2025 NHL Draft’s Blake Fiddler is following in his father’s footsteps

Steven Ellis
Steven Ellis
2025 NHL Draft’s Blake Fiddler is following in his father’s footsteps
Credit: Edmonton Oil Kings

Blake Fiddler had a front seat to the show from an early age. 

He was born in Nashville in 2007 after his father, Vernon Fiddler, played his sixth season (and most productive, at the time) with the Predators. The Fiddlers would move to Phoenix for a two-year stint before going to Dallas in 2011-12. 

Blake played minor hockey in Texas before eventually making it to the WHL with the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2023-24. Vernon was born and still lives in Edmonton, so it was a perfect fit. Blake has been able to lean on his dad throughout his career, something he considers to be an important asset as he gets into the weeds of his NHL Draft year.

“He’s not going to rip into me, but he lets me know what I can improve on,” the younger Fiddler said at the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. “And it’s really nice to have a second set of eyes watching me.”

Next up? Fiddler hopes to become the first player in his family to get drafted – and potentially even become a first-round pick.

After starting the season as USA’s captain at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup – he previously represented Canada at the World U-17s given all the time he lived in Edmonton – Fiddler has crept into the conversation as a potential top-15 pick for the 2025 NHL Draft. He’s having a solid season, and while he’s still more of a defensive defender, he has shown the ability to get the puck where he wants it with a solid shot.

Fiddler is an intimidating 6-foot-4 defenseman. His father was a 5-foot-11 defensive forward, but he wasn’t afraid to get under a player’s skin. Blake said he started as a forward but transitioned to the point once he started to grow. And that was a good call – he understands how to use his size to take away space and time rather than just launching opponents to the moon.

Fiddler’s ability to easily handle physical situations allowed him to step into major junior and make an immediate impact. His 15 points last year were nothing to write home about, but he quickly established himself as one of the Oil Kings’ top defenders.

“As a 16-year-old, there were a lot of ups and downs, but I had a great coaching staff and great teammates,” Fiddler said during the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. “(Oil Kings coach) Luke Pierce helped me work on a lot during the season. I was very happy with it.”

Fiddler is averaging around 22 minutes a night this year and already looks better with the puck. He’s still not going to produce superstar numbers this year, but we should see his output double up to about 30 points, at the very least. Still, his bread and butter is taking space away and defending on the rush. Fiddler can take the puck up the ice with little difficulty, but don’t expect him to spend much time sneaking in to get looks in close.

“He’s a defenseman, and he defends as well as anyone in this draft class,” one scout said. “He times his poke checks so well and almost always has the physical advantage. He’s got top-four defenseman written all over him because there’s so many translatable skills there.”

The key thing that scouts are looking at here is projecting upside. Right now, he’s not exciting with the puck, but he’s very mobile for his size and teams love that. Fiddler is known for keeping things simple, but scouts note that he’s got the hockey IQ and the pure skill to build a good base around.

“Fiddler isn’t an explosive skater by any means and he still needs to work on his acceleration,” one scout said. “But you look at where he was in his WHL Draft year, foot-work wise, and you see significant improvement. And then you add in the fact he’s unbeatable defensively most nights and there’s a lot to love.”

Another scout noted that, “If Fiddler can feel more confident rushing and distributing the puck, he’ll be such a well-rounded threat.”

As it stands, scouts like what they’re seeing. Many believe he’ll go in the 15-25 range for the draft, with many hoping Fiddler will explode for a huge Draft+1 season next year. For now, Fiddler isn’t too worried about the NHL Draft – he just wants to focus forward and position himself the best he can to become the best player possible.

“You just have to try to cancel out the outside noise,” Fiddler said. “You want to be high on those rankings, but you have to play the game and stay focused. You need to have tunnel vision on the goal ahead.”

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