It’s an all-Alberta showdown in Round Two of the 2026 WHL Playoffs.
The Central Division rivals from Medicine Hat and Calgary are ready to battle in the postseason for the first time in more than a decade.
Calgary, which finished third in the Central Division, was the first Eastern Conference team to move on to the second round after completing a sweep of the Brandon Wheat Kings on April 2.
The 2025 WHL Champion Tigers needed five games to move on after being stunned by the seventh-seed Regina Pats in Game 2 of their opening series.
Medicine Hat took the regular season series against Calgary in dominant fashion with a 7-1-0-0 record, though four of those games were decided by a single goal and three required overtime or a shootout.
The Tabbies are tied with the regular-season champion Everett Silvertips for most goals in the first round with 25, though none of the Tigers have surpassed three goals- yet.
Jonas Woo, fresh off of setting a franchise record for single-season points by a defenceman with 86, netted a hat trick in Game 1 against Regina, while Calgary Flames pick Andrew Basha, Montreal Canadiens defensive prospect Bryce Pickford and rookie Noah Davidson all had a trio of goals in the first round.
Basha and WHL regular-season points leader Markus Ruck are tied for second in playoff assists with six each.
Calgary has shown they can run-and-gun in high-scoring matches or duel late into the night as the goal lights gather dust.
The Hitmen and Wheat Kings set a modern WHL record for longest 1-0 playoff game as they reached triple overtime in Game 1 before Ethan Moore sent the exhausted teams to their rooms, and motored back for a 6-5 overtime win in their second match.
Moore has been clutch with five goals (including a modern record four game-winners), while trade addition Julien Maze (2G-5A) and Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Kale Dach (2G-2A) have been more than consistent.
Hitmen rookie goaltender Eric Tu ranks second among all WHL netminders with a 1.63 goals-against average and .945 save percentage, in addition to his 49-save shutout in his first playoff start.
The Ruck twins and Pickford have cracked the 2025-26 WHL Eastern Conference First All-Star Team, while Markus is also in the running for the Brad Hornung Memorial Trophy for Most Sportsmanlike Player.
Dach and draft-eligible blueliner Ben MacBeath are both up for the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year, and behind the bench, Head Coaches Dustin Friesen and Willie Desjardins are finalists for the Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy, which is presented annually to the WHL’s Coach of the Year.
Desjardins and Hitmen General Manager Garry Davidson are also finalists for the Lloyd Saunders Memorial Trophy for Executive of the Year.
The Tigers and Hitmen last tangled in the playoffs in 2015, where Calgary downed Medicine Hat in five games to advance to the Eastern Conference Championship.
Game 1 is set for Friday, April 10, at 7:00 p.m. at Co-op Place.
The teams will head back up the highway to battle at the Saddledome in Game 3 on Monday, April 13, with every game streaming for free on Victory+.
STAT PACK
| Calgary Hitmen | Medicine Hat Tigers | |
| Record | 38-21-8-1 (3rd Central) | 50-10-5-3 (1st Central |
| Playoff Leaders | Julien Maze (2G-5A, 7 pts)
Ethan Moore (5G-1A, 6 pts) Kale Dach (2G-2A, 4 pts) |
Andrew Basha (3G-6A, 9 pts)
Jonas Woo (3G-4A, 7 pts) Markus Ruck (1G-6A, 7 pts) |
| Season Leaders | Julien Maze (38G-40A, 78pts)
Kale Dach (34G-41A, 75pts) Andrei Molgachev (29G-30A, 59pts) |
Markus Ruck (21G-87A, 108 pts)
Liam Ruck (45G-59A, 104 pts) Jonas Woo (29G-57A, 86 pts) |
| Leading Goaltender (Playoffs) | Eric Tu (4-0-0), 1.63 GAA, .945 save percentage, one shutout) | Jordan Switzer (3-1-0, 2.75 GAA, .871 save percentage) |
| Power Play (Playoffs) | 14.3% (12th) | 22.7% (9th) |
| Penalty Kill (Playoffs) | 90% (3rd) | 90.5% (2nd) |
| First Round | Def. Brandon (4-0) | Def. Regina (4-1) |
| Last WHL Championship | 2010 | 2025 |
2025-26 REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Medicine Hat leads 7-1-0-0
October 4, 2025- Calgary 1, Medicine Hat 7
October 10, 2025- Medicine Hat 2, Calgary 4
November 19, 2025- Medicine Hat 6, Calgary 2
November 22, 2025- Calgary 6, Medicine Hat 7 (SO)
November 23, 2025- Medicine Hat 3, Calgary 2 (OT)
January 20, 2026- Calgary 3, Medicine Hat 4
February 27, 2026- Medicine Hat 3, Calgary 2 (OT)
February 28, 2026- Calgary 3, Medicine Hat 8
GAME BREAKERS
Calgary: Say it with us, Hitmen and Britney Spears fans: Gimme Moore. Calgary alternate captain Ethan Moore has been unstoppable with four consecutive game-winning goals in the first round. The 21-year-old is the first player in the WHL’s internet era (1996-present) to score every game-winner in a single series. Two of Moore’s tallies also came in overtime. The 6-foot-1, 177-pound winger has a goal and four helpers in seven outings against Medicine Hat in the regular season, highlighted by a goal and an assist in a 7-6 shootout loss to the Tabbies on November 22, 2025.
Medicine Hat: Andrew Basha’s grit and spirited play were big reasons why the Calgary Flames called his name in the second round of the 2024 NHL Draft. The 20-year-old started his season in the pro ranks with the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers and now gets a final lap with the team he helped reach the Memorial Cup Final last spring. Not only is the 6-foot, 187-pound forward leading the Tigers in playoff scoring, but he’s been sensational against his hometown Hitmen in the regular season. In three outings against Calgary, Basha has piled up seven points (2G-5A), including a statement one-goal, three-assist outing in an 8-3 rout of the Hitmen on February 28, 2026.
GOALTENDING
Calgary: Seventeen-year-old Eric Tu made history in his very first playoff start. The Hitmen rookie posted a 49-save shutout as Calgary and Brandon battled to a 1-0 triple overtime result in Game 1, marking the longest 1-0 playoff game in modern WHL history. Tu has allowed two or fewer goals in his four starts to earn Mary Brown’s Chicken WHL Goaltender of the Week honours. The 6-foot-3, 198-pound puckstopper went 1-3-2-0 against the Tigers in the regular season with a 4.06 goals-against average and an .866 save percentage.
Medicine Hat: Jordan Switzer has been holding down the net for the Tigers in the postseason, but draft-eligible Carter Casey took on the bulk of the starts against the Hitmen in 2025-26. Casey went 6-0-0-0 with a 2.17 GAA and .923 save percentage, while Switzer posted a 1-1-0-0 record, a 4.64 GAA and an .833 save percentage. Will the Tigers roll with their starter or give Casey a shot against the club he’s dominated?
X-FACTOR
Calgary: It’s been a big month for Big Axe. Captain Axel Hurtig has stepped up with a goal and two assists in the first round while earning an entry-level contract with the Calgary Flames. Hurtig may not pile up the points, but the ones he does get are timely- look no further than the late game-tying goal in Game 2 and assist on the Game 3 game-winner. The 6-foot-4, 217-pound blueliner will be tasked with slowing down a potent Tigers attack. The 20-year-old has three assists in eight games against Medicine Hat with a +1 rating.
Medicine Hat: Luke Cozens has done this dance before. Before joining the Tigers at the 2026 WHL Trade Deadline, Cozens was a respected Lethbridge veteran- and he scored the insurance marker in last year’s Game 7 showdown that saw the Hurricanes eliminate Calgary 3-1 in the second round. The 19-year-old has totalled eight points (6G-2A) in eight games against the Hitmen with Lethbridge and Medicine Hat, including three two-goal nights.
SERIES SCHEDULE
Game |
Visitor | Home | Day | Date | Time | |
| 1 | Calgary | @ | Medicine Hat | Friday | April 10 | 7pm MT |
| 2 | Calgary | @ | Medicine Hat | Saturday | April 11 | 7pm MT |
| 3 | Medicine Hat | @ | Calgary | Monday | April 13 | 7pm MT |
| 4 | Medicine Hat | @ | Calgary | Wednesday | April 15 | 7pm MT |
| 5* | Calgary | @ | Medicine Hat | Friday | April 17 | 6pm MT |
| 6* | Medicine Hat | @ | Calgary | Sunday | April 19 | 4pm MT |
| 7* | Calgary | @ | Medicine Hat | Tuesday | April 21 | 7pm MT |
* = if necessary
