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Origins

The original Spokane Chiefs were a senior team that played in the Western International Hockey League (WIHL) from 1982 to 1985, the last of several Spokane teams to play in the league dating back to the 1940s. In their final year, the Chiefs were the regular season and playoff WIHL champions. In 1982, Kelowna, British Columbia, was awarded an expansion team in the junior Western Hockey League; the Kelowna Wings played three seasons before the team relocated to Spokane in 1985 and took up the Chiefs name. The Chiefs became the second WHL team in Spokane after the short-lived Flyers, a team that stemmed from the WHL-charter member Flin Flon Bombers and operated from 1980 to 1982, when the team folded. The team began playing in the Spokane Coliseum, which had been hosting hockey since the 1950s.

First title and the 1990s

The Chiefs found relatively early success in Spokane, missing the playoffs only once in the team's first thirteen seasons. In their sixth season, led by Pat Falloon and Ray Whitney—both of whom would be drafted that summer by the National Hockey League's expansion San Jose Sharks—the team secured its WHL championship. The title helped to save the team, which was struggling financially; in 1990, the team was sold to new ownership, and hired two figures who had played roles in the Medicine Hat Tigers' 1987 Memorial Cup title in coach Bryan Maxwell and 32-year old general manager Tim Speltz. The 1990–91 season saw Whitney lead the league with 67 goals and 185 points, with Falloon trailing just behind with 64 goals and 138 points; meanwhile, the team saw what started the season as a half-full arena for home games start to sell-out. At the trade deadline, Speltz added goaltender Trevor Kidd, who proved essential to the team's success. In the playoffs, the Chiefs avenged a loss from the previous year against the defending champion Kamloops Blazers before dispatching the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the league final in four straight games. The team went on to secure the 1991 Memorial Cup, defeating the Drummondville Voltigeurs 5–1 in the championship game to become the second American team after the Portland Winter Hawks to win the title.

In 1995, the 1991 championship team was one of several Spokane hockey teams honoured as part of the closing of the Coliseum. Later that year, the Chiefs moved to the new Spokane Arena. In 2016, Whitney became the first player to have his number retired by the organization.

The team played in two more league finals, in 1996 and 2000, losing both. The team failed to qualify for the playoffs only once during the decade.

Second title and the 2000s

Although the Chiefs missed the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time in 2004–05 and 2005–06, the team achieved record success in 2007–08. Led by goaltender Dustin Tokarski, along with Jared Cowan and rookie Tyler Johnson, the Chiefs set a franchise record with 50 wins and 107 points. Like in 1991, they defeated the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the WHL championship in four game—with Johnson being named the playoff's most valuable player—to advance to the team's second Memorial Cup tournament. There, they defeated the Kitchener Rangers in the final by a score of 4–1; Tokarski's 53 saves in the final led to him being named the tournament's most valuable player. During the team's celebration with the trophy, its cup famously separated from its base, leaving the replica of the storied trophy in two pieces. Spokane native Johnson would go on to a successful career with the Chiefs, and in 2022 he became the second alumnus to have his jersey number retired by the club.

After their second Memorial Cup title, the Chiefs remained competitive for several seasons. In 2010, the Chiefs lost a playoff series to Portland four games to three; it was the first series in league history in which the home team did not win a game. The team entered a rebuilding phase in the late 2010s, a period disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Outdoor game and fan support

Spokane hosted the Western Hockey League's first ever outdoor game on January 15, 2011 against the rival Kootenay Ice. The game, dubbed the "Outdoor Hockey Classic", was played at Avista Stadium in front of a sell-out crowd of 7,075. The Chiefs won the game by a score of 11–2.

Spokane has developed a reputation for strong support for the Chiefs, drawing large crowds recognized for their local traditions, like clapping in unison to celebrate goals. Attendance was especially strong coming off of the team's first championship in 1991, jumping thirty percent the following season, and helping the team commit to plans to build a new, larger arena. The team has since consistently ranked near the top of the WHL for attendance—for instance, in 2022–23, despite failing to qualify for the playoffs, the Chiefs were ranked second in the league for average attendance.