# 1987–88 WHL season

The 1987–88 WHL season was the 22nd season of the Western Hockey League (WHL), featuring fourteen teams and a 72-game season. The Saskatoon Blades won their third Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy for best regular season record. In the playoffs, the Medicine Hat Tigers won their second consecutive President's Cup, defeating the Kamloops Blazers in the championship series. The Tigers advanced to the 1988 Memorial Cup tournament, where they won their second straight Memorial Cup title.
The season was the first for the Lethbridge Hurricanes, after the Calgary Wranglers relocated to Lethbridge prior to the season. The Hurricanes brought WHL hockey back to the city after the Broncos returned to Swift Current in 1986.

## Team changes

* The Calgary Wranglers relocate to Lethbridge, Alberta, becoming the Lethbridge Hurricanes.

## Regular season
### Final standings

| East Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
| x Saskatoon Blades | 72 | 47 | 22 | 3 | 97 | 381 | 294 |
| x Medicine Hat Tigers | 72 | 44 | 22 | 6 | 94 | 353 | 261 |
| x Prince Albert Raiders | 72 | 43 | 24 | 5 | 91 | 373 | 284 |
| x Swift Current Broncos | 72 | 44 | 26 | 2 | 90 | 388 | 312 |
| x Regina Pats | 72 | 39 | 29 | 4 | 82 | 342 | 286 |
| x Brandon Wheat Kings | 72 | 26 | 43 | 3 | 55 | 348 | 371 |
| Lethbridge Hurricanes | 72 | 20 | 48 | 4 | 44 | 257 | 356 |
| Moose Jaw Warriors | 72 | 18 | 52 | 2 | 38 | 308 | 458 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
| x Kamloops Blazers | 72 | 45 | 26 | 1 | 91 | 399 | 307 |
| x Spokane Chiefs | 72 | 37 | 32 | 3 | 77 | 330 | 296 |
| x Victoria Cougars | 72 | 37 | 34 | 1 | 75 | 346 | 335 |
| x New Westminster Bruins | 72 | 33 | 34 | 5 | 71 | 338 | 358 |
| Seattle Thunderbirds | 72 | 25 | 45 | 2 | 52 | 313 | 436 |
| Portland Winter Hawks | 72 | 24 | 45 | 3 | 51 | 328 | 449 |

### Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Joe Sakic | Swift Current Broncos | 64 | 78 | 82 | 160 | 64 |
| Theoren Fleury | Moose Jaw Warriors | 65 | 68 | 92 | 160 | 235 |
| Mark Recchi | Kamloops Blazers | 62 | 61 | 93 | 154 | 75 |
| Troy Mick | Portland Winter Hawks | 72 | 63 | 84 | 147 | 78 |
| Dennis Holland | Portland Winter Hawks | 67 | 58 | 86 | 144 | 115 |
| Terry Yake | Brandon Wheat Kings | 72 | 55 | 85 | 140 | 59 |
| Craig Endean | Regina Pats | 69 | 50 | 86 | 136 | 50 |
| Greg Hawgood | Kamloops Blazers | 63 | 48 | 85 | 133 | 142 |
| Trevor Jobe | Prince Albert Raiders | 72 | 69 | 63 | 132 | 111 |
| Mike Modano | Prince Albert Raiders | 65 | 47 | 80 | 127 | 80 |

## 1988 WHL Playoffs
### First round

* Saskatoon earned a bye
* Medicine Hat earned a bye
* Prince Albert defeated Brandon 3 games to 1
* Swift Current defeated Regina 3 games to 1

### Division semi-finals

* Saskatoon defeated Swift Current 4 games to 2
* Medicine Hat defeated Prince Albert 4 games to 2
* Kamloops defeated New Westminster 5 games to 0
* Spokane defeated Victoria 5 games to 3

### Division finals

* Medicine Hat defeated Saskatoon 4 games to 0
* Kamloops defeated Spokane 5 games to 2

### WHL Championship

* Medicine Hat defeated Kamloops 4 games to 2

## All-Star game

On January 12, the East Division defeated the West Division 5–4 at Kamloops, British Columbia before a crowd of 2,689.

## WHL awards

* Most Valuable Player - Four Broncos Memorial Trophy: Joe Sakic, Swift Current Broncos
* Scholastic Player of the Year - Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Trophy: Kevin Cheveldayoff, Brandon Wheat Kings
* Top Scorer - Bob Clarke Trophy: Joe Sakic, Swift Current Broncos
* Most Sportsmanlike Player - Brad Hornung Trophy: Craig Endean, Regina Pats
* Top Defenseman - Bill Hunter Trophy: Greg Hawgood, Kamloops Blazers
* Rookie of the Year - Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy: Stu Barnes, New Westminster Bruins
* Top Goaltender - Del Wilson Trophy: Troy Gamble, Spokane Chiefs
* Coach of the Year - Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy: Marcel Comeau, Saskatoon Blades
* Executive of the Year - Lloyd Saunders Memorial Trophy: Jim Loria, Spokane Chiefs
* Regular season Champions - Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy: Saskatoon Blades
* WHL Plus-Minus Award: Mark Recchi, Kamloops Blazers

## All-Star Teams

East Division :
| | First Team | First Team | Second team | Second team |
| Goal | Tim Cheveldae | Saskatoon Blades | Mark Fitzpatrick | Medicine Hat Tigers |
| Defense | Curtis Leschyshyn | Saskatoon Blades | Dean Kolstad | Prince Albert Raiders |
| Defense | Scott McCrady | Medicine Hat Tigers | Rich Pilon | Prince Albert Raiders |
| Center | Joe Sakic | Swift Current Broncos | Theoren Fleury | Moose Jaw Warriors |
| Left wing | Grant Tkachuk | Saskatoon Blades | Mark Pederson | Medicine Hat Tigers |
| Right wing | Craig Endean | Regina Pats | Trevor Linden | Medicine Hat Tigers |
| West Division |||||
| | First Team | First Team | Second team | Second team |
| Goal | Troy Gamble | Spokane Chiefs | unknown | unknown |
| Defense | Greg Hawgood | Kamloops Blazers | unknown | unknown |
| Defense | Jayson More (tied) | New Westminster Bruins | unknown | unknown |
| Defense | Andrew Wolf (tied) | Victoria Cougars | unknown | unknown |
| Center | Dennis Holland | Portland Winter Hawks | unknown | unknown |
| Left wing | Troy Mick (tied) | Portland Winter Hawks | unknown | unknown |
| Left wing | Darcy Norton (tied) | Kamloops Blazers | unknown | unknown |
| Right wing | Mark Recchi | Kamloops Blazers | unknown | unknown |