Glen Erickson’s 10 Dub Things Volume III
Photo: City of Medicine Hat
By Glen Erickson
A few things to ponder this time around…on and off the ice. Read on at your own risk!
1 – 2026 Memorial Cup…The confirmations have been received and five WHL cities are hoping to earn the right to play host to the 2026 Memorial Cup. Kelowna is perhaps the sentimental favourite, given its unceremonious loss of the 2020 tournament when the world was put on pause by covid hysteria. An incredible amount of time and effort – not to mention significant money – was lost in the Okanagan Valley’s largest city, along with a slew of draft picks doled out by the Rockets to build its roster for the tournament. Lethbridge has thrown its hat in the ring yet again and would perhaps be the front runner if pure persistence rules the day. Medicine Hat is bidding for the first time ever and its ace in the hole might be that the Tigers project to have the best roster among bidding teams. Spokane is vying to be the first U.S.-based WHL city to host since the Chiefs welcomed the CHL back in 1998. Brandon hosted in 2010, but this time around it’s a new ownership group looking to earn host status.
2 – Memmer: The last Memorial Cup tournament held in a WHL city was in 2023 at Kamloops. This season, Rimouski, Quebec is the host city. (Do the teams fly into YYY?) Rimouski also hosted in 2009 when the Windsor Spitfires defeated the Kelowna Rockets in the finale. Just a few short months ago, the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, based in Michigan, hosted and won the tournament. The last WHL team to win the Memorial Cup was the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2014. The last WHL host team to win the tournament was the Vancouver Giants in 2007. Historically since 1919, the Regina Pats have appeared in the tournament 16 times and have played in the final game 14 times, winning it all on four occasions. Since 1984, I’ll call it my modern era, the Kamloops Blazers lead the way among WHL teams, appearing in the tournament seven times and winning the Memorial Cup three times.
3 – Going Once … Going Twice … : The entire bidding process is taken seriously by cities and organizations pining for host status. The people preparing bids do not mess around. These bid packages are well-researched and very well prepared. It’s just that some committees inevitably do a better job than the others. The economic impact for the host city can be huge. And that’s why I always wonder about the “number” when the bids are submitted; as in, how much money will a host committee choose to commit to the CHL? The term we tossed about back in the day was guaranteed profit. It generally seems to be a closely guarded secret, but eventually the “number” always surfaces. Make no mistake, this is as much an important business decision as any other reason one can muster. One can look at all aspects of a host’s bid and banter back and forth on merit, tradition, roster strength, events within the tournament, or even legacy. But really, it’s business. I think deep pockets matter. A decision is expected in December.
4 – 2025 NHL Draft: Last week we highlighted Roger McQueen (Brandon) and Josh Ravensbergen (Prince George), who were ranked sixth and 20th respectively by TSN’s Bob McKenize. Also among the top 20 is Cole Reschny of the Victoria Royals. McKenzie has tabbed the 5’11, 187-pound forward in the #16 spot. Reschny earned a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, playing for much of the tournament alongside highly touted 2026 prospect, Gavin McKenna. The game is being played at a faster and faster pace each year and Reschny has demonstrated an ability to play at high speed. The Macklin, Saskatchewan-native scored at a point-per-game clip last season and will be heavily relied upon as a young leader with the Royals.
5 – 2025 NHL Draft – Part Deux: Yes, there’s another WHLer ranked in McKenzie’s top 20. Braeden Cootes of the Seattle Thunderbirds at number 19. Cootes had a solid rookie season, collecting 35 points in 64 games for a T-Birds team that finished nine points shy of a playoff spot. He was especially proficient down the stretch during the regular season, with points in 10 of his last 12 games, including an eight-game point scoring streak. A versatile forward, Cootes scored 14 times last season, three of those shorthanded, which was good for second place overall among WHL rookies. The 6’, 183-pounder from Sherwood Park, Alberta, also won a gold medal with Team Canada at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August. The T-Birds made Cootes their first-round pick at the 2022 WHL Bantam Draft, 10th overall.
6 – Need for Speed: The Saskatoon Blades graduated a ton of offence at the end of last season, a successful campaign that came to and end with an overtime loss to the Moose Jaw Warriors in game seven of the Eastern Conference final. In an effort to replenish, the Blades acquired forward Ben Riche from the Victoria Royals during the off-season, sending overage forward Vaughn Watterodt to Vancouver Island. Riche is from Bethune, Saskatchewan, located about 90 minutes south of Saskatoon. He’s been an important early season contributor. “Very, very happy with his game, said Blades new bench boss Dan DaSilva in an interview with Saskatoon Star Phoenix scribe, Darren Zary. “He’s got some things defensively that he has to work on, but he was a pre-season point-getter, so that’s a good thing. Hopefully, he carries it over.” Riche scored three times and added an assist in a pair of opening weekend wins over the Swift Current Broncos. The 5’11, 180-pound speedster is 19 years old.
7 – Sleeper Pick: While his WHL sample size isn’t huge yet, it’s hard to ignore the potential of Red Deer Rebels defenceman, Luke Vlooswyk. The 17-year-old checks in at 6’4 and 201 pounds, and it’s probably safe to say he hasn’t stopped growing. After all, I’m sure his father, Anton, goes about 6’7. The youngster was selected by the Rebels in the first round of the 2022 WHL Bantam Draft, 17th overall. He’s only appeared in 18 WHL games to date, but big, rangy, mobile, right-handed shooting rearguards are always in high demand. During his last couple of years of what I’ll call minor hockey, Vlooswyk had a penchant for stepping up into the attacking zone – he tallied the winner in overtime for Edge Academy U18 at the CSSHL 2024 title game. There is so much focus on teaching young players how to defend these days, but I wonder if at some point this season Vlooswyk will begin to feel confident jumping into the play to create offensive contributions from the backend. He is eligible for the 2025 NHL Draft.
8 – Just the Facts: Head down the rabbit hole with me on this one. Looking back on the past 10 WHL seasons, and at the conclusion of the 2023-2024 NHL campaign, it’s apparent leading the WHL in scoring does not guarantee NHL success – not by a long shot. The 2014 scoring leader, Mitch Holmberg (Spokane) managed 118 points and played a total of “0” NHL games. Note that Holmberg works in professional hockey as an amateur scout with the Edmonton Oilers, for five or six years now. Jayden Halbegwachs (2018, Moose Jaw, 129 points) appeared in three NHL games. Joachim Blichfeld (2019, Portland, 114) and Arshdeep Bains (2022, Red Deer, 112) have played 8 NHL games apiece. Adam Beckman (2020, Spokane, 107) has 23 NHL games under his belt while Adam Brooks (2016, Regina, 120) has played 43 NHL games. Next is Connor Bedard (2023, Regina, 143) with 68 games, though he is likely to achieve big NHL numbers. Those who have really established themselves in the NHL are Peyton Krebs (2021, Winnipeg, 43 points in the 24-game covid bubble season) with 215 NHL games, then Sam Steel (2017, Regina, 131 points) with 339 games. Oliver Bjorkstrand (2015, Portland, 118 points) has appeared in 545 NHL games. Of course, the meter is still running on a handful of these players, including Jagger Firkus (2024, Moose Jaw, 126) who could return to the Warriors as a 20-year-old, but might wind up in Palm Springs with the Seattle Kraken’s AHL affiliate. Pay attention to all of this, there will be a short quiz later on.
9 – Captain, My Captain: Leadership group announcements have become almost a September ritual. So, speaking of wearing the “C”, let’s acknowledge a nifty bit of work by the crew at NHL.com last week that listed current team captains across the NHL. The WHL is well-represented by alumni Radko Gudas (Anaheim/Everett), Mikael Backlund (Calgary/Kelowna), Jamie Benn (Dallas/Kelowna), Jared Spurgeon (Minnesota/Spokane), Brayden Schenn (St. Louis/Brandon-Saskatoon), Mark Stone (Vegas/Brandon) and Adam Lowry (Winnipeg/Swift Current). Both Seattle and Utah have yet to name their respective team captains.
10 – The Quiz: Have a peek again at Just the Facts above. Notice anything missing? Pull out your fine-toothed comb! Okay, ready? Among the past 10 WHL leading scorers, not one of them played on a B.C. Division team. Huh? That’s right. Anybody care to hazard a guess why? I dunno! The last time it happened was the 2008-2009 season when Casey Pierro-Zabotel of the B.C. Division’s Vancouver Giants finished at the top of the heap with 115 points. Among his teammates that season were forwards Evander Kane and Brendan Gallagher, who have combined to appear in over 1,800 NHL games. In keeping with the talking point above, CP-Z’s lengthy professional hockey career included “0” NHL games.
(Glen Erickson is a freelance writer in Medicine Hat, AB)
