Dual-citizen Fiddler ready to represent the CHL at the CHL USA Prospects Challenge next week

Edmonton, Alta.- Blake Fiddler occupies a pretty unique space in the junior hockey world right now.

The Edmonton Oil Kings defenceman is preparing for a new-look showdown between the top 2025 NHL draft-eligible players in the CHL and USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program (NTDP) Under-18 Team.

While the CHL USA Prospects Challenge presented by Kubota Canada has been touted as a Canada vs. United States showdown, Fiddler doesn’t fully fit in either box.

The projected first-round pick was born in Nashville, Tenn. and grew up in Texas, but has dual citizenship and has represented both countries on the international stage, most recently serving as Team USA’s captain at the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton, Alta.

He’s the lone American-born player on the CHL roster.

“I’ve played with and against a lot of the kids on NTDP, but, you know, I chose to pick the CHL route, and I’m excited to show why this is the best league,” Fiddler, who suited up for Canada White at the 2023 World U17 Hockey Challenge, said. “It’s a huge, huge honor, and I’m really excited to meet some new teammates and make some new friends and compete with some of the best draft-eligible players in the CHL, and I’m just looking forward to competing with and against a lot of the top talent in North America.”

Fiddler will be one of the players scouts are most eager to watch in next week’s games in London and Oshawa, Ont.

The right-shot defenceman has already been named an alternate captain for the CHL and snagged an ‘A’ rating from NHL Central Scouting in the agency’s preliminary player list.

“I just kind of wanted to gain trust from my coaches and have a bigger role by the end of the year and just kind of leave it all out on the ice and give it my all,” Fiddler said of his goals for the season. “Just picking spots to go, when not to, and simplifying in areas. You’ve got to be efficient with your play.”

Oil Kings Head Coach Luke Pierce says Fiddler’s effectiveness on the ice has grown just as quickly as the player himself has.

The 17-year-old was just 5-foot-7 when Edmonton selected him with the first overall pick in the 2022 WHL U.S. Priority Draft.

Now clocking in at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, Fiddler’s play is helping Edmonton chase a playoff berth after missing the postseason in his rookie year.

“For him, coming as a 16-year-old, it’s a very tough league to play in as a defenceman,” Pierce, who helped coach the Oil Kings to a 2022 WHL Championship, said. “Being on a team that was defending a lot, you know, it can be hard on a kid. I’ll give Blake a ton of credit, he handled it extremely well, and I think he took the benefit of getting a lot of added ice time.

“He got better at that part of it, and we used him a little bit in some special team scenarios. So I think watching him come back this year, he was just extremely confident in where he stands in the league and knows that he’s capable of playing against the best players. And I think the year that he had, as tough as it was at times, was extremely beneficial for his development. He’s primarily been playing against top matchups every night, relying on him to help generate offense as well and I think his defensive game has really taken strides.”

Fiddler has three goals, six assists and a +3 rating through 20 games with Edmonton this season and, by all accounts, has handled the added pressure of his draft season with aplomb.

As the son of former WHLer and 14-year NHL veteran Vernon Fiddler, Blake has had a firsthand look at what it takes to make it to the next level and has been able to lean on his dad throughout the process.

Blake was 10 when his dad retired and has many memories of watching him on the ice and in the room, particularly with the Dallas Stars.

“He was a competitor and he really wanted to win,” Fiddler recalled. “It was cool to see him have that compete level and (he) kind of brought that to me. One thing that we always say is that your compete level has always got to be there. So it was cool to be able to be around him when he was playing and see what he had to go through.”

While is dad laid the blueprint, Fiddler is ready to carve out his own path to impressing NHL brass.

He’ll be ready to put his best foot forward when he hits the ice with nine other WHLers at the CHL USA Prospects Challenge on November 26 and 27.