PHOTO COURTESY COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS INSTAGRAM
Medicine Hat Tigers forward Oasiz Wiesblatt took part in the Columbus Blue Jackets development camp.
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Oasiz Wiesblatt left the Columbus Blue Jackets’ development camp with more than a couple T-shirts and workout shorts. He got a taste of the NHL he wants to get again and again.
The Medicine Hat Tigers’ forward attended the Blue Jackets’ development camp in early July as a camp invitee. It was an experience the 19-year-old says he won’t forget and wants to get back to as soon as possible.
“It was a surreal experience and something I don’t take for granted,” Wiesblatt said. “It was a once in a lifetime kind of experience and hopefully I get to go again. But that was just a really cool experience that exceeded my expectations.
“The facilities were unbelievable, just top notch and the people there were great, everyone treated me with respect.”
Wiesblatt earned the camp invite after a career season in the Western Hockey League, where he led the Tigers in scoring with 26 goals and 60 points playing in all 68 games. He skated alongside other camp invitees and the Blue Jackets prospects, including third overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, Adam Fantilli. Wiesblatt says working out alongside him and other college players and prospects left an impression on what he has to do next.
“The college players spend a little bit more time in the gym than we do as CHL players, that’s one thing I noticed with them,” Wiesblatt said. “That’s something I’m going to take into the year, get in the gym more because there’s always people who are bigger than you are, trying to work harder.
“Everyone’s trying to get to the same goal as you, was one of the things that I took out of that. There’s thousands and thousands of players who are trying to play in the NHL and the fitness level, that’s part of making it, too.”
He says the development camp was almost similar to the rookie camp he experienced with the Tigers after being drafted 12th overall in 2019. A lot of fitness testing, battle drills on the ice and players working to get noticed by coaches.
Wiesblatt was one of four WHLers at the Blue Jackets’ camp, joined by drafted Moose Jaw Warriors Martin Rysavy (2021), Denton Mateychuk (2022) and Regina Pat Stanislav Svosil (2021). He has a bit of a relationship with Mateychuk and says having someone he knew at the camp made him more comfortable and gave him someone to talk with immediately.
He was one of nine players the Blue Jackets invited to their camp. Wiesblatt says there was no difference in treatment from him as an undrafted player to Fantilli.
“It was completely equal, the coaches, trainers, equipment staff, I felt they treated me the same as everyone else with respect and gave me whatever I needed and I didn’t feel like I was a camp invitee or anything,” Wiesblatt said. “It was kind of a family and a respect thing, like everyone’s there for a reason. They gave everyone respect and I didn’t feel different.”
He returned to Calgary a day after camp ended on July 5 and was getting back into his offseason work for the upcoming WHL campaign. Wiesblatt says he can’t thank the Blue Jackets enough for the opportunity, and the Tigers for putting him in the position to be recognized like that.
“A big thank-you to Columbus and Medicine Hat for giving me this opportunity to be here and I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and coaches on the staff,” Wiesblatt said. “Just a huge thank-you and I appreciate what Medicine Hat has done for me and can’t wait to be back next year.”
