Photo credit: RocketFAN

By Regan Bartel

Making a difference off the ice

Rockets’ Carson Wetsch wins donation award

Jun 10, 2025 | 3:00 PM

WHL press release: 

Kelowna Rockets forward Carson Wetsch has won the Dayna Brons Honorary Award.

The recognition is presented annually by Hockey Gives Blood to recognize a player who exhibits outstanding dedication to patients who rely on blood and stem cell products in Canada.

“It’s been a blast doing this for the past two years, and I can’t wait to keep on doing it in the future,” Wetsch said as he accepted the award.

Since becoming a Hockey Gives Blood Ambassador in 2023, Wetsch, 19, has hosted community blood drives with the Calgary Hitmen, donated himself, and joined the Canadian Blood Services stem cell registry, while encouraging others to do the same.

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Through volunteering, he’s also met a young cancer patient named Colton.

Colton was diagnosed with Leukemia when he was two years old and has received more than 60 life-saving transfusions of blood, platelets and plasma throughout his treatment.

Wetsch and Colton appeared together in a Canadian Blood Services awareness video in February of 2025.

“Carson also displayed a very high level of commitment, proving to himself and his peers that it’s possible to play hockey at a high level and be involved in the community,” Hockey Gives Blood founder Stu Middleton said. “His passion to do both has helped raise the standard at Hockey Gives Blood.”

The award commemorates Dayna Brons, a young athletic therapist and blood donor who worked with the Humboldt Broncos, Saskatchewan SWAT and Saskatchewan Roughriders, among other teams.

She passed away in 2018 at the age of 24 as a result of injuries sustained during the Humboldt Broncos Bus Crash- a national tragedy that prompted the founding of organizations like Hockey Gives Blood.

“Through his actions, Carson consistently displayed many of the traits Dayna Brons was known for, such as kindness, humility and sacrifice,” Middleton added.

June 8-14 also marks Canada’s National Blood Donor Week.

“Off the ice, Hockey Gives Blood player ambassadors like Carson are playing an important role in raising awareness to keep Canada’s Lifeline strong at a time when it’s greatly needed,” Canadian Blood Services Director of National Development Melissa Steadman said. “Right now, only two per cent of eligible people in Canada are donating blood or plasma, yet demand for blood products continues to rise. At the same time, we hear every day from donors that they feel a profound sense of fulfillment from giving. Players like Carson are encouraging more people to experience what they get when they give, and helping us reach our ambitious goal of recruiting one million new donors in Canada over the next five years to help patients.”

Wetsch, a San Jose Sharks prospect, is the third Western Hockey League skater to win the prestigious award, joining former Regina Pats Captain Logan Nijhoff (2022) and 2022 WHL Player of the Year Logan Stankoven (2023).

He was named Captain of the Calgary Hitmen for the 2024-25 season and set new career highs with 33 goals (including a league-leading 10 game-winning strikes) and 20 assists for 53 points in 68 regular-season games, in addition to five playoff goals in the 2025 WHL Playoffs.

Wetsch was traded to Kelowna at the beginning of the offseason and is expected to take on a leadership role with the Rockets as Kelowna prepares to host the 2026 Memorial Cup.