BCEHL PLAYOFF UPDATE
For Immediate Release
Saanichton, B.C. - The BCEHL playoffs came to a conclusion last weekend as the Female U18 league’s Greater Vancouver Comets and the U18 league’s Okanagan Rockets both earned back-to-back championships!
Female U18 AAA
The Female U18 championship saw the top-seeded Greater Vancouver Comets and the Thompson-Okanagan Lakers meet up in Coquitlam to decide the 2025-26 league champion. The Comets were the top team during the regular season as they finished 12 points clear of the Lakers who had finished in third place, but were also tied in points with the second place club. The Comets and Lakers split their eight game regular season series, but the Lakers earned the better record after they garnered an overtime point in one game. The championship would be on the line between these two equally matched teams.
Thompson-Okanagan would strike first in Game 1 when Jesse Umeris scored in the first period. The Lakers would extend their lead to 2-0 in the latter stages of the second period when Madison Millership would score her second of the playoffs. This would turn out to be the eventual game winner as the clubs exchanged goals in the third period. The Lakers netminder, Courtnay Cooke, stopped 31 of 32 shots while Comets’ goalie Madison Kong kicked out 25 of 28 shots.
With their backs against the wall, the Comets would have to come out with a huge effort to try and force a third and deciding game in the series. Zoe Wilcox would light the lamp and send the Comets to the dressing room with a 1-0 lead through 40 minutes as she scored her first goal of the playoffs. The flood gates would open in the third period. The Comets would make it 2-0, but the Lakers would storm back scoring three straight goals to take the lead. It would be short lived though, as Samantha Woo scored for Greater Vancouver 2:24 after Thompson-Okanagan had taken the lead, and the game was knotted a three goals apiece. Hana Nishi would find the back of the net with 2:33 remaining in the third for the game winner, and the Comets tied the series at 1-1. The Lakers’ Courtney Cooke stopped 42 of 46 shots on the night while the Comets' Madison Kong saved 17 of 20.
The third and deciding game would see both Kong and Cooke take centre stage for their respective teams. The Comets came out quick and hard in the first period period with Carolyn Koo and Lucy Peloso hitting pay dirt. The 2-0 lead would hold up until late in the third when Jesse Umeris would pull the Lakers to within one with a power play goal with 2:43 left in the third period. Kong and the Comets were able to stave off the Lakers final push and held on for the 2-1 victory. Kong made 38 saves on 39 shots while Cooke stopped 22 of 24 pucks directed her way. With this win, the Comets are now back-to-back champions. This is the second time the Comets have won back-to-back titles. The first occurred when the team three-peated from 2016-2019. This is the Comets fifth championship overall (2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19, 2024-25, and 2025-26).
The Comets will travel to Red Deer to take on the Alberta champion, the Red Deer Sutter Fund Chiefs, in the Pacific Regional Championship beginning on April 3. The Comets now begin their quest to win the Esso Cup.
The schedule for the Pacific Regional Championship will be available on the Alberta Female Hockey League website once finalized.
U18 AAA
The U18 championship would see the Thompson Blazers travel down Highway 97 to meet the Okanagan Rockets in Kelowna. The fourth-seeded Blazers would face a tough task in knocking off the second-seeded and defending champion Rockets. The Rockets finished the regular season with 53 points, a mere one point behind the Vancouver North East Chiefs for top spot. The Blazers finished in fourth place with 35 points. The Blazers had earned their place in the championship by knocking off the Chiefs in the league semifinals. The Blazers would look to ride the momentum from their semifinal win into the finals.
Unfortunately for Thompson, they ran into a juggernaut of a squad in the Rockets when they arrived in Kelowna on Friday night. Okanagan hit the scoreboard a mere 41 seconds into Game 1 when Von Lakovic tickled the twine. Hudson Getzlaf would push it to 2-0 five minutes later. The Blazers would cut it to 2-1 less than two minutes later, but after that it was all Rockets who would outscore the Blazers 7-2 the rest of the way as they earned the Game 1 victory by a 10-3 final. Lakovic and Brayden Jugnauth each tallied 2g-2a in the win.
The Rockets would look to capture the title as the teams met in Game 2 on Saturday, and this one left absolutely no doubt. The Rockets roared out of the gate and did not take their foot off the accelerator. Both Lakovic and Brayden Jugnauth picked up where they left off on Friday night. Lakovic scored four goals in Game 2 while Brayden Jugnauth notched five points (3g-2a) in the Rockets 7-0 drubbing of the Blazers. Reed Russell earned the shutout with 21 saves as Okanagan swept the series 2-0. The Rockets are now back-to-back champions for the first time in the club’s history. It is their fifth championship overall (2005-06, 2013-14, 2022-23, 2024-25, and 2025-26)
The Rockets will now host the Alberta champion, either the Calgary Northstars or the Edmonton Jr. Oilers Blue, April 3-5 in the Pacific Regional Championship as Okanagan sets their focus on the Telus Cup.
Click HERE to view the Pacific Regional Championship schedule.
U17 AAA
The second-seeded Vancouver NE Chiefs took down the top-seeded Vancouver North West Hawks in the U17 championship. The Chiefs swept their way to the league crown with an overtime win in Game 1 and a clear victory in Game 2 to take the best-of-three by a 2-0 count. This is the organization’s first ever U17 championship.
U15 AAA
The Okanagan Rockets were crowned the BCEHL U15 champions on March 1st at the league’s playoff tournament. The Rockets had been the league’s top team all season having earned a 27-3-0-0 record in the regular season as well as a 6-0 record during the league’s championship tournament. With the victory, the Rockets become the U15 league’s first ever back-to-back champions.
To stay up to date on everything going on in the BCEHL visit the website to view schedules, standings, stats, and scores: BCEHL.net, follow @BCEHL on X, @BCEHL_AAA on Instagram, and join the conversation by using #BCEHLAAAHOCKEY
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