Coeur d’Alene Hockey Academy is excited to announce Mitch Wahl has accepted the position of 17U Head Coach and CDA’s Head of Player Personnel! Mitch is coming off a strong 14-year professional career and will be a great addition to CDA’s staff. Mitch is familiar with the area as he played for the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL and his wife is from Liberty Lake, WA. 

Mitch Wahl, born and raised in Southern California and played youth hockey for the California Wave and LA Jr. Kings. He won many championships throughout minor hockey in both the USA and Canada. 

In 2005, Mitch was drafted in the 1st round, 4th overall by the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League. He went on to play parts of 5 seasons for the Chiefs, 4 full seasons. In 2008, he was a member of the WHL and Memorial Cup Championship team in Spokane and was named a Memorial Cup All Star. He was later named a top 25 All Time Player for the Spokane Chiefs in their 25-year history. 

In 2008 Mitch was drafted the 2nd round 48th overall by the Calgary Flames in the NHL. A year later he signed a 3-year contract with the Flames. 

In 2009, Mitch represented the USA at the World Junior Championship U20 tournament which was held in Ottawa, Canada. 

Mitch started his professional career in 2010. After dealing with some injuries early in his pro career, he was able to bounce back and continue to pursue his dream. Later, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers and played parts of 5 seasons in the North American minor leagues in both the AHL and ECHL. 

In 2015, Mitch decided to try a new adventure and took his career to Europe. He started in Sweden and led the Allsvenskan Hockey League in goals with 27. From there spent time in Finland, back to Sweden, then to Austria, Slovakia and then finished his last 4 seasons in Germany. He won a championship in 2019 at the highest level in Austria and played parts of 14 years professionally. 

“At the age of 33, I am thrilled to take on this new opportunity as a coach at the CDA Hockey Academy and bring my hockey and life knowledge to a younger generation of people and hockey players. My wife Kellien, who grew up just over the border in Liberty Lake, WA is also very excited to come back to where we have family and friends. She’s been an incredible wife and mother as we’ve traveled the world together for many years. We met in 2006 when I played for the Spokane Chiefs. We now have a 3-year-old son named Brixton who is an absolute joy and a hockey star in the making!”