Medicine Hat Cubs open title defence Friday with banner-raising ceremony
The junior hockey club heads into the 2026-27 Heritage Junior Hockey League season with a younger roster after losing several veterans from last year's championship team.
The Medicine Hat Cubs begin their 2026-27 Heritage Junior Hockey League season on Friday, with a banner-raising ceremony marking last year's HJHL championship, the franchise's first. Head coach Trent Derzaph said the team is aware of the added pressure that comes with defending a title but plans to focus on one game at a time.
The Cubs enter the season younger than last year's group after losing four players who aged out of junior eligibility, including former captain Kyle Woolridge, along with several other regulars who did not appear in the preseason. Derzaph said he expects Medicine Hat could again be among the league's youngest teams, a status he does not view as a concern.
Medicine Hat went 3-1 in the preseason, opening with a 6-5 loss in Coaldale while playing a shortened lineup, followed by a 10-0 win over the Copperheads at the Kinplex. The Cubs then split a pair of games with Strathmore before beating the Wheatland Kings 6-2 at home.
Returning players include veterans Jacob Hazzard and Tash Armstrong, entering their fourth and final seasons, and forward Jesse Klimosko. Defenceman Lucas Dulle led the preseason scoring with six points in four games. Several 2008-born affiliates from last season, including forwards Treyden Kleinknecht and Ryker Watson and goaltenders Kayden Van Ham and Hudson Corbett, have joined the team full time.
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