The Kelowna Chiefs are a Junior 'A' ice hockey team based in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Bill Ohlhausen Division of the Okanagan/Shuswap Conference of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL). They play their home games at Rutland Arena.

History

Chase

The Chiefs were founded as the Chase Chiefs in 2007. They did not qualify for the playoffs in their opening season, finishing with a record of 26-20-5. The following year, they finished 25-23-4, qualifying for the playoffs, where they lost in the second round to the Sicamous Eagles. In the 2009-10 season, they finished with a record of 26-20-4, finishing third in the Okanagan Division. They defeated the Kamloops Storm in the opening round, 3-1, before bowing out to Revelstoke in the second. The 2009-10 season marked the end of the Chase Chiefs, however, as the franchise relocated to Rutland, in Kelowna for the 2010-11 season. In three seasons, the Chase Chiefs compiled a total record of 77-63-13. They were last coached by Brad Fox before the relocation. However, the town of Chase was awarded an expansion franchise for the KIJHL in 2011-12, only a year after the departure of the Chiefs. The Chase Heat joined the league along with the Summerland Steam in 2011-12.

Kelowna

The new Chiefs team played in Kelowna for the 2010-11 season, and finished with a record of 26-21-1-0-2 in their opening season, second in the Okanagan Division. They would lose in the second round of the playoffs, 4-0, to the Osoyoos Coyotes. In their second season, the Chiefs finished with an almost identical record, 26-22-0-0-4, finishing fourth in the Okanagan Division. They surprisingly played all the way to the league championship, before being swept 4-0 by the Beaver Valley Nitehawks. The following year, the Chiefs finished with a record of 35-15-1-0-1, first in the Okanagan Division. They were defeated, however, in the second round of the playoffs by Osoyoos again. In 2013-14, the Chiefs finished 2nd in the Okanagan Division, before losing in the first round to Osoyoos again. The next year, the Chiefs finished with a record of 23-24-2-0-2, 2nd in the Okanagan Division. They lost, however, in the first round again, this time to the Summerland Steam. The 2015-16 season was almost identical, with the Chiefs' compiling a record of 24-23-2-2-1, and losing in the first round again to Summerland.

Season-by-season record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, PTS = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Season <abbr title="Games Played">GP</abbr title> <abbr title="Wins">W</abbr title> <abbr title="Losses">L</abbr title> <abbr title="Ties">T</abbr title> <abbr title="Overtime Losses">OTL</abbr title> <abbr title="Points">PTS</abbr title> <abbr title="Goals For">GF</abbr title> <abbr title="Goals Against">GA</abbr title> Finish Playoffs 2010-11 50 26 21 1 2 55 178 176 2nd of 4, Okanagan7th of 18, KIJHL Lost Div Finals, 0-4 (Coyotes) 2011–12 52 26 22 0 4 56 221 208 4th of 5, Okanagan13th of 20, KIJHL Lost finals, 0-4 (Nitehawks) 2012–13 52 35 15 1 1 72 205 135 1st of 5, Okanagan3rd of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Finals, 2-4 (Coyotes) 2013–14 52 31 17 0 4 66 201 170 2nd of 5, Okanagan6th of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Semifinals, 0-4 (Coyotes) 2014–15 52 23 24 2 2 50 161 173 3rd of 5, Bill Olhausen14th of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Semifinals, 3-4 (Steam) 2015–16 52 24 23 2 1 51 144 158 3rd of 5, Bill Olhausen12th of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Semifinals, 2-4 (Steam) 2016–17 47 20 22 2 3 45 157 156 3rd of 5, Bill Olhausen13th of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Semifinals, 3-4 (Steam) 2017–18 47 27 15 1 4 59 221 171 2nd of 5, Bill Olhausen8th of 20, KIJHL Lost Div Finals, 2-4 (Coyotes)2018–194943312892761111st of 5, Bill Olhausen1st of 20, KJHLLost Conference Finals, 2-4 (Grizzlies)2019–2049321232691861301st of 5, Bill Olhausen4th of 20, KIJHLPlayoffs interrupted by COVID-192020-214220041111Season cancelled due to COVID-192021-22 42 26 13 0 3 55 158 135 2nd of 5, Bill Ohlhausen7th of 19, KIJHL Lost Div Semifinals, 1-4 (Steam)2022-23 44 6 34 0 3 16 95 205 5th of 5, Bill Ohlhausen19th of 19 KIJHLDid not qualify for playoff season2023-24 44 16 324 0 1 36 123 192 4th of 5, Bill Ohlhausen15th of 20 KIJHLLost Div Semifinals, 1-4 (Posse)2024-25 44 19 21 1 3 42 161 188 5th of 6, Bill Ohlhausen8th of 11, O/S Conference13th of 21 KIJHLDid not qualify for playoff season2025-26 44 26 12 3 3 58 184 159 3rd of 6, Bill Ohlhausen4th of 11, O/S Conference7th of 21 KIJHLLost Div Semifinals, 3-4 (Posse)Moving to Independent Western International Junior Hockey League

Playoffs

SeasonDivision SemifinalsDivision FinalsConference FinalsKIJHL Championship2010-11W, 4-3, PrincetonL, 0-4, Osoyoos——2011-12W, 4-2, OsoyoosW, 4-1, PrincetonW, 4-1, SicamousL, 0-4, Beaver Valley2012-13W, 4-2, SummerlandL, 2-4, Osoyoos——2013-14L, 0-4, Osoyoos———2014-15L, 3-4, Summerland———2015-16L, 2-4, Summerland———2016-17L, 3-4, Summerland———2017-18W, 4-3, SummerlandL, 2-4, Osoyoos——2018-19W, 4-0, OsoyoosW, 4-1, SummerlandL, 2-4, Revelstoke—2019-20W, 4-1, North Okanagan1-1, PrincetonPlayoffs cancelled due to COVID-192020-21Playoffs not held due to COVID-192021-22L, 1-4, Summerland———2022-23Did not qualify2023-24L, 1-4, Princeton———2024-25Did not qualify

References

External links

Official website of the Kelowna Chiefs