10 Dub Things From Glen Erickson – Final Edition!
Photo: PA Raiders
1 – WHL Championship Series – Are you not entertained? Games 1 and 2 at the Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett have both been terrific. This has got to be exactly what Western Hockey League fans hoped for and expected. No complaints about ticket sales, with attendance of 7,697 and 7,897 respectively. Both teams have delivered the goods. The Prince Albert Raiders earned a split on the road, winning 4-2 Friday night in a contest where they were outshot 41-26. The Silvertips rebounded with a 6-2 victory Saturday, though the Raiders held a 39-38 edge in shots on goal. Bottom line? Goaltenders Michal Orsulak (PA) and Anders Miller (EVT) have been busy! Carter Bear has scored three times in two games for the Silvertips, but Finnish import Julius Miettinen has already collected six points in the series. Braeden Cootes and Daxon Rudolph have chipped in with three points apiece so far for the Raiders, and 16-year-old defenceman Brock Cripps has looked efficient anchoring the Prince Albert power play. One wonders if Rudolph’s one-game suspension is enough supplementary discipline for a cross-checking major and game misconduct incurred late in Game 2? I’m confident the league would have parked his behind for a longer duration during the regular season. Remember, this is a league that doesn’t look kindly on innocuous, cheerful, friendly compliments, the type of offence that can earn a franchise a $5,000 fine. So, let’s note the price tag for this attempt to injure, okay? I’m pleased the league office was comfortable Rudolph hadn’t already paid the tab in form of 15 penalty minutes with 1:02 to play. Games 3, 4 and 5 are set for the Art Hauser Centre, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Yes, they will play all three and likely in front of an announced crowd of 3,299 each night, unless the fire marshal is on vacation. I expect these games to be real…and spectacular!
2 – An Official Opinion – The powers-that-be assigned referees Mike Langin and Taylor Burzminski to work Game 1. In Game 2, it was Adam Bloski and Jeff Ingram. I’m comfortable submitting that both games were in damn good hands, as will the remainder of the series. Nick Albinati, Brennan Walker (Game 1) and Michael McGowan with Nathan Van Oosten (Game 2) have worked the lines. The league office will schedule the best-of-the-best during the final series because these officials have earned the assignments. It doesn’t bother me one bit that it won’t satisfy either fanbase.
3 – Numbers Game – I monkeyed around with the numbers associated with the Prince Albert Raiders regular season record last week. Let’s give the same treatment to the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy winning Everett Silvertips! Everett had a 13-1-1-1 record on home ice against U.S. Division teams. On the road against divisional opponents, they were 13-3. That’s 26-4-1-1 within the division. The only loss at home in regulation time to a divisional opponent was January 16, a 4-0 verdict to the Spokane Chiefs. The Silvertips were a dominant 22-2-1 against the B.C. Division. That’s a combined 48-6-2-1 against the Western Conference, good for 84.2% of its 57 total victories. Against the Central Division, all on the road, Everett went 4-1. On that road trip, the ‘Tips knocked off the defending league champion Medicine Hat Tigers on Valentine’s Day, 4-3 in overtime. Against the East Division, all home games, Everett went 5-1. Its only loss came at the hands of the Prince Albert Raiders, 4-1 on Remembrance Day. Note that loss occurred in what was Everett’s fourth game in five nights, and the Raiders arrived at Angel of the Winds after two days off. Since that contest, both rosters have seen some changes.
4 – 2026 WHL Draft – The Kelowna Rockets tabbed Madden Daneault from Red Deer as the first overall pick last week. There had been discussion the Rockets were amenable to moving the pick, but a deal could not be consummated. Assistant General Manager Curtis Hamilton told Castanet News beat writer and all-around good guy, Wayne Moore in Kelowna, “At times it felt like it was close, but I think until it gets over the line it never does. We had some more conversations this morning (Wednesday) about it but couldn’t really get traction for what we value that pick at. We were really in the driver’s seat with the ability to pick a franchise player in Madden or trade it, so it was a win-win situation.” According to Moore, Daneault is listed at 5’10 and 168 pounds. The native of Red Deer put up eye-popping numbers with the Red Deer U15 squad. In 34 games, he amassed 65 goals, 84 assists and 149 points. It should be noted his brother Easton just completed his first full season with the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
5 – Draft Numbers – According to the WHL, of the 23 players selected in round one, there were 16 forwards, six defencemen, and one goaltender chosen. Of those, eight are from British Columbia, seven from Alberta, five from Saskatchewan, two from Texas, and one from Michigan. The Michigan skater, Max Osgood, was selected 21st overall by Medicine Hat. He is the son of former WHL and NHL goaltender, Chris Osgood. All told, 205 players were selected by the 23 WHL member clubs at the 2026 WHL Draft. Alberta led all territories with 54 players selected, followed by British Columbia (44), Minnesota (34), Saskatchewan (33), Manitoba (15), Texas (8), California (5), Colorado (4), Alaska (2), Arizona (2), North Dakota (2), Idaho (1), and Michigan (1). Those numbers quite clearly tell us all where the bulk of the top teenaged players are coming from and where they prefer to continue their development.
6 – CHL League Championship Finals – In Quebec, the Moncton Wildcats (13-4) take on the Chicoutimi Sagueneens (13-3). The series is tied after the first two games. Moncton played in the Memorial Cup last season. It’s been a while for Chicoutimi, its last appearance was back in 1994. Do you know what a “Sagueneen” is? In Ontario, the Kitchener Rangers (15-2) face the “don’t care, work harder” Barrie Colts (12-8). Kitchener won the first three contests. The Rangers last appeared in the Memorial Cup in 2008. The Colts have won the OHL title only once, back in 2000, when it lost in the Memorial Cup championship final game.
7 – 2026 NHL Draft – Gavin McKenna to the Toronto Maple Leafs? Insert “mind blown” emoji here…According to Chat GTP, it is “possible, but not especially likely” that the top two WHL scorers Liam and Markus Ruck will be chosen by the same team. Regarding the twin brothers, “different teams will value them separately”. And, “They won’t slide together.” A few pundits have neither listed as a selection in the first round. We shall see…Which WHL goaltender will be the first to go? It will not be a Canadian. Will it be Michal Orsulak of the Prince Albert Raiders or Filip Ruzicka of the Brandon Wheat Kings?…Historically over the past couple of decades, the WHL has seen on average about 32-34 players selected each year. What’s the over/under this time around?…Odds are that Chase Reid and Keaton Verhoeff will be the first two defenceman to go. With the San Jose Sharks snagging the second pick at the NHL Draft Lottery and in need of defencemen in its system, is there a chance they surprise and choose Carson Carels at #2? That’s probably high. Would they trade down, nab a d-man in the deal and still choose Carels at #5 or #6? A year ago, the Sharks selected Prince George Cougars goaltender Josh Ravensbergen in the first round, so presumably the organization has been able to have eyes on Carels as well for the better part of the last two seasons…The 2026 NHL Draft is set for Buffalo, New York in late June.
8 – Love the Gas City – I had envisioned walking away from DUB media coverage when we relocated to Medicine Hat from Kelowna, to be closer to our parents. We took possession of our house in 2019, one day before the Tigers announced the return of Willie Desjardins. That kind of caught my attention. Medicine Hat is a wonderful place to live, a beautiful city along the South Saskatchewan River, a vibrant junior hockey community, and the Tigers have been among the best teams in the country for a couple of years. That has been a nice, unexpected coincidence. Co-Op Place is a spiffy new building. Okay, okay, it’s 10 years old but I still detect that new car smell! My only frustration is the design of an important section of the press box. It’s perfect if you’re sporting the ideal body mass index! I covered the league amid the government imposed dumb-assery associated with the covid “rules of operation”, sitting in an empty Co-Op Place during the abbreviated 2020-2021 season. Imagine being required to wear a mask while sitting in a spacious arena, surrounded by…nobody! Not only were the rules and regulations insane, apparently so was I temporarily, because I followed them. Never, ever again!
9 – Paying Dues – Co-Op Place is a venue more than capable of hosting big time junior hockey events. The fanbase wants to see these. I’m just not sure the ownership group is quite as committed to these events? During my 15 years in Kelowna, the Rockets organization was constantly taking on major junior hockey events. How can one ignore that commitment, the Rockets willingness to take on the responsibility and a measure of the financial risk? The Rockets built a track record, along with the community, proving it can successfully host a variety of these high-profile CHL and IIHF events. I’m confident those efforts have earned heightened consideration for flagship events like the Memorial Cup. Co-Op Place in Medicine Hat is a fabulous facility, but the organization has hosted only one significant junior hockey event, the 2019 IIHF World U17 Hockey Challenge, and that was shared with Swift Current. (And yes, I haven’t forgotten the 2016 Alberta Winter Games). Any belief the city deserves to host the Memorial Cup because it has a “good team” and a great building, just misses the mark. My hope for the city and the fanbase is the ownership group begins to dip its toe – hell, both feet – into hosting anything and everything the CHL plans. Get started now! Then, next time the organization produces a truly elite WHL team, the entire country will know what the city is capable of when Memorial Cup bids are called for. Is there something to be said for paying one’s dues? Of course there is!
10 – RANDOMS – At 69 years of age, is Willie Desjardins about ready to hand off head coaching duties? He’ll celebrate #70 on February 11. I think he’s got a darn good one behind him in assistant coach, Joe Frazer. The pair have obviously worked very well together since Desjardins return to the Tigers organization prior to the 2019-2020 season…Wonderful to hear Peter Loubardias back on the call during the TSN telecast and Victory+ stream of the WHL Championship Series. It’s been far too long! Loubardias, inducted last November into the Saskatoon Sports Hall of Fame, is an incredibly knowledgeable WHL aficionado and historian. Joined by Saskatchewan’s Kelly Remple in the booth, the pair ensures solid western representation for an event that is truly a western Canadian sporting highlight. Both men have always demonstrated tremendous regard for the league…Sad news to hear of the passing of Ernie “Punch” McLean. The long-time WHL bench boss was at the helm of some tough, successful teams during the incredibly entertaining Rotary Dial Era. I think if you hear a story or two about McLean’s impact on the WHL, something that perhaps sounds slightly outlandish, it may very well be true. The WHL was much more interesting when we had characters willing to accept they are in the entertainment business…Which group of overage players will end their respective WHL careers with a berth at the Memorial Cup? It’ll be either Rylan Gould, Nolan Chastko and Zackary Schantz of the Everett Silvertips or Brayden Dube, Aiden Oiring and Justice Christensen of the Prince Albert Raiders…The Vancouver Giants were fined $5,000 last week. Do your own research on this. RP devoted a paragraph to this bizarre league decision in his own newsletter, “10 Weekend Things” and revisited it in the “Monday Morning Goalie”. I’ll leave it at that, lest I go entirely keyboard berserk.
ALL SHE WROTE – The RP Show – It was back in mid-September of 2024 after an episode of The RP Show on YouTube, what I have referred to as the elevator music in my office. I fired off an email to the show to ask if Rod’s team had plans to heighten WHL coverage on his website. I was caught off guard a bit when Rod replied, “Is that an offer?” It wasn’t. It was just an ad hoc query. But, after a couple of conversations, spiced with locker room jargon, mutual history and an occasional curse word, the die was cast. This edition, my final contribution, marks Volume 78, all told. I hope the DUB continues to enjoy a presence on this platform. If you devoted any of your time to these musings, typos and boo-boos included, thank you. Sincerely. And with that, I let’s all strap in for a compelling and entertaining few weeks of major junior hockey. It all culminates with the 2026 Memorial Cup championship game on May 31 in the very deserved host city of Kelowna, British Columbia.
(Glen Erickson is a freelance hockey writer based in Medicine Hat, AB)
