The Wenatchee Wild were a

Junior A Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team. The team played its home games at the 4,300-seat

Town Toyota Center Town Toyota Center is a 4,300-seat multi-purpose arena in Wenatchee, Washington. The arena was built and is owned and managed by the Wenatchee Public Facilities District (PFD). It is the home venue of the Wenatchee Wild, an ice hockey team in the ...

Wenatchee, Washington Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and largest city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and was estimated to have increased to 34,360 as of 2019. Located in the north-central part ...

. The team joined the

North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

as an expansion club for the 2008–09 season, and in that time they were well known for their rivalry with the

Fairbanks Ice Dogs The Fairbanks Ice Dogs are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's Midwest Division. The Ice Dogs play home games at the 2,200-seat Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks, Alaska. History Originally started in 1997 ...

. The Wild moved to the

British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league from British Columbia under Hockey Canada and BC Hockey. Founded in Vernon in 1961, the BCHL now includes 18 teams. From 1993 to 2021, the league was a member of the Ca ...

for 2015–16, after seeking approval from both

Hockey Canada Hockey Canada (which merged with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association in 1994) is the national governing body of ice hockey and ice sledge hockey in Canada. It is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and controls the majority ...

and

USA Hockey USA Hockey is the national ice hockey organization in the United States. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the Sport governing body, governing body for organized ice ...

for three years. Ahead of the 2023-24 WHL season, the former

Winnipeg Ice The Winnipeg Ice (officially stylized as ICE) are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The team began competing in the Western Hockey League (WHL) in the 2019–20 WHL season, and plays home games at the Wayne ...

franchise relocated to Wenatchee and rebranded as the

Wenatchee Wild The Wenatchee Wild is a Junior A ice hockey team in the British Columbia Hockey League. The team plays its home games at the 4,300-seat Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee, Washington. Initially, the team was part of the North American Hockey League ...

under the ownership of the Wild franchise.

History

NAHL years (2008–2015)

On September 12, 2006, ground was broken on a new multipurpose event center that would be home to a new ice hockey team. On February 22, 2008, the

granted Wenatchee Junior Hockey, LLC. with conditional approval for an expansion team. On May 20, 2008, Wenatchee Junior Hockey, LLC. announced the franchise would be the "Wild." The name was chosen by a "name-the-team contest" held at local schools in

Wenatchee Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and largest city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and was estimated to have increased to 34,360 as of 2019. Located in the north-central part ...

and

East Wenatchee East Wenatchee is a city in Douglas County, Washington, Douglas County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census was 13,190, a 129.1% increase on the 2000 census, having annexed m ...

. Other potential names for the team were the Wranglers, Bombers, Wonders, Hockeyes, Winning Walruses and Ice Busters. The Wild played their first game on September 17, 2008, losing to the

Motor City Metal Jackets The Jamestown Ironmen were a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League. The Ironmen played their home games at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena in Jamestown, New York. History The franchise began as an expansion team ...

2-1 in overtime. The Wild made a championship run in that first season, winning the division title but losing the championship game 3-2 in overtime. The following season, they came back and won the West Division championship in 2009–10, but were eliminated in the round-robin championship tournament. On May 13, 2013, the Wild lost their first and only game during the 2013

Robertson Cup Championship Tournament The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

to the

Amarillo Bulls The Amarillo Bulls were a Tier II junior ice hockey team based in Amarillo, Texas. They were a member of the North American Hockey League's South Division and played home games in the Amarillo Civic Center. History The franchise joined the NAHL ...

5-0 during the Robertson Cup championship game. On January 19, 2013,

approved the transfer of the Wenatchee Wild from the NAHL to the

for the 2013–14 season. However, on May 14, 2013, the Wild announced they would instead relocate the franchise to

Hidalgo, Texas Hidalgo is a city in Hidalgo County, Texas, United States. The population was 11,198 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the estimated population was 14,183. History The area that is now Hidalgo was first settled by Spanish colonists led by José d ...

and play as the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the NAHL. On May 22, 2013, the Wenatchee City Council approves a deal to move the

Fresno Monsters The Fresno Monsters are a junior ice hockey team based in Fresno, California. The team is a member of the United States Premier Hockey League and plays in the Premier Division. The Monsters' home venue is Gateway Ice Center. History The Monsters w ...

to Wenatchee and keep their name and logo. The team announced that it had retained coach Bliss Littler from the previous franchise on June 4, 2013.

British Columbia Hockey League (2015–2023)

On June 1, 2015, the Wenatchee Wild announced that they would be joining the

(BCHL) for the 2015–16 season. After their third season in the BCHL, the Wild won the Fred Page Cup as the playoff champions, and the first American team to win the cup since 1979.

Western Hockey League (2023-present)

On June 16, 2023, the Western Hockey League and the Wild franchise announced that Wild owners David and Lisa White had purchased the ownership of the Winnipeg Ice franchise and the league approved relocation to Wenatchee starting in the 2023-24 WHL season. The

name and branding will carry forward to the WHL. The team will be placed in the U.S. Division of the Western Conference of the WHL, alongside new in-state rivals

Seattle Thunderbirds The Seattle Thunderbirds are a major junior ice hockey team based in the city of Kent, Washington, south of Seattle. They are part of the U.S. Division of the Western Conference in the Western Hockey League. They play their games at home in ac ...

Everett Silvertips The Everett Silvertips are an American major junior ice hockey team currently members of the U.S. Division in the Western Conference of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The team is based in Everett, Washington, and joined the WHL as an expansion ...

Spokane Chiefs The Spokane Chiefs are a major junior ice hockey team that plays in the Western Hockey League based out of Spokane, Washington. The team plays its home games at the Spokane Arena. Their uniforms are similar to those of the NHL's Montreal Canadi ...

, and

Tri-City Americans The Tri-City Americans are a major junior ice hockey team of the Western Hockey League, based in Kennewick, Washington. The team plays its home games at Toyota Center (Kennewick), Toyota Center. Every game is broadcast locally on the Tri-City A ...

, as well as the

Portland Winterhawks The Portland Winterhawks are a junior ice hockey team based in Portland, Oregon, playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL), one of three leagues making up the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). Prior to the 2021-22 season, the Winterhawks split thei ...

Season records

Robertson Cup

The Wenatchee Wild hosted the 2010

NAHL Nahl or NAHL may refer to: * Nahl (surname) * National Accident Helpline, a British personal injury lawyer service * North American Hockey League, an American junior hockey league * North American Hockey League (1973–1977), an American professi ...

Pepsi Robertson Cup The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

National Junior A Championship

The

National Junior A Championship The Centennial Cup is an annual ice hockey tournament organized by Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), which determines the national champion of junior A ice hockey. It is a ten-team round robin featuring the winners of ...

, formerly known as the Royal Bank Cup from 1996 to 2018, is the annual championship tournament for

's junior A hockey leagues. Depending on the year, various regional champions, qualifiers, and hosts participate in the championship tournament. The tournament usually consists of opening in a round-robin with the top four teams then advancing to a semifinal were the winners compete a championship game.

Head coaches

On November 24, 2010, the Wenatchee Wild fired

Paul Baxter Paul Gordon Baxter (born October 28, 1955) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman who played in the World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1979, the National Hockey League from 1979 to 1987. He featured in the 1986 Stanley Cup Finals with the ...

, their inaugural head coach. It is unspecified exactly what led to the firing of Baxter, who led the Wenatchee Wild to back-to-back West Division titles in 2008 and 2009 and made it to the Robertson Cup Finals in the Wild's first year. Baxter was replaced in December 2010 by John Becanic. On April 27, 2012, shortly after elimination from the 2012 West Division Playoffs, Coach Becanic resigned. USHL coach Bliss Littler was announced as the new head coach and director of hockey operations on May 23, 2012. Littler currently holds the record as the winningest coach in USA Hockey history (Jr. Tier I and II). Littler had been released from his duties as the USHL's

Omaha Lancers The Omaha Lancers are a Tier I junior ice hockey team and are members of the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Founded in 1986, the Lancers play at the Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Ralston, Nebraska. Previous ...

head coach mid season 2011–12. Littler stepped down from coaching during the 2019–20 BCHL season citing health reasons, but stayed on as general manager. Chris Clark was named the interim head coach, but the interim tag was later removed before the eventually cancelled 2020–21 season. Littler was given a ten-year extension as general manager in 2021.

References

External links

Official site
{{Washington Sports 2008 establishments in Washington (state) British Columbia Hockey League teams Ice hockey clubs established in 2008 Ice hockey teams in Washington (state) North American Hockey League teams North American Hockey League Sports in Wenatchee, Washington