BC Sports: A year in review

SHAYLENE TIELMANN/GATG

2025 was a historic year in sports for British Columbia. From hockey to soccer there was a surge in viewership, and buy-in from the hometown crowds. Through ups and downs, to the underdogs coming out on top, BC sports has had a very memorable year. 

This was also the year that proved everyone watches women’s sports as we saw the launch of professional women's soccer with Northern Super League (NSL) and the expansion of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). 

Hockey

This year women’s hockey took centre stage with their takeover tour that went to multiple cities throughout North America. Each city hoped that theirs would be chosen for the first ever expansion teams. 

In April it was confirmed that Vancouver and Seattle would see a PWHL team added to their professional sports rosters. 

The Vancouver Goldeneyes managed to secure a pretty impressive roster in the expansion draft securing fan favourites such as Sarah Nurse, Jenn Gardiner, Claire Thompson, Sophie Jaques, and Emerance Maschmeyer. 

They are also the first PWHL team to have a permanent venue that is not shared with another team in the area. 

The Goldeneyes secured their first win of the season on home ice against the Seattle Torrent in their inaugural game. They are also the first team in the PWHL to secure wins in their first 3 home games in their inaugural season. 

However, the history making did not end with the women. The Abbotsford Canucks, the Vancouver Canucks affiliate team, managed to bring home the Calder Cup. 

The Calder Cup is the American Hockey Leagues (AHL) equivalent to the National Hockey Leagues (NHL) Stanley Cup. 

This is the first time in Canucks franchise history that one of their teams has brought home a trophy of this caliber. 

The Abbotsford Canucks were the underdogs going into the playoffs. When looking at the start of the season and the constant man up mentality, many didn’t see them as a contender. However, they proved everyone wrong. 

Though the team won, there were a lot of changes in the off season, with many fan favourites being traded. Artūrs Šilovs, the MVP of the Calder Cup play offs, was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he has been a starting goalie through much of the start of the season. 

However, with the rebuilding of the Abbotsford Canucks, it has brought on some young talent such as defencemen Sawyer Mynio and Tom Willander. Both of which are key pieces on defence. Willander has since been called up and has been playing with the Vancouver Canucks. 

Though the Vancouver Canucks have had a very interesting few seasons. 2025 saw some of the Abbotsford Canucks key players called up and have proven themselves as important pieces to the success of the team. 

Max Sasson was officially signed to a 2-year deal with the organization. While Linus Karlsson has begun to find his footing with the team, and started to put up points and score some impressive goals. 

Brock Boeser signed a 7-year deal with the team over the summer which had many fans breathing a sigh of relief. 

A huge trade that sent the Canucks fandom into a spiral was the trading of captain Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild. In return the Canucks acquired forwards Marco Rossi and Liam Öhgren, defenceman Zeev Buium and a first round draft pick for 2026. 

The new players have already started to make their mark with scoring important goals and shifting the dynamic on the ice. 

The team may be rebuilding but there is a lot of young talent in the organization, looking to make a difference. 

Lacrosse

For the first time in their franchise history the Vancouver Warriors made it to the second round of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) playoffs. 

Since their foundation in 2014 this is only the second time that the Warriors have made it to the playoffs, and the first time they have made it to the semi-finals. 

Though they lost to the Buffalo Bandits, the team proved their abilities and skills to the fans. The 2025/2026 season has begun and with new and returning faces to the lineup the Warriors are looking to make another push for a playoff spot early on. 

Soccer

Another sport that saw women dominating was the world of soccer. 2025 saw the foundation and inaugural season of the NSL. The league is made up of 8 teams across Canada. 

In its first season the playoffs ended up being between the Vancouver Rise and AFC Toronto. The final game took place in Toronto, with 1.1 million fans tuning in online to watch the final match. 

The Rise would take the victory in a 2-1 win, solidifying them as the first ever NSL Champions and the first to hoist the Diana B. Matheson Cup. 

Again, the women weren’t the only ones making history for Vancouver in the world of soccer. The Vancouver Whitecaps made their historic playoff run all the way to the MLS Finals. 

Though the Whitecaps did not win the Championship title they did make a name for themselves in the MLS world as a true contender in the soccer world. 

Football

The BC Lions had a solid run this season making it to the Western Conference Finals against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. 

The Roughriders would end up taking the conference title, and would go on to win the Grey Cup. 

Even though the Lions did not win, they fought hard and their season saw some incredible plays, and fan events. 

The Lions, Nathan Rourke won 2 awards this season for Most Outstanding Canadian Player in the CFL and the Most Outstanding Player.

Baseball

The Vancouver Canadians saw some incredible players make their way through the roster this past season. One of the most impressive being Trey Yesavage. 

Yesavage made his Canadians debut in May and by October he was the youngest person in Major League Baseball history to start in a World Series game. He broke not only franchise records but league records, striking out 12 players with no walks in a World Series game. 

He was not the only player on the Bluejays to have crossed through the Canadians field. John Schneider, Mason Fluharty, Davis Schneider, and Addison Barger are some other names that have graced the Canadians roster in the past. 

With the 2026 season on the come-up there are many up and coming athletes that will make their way through the minor leagues to the big stage.

Basketball

The Vancouver Bandits had an incredible season making it all the way to the Western Conference Semifinals.

The year for the Bandits was a unique experience for many as there were call ups and injuries that saw a lot of roster changes throughout their run. 

But it was the semifinals that saw the most controversy. The Bandits had been playing strong and looked as though they were going to take the game, but at the end a number of controversial calls in favour of the other team, cost them the game by 2 points. 

Despite those calls, however, the team saw a lot of growth in the fanbase, with a number of games selling out and the community buying into the team. 

As 2025 comes to a close there is no better time to celebrate the accomplishments of so many people behind the scenes as well. From social media managers, to coaches, to team coordinators. These people have made all of this possible and deserve the recognition. They have spent countless days and nights supporting the teams and making sure that they are game day ready. Take some time to reach out to these people and celebrate all they have done as well.