| 2023–24 BCHL Season | |
|---|---|
| League | British Columbia Hockey League |
| Sport | Hockey |
| Duration | Regular season 22 September – 31 March Post-season 5 April – 26 May Rocky Mountain Challenge 31 May - 1 June |
| Number of games | 54 |
| Number of teams | 17 (BC) 5 (AB) |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Surrey Eagles (BC) Brooks Bandits (AB) |
| Post-season | |
| BC champions | Surrey Eagles |
| BC runners-up | Penticton Vees |
| AB champions | Brooks Bandits |
| AB runners-up | Sherwood Park Crusaders |
| Rocky Mountain Challenge | |
| Champions | Brooks Bandits |
| Runners-up | Surrey Eagles |
| BCHL seasons | |
The 2023–24 BCHL season was the 62nd season of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). The 17 teams from the Coastal and Interior Divisions played 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] The 5 teams in the stand-alone Alberta Division, which was created mid-season, played between 65 and 69 season games.
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 stand-alone division under the aegis of the BCHL.[8]
For the post-season, the Okotoks Oilers and Spruce Grove Saints, respectively the 4th and 5th placed teams in the Alberta division, played a best-of-5 wildcard series, with the winner advancing to the Alberta division semi-finals along with the top-3 Alberta teams. The rankings for the Alberta division were determined by winning percentage including their regular season records from the AJHL. The semi-final and final rounds each consisted of a best-of-7 series. The Brooks Bandits defeated the Spruce Grove Saints in the final round 4 games to 1.[9][10]
The Surrey Eagles won the BCHL Fred Page Cup championship after defeating the Penticton Vees in 6 games. The Surrey Eagles and Brooks Bandits then met for a best-of-3 competition hosted by Brooks and branded as the Rocky Mountain Challenge. The Brooks Bandits swept the Surrey Eagles in 2 games.[11][12][13]
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 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.
| First round | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Fred Page Cup Final | ||||||||||||
| Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Cowichan Valley | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Victoria | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Victoria | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Nanaimo | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Alberni Valley | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Chilliwack | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Langley | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| Chilliwack | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| Alberni Valley | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Alberni Valley | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Coquitlam | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Surrey | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Penticton | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Penticton | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Prince George | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| Penticton | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Vernon | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Vernon | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Trail | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Penticton | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Salmon Arm | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| West Kelowna | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Cranbrook | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| West Kelowna | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Salmon Arm | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Salmon Arm | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Merritt | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Wildcard (Bo5) | Semifinals (Bo7) | Final (Bo7) | |||||||||
| Brooks | 4 | ||||||||||
| Okotoks | 3 | ||||||||||
| Okotoks | 3 | ||||||||||
| Spruce Grove | 0 | ||||||||||
| Brooks | 4 | ||||||||||
| Sherwood Park | 1 | ||||||||||
| Sherwood Park | 4 | ||||||||||
| Blackfalds | 0 | ||||||||||
| Best of 3 | |||
| Brooks | 2 | ||
| Surrey | 0 | ||
GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, P = Points, PIM = Penalties In Minutes
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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.
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| Interior conference |
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| Coastal conference |
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| Seasons |
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