WHL Championship: Game 3 Player to Watch – Carter Souch
For the first time since 2019, the WHL Championship Series is back. Featuring the WHL Eastern Conference Champion Edmonton Oil Kings and the WHL Western Conference Champion Seattle Thunderbirds, Game 3 is set for Tuesday, June 7 (7:05 p.m. PT) at accesso ShoWare Center in Kent. The best-of-seven series is tied 1-1 after the Edmonton Oil Kings claimed a 5-4 win in Game 2 on Sunday.
Visit seattlethunderbirds.com for tickets, or catch the action from home on TSN 1, TSN 3, or via WHL Live.
Carter Souch
Edmonton, Alta.
Left Wing
#44
5-foot-10, 165 pounds
2022 WHL Playoffs
15 GP – 11G-8A–19 points
The wily vet.
Every championship team has one, and Carter Souch has certainly put his stamp on the 2022 WHL Playoffs, scoring 11 times in 15 games, including in both games of the 2022 WHL Championship Series.
As the Oil Kings head into accesso ShoWare Center for the first time since October 13, 2018, you can bet on it being a hostile environment, with a raucous sold-out crowd expected. It will be Souch’s time to shine and apply that 20-year-old experience to help keep an even keel on the Oil Kings bench, as Edmonton seeks out a 2-1 series lead.
“We’ve got a big road game coming up here tonight, this is a different environment, different atmosphere for most of us,” Souch said. “I’ve only played here once when I was 17 and quite a few guys haven’t played here before. The energy in this building and the fans – it’s different. It’s different from what we see out east at times. I think it’s going to be fun.
“Last year in the COVID season, we didn’t have fans. We’re super happy to be playing in front of fans again. At the end of the day, this is why we play hockey – for moments like these.”
Originally selected by the Oil Kings in the fourth round (75th overall) of the 2016 WHL Draft, the hometown product is in his second and final tour through the WHL Playoffs after appearing in 10 contests during the 2019 campaign.
Injecting energy into the Oil Kings lineup, Souch brings that coveted blend of grit, physicality, and high-end finishing ability – evidenced by a career high 71 points in 68 regular season games.
????HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT????
Call him ‘Maverick’ because Carter Souch hits Mach 10.@EdmOilKings | #WHLChampionship | #WHLHoN pic.twitter.com/nRJfjfpBhX
— The WHL (@TheWHL) June 6, 2022