Mathias Chouinard

Mathias Chouinard (born December 12, 1991) is currently a right winger for the Calgary Wranglers. He originally started his career with Vasteras IK J-20 of the VHLM, but after being drafted in the third round of the S18 Entry Draft by the Wranglers, he joined the Minot Gladiators. Chouinard spent two seasons in Minot before being called up to Calgary. As a rookie, he made his impact on the ice be felt. However, he truly broke out in Season 21, scoring over 100 points in the regular season and breaking the 50 goal mark.

Vasteras IK-J20
After being claimed off waivers by Vasteras IK-J20 in season 17, Chouinard played sparingly for the team. In 33 games, he did not score a point, but only played in 18 total minutes. Reportedly, Chouinard had gotten into a physical confrontation with general manager Zach Voss, but both have denied this.

Minot Gladiators
In the S18 VHL Entry Draft, Chouinard was selected by the Calgary Wranglers and was immediately assigned to the Minot Gladiators for further seasoning. He was placed on the second line, along with Aleks Svansson and Rhett Gouldhawke, in order to produce some chemistry with Gouldhawke, a fellow top prospect. The pairing worked wonders as Chouinard tallied 119 points, a +28 plus/minus, 94 hits, 24 powerplay goals, and six game-winners. "I think Mathias really developed this season. He will blossom into a star if he keeps up this pace," commented then Calgary general manager Matt Bentz on Chouinard's performance that season.

Entering season 19, Chouinard was expected to hit his full potential in the VHLM and he did not disappoint. Playing mainly on the first line and being surrounded by stars such as Hamza Ahmed, Roman Andreev, Christopher Hawkins, Lars Intranquilo, Keon Henderson, Olivier Bergstrom, Adam Schultz, Sarmad Khan, Fantastic McAwesome, and Niklas Kristensen, Chouinard and the Gladiators were set to break out. In all 72 games, he almost broke the 200 point mark, with 195 points, and 113 assists, which led the league. He also put together a +53, 129 hits, 17 powerplay goals, and nine game-winners.

After a very strong season as a team, the Gladiators entered the playoffs with a very realistic chance to win the Founder's Cup and did just that after defeating the Saskatoon Wild in seven games and then the Kolari Panthers in five games. For Chouinard, he managed to record 27 points, a +4, a powerplay goal, and a game-winner. He was later awarded the Esposito Trophy for playoff MVP.