It was a wedding that could only happen in Canada — long-time season ticket holders Jim Peck and Radka Malyk tied the knot at Royal LePage Place in front of an arena full of fans and their beloved West Kelowna Warriors.
The couple was married by the team’s chaplain Don Richmond and mascot The General was their ring bearer. When Richmond pronounced the couple as husband and wife, the crowd erupted in cheers.
RELATED: Looking back at West Kelowna Warriors hockey history
Jim and Radka shared their first kiss at centre ice, treating Warriors fans to a different kind of face-off.
It all started seven years ago when Jim met Radka. She was a property manager and he was a contractor. Over the years Jim would do work at Radka’s building and they developed a fondness for each other.
Their first date was November 27, 2014 and they hit it off. That led to another date, then another.
Two years ago, the couple was on holiday in St. Martin where Jim proposed to Radka in front of 150 people, something that was outside of their comfort zone.
Prior to COVID, the couple hoped to elope to some beautiful foreign locale. But with travelling out of the question, Radka finally asked Jim if he’d like to get married on November 27, 2021.
There was just one problem: Jim is a die-hard Warriors fan. He’s been going to games since the team’s inaugural season and even followed the Warriors to Alberta for their 2016 RBC Cup victory.
“I said okay, let me look at the schedule. I said, ‘well there’s a hockey game that night’. She gave me a death stare. Then she said, ‘well maybe we can get married there.”
So Jim phoned Warriors president Chris Laurie to pitch the idea and he loved it.
“When Jim approached me with the idea it took me a few minutes to wrap my head around it, but then I figured we could have a lot of fun with this,” Laurie said.
Out-of-town guests, the Cranbrook Bucks, crashed the wedding by defeating the Warriors 2-1. Warriors goaltender Justin Katz stood on his head, putting up 38 saves against 40 shots from the Bucks.
They weren’t gifted with a win, but the couple wasn’t expecting gifts in the first place. Instead, they hope people will make a donation to the West Kelowna Warrior’s annual Christmas Hamper Drive. Donations can be made by calling the Warriors office at 250-769-7051.
RELATED: Warriors launch 10th annual Christmas Hamper Drive to support less fortunate
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