GAME PREVIEW: Calgary at Kamloops – 12.27.25
HITMEN HEADLINES: The Calgary Hitmen (17-9-4-1) return to action tonight following a full seven-day break as they open a partial tour of the B.C. Division in Kamloops against the Blazers (14-12-3-4). Game time is 6:00 p.m. PST/7:00 p.m. MST at Sandman Centre. The Hitmen enter play on a four-game point streak (3-0-1-0) and are coming off a 3-2 overtime loss to Brandon on Dec. 19. Trailing 2-0, Calgary rallied on goals from Caine Wilke and Ethan Moore to force the extra session. The Wheat Kings Joby Baumuller scored the game winner 2:25 into the fourth period. Kamloops meanwhile is winless in four (0-1-1-2) and also hasn’t played since Dec. 19 when they suffered a 1-0 shootout loss on the road against Seattle. Blazer’s goaltender Logan Edmonstone was perfect through 65 minutes making 40 saves before the Thunderbirds scored on two of their three shootout attempts to win the game.
WHERE THEY STAND: Calgary is tied for fourth in the Eastern Conference with Brandon at 39 points although the Hitmen have a game in hand on the Wheat Kings. Kamloops is sixth in the Western Conference with 35 points but just one point behind both Portland and Kelowna.
KAMLOOPS: Tonight is the lone regular season meeting between the two clubs and their first in over a calendar year. Last season they met in Calgary on Dec. 13, 2024, with the Hitmen skating to a 5-4 overtime victory. The Blazers forced OT with 52 seconds remaining on a goal by Tommy Lafreniere before Carter Yakemchuk won it for Calgary 2:09 into extra time. The last time the Hitmen made the trip to south-central British Columbia was on Jan. 5, 2024, with Calgary posting a 6-2 victory. After Kamloops built a 2-1 second period lead, the Hitmen took over as Sean Tschigerl led the way with two goals and two assists.
STREAKIN’: Julien Maze (5g, 3a) is on a five-game point streak while Axel Hurtig (1g, 3a) is on a four-game point streak…Ben MacBeath (5a) is on a three-game assist streak…Koy Funk (1g, 2a) and Hayden Schollar (1g, 1a) both have points in back-to-back games…Aidan Hess has won his last two starts while Eric Tu is 2-0-1-0 in his last three starts in goal…Kale Dach (5g, 1a) saw his three-game goal scoring streak end Dec. 19 against Brandon while a four game point streak for Andrei Molgachev (3g, 6a), a three-game point streak for Hunter Aura (3a) and a two-game point streak for Calder Hamilton (1g, 4a) were also snapped the same day.
KAMLOOPS CONNECTIONS: There are two Hitmen with ties to the BC city. The first is 18-year-old defenceman Hunter Aura who grew up in Kamloops and is a graduate of the local Thompson Blazers. His last minor hockey season in the city was as a 14-year-old when he recorded 29 points (12g, 17a) in 29 games with the AAA U15 Blazers. That season Aura was named a BC Elite Hockey League All-Star with Calgary promptly selecting him in the third round, 51st overall, in the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft. The second member of the Hitmen with a Kamloops history is also off the blueline in 17-year-old defenceman Kaden Meyer. The 6’3 blueliner was acquired by the Hitmen from Kamloops in June of 2025 in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the 2028 WHL Prospects Draft and a sixth-round selection in 2026. Meyer was originally drafted by the Blazers in the sixth-round of the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft but spent last season playing with the AAA U18 Greater Vancouver Canadians of the BCEHL where he notched 50 points (11g, 29a) in 36 games.
TRADE WINDS: The Hitmen made a pair of trades prior to the holiday break on Dec. 15, both involving teams from the East Division. The first transaction saw Calgary acquire Regina Pats leading scorer Julien Maze in return for a pair of third-round picks, one in the 2027 WHL Prospects Draft and the second in 2028. Later that same day the Hitmen added a trio of assets from the Prince Albert Raiders in exchange for 18-year-old Dallas Stars prospect Brandon Gorzynski. Calgary received 17-year-old forward Ty Meunier, a 2026 second-round pick and a 2027 fourth-round selection, both in the WHL Prospects Draft.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTEBOOK: The Hitmen power play has climbed into ninth place in the WHL at 27.3%. It has scored at least once in 13 of its last 16 games, going a combined 21-53 (39.6%) during that span.…The Hitmen penalty kill leads the WHL at 84.7%.
BUS BUDDIES: Tonight kicks off a stretch of games for the Hitmen that sees the club play eight of their next 11 on the road. Aside from facing all six teams from the B.C. Division over two different road trips, Calgary will also make stops in Medicine Hat and Red Deer.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Kale Dach (19g, 17a) leads Calgary in scoring with 36 points which is tied for 27th overall in the WHL…Ethan Moore and Julian Maze are tied for the team lead in shots on goal, both with 95…Tonight marks Calgary’s first game against an opponent from the B.C. Division this season. Last year went 5-0. This season Kamloops is 2-1 against teams from the Central Division.
DID YOU KNOW? Only the Prince Albert Raiders at 89 have surrendered fewer goals in the Eastern Conference this season than the Hitmen who have given up 92. On the flip side Kamloops has allowed a Western Conference leading 132 goals. The Blazers have the WHL’s leading scorer in JP Hurlbert who has 55 points (22g, 33a) in 33 games.
FAST FACTS: This partial tour of British Columbia is a homecoming for four Hitmen who all hail from the province in Hunter Aura (Kamloops), Shaun Hildebrandt (Langley), Kaden Meyer (Delta) and Eric Tu (White Rock). The Hitmen are 9-2-2-1 on the road, riding a five-game road point streak (4-0-1-0). Kamloops is 8-5-3-0 at home.
WHL LEADERBOARD: Eric Tu is tied for third in goals against average at 2.39 while his .910 save percentage is fifth. Calgary has three of the WHL’s Top-20 Rookie scorers. Kale Dach is tied third with 36 points (19g, 17a) while Andrei Molgachev (12g, 13a) is tied for 10th with 25 points and Ben MacBeath (6g, 16a) shares 12th place with 22 points. MacBeath is also the second highest scoring rookie defenceman in the WHL.
2026 NHL DRAFT: Five Hitmen are on NHL Central Scouting’s list as Preliminary Players to Watch ahead of the 2026 draft. Landon Amrhein and Ben MacBeath are forecast as second or third-round picks. Hunter Aura, Aidan Hesse and Andrei Molgachev are projected to be sixth or seventh-round candidates.
WHL REGULAR SEASON MILESTONES: Ty Meunier is set to play his 100th career game in the WHL tonight in Kamloops. Goaltender Eric Tu eclipsed the 2,000 minutes played mark on Dec. 19 vs. Brandon.
MAYFAIR DIAGNOSTICS INJURY REPORT: None.
HITMEN VS: BDN (1-0-1-0), EDM (2-0), EVT (0-0), KAM (0-0), KEL (0-0), LET (3-1-1-0), MH (1-2-1-1), MJ (0-2), PEN (0-0), POR (0-1), PA (2-0), PG (0-0), RD (4-1), REG (0-0-1-0), SAS (1-1), SEA (0-0), SPO (1-0), SC (2-0), TC (0-0), VAN (0-0), VIC (0-0), WEN (0-1).
UPCOMING SCHEDULE: Calgary receives a two-day break before playing Game 2 of this four game BC road trip on Tuesday, Dec. 30 in Langley against the Vancouver Giants. Game time is 7:00 p.m. PST/8:00 p.m. MST. The Hitmen will then ring in 2026 with a New Year’s Day game in Victoria on Thursday, Jan. 1 before concluding the trip in Prince George on Saturday, Jan. 3. Calgary returns home to welcome Sawyer Mayes and the Seattle Thunderbirds on Saturday, Jan. 10 in a 6:00 p.m. start at Scotiabank Saddledome.
