Calgary Hitmen wrap training camp with hunger, growth in place for 2026-27 WHL season

Games on tap — first in pre-season and then on the regular schedule — in the 2026-27 Western Hockey League campaign.

And with Hitmen second-year head coach Dustin Friesen liking what he saw over the past few weeks, there should be plenty of reason for junior puck fans to be intrigued by what comes next.

“I just wanted to see really hungry players,” said Friesen of an 80-player camp, which wrapped up Sunday with Team Black defeating Team White 5-3 in the annual intrasquad game at Scotiabank Saddledome.

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The camp brought together returning players, prospects and newcomers, giving the coaching staff an early look at the makeup of this season’s club.

And from those sessions came rave reviews, with 36 now remaining for the final roster battles.

“I thought this year’s training camp was more competitive — the pace was higher, and the quality was higher,” Friesen said. “I think the depth was better.”

That is an encouraging sign for a Hitmen team coming off a 38-21-8-1 season that produced 85 points, good for third place in the Central Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference. The Calgary crew then swept the Brandon Wheat Kings in the opening round of the playoffs before the Medicine Hat Tigers ended the Hitmen’s season in four games in Round 2.

“We weren’t happy how it finished,” Friesen said. “I think there’s moments in those games in that series that definitely we could have taken advantage of and made that a much harder and longer series. But I think there’s also a ton of learning that comes with that, too.”

Friesen’s forces should have more experience to draw on this time around.

Last season’s roster featured an unusually large group of rookies — Friesen referenced the rare “14-man rookie lap” to start 2025-26 — while this year’s returning players already understand the standards expected of them.

“We have some familiar personnel coming back, for sure,” Friesen said. “I think it’s an advantage as far as what our standards are on and off the ice and how we want to play.”

That experience was reflected in the pace and competitiveness of camp, while younger players also made an impression on team brass.