CHLGOTW: Medicine Hat vs. Swift Current — Five to watch
The penultimate CHL Game of the Week of the 2023-24 regular season sees a pair of WHL Eastern Conference teams square off as the Medicine Hat Tigers (35-22-7) visit the Swift Current Broncos (36-20-6).
It’s been a rapid return to contention for a young Medicine Hat squad who currently sit 13 games over .500 with four games left to play despite a current three-game losing streak. Just two seasons ago, the club won 11 games but it gave them the opportunity to draft 2026 NHL Draft prospect Gavin McKenna first overall and since then, they haven’t looked back.
McKenna, alongside Oasiz Wiesblatt and 2024 NHL Draft prospects Andrew Basha, Tomas Mrsic and Shane Smith, have led a Tigers offence that have scored the fifth most goals (266) in the WHL this season. Their offence has been bolstered by the third best power play in the WHL with a 28.8 per cent success rate. After they fell in the first round last year, the club secured its second straight playoff berth earlier this month.
To highlight how homegrown the Tigers are, the entirety of their roster, save for winger Marcus Pacheco, were all drafted by Medicine Hat. This year, the Tigers have been in the CHL Top 10 rankings on three occasions, most recently in Week 9.
As for Swift Current, they made the decision to go all in on an attempt to win their fourth WHL championship with the acquisition of Conor Geekie (ARI) from Wenatchee.
Geekie bolsters a Broncos offence that already featured Clarke Caswell, Josh Filmon (NJ), Ryan Gould, Connor Hvidston (ANA) and Mathew Ward and currently sits sixth in WHL scoring with 255 goals.
With Reid Dyck (BOS) between the pipes — who is having a career year — as well as Owen Pickering (PIT) manning the blue line, the Broncos sit ninth in goals against this season.
The biggest concern for the Broncos will be special teams; their power play ranks 17th in the league at 20.5 per cent while their penalty kill is middle of the pack at 75.9 per cent.
Swift Current, who have secured their first berth in the WHL playoffs since they won it all in 2018, have been ranked twice in the CHL Top 10 rankings (Weeks 20 and 21).
Tonight is the eighth and final meeting this year between the two sides and it’s a series the Broncos have dominated; they’ve gone 5-1-1 overall and have collected seven of a possible eight points on home ice.
While playoff berths for both teams are secure, tonight features two teams that are all in on making a championship run. Fans can watch tonight’s game on CHL TV and TSN+ at 7:00pm ST.
Andrew Basha – Medicine Hat
In his third WHL season, Basha has really found his footing and it’s going to lead to him having his named called at the 2024 NHL Draft.
In 59 games, Basha has put together a 28-goal, 79-point campaign thus far for the Tigers. In NHL Central Scouting’s mid-term rankings, Basha placed 18th among North American skaters.
The 18-year-old represented Team Red in January’s Kubota CHL / NHL Top Prospects Game and across 174 career games for Medicine Hat, he’s tallied 149 points (53 goals).
It was a FOUR-goal Saturday night for @tigershockey's 2024 #NHLDraft prospect Andrew Basha! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/ysn25JSFoa
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) November 26, 2023
Reid Dyck – Swift Current
Dyck’s (BOS) fourth WHL season has been by far his best as he’s established a career high 23 wins, a number that ranks him ninth among WHL netminders. Furthermore, he’s only suffered six defeats in regulation, the third fewest in the league.
The 20-year-old also owns a 2.64 GAA and .912 save percentage through 32 games this year. The Bruins selected Dyck 183rd overall in the 2022 NHL Draft.
Conor Geekie – Swift Current
In 49 games between Wenatchee and Swift Current, Geekie (ARI) has tallied 90 points to sit tied 11th in WHL scoring and is on pace for the first 100-point campaign of his career. The 19-year-old sits third with a 1.84 point-per-game average while his 39 goals are a career high.
With the Broncos, Geekie’s got 19 goals and 41 points in only 23 games while earlier this year he represented Canada at the 2024 World Juniors.
Across 209 career games, Geekie holds a +155 rating for his WHL career, the second best in league history. Arizona drafted Geekie 11th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft.
#Yotes prospect Conor Geekie had his first hatty as a member of the @SCBroncos Tuesday! 🎩🎩🎩 pic.twitter.com/KEEqtYXSas
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) February 7, 2024
Connor Hvidston – Swift Current
In his third year with the Broncos, Hvidston (ANA) has established a new career high with 26 goals in just 48 games while his 56 points are approaching his personal best of 65 from a year ago.
Of his 26 goals, 11 have come on the man advantage, the most among Broncos skaters while his five game-winners are tied for the team lead. Hvidston has also won 51.7 per cent of his draws this season.
Hvidston, the 139th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft by Anaheim, just recently cracked the top-50 in Broncos scoring history and has 153 points to his name thus far.
#FlyTogether prospect Connor Hvidston had the OT winner for the @SCBroncos as their winning streak reached six games Saturday night! pic.twitter.com/88jAOmI6Ti
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) February 25, 2024
Gavin McKenna – Medicine Hat
As a 16-year-old, McKenna continues to star for Medicine Hat.
A prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft, McKenna has 90 points (31 goals) and sits tied 11th in WHL scoring. Since Jan. 1 he leads the WHL scoring with 56 points while his 31 power play assists are tied third most.
Furthermore, McKenna is chasing history as he looks to become just the fifth WHL player to score 100 points in a season as a 16-year-old. Additionally, his 59 assists are the fifth most by a player his age in WHL history.
2026 #NHLDraft prospect Gavin McKenna completes his first WHL hat-trick in overtime as @tigershockey win 8-7 in Swift Current❗️ pic.twitter.com/nAv9IjJjx6
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) October 7, 2023