Edmonton Oil Kings’ Blake Fiddler following in his father’s footsteps

Article content

Vernon Fiddler scratched and clawed his way to almost 900 NHL games as a dogged, heart-and-soul centre after everybody passed on him come NHL Draft time.

But Fiddler’s son Blake, 17, in his second junior season with Fiddler’s hometown Edmonton Oil Kings, will likely be a first-round pick this upcoming June.

Blake looks today like what every NHL team is after—a right-shot, possible top-4 defender with impressive size (six-foot-four, 210 pounds).

Article content

He could go in the No. 20 range in the 2025 draft after he was the first player taken in the WHL’s U.S. import priority draft in 2022, but before the draft next summer, Blake will be auditioning as alternate captain of the CHL rep team against the U.S. Development Program squad in a much-anticipated, highly-scouted two-game series in Ontario—in London Tuesday, in Oshawa Wednesday.

The Canada-U.S. exhibition series could feature as many as 15 potential first-round choices in the 2025 draft, so half of the first round, and Fiddler is one of those who brings a lot to the table.

“He’ll play in the NHL, probably as a support player to a No. 3, a second-pairing guy. He really defends well, plays within himself. Yeah, he’s going in the first round I would say,” assessed a long-time NHL amateur scout.

The scouts will be watching—ex-Oiler captain Shawn Horcoff’s son Will, a forward, will be on the U.S. team, a nice twist because Will and Blake used to hang out at the Dallas Stars rink when Horcoff, now Detroit Red Wings’ assistant GM, and Fiddler were playing for the Stars.

Blake’s pro pops Vern, 44, who lives in the Dallas area after playing for the Stars, and is in the residential real estate business, is more dad than instructor these days even if he coached Blake on rep teams in the 10-gallon Texas minor hockey market.

Article content

Article content

Vern’s certainly keen on the Canada-U.S. bragging rights matchup this week but more the Oil Kings because it’s where Vern grew up.

When the Oil Kings drafted Blake, it didn’t get any better than that.

“Everything has just fallen into place,” said Vern, whose mother Pat looks after Blake at a townhouse in Sherwood Park that Vern bought for the family.

“There were opportunities with the U.S. Development program for Blake but we started talking with the Oil Kings the January of his (import) draft year and we always looked at him playing junior,” said Vern, who was in the WHL once upon a time. “We wanted him in a big city so it would be easier for us to come and watch him. I was honest upfront and told the Kings (before the import draft) that I would like it if it was Seattle or Spokane (for better U.S. travel) but Edmonton would be perfect for my brothers and sisters there.

“When it came to fruition and they took Blake, it was almost too good to be true.”

Familiar surroundings for Blake.

“We came up to Edmonton lots when I was younger, spent a couple of Christmases here and we would also be here in the summer. I’m pretty familiar with the city,” said Blake. “Living with my grandma, it’s awesome. She loves and so I do. I get great meals.”

Article content

In an age when all NHL clubs are looking for offensive young D, Blake doesn’t fall into that realm. But he’s a right shot, something all teams crave for on the back-end. He’s a big teenage body, a player who shoos opposing players away from his net, and is an excellent, efficient skater.

“For me it starts in the D zone, when I’m defending hard, making good first passes. That leads to getting my legs going, joining the rush. But the D zone…that’s a priority of mine,” said Blake, who is averaging about 22 minutes a game with the Oil Kings, and has had several phone calls and Zoom calls with NHL clubs already.

He’s much taller than his dad, who is 5’11”.

“I think I get my height from my mum’s side. Her side of the family is Croatian and my great grandpa was seven feet apparently and I have a cousin who played basketball and is 6’10”, said Blake.

Being the son of a former NHLer always leads to questions about having a leg up on what being a pro is all about, of course.

“It’s definitely an advantage. I was lucky that my kids caught the last four or five years of my NHL career and they remember the rinks, the dressing room, the morning skates. These kids soak everything in. They see dad cold-tubbing, and they’re curious about what that does,” said Vern.

Article content

“Sometimes I question whether it was the right thing to get my kids into hockey but when you grow up around dressing rooms, you see your dad working out all the time, stretching, eating the right things,” said Vern. “Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of parents doing the right thing but it’s definitely an advantage (apple falling not far from the tree). And in the summers, you’re working out, or shooting pucks in the garage.”

“It’s your line of work and the mental side, that’s the biggest part…being able to tell them what to hang onto and what not. We had other dads (NHL players) around too. Ray Whitney’s boy, Horcoff’s son, Travis Moen’s youngster,” he said.

All good stuff for Blake.

“My dad played in the NHL for a long time and I’ve got to spend a lot of time around pros, seeing how they prepare and play. It’s pretty cool,” said Blake.

“From a young age, I’ve seen how hard NHLers work in the gym and it leads to their success on the ice.”

‘I coached him…but I’m his dad forever’

Blake never felt behind the 8-ball, growing up in Dallas, rather than in hockey-mad Canada.

“We were on the planes a lot, we would have about 12 tournaments a year (rep hockey) and we would skate pretty much every day. I knew I was always getting enough work in,” said Blake.

Article content

Seconded by dad Vern.

“In the summers now Blake’s able to train at the Dallas Stars facility which is just down the street from where we live. He’s bumping elbows with Jamie Benn and skating with Wyatt Johnston. It’s not just me he’s learning from. He’s keeping an eye on Jamie or Tyler Seguin in the gym,” said Vern.

“Yeah, later in the summers I’ve been able to skate with those guys (Benn, Johnston, Kevin Connauton), seeing what I could take away from those guys,” said Blake.

Trying to steal some of their tricks of the trade?

“For sure,” said Blake, with a knowing smile.

Fiddler steadfastly has allowed to breathe. No telling him what he did wrong in the car after games.

“When I was coaching him we had a rule. We just talked at the rink and once we got in the car if Blake asked me something I would talk, but I grew up in a family where everything was positive. In the car, it was always ‘You had a great game.’ If you had a bad game, you evaluated that yourself,” said Vern.

“I coached him a little bit but I’m his dad forever.”

“Blake can reach out to me and ask questions and I will give him information,” said Vern. “Sometimes it’s more honest than he would like it to be but I’m not there attacking him.”

Article content

“I”ve tried to step away and the coaching staff is just outstanding (Luke Pierce, Devan Praught, Kyle Chipchura and Ladislav Smid),” he said.

“He’s a long way from home but Luke and (GM) Kirt Hill are looking after him. He’s in good hands and it’s taken a lot of stress off us.”
“It’s allowed me to be a dad,” said Vern.

And Blake is living the hockey dream like his pops.

Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.

You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.

Article content