Timeline — Evolution Of Women's Hockey
	1890s	Women's hockey gains popularity in universities, principally at the University of Toronto and Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario.
	1920s	Bobbie Rosenfeld and Myrtle Cook, former track stars and hockey players in their own rights, become Canada's first women sports reporters, specializing in hockey during the winter.
	1930s	The Preston Rivulettes rule the ice lanes. Click here for an interview with Ruth (Dargel) Collins of the Preston Rivulettes.
	1940s	The war halts any development of the women's game, which doesn't revive until the early 1970s.
	1956	Abby Hoffman challenged hockey's gender barrier by playing in a boys league under the guise of being male.
	1970s	Shirley Cameron becomes hockey's first star of the modern era.
	1987	The first ever Women's World Championship takes place in Toronto. However, it is not recognized as an official tournament by the IIHF.
	1990	The first official and IIHF-sanctioned Women's World Championship is held in Ottawa.
	1998	Women's hockey becomes a full medal sport at the Olympic Winter Games for the first time.
	1999	The women's division at the World Championships expands to two pools, A and B.
	2005	USA ends Canada's streak of eight straight (nine unofficial) world titles in a shoot-out.
	2006	Sweden becomes the first non-North American team to earn silver at the Winter Olympic Games beating United States in the semi-finals.
	2010	Canada wins its third straight Olympic gold medal, defeating the rival Americans in a hard-fought 2-0 final. Cammi Granato and Angela James are first women selected for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2013	Geraldine Heaney becomes the third woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2014	Canada wins its fourth straight Olympic gold medal, scoring the tying goal with seconds left in regulation, forcing overtime in an epic championship contest against the United States.
	2015	Angela Ruggiero becomes the fourth woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2017	Danielle Goyette becomes the fifth woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2018	For the first time in Women's Olympic Hockey history, the gold medal-winner is determined by shootout. Jocelyne Lamoureux scores the winner for the USA as they defeat their rivals from Canada. Jayna Hefford becomes the sixth woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2019	Finland becomes the first country other than Canada and the United States of America to finish in the top two of the IIHF Women's World Championship when they take the silver on home ice. Hayley Wickenheiser becomes the seventh woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
	2021	Canada breaks a five-year gold medal drought, winning the IIHF Women's World Championship on home ice. Kim St-Pierre becomes the eighth woman Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. IIHF members vote to hold the IIHF Women's World Championships during Winter Olympic Games years. The tournaments in these years will take place in the summer, and help mark the start of a new Olympic cycle.

"Name the most significant moment in women's hockey?" "When the 1990 tournament was recognized as an official World Championship, it brought significant world exposure." - Andria Hunter (two-time gold medalist at the Worlds with Team Canada and producer of the 'The Women's Hockey Web' site) "The 1982 (Canadian) Nationals." - Dawn McGuire (two-time gold medalist at Worlds, led Canadian defense with 7 points at the '90 Worlds) "There are two. One... women's hockey participating on the Olympic stage, in Nagano, 1998 where the US captured gold. Two...the first championships (Stanley Cup) for women's league hockey being won in March, 2000 in Brampton! The Beatrice Aeros win the first ever CUP. This is an NWHL top moment. Historically, live broadcast across Canada." - Susan Fennell (President of the National Women's Hockey League and Mayor of the City of Brampton) "There are two. One is the first World Women's Championships in 1990 held in Ottawa and the second is the formation of the (Canadian) Nationals in 1982." - Shelley Coolidge (Manager, Female Development, with the Canadian Hockey Association) "The United States winning the first Olympic gold medal in 1998." - Brian McFarlane (author to over 75 books including 'Proud Past, Bright Future' - a history of women's hockey) "When the IOC made women's hockey a medal sport." - Andrew Podnieks (author to over 20 hockey books including 'Hockey's Greatest Teams' - includes chapter on Preston Rivulettes)

Preston Rivulettes