Calgary kid Carter King joined the Wranglers late last season after signing a one-year entry-level contract with the Flames at the end of his college career. King had his first collegiate season cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, but managed to get that year of eligibility back and play a full four seasons at the University of Denver. In his final season he served as captain, and he won two national championships in his tenure with the Pioneers. His preview with the Wranglers was limited last season with just a two-game appearance, but he has since settled in and developed a role for himself this season.

At the start of the year, King was not always a guaranteed option in the lineup but was still finding a spot pretty consistently. He scored his first professional goal back in the 2024-25 season, but didn’t wait too long to get on the board this season with a goal on Nov. 1 against the Bakersfield Condors. By this point in the season, he has four goals and four assists in 44 games played. King has been in the lineup on a regular basis, rotating between wing and centre on the third or fourth line.

When asked about his season so far he said:

“I think it’s been a process. I think I knew it was going to be a journey of building and trying to grow throughout the year. I had some rough patches at the start of the year trying to find my game and my identity and some confidence and I felt like that’s been growing lately. I’ve been playing better hockey and feeling better on the ice, which is a big thing to yourself. I’m happy with the direction it’s going and I’m just looking forward to keeping that going.”

Part of the role King has found himself a part of includes some time with the captain, Clark Bishop. Usually, when he’s playing higher in the lineup, he serves as a winger, so he’s been able to pick up on some things from a respected veteran on the team. It’s probably serving him well to see what Bishop does differently at center so he can apply new tricks to his game. King spoke on playing with Bishop and said:

“It’s been great. Great leader, great guy on the ice to play with. Does everything right. Plays a really strong 200-foot game, so he’s really easy to play with. He’s predictable, you know where he’s going to be. So it’s been helpful to play with him.”

When King is not playing with Bishop, he’s been centring the fourth line, usually consisting of Parker Bell and Lucas Ciona or Alex Gallant rotated in there. On that line, King’s physicality is leveraged more, and he is in more of a spot to try and set up his wingers for a shot. As he’s gotten to know his teammates more, you can see the wheels spinning and his hockey IQ showing itself on a shift-to-shift basis. 

King’s most recent goal came against the Tucson Roadrunners on Feb. 7. It was a deflection goal and he’s had a few of these this season from point shots. Turner Ottenbreit took the initial shot and King directed it to the back of the net.