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WHL Spokane Chiefs

Meet the Chiefs 2015-16: #7 Evan Fiala

January 19, 2016 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Spokane Chiefs News Release


Evan Fiala of the Spokane Chiefs
Evan Fiala of the Spokane Chiefs
(Spokane Chiefs, Credit: Gary Peterson)

From the time he first played hockey, Spokane Chiefs defenseman Evan Fiala was chasing a dream, even if he didn't know it yet.

Fiala, in his second year with the Chiefs, was the franchise's first-round pick in the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft and has become a mainstay on the back end while also improving his offensive numbers from a year ago.

Through 35 games played this season, the 6-foot-3, 202-pound d-man has tallied 6 goals and 7 assists to go along with a team-best +18 rating. He scored his first career goal in Everett on October 10.

"My goal is to be a player that opponents don't like playing against," he said. "I think of myself as a physical, stay-at-home defenseman, but I can also move the puck. I just do whatever the team needs me to do to win."

Fiala grew up in Clavet, Saskatchewan, a village of 386 people about 20 minutes outside of Saskatoon. He's proof-positive that in Canada, if you can play, scouts will find you. He's the only boy in his family, with two younger sisters and one older.

"It was hard on my family when I came to Spokane as a 17-year-old," he said, "because we're all really close. But I was ready to follow my dream, and I'm doing what I have to do and having fun doing it."

Like most kids, he was just playing for fun when he started. He says his dream was to play in the NHL some day, but mostly he just wanted to play - period. That mentality has proven to work for him so far, as he earned an invite to the Florida Panthers' development camp and rookie tournament this past summer.

Fiala has earned a reputation for physical play, perhaps best exemplified by his glass-shattering hit on Kamloops' Jermaine Loewen at Spokane Arena last season.

He has enjoyed equal success in the classroom, where he earned Scholastic Player of the Year honors last season and recently completed his first university course. He acknowledges the difficulty of finding a balance between academic and athletic challenges as a player in the WHL.

"Like anything else, achievement in school depends on your priorities. It's tough on the road, missing a lot of classes, but you can get it done if you make up your work and do your best to stay on top of things."

Enjoying the process remains a priority for him as he's ascended through the junior hockey world.

"I'm really not worrying much about the future," Fiala added. "I'm just having fun. I love the guys I'm playing with. I believe that a big part of being successful in anything is enjoying what you're doing, keeping the fun in it."

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(by Joe Everson / Spokane Chiefs Education Advisor)

Spokane Chiefs Education Advisor Joe Everson works with all Chiefs players, from those still in high school to those pursuing a post-secondary education or preparing to do so following their WHL career. Throughout this season, Everson will profile individual Chiefs to provide insight into their lives, their preparation and their goals for the future.

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Images from this story

Evan Fiala of the Spokane Chiefs
Evan Fiala of the Spokane Chiefs
(Gary Peterson)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from January 19, 2016


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