GRADUATING PROFILE: Mittelsteadt Incredibly Thankful for All Stops in WHL Career
This week, the Vancouver Giants will look back on the junior careers of their three overage players with a written profile on each one. Today, we begin by looking at the WHL career of defenceman Ethan Mittelsteadt.
Langley, B.C. – It was fitting that in his 263rd and final Western Hockey League game, Vancouver Giants defenceman Ethan Mittelsteadt found the back of the net.
For someone who was so well-respected by his teammates – and not particularly known for his goal-scoring with a career-high of four – something about it just felt right.
“My final game as a Giant and as a WHL player was one of my favourite memories,” Mittelsteadt said when asked to look back on his WHL career. “Suiting up one last time with my teammates, being able to score in my final game and the camaraderie with the guys post-game are things I will never forget. It was a great way to end off my time in the WHL.”
Mittsy scores in his last game as a Giant, with the assist from Jakob Oreskovic! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/4CzUFpoJbL
— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) March 22, 2026
Rewind the clocks back nearly four years and you’ll discover that the left-shot blueliner’s very first WHL goal was actually scored in the very same building: the Langley Events Centre.
At the time, Mittelsteadt was a Seattle Thunderbird, the team that had drafted him in the fifth round in 2020 and the same team that his uncle Joey briefly played for in the late 1980s before additional stops in Portland and Kamloops.
Mittelsteadt’s headshot from his rookie season in Seattle in 2021.
Mittelsteadt had split the 2021-22 season between the Thunderbirds and the Junior B Westshore Wolves because Seattle’s team was deep: they finished that season with 44 wins and 94 points, and ended up making a run to the WHL Championship final. What that meant was Mittelsteadt was dressed as a forward for his 11th career WHL game on March 25, 2022, which was played on the road against the Vancouver Giants.
And what did he do? He scored his first WHL goal, an insurance marker late in the second period, to help Seattle top the G-Men 5-2. Five games later, Mittelsteadt scored again, in Seattle’s regular season finale.
You never forget your first goal, but what Mittelsteadt remembers most from his time in Seattle is how many veteran players there were. Guys like Tyrel Bauer, Lucas Ciona, Jared Davidson, Matt Rempe and Henrik Rybinski, who had all been drafted by NHL clubs.
“I just remember all those older guys, seeming like they were 10-12 years older than me at the time and they treated me so well there,” Mittelsteadt recalled. “It was a just a great group. I’m really thankful that that’s who I came into the league with.”
In his second season with Seattle, Mittelsteadt found out that at the end of the day, the league is a business.
At the 2023 WHL trade deadline, the Thunderbirds went all in, making several trades to bolster their roster with older talent. As a result, Mittelsteadt – then 17-years-old – was sent to the Kelowna Rockets as part of a package for 19-year-old Chicago Blackhawks draft pick Colton Dach.
The good news? Mittelsteadt knew his new destination all too well: he was born in Kelowna and spent the first 10-plus years of his life there before his family moved to Victoria.
“It’s kind of full circle being back here and playing in front of the fans at Prospera Place, just like how it was when I was a kid,” Mittelsteadt said in a 2023 interview with kelownarockets.com. “It’s really surreal, we had season tickets and still have all of our jerseys.”
One of his highlights with the Rockets was scoring against his former team – Seattle – in their own barn, on December 2, 2023.
“It was a great moment for me and seeing how excited my teammates were made it even better,” Mittelsteadt said.
A big time goal for Ethan Mittelsteadt against his former team. pic.twitter.com/NR4tHIS9IY
— X – Kelowna Rockets (@Kelowna_Rockets) December 3, 2023
Mittelsteadt recorded a career-high 31 points that season, tallying three goals and 28 assists. He also won his first WHL playoff series in 2024, helping the Rockets defeat the Wenatchee Wild in six games.
Nearly one year after scoring that goal at accesso ShoWare Center against his former team, and with the Giants needing additional depth on the blue line, they acquired Mittelsteadt from Kelowna in exchange for a pair of draft picks.
While the second trade was another reminder of the business side of the league, Mittelsteadt emphasized that his time with all three teams has been an incredible experience.
“I’ve got friends for life from all three teams and I think that’s the best part about this whole process: the people who are involved in it,” he said. “You have some good days, you have some tough days, but I wouldn’t change any of it.
“Going out to lunch and dinners with my best friends every single day was the ultimate highlight for me. Going to Chipotle in Seattle, Wood Fire in Kelowna and White Spot in Vancouver, these were my favourite times and what I’ll miss the most.”
His approachability made him an incredibly well-respected teammate and strong leader very quickly.
“He was a big part of our culture,” Giants 20-year-old teammate Misha Volotovskii said of Mittelsteadt. “He cared a lot and made sure everyone did things the right way on a day-to-day basis. Very smart, easy to talk to and compassionate.”
Mittelsteadt celebrates a goal at LEC on Nov. 24, 2024 (Rob Wilton).
“He was mature and thoughtful. Really helped the younger guys,” Giants Head Coach Parker Burgess echoed. “He showed up to the rink every day with a positive, enthusiastic, growth mindset. I think a lot of the younger guys felt really comfortable around him, that they could go to him and ask questions. Just a very mature professional. Did his work, didn’t complain, low maintenance kid.”
At 6-feet, Mittelsteadt wasn’t the biggest defenceman, yet Burgess described him as fearless on the ice.
“When I think of him as a player, it’s those big blocked shots on the penalty kill, or getting up and scoring a big goal. I thought he was playing his best hockey at the end of the year,” Burgess said. “He was always willing to block a shot; willing to box guys out and defend. I thought he did a really good job with a really young d-core.”
Mittelsteadt blocks a shot against Prince George on Jan. 18 (Rob Wilton)
Mittelsteadt will now go from mentoring a young d-core, to being a rookie himself at his next stop: Princeton University.
Yes, that Princeton: the Ivy League school that is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the entire United States.
“The coaching staff at Princeton, once we connected, they were awesome,” Mittelsteadt said of his opportunity to join the Princeton Tigers for the 2026-27 season. “It’s awesome on the academic side as well as the hockey side, and I think that’s something that my family and I always have valued and put a lot of emphasis on since I was a kid.”
“The Giants they really helped me out with a couple of the courses that I had to take and it’s been nothing but support through many different avenues, so I’ve got to give a big thanks to my family and my support system. I wouldn’t be able to do this without them. I’m just super excited to get there next year and continue on this journey.”
And that’s the wonderful part of the WHL: it’s just a stepping stone, meaning the journey will continue.
For Mittelsteadt – who fondly recalls being “the worst skater” when his parents first enrolled him in Learn to Skate at four years old – his journey will continue at one of the top colleges in North America.
