2025 WHL Championship Game 2 Player To Watch: Oasiz Wiesblatt, Medicine Hat Tigers
Medicine Alta.- As Medicine Hat public address announcer Jim Duce reads out the Tigers’ starting lineup, one name garners a particularly ferocious reaction from the crowd.
Captain Oasiz Wiesblatt has been clutch in the 2025 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien- and he’s the first person people like Head Coach Willie Desjardins and star winger Gavin McKenna credit when they talk about the culture the Tigers have built.
“Oasiz Wiesblatt has been such a great leader for this group and brought it together,” Desjardins said. “He’s definitely a key player for us on both special teams. His line’s been a driving line for us all year, but I do think his biggest contribution is off ice. I think your culture is the number one thing that gives you a chance to win, and I think he’s the guy that’s established our culture. I think we talk about being a family and taking care of each other and he’s as good as you’ll ever find in any league.”
The tenacious 5-foot-9, 183-pound centreman has been clutch in the playoffs with 14 goals (including a hat trick in Game 1 against Swift Current) and 12 assists for 26 points in 14 games.
He sits eighth in overall scoring, but, more importantly, leads the league with four game-winning strikes.
“It’s just really exciting,” Wiesblatt said after morning skate on Sunday. “Obviously, I have two great linemates with me and our D corps is great, so I don’t know, they just keep finding me. I know it’s important to get to the house, and that’s really key part of my game. All credit to my linemates.”
Wiesblatt, 21, saw his 25-game point streak (regular season + playoffs) end in Game 1 of the WHL Championship Series, but just shrugged as he smiled and said he was happier to have the win.
He still finished with a +2 rating and won half of his faceoffs in Medicine Hat’s 4-1 victory on Friday, May 9.
“The boys are really excited,” Wiesblatt added. “The crowd was buzzing last night, and the boys are really looking forward to it. I think from our end, we want to be better. I think we’ve got more to prove.”
He certainly has the capacity to put up some impressive numbers after a regular-season campaign that saw him finish fifth in the league in scoring with 105 points (36G-67A).
The Tigers will try to take a commanding 2-0 series lead on home ice before the Championship moves south of the border for Games 3-5 (if necessary) in Spokane.
Game 2 starts at 7:00 p.m. MST on Sunday, May 11.
Canadian fans can watch the game on TSN, while viewers in the United States and around the world can stream the series on Victory+.