A great ending to the regular season, with the post-season coming up next

That’s a wrap, folks! The regular season has closed after two big games for the Whitecourt
Wolverines at JDA Place. Over 600 fans attended the game on Friday night against Drayton
Valley.  The Thunder will not be in the playoffs this year, as only the top four from each division
make it.
With a tie in the works between the Wolverines in the north and the Calgary Canucks in the
south, Drayton was in a spoiler role with the chance to foil the Wolverines’ plan to get to first
overall in the league.
In the first, the two teams traded goals. Wolverine Travis Verbeek struck first, scoring his
thirteenth of the season, assisted by Spencer Claerhout and Marcello Giorgi. Less than a
minute later, Drayton tied it off the stick of Caedem Emmet. In the second, neither team could
get on the scoreboard, aside from each serving one penalty. The game remained tied, 1-1.
In the final period, the Wolverines came out roaring. Jack Pollock started the push, scoring his
second goal, assisted by Marcello Giorgi and Travis Verbeek. Five minutes later, Dylan Ruptash
scored his twenty-fourth goal, the second-highest goal scorer for the team in the regular season.
With less than a minute left, the Thunder pulled their goalie, hoping to get back into the game.
Braden Keeble put a quash on that almost immediately, scoring his eighteenth, assisted by
Jalen Bianchet (his thirtieth) and Travis Verbeek (his twenty-third). The Wolverines took the win
4-1.
Less than twenty-four hours later, the Wolverines were back on the ice for their final game of the
2024/2025 regular season with over 600 fans inside JDA Place. Unlike the Drayton Valley
Thunder, who are not in the postseason, the Camrose Kodiaks are in the playoffs, coming in
fourth in the southern division.
At the first drop of the puck, the game was playoff-like, with both teams pushing hard. Just like
the game the night before, the Wolverines scored first, with Mason Russell snagging his fifth,
assisted by Tim Kim. Twenty-one seconds later, the Kodiaks tied it up, ending the period 1-1.
In the second period, the Camrose Kodiaks gave the Wolverines three chances on the man
advantage, with three penalties, one for high sticking and two for tripping, but the home team
couldn’t find the back of the net. Towards the end of the period, the Kodiaks squeezed one past
Wolverine goalie Elliott Pratt, taking the lead 2-1.
In the final frame of the game, the Wolverines snapped back into action, unleashing three
unanswered goals against the Kodiaks. Ty Rayan was first assisted by Mason Russell and Tim
Kim. The second goal was an especially exciting one. Jalen Bianchet ended up with a penalty
shot, with the chance to give his team back the lead. He did not miss. The crowd was energized
and cheering loudly, following his beauty of a goal. In the final seconds, with nothing in his way,
Travis Verbeek rocketed the puck into the Kodiak’s net for an empty net goal. The Wolverines
won 4-2.

The top goal-getter of the regular season is Jalen Bianchet, with twenty-five goals, eleven more
than he got last season. For assists, Wolverine Joey Vetrano takes the cake, with 34 assists in
his first AJHL season. The top five players for points are Jalen Bianchet (55), Braden Keeble
(47), Dylan Ruptash (45), Joey Vetrano (45) and Travis Verbeek (37). The top four rookies this
season were Kyle Tucker, Tyler Rowland, Ty Rayan and Mason Russell. Tucker led rookies with
points (23), and Rowland led with assists (17).
For the team, the Wolverines tied the Lloydminster Bobcats league-wide for having the longest
winning streak of the season, with nine games between October 9 and November 5. On the flip
side, the Wolverines are also tied, league-wide, with the Calgary Canucks for having the
shortest losing streak, with three games between January 3 and January 8.
The Whitecourt Wolverines ended the 2024/2025 regular season in first place in the AJHL North
Division with 78 points, eleven points over the second-place team, the Grande Prairie Storm.
The Wolverines finished tied for points with the southern champ, the Calgary Canucks, who also
landed at 78. The Devon Xtreme finished the season in last place in the league with 26 points.
The Wolverines take on the fourth-place team in the north, the Fort McMurray Oil Barons, to
kickstart the playoffs at home on Friday, March 21 and Saturday, March 22. If more games are
needed following the first four, game five will be at home on Friday, March 28, and game seven
will be at home on Tuesday, April 1.