How local WHL teams faring as Kelowna looks ahead to Memorial Cup

One of the biggest local events on the calendar in 2026 is the Memorial Cup tournament returning to Kelowna, but will the Rockets be able to keep up? Will the Penticton Vees or Kamloops Blazers be joining them?

So far it’s the Okanagan’s newest Western Hockey League team with the best shot at a run for junior hockey’s most coveted prize.

Graduating from the BCHL this season, the Penticton Vees stepped into the league with a strong start and sit in third place within the western conference.

The league expansion came after the Vees led the provincial junior league for years and took home 14 BCHL championships under head coach Fred Harbinson. In an expansion draft, the team picked up 22 WHL players ahead of the 2025 season.

With 16 wins and 39 points, Penticton is behind Everett Silvertips in first place and Prince George Courgars in second.

But it’s a tight race behind them.

The Rockets, led by Shane Smith and Tij Iginla returning from injury, are tied for fourth with 38 points, while the Kamloops Blazers are tied for sixth with 37 points, thanks in part to WHL leading scorer JP Hurlbert.

For Kelowna, it’s the first time the championship tournament has come to the Okanagan since 2004 when the Rockets hoisted the Memorial Cup in their own city.

The tournament was supposed to be held in Kelowna in 2020, but it was derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In preparation for the 2025 tournament, Prospera Place was upgraded with $5.1 million in investments, which included a new jumbotron and two new Zambonis.

Tickets went on sale last month, with the first puck drop between the Rockets and the OHL champions on May 22. There will be at least eight games with the championship on May 31.