no response again.
This just shows it is the little things. Thunderwolves have a cool uniform. It could even be a bit of a money maker, and bring some much need attention to this economically depressed area.
But no, that much can't even happen.
Prediction: No new arena, no ECHL team, just lots of talk as usual, the world passes that area by every day and all they do is talk about it.
Go Leafs!
My $0.02
The QMJHL should stand for Quebec/Maritime Jr Hockey League
Cool maps!
@Random Sample - That plush 'Wolfie' mascot is so adorable. The jerseys look like the Sabres' jerseys.
These maps are very cool!!! I love hockey!!! I wish I could see more junior hockey here in the states. I can only catch junior games once in a while on the NHL network. I couldn't care less about any other sport.