Wheeler led the NHL in assists in 2017-18, was in the top 10 in helpers during four seasons, was named to the second NHL All-Star team in 2018, played in two NHL All-Star games and captained the Jets to the West Conference Final. As great as those accolades are, Wheeler is more proud of accomplishing two important personal goals.
“As a kid, I had two dreams. I wanted to I wanted to be a professional athlete, and I wanted to be a dad. And being able to look up in the crowd and see your family watching you, Sam, all three kids,” said Wheeler.
“I think that's what I'm most proud of, is I like those moments, after the game, hugging your wife, hugging your kids, and then that they're supporting you and so I got to accomplish my two big dreams, and they mesh together.”
Wheeler and the Jets came close to achieving the ultimate dream of any player that laces up the skates in the spring of 2018. After a slow build and patience shown by the organization after bringing the Jets back to the Manitoba capital, The Jets had hockey fans in the province excited by finishing second overall, the team went onto win the first two playoff series in franchise history before running into a red-hot Marc-Andre Fleury and the Vegas Golden Knights in round three.
“It was a very special year. Just being a part of the foundation and building of this new iteration of the Winnipeg Jets and I was in the prime of my career and pushing very hard to get the organization along with a lot of my teammates to get to a place like that. It kind of snuck up on us a little bit. I didn’t go into that season being like ‘Oh, we’re going to be the best team in the league this year, right?’,” said Wheeler.
“Years of our group going together, drafting well, preparing these young players, getting them assimilated into our group. Just kind of like everything clicked at the same time, so to see all those pieces come together. What that season turned into, it was pretty cool because it was kind of zero to 100 in a year, which was fun.”
A key contributor to that magical season was Bryan Little. The Edmonton product was one of five remaining Jets from the 2011-12 team, the season after the move from Atlanta to Winnipeg that team included Wheeler, Dustin Byfuglien, Toby Enstrom and Mark Scheifele. The Wheeler’s and the Little’s went to the Bahamas during spring break together as the two families remain close.
“You are able to carry these things (friendships) on after you’re done playing and keep track of each other and root for each other outside of whatever it was we did on the ice together. So, he's a special guy, a special teammate, special player. He never has, and I don't think ever will, but he just never was one of those guys that was going to get the recognition that he ever deserved,” explained Wheeler.
“He was just very unassuming and quiet, and I say that from a media perspective. When you talk to anyone that played against Brian Little while he was in the NHL, anyone I ever talked to that played against us in like, the mid 2010’s, they know very well what Brian Little is capable of, and he's well respected for how great of a player he was.”
The Minnesota product remains the Jets all-time leading scorer with 812 points (262G, 550A), a position he has held since he passed Ilya Kovalchuk back on December 21, 2019. Wheeler accomplished this in his home state in an arena (Xcel Energy Center) where he had a lot of success over his career.
“It’s funny, because I remember walking into the rink that day, I had a lot of great moments in that building. So, it was one of those things. It wasn’t like I had been like sitting there dwelling on it much, but I knew that I was a point away from tying it and stepping into that building. I just always had a great feeling just from past experiences and successes there,” said Wheeler.
“So, I just kind of had that feeling in my gut, and I remember scoring pretty early in the game on a penalty kill, and from there, I just kind of assumed that it was going to happen that night.”
Another one of Wheeler’s longtime friends, Mark Scheifele, will begin this season just nine points from taking over as the franchise leader in points. Something that Wheeler had mentioned to Scheifele on the night that he passed Kovalchuk in 2019.
“A great friend and he was very pumped for me. And I told him that exact thing. I said, ‘I'll hang on to it for you for a while.’ And being the first draft pick in the history of the (Jets) franchise and looks like he's going to be a lifelong Jet,” said Wheeler.
“He’s meant a great deal to me in my career, as well as you know that organization. So, he's the rightful guy to be carrying the torch going forward, and I look forward to celebrating for him and with him when that day comes.”
As for what’s next, Wheeler wouldn’t elaborate as to what his post hockey career is going to look like, but we did see a possible opportunity in the media. Wheeler made his Hockey Night in Canada debut on the Hockey Central panel for a few nights during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“I had a blast, honestly. That Hockey Night in Canada crew is just top shelf, like they are first class, from Ron MacLean on down, yes, so they treated me like gold,” said Wheeler.
“They made the job incredibly fun and easy. I had a blast doing it. We'll see. I really don't know what the future holds at this point. And, yeah, we'll see. Maybe there's more to come.”
