2026 WHL Graduates: Wenatchee Wild
The Western Hockey League is celebrating the WHL Graduates from the 2025-26 season in a 23-part, team-by-team series.
We’re wrapping things up with a pair of Wenatchee Wild grads.
Riley Bassen (F)
Hometown: Frisco, Texas
WHL Career Stats: 20 GP – 3 G-8 A – 11 points
WHL Draft: Listed (Wenatchee Wild)
Riley Bassen’s time in the WHL may have been short, but his family history in junior hockey is long.
His dad, Bob, spent three seasons with the Medicine Hat Tigers in the early 1980s and was even named to the 1984-85 WHL East Division First All-Star Team.
Riley, 21, signed with the Wild as a free agent in December 2025 and came to the league from Merrimack College.
The 5-foot-11, 172-pound pivot bagged a goal and an assist in his WHL debut with a 5-4 win over the Spokane Chiefs and went on to log 11 points (3G-8A) in 20 games.
His .55 points-per-game ranked sixth on the team, and he won 153 faceoffs over his time in Washington State.
Bassen, from Frisco, Texas, will move on to Oklahoma State University for 2026-27.
Sam Elliott (F)
Hometown: White Rock, B.C.
WHL Career Stats: 45 GP – 5 G-11 A – 16 points
WHL Draft: Listed (Wenatchee Wild)
White Rock, B.C.’s Sam Elliott made the jump from the BCHL to the WHL for his final season of major junior eligibility.
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound centreman inked a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement in June of 2025 and made his impact felt on an up-and-coming Wild team.
After being held to a single assist in his first six games, Elliott popped off for two goals and two assists in an authoritative 7-3 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds on October 12, 2025.
Despite battling injuries, Elliott posted 16 points (5G-11A) in 45 spins with Wenatchee while finishing second on the team in faceoff wins with 366 (48.1%).
He’s set to attend the University of Alaska-Fairbanks this season.
