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Image credit: BCHL
By Pete McIntyre
16 teams in hunt

Playoff hockey returns to BCHL

Mar 31, 2022 | 1:00 PM

After two years of cancelled playoffs, the BC Hockey League is excited about the prospect of crowning a champion again.

The 2022 Shaw BCHL Playoffs start tonight with 16 teams competing for the Fred Page Cup.

The opening night features the Penticton Vees hosting the Trail Smoke Eaters in Game 1 of their best of 7 Interior Conference quarterfinal, before the other seven series begin this weekend.

The Vernon Vipers and West Kelowna Warriors will battle in an all-Okanagan series starting Friday, April 1 at West Kelowna’s Royal Lepage Place. Games 3 and 4 will be in Vernon April 4 and 6.

“We are thrilled to be back playing playoff hockey again,” said BCHL Deputy Commissioner Steven Cocker. “It’s been a long couple of years since our last postseason series and our players and fans have been through a lot. We can’t wait to get things started tonight and to showcase the best our league and our game has to offer.”

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The last time the BCHL played playoff hockey was Mar. 8, 2020 when the Surrey Eagles defeated the Chilliwack Chiefs 3-2 in Game 7 of their first-round series. The league was forced to shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic less than a week later.

With two cancelled playoffs in a row, the BCHL has not awarded a league champion since 2019 when the Prince George Spruce Kings went 16-1 through the postseason to win their first Fred Page Cup in team history.

Matchups

Interior Conference:
#1 Penticton Vees vs. #8 Trail Smoke Eaters
#2 Salmon Arm Silverbacks vs. #7 Wenatchee Wild
#3 West Kelowna Warriors vs. #6 Vernon Vipers
#4 Prince George Spruce Kings vs. #5 Cranbrook Bucks

Click here to view the Interior Conference Playoff Preview.

Coastal Conference:
#1 Alberni Valley Bulldogs vs. #8 Cowichan Valley Capitals
#2 Chilliwack Chiefs vs. #7 Coquitlam Express
#3 Nanaimo Clippers vs. #6 Surrey Eagles
#4 Langley Rivermen vs. #5 Victoria Grizzlies

Click here to view the Coastal Conference Playoff Preview.

Click here to view the full Shaw BCHL Playoffs schedule.

Click here to buy playoff tickets.

by Pete McIntyre
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