Monday Morning Memoirs: Not Big On Social Graces

Category: ArticleJune 10, 2024

Medicine Hat, AB – As the off-season rolls on, the Medicine Hat Tigers will be looking back on dates, games, teams and players from our storied history from now until the beginning of the 2024-2025 season. In today’s Monday Morning Memoir, “I’m Not Big On Social Graces”.

Oasiz Wiesblatt lead the Medicine Hat Tigers in scoring in the 2022-2023 season with 26 goals and 34 assists for sixty points and looking to take the next step in his development, more would be expected in his third full season in the Western Hockey League. Through thee first eight games of the season, Wiesblatt would be near a point a game with the Tigers, with seven assists but no goals, after scoring 26 times in the previous season.

That first big step took centre stage on a cold, rainy night on October 18, 2023 in Langley, BC. The Tigers on their longest road trip of the season through the BC Division, the Tigers would be 1-1 at this point in the trip, with a 9-2 win in Kelowna, followed by a tough 4-1 loss to the Victoria Royals the night before their tilt with the Vancouver Giants. Tigers vs Giants needed no extra motivation from seasons past.

It would be a great start for the Tigers in Vancouver as Brayden Boehm would give the Tigers a 1-0 lead after, despite putting up 33 shots through two periods though, Medicine Hat would run into a eventual league Goalie of the Year candidate in Brett mirwald and would be trailing after 40 2-1. Into the the third period it was Vancouver would would carry plenty of pace but in his first career WHL start, Zach Zahara would give no quarter to the Giants offence. With just 2:36 left in regulation, on a Tigers power play, Tomas Mrsic in his hometown would wire home the game-tying goal.

Medicine Hat would start overtime on the man-advantage but as Vancouver killed off their penalty, it would Wiesblatt walking the the line to keep a play alive and onside, despite the roars of the Giants crowd lobbying for off-side. Wiesblatt would make a couple of moves before firing his first goal and game-winner in a 3-2 triumph for the Tigers over the Giants.

Wiesblatt would go on to score 10 game-winning goals in 2023-2024 including two more in overtime. Now up to 13 game winners in his WHL career heading into his final junior season in 2024-2025.

Visit the highlight video below for more on that night including Zach Zahara’s first WHL win, which would see him win seven straight starts.