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WHL Western Hockey League

WHL Announces Weekly Award Winners

March 18, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL) News Release


Calgary, Alta. - The Western Hockey League announced today that Terik Parascak of the Prince George Cougars has been named Tempo WHL Player of the Week for the week ending March 17, 2024.

The 2024 NHL Entry Draft-eligible forward led all WHLers with 11 points (seven goals, four assists) and a +3 rating in four games.

It's the first time Parascak has been named Tempo WHL Player of the Week, though he has been named Kal Tire WHL Rookie of the Week five times and Rookie of the Month twice.

The Lethbridge, Alta. product netted a goal and an assist in a dramatic 6-5 overtime win against the Kelowna Rockets to earn third star of the game and kick off a demanding stretch of the Cougars' schedule.

On March 15, Parascak opened the scoring against the Victoria Royals with a slick toe-drag move. He'd add some insurance on the powerplay by driving the net to score with less than three seconds remaining in the second frame. The 5-foot-11, 179-pound winger was named second star as the Cougars pounced for a 6-1 victory.

He came back for more in a second-straight match against the Royals, using his speed to create a partial breakaway and tie the game at one goal apiece in the first frame with his 40th lamp-lighter of the season. Parascak would get another after thwarting a Victoria pass on the penalty kill to get another breakaway and bury a backhand goal shorthanded. Parascak closed out a three-point night (and a 10-4 Cougars win) with a helper on an Ondrej Becher shorthanded tally. For the eighth time this season, Parascak was named second star of the night.

Parascak entered Sunday's match against Vancouver sitting at 99 points on the season. He hit the century mark with an assist on Carlin Dezainde's game-opening goal and quickly added another after converting a Riley Heidt feed for his 43rd goal of the campaign. Parascak would tack on a powerplay assist and an empty net goal for a 6-3 victory. The Cougars' point streak is now up to 15-0-1-1.

With 43 goals and 60 assists in 66 games, Parascak's 103 points lead the WHL rookie scoring race. He's also the only first-year player in the Canadian Hockey League to hit triple digits this season.

Parascak is ranked 14th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting ahead of June's NHL Entry Draft and earned an invitation to the 2024 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Moncton, N.B.

Prince George (47-15-1-3) closes out the regular season with a weekend set against the Blazers (20-39-3-3) starting on March 22 at 7:00 p.m. PST in Kamloops.

2023-24 Tempo WHL Player of the Week

March 11, 2024: Andrew Cristall, Kelowna Rockets (Washington Capitals)

March 4, 2024: Jordan Keller, Kamloops Blazers

February 26, 2024: Riley Heidt, Prince George Cougars (Minnesota Wild)

February 20, 2024: Graham Sward, Wenatchee Wild (Nashville Predators)

February 12, 2024: Emmitt Finnie, Kamloops Blazers (Detroit Red Wings)

February 5, 2024: Egor Sidorov, Saskatoon Blades (Anaheim Ducks)

January 29, 2024: Carter Yakemchuk, Calgary Hitmen

January 22, 2024: Luca Cagnoni, Portland Winterhawks (San Jose Sharks)

January 15, 2024: Matthew Savoie, Moose Jaw Warriors (Buffalo Sabres)

January 8, 2024: Gavin McKenna, Medicine Hat Tigers

January 2, 2024: Chase Bertholet, Spokane Chiefs

December 18, 2023: Tij Iginla, Kelowna Rockets

December 11, 2023: Dominik Rymon, Everett Silvertips

December 4, 2023: Conor Geekie, Wenatchee Wild (Arizona Coyotes)

November 27, 2023: Andrew Basha, Medicine Hat Tigers

November 20, 2023: Koehn Ziemmer, Prince George Cougars (Los Angeles Kings)

November 13, 2023: Gabe Klassen, Portland Winterhawks

November 6, 2023: Trevor Wong, Saskatoon Blades

October 30, 2023: Jagger Firkus, Moose Jaw Warriors (Seattle Kraken)

October 23, 2023: Andrew Cristall, Kelowna Rockets (Washington Capitals)

October 16, 2023: Ryder Ritchie, Prince Albert Raiders

October 10, 2023: Easton Armstrong, Wenatchee Wild

October 2, 2023: Jagger Firkus, Moose Jaw Warriors (Seattle Kraken)

September 25, 2023: Zac Funk, Prince George Cougars (Washington Capitals)

Giants netminder Mirwald named Giuseppe WHL Goaltender of the Week

Calgary, Alta. - The Western Hockey League announced today Vancouver Giants netminder Brett Mirwald has been named Giuseppe WHL Goaltender of the Week for the week ending March 17, 2024.

This marks the fifth time Mirwald has earned the award this season.

The 20-year-old led all WHL goaltenders with a 3-0-0-0 record, a 1.34 goals-against average and a .956 save percentage.

Mirwald kicked off the week with a 24-save performance against the Tri-City Americans, allowing only one goal on the powerplay.

He got the call to the crease again in Kamloops on March 15. The Saskatoon, Sask. product steered aside an early barrage of shots, but Blazers forward Max Sullivan found the opening goal off a two-on-one rush. It was all Kamloops would get as Mirwald turned aside the other 33 shots he faced, including an Emmitt Finnie breakaway opportunity with the game tied 1-1 in the third period. Mirwald was named first star of the night as the Giants snagged a 3-1 victory.

Mirwald closed out his week by making back-to-back starts against Kamloops. His second effort saw him stop 30 of 32 attempts, beaten only by a Blazers powerplay marker and a three-on-one play by Jordan Keller. This marked the 31st game this season where Mirwald stopped 30 shots or more.

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound netminder is up to a 29-20-3-0 record (including two shutouts) in a career-best season. His 29 victories are tied for second-most among WHL goaltenders. Mirwald has shaved his goals-against average down to 3.05 while cranking his save percentage to .914, which ranks fourth in the league. He continues to lead the league in saves (1652) and has played the second-most minutes (3073).

Mirwald was selected by Moose Jaw in the seventh round, 154th overall, in the 2018 WHL Prospects Draft before being acquired by Vancouver prior to the 2021-22 season.

Vancouver (32-30-4-0) wraps up its regular season slate this weekend with a home-and-away series against Kelowna (31-30-4-1) started on March 22.

2023-24 WHL Goaltender of the Week

March 11, 2024: Kolby Hay, Edmonton Oil Kings

March 4, 2024: Ethan Buenaventura, Calgary Hitmen

February 26, 2024: Reid Dyck, Swift Current Broncos (Boston Bruins)

February 20, 2024: Brett Mirwald, Vancouver Giants

February 12, 2024: Brett Mirwald, Vancouver Giants

February 5, 2024: Reid Dyck, Swift Current Broncos (Boston Bruins)

January 29, 2024: Scott Ratzlaff, Seattle Thunderbirds (Buffalo Sabres)

January 22, 2024: Chase Wutzke, Red Deer Rebels

January 15, 2024: Chase Wutzke, Red Deer Rebels

January 8, 2024: Brett Mirwald, Vancouver Giants

January 2, 2024: Harrison Meneghin, Lethbridge Hurricanes

December 18, 2023: Brett Mirwald, Vancouver Giants

December 11, 2023: Chase Wutzke, Red Deer Rebels

December 4, 2023: Jackson Unger, Moose Jaw Warriors

November 27, 2023: Dawson Cowan, Spokane Chiefs

November 20, 2023: Rhett Stoesser, Red Deer Rebels

November 13, 2023: Evan May, Medicine Hat Tigers

November 6, 2023: Joshua Ravensbergen, Prince George Cougars

October 30, 2023: Joshua Ravensbergen, Prince George Cougars

October 23, 2023: Daniel Hauser, Wenatchee Wild

October 16, 2023: Jan Špunar, Portland Winterhawks

October 10, 2023: Kyle Kelsey, Red Deer Rebels

October 2, 2023: Ethan Chadwick, Everett Silvertips

September 25, 2023: Max Hildebrand, Prince Albert Raiders

Warriors netminder Fortin named Kal Tire WHL Rookie of the Week

Calgary, Alta. - The Western Hockey League announced today that Dimitri Fortin of the Moose Jaw Warriors has been named Kal Tire WHL Rookie of the Week for the week ending March 17, 2024.

The 17-year-old netminder posted a 2-0-0-0 record in two appearances with a 1.70 goals-against average and a .938 save percentage against provincial opponents.

Fortin was thrown into the fire against the league-leading Saskatoon Blades on March 16 as he was called in to relieve Jackson Unger in the first period with the Warriors trailing 3-0. Fortin was tested early and often, making a sensational early stop with a glove save on Misha Volotovskii. The 6-foot-1, 184-pound netminder stopped all 24 shots he faced as Moose Jaw roared back to a 6-3 victory on home ice in front of more than 4,000 fans. Fortin was named second star of the night for his efforts- a first in his career.

Fortin started the following night as Moose Jaw traveled up the highway to face the rival Regina Pats. The Winnipeg, Man. product pulled out stops on 21 of 24 shots in a 6-3 Moose Jaw win- including a 10-bell save on a partial breakaway by Anthony Wilson.

Fortin sports a 6-3-0-1 record to go along with a 3.19 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage in his first WHL season.

He was originally selected by Moose Jaw in the tenth round, 204th overall in the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft. Fortin was named the Winnipeg AAA U18 Goaltender of the Year for the 2022-23 season.

Moose Jaw (43-20-0-3) is now 8-1-0-1 in its last 10 games to clinch third place in the Eastern Conference with two regular-season games remaining.

The Warriors play their penultimate game of the regular season against Brandon (31-28-6-1) on March 21 at 7:00 p.m. CST.

2023-24 WHL Rookie of the Week

March 11, 2024: Terik Parascak, Prince George Cougars

March 4, 2024: Cole Reschny, Victoria Royals

February 26, 2024: Cameron Schmidt, Vancouver Giants

February 20, 2024: Evan Gardner, Saskatoon Blades

February 12, 2024: Hunter Laing, Prince George Cougars

February 5, 2024: Evan Gardner, Saskatoon Blades

January 29, 2024: Gavin McKenna, Medicine Hat Tigers

January 22, 2024: Gavin McKenna, Medicine Hat Tigers

January 15, 2024: Julius Miettinen, Everett Silvertips

January 8, 2024: Julius Miettinen, Everett Silvertips

January 2, 2024: Cole Reschny, Victoria Royals

December 18, 2023: Terik Parascak, Prince George Cougars

December 11, 2023: Max Curran, Tri-City Americans

December 4, 2023: Joshua Ravensbergen, Prince George Cougars

November 27, 2023: Ethan Eskit, Brandon Wheat Kings

November 20, 2023: Dakota MacIntosh, Moose Jaw Warriors

November 13, 2023: Ben Kindel, Calgary Hitmen

November 6, 2023: Ethan McCallum, Medicine Hat Tigers

October 30, 2023: Julius Miettinen, Everett Silvertips (NHL CSS: C)

October 23, 2023: Terik Parascak, Prince George Cougars (NHL CSS: B)

October 16, 2023: Ty Coupland, Swift Current Broncos

October 10, 2023: Terik Parascak, Prince George Cougars (NHL CSS: B)

October 2, 2023: Terik Parascak, Prince George Cougars (NHL CSS: B)

September 25, 2023: Oscar Lovsin, Wenatchee Wild

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