WHITE ROCK, BC.
The White Rock Whalers held a 3-1 series lead in the Harold Brittain Conference Finals on Sunday night after a commanding 4-0 win in Mission. Monday was a day off for both teams before a pivotal Game 5 in Mission on Tuesday night. After some recent clarification from the PJHL, the winner of this series (from the Harold Brittain Conference) would be awarded the brand new Pacific Cup.
Game five featured a big crowd in Mission, and after the Whalers led for most of the game, the Outlaws made it close at the very end. At the final buzzer, the Whalers held on to a one-goal lead, winning game five 4-3 and the series 4-1, as they were crowned as the Harold Brittain Conference and Pacific Cup Champions on the night of March 24th, 2026.
White Rock Whalers at Mission City Outlaws, Mar. 24
The Whalers took a team bus up to Mission for game five, with a chance to win the series. In the 1st period, the Whalers shut down an early power play chance for the Outlaws, before Jacob Roche opened the scoring for the Whalers on a Whalers power play just a few minutes later. Each team got one more powerplay chance in the 1st, but after 20 minutes, the Whalers led 1-0, with the shots on goal tied at 16 for each team.
The 2nd period was where the Whalers began to gain momentum in this potential series-clinching game. Kaden Charpentier scored his 1st goal of the playoffs to give the Whalers a 2-0 lead midway through the second. After some chances from both teams, Max Kovach scored about five minutes later to give the Whalers a 3-0 lead. Each team had one unsuccessful power play in the 2nd, and shots on goal in the second frame were 15-13 for the Outlaws.
Each team took a penalty 25 seconds apart early in the 3rd period. Cooper Crowe scored his team-leading 10th goal of the playoffs on this 4 on 4 to get the Outlaws on the scoreboard. Teams traded chances in the next part of the 3rd, before Dylan Heer scored his 4th goal in 2 games (after a hat trick in game 4) to give the Whalers a 4-1 lead with eight and a half minutes left. Outlaws defenceman Alfie DeBruyn scored with four and a half minutes left to once again make it a two goal game.
The Outlaws didn’t go out without a fight in game five, and you could tell the Whalers were doing everything they could to defend their two goal lead in this game. Colton Collard brought the Outlaws to within one goal with two and a half minutes left. After some good time management from the Whalers, the Outlaws pulled their goalie with not much time remaining, but the Whalers held on to win the game 4-3.
Shots on goal in the 3rd period were not updated on the PJHL website, and the Whalers finished 1/4 on the powerplay, while the Outlaws again did not score on the powerplay, going 0/4. The White Rock Whalers held on late in game 5 to win the series 4-1, becoming Harold Brittain Conference Champions and newly announced Pacific Cup Champions.
After teams shook hands to conclude a hard fought series, Whalers Captain Wendell Adriano hoisted the Pacific Cup, and the celebrations began for the White Rock Whalers organization. At the end of the playoffs, Wendell Adriano and Sean Robins finished tied for the conference lead in playoff points with 25 each in 14 games. The Whalers finished the three-round playoffs with an outstanding 12-1-1 record which included two overtime wins. The Whalers scored 84 goals in these 14 games (an average of 6 goals a game!) while only allowing 34 goals in the playoffs.
Up Next for the Pod
The Whalers have nothing left on their schedule, as they can now celebrate a successful 2025-26 championship season. If you want to keep up with the Whalers during the off-season, make sure to watch them in action during the Fraser Valley Super League at the Surrey Sport & Leisure Complex and the North Surrey Ice Complex from early April to late June.
Until next season, Whalers fans! Thank you to all of the players, coaches, volunteers and anyone else who helped the Whalers to their first championship in franchise history!
