2024 WHL Championship Players to Watch: Game 2

Portland, Ore.- Three hours south of Climate Pledge Arena, home of the Seattle Kraken, two of the NHL club’s top prospects are currently clashing in the 2024 WHL Championship Series presented by Nutrien.

Trust us, they’re worth watching.

JAGGER FIRKUS- MOOSE JAW WARRIORS

No WHL club has found an answer for the reigning WHL Player of the Year in 2023-24.

Jagger Firkus found the scoresheet against all 20 clubs he’s faced this season en route to posting a CHL-best 126 regular season points.

That scoring touch has carried over to the playoffs, where he’s tied with teammate Denton Matetychuk for the playoff scoring lead.

Firkus teed up Mateychuk for a highlight-reel goal in Game 1, bringing his total to 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points in 17 games.

The speedy forward’s 12 tallies rank second among all skaters.

“He’s so creative,” Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Brayden Yager said of Firkus. “He finds a way to sneak through guys.  He takes guys one-on-four and finds a way to get through and somehow get a shot off. He goes to the dirty air areas. He works a lot harder than I think people think.”

The Kraken selected the 5-foot-11, 160-pound forward with the 35th overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft and signed him to a three-year, entry-level contract a year later.

At his first NHL camp, Firkus was assigned to room with his now-competitor, Portland Winterhawks defenceman Tyson Jugnauth.

He’s a great guy, Jugnauth says, but the friendship is on hold until the WHL Championship wraps up.

“You see him with the puck and he’s super dangerous every time he touches it,” Jugnauth explained. “It’s about taking away time and space from him and not letting him get that open ice.

As Firkus, an Irma, Alta. product, exited the ice at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum after Game 1, he called out a reminder to his teammates after the victory.

“We came here for two,” He roared as the Warriors celebrated.

“They’re going to come up flying (in Game 2). We know that,” Firkus said. “It’s their barn. They’re going to have some good fans tonight. Our motto coming into every road is that we came here for two (wins) and didn’t come here for one. Tonight is where it starts.”

TYSON JUGNAUTH- PORTLAND WINTERHAWKS

Defenceman Tyson Jugnauth has made a seamless transition into WHL life after departing the NCAA for Portland mid-season.

“I played like 30 games last year, and I’ve played like 55 (with Portland) already in half the year,” Jugnauth said. “A little bit different that way, but I’ve loved every second of it. I’d do it all over again.

You get to feel out game situations more and even break out pucks and drive the offense. You just get to have more of those experiences and puck touches. That really helps my development.”

The 20-year-old is averaging a point per game in the playoffs (four goals, 11 assists, 15 points) to sit in a tie for the second-most points on his team.

He’s also ranked third in postseason points among all WHL blueliners.

“Jugnauth is a big, acquisition for us and just kind of added to our depth,” San Jose Sharks prospect Luca Cagnoni said of Portland’s formidable defensive corps. “I think we’ve got six really good defencemen that can play all areas. It’s definitely a big advantage for us.”

The Kraken picked up Jugnauth with the 100th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.

“His skating is very good,” Firkus noted. “His shiftiness, his creativity on the blue line as well. He can get shots through very easily and he’s just a great player. There’s a reason he’s drafted.”

While the Kelowna, B.C. product is zeroed in on the task at hand with the Ed Chynoweth Cup just four wins away, Jugnauth is leaning on his NHL camp experience to help get the Winterhawks on a roll before the series shifts to Saskatchewan for Games 3-5.

“It taught me a lot just about how good you have to be to play there,” Jugnauth said. “Obviously, going there with all these great players like Jagger Firkus, they teach you a lot about what it takes to play. Then just being a pro too, being around that environment really teaches you and shows you what the NHL lifestyle is like.”

Fans will descend on the Glass Palace for Game 2 at 7:00 p.m. PST on Saturday, May 11.