A new female junior hockey league will begin play in Saskatchewan next year.

Hockey Saskatchewan announced Tuesday they’ve approved the creation of the Under-22 league and a task team is working on a process to seek applications from communities to be part of the inaugural season in 2023-24. According to the organization, at least a dozen communities expressed interest in starting a female junior league when initial discussions were held in the fall.

“With Under-13 AA this year within the Saskatchewan Female Hockey League, we've seen that league grow to well over 100 teams. Adding a junior option for young ladies is something that's going to be exciting as well," Hockey Sask General Manager Kelly McClintock said in a statement released on Tuesday. “Our Task Team is creating the process to recommend to the Board how teams can apply, how teams will be selected and how the league will be administered. It is a great initiative for us.”

This league would provide another option for female hockey players in Saskatchewan along with U Sports and NCAA hockey after the Under-18 level. Three current members of the Swift Current Innovation Credit Union U18 AAA Wildcats; Jerzey Watteyne (Mount Royal University), Sadie Keller (University of Manitoba) and Caitlyn Perlinger (University of Calgary), have committed to playing university hockey next season.

More details about the new league are expected in January.