Is 2026-27 the year we finally ‘C’ Chase Wouters in the NHL?<\/p>\n
If his latest pro contract is any indication, the odds are looking good for the longtime AHL captain and former Saskatoon Blades star.<\/p>\n
The Vancouver Canucks have signed the 26-year-old to a one-year, two-way contract.<\/p>\n
“Chase has worked extremely hard to earn this contract,” Canucks General Manager Ryan Johnson said.\u00a0 “He is a heart and soul type player, someone who doesn\u2019t cheat the game and always goes the extra mile to work on his craft. Detail-oriented and coachable, Chase is a very good hockey player who leads by example. I am impressed with his development and proud of the progress he has made since turning pro. Besides all his work on the ice, he is the first to raise his hand to help others and go above and beyond in the community. His leadership qualities, skill set, and hockey IQ have helped him take another step forward in his hockey journey.”<\/p>\n
The North Battleford, Sask. product was originally drafted by the Blades with the 18th overall pick in the 2015 WHL Prospects Draft.<\/p>\n
Wouters went on to register 181 points (75G-106A) in 280 regular-season games over parts of six seasons in the Bridge City.<\/p>\n
Beyond the stats, he proudly served as captain for three seasons and remains the longest-serving ‘C’ in the Blades’ long history.<\/p>\n
The 6-foot, 182-pound centreman signed with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks as an undrafted free agent in 2021 and has spent his entire professional career with the club.<\/p>\n
Wouters has racked up 120 points (43G-77A) in 338 games in five seasons with Abbotsford and has served as team captain since 2022.<\/p>\n
He’s won the team’s Man of the Year award four times and ranks as the franchise leader in regular-season games played (338) as well as playoff matches (38).<\/p>\n
Wouters posted five points (2G-3A) in 24 outings to help the Canucks hoist the Calder Cup as AHL Champions in 2024-25 and brought the cup to Saskatoon to celebrate shortly afterward.<\/p>\n
Tuesday’s signing marks Wouters’ first NHL contract.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Is 2026-27 the year we finally ‘C’ Chase Wouters in the NHL? If his latest pro contract is any indication, the odds are looking good for the longtime AHL captain and former Saskatoon Blades star. The Vancouver Canucks have signed the 26-year-old to a one-year, two-way contract. “Chase has worked extremely hard to earn this…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":487,"featured_media":268370,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1110],"tags":[{"term_id":1528,"name":"WHL to NHL","slug":"whl-to-nhl","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1528,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":124,"filter":"raw","term_order":"824"},{"term_id":396,"name":"Chase Wouters","slug":"chase-wouters","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":421,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1348"},{"term_id":38,"name":"saskatoon 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NHL Draft Highlight Reels \u2013 Alisher Sarkenov"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":268368,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1113],"tags":[{"term_id":2401,"name":"Alisher Sarkenov","slug":"alisher-sarkenov","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2401,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":1,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1"},{"term_id":1301,"name":"2026 NHL Draft","slug":"2026-nhl-draft","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1301,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":80,"filter":"raw","term_order":"1021"},{"term_id":39,"name":"prince albert 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Wheat Kings captain Craig named Head Coach of NHL’s Golden Knights"},"content":{"rendered":"
Las Vegas, Nevada \u2013 Former Brandon Wheat Kings captain Ryan Craig has been named the fifth Head Coach in the franchise history of the Vegas Golden Knights.<\/p>\n
The Golden Knights announced the promotion of Craig on Wednesday. The 44-year-old native of Abbotsford, B.C., has spent the past three seasons as Head Coach of the AHL\u2019s Henderson Silver Knights.<\/p>\n
Selected by the Wheat Kings in the second round (34th overall) of the 1997 WHL Draft, Craig played five seasons in the Wheat City, culminating with two campaigns as captain \u2013 2001-02 and 2002-03.<\/p>\n
During his NHL Draft season, the 6-foot-2, 212-pound forward tallied 64 points (29G-35A) in 52 games. He did enough to capture the attention of NHL scouts and went on to be selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the eighth round (255th overall) of the 2002 NHL Draft.<\/p>\n
After being drafted, Craig return to the WHL for his second season as captain of the Wheat Kings and he put up career numbers \u2013\u00a074 points (42G-32A) in 60 games. The performance earned Craig a place on the WHL\u2019s Eastern Conference First All-Star Team. He was also awarded the Doug Wickenheiser Trophy, presented annually to the WHL\u2019s Humanitarian of the Year.<\/p>\n
Upon graduation from the WHL, Craig went on to enjoy a 12-season professional career, including playing 198 NHL regular season contests with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Columbus Blue Jackets. Over his pro career, Craig also served as captain for four AHL teams \u2013 the Norfolk Admirals (2009-10), Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton Penguins (2010-11 to 2011-12), Springfield Falcons (2012-13 to 2014-15), and Lake Erie \/ Cleveland Monsters (2015-16 to 2016-17).<\/p>\n
After retiring as a player, Craig immediately joined the Golden Knights as an assistant coach in 2017-18. He spent six seasons as an assistant coach in Vegas, helping guide the Club to a Stanley Cup championship in 2023. From there, he became Head Coach of the Silver Knights ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.<\/p>\n
Craig reunites with Golden Knights General Manager Kelly McCrimmon \u2013 the longtime Owner, President, General Manager, and Head Coach of the WHL\u2019s Brandon Wheat Kings. The two were together from 1998 to 2003 when Craig played for McCrimmon, who was GM at the time.<\/p>\n
\nCOACH CRAIG \u2694\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Vegas Golden Knights General Manager Kelly McCrimmon has announced Ryan Craig\u00a0will be the fifth Head Coach in franchise history.<\/p>\n
Press release \u27a1\ufe0f https:\/\/t.co\/VQ9qkUkKYC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/sOa25R529Y<\/a><\/p>\n
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) June 17, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n