When Troy Brouwer and Deryk Engelland took the ice for the Moose Jaw Warriors at the turn of the century, it’s safe to say they had a major impact on the team.
Brouwer emerged as an offensive powerhouse in his 20-year-old season and would captain the team all the way to the Western Hockey League final.
Engelland was a stalwart defenceman renowned throughout the league for his ability to protect teammates and keep the other team honest.
Both went on to stellar National Hockey League careers, and now both will be the newest members of the Warriors and Legends Hall of Fame.
The Warriors, in partnership with Conexus Credit Union, announced Friday that the duo will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame during an induction ceremony on Friday, Jan. 12 at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
A native of Delta, B.C., Brouwer played for the Warriors from the 2001-02 season through the 2005-06 campaign. He put up 103 goals and 219 points to go along with 426 penalty minutes in 287 regular season games and also suited up in 45 playoff games -- second most in team history -- and added another 15 goals and 23 points.
Brouwer saved his best for his overage season, scoring 49 goals and 102 points, a 55-point jump over his 47 points the previous season and enough to land him the Bobby Clarke Trophy as the WHL’s top scorer. Brouwer was also named to the WHL Eastern Conference First All-Star team and the CHL Second All-Star Team.
A seventh-round, 214th overall selection by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, Brouwer would go on to play 14 seasons in the NHL with Chicago, Washington, St. Louis, Calgary and Florida. Through his 851 regular season games, Brouwer had 182 goals and 363 points, winning the Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2010 and also playing for Canada at the World Championship in 2014.
Brouwer and his family reside in Calgary where he is a NHL pro scout for the St. Louis Blues.
While Engelland wasn’t as high a scorer as Brouwer, he left his mark on the WHL just the same -- in some cases, quite literally. A renowned enforcer in his time with the Warriors, Engelland suited up in 243 games for Moose Jaw and put up 14 goals and 48 points to go along with 520 penalty minutes, eighth most in franchise history.
Drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the sixth round, 194th overall in 2000, he would go on to play 11 seasons in the NHL with Pittsburgh, Calgary, and Vegas. In 671 regular season games, he had 30 goals and 127 points to go along with 579 penalty minutes. He also played six seasons in the American Hockey League from 2003-2010 and was a Calder Cup Champion with the Hershey Bears in 2006.
Engelland was selected in the first round of the NHL expansion draft by the Vegas Golden Knights, and immediately became a team legend when, as the team’s assistant captain, he gave a heartfelt speech on ice prior to their first-ever home game. His address to the crowd came after 58 people were killed in a mass shooting only days before, and his tireless efforts to help the community recover led to Engelland winning the NHL’s Mark Messier Leadership Award that season.
Engelland and his family reside in Las Vegas where he is involved with the Vegas Golden Knights Foundation as a special assistant to Owner Bill Foley.
Brouwer and Engelland will be inducted into the Warriors and Legends Hall of Fame on Jan. 12 and will be honoured before the Warriors game on Saturday, Jan. 13 against the Vancouver Giants.
Ticket and sponsorship information for the 2023 Conexus Warriors and Legends Hall of Fame ceremony are available at the Warriors office.
