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Former Warrior memorialized

Parm Dhaliwal was a West Kelowna skater for three years

Former West Kelowna Warrior Parm Dhaliwal was found dead in a New York hotel room on July 30.

A native of Surrey, Dhaliwal cut his teeth with Yale Hockey Academy out of Abbotsford before his junior hockey career, which he started in the 2015-16 BCHL season in a pair of games with the Chilliwack Chiefs.

Dhaliwal spent the next three seasons as a key member of the Warriors, culminating in a point-per-game effort in 2018-19.

Despite still being under contract the following season with the Warriors, Dhaliwal was sidelined by concussion issues, effectively ending his hockey career.

News of Dhaliwal’s passing quickly reached social media, with teams from around the league paying their respects.

A celebration of life was held in Delta on Aug. 7, while at the start of the Aug. 23 West Kelowna council meeting, Mayor Gord Milsom gave his and council’s regards to the community mourning Dhaliwal’s death.

“On behalf of council and the City of West Kelowna, I wish to extend our deepest condolences to Parm’s family and to the West Kelowna Warriors, Parm’s teammates, the coaching staff, his billet family, and all others within the Warriors organization,” said Milsom.

“Parm was known on and off the ice as a great friend and teammate, and he will be greatly missed by many.”

The Warrriors held their own memorial in a pre-game ceremony on Oct. 1 against the Penticton Vees, with many members of the Dhaliwal family in attendance, with Parm’s mom, dad, and brother on the ice for the pregame tribute.

A video was played for the crowd filled with photos of Dhaliwal and countless highlights from his time with the Warriors.

At the end of the video, former Warriors broadcaster Chase Johnston spoke, saying “Every team in the BCHL wanted a Parm on their team.”

The team had a moment of silence that lasted 22 seconds, Parm’s jersey number.

Warriors’ forwards Brennan Nelson and Riley Sharun presented the Dhaliwal family with a jersey and a framed photo of Parm.

The players also wore decals on their helmet with the number 22.

Dhaliwal recorded 120 points (38 goals, 82 assists) in 148 games for the Warriors throughout his career and was an assistant captain during the 2018-19 season.



Jake Courtepatte

About the Author: Jake Courtepatte

Editor of Kelowna Capital News & West K News since February 2022. I have spent the majority of my career working in the Toronto area as both a sports reporter and a general reporter.
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