The Brandon Wheat Kings import situation for the 2026-27 season is officially locked in.
The team announced today that forward Kristof Muissu has officially signed with the team and will join them for the coming season. He joins returning goaltender Filip Ruzicka and freshly signed defenseman Ilari Kapanen, rounding out the three import players the Wheat Kings are permitted to have on their roster.
“It’s a good day for us,” said Wheat Kings head coach and GM Marty Murray. “Kris is a guy that is an older player that, we talked about when we drafted our guys, he could come in and help us right away. We got big news this week with Ilari being named to the Finnish World Junior Camp, which is always a positive, and today officially getting to sign Kris. Two big signings for us, and a guy that we hope can come in and produce offensively right away.”
The Wheat Kings have good reason to think Muissu can come in and help offensively right out of the gate. The 6-foot-3 forward had 34 goals and 69 points in 57 games last year in the MHL (Russia’s top junior league) and has 24 games of professional experience under his belt in the KHL and VHL, including his first KHL goal.
“There will be a little bit of a change in culture and a change in style of play,” Murray said, “but if you look at his highlights and his ability to shoot the puck and create something out of nothing, his skill is high end. We think Kris can come in right away and be a contributor to our hockey club.”
Muissu doesn’t just bring offense either coming in at 6-foot-3 and 214 pounds. With a forward core that was losing Nicholas Johnson and Carter Klippenstein, injecting some size back into the lineup was just another bonus.
“It ebbs and flows in hockey with your drafts and who’s coming in and the landscape of who’s leaving,” said Murray. “One of the things you have to be aware of is you don’t get too small, and Kris brings size. He’s built like a man as a 20-year-old, and that will help us as a group.”
By signing Muissu, the team has now secured all three of their imports before August, whereas the prior season Ruzicka wasn’t able to officially join the team before October. Not only is it a relief to have this off their plates, it’s a boost to the team to know how much all three players have expressed excitement about being in Brandon.
“That’s big,” said Murray. “Filip obviously got a taste of it last year but the other two, they’re really excited to be a part of the organization and get to know the city a bit more and that’s huge. You want people to want to be in the city and in the organization, and these two have been gung ho ever since the opportunity came about.”
The Wheat Kings open the preseason schedule on home ice on September 4 as they host the Regina Pats. The regular season begins, also on home ice, on September 18 against the Saskatoon Blades.
