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Photo courtesy of Randy Feere/Medicine Hat Tigers
Back with Tigers after 2020-21 season

Tigers release Sillinger to play for USHL team this season

Jan 13, 2021 | 5:00 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The Medicine Hat Tigers will be without one of their top guns this season.

The team has released forward Cole Sillinger to the Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL. The Tigers say Sillinger will return to Medicine Hat at the conclusion of the 2020-2021 season.

“Each situation is unique and with Cole having dual citizenship it was felt that this option would give him the best ability to showcase his talent for upcoming NHL Draft,” says general manager Willie Desjardins.

In a release, the Tigers say while they and the league are committed to playing this season, “our dedication to the development of our players and doing what is best for them and their playing careers also remains paramount.”

On Friday, the WHL announced a 24-game regular season for 2020-21.

The league will release a schedule once clearances have been given from the required provincial health authorities.

Sillinger, eligible for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, tallied 22 goals and 31 assists for the Tigers in 2019-20. He also played in the World U-17 Hockey Challenge held in Medicine Hat and Swift Current in November 2019.