What is the WCHL?

The Wheelchair Hockey League (WCHL) is Michigan's only adaptive floor-hockey league. The purpose of this league is to provide an appropriate means for persons in wheelchairs to have the opportunity to play in a competitive floor hockey league and have the chance to engage in the camaraderie and excitement of the sport.

Our league includes players in power and manual wheelchairs.

The WCHL currently has 30 players, divided into three teams.

Players, both males & females range in age from 10 to 60+ and have a variety of disabilities that include Muscular Dystrophy, Cerebral Palsy, Spina Bifida, Arthrogryposis & Osteogenesis Imperfecta (Brittle Bones).

Our games are played 4 on 4 with goalies. Our season is 12 weeks in length, culminating with two playoff rounds of "best of three games" to decide our Jason Drapinski Memorial Cup Champions! Our seasons are played over the course of nine months (October through June).

Our games are played on Saturdays from 6-8pm at Big Boy Arena in Fraser - https://tinyurl.com/BigBoyArena

Players use a variety of sticks to play, depending on their upper body strength and ability to grip the stick. Some players add a dowel though the blade of their stick to help with ball control and other players use "V" Stick. "V" Sticks are two sticks fastened together, with the blades forming a V, and strapped to the player's chair frame.

The league was developed and is operated by the players with the assistance of parents and volunteers. The WCHL holds many annual events throughout the year, including an All-Star Game, Awards Banquet, Season, Playoffs and Game On Ice.

We have even competed against the world’s best wheelchair hockey teams at U.S, North American and international tournaments in Toronto, Minneapolis, North Carolina, Philadelphia, Calgary, and more with our travel team the Michigan Mustangs.

In 1995 Todd Pasant had a vision for a hockey league for wheelchair players. That's how the WCHL started. Pretty simple, but as with most excellent ideas, challenges emerged. When Todd Pasant passed away, rather than have his monumental dream die, the players carried on with the WCHL. Now the dreamer smiles knowing his dream will live on and continue to grow.

In the beginning, the WCHL consisted of 6 players. (The original six players were Todd Pasant, Andy Siwarski, Jason May, Jeff May, Eric Miller, and Joe Crews)

After Todd's passing, his close friend Andy Siwarski, along with Tom Martin decided to continue Todd's dream and develop the WCHL into the league that Todd envisioned. The first thing they decided was to play without goalies. That's right: NO GOALIES!! Since then we have developed a full rulebook making the game fair, entertaining and accessible to all types of different players. After attending a tournament in Toronto, Canada in 2000, we decided to add goalies to make it another exciting aspect of our games.

Todd's ultimate dream was for the WCHL to become a national league. Who knows, one day that dream may come true. All the WCHL's players are proud to be fulfilling Todd's vision.

The WCHL honors the memory of Todd, Andy & Tom by continuing to grow and support the league. This league full of the players have taken this dream on as their own and continually show the same spirit, determination and love of the game that they all had.

To all you inspiring wheelchair hockey players: "Don't Just Sit There, Play Hockey!"