On Sept. 20, the Spruce Grove Saints played their first game against a B.C.-based opponent when they hosted the Penticton Vees at the Grant Fuhr Arena. The next game between an Alberta and a B.C.-based BCHL team was the next night when Penticton visited the Crusaders at Sherwood Park Arena.
These first games are historic because before the BCHL admitted the Alberta-based teams last spring, teams from B.C. only faced those from Alberta in one of two ways.
The first was the Doyle Cup. Before the BCHL left the Canadian Junior Hockey League, its champion played the Alberta Junior Hockey League champion in the Doyle Cup to determine the Pacific region representative at the Centennial Cup National Junior A Championship tournament. The Prince George Spruce Kings won the last Doyle Cup awarded when they beat the Brooks Bandits in six games in 2019.
The Centennial Cup tournament was the second opportunity for B.C. and Alberta-based teams to clash. 2019 was the last time it happened, with the Bandits topping Prince George 4-3 in the championship game. Brooks had qualified for the tournament despite losing the Doyle Cup, as the Bandits were the host team.
This article will examine the first game each Alberta-based BCHL team played against a B.C.-based opponent. We’ll start with the first two games mentioned above.
Spruce Grove vs. Penticton
On Sept. 20, the Vees visited Spruce Grove and beat the Saints 3-2. Penticton forward Matthew Cataldo scored the game’s first goal to give the Vees a 1-0 lead. Meanwhile, Saints forward Josh Polak scored their first goal. Austin Peters also scored for Spruce Grove. Additional Vees scoring came from forwards Anselmo Rego and Landon Wright. Wright’s marker was the game-winner.
Sherwood Park vs. Penticton
On Sept. 21, the Vees headed to Sherwood Park and knocked off the Crusaders 6-3. Sherwood Park forward Nicholas Beaudoin had the first goal of the game. Fifteen-year-old Vees forward Eli McKamey had Penticton’s first goal. Wright ended up scoring a pair of goals for the Vees.
Okotoks at Cranbrook
On Sept. 27, the Okotoks Oilers visited the Cranbrook Bucks. This game was the first time an Alberta team visited a B.C. team. In the match-up, the Bucks defeated the Oilers 3-2. Okotoks forward Jacob Goudreau opened the scoring while Cranbrook forward Matthew Gilmore scored its first goal. Rasmus Svartström had the game-winner for Cranbrook.
Brooks vs. Penticton
On the same day the Bucks hosted Okotoks, Penticton visited Brooks. The Bandits defeated the Vees 4-1 for the first victory for an Alberta-based BCHL team over a B.C.-based club in the regular season. Bandits forward Liam Fitzpatrick scored the game’s first goal while Brooks forward Parker Lalonde salted the game away with an empty-netter. Cataldo had the only goal for Penticton.
Blackfalds vs. Penticton
On Sept. 28, the Vees visited the Blackfalds Bulldogs and came away with a 4-1 victory. Vees forward Jackson Potulny opened the scoring and Blackfalds forward Alexander Dimitriadis had his team’s only goal.
Other games of note
The Okotoks Oilers visited the Vees in Penticton on Oct. 4 and lost 5-1. It marked Penticton as the first B.C.-based team to play against all the Alberta-based teams. On Mar. 22, the Vees visit the Oilers at the Viking Rentals Centre in Okotoks.
Not every B.C.-based team will travel to Alberta during the 2024-25 regular season. Chilliwack, Coquitlam, Cranbrook, Langley, Prince George, Salmon Arm, Surrey, Trail, Vernon, and West Kelowna do head east to Alberta to play games, while every Vancouver Island team, including Powell River, doesn’t make the trek this season.
During the BCHL Showcase, Sherwood Park and Surrey played each other at the Abbotsford Centre with the Eagles coming away with a 4-2 win. The Crusaders met Langley the following day and waxed the Rivermen 7-3.
Blackfalds played two games at the BCHL Showcase, falling 6-4 to Vernon in the Bulldogs’ first game and edging Prince George 2-1 in the second game. Spruce Grove had a pair of games at the Showcase, losing 3-2 to Coquitlam in its first one and being thumped by the hometown Chiefs 4-1 in the second one.
Okotoks played against Penticton and Langley at the Showcase. In the first game, the Vees dumped the Oilers 6-2 and the Rivermen blanked them 4-0 in the second. Brooks faced West Kelowna and Coquitlam in front of dozens of college and pro scouts. The Bandits blanked the Warriors 1-0 in their first match-up at the event and edged the Express 3-2 in their closing game.
Photo credit: Garrett James Photography
