Wild Congratulate Nine Players on Receiving Invitations to NHL Training Camps
WENATCHEE, Wash. – As the Wenatchee Wild begin on-ice activities for the 2023-24 preseason, the Wild are excited to announce that nine of their players have earned invitations to National Hockey League preseason training camps. NHL training camps are set to begin during the Wenatchee preseason in early September, with the first NHL preseason game scheduled for September 22 and the regular season slated to get underway on October 10.
Five of the nine players receiving invitations were drafted by NHL teams, including three who were selected by their teams in the first round of the draft. Matthew Savoie and Zach Benson will report to the Buffalo Sabres’ training camp after being selected in the first round by the Sabres in the 2022 and 2023 drafts, respectively. Conor Geekie will report to Arizona Coyotes training camp following his first-round selection last season – the three first-round selections combined for 270 points last season for the Winnipeg ICE, with Benson’s 97-point total ranking third in the Western Hockey League. Geekie and Savoie both made preseason appearances for their respective NHL teams last season, with Savoie earning a two-game playoff call-up to the American Hockey League’s Rochester Americans after the conclusion of Winnipeg’s WHL playoff run.
2022 draft picks Mason Beaupit (4th round, San Jose Sharks) and Graham Sward (5th round, Nashville Predators) will also be reporting to their respective teams’ training camps. Beaupit won 16 games for Winnipeg last season after joining the team from Spokane in November. Sward posted four goals and 33 assists last season, also between the Chiefs and ICE.
Four other players were invited to NHL training camps as free agents – Wyatt Wilson will return to Manitoba to take part in Winnipeg Jets camp after battling through injuries to appear in 24 contests for the Winnipeg ICE and the Victoria Royals. Easton Armstrong notched 19 goals and 12 assists last season, splitting time between the ICE and the Regina Pats. Briley Wood landed an invitation to the Colorado Avalanche training camp after a 13-game stint last season, and Ty Nash earned a spot on the Boston Bruins’ training-camp roster after racking up 20 goals and 24 assists in a 64-game stretch with Lethbridge and Winnipeg.
These nine players were pivotal to a historic 2022-23 season for the former Winnipeg ICE, setting a new Western Hockey League record for a 68-game season by winning 57 of those contests. Winnipeg would reach the WHL Final before falling to the eventual Memorial Cup finalist Seattle Thunderbirds in a five-game series, with the ICE eventually relocating to Wenatchee in June.
Tickets for the team’s home-opening games September 22 and 23 against the Portland Winterhawks and Seattle Thunderbirds are now on sale here, as well as for the September 9 preseason “Kids Day” contest against Tri-City. Admission to the Kids Day contest is free for all kids age 12 and under. Tickets for the rest of the team’s 2023-24 regular-season home games go on sale September 8.
2023-24 season tickets are still on sale – to purchase season tickets, call 509-888-7825 or stop into 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, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
