West Kelowna Warriors
West Kelowna Warriors | |
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File:Westside Warriors logo.svg | |
City | West Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada |
League | British Columbia Hockey League |
Conference | Interior |
Founded | 1994 |
Home arena | Royal Lepage Place |
Colours | Maroon and tan |
Owner(s) | ![]() |
General manager | ![]() |
Head coach | ![]() |
Website | http://www.westkelownawarriors.ca |
Franchise history | |
1994–98 | Langley Thunder |
1998–2006 | Langley Hornets |
2006–12 | Westside Warriors (logo above) |
2012-present | West Kelowna Warriors |
The West Kelowna Warriors are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from West Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. They are a part of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) and play in the Interior Conference.
Contents
History
The West Kelowna Warriors are a relocated franchise, moving to West Kelowna in 2006 from Langley, British Columbia.
Langley was originally granted a British Columbia Junior Hockey League (BCJHL) franchise in 1973 called the Langley Lords. The team played as the Lords through the 1975-76 season. In those three years they had very decent regular seasons, making it to the playoffs each year, including a loss in the league finals in their first season. In 1976 the Lords changed their name to the Langley Thunder. Their regular season performance diminished each year, and they missed the playoffs for the first time in the franchise's history in the 1978-79 season. Shortly after the completion of the 1978-79 season, the franchise ceased operations. An unrelated BCJHL franchise, the Chilliwack Colts, relocated to become the Langley Eagles from 1981-82 through the 1986-87 seasons, before moving back to Chilliwack, British Columbia.
In 1990 the BCJHL was renamed the BCHL, and in 1994 Langley returned to the BCHL with a new franchise, adopting the name Thunder from the defunct franchise of the 1970s. The new franchise competed as the Thunder for five seasons, reaching the BCHL championship finals in 1996, which they lost to the eventual Junior A national Royal Bank Cup champion Vernon Vipers, 4–1.
The Thunder changed their name to the Langley Hornets before the start of the 1998-99 season. Playing in Langley from 1998 through the 2005-06 season, the Hornets were led by several coaches. Coach Rick Lanz is notable for taking the last place 2001-02 team and guiding them to a fourth-place finish in the 2002-03 season, though the team would be eliminated in the first round of the BCHL playoffs. Lanz was not re-signed for the next season, and the team returned to last place in the BCHL.
Before the start of the 2006-07 season the franchise moved from Langley to the unincorporated area on the "westside" of Kelowna, British Columbia, and renamed themselves the Westside Warriors.
The Westside Warriors found immediate success, reaching the BCHL playoffs in the 2006-07 season, followed in 2007-08 with a third place BCHL finish in the regular season and making it to the BCHL semi-finals in the playoffs.
In late 2007 the unincorporated area the Westside Warriors called home became the incorporated Westside District Municipality, and in 2008 changed its name to West Kelowna. The franchise kept the place name Westside, rather than West Kelowna, through the 2011-12 season.
In the summer of 2012, the Westside Warriors announced they would be changing their name to the West Kelowna Warriors, recognizing the proper name of the municipality they play in.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
BCJHL Langley Lords/Thunder
Season | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Points | Finish | Playoffs |
1973-74 | 64 | 38 | 24 | 2 | 326 | 283 | 78 | 1st in Coastal | Lost in Finals |
1974-75 | 66 | 34 | 31 | 1 | 330 | 351 | 69 | 1st in Coastal | Lost in Quarter-Finals |
1975-76 | 66 | 32 | 31 | 3 | 349 | 298 | 67 | 5th in League | Lost in Quarter-Finals |
1976-77 | 68 | 30 | 37 | 1 | 351 | 362 | 62 | 3rd in Coastal | Lost in Semi-Finals |
1977-78 | 66 | 19 | 47 | 0 | 250 | 423 | 38 | 5th in Coastal | Lost in Quarter-Finals |
1978-79 | 62 | 22 | 36 | 4 | 284 | 348 | 48 | 5th in Coastal | DNQ |
1979 - BCJHL Langley Thunder ceases operations. (unrelated franchise moves to Langley from Chilliwack in 1981, returns to Chilliwack in 1987)
1994 - New BCHL franchise created in Langley, adopts name from 1979 Langley Thunder.
2006 - Langley franchise moves west of Kelowna, becomes Westside Warriors.
BCHL Langley Thunder/Hornets, Westside/West Kelowna Warriors
Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Points | Finish | Playoffs |
1994-95 | 60 | 38 | 21 | 1 | - | 321 | 252 | 77 | 2nd in Mainland | Lost in Quarter-Finals |
1995-96 | 60 | 38 | 19 | 3 | - | 317 | 273 | 79 | 2nd in Mainland | Lost in Finals |
1996-97 | 60 | 21 | 35 | 4 | - | 228 | 289 | 46 | 7th in Coastal | DNQ |
1997-98 | 60 | 26 | 31 | 3 | - | 219 | 239 | 55 | 6th in Coastal | DNQ |
1998-99 | 60 | 44 | 12 | 4 | - | 330 | 219 | 92 | 1st in Mainland | Lost in Semi-Finals |
1998-99 | 60 | 20 | 38 | - | 2 | 242 | 294 | 42 | 3rd in Mainlad | Lost in 1st Round |
1999-00 | 60 | 41 | 17 | - | 2 | 305 | 247 | 84 | 1st in Mainland | Lost in Semi-Finals |
2000-01 | 60 | 29 | 25 | - | 6 | 222 | 239 | 64 | 4th in Mainland | Lost in 1st Round |
2001-02 | 60 | 19 | 34 | - | 7 | 226 | 274 | 45 | 5th in Mainland | DNQ |
2002-03 | 60 | 34 | 22 | - | 1 | 225 | 231 | 72 | 2nd in Mainland | Lost in 1st Round |
2003-04 | 60 | 19 | 36 | 1 | 4 | 205 | 286 | 43 | 4th in Mainland | DNQ |
2004-05 | 60 | 12 | 42 | 1 | 5 | 169 | 277 | 30 | 4th in Mainland | DNQ |
2005-06 | 60 | 32 | 23 | 1 | 4 | 179 | 181 | 69 | 3rd in Mainland | Lost in Quarter-Finals |
2006-07 | 60 | 23 | 25 | 3 | 9 | 192 | 221 | 58 | 7th in Mainland | Lost in Preliminary |
2007-08 | 60 | 40 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 237 | 161 | 83 | 3rd BCHL | Lost in Semi-Finals |
2008-09 | 60 | 37 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 220 | 162 | 79 | 5th BCHL | |
2009-10 | 60 | 38 | 18 | 1 | 3 | 244 | 173 | 80 | 4th BCHL | Lost Quarter-final |
2010-11 | 60 | 33 | 20 | 2 | 5 | 246 | 183 | 73 | 4th, Interior | Lost Division Semi-final |
2011-12 | 60 | 22 | 29 | 2 | 7 | 190 | 208 | 53 | 11th BCHL | DNQ |
2012 - Westside area now the municipality of West Kelowna, franchise renamed West Kelowna Warriors.
BCHL West Kelowna Warriors
Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Points | Finish | Playoffs |
2012-13 | 56 | 30 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 205 | 151 | 73 | 2nd in Interior - 4th BCHL | Lost in Division Finals |
2013-14 | 58 | 35 | 15 | 3 | 5 | 225 | 173 | 78 | 2nd in Interior - 5th BCHL | Lost in Division Semi-Finals |
2014-15 | 58 | 29 | 21 | 0 | 8 | 205 | 210 | 44 | 4th of 6 Interior 7th of 16 BCHL |
Lost Div. Semi-Finals, 1-4 (Vees) |