2023–24 BCHL season
2023–24 BCHL Season | |
---|---|
League | British Columbia Hockey League |
Sport | Hockey |
Duration | Regular season 22 September 2023 – 31 March 2024 Playoffs 5 April 2024 – TBD |
Number of teams | 17 (+5 teams from Alberta) |
Fred Page Cup |
The 2023–24 BCHL season is the 62nd season of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). The seventeen teams from the Coastal and Interior Conferences play 54 scheduled games, including two games as part of the BCHL showcase, which were held in Seattle from October 22 to October 26 2023, in partnership with the NHL's Seattle Kraken.[1]
League changes[edit]
The 2023–24 season was the BCHL's first season as an independent league, following its departure from Hockey Canada.[2]
In an effort to limit the number of games decided by shootout, overtime was lengthened from five minutes to ten minutes. Games would still be decided by shootout if they remained tied after one period of 3-on-3 sudden victory overtime.[3]
Team rosters must have a minimum of three players under the age of 18. Previously, they required one player under the age of 18.[4]
Russian and Belarussian players were barred from the league.[5]
The Wenatchee Wild folded after its owners acquired the Western Hockey League's (WHL) Winnipeg Ice and moved it to Wenatchee.[6]
On January 20, 2024, the league announced that five teams from the Alberta Junior Hockey League would join the BCHL in the 2024-25 season, namely, the Blackfalds Bulldogs, Brooks Bandits, Okotoks Oilers, Sherwood Park Crusaders, and Spruce Grove Saints. The league had planned to wait until the end of the season to make the announcement, however rumours had already begun to circulate online.[7]
The AJHL responded to the announcement by cancelling most of the five teams' remaining scheduled matches except those between each other. It was then decided that the five Alberta-based teams would play out the rest of the 2023-24 season as a separate division under the aegis of the BCHL.[8]
For the post-season, the fourth and fifth placed Alberta teams would have a best-of-five wildcard series, with the winner advancing to the semi-final playoff round along with the top three Alberta teams. The rankings would be determined by winning percentage including their regular season records from the AJHL. The semi-final and final rounds would each consist of a best-of-seven series.[9]
It was also announced that the winner of the five Alberta-based teams would go on to play a best-of-three series against the winner of the BC-based teams, which the league branded as the Rocky Mountain Challenge. This series would take place from 31 May to 2 June 2024 with all games being hosted by the Alberta Division champions.[10][11]
Standings[edit]
- As of 31 March 2024[12]
Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, OTL = Overtime Losses, SOL = Shootout losses, Pts = Points
Coastal Conference | ||||||
TEAM NAMES | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Surrey Eagles | 54 | 48 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 90 |
Chilliwack Chiefs | 54 | 32 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 69 |
Alberni Valley Bulldogs | 54 | 33 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 67 |
Victoria Grizzlies | 54 | 29 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 61 |
Nanaimo Clippers | 54 | 27 | 23 | 3 | 1 | 58 |
Coquitlam Express | 54 | 21 | 29 | 1 | 3 | 46 |
Langley Rivermen | 54 | 19 | 28 | 7 | 0 | 45 |
Cowichan Valley Capitals | 54 | 16 | 34 | 3 | 1 | 36 |
Powell River Kings | 54 | 14 | 35 | 5 | 0 | 33 |
Interior Conference | ||||||
TEAM NAMES | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS |
Penticton Vees | 54 | 38 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 82 |
West Kelowna Warriors | 54 | 33 | 10 | 11 | 0 | 77 |
Salmon Arm Silverbacks | 54 | 34 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 71 |
Vernon Vipers | 54 | 33 | 19 | 20 | 0 | 68 |
Trail Smoke Eaters | 54 | 28 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 62 |
Merritt Centennials | 54 | 22 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 50 |
Cranbrook Bucks | 54 | 20 | 31 | 3 | 0 | 43 |
Prince George Spruce Kings | 54 | 16 | 35 | 3 | 0 | 35 |
Alberta[edit]
Alberta Division | |||||||
TEAM NAMES | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS | .PCT |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brooks Bandits | 65 | 58 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 117 | .900 |
Sherwood Park Crusaders | 67 | 49 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 100 | .746 |
Blackfalds Bulldogs | 68 | 39 | 22 | 6 | 1 | 85 | .625 |
Okotoks Oilers | 69 | 38 | 28 | 3 | 0 | 79 | .572 |
Spruce Grove Saints | 66 | 26 | 34 | 5 | 1 | 58 | .439 |
Alberta team standings are displayed separately from the rest of the BCHL on the league website.
Post-season[edit]
2024 BCHL Fred Page Cup playoffs[edit]
Playoff results
First round | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Fred Page Cup Final | ||||||||||||
Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Cowichan Valley | 1 | ||||||||||||||
Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Victoria | 2 | ||||||||||||||
Victoria | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Nanaimo | 1 | ||||||||||||||
Surrey | 3 | ||||||||||||||
Alberni Valley | 2 | ||||||||||||||
Chilliwack | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Langley | 0 | ||||||||||||||
Chilliwack | 0 | ||||||||||||||
Alberni Valley | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Alberni Valley | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Coquitlam | 3 | ||||||||||||||
Penticton | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Prince George | 0 | ||||||||||||||
Penticton | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Vernon | 1 | ||||||||||||||
Vernon | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Trail | 1 | ||||||||||||||
Penticton | 3 | ||||||||||||||
Salmon Arm | 3 | ||||||||||||||
West Kelowna | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Cranbrook | 3 | ||||||||||||||
West Kelowna | 1 | ||||||||||||||
Salmon Arm | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Salmon Arm | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Merritt | 2 |
Alberta Division[edit]
Wildcard (Bo5) | Semifinals (Bo7) | Final (Bo7) | |||||||||
Brooks | 4 | ||||||||||
Okotoks | 3 | ||||||||||
Okotoks | 3 | ||||||||||
Spruce Grove | 0 | ||||||||||
Brooks | 2 | ||||||||||
Sherwood Park | 0 | ||||||||||
Sherwood Park | 4 | ||||||||||
Blackfalds | 0 |
Scoring leaders[edit]
GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, P = Points, PIM = Penalties In Minutes
|
Leading goaltenders[edit]
Note: GP = Games Played, Mins = Minutes Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, OTL = Overtime Losses, GA = Goals Against, SO = Shutouts, Sv% = Save Percentage, GAA = Goals Against Average.
|
Award winners[edit]
- Brett Hull Trophy (Top Scorer): Caden Cranston (Surrey Eagles)
- Campbell Blair Trophy (Top Defencemen):
- Bruce Allison Memorial Trophy (Rookie of the Year):
- Bob Fenton Trophy (Most Sportsmanlike):
- Michael Garteig Trophy (Top Goaltender): Will Ingemann (Penticton Vees)
- Wally Forslund Memorial Trophy (Best Goaltending Duo):
- Vern Dye Memorial Trophy (regular-season MVP):
- Jeff Tambellini Trophy (Playoff MVP):
- Joe Tennant Memorial Trophy (Coach of the Year):
- Ron Boileau Memorial Trophy (Best Regular Season Record): Surrey Eagles
- Cliff McNabb Memorial Trophy (Coastal Conference champions):
- Ryan Hatfield Trophy (Interior Conference champions):
- Fred Page Cup (League Champions):
- Jim Hughson Award (Broadcaster of the Year):
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "BCHL And Seattle Kraken To Host 2023 Event in Seattle". BCHL. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
- ^ "BCHL To Become Independent League". BCHL. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
- ^ "BCHL Annual General Meeting Recap". BCHL. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
- ^ "BCHL announces roster rules and important dates for 2023-24". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
- ^ "BCHL announces roster rules and important dates for 2023-24". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
- ^ "Wenatchee Wild Announce Move To Western Hockey League Ahead of 2023–24 Season". Wenatchee Wild. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ "BCHL agrees to terms with five Alberta-based teams". bchl.ca. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
- ^ "BCHL announces finalized franchise agreements and integration with five Alberta-based teams". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- ^ "BCHL announces Alberta playoff format and BC postseason refresher". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
- ^ "BCHL announces Alberta playoff format and BC postseason refresher". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
- ^ "BCHL announces Rocky Mountain Challenge Postseason Series". bchl.ca. British Columbia Hockey League. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "BCHL team stats 2023-2024 regular season". bchl.ca. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
External links[edit]
- Official Website of the British Columbia Hockey League
- "Ottawa Senators Goalie Prospect Scores a Goal". thehockeynews.com. The Hockey News. Retrieved 13 March 2024.