Wiesblatt made lifelong memories with the Raiders

Wiesblatt learned a lot about what it takes to be a leader on the team. But even while wearing a letter, Wiesblatt said he still is sure to absorb from the rest of the players, especially 20-year-old captain Reece Vitelli and assistant captain Remy Aquilon.

“I think from my 16-year-old year to where I am now, I think the biggest thing is the leadership role,” Wiesblatt said. “It’s knowing how to lead the younger guys and just learning a ton from the older guys here like Remy [Aquilon] and Reece [Vitelli] here. We had great 20-year-olds here who even taught me a lot this year. I’m just learning from everybody, really.”

Overall, it was a difficult season for Wiesblatt in a lot of ways. As the Raiders were struggling in the standings before the trade deadline, Wiesblatt’s name was often one of the first names brought up in the trade rumour mill. But Raiders general manager, Curtis Hunt, opted to keep Wiesblatt, as he didn’t feel the possible returns would have made sense to the Raiders.

Then after that, Wiesblatt fought with injuries and missed 22 games with various ailments in the second half of the season. He was sent to San Jose for further medical evaluations, before returning to the Raiders for Game 3 of the WHL opening playoff round series against the Winnipeg ICE.

“It’s something I haven’t dealt with in my career, really. I think it was a good test for myself to see where my headspace was at,” said Wiesblatt. “Guys here helped me so much, recovering and helping me play playoff hockey. It was tough being hurt and not being part of the team really, I think any guy that’s been hurt will tell you that…The leadership group did a great job of keeping me in the loop and always making me feel comfortable in the room.”

Wiesblatt is eligible to return to the Raiders next year for a possible 20-year-old season. But considering he is a first-round pick of the San Jose Sharks, he may be starting his professional hockey career as soon as next season.

“I guess I’m just taking it one day at a time, seeing how good of a summer I have, and just trying to prove myself every day. I want to make the jump to pro, but if that’s not the case, I’ll come back here and try to win another championship.”

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Jeff.dandrea@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW

by Jeff D’Andrea

Wiesblatt made lifelong memories with the Raiders

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