10-Point Week Nets Friesen WHL’s Tempo Player of the Week Award
WENATCHEE, Wash. – At a critical juncture of the season, Wenatchee Wild forward and captain Evan Friesen is stepping up to guide the way. On the ice this past week, he led by example.
Friesen was named Monday afternoon as the Western Hockey League’s Tempo Player of the Week, the first Wenatchee player this season to be recognized by the league with a weekly award.
The club’s fourth-year forward picked up a couple of assists on Tuesday in a New Year’s Eve victory over the Kelowna Rockets, but it was his final two games on a three-game road trip this past weekend that set him apart. He posted two goals and an assist in a 6-3 win over the Portland Winterhawks on Saturday, including the WHL organization’s first penalty shot goal in the Wenatchee era. Sunday at the Tri-City Americans, he tied a career-best with five points, including a career-high four goals with a natural hat trick in the second period, in a 10-2 triumph. Two of his four goals came on the power play, and he was also a quick draw at the faceoff dot, winning 17 of the 24 restarts in which he participated. The 10-goal eruption was the club’s first double-digit posting since its relocation to Wenatchee during the 2023 offseason.
After picking up 52 points last season, the Winnipeg, Manitoba native is on his way to another career year in 2024-25, leading the team with 19 goals and 42 points. Sunday’s game was his second five-point showing in his last seven games. The 20-year-old made his 200th WHL appearance last month, and also reached the 100-point plateau for his career earlier this season, with 127 career points coming out of the weekend.
After three straight games away from home, the Wild return to Town Toyota Center to face the Victoria Royals on Friday, January 10 for Grandparents’ Night presented by Papa Murphy’s, with the opening puck drop slated for 7 p.m. Tickets for that game and all regular-season home games are on sale now by phone at 509-888-7825, online here or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team’s website and on the team’s social media platforms on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
