| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  Canada |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Dates | April 21–26, 1987 |
| Opened by | Jeanne Sauvé |
| Teams | 7 |
| Final positions | |
Champions  | Canada |
Runner-up  |  Ontario |
Third place  |  United States |
| Fourth place |  Sweden |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 27 |
| Goals scored | 247 (9.15 per game) |
| Scoring leader(s) | France Saint-Louis (CAN) |
| MVP | Dawn McGuire (CAN) |
The 1987 World Women's Hockey Tournament was held April 21–26, 1987, in North York, Toronto, Ontario. It was the first major world tournament for national women's ice hockey teams and was the first unofficial tournament before the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) launched the Women's World Championship in 1990. The Ontario Women's Hockey Association (OWHA) hosted the tournament and director Fran Rider is credited as the driving force behind the event's success.[1] The six-day tournament was held at the North York Centennial Arena, now called the Carnegie Centennial Centre.
Delegates from the participating nations and five additional countries met during the tournament to establish a strategy to lobby the International Ice Hockey Federation for the creation of a Women's World Championship.[2] The success of the tournament and the positive reports presented to the IIHF gave women's ice hockey the legitimacy needed to pave the way for the creation of the modern Women's World Championship.[3]
Team Canada won the tournament defeating Team Ontario by 4–0 in the final game. The championship trophy was named the Hazel McCallion World Cup, in honor of Mississauga mayor and women's ice hockey advocate Hazel McCallion.[4]
- ^ La Rose, Jason (June 29, 2017). "One giant leap…". Hockey Canada. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
- ^ "About GirlsWomens' Hockey". Alaska State Hockey. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
- ^ Podnieks, Andrew (April 7, 2020). "IIHF - WW 30 – Story #12". IIHF. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
- ^ Etue, Elizabeth; Williams, Megan K. (1996). On the Edge: Women Making Hockey History. Toronto: Second Story Press. p. 80. ISBN 0929005791.