Chiefs Open ‘96-‘97 Year On Sept. 20 At Kelowna Resume Rivalry Against Brandon With Home Date On Nov. 2

The Spokane Chiefs and Brandon Wheat Kings - finalists in last year’s Western Hockey League playoffs - resume their rivalry in Spokane on Nov. 2.

The game is a highlight of the Chiefs’ 72-game regular-season schedule released this week.

Under the new WHL scheduling format, the Chiefs play 60 games against West Division rivals. Spokane and the Tri-City Americans will hook up 16 times, eight times at the Arena.

Seattle and Portland are on the schedule 10 times. The Chiefs play eight games against their other division rivals - Prince George, Kamloops and Kelowna.

Chiefs fans will see Brandon, Saskatoon, Regina, Swift Current, Prince Albert and Moose Jaw in Spokane. The Chiefs don’t play Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Edmonton, Red Deer or Calgary at home. They do meet those Alberta teams on the road.

Spokane opens on Sept. 20 in Kelowna. The Chiefs are in Tri-City the following night.

The home opener is Sept. 28 against Tri-City.

The WHL All-Star Game, in Spokane on Jan. 22, is part of the Chiefs’ season-ticket package.

The Chiefs will play the first of six exhibition games on Friday, Aug. 30, in Kimberley, British Columbia, against Portland. They’ve scheduled two exhibitions at Eagles Ice-A-Rena - Sept. 1 with Portland and Sept. 8 against Seattle, both at 6 p.m.

Home dates

September: 28 - Tri-City.

October: 5 - Seattle, 6 - Portland, 16 - Portland, 19 - Tri-City, 23 - Kelowna, 25 - Kelowna, 26 - Kamloops, 30 - Saskatoon.

November: 2 - Brandon, 8 - Seattle, 9 - Tri-City, 20 - Prince George, 23 - Portland, 27 - Regina.

December: 1 - Swift Current, 6 - Tri-City, 7 - Seattle, 11 - Seattle, 14 - Prince Albert, 21 - Tri-City.

January: 4 - Kamloops, 11 - Kelowna, 25 - Tri-City, 29 - Portland.

February: 1 - Kelowna, 2 - Prince George, 14 - Portland, 15 - Tri-City, 19 - Kamloops, 21 - Prince George, 22 - Moose Jaw.

March: 1 - Tri-City, 12 - Kamloops, 14 - Seattle, 15 - Prince George.

Away dates

September: 20 - Kelowna, 21 - Tri-City.

October: 2 - Kamloops, 12 - Tri-City, 18 - Portland, 20 - Kamloops, 27 - Seattle.

November: 3 - Seattle, 6 - Kamloops, 10 - Seattle, 13 - Swift Current, 15 - Lethbridge, 16 - Medicine Hat, 22 - Portland, 29 - Kelowna, 30 - Tri-City.

December: 8 - Portland, 31 - Tri-City.

January: 5 - Portland, 7 - Prince George, 8 - Prince George, 10 - Kelowna, 16 - Edmonton, 17 - Red Deer, 19 - Calgary, 24 - Tri-City, 31 - Portland.

February: 8 - Tri-City, 12 - Seattle, 25 - Prince George, 26 - Prince George, 28 - Tri-City.

March: 4- Kamloops, 5 - Kelowna, 8 - Tri-City, 16 - Seattle.

, DataTimes