(Image Credit: Steve Dunsmoor)

By Regan Bartel

Ex-Rockets Captain in the ECHL

Max Graham playing pro in the United States

Feb 19, 2026 | 6:00 AM

Former Kelowna Rockets captain Max Graham is learning what it really means to become a professional hockey player in the United States.

Last season, Graham wore the captain’s “C” for the Kelowna Rockets. This year, everything is different. He is starting his pro career with the Wheeling Nailers in the East Coast Hockey League and learning to live, play, and compete in a new country, a new city, and a much tougher league.

Graham is now based in Wheeling, West Virginia, a small American city (population 27,000) that feels a long way from home.

“It’s definitely a little bit different,” Graham told RocketFAN. “The city is definitely on the smaller side. It’s a ghost town every once in a while. But the setup we’ve got here is good, and everyone’s treated well.”

For a Canadian player who spent his junior career close to home, adjusting to life in the United States has become part of his first pro season.

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“The best part is we’ve got a real good team this year,” Graham said. “That kind of makes it easy living here.”

When he first arrived, he did not know what to expect from the team or the league.

“I didn’t really know at first,” he said. “Later in training camp, you could kind of see it. There were about 30 guys still at camp, and everyone was a good player. You could tell it was going to be a pretty good team.”

That depth has helped the Nailers become one of the top teams in the league, and it has also pushed Graham to learn quickly what it takes to stay in the lineup at the pro level.

“We were red hot at the start and then had a bit of a slump before Christmas,” he said. “But we’ve been good as of late.”

For Graham, fitting into a deep American-based pro team means being ready for anything.

“I kind of bounce all around,” he said. “I’ve been playing left wing and center. There’s games where I’m on the first line, and there are games where I’m on the second and third line.”

One familiar part of his game has followed him from Kelowna.

“I’ve been lucky enough to be on a power play unit all year and kind of net-front like how I was in Kelowna,” Graham said. “It’s nice to feel like the coaches trust you.”

That trust matters even more for a player coming off a serious injury and trying to establish himself in a new country and a new league.

“I’d say I’m pretty close to back to normal,” Graham said of his knee, which ended his season a year ago. “I haven’t missed any games or practices since I got to camp in September.”

He says the American pro-environment has helped him manage his recovery.

“They’ve been taking really good care of me,” he said. “I can get treatment before every practice and every game if I want.”

Still, the grind of pro hockey in the United States is real.

“In the East Coast League, you get three games in three nights,” Graham said. “Friday, Saturday, Sunday. I’ll wake up on Monday, and it’ll be a little stiff. But nothing’s keeping me off the ice.”

The biggest adjustment for Graham as a Canadian rookie is not just the location. It is the level of competition.

“The East Coast is a lot better league than people give it credit for,” he said. “There are guys down here who were 50-goal scorers in junior, and there are guys who have played NHL games too.”

The main difference is age and strength.

“You’re not playing 16 to 20-year-olds anymore,” Graham said. “You’re playing guys who are 20 to 37. Everyone is big and strong.”

He also notices a different style of play compared to junior hockey in Western Canada.

“There’s a little less skill and more chip and grind, getting pucks in and getting in the corners,” he said. “Honestly, that kind of suits my game.”

The travel schedule also reminds him of home, even though he is now doing it in America.

“You’re finishing games and driving through the night,” Graham said. “It’s pretty comparable to the Western League.”

Graham spent his junior career in the Western Hockey League and believes that background has helped him adjust to American pro hockey more smoothly than some players.

Off the ice, the changes have been just as important.

Instead of living with family in Kelowna, Graham now shares a three-bedroom apartment with two teammates.

“It’s definitely a big change,” he said. “I feel like I was cooking the same meal over and over again just to get by.”

Learning how to manage daily life has become part of his development.

“I call my mom a lot asking how long to cook things for,” he said with a laugh. “But I haven’t shriveled up to nothing yet, so I must be doing a decent job.”

Graham also had a short opportunity to move up this season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“It was definitely exciting,” he said. “I was a little nervous hopping into it, but it honestly wasn’t too big of a jump from the East Coast.”

That taste of the next level has made his goals clear.

“You don’t want to be in the East Coast League longer than you have to be,” Graham said. “My goal is to play full-time in the American League next year.”

For now, he believes playing big minutes in the ECHL is exactly what he needs.

“As a young guy and a rookie, I don’t think it’s too bad for me,” he said. “I’m playing every night, getting power play time and special teams, and just learning the pro game.”

Even from hundreds of kilometres away, Graham still keeps close watch on the team he captained back home.

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“I try to catch almost every Rockets game,” he said. “I’ll get back after our game and turn it on. I’ve been really happy watching them lately.”