10 WHL Things By Glen Erickson, Volume IX

1. Game of The Week – Edmonton at Medicine Hat. On Friday, the Oil Kings will invade the Co-Op Place in the Gas City for the third tilt of the season between the top two clubs in the Central Division. When I harken back to the 2024-2025 season, these two teams really did not like each other. They split their eight regular season games and there was often some entertaining extracurricular activities. And while a few of the protagonists and antagonists have moved on from each roster, we’ll have to see if these two upper-echelon Western Hockey League teams carry forward any of the bitterness that makes games between division rivals just a tad bit more spicy. The teams met October 8 in Medicine Hat and the Tigers won, 5-2. This past weekend, the Oil Kings drubbed the Tigers 6-1 at Rogers Place in Edmonton. Both teams will have passed the quarter pole in the schedule by the weekend, as the contest marks the 20^th game for the Oil Kings and 18^th for the Tigers. Medicine Hat, now 10-5-1-1, is 6-0-01 on home ice. Edmonton is 6-3 on the road. Honourable Mention: Prince George at Everett, also on Friday night.
2. It Takes Time – Amid so much off-season hype, and expectations that were probably far, far too high, rookie forward Maddox Schultz has yet to provide much impact on the scorer’s sheet as a member of the Regina Pats. The 15-year-old, who will play a limited schedule in the WHL this season, has chipped in with four assists in eight games so far. Highly touted teammate Liam Pue, also 15, has scored once and added two helpers in eight games. The Pats are 5-8-1-1 and looking to climb the ladder back to prominence in the DUB under the leadership of new general manager and Pats alum, Dale Derkatch. Forward Julien Maze (8-12; 20) has been a pleasant surprise offensively, along with Caden Brown (10-5; 15) and Keets Fawcett (8-5; 13). Defenceman Ephram McNutt is among the top scoring defenceman in the league with 13 points. But, back to Schultz and Pue, who are also skating with the Regina Pat Canadians of the Saskatchewan AAA Hockey League. It’s fair to say they’re lighting it up on a team sporting an 11-1 record so far. Schultz has scored 15 goals and 12 assists in nine games, while Pue has scored seven goals and 17 assists in eight starts. Both Schultz and Pue are in Truro, Nova Scotia this week, skating for Team Canada White at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge. Schultz scored a hat trick and Pue added two goals and three assists in their 9-5 tournament opening win over Sweden. Gotta think the future really does look bright for the Queen City kids!
3. Do They Call Him the Streak? – The Prince George Cougars have played a total of 15 games so far this season and veteran forward Kooper Gizowski tallied at least one point in each of the first 14 contests. Gizowski was kept off the scoresheet Sunday in the Cougars 2-1 loss in Langley to the Vancouver Giants. Back at the end of June, Prince George claimed Gizowski after he’d been waived by the Lethbridge Hurricanes. The Cougars had paid a princely sum to acquire forward Ben Riche from the Saskatoon Blades near the trade deadline in January, counting on the Riche for a couple of seasons, potentially his second would be as an overager. But Riche elected to move on to the NCAA’s Quinnipiac University. In retrospect, adding the 20-year-old Gizowski cost the Cougars nothing, but the payoff has been huge. He’s scored 11 goals and 13 assists on his heater to start the season, which is the longest streak in the DUB out of the gate. All told, Gizowski, who is from Edmonton, has appeared in 275 games, regular season and playoffs combined, split between the Cougars, Hurricanes and Spokane Chiefs.
4. Streakers, Part Two – Over in the Eastern Conference, Riley Boychuk is on tear of his own. The Prince Albert Raiders forward has scored twice and added 14 assists, registering at least a point in each of the Raiders 13 games so far this season. From Cochrane, Alberta, the 17-year-old Boychuk was the second overall pick at the 2023 WHL Draft. And speaking of streaks, the Raiders are the only team in the DUB yet to lose in regulation time. At 10-0-3, Prince Albert leads the East Division standings with 23 points and sits just one point back of the conference leading Edmonton Oil Kings, which has played 17 games to date. The Raiders hit the road this week for a contest in Lethbridge Wednesday, before crossing the border for its six-game road trip through the US Division. Next home game at the Art Hauser Centre is slated for November 21.
5. What’s Up In Pittsburgh? – A measure of certainty should surface this week for the Kamloops Blazers. Keep an eye on 19-year-old defenceman Harrison Brunicke of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He has played eight games so far this season and if he plays at least 10, the Pens are on the hook for year one of his entry level contract. Notably, he has been a healthy scratch in four of the Pens last five games, a sign there have been some growing pains. For the Hitmen, it seems unlikely 18-year-old forward Ben Kindel will return this season. He has played 11 NHL games in a Penguins uniform and has scored three goals. This means Pittsburgh has officially burned the first year of his ELC, so I’m not sure they will pay him NHL money to play major junior for the rest of the 2025-2026 season. None of this means Brunicke or Kindel can’t return the DUB, where they would instantly become impact players. I also wonder about their status for the 2026 World Junior Championship, as I think both were locks to wear the maple leaf. If you’re interested, you can find some recent analysis online concerning both Kindel and Brunicke from Matt Vensels at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
6. Runnin’ Back to Saskatoon – The Saskatoon Blades took to the road with high expectations after a great start to the current campaign, but the six US Division teams certainly had other ideas. Saskatoon managed only one victory, 4-2 over the Tri City Americans. Despite the less-than-ideal 1-3-2 record on the roady, the Blades are now 10-6-2 for 22 points and trail the Prince Albert Raiders by one point in the East Division standings. However, the Raiders do have five games in hand. Many of us wondered aloud where the Blades would find offence this season, but the “scoring by committee” approach has proven successful so far. A total of 11 players have tallied at least 10 points to date, with import forward David Lewandowski leading the way with five goals and 13 assists. The Blades return to action Friday at SaskTel Centre when the Moose Jaw Warriors come calling.
7. Let’s Make A Deal – It won’t be the last bit of wheeling and dealing we’ll see by the 2026 Memorial Cup host Kelowna Rockets this season, but the trade with the Swift Current Broncos that brings defenceman Peyton Kettles to the Okanagan Valley looks like pretty good value to me. The Rockets add a big, mobile rearguard to its roster. Kettles checks in at 6’6 and 195 pounds. From Winnipeg, he was selected in the second round, 39^th overall, by the Pittsburgh Penguins at the 2025 NHL Draft. While the Rockets can certainly use Kettles during this Memorial Cup season in Kelowna, he is only 18 now and if the Pens don’t sign him with a minor-league role in mind for next season, Kelowna might get a second campaign out of the lanky, right-handed shooting defenceman. I think that’s why the Broncos asking price was so high, though I am surprised a couple of the draft picks don’t appear to be conditional. The return includes 17-year-old defenceman Jackson Gillespie, a 2027 first round pick, second round picks in 2026 and 2029, along with fourth round picks in 2026 and 2029. At the 2022 WHL Draft, Swift Current selected Kettles in the first round, sixth overall.
8. It Took Awhile, Didn’t It? – Swift Current and Everett were finally able to consummate the deal they cooked up back in May, but it took kind of an unexpected development to pull everything together. The Broncos moved highly sought after overage forward Rylan Gould to the Silvertips, but those plans were scuttled when Gould chose to leave the WHL in favour of the NCAA’s Michigan Tech University Huskies. Alas, six games into the season, Gould left the Huskies to return to the DUB. Swift Current and Everett re-worked the original trade, and Gould is expected to join the ‘Tips this week. No information yet as to why Gould chose to leave the NCAA program, but we’ll keep an ear to the ground for any rumblings. Suffice to say, there has been plenty of speculation that not every player heading south of the 49^th parallel this season amid the new NCAA Division 1 rules, would find it to be their Shangri-La. Gould, a 20-year-old Winnipeg native has played 272 WHL games, regular season and playoffs combined. If my math is accurate, Everett will now have to part with an overage player to make room for Gould on its roster. A quick look at the Michigan Tech roster confirms Gould is not listed, but there are a handful of players who skated in the WHL last season. Brayden Boehm (VIC), Kaylem Parker (CGY), Carson Birnie (CGY/RD), Reid Andresen (WEN) and Tayden Trembecky (VIC) are all freshman, while Carson Latimer (EDM) is a sophomore with the Huskies, now 5-3 on the season in CCHA play.
9. DUB Randoms – Did it look at all as though 16-year-old J.P. Hurlburt had kind of hit the wall? The Kamloops Blazers rookie forward still sits atop the scoring race with 30 points, four ahead of Matias Vanhanen of the Everett Silvertips. Hurlburt had gone three consecutive games without a point, before scoring the game winning goal and adding an assist in the Blazers 6-2 win at Wenatchee Sunday…The Everett Silvertips lead the league with 28 points. The ‘Tips are 13-1-1, which includes a 9-0 record on the road…An interesting road trip for the Calgary Hitmen of late. Off to perhaps a surprising start at 10-3-1, Calgary spooked the Raiders 3-2 in overtime at Prince Albert on Halloween Night, then ventured to Brandon for a Sunday afternoon tilt where they subdued the Wheat Kings, 3-1. The Hitmen will play in Regina, Moose Jaw and Swift Current this week before winding up its roady November 8 at Saskatoon. Calgary’s next home game is November 14. I wonder what the tab will be for meals, accommodation and transportation?…What’s up with Antonio Martorana of the Seattle Thunderbirds? In his third full season, Martorana, 18, leads the T-Birds with eight goals and 10 assists in 14 contests, including six multi-point games…Prince George is also on a six-game road trip. It played the first game Friday in Portland (6-3 loss), Saturday in Seattle (4-3 win in OT) and its 2-1 loss Sunday in Langley to the Vancouver Giants. The remaining three games are set for cities south of the 49^th parallel. In an article printed in the Prince George Citizen during the off-season, the ownership group admitted a night on the road for the team is typically about a $3,500 touch. By my count, this is about a 10-day, nine-night trip, with a significant amount of the expenses being absorbed in US dollars. Wow!…Eric Tu of the Calgary Hitmen, recognized Monday as the WHL Goaltender of the Week, leads the DUB with a 1.79 goals against average, .938 save percentage and 6-1-1 record. He’s surrendered 13 goals in eight appearances. It’s heady stuff for the 17-year-old from White Rock, BC…Chase Surkan, 16, of the Brandon Wheat Kings leads the league with 10 power play goals. He’s busy this week with Team Canada Red at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge in Nova Scotia…Have you noticed that while you’re watching game highlights posted on the WHL website, an advertisement has been inserted about halfway through the video package? Sure, it’s only a 15-second spot, but it’s as annoying as it is new…The expansion Penticton Vees continue to roll along atop the BC Division standings. The Vees are getting solid goaltending from Andrew Reyelts and Jesse Sanche. Also of note is 20-year-old forward Brady Birnie. The Regina area native will play his 300^th WHL game, regular season and playoffs combined, around mid-November. Penticton collected three of four points from its doubleheader in Victoria on the weekend…Speaking of the Royals, if the Weekly Report was accurate, Victoria was missing eight players due to injury. Add forward Eli McKamey who is gone to Nova Scotia to play in the World U-17 Hockey Challenge and it looks like some tough times of late on Vancouver Island, though the Royals are hanging in there at 8-5-1-1 through 15 games…The Kelowna Rockets deal with the Swift Current Broncos wasn’t the only big trade last week. The Moose Jaw Warriors acquired goaltender Chase Wutzke from the Red Deer Rebels for a package of five future draft picks. Wutzke gives Moose Jaw a solid veteran presence in the crease. The Warriors, which also picked up a future draft pick in the deal, have been among the league leaders in goals scored, but have had some troubles keeping the puck out of its own net. To make room for Wutzke, the Warriors moved netminder Matthew Hutchison to the Regina Pats…If you happen to notice a few youngsters missing from the roster of your favorite team this week, there are 19 WHL Players in Truro, Nova Scotia at the 2025 World U-17 Hockey Challenge…The Lethbridge Hurricanes (4-12-0-1) are in last place in the Eastern Conference standings, three points behind the Red Deer Rebels (5-9-0-2). Both teams are 3-0 in games when the lead after the second period.
10. Let’s Go, Blow Jays – On the RP Show last week, the poll asked what viewers felt would be the result of the two final games of the World Series in Toronto. The Blue Jays arrived home with a 3-2 lead and had an entire country on the edge of its seat. In the poll, I voted for the “Dodgers win both” option, and at the time I cast my vote, I was one of only 16% of respondents sharing that view. I just didn’t like how many runners the Blue Jays were leaving on base, though a huge part of that eventuality relates in large part to just how good the Dodgers pitched under the gun and how well the high-priced talent played defence. The Blue Jays are being accused in some quarters of poor base running and while there may be some merit to this, again, I think the Dodgers defence deserves credit for exacerbating this by making efficient, timely plays when called upon to do so. Of course, aiding the Dodgers cause was the ball that got stuck under the wall in game six, which was just a total fluke. The Dodgers have made a habit of crushing dreams of Canadian baseball fans. Many among the RP Show demographic will remember where they were on October 19, 1981, often referred to as Blue Monday. The Expos and Dodgers returned to Olympic Stadium for the fifth and final game of the NLCS and Montreal manager Jim Fanning elected to call a starting pitcher – Steve Rogers – from the bullpen late in the game. Los Angeles outfielder Rick Monday proceeded to hit a “sinker that didn’t sink” for the game-winning home run in the top of the ninth inning with two outs. I point to this as Blue Jays manager John Schneider followed a similar script Saturday when he had starters Trey Yesavage and Shane Bieber toe the rubber late in Game 7. Each gave up a solo home run, sandwiched around the game-tying solo tater surrendered in the ninth inning by highly paid closer, Jeff Hoffman. The Blue Jays run to the World Series really did make professional baseball fun and exciting to watch throughout October. But for the record, the Dodgers organization is now 3-0 lifetime in MLB elimination games played on Canadian soil.

Randoms – I love the Canadian Football League. Always have! Always will! And November means it’s crunch time! So, I’d like somebody to explain to me the porous clock management decisions made by the Calgary Stampeders Saturday? Does one running play while in field goal range perhaps reduce the amount of time left for the BC Lions by about 10 seconds or more? Instead, two passes to the end zone kept the game clock from ticking down and Nathan Rourke had time after the ensuing kick off to drive for the game winning points off the foot of its ever-reliable placekicker, Shawn Whyte. Ugh!…Is anybody outside of Manitoba unhappy the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were eliminated from the post-season Saturday afternoon? Which team will have the pleasure of taking over the Bombers dressing room at Princess Auto Stadium during Grey Cup week?…A big football weekend coming up in Saskatchewan! Saturday in Saskatoon the University of Saskatchewan Huskies host the University of Regina Rams in the Canada West finale for the Hardy Cup. The winner will play host to the Ontario University Athletics champion in the Mitchell Bowl the following weekend. You can bet football fans will flock hurriedly from Griffiths Stadium after the contest to their television sets for the CFL Western Final between the BC Lions and Saskatchewan Roughriders at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. But, that’s not all for football fans in the Bridge City! Sunday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field at Gordon Howe Park, the Saskatoon Hilltops host the Okanagan Sun in the 2025 Canadian Bowl…The city of Regina will host the Vanier Cup, November 22…When is the last time the Canadian Bowl title, the Vanier Cup and the Grey Cup resided in the same province?… Pain is the price we pay for joy.

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