10 WHL Final Things, Volume XXXVIII

By: Glen Erickson

It’s time for the Western Hockey League Championship Series, presented by Nutrien, a cross-border battle featuring the Spokane Chiefs and the Medicine Hat Tigers. What was the chant in that old Mad Max movie, Thunderdome; “two enter, one leaves”? Which of these teams will claim the Ed Chynoweth Trophy, then venture east to compete for the 2025 Memorial Cup? Read on if you dare!

1 – Tigers Beat Hurricanes – Medicine Hat advanced after a four-game sweep of its Central Division rival Lethbridge Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. The Tigers outscored the Hurricanes 24-13. Lethbridge finished the post-season with an 8-8 record and the upside on the business side would be hosting eight playoff games at the VisitLethbridge.com Arena. The ‘Canes say goodbye to their overage group, as the three 20-year-olds graduate from major junior hockey. Defencemen Logan McCutcheon (299 regular season games; 28 playoff games) and Noah Chadwick (212; 28), along with forward Brayden Edwards (247; 28) were key members in Lethbridge. McCutcheon and Chadwick, both from Saskatoon, played their entire careers with the Hurricanes. Edwards was acquired during the 2021-2022 season after playing 11 games for the Winnipeg ICE.

2 – Almost Unstoppable – The Tigers just continue to roll, now 12-1 in the post-season. In fact, since January 1, Medicine Hat has compiled an incredible record of 39-4-0-1, regular season and playoffs combined. The teams responsible for the blemishes? Swift Current beat the Tigers three times, once at home and once in Medicine Hat during the regular season, then once in Swift Current during the first round of the playoffs. Edmonton beat the Tigers in Medicine Hat during the regular season and the Tigers dropped the final game of their road trip through the U.S. Division, a shootout loss in Seattle. The Gas City is absolutely on fire during this post-season run, as the frenetic fan base has occasionally bordered on just plain loopy. It’s very exciting! Tigers fans have traveled well too, and you can be guaranteed many have their passports on the ready for a roady to Spokane.

3 – For the Record – Medicine Hat has outshot its opponents in every game during the playoffs. The fanbase has come out in droves to Co-Op Place, averaging 5,721 per contest through seven home games, all of which have been victories. Gavin McKenna has been unstoppable, collecting eight goals and 27 assists in 13 playoff games. Including the regular season, McKenna has scored a point in 53 straight outings. Not to be outdone during the post-season, 20-year-old Oasiz Wiesblatt has hit the scoresheet in every playoff game as well, chipping in with 14 goals and 12 assists. Goaltenders Harrison Meneghin (10-0) and Jordan Switzer (2-1) have been outstanding. Medicine Hat has outscored its opponents 65-35 during the post-season.

4 – Chiefs Bounce Winterhawks – Spokane advanced after a four-game sweep of its U.S. Division rival Portland Winterhawks in the Western Conference Final. The Chiefs outscored the Winterhawks 30-18. Portland finishes the post-season with a record of 8-10, though the group thrilled its fanbase with a pair of Game 7 victories along the way in Prince George and Everett. The ‘Hawks say goodbye to their overage group, as the three 20-year-olds graduate from major junior hockey. Defencemen Ryder Thompson (263 regular season games; 56 playoff games) and Tyson Jugnauth (106; 36), along with forward Kyle Chyzowski (273: 56) were key members in Portland. Jugnauth, who arrived from the University of Wisconsin, led all WHL defenceman in scoring during both the regular season and the playoffs (Yes, the playoffs are not over, but with 33 points, he will not be caught by Bryce Pickford of the Tigers who is next with 17 points.) Jugnauth is slated to return to the NCAA next season at Michigan State University, while Thompson is headed to Miami University.  As chronicled in this space previously, there has been a “Chyzowski” on a WHL roster since 2012 and as Kyle’s career comes to a close, that long run by a storied hockey family also comes to an end.

5 – Chiefs Chatter – Spokane has not been as dominant in 2025 as the Tigers, compiling a 32-11-1-1 record, including the regular season and playoffs. In the post-season, Spokane has gone 12-3 through three rounds. The Chiefs have drawn an average of 4,880 fans per home game during the playoffs. Of those eight games, only one has been played on a Friday and one on a Saturday. The facility in Spokane can accommodate about 10,300 for hockey and, did you know, 12,500 for basketball? During the post-season, general manager Matt Bardsley received the Lloyd Saunders Memorial Trophy, awarded to the WHL Executive of the Year. In addition to his myriad responsibilities, take note of his two recent trade deadline acquisitions: Shea Van Olm in 2024 and Andrew Cristall this season. There’s much, much more to the gig than making trades, but roster construction certainly requires some skill and savvy.

6 – For The Record, Part Deux – The Chiefs have ridden the dynamic offensive push of Van Olm, Andrew Cristall and Berkly Catton during the second half of the regular season and during the playoffs. Cristall (37 points) and Catton (35) are atop the playoffs scoring race. Van Olm, an overage forward who came over from the Kamloops Blazers, led the league with 49 regular season tallies, one more than Cristall. Catton finished third in league scoring with 109 points, behind Cristall (132) and McKenna (129). The Chiefs high-octane trio has combined for 99 points during the post season. Spokane is also getting some valuable depth scoring from 16-year-old Mathis Preston, veteran forwards Chase Harrington and Sam Oremba, along with productive imports Rasmus Ekstrom (Sweden) and Assanali Sarkenov (Kazakstan). Goaltender Dawson Cowan was among five WHL netminders to appear in over 50 games during the regular season and he has carried the load in the playoffs with 14 appearances.

7 – Scheduling Adventures – There are many logistics to deal with and not all will land in the public domain, it seems. The teams are set for a 2-3-2 format but get ready for a weird and whacky schedule during the Championship Series, as facility availability could have an impact if the teams go the distance. As it stands, Spokane will travel to Medicine Hat for the first two games, Friday and Sunday in the Gas City. Co-Op Place is not available Saturday, with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in town. The series switches to Spokane for games on Tuesday and Wednesday, so that will be three games in four nights. If Game 5 is needed, it probably goes Sunday, May 18 because the Spokane Memorial Arena is hosting the Rocky Mountain Rodeo, May 16 and 17. No word at this point when Game 6 and/or 7 would be played back in Medicine Hat, but the WHL champion is scheduled to play the host team to open the Memorial Cup tournament on May 23. One couldn’t have predicted both Spokane and Medicine Hat would sweep their respective conference finals, but the Chiefs will have had eight days off and the Tigers nine, before they meet in Game 1 of the league final. Yeh, I just don’t get it, but hey, I’ll miss them all anyway as a business trip through British Columbia has been on the docket for a number of weeks.

8 – 2025 IIHF World U18 – What an impressive run down in Frisco, Texas for the Canadian Men’s U18 team. En route to capturing the gold medal, Canada went undefeated in tournament play, a perfect 6-0. The only blemish was the pre-tournament loss to Sweden by an 8-3 count, but the Canadians certainly served some cold revenge with its 7-0 trouncing of the Swedes in the finale. A total of 13 WHLers were members of the championship winning team at an event that has been difficult at times for Canada to compete at. The spring dates have always meant so many of the top U18 players in the country are still busy with post-season play with their various club teams. The win this past weekend was actually a repeat – the first time Canada has won back-to-back titles. Canada won the 2024 tournament in Finland. If you haven’t already done so, have a look at the nifty piece published by Cami Kepke for the WHL website, which contains insights on the DUB players who contributed to the gold medal winning effort in Texas.

9 – Finale Randoms – Medicine Hat is 0-for-2 at Memorial Cup tournaments played in British Columbia. The Tigers last won the WHL title in 2007, then lost in the Memorial Cup final to the host Vancouver Giants, the team they dispatched in the WHL Championship Series. The Tigers also won the WHL title in 2004, but did not qualify for the final game at the tournament in Kelowna, which the Rockets won as the host team…The Tigers have appeared in six previous league finals, winning five times, along with two Memorial Cup championships, in 1987 and 1988. Both national championship tournaments were played in eastern Canada…This is Spokane’s fifth appearance in the WHL final. The Chiefs won the WHL title in 1991 and 2008, winning the Memorial Cup tournament in eastern Canada on both occasions…I like the head coaching match up, too, with WHL veterans Brad Lauer and Willie Desjardins behind the benches. Both have extensive experience in major junior and both have plenty of National Hockey League experience on their resumes. Lauer and Desjardins are good western Canadian guys with strong Saskatchewan ties…Over in the Ontario Hockey League, the London Knights and Oshawa Generals will meet in the championship final…In the Quebec Maratimes Junior Hockey League, the Moncton Wildcats won the eastern conference and are through to the championship series. In the western conference final, the Rimouski Oceanic and Shawinigan Cataractes will play Game 7 on Tuesday. The Oceanic are already guaranteed a spot in the Memorial Cup as tournament hosts. If they defeat Shawinigan, Moncton qualifies for the Memorial Cup tournament. If the Oceanic play in the QMJHL final series, I think the loser slots in as the host team.

10 – RANDOMS – I’m glad the federal election campaign in Canada is over, so the “elbows up” nonsense can go the way of the dodo bird…quickly. Please! I think it’s just silly, created by folks who probably wouldn’t know whether to wind their watch or crap their pants if a modern-day hockey elbow pad connected with their jaw. When delicate flowers try to impersonate the neighbourhood tough, I just cannot help but wince…Moving forward, I wonder how long Canadians will continue to accept a federal government approach that emphasizes trying to solve problems all over the world with our hard-earned money. Maybe we’re all just used to the waste by now? This incredibly expensive effort comes at the expense of taking care of the home front first. I feel that in many ways, we’ve become 45-million weak in this country, due in large part to the people we have allowed to mismanage our natural resource supply and marketing for decades. Economic strength and prosperity would go a long way toward the return of national unity in Canada, even if the gap between the haves and have-nots resembles a continental divide…Looks like TSN will televise the WHL Championship Series in its entirety. No confirmation I can find as to whom will man the broadcast booth, but there is chatter the network has tabbed an on-air personality with ties to an American Hockey League organization in eastern Canada. I always pull for these national sports networks to utilize western Canada-based on-air talent, guys who have been dialed into the WHL all season long. I can think of a handful of WHL play-by-play men who I know would do a bang-up job if the right deal could be struck, even if they’ll tell you they’ve got a great face for radio!

(Glen Erickson is a hockey writer based in Medicine Hat, AB)