New league, new direction for Delta Ice Hawks
Team will compete in a new Junior A BC Hockey Conference
After decades as a stalwart member of the Pacific Junior Hockey League (PJHL), the Delta Ice Hawks have moved into a new Junior A provincial hockey conference.
In mid April, the BC Hockey Board of Directors unanimously approved the British Columbia Hockey Conference (BCHC) as its newest member.
The BCHC, which will operate as a Junior A league, is a new society that includes several traditional teams from B.C.’s junior hockey communities.
A total of 22 teams, 14 from the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) and eight from the PJHL, will form the BCHC for the 2026-27 season.
This step follows two seasons of work by BC Hockey, its members, and key stakeholders to ensure clubs were prepared to commit to processes aimed toward operating at a level that players and families should expect of organizations at the junior A level. As part of this process, interested teams were evaluated by an independent third party for promotion.
The following teams will compete in the BCHC during the 2026/27 season, with their previous league affiliation noted in parentheses:
Beaver Valley Nitehawks (KIJHL), Burnaby Steelers (PJHL), Chilliwack Jets (PJHL), Coastal Tsunami (PJHL), Columbia Valley Rockies (KIJHL), Delta Ice Hawks (PJHL), Fernie Ghostriders (KIJHL), Grand Forks Border Bruins (KIJHL), Kamloops Storm (KIJHL), Kimberley Dynamiters (KIJHL), Langley Trappers (PJHL), Merritt Centennials (KIJHL), Nelson Leafs (KIJHL), Osoyoos Coyotes (KIJHL), Port Coquitlam Trailblazers (PJHL), Princeton Posse (KIJHL), Quesnel River Rush (KIJHL), Revelstoke Grizzlies (KIJHL), Richmond Sockeyes (PJHL), Ridge Meadows Flames (PJHL). Summerland Jets (KIJHL) and Williams Lake Mustangs (KIJHL).
“We continue to take measured and thoughtful steps to build our junior hockey pathways in B.C. and to restore a strong and connected ecosystem for our leagues, teams, and junior hockey participants,” said BC Hockey Chief Executive Officer Cameron Hope in a news release. “We are now positioned to return to competition for Hockey Canada’s national Junior A championship and, more importantly, to deliver a high-quality player experience for players and families.”
What this means for the Ice Hawks
Recently, the Ice Hawks welcomed Mark Burgin as the team’s new general manager and Rick Lanz as its new head coach.
Both bring decades of hockey experience at multiple levels of the game.
With this change in leadership and now moving to this brand new Junior A league, Eduard Epshtein, owner and president of the Ice Hawks, says this is an exciting time for the club.
“We have come a long way in the past few years from Junior B to where we are now – Junior A, but we are not done,” said Epshtein. “We are going to continue developing our program. Our goal is to compete for the Centennial Cup.”
Epshtein said the past year, their first at Sungod Arena in Delta after calling the Ladner Leisure Centre home for many years, was a good one.
“Our attendance increased multi-fold. Our community support was fantastic. Having Saturday nights instead of Tuesdays attracted more younger fans, so we will continue engaging with local schools, businesses for sponsorships and with Mark’s help and Rick’s help, we want to continue to help players move up and be successful. In three years, we want to graduate players to major junior, want to be a development team, and then have a team that will compete for the Centennial Cup,” he said.
Lanz said he sees this as a great opportunity to get back into coaching at the Junior A level after the past nine years with the Delta Hockey Academy.
“I wanted to maintain some level of involvement with the Academy, so we have that in place, where I’m not in a head role with the Academy, but I can maintain something there and then take on this challenge,” he said. “Hockey for me has been basically my life’s work. I played, I coached and here I am. No matter what role I have, it still excites me. I’m still learning new things and I really enjoy working with the new players that come through.”
Burgin too is excited to be a part of this.
“For me, having the opportunity to step in and work with young players, which I’ve done for so long, and contribute to the advancement of this new league – really, the timing could not be better,” he said. “There are so many things we can do with community engagement, I’m super excited to be involved.”
Epshtein said details on the league schedule and league start will be announced over the summer, but indicated the league would likely start play in early to mid-September.
– Delta Optimist, May 8, 2026
