During the first intermission of the Vancouver Canucks hockey game, MacLean announced that West Kelowna was one of five communities still in contention to become Kraft Hockeyville 2012.

West Kelowna will join Yarmouth, NS, Amos, QB, Stirling-Rawdon, ON and Duck Lake, SK, who were also placed amongst the top five communities.

Westside residents filled up Royal LePage Place on Saturday evening to watch the hockey game and celebrate the announcement.

“It’s been tough sleeping this week, I won’t lie,” said West Kelowna Hockeyville co-chair Adam Less.

“We (were) all pretty anxious and nervous.”

The top five finish has earned West Kelowna $25,000 in arena upgrades and the opportunity to host CBC at its rink on March 31 for Kraft Hockeyville’s announcement of its 2012 winner.

West Kelowna now shifts its focus on voting to win the

competition.

At 8 p.m. on Saturday, voting was opened to the public; voting will close at 9 p.m. on Tuesday.

Residents have two options to vote, either online at www.krafthockeyville.ca or by calling 1-866-533-8066.

A 24-7 voting centre has also been set up at the Comfort Inn in West Kelowna.

Voting is unlimited and anyone from anywhere in the world may vote as often as they’d like.

If West Kelowna is able to win the competition, it will host an NHL exhibition game and receive $100,000 for arena upgrades. It will also be featured on a CBC television broadcast related to the exhibition game in the fall of 2012.

“Terrace paved the way in 2009 by being the first B.C. community ever to win Kraft Hockeyville. We think it’s time it came back to B.C.—we’re going all out to make that happen.”