The 2011–12 CWHL season will be the fifth in league history. Regular season play begins on October 22, 2010 as the defending champion Montreal Stars

Montreal Stars

The Montreal Stars are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Montreal, Quebec. The team was awarded the Clarkson Cup in 2009 and 2011 for winning the highest honour in North American women's hockey. . The team has played in the Canadian Women's Hockey League since 2007 its...

 host the Brampton Thunder

Brampton Thunder

The Brampton Canadettes-Thunder is an ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League. The Canadettes-Thunder play its home games at the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ontario.-Team history:...

. The league will expand from five teams to six as Team Alberta (CWHL) will join the league for competitive play.

News and notes

• April 19: The league announced on April 19, 2011, that it would merge with the Western Women's Hockey League
  Western Women's Hockey League
  The Western Women's Hockey League is one of two major women's hockey leagues in Canada. The league was established in 2004, and consisted of teams in Canada and one from the United States...
  
   for the 2011-12 season. The merger will feature one team based in Edmonton and Calgary and is a combination of the former WWHL franchises the Edmonton Chimos
  Edmonton Chimos
  The Edmonton Chimos are a professional women's ice hockey team in the Western Women's Hockey League . The team played its home games at River Cree Twin Arenas in Edmonton, Canada. The Owner is Arlan Maschmayer.- History :...
  
   and Strathmore Rockies
  Strathmore Rockies
  The Strathmore Rockies are a professional women's ice hockey team in the Western Women's Hockey League . The team played its home games in Strathmore Family Center Arena, in Strathmore, Alberta, Canada.-History:...
  
  . The team will play their games in various locations around Alberta.Strathmore Rockies founder Samantha Holmes-Domagala, will join the sponsorship division of the CWHL and look after the requirements of the expansion team.
• July 21, 2011: Philanthropist Joan Snyder donated $2 million to Winsport Canada. The goal is to ensure priority rink access to female hockey players at all levels, and help expand the Canadian Women's Hockey League with the creation of Team Alberta. Part of the donation will cover the new addition to the Athletic and Ice Complex at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary. This will serve as the future home to Hockey Canada. In addition, there shall be four hockey rinks, one of which will be aptly called the Joan Snyder Rink. Team Alberta will benefit with the allocation of free practice time, a dressing room exclusive to the club.

CWHL Draft

The following are the first ten overall picks in the CWHL Draft. For further detail, please see 2011 CWHL Draft

2011 CWHL Draft

The 2011 CWHL Draft was held on July 21, 2011 in Mississauga. The Montreal Stars had the first pick overall and selected Meghan Agosta from Mercyhurst College. -Top 50 picks:-Draft picks by team:-Alberta:-Boston:-Brampton:-Burlington:-Montreal:...

Pick	Player	Team
1	Meghan Agosta Meghan Agosta Meghan Agosta is a women's ice hockey forward, currently playing for Mercyhurst College. Agosta played for the Canada women's national ice hockey team. She has represented Canada at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin and the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, winning gold medals at both...	Montreal Stars
2	Molly Schaus Molly Schaus Molly Schaus is an American ice hockey goaltender. She is a member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She was drafted 2nd overall by the Boston Blades in the 2011 CWHL Draft.-Early life:...	Boston Blades
3	Meaghan Mikkelson Meaghan Mikkelson Meaghan Mikkelson , is a member of the Canada women's national ice hockey team and also plays for the Edmonton Chimos . Mikkelson also won a gold medal during the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. She was selected third overall by Team Alberta CWHL in the 2011 CWHL Draft...	Team Alberta (CWHL)
4	Vicki Bendus Vicki Bendus Vicki Bendus is a hockey player for the Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey program. She was the winner of the 2010 Patty Kazmaier Award, awarded to the top player in women's NCAA hockey. She was also selected for the Canadian national women's team that will compete in the 2010 Four Nations Cup....	Brampton Thunder Brampton Thunder The Brampton Canadettes-Thunder is an ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League. The Canadettes-Thunder play its home games at the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ontario.-Team history:...
5	Jesse Scanzano Jesse Scanzano Jesse Scanzano is a Canadian ice hockey forward for the Mercyhurst College Lakers. She grew up in Montreal, Quebec and played for the Montreal Axion women's ice hockey team and participated in the 2005 Esso Women’s Nationals She was selected fifth overall in the 2011 CWHL Draft...	Toronto CWHL
6	Courtney Birchard Courtney Birchard Courtney Birchard competed for the Canadian national women’s ice hockey team. She made her debut for Team Canada in the 2010 Four Nations Cup. She was drafted 6th overall by the Brampton Thunder in the 2011 CWHL Draft....	Brampton Thunder
7	Catherine Ward Catherine Ward Catherine Ward is a member of the Canada women's national ice hockey team. She was also a member of the 2008–09 McGill Martlets women's hockey season, which won a Canadian Interuniversity Sport title...	Montreal Stars
8	Meghan Duggan Meghan Duggan Meghan Duggan is an American ice hockey forward who represented the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympics, winning a silver medal. She also represented the United States at three Women's World Championships, capturing two gold medals and one silver. Duggan played collegiate hockey with the...	Boston Blades
9	Bobbi-Jo Slusar Bobbi-Jo Slusar Bobbi-Jo Slusar was a member of the Canada women's national ice hockey team from 2006 to 2008. Currently, she played for the Brampton Thunder in the Canadian Women's Hockey League and competed in the 2010 Clarkson Cup. During the 2010-11 season, she competed for the Strathmore Rockies of the WWHL...	Team Alberta
10	Sommer West	Burlington Barracudas Burlington Barracudas The Burlington Barracudas are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Burlington, Ontario. The team has played in the Canadian Women's Hockey League since 2007 its inaugural season. The team plays its home games in Wave Twin Rinks in Burlington...

NCAA exhibition

Date	CWHL team	NCAA school	Score	CWHL goal scorers
Oct. 25, 2011	Brampton Thunder	Cornell Big Red women's ice hockey Cornell Big Red women's ice hockey The Cornell Big Red women's ice hockey program represents Cornell University and participates in ECAC Hockey.-History:The Cornell women's hockey program was started in 1971. It would only be in 1972 that the team would play its first game. It was a 4-3 victory over Scarborough. In 1972, they played...	Cornell, 6-0	None
Nov. 2, 2011	Brampton Thunder	Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey The Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey team is the hockey team that represents the Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania. The program started in 1999 and Michael Sisti has been the only coach in the history of the program. From 2000 to 2002, the Lakers were part of the Great Lakes Women's...	Brampton, 3-1	Jayna Hefford Jayna Hefford Jayna Hefford is a women's ice hockey player. Hefford played forward for the Canadian women's team at the Winter Olympics in 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2010... , Jesse Scanzano Jesse Scanzano Jesse Scanzano is a Canadian ice hockey forward for the Mercyhurst College Lakers. She grew up in Montreal, Quebec and played for the Montreal Axion women's ice hockey team and participated in the 2005 Esso Women’s Nationals She was selected fifth overall in the 2011 CWHL Draft... , Vicki Bendus Vicki Bendus Vicki Bendus is a hockey player for the Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey program. She was the winner of the 2010 Patty Kazmaier Award, awarded to the top player in women's NCAA hockey. She was also selected for the Canadian national women's team that will compete in the 2010 Four Nations Cup....

• On November 2, 2011, Scanzano was on loan from the Toronto Furies
  Toronto Furies
  The Toronto Furies are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Toronto, Ontario. Most of the players from the inauguaral season in 2010-11 were players from the former Toronto Aeros franchise. The team adapted the name Furies after the 2011 Clarkson Cup...
  
  , as she appeared in one game for the Brampton Thunder
  Brampton Thunder
  The Brampton Canadettes-Thunder is an ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League. The Canadettes-Thunder play its home games at the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ontario.-Team history:...
  
  . The game was an exhibition contest versus her alma mater, the Mercyhurst Lakers. In the second period of said contest, Scanzano scored the game winning goal as the Thunder defeated the Lakers by a 3-1 tally.

News and notes

• October 13, 2011: The CWHL will participate in two charity hockey games for cancer research at Windsor Arena. The event is called 'Stick It To Cancer' and the Montreal Stars
  Montreal Stars
  The Montreal Stars are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Montreal, Quebec. The team was awarded the Clarkson Cup in 2009 and 2011 for winning the highest honour in North American women's hockey. . The team has played in the Canadian Women's Hockey League since 2007 its...
  
   will compete versus the Toronto Furies
  Toronto Furies
  The Toronto Furies are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Toronto, Ontario. Most of the players from the inauguaral season in 2010-11 were players from the former Toronto Aeros franchise. The team adapted the name Furies after the 2011 Clarkson Cup...
  
   in two games on Nov. 26 and 27. The campaign is being organized in partnership by the CWHL, along with Breast Ride Ever, a not-for-profit organization. Proceeds from the games will benefit local cancer programs and the Hospice of Windsor and Essex County.

Schedule

Date	Teams	Score
Oct. 22	Brampton at Montreal	Montreal, 4-1
Oct. 22	Toronto at Boston	Boston, 4-3 (OT)
Oct. 23	Brampton at Montreal	Montreal, 7-2
Oct. 23	Toronto at Boston	Toronto, 2-1
Oct. 28	Alberta at Burlington	Alberta, 4-2
Oct. 29	Alberta at Brampton	Brampton, 4-1
Oct. 29	Boston at Burlington	Boston, 7-1
Oct. 30	Boston at Burlington	Boston, 5-1

Season standings

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points.

Regular season

No.	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	Boston Boston Blades The Boston Blades are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston Blades are a new franchise in the Canadian Women's Hockey League....	4	3	1	0	17	7	6
2	Montreal Montreal Stars The Montreal Stars are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Montreal, Quebec. The team was awarded the Clarkson Cup in 2009 and 2011 for winning the highest honour in North American women's hockey. . The team has played in the Canadian Women's Hockey League since 2007 its...	2	2	0	0	11	3	4
3	Toronto Toronto Furies The Toronto Furies are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Toronto, Ontario. Most of the players from the inauguaral season in 2010-11 were players from the former Toronto Aeros franchise. The team adapted the name Furies after the 2011 Clarkson Cup...	2	1	0	1	5	5	2
4	Alberta Team Alberta CWHL Team Alberta is a women’s ice hockey team that joined the CWHL for the 2011-12 CWHL season. The General Manager is Samantha Holmes. On July 21, 2011, the franchise participated in its first ever CWHL Draft. With the third overall pick in the 2011 CWHL Draft, Team Alberta selected Meghan Mikkelson...	2	1	1	0	5	6	2
5	Brampton Brampton Thunder The Brampton Canadettes-Thunder is an ice hockey team in the Canadian Women's Hockey League. The Canadettes-Thunder play its home games at the Powerade Centre in Brampton, Ontario.-Team history:...	3	1	2	0	7	12	2
6	Burlington Burlington Barracudas The Burlington Barracudas are a professional women's ice hockey team that plays in Burlington, Ontario. The team has played in the Canadian Women's Hockey League since 2007 its inaugural season. The team plays its home games in Wave Twin Rinks in Burlington...	3	0	3	0	4	16	0

Postseason

Date	Score	Time	Arena	Attendance	Notes

Clarkson Cup

Date	Time	Teams	Final Score	Attendance