Kale Kane wasted no time blending into the Chilliwack Chiefs’ lineup and is hoping to lead the division champions in game two of round three of the BCHL playoffs. (Courtesy Bob Frid – Freemotion Photography)
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After completing a stint at Salisbury Academy, standout forward Kale Kane packed his bags for the west where he has been playing on the Chilliwack Chiefs in the BCHL (British Columbia Hockey League).
Kane’s Chiefs took on the West Kelowna Warriors Tuesday in the first of the league’s third round double-round-robin semi-final playoff series.
West Kelowna was the BCHL’s top team this season, but were stymied by some quality Chiefs play in the first period, particularly from goalie Aidan Pelino, who stood on his head to keep the Warriors shooters at bay.
“I thought we came out pretty strong in the first,” said Kane.
The Warriors scored twice in the first half of the second frame, but Chilliwack answered with one of their own from Jordan Kawaguchi, with Kane assisting on the goal.
Discipline, however, cost the Chiefs.
“We started taking penalties which cost us in the second and third period, and by that time, we dug ourselves a deep hole that we couldn’t climb out of,” said Kane.
West Kelowna scored twice on the power play in the third to put the game away and added an empty netter for the 5-1 win.
Kane has four goals and six assists in 10 playoff games.
In round three of the playoffs, the three top teams from each of the league’s zones (island, interior and mainland) need to win three games to advance to the finals. With the Warriors win, thus, West Kelowna needs to win twice more to advance. The top two teams will play in the Fred Page Cup BCHL Finals.
Kane took little time to fit in on the Chiefs. He scored 15 goals and added 24 assists in his rookie season with the Junior team.
“The year’s been great,” said Kane. “We finished first in our division, second in the league, and winning our divisional title in the second round of the playoffs.”
Chilliwack has a must-win game tomorrow night in Nanaimo against the Clippers (the third team in the round robin). The Chiefs are home Monday to play the Clippers again with a potential payback game against league champions West Kelowna Wednesday.
Kane said leaving the community in high school to play hockey helped him be more comfortable playing in unfamiliar surroundings.
“It wasn’t hard adjusting,” said Kane. “I got used to living away from home, the two years I was at Salisbury.”
There are four more scheduled games in the Chiefs’ season.
