Over the month of August, the Western Hockey League will be celebrating the WHL Graduates from the 2025-26 season in a 23-part, team-by-team series.<\/p>\n
These T-Birds have been cleared for takeoff after long WHL careers.<\/p>\n
Coster Dunn (F)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hometown:<\/strong> Stony Plain, Alta. His time in the WHL may be ‘Dunn’, but 20-year-old Coster Dunn skates away from major junior hockey a champion.\u00a0The 6-foot-1, 190-pound forward notched his first WHL point, an assist on Jared Davidson’s game-winning goal, in his league debut on December 30, 2021, and never looked back. Dunn scraped together two goals and an assist in 11 call-up appearances in 2021-22 and suited up for 58 games the following season for his rookie year, scoring 10 points 4G-6A) in the process. While he only cracked the lineup for a pair of games in the 2023 WHL Playoffs, the Thunderbirds rolled the competition to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup and advance to the Memorial Cup. Dunn took on a bigger role as the team started to rebuild in 2023-24, but truly hit his stride in 2024-25, when he cracked the 20-goal milestone for the first time and poured out 56 points (26G-30A) in 67 games, tied for second on the team in goals, earned an ‘A’,\u00a0 and returned to the playoffs after a one-season absence. Dunn’s final campaign saw him leave it all on the ice. The Stony Plain, Alta. product logged 25 goals (including three shorthanded strikes and five game-winners) and 30 assists for 55 points in 62 outings- good for second on the team in points and goals. He also led Seattle in postseason scoring with five points (3G-2A) in five games against the B.C. Division champion Penticton Vees. Dunn graduates from the WHL with 144 points (65G-79A) in 235 games over parts of five seasons<\/p>\n Joe Gramer (D)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hometown:<\/strong> Moorhead, Minn. Moorhead, Minn.’s Joe Gramer had a short but effective WHL career. The 6-foot, 200-pound defender signed a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement with the Seattle Thunderbirds on January 7, 2026, and made his debut against the Lethbridge Hurricanes the same day. He didn’t have to wait long to get his first WHL goal, lighting the lamp in his second game against the Medicine Hat Tigers just two days later. The 20-year-rookie closed out the campaign with 15 points (1G-14A) in 29 games and battled hard through the first round of the 2026 WHL Playoffs, where he buried two goals and a pair of helpers in five games versus the Vees.<\/p>\n Ashton Cumby (D)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hometown:<\/strong> Bonnyville, Alta. Six-foot-6, 216-pound defender Ashton Cumby cut a fearsome figure on blue lines across the WHL. The Bonnyville, Alta.-born skater broke into the WHL with the then-Winnipeg ICE on December 29, 2021, and made the team full-time the following year, putting up a pair of assists and a +13 rating in his rookie season. 2023-24 saw the franchise move to Wenatchee, Wash., and become the Wild. Cumby dished out four assists and 57 penalty minutes in 38 games before the Seattle Thunderbirds snapped him up in a midseason trade. He’d close out the year with 124 penalty minutes and four helpers in 70 outings. His fearsome reputation held steady in his first full run as a T-Bird, but he stepped up his offensive contributions, too. Cumby posted 13 points (2G-11A) and 102 PIMs while playing all 68 games in 2024-25, which caught the eye of NHL teams. The Chicago Blackhawks picked up Cumby with the162nd overall pick in the sixth round of the 2025 NHL Draft, and he followed it up with a career-best 17 points (4G-13A) in 59 games this season. He bows out of major junior with six goals, 30 assists, 36 points, and 361 penalty minutes in 256 games over parts of five seasons. Cumby is preparing to turn pro after signing a two-year AHL contract with the Rockford IceHogs, the Chicago Blackhawks’ affiliate, in May of 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Over the month of August, the Western Hockey League will be celebrating the WHL Graduates from the 2025-26 season in a 23-part, team-by-team series. These T-Birds have been cleared for takeoff after long WHL careers. Coster Dunn (F) Hometown: Stony Plain, Alta.WHL Career Stats: 235 GP \u2013 65 G-79 A \u2013 144 pointsWHL Draft: 2020…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":269609,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2479,"name":"2026 WHL Graduates","slug":"2026-whl-graduates","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2479,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":17,"filter":"raw","term_order":"8"}],"class_list":["post-269586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-2026-whl-graduates","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/02215112\/Seattle_2026-WHL-Graduates.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/487"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269586"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269586\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269600,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269586\/revisions\/269600"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269605,"date":"2026-09-02T20:40:25","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T02:40:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269605"},"modified":"2026-09-02T20:40:25","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T02:40:25","slug":"victoria-royals-name-miles-cooper-the-11th-captain-in-team-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/victoria-royals-name-miles-cooper-the-11th-captain-in-team-history","title":{"rendered":"2006-born forward Miles Cooper named newest captain of Victoria Royals"},"content":{"rendered":" Victoria, B.C.,<\/strong> \u2013 The Victoria Royals announced today that Miles Cooper<\/strong> has been named the eleventh captain in team history.<\/p>\n Cooper, a 2006-born forward hailing from Calgary, A.B., is entering his second season with the Royals. Cooper was acquired by the Royals via a trade with the Wenatchee Wild just prior to the start of the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n \u201cMiles has been an important part of our team since he joined us last year, leading both on and off the ice.\u201d said Royals\u2019 Head Coach James Patrick. \u201cWhen you look for a captain, you look for a player that is respected by his teammates, competes every day and leads by example, Miles checks all those boxes.\u201d<\/p>\n Originally drafted in the third-round of the 2021 WHL Draft by the Winnipeg ICE, Cooper has scored 143 points in 189 games in the WHL. Cooper is coming off a 2025-26 season that saw him score 37 points (10 goals, 27 assists) in 50 games played.<\/p>\n Assistant captains will be finalized at a later date.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Victoria, B.C., \u2013 The Victoria Royals announced today that Miles Cooper has been named the eleventh captain in team history. Cooper, a 2006-born forward hailing from Calgary, A.B., is entering his second season with the Royals. Cooper was acquired by the Royals via a trade with the Wenatchee Wild just prior to the start of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":269607,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":1704,"name":"Miles Cooper","slug":"miles-cooper","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1704,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":4,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1471"},{"term_id":41,"name":"victoria royals","slug":"victoria-royals","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":183,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1013,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2090"}],"class_list":["post-269605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-miles-cooper","tag-victoria-royals","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/02204006\/Cooper_26-27-Captain_1920.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/130"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269605"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269605\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269608,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269605\/revisions\/269608"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269607"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269538,"date":"2026-09-02T18:19:49","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T00:19:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269538"},"modified":"2026-09-02T18:19:49","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T00:19:49","slug":"mcsweeneys-whl-community-collective-kelowna-rockets-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/mcsweeneys-whl-community-collective-kelowna-rockets-2","title":{"rendered":"McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective: Kelowna Rockets"},"content":{"rendered":" WHL clubs may have up to 50 people on their protected lists, but the Kelowna Rockets blew that number out of the water as more than 350 fans hit the ice at Prospera Place to join the team for a family skate.<\/p>\n The annual event sees fans get up close and personal with their favourite players while supporting the Central Okanagan Food Bank.<\/p>\n The 350 participants mark the highest turnout the Rockets have ever seen for the event, while every rostered skater took part.<\/p>\n “It was great to see so many fans come out and have the chance to meet our players and get to know them away from the rink,” Rockets director of communications and social media Kohen Dengler said. “To be able to bring our community together while also supporting the Central Okanagan Food Bank made the day even more special.”<\/p>\n Each fan brought a non-perishable food item for the food bank, with an estimated 500 pounds ultimately making its way to the non-profit.<\/p>\n The Central Okanagan Food Bank’s programs include access to food hampers, specific bundles for new and expectant parents and newborns, and school meal and snack initiatives.<\/p>\n An estimated 10,500 people utilize these programs every month.<\/p>\n The Rockets hope to see the event continue to grow since bringing it back in the winter of 2022.<\/p>\n The Western Hockey League strives to promote and foster a welcoming environment in communities close to our 23 clubs in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest. Every team has the creative freedom to allow their players and staff to work with the organizations and groups that they are most passionate about. The end goal is to create and maintain long-lasting relationships and ongoing partnerships within their community.<\/em><\/p>\n Through the McSweeney\u2019s WHL Community Collective, we aim to highlight these outstanding initiatives done by each club throughout the season.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" WHL clubs may have up to 50 people on their protected lists, but the Kelowna Rockets blew that number out of the water as more than 350 fans hit the ice at Prospera Place to join the team for a family skate. The annual event sees fans get up close and personal with their favourite…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":269604,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":33,"name":"kelowna rockets","slug":"kelowna-rockets","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":166,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1116,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1200"},{"term_id":868,"name":"WHL Community Collective","slug":"whl-community-collective","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":896,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":83,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2141"}],"class_list":["post-269538","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-kelowna-rockets","tag-whl-community-collective","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/08\/02181853\/Kelowna_Community-Collective-1920.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269538","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/487"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269538"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269538\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269543,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269538\/revisions\/269543"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269593,"date":"2026-09-02T13:28:32","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T19:28:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269593"},"modified":"2026-09-02T16:04:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T22:04:19","slug":"whl-regular-season-games-to-stream-free-on-youtube","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/whl-regular-season-games-to-stream-free-on-youtube","title":{"rendered":"WHL Regular Season games to stream free on YouTube"},"content":{"rendered":" Calgary, Alta. \u2013<\/strong> The Western Hockey League today announced live streaming of WHL games for the 2026-27 season will shift to YouTube<\/a>, on an interim basis.<\/p>\n The decision to move the livestreaming of WHL games follows uncertainty regarding the future of Victory+, the WHL\u2019s exclusive livestreaming partner since March 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cThe WHL\u2019s audience is growing rapidly.\u00a0 We continue to believe that providing easy access to games is of critical value and importance as we look to expand our reach and deliver WHL excitement to our fans,\u201d commented WHL Commissioner Dan Near. \u201cBy moving WHL Regular Season games to YouTube on a short-term basis, we are protecting that access for fans to livestream their favourite WHL Club and watch their favourite WHL stars when the 2026-27 season gets underway Friday, September 18.\u201d<\/p>\n Over two playoffs and one regular season livestreaming on Victory+, the WHL achieved great success with millions of viewers tuning in, generating unprecedented exposure and reach for WHL Clubs and players, representing a significant step forward in accessibility for fans. WHL Clubs invested in enhancements to their productions, including additional content, intermission programming, camera angles, and more.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile we are disappointed to part ways, our time with Victory+ resulted in remarkable growth and exposure for the WHL as a result of the increased accessibility for fans,\u201d Near said. \u201cWHL Clubs pushed forward, investing in their production and exploring new ways to deliver games to fans via our livestreaming product. To this day, we hear accounts from fans who discovered the WHL because of our decision to work alongside Victory+, a company with Western Canadian roots. In today\u2019s changing landscape, accessibility to the product is paramount and we will explore all options to deliver games to WHL fans around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n The WHL remains committed to delivering a premium livestreaming experience for fans. Consistency with game production will be maintained as the WHL enters its next livestreaming chapter.<\/p>\n More information regarding the WHL on YouTube will be made available ahead of the start of the 2026-27 WHL Regular Season.<\/p>\n About the Western Hockey League<\/strong><\/p>\n Regarded as the world\u2019s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL consists of 23 member Clubs with 17 located in Western Canada and six in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for over 50 years. The WHL is also the leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 375 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada\u2019s National Junior Hockey Team.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The WHL remains committed to delivering a premium livestreaming experience for fans.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":269594,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2487,"name":"WHL on YouTube","slug":"whl-on-youtube","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2487,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1"}],"class_list":["post-269593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-whl-on-youtube","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/02125825\/YouTube_Generic_Lockup_1920.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/116"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269593"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269598,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269593\/revisions\/269598"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269589,"date":"2026-09-02T12:25:25","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T18:25:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269589"},"modified":"2026-09-02T12:25:25","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T18:25:25","slug":"2026-whl-referee-training-camp-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/video\/2026-whl-referee-training-camp-video","title":{"rendered":"2026 WHL Referee Training Camp Video"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":269590,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1113],"tags":[{"term_id":660,"name":"WHL Officiating","slug":"whl-officiating","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":686,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":61,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2187"}],"class_list":["post-269589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-video","tag-whl-officiating","video-channels-whl-officiating","category-1113","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/02122512\/2026-Ref-Camp-Thumbnail.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":{"video_id":"2799357","partner_id":"31014","player_id":"47902","width":"16","height":"9","360p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/sd\/2799357.mp4","240p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/ld\/2799357.mp4","480p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/hsd\/2799357.mp4","1080p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/fhd\/2799357.mp4","hls":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/streaming\/2799357\/2799357.m3u8","webp":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/webp\/2799357.webp"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/130"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269589"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269589\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269591,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269589\/revisions\/269591"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269555,"date":"2026-09-02T11:55:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269555"},"modified":"2026-09-02T11:55:15","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:55:15","slug":"2026-whl-graduates-saskatoon-blades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/2026-whl-graduates-saskatoon-blades","title":{"rendered":"2026 WHL Graduates: Saskatoon Blades"},"content":{"rendered":" Over the month of August, the Western Hockey League will be celebrating the WHL Graduates from the 2025-26 season in a 23-part, team-by-team series.<\/p>\n Today, we highlight some Blade City rollers.<\/p>\n Rowan Calvert (F)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hometown:<\/strong> Moose Jaw, Sask. Rowan Calvert’s winding WHL journey featured one of the most dramatic playoff series in modern WHL history, family showdowns, comebacks, and plenty of highlight-reel goals.<\/p>\n And it all started with a ninth-round draft pick.<\/p>\n The Saskatchewan-born-and-bred forward made his WHL debut on December 4, 2021, and scored his first goal on December 27- the game-winning strike against the Blades’ greatest rival, the Prince Albert Raiders.<\/p>\n Calvert slowly began carving out a role for himself on a Saskatoon roster that was steadily growing more dangerous.<\/p>\n In 2023-24, he logged 25 points (10G-15A) as the Blades went 50-13-2-3 to capture the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy as WHL regular season champions.<\/p>\n The 6-foot, 193-pound winger added another three goals and an assist in the 2024 WHL Playoffs, culminating in the epic Eastern Conference Championship, which saw Rowan face off against brother Atley and the Moose Jaw Warriors.<\/p>\n Six of the seven games in the series required overtime, though the Warriors would ultimately move on.<\/p>\n Despite many important players, including NHL prospects, moving on, Calvert and the Blades wouldn’t follow the typical rebuilding cycle of many junior squads.<\/p>\n Instead, Calvert took the increased ice time and put forward his first 20-plus goal season, netting 53 points (24G-29A) in 64 games.<\/p>\n His final campaign saw the Moose Jaw product top that with a team-leading 31 tallies, in addition to 22 assists.<\/p>\n Calvert’s 53 points ranked fourth on the team<\/p>\n The 2026 WHL Playoffs saw the Blades upset the higher-ranked Edmonton Oil Kings in another wild seven-game showdown.<\/p>\n This time, it was Calvert pulling the trigger to put the Blades on top.<\/p>\n While the Blades would come up short against the eventual Eastern Conference champion Raiders, the underdog Blades had plenty to celebrate.<\/p>\n Calvert, who was an alternate captain for his final two seasons in Blade City, never missed the playoffs in his WHL career and graduates with 70 goals and 72 assists for 142 points in 269 games over parts of five seasons.<\/p>\n Tyler Parr (F)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hometown:<\/strong> La Salle, Man. Like Calvert, La Salle, Man.’s Tyler Parr basked in some of the best years in recent memory in Saskatoon and spent his entire major junior career in blue and gold.<\/p>\n The do-it-all winger took his first laps at the SaskTel Centre on October 2, 2021, and scored his first goal in his third outing- an overtime thriller against the Brandon Wheat Kings.<\/p>\n Parr seemed primed for a breakout in his sophomore season after posting 14 points (4G-10A) in 27 games, but an upper-body injury cut his season short in mid-December, though he managed to make it back in time for the 2023 WHL Playoffs.<\/p>\n As the Blades embarked upon their regular-season championship season in 2023-24, Parr proved to be a dependable force with 31 points (11G-20A) in a full, healthy season that featured three shorthanded strikes.<\/p>\n He played 11 matches in the 2024 postseason as the Blades marched to the conference championship and scored twice along the way.<\/p>\n Parr earned an ‘A’ in 2024-25 and iced what would be his most prolific WHL campaign.<\/p>\n He logged 20 goals and 41 assists for a team-best 61 points in 66 games.<\/p>\n Parr was tapped to captain the Blades for his final season, becoming the 64th captain in franchise history.<\/p>\n The 5-foot-11, 192-pound forward tallied 32 points (10G-22A) and 77 penalty minutes in his final campaign, and came through with four massive goals and three helpers in nine playoff matches.<\/p>\n Parr won’t be going far as he bids farewell to the WHL.<\/p>\n He’ll be heading across the city to join a strong contingent of former Blades with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.<\/p>\n Parr wraps up his time in major junior with 48 goals and 101 assists for 149 points in 285 regular-season games.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Over the month of August, the Western Hockey League will be celebrating the WHL Graduates from the 2025-26 season in a 23-part, team-by-team series. Today, we highlight some Blade City rollers. Rowan Calvert (F) Hometown: Moose Jaw, Sask.WHL Career Stats: 269 GP \u2013 70 G-72 A \u2013 142 pointsWHL Draft: 2020 \u2013 Ninth Round, 187th…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":269588,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2479,"name":"2026 WHL Graduates","slug":"2026-whl-graduates","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2479,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":17,"filter":"raw","term_order":"8"}],"class_list":["post-269555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-2026-whl-graduates","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/09\/02115503\/2026-WHL-Graduates_Saskatoon.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/487"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269555"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269563,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269555\/revisions\/269563"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":269575,"date":"2026-09-02T11:53:03","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:53:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269575"},"modified":"2026-09-02T11:53:03","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:53:03","slug":"rucks-run-wild-in-preseason-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/rucks-run-wild-in-preseason-win","title":{"rendered":"Trio of Rucks run rampant in Tigers preseason win"},"content":{"rendered":" Lethbridge, Alta.-\u00a0<\/strong>Medicine Hat Tigers fans are used to seeing Markus and Liam Ruck whiz around the ice and light the lamp endlessly thanks to their preternatural chemistry.<\/p>\n But on Tuesday night, the L. Ruck and M. Ruck name bars were flanked by a third- LA. Ruck.<\/p>\n The Pittsburgh Penguins prospects suited up for the Tigers’ first preseason game on a line with their younger brother, 2026 WHL Prospects Draft pick Landon Ruck.<\/p>\n Ruck 1, 2, and 3! \ud83d\udc05\ud83d\udc05\ud83d\udc05 pic.twitter.com\/Cin0BThGe2<\/a><\/p>\n — Medicine Hat Tigers (@tigershockey) September 2, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
WHL Career Stats:<\/strong> 235 GP \u2013 65 G-79 A \u2013 144 points
WHL Draft:<\/strong> 2020 \u2013 Seventh Round, 139th Overall (Seattle Thunderbirds)<\/p>\n
WHL Career Stats:<\/strong> 29 GP \u2013 1 G-14 A \u2013 15 points
WHL Draft:<\/strong> Listed (Seattle Thunderbirds)<\/p>\n
WHL Career Stats:<\/strong> 256 GP \u2013 6 G-30 A \u2013 36 points
WHL Draft:<\/strong> 2020 \u2013 Fourth Round, 80th Overall (Winnipeg ICE)<\/p>\n
\n
\n
WHL Career Stats:<\/strong> 269 GP \u2013 70 G-72 A \u2013 142 points
WHL Draft:<\/strong> 2020 \u2013 Ninth Round, 187th Overall (Saskatoon Blades)<\/p>\n
WHL Career Stats:<\/strong> 285 GP \u2013 48 G-101 A \u2013 149 points
WHL Draft:<\/strong> 2020 \u2013 Third Round, 55th Overall (Saskatoon Blades)<\/p>\n\n