BCHL team, ex-Canuck & Brewer going into BC Hockey Hall of Fame

The 2011-12 Penticton Vees will be inducted into the BC Hockey Hall of Fame this summer.

The team won the Fred Page Cup, Doyle Cup and National Championship, while also setting the record for the longest winning streak in Canadian Junior A history.

That season, the Vees won 42 consecutive regular-season games from November to March. The roster featured current-day NHLers like Mike Reilly (Boston Bruins) and Troy Stecher (Los Angeles Kings), as well as many other notable pros such as Michael Garteig and Steven Fogarty.

The team’s 54 wins, 110 points and .917 win percentage are all BCHL records.

“Every championship team has a unique story behind it,” said Vees President, General Manager and Head Coach Fred Harbinson, who was behind the bench for that historic year. “The 2012 team created so many storylines, while breaking many of junior hockey’s records along the way. It will be great for the fans of Penticton to have a chance to see that group of players come back for what should be an outstanding weekend.”

Despite their record-breaking year, the Vees were challenged in the postseason. The Chilliwack Chiefs pushed them to six games in the first round of the BCHL playoffs. The Merritt Centennials took a game from them in round two, before Penticton swept the Powell River Kings in the Fred Page Cup Finals.

The Vees beat the Brooks Bandits of the Alberta Junior Hockey League in five games to capture the Doyle Cup, then lost their first two games of the National Championship tournament. Despite the setback, the team eventually reached the final and won the title after a 4-3 victory over the Woodstock Slammers of the Maritime Junior Hockey League.

This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony is the first since 2019 after the past two were postponed due to the pandemic and is technically the class of 2020.

In addition to the 2011-12 Vees, former Vancouver Canucks defenceman Mattias Ohlund, former NHL blueliner Eric Brewer, who was born in Vernon, former NHL official Jay Sharrers, the late junior hockey builder Ray Stonehouse and the 2002 Memorial Cup winning Kootenay Ice will also be inducted.

The ceremony will take place on Friday, July 22 at the South Okanagan Events Centre.

(With files from the BCHL)