And so, in early-January, Flames and Wranglers management made the decision to send the 20-year-old back to the WHL for a couple more months of junior hockey with the Medicine Hat Tigers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t a quick decision by us as a management group,\u201d said Wranglers GM and Flames assistant GM Brad Pascall. \u201cWe talked about it over a number of weeks. Even at the start of training camp we talked about whether the best thing for him was to be in the American League or go back.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe overriding thing was we did this because we thought it was the best thing for his development that\u2019s going to eventually make him a full-time NHLer and help us win a Stanley Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n
Returning to Medicine Hat for the rest of the season gives Basha the chance to play big minutes for a team that is leading the WHL\u2019s Central Division and could make a run at the league\u2019s championship for a second-straight year.<\/p>\n
For a guy like Basha, in particular, those minutes matter.<\/p>\n
He missed most of the 2024-25 season after getting ankle surgery in January, returning for the WHL Final series and the Memorial Cup. He needed to get the surgery, no doubt about it, but it meant he hasn\u2019t played a tonne of hockey.<\/p>\n
And playing a major role on a very good junior team had more value than playing fewer minutes in the AHL, in management\u2019s eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hadn\u2019t really played healthy hockey for a long time, so it generally didn\u2019t make any sense for me to not be playing,\u201d Basha explained. \u201cThat was kind of the message. Just go back and log top minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFortunately, the team is great. It\u2019s a good opportunity to get my mojo back and I\u2019m playing centre now, so it\u2019s a really good opportunity to maybe re-identify myself a little bit and find my game, find my mojo again. It\u2019s exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n
A player\u2019s development can be tricky and there are lots of guys who want to get to the pros as quickly as possible. Speak with enough people around the game, though, and you\u2019ll hear lots of experts who swear that the best thing for a player\u2019s growth is to be a top player on a junior team and take on more leadership responsibilities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Left winger Andrew Basha was photographed during practice with the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday, Sept. 19, 2025.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s certainly on the plate for Basha. He\u2019s rejoining a Tigers team that saw a tonne of turnover in the off-season but has found a way to not only remain competitive but also emerge as one of the WHL\u2019s top teams.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All the new faces meant there was a bit of an adjustment when Basha returned to Medicine Hat, but it still felt like home after spending four seasons with the organization.<\/p>\n
And he\u2019s definitely making an impact on the ice, just like Flames and Wranglers management expected he would. Through 10 games with the Tigers, Basha\u2019s already scored five times and added 11 assists.<\/p>\n
Next season, he\u2019ll be with the Wranglers full-time. There\u2019s no question about that, and a couple months putting up big numbers in the WHL should help propel him forward. Basha recorded one goal and four assists in 27 AHL games this season, but the three months he spent with the Wranglers should give him a headstart on preparing for a big year in 2026-27.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s just a mindset thing,\u201d Basha explained about what he learned during his first stint playing pro hockey. \u201cIt\u2019s coming in every day, you have to be on top of everything. Your body, your nutrition, it\u2019s probably a cliche but it really is super important.. Any advantage you can get can make a world of difference.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s obviously a job at that point, you\u2019re playing for your livelihood and just seeing how different it is in the lockerroom (compared to) the junior level. It was my first time, obviously, being around 30+ year-olds, just that dynamic, but I had a lot of fun. I got close to a lot of guys. Obviously, I was disappointed at first but ultimately I think the biggest thing is playing hockey and I haven\u2019t gotten to do that much so I\u2019m excited for this. I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n