Mission’s Abram Wiebe made his NHL debut close to home last weekend.
Approximately 60 family and friends made the trip south of the border to watch Wiebe hit the ice in a Calgary Flames uniform for the first time against the Seattle Kraken on Saturday (April 11).
Wiebe’s parents, Reg and Tamara, were among the scores who travelled to Seattle to watch the milestone in-person, along with Wiebe’s girlfriend, siblings, cousins and other family and friends.
“Everyone’s kind of making the trek down today, and (I’m) just super excited to see them all,” Wiebe told Flames TV before the game.
The NHL debut came less than 48 hours after wrapping up his third season with the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks in the NCAA, falling to Wisconsin 2-1 at the Frozen Four in Las Vegas on Thursday (April 9).
“Obviously not the way we wanted to end it, but I thought it was just a great year and a lot of good things that we could take out of it,” Wiebe said.
The 22-year-old inked a two-year, entry-level contract with Calgary the next day with an average annual value of $950,000.
“It’s been a crazy 24 to 36 hours. I mean, just going through the emotions of losing against Wisconsin the other night and then being able to flip that page and sign my first NHL contract was just such a surreal experience,” Wiebe said. “And then the next thing you know, I’m on a flight heading to Seattle. So it’s been a crazy experience, but just super grateful for the opportunity.”
In his debut, Wiebe played just over 11 minutes and picked up a penalty for holding in the second period. Against the Utah Mammoth at the Saddledome on Sunday (April 12), Wiebe logged a little under eight minutes of ice time, blocking one shot in the process.
Before the debut, Wiebe told Flames media that he was “a little nervous” but wanted to focus on playing his game.
“You only get one first NHL game. So just go out there and enjoy and have fun,” Wiebe said.
Calgary head coach Ryan Huska said prior to Saturday’s game that the team is excited to have Wiebe.
“For him, I think he’s gonna have a lot of people in the building tonight, so it’ll be pretty neat to see. There’s gonna be a lot of Flames supporters and a lot of Wiebe supporters in the stands. It’s a special night for him,” Huska said.
For players making their debuts, Huska looks for them to play their game and not worry too much about any structural things.
“I don’t want (Wiebe) to overthink it. Just go play. So we’re expecting him to move the puck well from the back end, and really, at the end of the day, keep his game simple. Just make plays that are there to be made,” Huska said.
Wiebe describes himself as a 200-foot defenceman who can impact both ends of the ice.
“Something that I take as an important job is just playing simple and playing smart and doing whatever I can to give the team the best opportunity to win,” he said.
Wiebe’s mother Tamara and father Reg told FlamesTV it’s been a surreal experience.
“You hope for it, but you don’t think it’s gonna happen. So yeah, (we’re) just incredibly pumped, over the moon, overwhelmed – just so excited,” Tamara said.
Reg said the journey didn’t come easy for his son.
“He’s put a lot of hard work and time into this. I think of all the teammates and the coaches that he’s had through the years starting in minor hockey — and there’s some names that I could throw out, but I don’t have time to name everybody so I’m not going to — but we think of all the people that have kind of supported him through this journey and he’s had so many good people kind of surrounding him through his hockey career to this point,” Reg said.
Wiebe said he’s been working his whole life towards making the NHL, and echoed his father about the support he received along the way.
“I could thank so many people in my life for getting to me at this point,” he said. “My mom, dad, brothers, sisters, just the countless hours of driving me to the rink at six in the morning for practice and taking time out of their day to let me pursue my dream.
Wiebe was selected 209th overall by Vegas in the seventh round of the 2022 NHL Draft and later dealt to the Flames as part of a trade that sent Rasmus Andersson to the Vegas Golden Knights in January.
The 6’3, 209-lb defenceman played 118 games in his collegiate career, notching 10 goals and 53 assists during that stretch. He never missed a game over his entire time with North Dakota and tallied a career-high 29 points this past season. He also participated in the 2026 Spengler Cup as a member of the U.S. Collegiate Selects.
Before university, Wiebe played four seasons locally with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs. He was named the BCHL Top Defenceman and a First Team All-Star in his final year with the team in 2022-23.