Alberta Golden Bears Overview . " Golden Bears " is the name of the male sports teams of the University of Alberta , located in Edmonton , Alberta . Their female teams are known as the " Pandas " . Their home ice is the Clare Drake Arena . They are members of the Canada West Universities Athletic Association ( CWUAA ) and Canadian Interuniversity Sport ( CIS ) , now called U Sports . The U of A started play in the senior and intermediate series of Alberta . They did not win any provincial or national titles in that era . In 1918 - 19 the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Alberta played in an exhibition series which led to the formation of the Western Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union ( WCIAU ) the following season . In 1962 - 63 the WCIAU changed its name to the Western Intercollegiate Athletic Association ( WIAA ) . The Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union ( as it then was ) started the University Cup in 1963 . Alberta has won more titles than any other team . When the WIAA split in two following the 1971 - 72 season , the University of Alberta became a founding member of the CWUAA , along with the University of British Columbia , University of Victoria , University of Calgary , and University of Saskatchewan . Victoria has since departed and a GPAC merger and new programs have added new CWUAA opponents at the University of Manitoba , the University of Regina , University of Lethbridge , and Mount Royal University . In addition , from 1950 to 1968 , the Alberta Golden Bears and UBC Thunderbirds played an annual series for the Hamber Trophy . The two teams were in the same conference for five of those seasons . Senior / Intermediate Seasons . The University of Alberta did not enjoy the level of success as their prairie cohorts at the senior level . They made it as far as the provincial final just the once ( in 1921 ) and the semi - finals just one other time ( 1924 ) . In fact , they wound up in the 1930s playing at the intermediate level instead . However , the 1920 - 21 Alberta Senior Playoffs , and other events that year , are worth a peak . The University of Alberta did not enter the WCIAU that season . ( The University of Saskatchewan beat the University of Manitoba in the 1920 - 21 WCIAU Season and got a berth in the 1920 - 21 Western Canada Allan Cup Playoffs for that victory . ) The University of Alberta did win the Edmonton league title to advance to the provincials . In the semi - final they beat the Vermilion Farmers 9 - 3 on aggregate , with each side winning once . In the final they lost to Calgary Alberta Pacific 8 - 6 on aggregate , after a replay of a game they lost and then protested . The Calgary team won their title too late to compete in the 1920 - 21 Western Canada Allan Cup Playoffs . The same thing happened to the UBC Thunderbirds . They defeated the Vancouver Towers and Victoria Senators to win the 1920 - 21 British Columbia Senior Playoffs but could go no further . It would have been ironic to have seen one , or possibly two all - U matchups in those Allan Cup playoffs . As it was , bad timing prevented the UBC Thunderbirds from meeting the Saskatchewan Huskies for the first time . Meanwhile , in the 1920 - 21 Eastern Canada Allan Cup Playoffs the University of Toronto defeated McGill University in the final . In the 1923 - 24 Alberta Senior Playoffs the Alberta Golden Bears again won the Edmonton league and advanced to the provincials . They were , however , beaten 15 - 8 on aggregate by Canmore in the semi - finals . While the team continued at the intermediate level through 1940 , this was pretty much it for success at the senior level . " Note : All seasons available on Wikia have been added to the table . " Season - by - Season Records Table . 1985 - 86 to present : CWUAA Unified Era . ∞ indicates Hamber Trophy played as part of regular season " Notes : " Championships . SENIOR UNIVERSITY Hamber Trophy . From 1949 - 50 to 1967 - 68 , the Alberta Golden Bears and the UBC Thunderbirds played an annual series for the Hamber Trophy . From 1961 - 62 onwards , UBC was often in the WCIAU or the WIAA and in those seasons the teams ' conference games counted towards this Trophy . Junior B Team . The Junior Bears , aka Bearcats , also operated for at least the 1972 - 73 season , in which they won the league and provincial titles . SOURCES : Also see . National links : Western links : Other links :