If you look up Brayden Yager on any hockey website, he will be listed from Saskatoon but the Lethbridge Hurricanes star forward and Winnipeg Jets prospect has roots in Hockeytown North.
Yager spent the first 11 years of his life growing up in Prince Albert before his family moved to Martensville, just north of Saskatoon.
In an interview with the Daily Herald, Yager says he always enjoys getting a chance to play at the Art Hauser Centre.
“A lot of memories here as a child. Watching Raiders practicing here as a young kid. I’m always looking up to some of those Raider players. It’s obviously a place I’ll always remember and it’ll be special to me. It’s definitely really cool to come back here.”
For the entirety of his WHL career split between the Moose Jaw Warriors and Lethbridge Hurricanes, Yager has worn the number 29 on his sweater.
He wears the number because of one of his childhood idols, Leon Draisaitl. Before Draisaitl was a perennial 100 point scorer for the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL, the German superstar spent two seasons in Prince Albert posting 163 points in 128 games before being dealt to the Kelowna Rockets for his final WHL season.
“I was really young when he was here.” Yager recalled. “I think he was probably a fan favorite, he was so good. Obviously you try to idolize a guy like him. He actually came out to one of my practices when I was a young kid and that just makes you like the player a little bit more. Ever since I was young, I watched him all the time having season tickets and (I’m) wearing 29 because (of) him and Nathan MacKinnon.”
Yager was taken third overall by the Moose Jaw Warriors in the 2020 WHL Prospects Draft and quickly became one of the Warriors top players. Across parts of five seasons with Moose Jaw, Yager registered 280 points in 232 games.
After a successful 17-year-old season posting 78 points in 2022-23, Yager heard his name called in the first round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, when the Pittsburgh Penguins selected him 14th overall.
In the past six months, Yager has been involved in two separate trades in both the NHL and WHL. Yager had his NHL rights traded by the Penguins in August to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for the rights to University of Michigan standout Rutger McGroarty.
Yager says the move took him a bit by surprise, but he understood the reason why it happened.
“I think the first thing is I haven’t played any games in the NHL, so that’s obviously different. I think it’s a business once you get up there and that’s just part of it. It was great getting to go to camp in Winnipeg this past summer and meet all those guys and get to play some exhibition games. Pittsburgh is great as well, obviously some pretty special names there, guys that I got to learn from.”
Upon getting dealt to Winnipeg, it wouldn’t be long before Yager heard from another Raider alumni. Josh Morrissey has been a staple on the Jets blueline since they selected him 13th overall back in 2013.
Morrissey served as the captain of the Prince Albert Raiders during the 2013-14 season and reached out to Yager over the phone after the trade was announced.
Yager says hearing from Morrissey was incredible and helped him feel comfortable in Winnipeg right away.
“It’s crazy how small the world is. I watched him a lot as a young kid here in this building. To come full circle and to get traded to the same NHL team as him, it’s pretty cool. Getting the call and texts from him is pretty special. When you get welcoming messages from the older guys, it feels pretty good. Getting the chance to meet him in person in Winnipeg, it was great. He’s such a good person and made me feel comfortable.”
In December, Yager was on the move once again, this time in the WHL. Moose Jaw traded Yager along with 19-year-old netminder Jackson Unger to the Lethbridge Hurricanes in a blockbuster move that saw six draft picks and three players head back to the Warriors.
Brayden Yager skates for the Lethbridge Hurricanes during warmups at the Art Hauser Centre on Wednesday, Feb 26, 2025.
Yager says he has enjoyed his time in Lethbridge.
“In the Dub, I got traded here after being in Moose Jaw for four or five years. The things we accomplished with that group was pretty special. Moving to a new group here in Lethbridge, the guys are great, I’m pretty familiar with some of them and the coaching is great. I’m pretty close with Peter Anholt the GM, so it’s been unbelievable. We got a group here that I think can do something pretty special too.”
While Yager is a star player on the ice, he has brought a veteran presence to the Lethbridge dressing room. Hurricanes assistant general manager and associate head coach Matt Anholt says Yager has surpassed all off-ice expectations.
“It’s everything that we expected. We obviously knew how good of a player was, but he’s an elite human being too. What he’s given our dressing room here has been everything that we expected. The way he prepares and approaches practice and game days and workouts is exactly what we needed in our forward group.”
The Hurricanes have qualified for the postseason each of the last three seasons, but haven’t found success beyond that. Lethbridge has been swept in the first round each of the last three seasons by the Edmonton Oil Kings, Moose Jaw Warriors and Swift Current Broncos.
Despite recent playoff fortunes not being in their favour, Lethbridge has made several trades to bolster their roster this season and are hoping to bring home the franchise’s second championship. The Hurricanes last Eastern Conference final appearance was in 2018 and their last WHL Championship Series appearance was against the Spokane Chiefs in 2008, when they lost in four games.
Anholt says the Hurricanes feel like they have a group capable of bringing another deep playoff run to the Windy City.
“We felt like we had a good group of older guys that deserved to get added to. We add Brayden, as well as Jackson Unger, Vojtech Port, Caden Price, Anthony Wilson, all those guys have added exactly what we needed. We just got a little healthier than we are right now. The plan is to have a deep playoff run.”
After getting a taste of a WHL championship and playing in the Memorial Cup last year with Moose Jaw, Yager says he wants to get back there with the Hurricanes.
“I think the biggest thing is another championship. I think that’s kind of the whole reason I was traded here. It’s a group where they’ve been together for four or five years now. I’m going to be joining it late, but to be a part of this group is special. Obviously, we want to get the job done.”
sports@paherald.sk.ca
