The Kelowna Spartans were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word ''ki� ...

, British Columbia, Canada. They were a part of the

British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league from British Columbia under Hockey Canada and BC Hockey. Founded in Vernon in 1961, the BCHL now includes 18 teams. From 1993 to 2021, the league was a member of the Ca ...

. :Kelowna Packers 1985 - 1989 :Kelowna Spartans 1989 - 1995

History

The Kelowna Packers joined the BCJHL in 1985 to fill the void left by the Kelowna Buckaroos who left Kelowna, British Columbia in 1983. They changed their names to the Spartans in 1989. In 1993, the Spartans won the BCJHL title, and moved on to the

Mowat Cup The Mowat Cup is emblematic of the Junior "A" ice hockey Championship of British Columbia (BC). The winner of the Mowat Cup historically moved on to play the winner of Alberta's Carling O'Keefe Cup for the Doyle Cup, signifying the Canadian Pacif ...

for the British Columbia title and defeated the Williams Lake Mustangs of the

Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League The Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League was a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey league in British Columbia. :Peace Junior B Hockey League 19xx–1975 :Peace-Cariboo Junior Hockey League 1975–1991 :Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League 1991–1999 ...

3-games-to-none. They faced the Olds Grizzlys of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, winning the

Doyle Cup The Doyle Cup is an ice hockey trophy won through a best-of-7 series conducted annually by the Canadian Junior Hockey League to determine the Pacific region berth in the Centennial Cup, the national Junior A championship. From 1971 to 2021, the se ...

4-games-to-1 to earn a birth to the Centennial Cup. At the

Centennial Cup 1993 The 1993 Centennial Cup is the 23rd Junior "A" 1993 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League. The Centennial Cup was competed for by the winners of the Doyle Cup, Anavet Cup, Central Canadian Championship, the Eas ...

, the Spartans first defeated the Chateauguay Elites of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League 8-3. In game two, they defeated the

Antigonish Bulldogs The Valley Wildcats are a Canadian junior ice hockey franchise from the Annapolis Valley region of Nova Scotia. The team is a member of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League and plays in the EastLink Division. They play their home games in the ...

of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League 10-4. In game three, they beat the host Amherst Ramblers, also of the MJAHL, 5-2. In the final game of the round robin, they beat the Flin Flon Bombers of the

Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Open to North American-born players 20 years of ...

4-3, to finish the round perfect and won the Abbott Cup. In the semi-final, the Spartans beat the Bulldogs again, 4-1, to earn a birth into the Final. They won that final 7-2 against the Quebec Champions of the LHJAAAQ to win their only National Title. In 1994, the Spartans again won the league again. At the

, the Spartans beat the RMJHL representatives, the Kimberley Dynamiters, 3-games-to-0. In the

, for the second straight year they played the Olds Grizzlys but lost this time 4-games-to-2. Even though they lost to Olds, they were automatically given a berth in the 1994 Centennial Cup as Olds was the host team. They started it off with a 5-2 victory over the SJHL's Weyburn Red Wings. In game two, Kelowna beat the

5-4. The third game put them up again against Olds, but again losing to them 5-2. In game four, the Spartans beat the Chateauguay Elites 9-6 to clinch second place in the Round Robin. In the Semi-final, they again faced the Elites and beat them 3-1 to earn a birth to the Final. The final was against the Grizzlies and the Spartans pushed them to the brink. In the end, the Grizzlies came out on top in overtime, winning 5-4. In 1995, the Spartans disbanded to make room for the Kelowna Rockets' Western Hockey League team.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against''

Notable alumni

Greg Andrusak Greg Andrusak (born November 14, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Andrusak played 43 games in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs. He scored a goal and scored seven points ...

* Jan Bulis * Willie Mitchell *

Bill Muckalt William Raymond Muckalt (born July 15, 1974) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who is currently the associate head coach at Michigan. He was the head coach and general manager of the Tri-City Storm of the United States Hockey L ...

* Jason Ruff *

Joel Savage Joel Savage (born December 25, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player.https://www.nhl.com/player/joel-savage-8451140 Savage was drafted in the first round, 13th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. Savag ...

History

Season-by-season record

Notable alumni

See also