# 2020–21 SWHL A season

The 2020–21 Swiss League season was the 35th season of the Swiss Women's League A.

## Rules

The game mode of the Women's League provides for qualification with 20 games per team. The teams in places 1 to 4 then play play-offs with semi-finals, finals (both in best-of-five mode) and a game for third place. The teams in places 5 and 6 compete in a playout round (best-of -Five) the participant in the league relegation between the Women's League and SWHL B. Due to the interruption of qualification, the relegations between the leagues of the Regio League were suspended.

## Teams

| Team | Trainer | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Ladies Team Lugano | Pasi Koppinen, Vasco Soldini | Lugano | La Resega | 7,200 |
| HC Université Neuchâtel Dames | Yan Gigon, Thierry Bourquin | Neuchâtel | Patinoire du Littoral | 7,000 |
| SC Reinach Damen | Sean Huber | Reinach | Kunsteisbahn Oberwynental | - |
| EV Bomo Thun | Jakob Kölliker / Björn Schärer, Petra Melicherikova | Thun | Kunsteisbahn Grabengut | 4,000 |
| Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | Matthias Rehmann, Anja Stiefel | Kreuzlingen | Bodensee-Arena | 4,300 |
| ZSC Lions Frauen | Andrin Christen, Ramon Christen | Zürich | Kunsteisbahn Oerlikon | 1,700 |

## Regular season

The regular season started on 26 September 2020 and ended on 21 February 2021. The SWHL A game mode provides a preliminary round (phase 1) with 10 matches per team and a Masterround with 10 additional matches per team. The top 4 teams qualify for the playoffs and the bottom two compete for a play-off against relegation. The loser must face the SWHLB champion.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | ZSC Lions Frauen | 20 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 78 | 24 | +54 | 50 | Advance to Playoffs |
| 2 | Ladies Team Lugano | 20 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 89 | 51 | +38 | 43 | Advance to Playoffs |
| 3 | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 20 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 70 | 48 | +22 | 34 | Advance to Playoffs |
| 4 | EV Bomo Thun | 20 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 62 | 77 | −15 | 27 | Advance to Playoffs |
| 5 | HC Université Neuchâtel Dames | 20 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 38 | 66 | −28 | 18 | |
| 6 | SC Reinach Damen | 20 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 36 | 107 | −71 | 8 | |

### Statistics
#### Scoring leaders

The following shows the top ten players who led the league in points, at the conclusion of the regular season. If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Michelle Karvinen | Ladies Team Lugano | 16 | 27 | 22 | 49 | 20 |
| Phoebe Stänz | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 18 | 23 | 14 | 37 | 18 |
| Evelina Raselli | Ladies Team Lugano | 20 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 32 |
| Simona Grascher | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 20 | 18 | 14 | 32 | 8 |
| Noemi Ryhner | Ladies Team Lugano | 18 | 13 | 19 | 32 | 2 |
| Laura Zimmermann | EV Bomo Thun | 20 | 22 | 2 | 24 | 46 |
| Viktoria Maskalova | EV Bomo Thun | 20 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 8 |
| Kamila Wieczorek | EV Bomo Thun | 20 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 20 |
| Isabel Waidacher | ZSC Lions Frauen | 11 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 14 |
| Lisa Rüedi | ZSC Lions Frauen | 18 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 30 |

#### Leading goaltenders

The following shows the top five goaltenders who led the league in goals against average, provided that they have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, at the conclusion of the regular season.
| Player | Team(s) | GP | TOI | GA | GAA |
| Caroline Baldin | ZSC Lions Frauen | 15 | 809 | 12 | 0,89 |
| Janine Alder | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 16 | 943 | 38 | 2,42 |
| Nina Paiva | HC Université Neuchâtel Dames | 19 | 1111 | 60 | 3,24 |
| Giulia Mazzocchi | Ladies Team Lugano | 11 | 663 | 36 | 3,26 |
| Sandy Heim | EV Bomo Thun | 12 | 728 | 40 | 3,30 |

## Playoffs
### Bracket

| Semi-finals (best-of-5) | Semi-finals (best-of-5) | Semi-finals (best-of-5) | Finals (best-of-5) | Finals (best-of-5) | Finals (best-of-5) |
| 1 | ZSC Lions Frauen | 3 | | | |
| 4 | EV Bomo Thun | 0 | | | |
| 4 | EV Bomo Thun | 0 | 2 | Ladies Team Lugano | 3 |
| | | | 1 | ZSC Lions Frauen | 1 |
| 2 | Ladies Team Lugano | 3 | 1 | ZSC Lions Frauen | 1 |
| 3 | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 1 | Game for 3rd place (best-of-1) | Game for 3rd place (best-of-1) | Game for 3rd place (best-of-1) |
| | | | 3 | Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies | 3 |
| | | | 4 | EV Bomo Thun | 0 |

### Semi-Finals
#### (1) ZSC Lions Frauen vs. (4) EV Bomo Thun

* ZSC Lions Frauen won the series 3–0.

#### (2) Ladies Team Lugano vs. (3) Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies

* Ladies Team Lugano won the series 3–1.

### Game for 3rd place

* Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies won the game and finish at the 3rd place.

### Finals

* Ladies Team Lugano won the series 3–1.

### Team of Swiss champions

Goalkeepers: Alexandra Lehmann, Giulia Mazzocchi
Defense: Celine Abgottspon, Nicole Bullo, Nathalie Buser, Elena Gaberell, Federica Galtieri, Nicla Gianettoni, Anneke Orlandini, Lisa Poletti, Franziska Stocker
Offense: Aurora Abatangelo, Laura Desboeufs, Romy Eggimann, Michelle Karvinen, Lucia Luraschi, Keely Moy, Greta Niccolai, Andrea Odermatt, Evelina Raselli, Noemi Ryhner
Coaching: Vasco Soldini, Pasi Koppinen

## Awards

* Most Valuable Player : Michelle Karvinen (Ladies Team Lugano)
* Best forward : Michelle Karvinen (Ladies Team Lugano)
* Best defender : Nicole Vallario (Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies)
* Best goalkeeper : Janine Alder (Hockey Team Thurgau Indien Ladies)
* Best rookie : Alina Marti (ZSC Lions Frauen)
* Best coach : Andrin Christen (ZSC Lions Frauen)