Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League
 The VIJHL Logo | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1965 |
| Inaugural season | 1965–66 |
| No. of teams | 11 |
| Country |  |
| Most recent champion(s) | Victoria Cougars |
| Most titles | Campbell River Storm (10) |
| Related competitions | Cyclone Taylor Cup (Provincial Championship) |
| Official website | VIJHL.com |
The Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL) is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a junior "B" ice hockey league of 11 franchised member clubs, all of which are currently located in Canada, on Vancouver Island. The Brent Patterson Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. The winner of the Brent Patterson Memorial Trophy competes with the champions of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League and the Pacific International Junior Hockey League for the Cyclone Taylor Cup, the British Columbia Provincial Title.
History[]
The most recent provincial Jr. B champions to come from the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League are the Campbell River Storm in 2015, the Peninsula Panthers in 2011, the Victoria Cougars in 2007, and the Campbell River Storm again in 1999 during their dynasty of the league. The only team in VIJHL history to ever win the Keystone Cup as Western Canadian champions are the 2015 Campbell River Storm. This has been accomplished multiple times by teams in the rival Pacific International Junior Hockey League and Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.
In 2012, the VIJHL announced the addition of two new franchises, the Nanaimo Buccaneers and the Westshore Wolves. The Buccaneers are the namesake of a team that played in the VIJHL in the 1970s. The Wolves are not new to the area either, but are replacing an unsuccessful team, the Westshore Stingers, that folded on December 4, 2010. On May 29th, 2021 the league announced two additional teams. The Lake Cowichan Kraken and the Port Alberni Bombers.
List of teams[]
| Division | Team | City/Area | Arena | Founded | Joined | Head Coach | Captain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North | Campbell River Storm | Campbell River, BC | Rod Brind'Amour Arena | 1997 | Lee Stone | Kyle Jennings | |
| Comox Valley Glacier Kings | Courtenay, BC | Comox Valley Sports Centre | 1992 | Jordan Kamprath | Damien Rennie | ||
| Nanaimo Buccaneers | Nanaimo, BC | Nanaimo Ice Centre | 2012 | ||||
| Oceanside Generals | Parksville, BC | Oceanside Place | 1990 | Trae St. Pierre | |||
| Port Alberni Bombers | Port Alberni, BC | Alberni Valley Multiplex | 2021 | Gaelen Patterson | TBD | ||
| South | Lake Cowichan Kraken | Lake Cowichan, BC | Cowichan Lake Sport Arena | 2021 | Rey Tremblay | TBD | |
| Kerry Park Islanders | Mill Bay, BC | Kerry Park Arena | 1970 | Aaron Spotts | |||
| Peninsula Panthers | North Saanich, BC | Panorama Recreation Centre | 1980's | Brad Tippett | Carson Cox | ||
| Saanich Predators | Saanich, BC | George Pearkes Arena | 1967 | Brent Polischuk | |||
| Victoria Cougars | Esquimalt, BC | Archie Browning Sports Centre | 1998 | Brody Coulter | Dylan Jessa | ||
| Westshore Wolves | Colwood, BC | The Q Centre | 2012 | Ian Birnie | Kahlil Fontana | ||
- Notes
- An asterisk (*) denotes a franchise move. See the respective team articles for more information.
Brent Patterson Memorial Trophy Champions[]
Teams that went on to win the Cyclone Taylor Cup are listed in bold.
| Season | Winning team | Coach | Losing team | Coach | Games | Winning goal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977–78 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1978–79 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1979–80 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1980–81 | Oak Bay Flyers | |||||
| 1981–82 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1982–83 | Oak Bay Flyers | |||||
| 1983–84 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1984–85 | Oak Bay Flyers | |||||
| 1985–86 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1986–87 | Juan de Fuca Gulls | |||||
| 1987–88 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1988–89 | Peninsula Eagles | |||||
| 1989–90 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1990–91 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1991–92 | Parksville Generals | |||||
| 1992–93 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1993–94 | Kerry Park Islanders | |||||
| 1994–95 | Comox Valley Glacier Kings | |||||
| 1995–96 | Saanich Braves | |||||
| 1996–97 | Parksville Generals | |||||
| 1997–98 | Campbell River Storm | |||||
| 1998–99 | Campbell River Storm | |||||
| 1999–00 | Campbell River Storm | |||||
| 2000–01 | Campbell River Storm | Kerry Park Islanders | 4–3 | |||
| 2001–02 | Campbell River Storm | Peninsula Panthers | 4–1 | |||
| 2002–03 | Campbell River Storm | Victoria Cougars | Craig Didmon | 3–0 | ||
| 2003–04 | Campbell River Storm | Peninsula Panthers | 3–0 | |||
| 2004–05 | Victoria Cougars | Craig Didmon | Campbell River Storm | 2–0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Kerry Park Islanders | Jim Ingram | Campbell River Storm | 4–2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Victoria Cougars | Craig Didmon | Kerry Park Islanders | |||
| 2007–08 | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | Kerry Park Islanders | 4–2 | ||
| 2008–09 | Oceanside Generals | Dave Johnson | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | 4–1 | |
| 2009–10 | Peninsula Panthers | Geoff Grimwood | Comox Valley Glacier Kings | Jordan Butcher | 3–1 | |
| 2010–11 | Peninsula Panthers | Jackson Penney | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | 4–3 | Ryan Reynolds (9:02, first) |
| 2011–12 | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | Peninsula Panthers | Peter Zubersky | 4–0 | Steve Axford (4:32, second) |
| 2012–13 | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | Comox Valley Glacier Kings | 4–0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | Peninsula Panthers | Peter Zubersky | 4–2 | |
| 2014–15 | Campbell River Storm | Lee Stone | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | 4–0 | Connor Logan (2:31, 1st period) |
| 2015–16 | Victoria Cougars | Mark Van Helvoirt | Campbell River Storm | Lee Stone | 4–2 | Nathan Looysen (6:46 2nd period) |
| 2016–17 | Campbell River Storm | Lee Stone | Victoria Cougars | Suneil Karod | 4–3 | Christian Brandt (4:48 4OT period) |
| 2017–18 | Campbell River Storm | Lee Stone | Saanich Braves | Sam Waterfield | 6-0 | Darrin Hards (11:12 - 1st period) |
| 2018–19 | Victoria Cougars | Suneil Karod | Campbell River Storm | Mike Wilson | 4-1 | Matthew Clark(17:47 - 3rd period) |
| 2019–20 | Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic – VIJHL Championship not awarded | |||||
| 2020-21 | Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic – VIJHL Championship not awarded | |||||
Total League Championships By Team[]
| # | Team | Championships | Active/Defunct | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Campbell River Storm | 10 | Active | |
| 2 | Victoria Cougars | 8 | Active | |
| 3 | Kerry Park Islanders | 7 | Active | |
| 4 | Saanich Braves | 6 | Active | |
| 5 | Oak Bay Flyers | 3 | Defunct | |
| Oceanside Generals | 3 | Active | 91-92 and 96-97 Championship won
under the name "Parksville Generals" | |
| Peninsula Panthers | 3 | Active | 88-89 Championship won
under the name "Peninsula Eagles" | |
| 8 | Comox Valley Glacier Kings | 1 | Active | |
| Juan de Fuca Gulls | 1 | Defunct |
NHL alumni[]
- Jamie Benn
- Jordie Benn
- Adam Cracknell
- Taylor Ellington
- Matt Ellison
- Riley Emmerson
- Kyle Greentree
- Tyson Barrie
- Matt Irwin
- Ryan O'Byrne
- Greg Scott
- Clayton Stoner
- Ty Wishart
- Trent Knorr
See also[]
External links[]
- Ice hockey leagues in British Columbia
- Junior ice hockey leagues in Canada
- 1965 establishments in British Columbia
- Sports leagues established in 1965