[{"id":269009,"date":"2026-07-30T13:01:33","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T19:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=269009"},"modified":"2026-07-30T13:01:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T19:01:33","slug":"swift-current-signs-russian-defenceman-yuri-vlasenko-to-a-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/swift-current-signs-russian-defenceman-yuri-vlasenko-to-a-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","title":{"rendered":"Swift Current signs Russian defenceman Yuri Vlasenko to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Swift Current, Sask. \u2013<\/strong> <\/span>The Swift Current Broncos have signed 2010-born Russian defenceman Yuri Vlasenko to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vlasenko was selected by the Broncos with the 21st overall pick in the 2026 CHL Import Draft.<\/span><\/p>\n

Born in Vienna (Wien), Austria, Vlasenko spent the 2025-26 season with Dynamo Moskva U16, where he served as an alternate captain and was recognized as the top 2010-born defenceman in Russia.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the 2025-26 Russia Cup, Vlasenko recorded four goals and 15 assists for 19 points in 24 games with Dynamo Moskva U16, showcasing his offensive ability from the blue line. The 16-year-old also earned opportunities to play with Dynamo Moskva\u2019s U17 and U18 teams throughout the season while representing Russia internationally with the country\u2019s U16 National Team.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I am proud to officially sign with the Broncos,” said Vlasenko. “I am excited for this next chapter and ready to leave everything on the ice for Swift Current. See you soon, Broncos Nation.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The Broncos welcome Yuri and his family to the organization.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Swift Current, Sask. \u2013 The Swift Current Broncos have signed 2010-born Russian defenceman Yuri Vlasenko to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement. Vlasenko was selected by the Broncos with the 21st overall pick in the 2026 CHL Import Draft. Born in Vienna (Wien), Austria, Vlasenko spent the 2025-26 season with Dynamo Moskva U16, where he…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":269011,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2460,"name":"Yuri Vlasenko","slug":"yuri-vlasenko","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2460,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"0"},{"term_id":2416,"name":"2026 CHL Import Draft","slug":"2026-chl-import-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2416,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":12,"filter":"raw","term_order":"94"},{"term_id":31,"name":"swift current broncos","slug":"swift-current-broncos","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":209,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1035,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1891"}],"class_list":["post-269009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-yuri-vlasenko","tag-2026-chl-import-draft","tag-swift-current-broncos","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30130119\/Signed-1920_Vlasenko.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\/269009","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=269009"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269009\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269012,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269009\/revisions\/269012"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269011"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268917,"date":"2026-07-30T12:45:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T18:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268917"},"modified":"2026-07-30T12:45:26","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T18:45:26","slug":"mcsweeneys-whl-community-collective-lethbridge-hurricanes-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/mcsweeneys-whl-community-collective-lethbridge-hurricanes-3","title":{"rendered":"McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective: Lethbridge Hurricanes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Lethbridge Hurricanes are no strangers to a long road trip.<\/p>\n

But while the Central Division squad has an exciting game or a warm bed waiting at each end of a drive, they know many people throughout the province have to make similar journeys to access important healthcare.<\/p>\n

That’s why the Hurricanes have teamed up with the Bringing Hearts Home Campaign to expand cardiac care in the area.<\/p>\n

The campaign, which is headed up by the Chinook Regional Hospital Foundation (CRHF), the Cardiac Sciences Advisory Cabinet, and AHS South Zone leadership, aims to raise $30 million by 2027 to create a Cardiac Centre of Excellence while improving other cardiac facilities and programs.<\/p>\n

This includes expanding intensive care unit and cardiac care capacity at nearby hospitals, as well as a new cardiac catheterization lab and advanced imaging technology.<\/p>\n

People living in the south end of the province currently have regional hospitals in Lethbridge and Medicine Hat and 14 acute care and community healthcare centres sprinkled across rural areas, though the CHRF says none of those facilities are able to provide cutting-edge, life-saving cardiac treatment.<\/p>\n

It’s a cause that hits close to home for up-and-coming forward Tyden Lafournaise, whose father, Marc, passed away after suffering a cardiac event in April of 2025.<\/p>\n

Marc Lafournaise was 55 years old.<\/p>\n

“In<\/span> the<\/span> summers, he<\/span>‘d<\/span> always<\/span> take<\/span> me<\/span> on<\/span> a<\/span> fishing<\/span> trip. That was kind of thing we liked to do the most together. We’d always have competitions,\u00a0who would catch bigger fish or more fish, and you know, I always won,” Lafournaise smiled. “I<\/span>t<\/span> was<\/span> just,<\/span> you<\/span> know,<\/span> being<\/span> out<\/span> there<\/span> on<\/span> a<\/span> lake,<\/span> peaceful,<\/span> spending<\/span> time<\/span> with<\/span> your<\/span> dad.<\/span> That’s<\/span> what<\/span> meant<\/span> the<\/span> most<\/span> to<\/span> me.<\/span> I<\/span> think<\/span> everyone<\/span> talks<\/span> about<\/span> how<\/span> hard<\/span> it<\/span> is<\/span> to<\/span> lose<\/span> someone<\/span> that<\/span> you<\/span> love<\/span> most,<\/span> and<\/span> you<\/span> don’t<\/span> really<\/span> understand<\/span> what<\/span> they<\/span> mean<\/span> by<\/span> that<\/span> until<\/span> you<\/span> have<\/span> to<\/span> go<\/span> through<\/span> it.”<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2025-26, the Hurricanes donated $50 for every point Lafournaise scored to the campaign.<\/p>\n

The 17-year-old’s 18-point (11G-7A) campaign saw $900 raised, in addition to a staggering $15,145.75 from the team’s Bringing Hearts Home Game on February 13, 2026.<\/p>\n

Lethbridge auctioned off specialty jerseys and sold commemorative pucks, in addition to contributing $5 from every ticket purchased to the cause.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis game is about more than hockey,\u201d Lethbridge Hurricanes General Manager of Business Operations Terry Huisman said. \u201cIt\u2019s about community \u2014 families, friends, and neighbours \u2014 and making sure the care they need is right here, right now. This campaign is meaningful to our entire community, and especially to our organization, as we have multiple staff and volunteers who have been affected by cardiac health issues or know someone who has.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nearly 5,000 fans turned out for the event.<\/p>\n

\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

\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Lethbridge Hurricanes are no strangers to a long road trip. But while the Central Division squad has an exciting game or a warm bed waiting at each end of a drive, they know many people throughout the province have to make similar journeys to access important healthcare. That’s why the Hurricanes have teamed up…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":269006,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2459,"name":"Tyden Lafournaise","slug":"tyden-lafournaise","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2459,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1"},{"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":78,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2114"}],"class_list":["post-268917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-tyden-lafournaise","tag-whl-community-collective","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30124458\/LETH-CC-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\/268917","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=268917"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268917\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269008,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268917\/revisions\/269008"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268950,"date":"2026-07-30T11:59:42","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:59:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268950"},"modified":"2026-07-30T11:59:42","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:59:42","slug":"nhl-prospect-watch-detroit-red-wings-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/nhl-prospect-watch-detroit-red-wings-5","title":{"rendered":"NHL Prospect Watch: Detroit Red Wings"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the lead-up to the 2026-27 hockey season, we\u2019re diving into the WHL prospect pool for every NHL team. To be included in this list, a player must be recently drafted, signed to an NHL contract, or meet the NHL\u2019s criteria for rookie status.<\/em><\/p>\n

Could Detroit’s future lie with a pair of first-round picks who have piled up WHL accolades?<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Carter Bear<\/strong><\/p>\n

After a season that ended with injury and heartbreak, Carter Bear clawed his way to the top of the WHL mountain. The 2025 13th-overall pick iced 36 goals (including seven game-winners and three hat tricks) and earned a berth on Team Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, where he was part of a bronze medal-winning effort. Bear finished second on the Silvertips in goals and ninth among all WHLers in points-per-game before taking off for 22 points (7G-15A) in 18 playoff games. The 6-foot, 177-pound winger from West St. Paul, Man., helped the Silvertips clinch the Ed Chynoweth Cup for the first time in franchise history and, with Captain Tarin Smith injured, was the first Tips skater to lift the WHL’s top prize. Bear, 19, was named to the WHL Western Conference Second All-Star Team and is expected to turn pro with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins next season. Not bad for a guy who was selected in the sixth round of the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft!<\/p>\n

Ond\u0159ej Becher<\/strong><\/p>\n

Six-foot-1, 187-pound centreman Ondrej Becher improved his offensive output while shoring up his 200-foot game in his sophomore professional season. The Ostrava, Cze. product netted 28 points (9G-19A) in 60 games, in addition to logging 42 penalty minutes and a +5 rating. Originally selected with the 80th overall pick in the third round of the 2024 NHL Draft, Becher spent two seasons with the Prince George Cougars, where he established himself as an offensive whiz. He put up 48 goals and 86 assists for 134 points in 121 games before signing a three-year, entry-level contract in December of 2024.<\/p>\n

JP Hurlbert<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Texas Tornado made a statement with a hat trick in his WHL debut for the Kamloops Blazers and never looked back. Hurlbert registered 42 goals and 55 assists for 97 points in 68 games to finish fourth in WHL scoring and first in points among all first-year players. The 6-foot, 182-pound winger locked up WHL Rookie of the Year honours, while being named a Western Conference finalist for WHL Player of the Year. Hurlbert scored once at the 2025 CHL USA Prospects Challenge and added a goal and an assist at the 2026 WHL Prospects Game before being called with the 20th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. The Allen, Texas product is currently making his case to represent the United States at the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship as he participates in the 2026 World Junior Summer Showcase.<\/p>\n

Michal Orsulak<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tremosna, Cze.’s Michal Orsulak continued a long tradition of dominant goaltending in Hockeytown North in his rookie WHL campaign. The 18-year-old went 28-4-3-1 with a 2.22 goals-against average, a .907 save percentage and four shutouts to help the Prince Albert Raiders to a 52-win season. Orsulak led all qualified WHL netminders in GAA, tied for second in shutouts and ranked fifth in save percentage and wins. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound puckstopper was named an Eastern Conference First-Team All-Star and a finalist for WHL Goaltender of the Year before backstopping the Raiders to the 2026 WHL Championship Series, where they fell to Bear and the Silvertips. Detroit picked up Orsulak with the 79th overall pick in the third round of the 2026 NHL Draft.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the lead-up to the 2026-27 hockey season, we\u2019re diving into the WHL prospect pool for every NHL team. To be included in this list, a player must be recently drafted, signed to an NHL contract, or meet the NHL\u2019s criteria for rookie status. Could Detroit’s future lie with a pair of first-round picks who…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":269003,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":1662,"name":"Carter Bear","slug":"carter-bear","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1662,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":31,"filter":"raw","term_order":"419"},{"term_id":2164,"name":"JP Hurlbert","slug":"jp-hurlbert","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2164,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":28,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1116"},{"term_id":2093,"name":"Michal Orsulak","slug":"michal-orsulak","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2093,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":19,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1432"},{"term_id":1814,"name":"Ondrej Becher","slug":"ondrej-becher","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1814,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1555"}],"class_list":["post-268950","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-carter-bear","tag-jp-hurlbert","tag-michal-orsulak","tag-ondrej-becher","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30115933\/260716_Prospect-Watch-1920_DET.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\/268950","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=268950"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268950\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268957,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268950\/revisions\/268957"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269003"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268950"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268950"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268950"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268999,"date":"2026-07-30T11:58:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:58:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268999"},"modified":"2026-07-30T11:58:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:58:06","slug":"blades-wheat-kings-completed-deal-involving-netminder-ryley-budd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/blades-wheat-kings-completed-deal-involving-netminder-ryley-budd","title":{"rendered":"Blades, Wheat Kings completed deal involving netminder Ryley Budd"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Saskatoon Blades and Brandon Wheat Kings have struck a deal on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n

The Blades acquired a pair of Western Hockey League (WHL) Prospect Draft picks from the Brandon Wheat Kings on Wednesday in exchange for 2008-born goaltender Ryley Budd. The picks include a 2029 third-round pick and 2027 eighth-round selection.<\/p>\n

The deal came two hours after Saskatoon acquired a conditional draft pick in 2027 from the Vancouver Giants for defenceman Derek Thurston.<\/p>\n

“With the signing of Martin Psohlavec and a deep bench at the goaltending position, we felt this was a good move to get Ryley to a spot where he can be a regular,” said Blades president and general manager Colin Priestner. “We thank Ryley for everything he did for our club and the communities of Saskatoon and Calgary through his Be A Budd program and wish him nothing but the best!”<\/p>\n

The Calgary, AB native appeared in 11 games with the Blue and Gold last season. Budd went 4-4-1-0 with a .888 save percentage (SV%) and 3.08 goals against average (GAA).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Saskatoon Blades and Brandon Wheat Kings have struck a deal on Wednesday morning. The Blades acquired a pair of Western Hockey League (WHL) Prospect Draft picks from the Brandon Wheat Kings on Wednesday in exchange for 2008-born goaltender Ryley Budd. The picks include a 2029 third-round pick and 2027 eighth-round selection. The deal came…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":269001,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":25,"name":"brandon wheat kings","slug":"brandon-wheat-kings","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":165,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1058,"filter":"raw","term_order":"296"},{"term_id":2295,"name":"Ryley Budd","slug":"ryley-budd","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2295,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1781"},{"term_id":38,"name":"saskatoon blades","slug":"saskatoon-blades","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":300,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1135,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1805"}],"class_list":["post-268999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-brandon-wheat-kings","tag-ryley-budd","tag-saskatoon-blades","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30115739\/Trade_1920_Budd.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\/268999","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=268999"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269002,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268999\/revisions\/269002"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268834,"date":"2026-07-30T11:37:05","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:37:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268834"},"modified":"2026-07-30T11:37:05","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:37:05","slug":"wheat-kings-sign-first-round-import-selection-muissu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/wheat-kings-sign-first-round-import-selection-muissu","title":{"rendered":"Wheat Kings sign first-round import selection Muissu"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brandon, Man. \u2013 The Brandon Wheat Kings have signed 6-foot-3, 214-pound forward Kris Muissu to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement.<\/p>\n

The Wheat Kings announced the signing of Muissu on Tuesday, after selecting him in the first round (45th overall) of the 2026 CHL Import Draft.<\/p>\n

\u201cKris is a big, smart forward with a sniper\u2019s release,\u201d said a member of the Wheat Kings coaching staff. \u201cWe are excited to add Kris to our scoring depth this season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hailing from St. Petersburg, Russia, the 2006-born Muissu spent the 2025-26 season with Reaktor Nizhnekamsk of the Russian junior hockey league (MHL), recording 69 points (34G-35A) in 57 games.<\/p>\n

Muissu has 18 games of pro hockey experience, having seen action with Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk of Russia\u2019s Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), registering one goal along the way.<\/p>\n

In addition to Muissu, the Wheat Kings have already signed 2007-born Finnish import forward Ilari Kapanen, who was selected in the second round of the 2026 CHL Import Draft.<\/p>\n

Brandon\u2019s third import player is set to be Minnesota Wild prospect Filip Ruzicka, who will return to the Wheat Kings for his second season between the pipes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brandon, Man. \u2013 The Brandon Wheat Kings have signed 6-foot-3, 214-pound forward Kris Muissu to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement. The Wheat Kings announced the signing of Muissu on Tuesday, after selecting him in the first round (45th overall) of the 2026 CHL Import Draft. \u201cKris is a big, smart forward with a sniper\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":268998,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2450,"name":"Kris Muissu","slug":"kris-muissu","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2450,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"10"},{"term_id":25,"name":"brandon wheat kings","slug":"brandon-wheat-kings","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":165,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1058,"filter":"raw","term_order":"296"}],"class_list":["post-268834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-kris-muissu","tag-brandon-wheat-kings","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30113657\/Signed-1920_Muissu.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\/268834","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=268834"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268834\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268835,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268834\/revisions\/268835"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268994,"date":"2026-07-30T11:00:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268994"},"modified":"2026-07-30T11:00:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T17:00:59","slug":"oil-kings-sign-jonas-vanicek-to-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/oil-kings-sign-jonas-vanicek-to-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","title":{"rendered":"Oil Kings sign Jonas Vanicek to WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Edmonton, Alta. \u2013 <\/strong>The Edmonton Oil Kings announced today that they have signed 2009-born forward Jonas Vanicek to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are proud to welcome Jonas and his family to the Oil Kings organization,\u201d said Oil Kings President and General Manager Michael Chan. \u201cHe is an intelligent and skilled forward with the ability to make plays. We are looking forward to him joining our club in the fall after representing his country at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vanicek was drafted in the first round, 56th<\/sup> overall in the 2026 CHL Import Draft back on June 30th<\/sup> by the Oil Kings.<\/p>\n

The 6\u2019, 168lbs forward from Decin, Czechia split last season with HC Energie Karlovy Vary at the U17 and U20 levels. In 10 games at the U17 level, Vanicek had 29 points in 10 games, while notching 20 points in 15 games with the U20 club.<\/p>\n

At the international level, Vanicek has played 12 games with Czechia\u2019s U17 team where he has eight points.<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

The Oil Kings are Edmonton\u2019s first choice for family fun with great seats for as low as $20.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Tickets for the Home Opener on September 20 are on sale NOW!<\/em><\/p>\n

Secure your seat today at oilkings.ca<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Edmonton, Alta. \u2013 The Edmonton Oil Kings announced today that they have signed 2009-born forward Jonas Vanicek to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement. \u201cWe are proud to welcome Jonas and his family to the Oil Kings organization,\u201d said Oil Kings President and General Manager Michael Chan. \u201cHe is an intelligent and skilled forward with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":268996,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2458,"name":"Jonas Vanicek","slug":"jonas-vanicek","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2458,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2"},{"term_id":2416,"name":"2026 CHL Import Draft","slug":"2026-chl-import-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2416,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":12,"filter":"raw","term_order":"94"},{"term_id":22,"name":"edmonton oil kings","slug":"edmonton-oil-kings","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":207,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1263,"filter":"raw","term_order":"728"}],"class_list":["post-268994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-jonas-vanicek","tag-2026-chl-import-draft","tag-edmonton-oil-kings","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/30110002\/Signed-1920_Vanicek.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\/268994","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=268994"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268997,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268994\/revisions\/268997"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268996"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268985,"date":"2026-07-29T14:30:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T20:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268985"},"modified":"2026-07-29T14:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T20:30:17","slug":"raiders-sign-oskars-luks-to-a-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/raiders-sign-oskars-luks-to-a-whl-scholarship-and-development-agreement","title":{"rendered":"Raiders sign Oskars Luks to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Prince Albert Raiders made just one pick in the 2026 CHL Import Draft, and that pick is now signed. 2008-born defenceman Oskars Luks has signed a WHL Scholarship and Development contract with the Raiders, and will join the club for training camp this fall.<\/p>\n

The 17-year-old is from Riga, Latvia, and his late October 12th<\/sup> birthday makes him eligible for the 2027 NHL Entry Draft. The 6\u20195, 209lb blueliner spent the 2025-26 season in Finland with the Jukurit U18 program. He scored 4 goals and added 20 assists in 39 games, tacking on 39 penalty minutes. He also represented Latvia internationally at the U18 level.<\/p>\n

\u201cOskars is a big, mobile defenceman,\u201d Raiders general manager Curtis Hunt said after the 2026 CHL Import Draft. \u201cHe has great mobility, great reach and attention to detail. We feel he can step right in and support the group we have. We\u2019re excited to see him get to Prince Albert and watch his game grow.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Prince Albert Raiders made just one pick in the 2026 CHL Import Draft, and that pick is now signed. 2008-born defenceman Oskars Luks has signed a WHL Scholarship and Development contract with the Raiders, and will join the club for training camp this fall. The 17-year-old is from Riga, Latvia, and his late October…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":268987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":2457,"name":"Oskars Luks","slug":"oskars-luks","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2457,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"3"},{"term_id":2416,"name":"2026 CHL Import Draft","slug":"2026-chl-import-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2416,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":12,"filter":"raw","term_order":"94"},{"term_id":39,"name":"prince albert raiders","slug":"prince-albert-raiders","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":206,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1180,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1636"}],"class_list":["post-268985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-oskars-luks","tag-2026-chl-import-draft","tag-prince-albert-raiders","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/29143008\/Signed-1920_Luks.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\/268985","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=268985"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268985\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268988,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268985\/revisions\/268988"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268987"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268922,"date":"2026-07-29T12:59:36","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T18:59:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268922"},"modified":"2026-07-29T12:59:36","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T18:59:36","slug":"nhl-prospect-watch-dallas-stars-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/nhl-prospect-watch-dallas-stars-5","title":{"rendered":"NHL Prospect Watch: Dallas Stars"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the lead-up to the 2026-27 hockey season, we\u2019re diving into the WHL prospect pool for every NHL team. To be included in this list, a player must be recently drafted, signed to an NHL contract, or meet the NHL\u2019s criteria for rookie status.<\/em><\/p>\n

To quote the late, great Prince: ‘Baby, I’m a (Dallas) Star’.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Jaxon Fuder<\/strong><\/p>\n

Six-foot-1, 176-pound forward Jaxon Fuder flipped a mid-season switch to the WHL into an NHL deal. After earning an invitation to Stars Development Camp last summer, the 20-year-old inked a three-year, entry-level contract with Dallas as an undrafted free agent in September of 2025. Fuder responded with 37 points (8G-29A) in 52 regular-season games with the Red Deer Rebels and Edmonton Oil Kings. The Cold Lake, Alta. product has amassed 63 points (19G-44A) in 97 regular-season games over parts of two seasons in the Dub and is expected to make the jump to pro with the AHL’s Texas Stars in 2026-27.<\/p>\n

Brandon Gorzynski<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mr. Score-zynski, come on down! The Scottsdale, Ariz. product got off to a roaring start with 13 goals and 29 points in 27 games to kick off his third season with the Calgary Hitmen. The Prince Albert Raiders traded for the 6-foot-2, 190-pound forward in December in anticipation of a long postseason run. Gorzynski tallied 40 points (14G-26A) in 38 games as a Raider, highlighted by a hat trick and two assists in his home debut in green and gold. He added nine points (5G-4A) in 12 playoff games to help Prince Albert claw its way to the 2026 WHL Championship Series, though a significant injury held him out of the lineup for the bulk of the Final. Gorzynski was drafted with the 126th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL Draft.<\/p>\n

Niilopekka Muhonen<\/strong><\/p>\n

Offense has never been Niilopekka Muhonen’s calling card, but the 6-foot-5, 215-pound rearguard has found plenty of ways to contribute with the Medicine Hat Tigers. After capturing the Ed Chynoweth Cup in 2025, Muhonen logged 12 assists and a +27 rating in 39 games with the Tabbies in 2025-26, in addition to another two points (1G-1A) and a +8 rating in 14 playoff tilts. Since being selected with the 158th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2024 NHL Draft, the Kuopio, Fin. product has picked up 29 points (4G-25) over two seasons in the Gas City, played in the Memorial Cup Final, and put pen to paper on a three-year, entry-level contract with Dallas.<\/p>\n

Cameron Schmidt<\/strong><\/p>\n

The wildly talented 2025 third-round pick (94th overall) topped the WHL goal-scoring race with a whopping 51 goals in 72 games with the Vancouver Giants and Seattle Thunderbirds. Schmidt hit the century mark for the first time in his major career to finish third in points among all WHL skaters, trailing only the Ruck twins in Medicine Hat. The 5-foot-8, 158-pound winger had one four-goal game in addition to a pair of natural hat tricks, helping him become a finalist for WHL Player of the Year. Schmidt owns 237 points (123G-114A) in 195 tilts over parts of four seasons in the WHL, and will return to the B.C. Division as a member of the Victoria Royals in 2026-27. The Prince George, B.C. product is currently in Ontario participating in the World Junior Summer Showcase with Team Canada.<\/p>\n

Matthew Seminoff<\/strong><\/p>\n

After splitting last season between the AHL and ECHL, 23-year-old Matthew Seminoff iced a breakout campaign with 50 points (24G-26A) in 72 outings with the Texas Stars. He paced the AHL squad in goals while finishing second in points and third in assists. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound forward, who was born in Virginia and raised in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, spent his entire WHL career with the Kamloops Blazers, where he racked up 170 points (73G-97A) in 196 regular-season games, in addition to 28 (16G-12A) in 31 postseason contests. Seminoff joined the Stars organization as the 179th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft and signed a two-year, two-way contract extension with the club in June of 2026.<\/p>\n

Jakub Vanecek<\/strong><\/p>\n

Czech defender Jakub Vanecek found his footing in his first season in North America, potting 14 goals (including two game-winners) and 21 assists for 35 points in 59 games with the Tri-City Americans. The 6-foot-1, 191-pound skater led all Americans rookies in scoring and ranked sixth in points-per-game among all WHL first-year blueliners.\u00a0Vanecek was part of Czechia\u2019s silver medal-winning squad at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, though he only appeared in pre-tournament games; he left his mark at the 2026 IIHF U18 World Championship with five points (3G-2A) in seven matches to claim bronze. Dallas snapped him up with the 59th overall pick in the second round of the 2026 NHL Draft, making him the Stars’ first selection in 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the lead-up to the 2026-27 hockey season, we\u2019re diving into the WHL prospect pool for every NHL team. To be included in this list, a player must be recently drafted, signed to an NHL contract, or meet the NHL\u2019s criteria for rookie status. To quote the late, great Prince: ‘Baby, I’m a (Dallas) Star’.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":268982,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":500,"name":"Dallas Stars","slug":"dallas-stars","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":525,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw","term_order":"591"}],"class_list":["post-268922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-dallas-stars","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/29125854\/260716_Prospect-Watch-1920_DAL.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\/268922","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=268922"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268922\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268949,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268922\/revisions\/268949"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268976,"date":"2026-07-29T11:35:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268976"},"modified":"2026-07-29T11:35:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:35:06","slug":"giants-acquire-defenceman-thurston-from-blades-for-conditional-pick","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/giants-acquire-defenceman-thurston-from-blades-for-conditional-pick","title":{"rendered":"Giants acquire defenceman Thurston from Blades for conditional pick"},"content":{"rendered":"

Langley, B.C. \u2013 <\/b>The Vancouver Giants are excited to announce the acquisition of 2006-born defenceman <\/span>Derek Thurston<\/b><\/a> (Delta, B.C.) from the Saskatoon Blades in exchange for a conditional draft pick in the 2027 WHL Draft.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 131 career regular season WHL games, Thurston has produced 10 goals and 16 assists for 26 points, along with 162 penalty minutes and a +11 plus-minus rating. During the 2024-25 season, the 6-foot-1 left-shot blueliner produced a career-best 22 points (9G-13A) in 67 games, along with a +9 rating and 96 penalty minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are excited to add Derek to help bolster our defence,\u201d Giants Head Coach and General Manager Michael Dyck said. \u201cHis presence and experience solidify not only our blueline, but our whole organization, and we\u2019re looking forward to welcoming him back home to Delta.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurston is a product of Delta Hockey Academy, where he won a U17 Prep championship in 2022. He was named the CSSHL U16 Top Defenceman during the 2021-22 season, after recording 36 points (12G-24A) in 33 games. In his U18 season with DHA in 2022-23, he was teammates with current Giants forward Jakob Oreskovic.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Delta native was originally selected by the Rebels in the sixth round (112th overall) of the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Vancouver Giants extend a warm welcome home to Derek.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 20-year-old blueliner brings a strong two-way game to the Giants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":268974,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":1895,"name":"Derek Thurston","slug":"derek-thurston","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1895,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2,"filter":"raw","term_order":"658"},{"term_id":38,"name":"saskatoon blades","slug":"saskatoon-blades","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":300,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1135,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1805"},{"term_id":29,"name":"vancouver giants","slug":"vancouver-giants","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":295,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1079,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2053"},{"term_id":100,"name":"whl transactions","slug":"whl-transactions","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":103,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":594,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2242"}],"class_list":["post-268976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-derek-thurston","tag-saskatoon-blades","tag-vancouver-giants","tag-whl-transactions","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/29111459\/260729_Trade_Thurston.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\/268976","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=268976"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268976\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268978,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268976\/revisions\/268978"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":268969,"date":"2026-07-29T11:11:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:11:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/?p=268969"},"modified":"2026-07-29T11:12:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:12:22","slug":"silvertips-acquire-goaltender-kraus-in-trade-with-brandon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/article\/silvertips-acquire-goaltender-kraus-in-trade-with-brandon","title":{"rendered":"Silvertips acquire goaltender Kraus in trade with Brandon"},"content":{"rendered":"

EVERETT, Wash. —<\/strong> The Everett Silvertips have acquired goaltender Jayden Kraus from the Brandon Wheat Kings in exchange for a third- and sixth-round pick in the 2029 WHL Draft.<\/p>\n

“We wanted to add a veteran netminder to our group with both of our goaltenders deciding to move on following last season,” noted Silvertips general manager Mike Fraser. “Jayden has good experience in our league, brings some stability to the position and leadership to our organization. We’re excited to have him join the Silvertips.”<\/p>\n

Kraus, a 2006-born Prince Albert, SK native, posted a 14-11-1 record with the Wheat Kings in 2025-26 with a .895 save percentage and a 3.65 goals-against average. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound goaltender recorded a career-high 50 saves on 54 shots at Angel of the Winds Arena against the Silvertips on Jan. 23. He previously was with the Victoria Royals, finishing 25-8-9 in 2024-25 with a .908 save percentage and a 2.86 goals-against average.<\/p>\n

Kraus also attended Colorado Avalanche NHL Camp prior to the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n

Both members of Everett’s goaltending tandem last season have committed to NCAA programs, with Anders Miller headed to Lake Superior State and Raiden LeGall heading to Minnesota State University, Mankato. Kraus fills a third overager spot on the Silvertips’ active roster, joining forward Jaxsin Vaughan and defenseman Mattias Uyeda.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

The Silvertips\u2019 2026-27 season schedule can be viewed\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EVERETT, Wash. — The Everett Silvertips have acquired goaltender Jayden Kraus from the Brandon Wheat Kings in exchange for a third- and sixth-round pick in the 2029 WHL Draft. “We wanted to add a veteran netminder to our group with both of our goaltenders deciding to move on following last season,” noted Silvertips general manager…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":268971,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":25,"name":"brandon wheat kings","slug":"brandon-wheat-kings","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":165,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1058,"filter":"raw","term_order":"296"},{"term_id":36,"name":"everett silvertips","slug":"everett-silvertips","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":180,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1263,"filter":"raw","term_order":"781"},{"term_id":1590,"name":"Jayden Kraus","slug":"jayden-kraus","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1590,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1023"},{"term_id":100,"name":"whl transactions","slug":"whl-transactions","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":103,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":594,"filter":"raw","term_order":"2242"}],"class_list":["post-268969","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-brandon-wheat-kings","tag-everett-silvertips","tag-jayden-kraus","tag-whl-transactions","category-1110","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/07\/29111028\/260729_Trade_Kraus.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\/268969","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=268969"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268969\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268973,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268969\/revisions\/268973"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}]