Six former Chiefs among 133 WHL alumni named to NHL opening rosters
Spokane, Wash. – The Spokane Chiefs are proud to announce that six former players have been named to National Hockey League opening night rosters as the NHL 2021-22 regular season begins on Tuesday.
Former Chiefs include:
- G Dustin Tokarski (Buffalo)
- F Tyler Johnson (Chicago)
- F Derek Ryan (Edmonton)
- F Kailer Yamamoto (Edmonton)
- D Jared Spurgeon (Minnesota)
- D Ty Smith (New Jersey)
In total, 133 Western Hockey League alumni made rosters, including at least one on every team.
WHL Alumni on NHL Opening Night Rosters
Players listed alongside last WHL Club
* – spent 2020-21 season in WHL
^ – eligible to return to WHL for 2021-22
+ – injured / non-roster player
Anaheim Ducks (3)
Ryan Getzlaf (Calgary Hitmen); Josh Mahura (Regina Pats); Sam Steel (Regina Pats)
Arizona Coyotes (1)
Andrew Ladd (Calgary Hitmen)
Boston Bruins (3)
Brandon Carlo (Tri-City Americans); Jake DeBrusk (Red Deer Rebels), Curtis Lazar+ (Edmonton Oil Kings)
Buffalo Sabres (5)
Dylan Cozens^ (Lethbridge Hurricanes); Cody Eakin (Kootenay ICE); Henri Jokiharju (Portland Winterhawks); Mark Pysyk (Edmonton Oil Kings); Dustin Tokarski (Spokane Chiefs)
Calgary Flames (8)
Mikael Backlund (Kelowna Rockets); Dillon Dube (Kelowna Rockets); Glenn Gawdin (Swift Current Broncos); Milan Lucic (Vancouver Giants); Tyler Pitlick (Medicine Hat Tigers); Michael Stone (Calgary Hitmen); Juuso Valimaki (Tri-City Americans); Connor Zary*^+ (Kamloops Blazers)
Carolina Hurricanes (4)
Ethan Bear (Seattle Thunderbirds); Seth Jarvis*^ (Portland Winterhawks); Jordan Martinook (Vancouver Giants); Nino Niederreiter (Portland Winterhawks)
Chicago Blackhawks (6)
Kirby Dach^ (Saskatoon Blades); Brandon Hagel (Red Deer Rebels); Tyler Johnson (Spokane Chiefs); Caleb Jones+ (Portland Winterhawks); Seth Jones (Portland Winterhawks); Jujhar Khaira (Everett Silvertips)
Colorado Avalanche (4)
Bowen Byram^ (Vancouver Giants); Darren Helm (Medicine Hat Tigers); Darcy Kuemper (Red Deer Rebels); Ryan Murray (Everett Silvertips)
Columbus Blue Jackets (4)
Jake Bean (Tri-City Americans); Oliver Bjorkstrand (Portland Winterhawks); Trey Fix-Wolansky+ (Edmonton Oil Kings); Cole Sillinger^ (Medicine Hat Tigers)
Dallas Stars (4)
Jamie Benn (Kelowna Rockets); Blake Comeau (Kelowna Rockets); Braden Holtby (Saskatoon Blades); Anton Khudobin (Saskatoon Blades)
Detroit Red Wings (1)
Michael Rasmussen (Tri-City Americans)
Edmonton Oilers (8)
Tyson Barrie (Kelowna Rockets); Tyler Benson (Vancouver Giants); Leon Draisaitl (Kelowna Rockets); Duncan Keith (Kelowna Rockets); Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (Red Deer Rebels); Kris Russell (Medicine Hat Tigers); Derek Ryan (Spokane Chiefs); Kailer Yamamoto (Spokane Chiefs)
Florida Panthers (4)
Kevin Connauton+ (Vancouver Giants); Radko Gudas (Everett Silvertips); John Ludvig+ (Portland Winterhawks); Sam Reinhart (Kootenay ICE)
Los Angeles Kings (1)
Alexander Edler (Kelowna Rockets)
Minnesota Wild (3)
Matt Dumba (Portland Winterhawks); Victor Rask (Calgary Hitmen); Jared Spurgeon (Spokane Chiefs)
Montreal Canadiens (7)
Josh Brook+ (Moose Jaw Warriors); Adam Brooks (Regina Pats); Joel Edmundson+ (Kamloops Blazers); Brendan Gallagher (Vancouver Giants); Brett Kulak+ (Vancouver Giants); Carey Price+ (Tri-City Americans); Shea Weber+ (Kelowna Rockets)
Nashville Predators (4)
Cody Glass (Portland Winterhawks); Tanner Jeannot (Moose Jaw Warriors); Ryan Johansen (Portland Winterhawks); Colton Sissons (Kelowna Rockets)
New Jersey Devils (3)
Mason Geertsen (Vancouver Giants); Damon Severson+ (Kelowna Rockets); Ty Smith+ (Spokane Chiefs)
New York Islanders (5)
Johnny Boychuk+ (Moose Jaw Warriors); Mathew Barzal (Seattle Thunderbirds); Zdeno Chara (Prince George Cougars); Thomas Hickey (Seattle Thunderbirds); Ryan Pulock (Brandon Wheat Kings)
New York Rangers (3)
Libor Hajek (Regina Pats); Dryden Hunt (Moose Jaw Warriors); Ryan Reaves (Brandon Wheat Kings)
Ottawa Senators (3)
Tyler Ennis (Medicine Hat Tigers); Nick Holden (Chilliwack Bruins); Parker Kelly (Prince Albert Raiders)
Philadelphia Flyers (6)
Carter Hart (Everett Silvertips); Martin Jones (Calgary Hitmen); Ivan Provorov (Brandon Wheat Kings); Travis Sanheim (Calgary Hitmen); Nate Thompson (Seattle Thunderbirds); Egor Zamula+ (Calgary Hitmen)
Pittsburgh Penguins (1)
Tristan Jarry (Edmonton Oil Kings)
St. Louis Blues (2)
Jake Neighbours*^ (Edmonton Oil Kings); Brayden Schenn (Saskatoon Blades)
San Jose Sharks (5)
Rudolfs Balcers (Kamloops Blazers); Adin Hill (Portland Winterhawks); Evander Kane+ (Vancouver Giants); Lane Pederson (Swift Current Broncos); James Reimer (Red Deer Rebels)
Seattle Kraken (7)
Dennis Cholowski (Portland Winterhawks); Chris Driedger (Calgary Hitmen); Jordan Eberle (Regina Pats); Haydn Fleury (Red Deer Rebels), Morgan Geekie (Tri-City Americans); Kole Lind (Kelowna Rockets); Alexander True (Seattle Thunderbirds)
Tampa Bay Lightning (3)
Cal Foote (Kelowna Rockets); Brayden Point (Moose Jaw Warriors); Brent Seabrook+ (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
Toronto Maple Leafs (2)
Morgan Rielly (Moose Jaw Warriors); Ian Scott+ (Prince Albert Raiders)
Vancouver Canucks (7)
Kyle Burroughs (Medicine Hat Tigers); Justin Dowling (Swift Current Broncos); Micheal Ferland+ (Saskatoon Blades); Tyler Myers (Kelowna Rockets); Nic Petan (Portland Winterhawks); Luke Schenn (Kelowna Rockets); Brandon Sutter+ (Red Deer Rebels)
Vegas Golden Knights (10)
Laurent Brossoit (Edmonton Oil Kings); Dylan Coghlan (Tri-City Americans); Brett Howden+ (Moose Jaw Warriors); Keegan Kolesar (Seattle Thunderbirds); Peyton Krebs*^ (Winnipeg ICE); Brayden McNabb (Kootenay ICE); Nolan Patrick (Brandon Wheat Kings); Chandler Stephenson (Regina Pats); Mark Stone (Brandon Wheat Kings); Shea Theodore (Seattle Thunderbirds)
Washington Capitals (1)
Beck Malenstyn (Swift Current Broncos)
Winnipeg Jets (5)
Eric Comrie (Tri-City Americans); Brenden Dillon (Seattle Thunderbirds); Jansen Harkins (Prince George Cougars); Adam Lowry (Swift Current Broncos); Josh Morrissey (Kelowna Rockets)
About the Western Hockey League
Regarded as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL consists of 22 member Clubs with 17 located in Western Canada and five in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for over 50 years. The WHL is also the leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 375 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada’s National Junior Hockey Team.