Women hockey stars dream of their own pro league as Clarkson Cup set to open

It is a tournament a long way from the glory of the Olympics and one well outside the national consciousness, but also an event where girls can dream of one day having a professional league of their own.

Right now playing in either the Canadian Women's Hockey League or the Western Women's Hockey League ? the two loops from where the defending champion Montreal Stars, Brampton Thunder, Mississauga Chiefs, and Minnesota Whitecaps advanced from ? is somewhat of a passion project.

None of the players get paid to take the ice, so there's no motivation to be found in a paycheque.

Instead, some of the athletes are trying to earn their way onto their country's national team, some are looking to stay sharp between Winter Games cycles, and others are simply looking to compete at a high level.

"If you want to hone your skills and be the best you can really be, you play in this league," Sami-Jo Small, the two-time Olympic champion from Winnipeg who now plays goal for the Chiefs, said Friday.

"In the three years between Olympics, this is where the Olympians play. It's obviously a huge commitment, and the commitment is different depending on the level you want to strive for."

That wouldn't be an issue if the leagues were professional (Hockey Canada classifies them as senior triple-A) and Small, who is the CWHL's vice-chairperson and player director, is part of a movement trying to make that happen.

In January, the group met with the National Hockey League to discuss the creation of a sponsorship/marketing relationship, and is waiting to hear back.

"We would love to have their support," said Small. "Obviously NHL support would lend a lot more credibility to what we're trying to accomplish."

There are other efforts underway too, with money the primary stumbling block.

"Money is always the biggest challenge," said Brenda Andress, the CWHL's executive director. "We need to be able to pay our players, be able to pay coaches, we need to be able to provide them with opportunities.

"When you allow people to make a living at something, obviously it grows."

Unlike the WWHL, which has four teams (the Calgary X-Treme didn't play this season) under individual ownership, the six-team CWHL is registered as an amateur athletic association right and set up as a not-for-profit business.

It runs on a budget of $500,000 which is split evenly between the teams and covers travel costs, ice time and referees.

"To take it professional would take $7 million a year," said Small. "That would pay each of the girls on the team a $35,000 salary, and the coaches and administrators would then get paid as well."

Increasing the budget 14 times will obviously be a challenge.

Finding more sponsors like Scotiabank, the primary sponsor for both the CWHL and the Clarkson Cup, would help, as would drawing in fans.

Small says the current business plan aims for attendance in the 500-1,000 range, growing eventually to the low-thousands who take in junior games.

Gauging demand for the product is another issue.

The Canadian women's team attracted big TV numbers during the Vancouver Olympics but that was likely fuelled by the patriotic fervour for a home Games.

Some fans may also wonder if they'll see the same lopsided scores that led some to question whether women's hockey even belongs in the Olympics, but one advantage organizers have on that front is a much better product.

"We could probably put three Olympic teams in and the United States could probably put two," said Andress. "When you think about going pro, it's just the next thing to do.

"In Europe and all across the world, people would say, 'Hey, I can actually make money at this, I can actually earn a living for the talent I'm giving.' And then it grows."

Until then winning the Clarkson Cup ? a trophy donated by former governor general Adrienne Clarkson and awarded for the first time last year ? will be the carrot at the end of the stick.