Spokane Chiefs to open WHL playoffs at Kamloops, earning No. 7 seed after three-way tiebreaker

From staff reports

It may have taken until the final day of the regular season, but the Spokane Chiefs succeeded in their push to qualify for the Western Hockey League playoffs.

The Chiefs will travel to Kamloops, British Columbia, to face the No. 2-seeded Blazers in the first round, which starts Friday at 7 p.m.

Spokane finished in a three-way tie with Prince George and Vancouver for the last three spots in the Western Conference playoffs. A tiebreaker process awarded Prince George the sixth seed based on point differential. Spokane defeated Vancouver three times in four matchups during the season and garnered the seventh seed based on head-to-head outcomes.

The Spokesman-Review erroneously reported the Chiefs had earned the eighth seed in Sunday’s edition.

Kamloops secured wins in its first two games against the Chiefs this season, but Spokane notched a crucial 6-5 road win on April 1 that aided its late surge toward a playoff berth.

The Chiefs were able to top Kamloops offensively in that game, but they have surrendered a total of 18 goals to the Blazers in their three contests. Spokane was shut out 6-0 at the Spokane Arena in the first meeting on Jan. 15 and lost 7-2 in Kamloops on March 2.

The Blazers rolled to a first-place finish in the WHL’s B.C. Division with 99 points and secured the second seed behind Everett, which topped the U.S. Division with 100 points.

Kamloops and Spokane completed a noteworthy trade in mid-January. The Chiefs sent forward Luke Toporowski north of the border and acquired forward Nick McCarry and a second-round pick in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft.