Ismail Abougouche hasn’t forgotten the support he received as a young minor hockey player from the older players on his hometown’s Portage College Voyageurs hockey team. 

Now 19, Abougouche – Izzy to his friends - is playing junior hockey in the Western Hockey League for the Tri-City Americans, where it's now his turn to offer support to young hockey players, these ones across southern Washington and northern Oregon.

Growing up in the northeastern Alberta community of Lac La Biche, Izzy said players from the Portage College hockey team would have camps and come out for skates with the community’s youth programs.

“They were huge and super good at hockey. It was an eye-opener. It was fun seeing what we could be one day,” Izzy told reporter Annie Fowler in a recent article published on the Tri-City Americans hockey team web site. The interview came during a community event where Izzy was helping young skaters at an outdoor rink in Pendleton, Oregon.

Ismail Abougouche joins others from the WHL's Tri-City Americans team at a recent community event in Oregon. Abougouche says it feels good to offer support to young skaters - the same way the Portage College Voyageurs in his hometown offered it to him.

Izzy is a recent addition to the Americans’ roster, coming from the Edmonton Oil Kings in a 2024 trade. He began his WHL career in 2022 with the Kelowna Rockets when he was just 16. He was drafted to “the Dub” after U15, U16 and U18 seasons with the AAA Fort Saskatchewan Rangers in the Alberta Elite Hockey League.

Going into the last week of February, Izzy has played 35 games with the Americans this season, notching a goal and three assists in on-ice action. While the six-foot-three, 200 lb. defenceman is a presence on the ice, he's also a go-to member of the team when it comes to off-ice community events. And even though he enjoys his community role, he admits to being a little amazed that he’s now doing what his hockey playing role models did for him.

 “It’s crazy,” he said. “You want to be one of those guys one day.”

Portage coach and ex NHL’er Kevin McCLelland

Portage College Voyageurs men’s hockey team head coach Kevin McCLelland was pleased to hear that the team's community involvement had left an impression on Izzy. McCLelland played in the NHL for 15 seasons, earning four Stanley Cup rings with the Edmonton Oilers, and says whether

“Our player-athletes focus on school, sports, and community involvement. We encourage them to be well-rounded contributors to the school and the community in general,” he said, explaining that experiences like Izzy’s are great examples of how well that philosophy works. “We want young people to see how important it can be to extend their education, stay active and be involved.”

Each school year, Portage College student-athletes contribute hundreds of hours to community organizations, offering their time and efforts to events and local sports.

In 2024, the Voyageurs hockey program started the Junior Voyageurs Hockey Academy, offering high quality hockey development to young skaters across northeastern Alberta.