2025/26 WHL Season thread

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Tigers lost in a shootout to the Rebels last night in Red Deer, tonight they came back from a 6-3 deficit to beat the Hitmen 7-6 in a shootout in Medicine Hat. Same two teams tussle Sunday night in Calgary.

[Flickered Flame]

The Hitmen really struggle vs the Tigers.

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[dash_pinched]

Originally Posted by Flickered Flame

The Hitmen really struggle vs the Tigers.

The Tigers voodoo team is the Rebels.

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Tigers with e gutsy effort tonight playing their 3rd game in 3 nights and manage to eke out a 3-2 win in OT over the Hitmen in Calgary.

[Flickered Flame]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Tigers with e gutsy effort tonight playing their 3rd game in 3 nights and manage to eke out a 3-2 win in OT over the Hitmen in Calgary.

Casey was excellent for them today.

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[dash_pinched]

Originally Posted by Flickered Flame

Casey was excellent for them today.

Yeah, I only saw the first two periods last night, but he was the only reason the Tigers were in that game. He came in relief of Switzer in Saturday's game and held the fort enabling the Tigers to mount the comeback. Good weekend for the kid.

[Lubicon]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Geez, that's a shame if the Rockets acquired damaged goods, a real shame...

https://twitter.com/user/status/1991177050967900515

Could the league nullify the trade if this is true?

[dash_pinched]

Originally Posted by Lubicon

Could the league nullify the trade if this is true?

I suppose they could, but it's more likely to me that there will be compensation for Kelowna in the form of draft picks if they determine that Swift Current wasn't fully transparent regarding the severity of Kettles' injuries.

[speede5]

What has happened in Calgary? I know we are struggling for attendance in MJ with post championship blues but that rink looked like there were less than 100 people there last night.

I really think the WHL is at a turning point, ticket prices are getting too high and this new contract with Velocity can't be good for the teams.

[Roof-Daddy]

Official attendance was 2154 for the game in Calgary last night. Not great but not bad for a Thursday night with crappy winter conditions out.

[speede5]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

Official attendance was 2154 for the game in Calgary last night. Not great but not bad for a Thursday night with crappy winter conditions out.

Ya I saw that on the site, but actual couldn't have been half that. I've seen more people at a triple A game. Our rink announces over 2400 most nights but tons of season ticket holders aren't showing up.

[Julio]

Originally Posted by speede5

What has happened in Calgary? I know we are struggling for attendance in MJ with post championship blues but that rink looked like there were less than 100 people there last night.

I really think the WHL is at a turning point, ticket prices are getting too high and this new contract with Velocity can't be good for the teams.

I can't speak to the whole league (Saskatoon for example seems to be doing pretty well attendance wise), but the Hitmen have just disappeared off the map in Calgary. The Wranglers have taken over that niche of 'not the NHL, but still big time hockey' the Hitmen used to inhabit. To be honest, if CSEC moved the Teddy Bear and Be Brave games over to the Wranglers, Hitmen attendance would be amongst the lowest in the league.

This has happened over a number of years, and I think that the Hitmen moving some games to the arena at Seven Chiefs a few years ago was a prelude to a permanent move, but the league balked at the idea.

[Roof-Daddy]

I think the Hitmen should move just outside the city, like Airdire for example. Build a rink there and they won't just be an also ran in Calgary, they'll be THE team to go see in Airdrie. The Airdrie Hitmen.

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Tigers at one point tonight were losing 3-2 in the 2nd period to Saskatoon. They end up winning the game 9-3.

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Cameron Schmidt of the Vancouver Giants tied a WHL record for fastest goal scoring fives seconds into the game last night. He's having another fine season for the Giants although Vancouver is having a poor season overall. The Tigers could certainly user Schmidt's propensity for putting the puck in the net for another playoff run in 2026.

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Tigers hand the Lakeland Cobra Chickens (PA Raiders) their 2nd regulation loss of the season winning 3-2 at the Art Hauser Centre.

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Tigers hand the Lakeland Cobra Chickens (PA Raiders) their 2nd regulation loss of the season winning 3-2 at the Art Hauser Centre.

That's an impressive win.

[dash_pinched]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

That's an impressive win.

A very fortuitous bounce on the game winning goal, but the Tigers played an excellent third period after the officials took over the game in period 2 with some questionable and missed calls. Great to see Switzer bounce back with a great game between the pipes.

[dash_pinched]

By the way, the Hitmen had a great crowd (5576) for the game this past Sunday versus the Rebels. The Teddy Bear toss game for the Hitmen is this upcoming Sunday which always draws a huge crowd.

[Arsenal14]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

By the way, the Hitmen had a great crowd (5576) for the game this past Sunday versus the Rebels. The Teddy Bear toss game for the Hitmen is this upcoming Sunday which always draws a huge crowd.

It was the Timbits Minor Hockey game on Sunday so the various U7 Timbits hockey teams got tickets which in turn means their parents had to buy tickets.