Western Hockey League coming to Penticton for 2025/2026, back to Chilliwack for 2026/2027
NCAA changes regarding scholarships gives league a boost, what it means for the Chiefs is unclear
Many in of the Fraser Valley hockey community are watching a press conference in Penticton Monday morning as management for the Penticton Vees announce the team's addition to the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the 2025/2026 season.
What is still yet to be announced formally is that the WHL is also coming to Chilliwack for the 2026/2027 season, returning a decade and a half after its rocky departure.
The long-rumoured move of a WHL team back to Chilliwack leaves many questions, and the Vees announcement likely comes not coincidentally with the City of Chilliwack's news release stating that the ownership of the Chilliwack Coliseum will revert back to the municipality on May 1, 2025.
Sources say that several owner groups are bidding for the new franchise and the new owner could be chosen in the coming weeks.
The Penticton Vees and the Chilliwack Chiefs are two of the top teams in the B.C. Hockey League (BCHL), with records of 40-7-5-0 atop the Interior Conference and 35-12-5-0 first in the Coastal Conference respectively.
Just after 10:30 a.m. Monday (March 24, 2025), the Vees formally announced their joining the WHL in a news conference shared on YouTube.
The Vees have been to the past three league finals winning twice. The Chiefs were the last BCHL team to win the Centennial Cup national championship, taking it on home ice in 2018.
Vancouver Province reporter Steve Ewen reported Sunday that an announcement the WHL is coming to both cities is coming this week
The Chilliwack Coliseum is a perfect rink for a WHL team. It was built for one, the Chilliwack Bruins, who were in the league from 2006 to 2011 before abruptly and disappointingly moving to Vancouver Island to become the Royals. Chiefs principal owner Moray Keith also had a stake in the Chilliwack Bruins and he was public about his displeasure with how the WHL dealt with the situation.
With the Vees management, the WHL, and Pentiction mayor celebrating the move to that city Monday morning, details regarding the Chilliwack situation has not been made fully publilc.
"The Chilliwack story isn’t as clear yet," Province reporter Steve Ewen wrote Sunday. "The league is spending the year before awarding ownership to an expansion team there."
Penticton will be the 12th team in the WHL’s Western Conference and the sixth in the B.C. Division, joining the Vancouver Giants, Kelowna Rockets, Kamloops Blazers, Victoria Royals, and Prince George Cougars.
The City of Chilliwack press release about ownership of the Coliseum came March 21, 2025, stating that the city is working on an agreement with the Chiefs to continue managing the rink until May 1, 2026, "and will work with the [Chiefs Development Group] and current tenants on a transition plan."
Transition to what?
In the release, Keith bragged that the team saved the city close to $6 million and is returning the building to the city four years earlier than planned.
And without reading between the lines in hindsight, both Keith and Chilliwack Mayor Ken Popove had statements that could signal a departure of the Chiefs.
“On the ice, the Chiefs continue to be a leader of in-season NCAA commitments across North America,” Moray said. “The people of Chilliwack hold a very special place in our hearts.”
“The Chiefs Development Group have been a great partner, helping us provide residents with an incredible facility for many years, and we wish them all the best as they move forward,” Popove said.
More details coming as they become available.
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Paul J. Henderson
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