The 2023–24 SIJHL season was the 22nd season of the Superior International Junior Hockey League. The league's 7 teams each played a 49-game regular season schedule from September 2023 – March 2024. The Sioux Lookout Bombers won the league championship Bill Salonen Cup after defeating the Kam River Fighting Walleye in four games in the final round of the playoffs.
| 2023–24 SIJHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | SIJHL |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | September–April |
| Number of games | 49 |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Streaming partner(s) | sijhl |
| League champions | Sioux Lookout Bombers |
| Runners-up | Kam River Fighting Walleye |
League changes
editThe Kenora Islanders joined the league as an expansion team.[1] League commissioner Darrin Nicholas stepped down at the end of the season to pursue other opportunities.[2] Dean Thibodeau was appointed as the seventh commissioner in league history on 2 August 2024.[3]
Regular season
editTeams played each other team 7 times during the regular season.[4]
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kam River Fighting Walleye | 49 | 39 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 79 |
| Sioux Lookout Bombers | 49 | 35 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 74 |
| Thunder Bay North Stars | 49 | 32 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 69 |
| Dryden Ice Dogs | 49 | 31 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 64 |
| Red Lake Miners | 49 | 29 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 60 |
| Wisconsin Lumberjacks | 49 | 16 | 26 | 6 | 1 | 39 |
| Fort Frances Lakers | 49 | 12 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 30 |
| Kenora Islanders | 49 | 2 | 46 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
Post-season
edit| Bill Salonen Cup | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Dates | 22 March – 21 April |
| Teams | 8 |
| Defending champions | Kam River Fighting Walleye |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Sioux Lookout Bombers |
| Runner-up | Kam River Fighting Walleye |
| Semifinalists | |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 30 |
| Goals scored | 226 (7.53 per game) |
| Attendance | 13,146 (438 per game) |
| Official website | |
| 2024 SIJHL playoffs | |
The playoff format consisted of 3 best-of-7 rounds and all 8 teams.[1] Ultimately the 2nd place Sioux Lookout Bombers swept the 1st place Kam River Fighting Walleye 4-0 in the final round.[5][6]
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | |||||||||
| Kam River | 4 | ||||||||||
| Kenora | 0 | ||||||||||
| Kam River | 4 | ||||||||||
| Red Lake | 0 | ||||||||||
| Dryden | 1 | ||||||||||
| Red Lake | 4 | ||||||||||
| Kam River | 0 | ||||||||||
| Sioux Lookout | 4 | ||||||||||
| Sioux Lookout | 4 | ||||||||||
| Fort Frances | 0 | ||||||||||
| Sioux Lookout | 4 | ||||||||||
| Thunder Bay | 1 | ||||||||||
| Thunder Bay | 4 | ||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 0 | ||||||||||
The Sioux Lookout Bombers advanced to the national championship tournament and were eliminated after the preliminary round.[7]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Moskalyk, Gary (17 June 2023). "Islanders have landed in the SIJHL". The Chronicle-Journal. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
- ^ Villagracia, Reuben (1 May 2024). "SIJHL willl have change at the top". The Chronicle-Journal. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
- ^ Punkari, Lucas (27 August 2024). "New SIJHL commissioner excited for opportunity". NWONewsWatch.com. Dougall Media. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
- ^ Jeffrey, Kevin (8 August 2023). "SIJHL releases 2023-2024 schedule". TBNewsWatch.com. Dougall Media. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
- ^ Brody, Tim (24 April 2024). "Champions! - Sioux Lookout Bombers sweep reigning champion Kam River Fighting Walleye to win Bill Salonen Cup". siouxbulletin.com. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
- ^ Davidson, Tim (22 April 2024). "Bombers sweep Fighting Walleye in SIJHL finals". CKDR. Acadia Broadcasting. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
- ^ "Bombers finish up at Centennial Cup". The Chronicle-Journal. 14 May 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
Further reading
edit- Jeffrey, Kevin (8 August 2023). "SIJHL releases 2023-2024 schedule". TBNewsWatch.com. Dougall Media. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
- Brody, Tim (13 September 2023). "Sioux Lookout Bombers preparing for second SIJHL season". siouxbulletin.com. Retrieved 24 August 2024.