The Canadian Women’s Hockey League announced yesterday that it has “terminated its contracts” with two Boston Blades personnel, head coach Digit Murphy and general manager Aronda Kirby. In its press release, the league mentioned that it was unable to reach an agreement with Murphy and Kirby regarding a trademark application, and filed a notice of opposition with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Mike Burse over at Outlook Hockey has more insight and information on the situation based on what’s publicly available, but as he notes, the dispute appears to be over the Boston Blades stick logo word mark:

CWHL spokesperson Jennifer Smith stated in the press release that the league does not have any further comment at this time. Neither Murphy or Kirby has made an official statement as of now, but Murphy has posted a couple of interesting tweets, including this one from this morning:

These are just my own thoughts, but the situation becomes even more interesting with the announcement of the National Women’s Hockey League a few weeks ago. One of the NWHL’s four franchises will be based in Boston (the Boston Pride), and I can’t help but wonder what this means for the future of both leagues there.

Other News:

• Quinnipiac’s Rick Seeley resigned his position as head women’s hockey coach on Thursday. Seeley was reportedly under investigation by the university after allegedly grabbing a player by her jersey during the team’s 2015 NCAA Tournament quarterfinal game against Harvard, according to Q30 Television, Quinnipiac’s official student-run television station.
• Wisconsin senior forward Brittany Ammerman was named recipient of the 2015 Hockey Humanitarian Award yesterday. Ammerman founded the Nikumbuke Women’s Soccer League in rural Kenya in 2013 after she visited the area through a program called Health by Motorbike.
• The CWHL announced on Thursday that registration for the 2015 Entry Draft is now open.

Suggested Reading:

• A Clarification of the CWHL Player Equipment Situation – Watch This
• NWHL Officially Launches with Inaugural Season Set for October 2015 – Women’s Hockey Life
• U.S. women’s world hockey title another golden moment for Meghan Duggan – Los Angeles Times
• Big Plans, Big Questions For New Women’s Pro Hockey League – espnW
• What I learned watching the IIHF Women’s World Championships – Pension Plan Puppets