Warriors win in Winnipeg, but pay a price . . . Lambert leads Thunderbirds to victory . . . Stankoven, Ernst too much for Winterhawks


GrandmaGirls031823
Dorothy, with her two sweethearts — Averi, behind the hat, and the always smiling Kara.

With the 10th anniversary of her kidney transplant in sight, Dorothy is taking part in her 10th straight Kamloops Kidney Walk. So, yes, she is fund-raising. . . . It’s worth noting that she has been No. 1 in Kamloops for nine straight years, too, and, yes, things are cookin’ again. . . . In recent days, she has received support from the wife of a gentleman who is a general manager/head coach in the WHL. She also heard from another WHL head coach, and from an avid follower of the Victoria Royals, and from a former WHL scout. . . . As a result of these people and more, her 10-year total has surpassed $30,000. . . . Yes, hockey people are awesome. . . . The 2023 Walk is scheduled for June 4. . . . If you would like to be part of her team, you are able to donate right here. . . . And thank you in advance.


Pi


A few Twitter tidbits from Friday’s opening second-round WHL playoff games . . .

Geoffrey Brandow (@GeoffreyBrandow): “After seeing a 3-0 lead dissipate, the Winnipeg Ice score twice in the third for a Game 1 win. Connor McClennon combines for 23rd career game-winning goal recording 30th playoff point in process. Graham Sward secures third goal since calendar changed to March.”

Brandow, again: “Red Deer only fires 20 shots on goal, but scores three times and takes a 1-0 series lead. Kyle Kelsey gets to within 1:54 of a shutout cutting off 23 of 24. Jhett Larson opens scoring with only goal of first 40, Jace Isley pots first of postseason.”

Brandow, once more: “Kamloops goes up 1-0 fending off a late Winterhawks charge. Jakub Demek delivers first playoff goal(s) since the Ed Chynoweth Cup winner with the Oil Kings last season. Potted four in 15 tries in regular campaign. Hits 25 career playoff points. . . . Portland’s James Stefan beats the final buzzer securing a hat trick and pots 10 playoff goals in 17 career efforts. First career combined hat trick in 204 games. 44 points (27 assists) at home, 29 points on road with a -13 rating. . . . Kamloops’ Dylan Ernst sees name everywhere on scoresheet with an assist, a delay of game penalty, and 28 saves on 32 shots. Improves to 5-0 in playoffs and has dropped goals against average by a full goal. 1.96 GAA, .927 SV% in combined 43 wins; 4.82 GAA, .854 SV% in 13 non-wins.”

From Winterhawks historian Andy Kemper (@AndyKemper): “Scoring change for Portland in Game 1 vs. Kamloops. 3rd goal — 72 Nguyen from 11 Fromm-Delorme and 19 Chyzowski. 2nd career 3 assist playoff game for Chyzowski.”

More from Brandow: “Seattle soars to a Game 1 win with help from a couple of midseason acquisitions. Dylan Guenther doubles up again in goal column reaching 20 (and 30 points) in 24 career playoff games. Brad Lambert returns and helps out on three, most this (season).”


Mayor


WHL PLAYOFF NOTES:

Six of the eight teams remaining in the WHL’s title chase now have played two WHLgames in the second round of playoffs. The other teams involved — the Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades — are scheduled to play their second game today. They’ll meet in Saskatoon’s SaskTel Centre, where the Rebels opened the series with a 3-1 victory on Friday night. . . . They weren’t able to play there on Saturday night because lacrosse’s Saskatchewan Rush had the facility booked for a NLL game.

There aren’t any games scheduled for Monday.

On Saturday night, the Moose Jaw Warriors evened their series with the Eastern Conference’s top-ranked Winnipeg Ice, but may have lost two veteran defencemen in the process. . . .

There weren’t any surprises in the Western Conference as the No. 1 Seattle Thunderbirds and No. 2 Kamloops Blazers each took 2-0 leads in their series. . . . The Prince George Cougars, down 2-0 to Seattle, may be looking at playing a game or two without a 97-point man who took a headshot major late in Game 2.

——

SATURDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Moose Jaw (4) at Winnipeg (1) — The Moose Jaw Warriors struck for four goals WarriorsNewin the game’s first 10 minutes, three of them in a span of 1:24 via the PP, en route to a 5-3 victory over the Winnipeg Ice. . . . The Ice’s first loss of these playoffs left the series tied, 1-1, as the scene shifts to Moose Jaw for games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Game 5 is to be played in Winnipeg on Saturday. . . . The Ice had won the opener, 5-3, on Friday. . . . Last night, F Ryder Korczak (2) gave the Warriors a 1-0 lead at 1:02 of the first period. . . . Ice F Evan Friesen was ejected at 7:45 for a headshot on Moose Jaw D Matthew Gallant, who left the game and didn’t return. . . . F Brayden Yager (4) made it 2-0 at 8:07. . . . Ice F Zach Benson went off for high-sticking at 8:22, and Yager (5) upped the lead to 3-0 at 9:11 on the 5-on-3 PP. . . . The Warriors made it 4-0 when F Martin Rysavy (3) added another PP goal just 20 seconds later. . . . The Ice managed to get to within a goal, at 4-3, on third-period scores from F Zack Ostapchuk (4), on a PP, at 1:07, F Connor McClennon (5), at 13:09, and F Carson Latimer (1), at 16:10. . . . Moose Jaw F Josh Hoekstra got the empty-netter with 2.4 seconds left to play. . . . Ostapchuk was back after sitting out Game 1 with a WHL-issued suspension. . . . Latimer was playing in his first game since Feb. 26. . . . The Warriors were 3-for-5 on the PP; the Ice was 1-for-9. . . . G Connor Ungar earned the victory with 33 saves. . . . Warriors F Atley Calvert, who had two assists, was given a slew-footing double minor at 15:07 of the first period. Those penalties often are met with a suspension. . . . Besides losing Gallant, the Warriors also played the third period without D Logan Dowhaniuk, who was hit from behind by F Owen Pederson in the second period.

——

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Prince George (4) at Seattle (1) — F Brad Lambert was in on each of Seattle’s Seattlefirst three goals as the Thunderbirds beat the Prince George Cougars, 5-1, in Kent, Wash. . . . Seattle holds a 2-0 lead in the series with the next two games in Prince George on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . Lambert, who had a goal and three assists in this one, had recorded three assists on Friday as the Thunderbirds opened the series with a 4-1 victory. . . . He missed two games in Seattle’s first-round sweep of the Kelowna Rockets, and now has a goal and eight assists in four playoff games. . . . Last night, Seattle scored the game’s first three goals. . . . F Jared Davidson (2) got it started, on a PP, at 13:12 of the first period. . . . Lambert (1) got it to 2-0 at 9:23 of the second, and F Dylan Guenther (8) made it 3-0 at 13:43. . . . Guenther has goals in each of Seattle’s six playoff games, and is riding a 12-game point streak. . . . F Ondrej Becher (1) got the Cougars on the board 14 seconds into the third period, but F Kyle Crnkovic (2) got that one back for Seattle at 4:33. . . . Davidson (3) closed out the scoring on a PP at 19:16. . . . Seattle was 3-for-4 on the PP; Prince George was 0-for-5. . . . G Thomas Milic stopped 26 shots for Seattle. In these playoffs, he is 6-0, 1.00, .959. . . . The Cougars lost F Riley Heidt to a headshot major a game misconduct at 18:03 of the third period. He was a 97-point man in the regular season so a suspension of any length could be truly devastating to the Cougars. . . .

Portland (3) at Kamloops (4) — F Logan Stankoven had two goals and threee Kamloopsassists to lead the Kamloops Blazers to a 5-0 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . The Blazers had posted a 6-4 victory on Friday, so take a 2-0 series lead into games in Portland on Wednesday and Thursday. . . . Stankoven, who led last season’s playoffs in goals (17) and points (31), has 16 points, including seven goals, in six games in these playoffs. . . . Stankoven now has had three five-point playoff games — one last season and two this time around. . . . He is the WHL’s leading playoff scorer not named Connor Bedard, who had 20 points in seven games when his Regina Pats were eliminated. . . . The Blazers opened the scoring at 11:44 of the first period when F Caedan Bankier (5) counted on a PP. . . . D Olen Zellweger (4) made it 2-0 at 17:35 of the second period and Stankoven (6) upped it to 3-0 at 19:05 on another PP. . . . Stankoven (7) and F Daylan Kuefler (2), the latter on a PP, added third-period scores. . . . While the Blazers struck for five goals, they had only six players register points. . . . Bankier added two assists to his goal, while Seminoff also had two assists. . . . G Dylan Ernst stopped 28 shots in posting his third shutout in six starts. He is 6-0, 1.42, .942 in these playoffs. . . . Kamloops was 3-for-4 on the PP; Portland was 0-for-2.



JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Eight WHL players have been named to Team Canada that will play in the IIHF U18 World championship in Basel and Porrentruy, Switzerland, from Thursday through April 30. Those players are G Carson Bjarnason, Brandon Wheat Kings; D Lukas Dragicevic, Tri-City Americans; D Caden Price, Kelowna Rockets; D Carter Yakemchuk, Calgary Hitmen; F Berkly Catton, Spokane Chiefs; F Andrew Cristall, Kelowna; F Ty Halaburda, Vancouver Giants; and F Tanner Howe, Regina Pats. . . . The head coach is Jeff Truitt of the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . Canada opens the tournament with a game against Sweden on Thursday. . . .

The NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets have assigned D Stanislav Svozil of the Regina Pats to the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters. Svozil played two NHL games earlier in the week, picking up an assist in his debut. He played in his first AHL game last night, recording two assists and being name third star in a 4-3 victory over the host Rochester Americans. . . . Meanwhile, the NHL’s Washington Capitals have assigned Regina F Alexander Suzdalev to their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. He was a third-round pick by the Capitals in the NHL’s 2021 draft. This season, he led all WHL freshmen in goals (38), assists (48) and points (86). . . .

F Ty Thorpe (Vancouver Giants) had a goal on Saturday night as the host South Carolina Stingrays scored a 5-4 shootout victory over the Jacksonville Icemen. No, he didn’t take part in the shootout. . . . F Carson Golder (Kelowna Rockets) drew the primary assist on the winning goal as the visiting Manitoba Moose got past the Rockford IceHogs, 3-2. . . . F Parker Bell (Tri-City Americans) picked up an assist on the game-winner at 19:44 of the third period as the Calgary Wranglers beat the host Abbotsford Canucks, 3-2. With the victory, the Wranglers, under head coach Mitch Love, a former WHL player and coach, clinched first place in the AHL’s overall standings (51-17-4).


OutOfOrder


THE COACHING GAME:

Roy Sommer, once an assistant coach with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders, coached his 1,814th and final AHL game on Saturday night as his San Diego Gulls dropped a 3-1 decision to the host Colorado Eagles. Sommer, 66, has announced his retirement after 25 years in the AHL. For the first 24 of this seasons, he was head coach of the San Jose Sharks’ affiliate in Kentucky, Cleveland, Worcester and San Jose. He spent this season with the Anaheim Ducks’ AHL affiliate. . . . Sommer has coached in more AHL games and posted more victories (828) than anyone in history. . . . Sommer was with Prince Albert in 1988-89, before moving on to the ECHL’s Roanoke Valley Rebels. . . . As a player, Sommer, who is from Oakland, Calif., played one game with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings (1974-75) and then two seasons (1975-77) with the Calgary Centennials. . . .

Zack Dailey has been named the head coach of the MacEwan U Griffins, who play in Canada West. Dailey, an assistant coach with the Edmonton-based team since 2017, had been the team’s interim head coach as he filled in for Michael Ringrose, who was on parental leave. Ringrose announced in February that he wouldn’t be returning. Dailey, a 33-year-old native of Healey, Alaska, played with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips for five seasons (2005-10), before going on to spend five seasons with the U of Alberta Golden Bears.


Delivery


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Bacon

Advertisement

Hockey loses a friend in Seattle . . . Three top seeds open WHL’s second round with victories. . . . Rebels start with win on road

I never had the privilege of meeting Andy Eide, but we certainly communicated on occasion via email and Twitter. I can tell you that no one loved hockey — and hockey in the Pacific Northwest, in particular — more than did Andy. He absolutely loved covering the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds and it was more of his dream come true when he came to be involved in coverage of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. . . . If you aren’t aware, Andy had a stroke on March 18, just prior to a Kraken game against the visiting Edmonton Oilers. He died on Friday. . . . The tributes that flowed  on social media like so many tears revealed what kind of impact he had.


WHL PLAYOFF NOTES:

The second round of the WHL playoffs opened with four series — conference semifinals — on Friday night.

In Winnipeg, the Eastern Conference’s top seed, the Winnipeg Ice, will take a 1-0 series lead into tonight’s Game 2 against the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors.

In Saskatoon, the No. 3 Rebels have a 1-0 lead against the No. 2 Blades. They won’t play a second game until Sunday, because lacrosse’s Saskatchewan Rush has a game in the SaskTel Centre tonight. If you’re confused as to how the Rebels were the second seed and the Blades No. 3 in the first round but now those seeds are reversed, here’s the deal: The Rebels were the No. 2 seed because they finished atop the Central Division in the regular season. The Blades had more points than did the Rebels, but finished second in the East Division. In the first round, a division title gets you the first or second seed. The WHL reseeds for the second round, so the Blades became the No. 2 seed, ahead of the Rebels.

Meanwhile, in the Western Conference, the No. 1 Seattle Thunderbirds have a 1-0 lead over the Prince George Cougars going into tonight’s second game.

And, in Kamloops, the No. 2 Blazers hold a 1-0 lead over the Portland Winterhawks as they prepared for a second game tonight.

——

FRIDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Moose Jaw (4) at Winnipeg (1) — F Matt Savoie had a goal and two assists to WinnipegIcehelp the Winnipeg Ice to a 5-3 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . The Ice is 5-0 in these playoffs; the Warriors are 4-1. . . . The Ice jumped out to a 3-0 first-period lead on goals from F Owen Pederson (2), on a PP, at 1:04, F Zach Benson (1), at 7:57, and Savoie (7), at 16:42. . . . However, the Warriors scored the next three goals to pull even. F Brayden Yager (3) got it started at 19:38 of the first period, with D Max Wanner (2) scoring at 4:09 of the second and F Jagger Firkus (5) tying it at 13:21, on a PP. . . . F Connor McClennon (4) snapped the tie at 2:59 of the third period, with D Graham Sward (1) adding insurance at 6:04. . . . Benson, who had 36 goals and 62 assists in the regular season, played in his first game March 10. . . . Winnipeg G Daniel Hauser stopped 26 shots, six fewer than Moose Jaw’s Connor Ungar. . . . Each team was 1-for-2 on the PP. . . . The Ice remains without F Carson Latimer, a trade-deadline acquisition from the Prince Albert Raiders, who last played on Feb. 26. . . . Moose Jaw F Robert Baco sat out as he is serving a three-game suspension after taking a goalie interference major and game misconduct in Game 4 against the Lethbridge Hurricanes. Baco will be eligible to return for Game 4 against the Ice. . . .

Red Deer (3) at Saskatoon (2) — D Christoffer Sedoff had a goal and an assist as RedDeerthe Red Deer Rebels beat the Saskatoon Blades, 3-1. . . . F Jhett Larson (2) gave the Rebels a 1-0 lead at 4:28 of the second period, and they nursed that until 14:19 of the third when F Jace Isley (1) scored the eventual game-winner. . . . F Jake Chiasson (3) got Saskatoon on the board at 18:08 with G Austin Elliott on the bench for the extra attacker. . . . Sedoff put it away with the empty-netter, his third goal of these playoffs. . . . Each team was 0-for-3 on the PP. . . . G Kyle Kelsey earned the victory with 23 saves, six more than Elliott.

——

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Prince George (4) at Seattle (1) — F Dylan Guenther’s two first-period goals Seattlegot the Seattle Thunderbirds started to a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars in Kent, Wash. . . . Guenther, who has seven goals in five games, scored at 1:50 and 15:23, the second one coming on a PP. . . . F Koehn Ziemmer (3) got the Cougars’ goal, on a PP, at 18:14. . . . F Lucas Ciona (4) added insurance for Seattle at 2:48 of the third period, and F Nico Myatovic (1) got the empty-netter at 19:36. . . . F Brad Lambert finished with three assists. . . . Prince George was 1-for-5 on the PP; Seattle was 1-for-3. . . . G Thomas Milic celebrated his 20th birthday by stopping 23 shots for Seattle, which is 5-0 in these playoffs. . . . The Cougars got 40 saves from G Ty Young. . . .

Portland (3) at Kamloops (2) — F Jakub Demek scored his first two goals of Kamloopsthese playoffs as the Kamloops Blazers skated to a 6-4 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Demek went into the game with six assists and 26 shots on goal through four games, but nothing in the way of goals. Off-season shoulder surgery limited him to 15 regular-season games this season, and he finished with four goals and seven assists. . . . F Emmitt Finnie (4) ran his point streak to 15 games as he gave the Blazers a 1-0 lead at 8:30 of the first period. . . . F James Stefan’s first of three goals tied it at 9:50. . . . Demek put Kamloops back in front at 13:45 of the second period and F Fraser Minten, in his first game of these playoffs, upped the lead to 3-1 at 15:22. Minten hadn’t played since March 22. . . . Those two goals, coming 1:37 apart, were scored with Portland D Luca Cagnoni in the dressing room getting checked out. . . . Stefan got Portland back to within a goal at 17:04; this was his third multi-goal effort of these playoffs. . . . Demek scored his second goal at 19:36. . . . The Blazers put it away with third-period goals from F Matthew Seminoff (1) and F Logan Stankoven (5), the latter via the PP. . . . F Marcus Nguyen (5), on a PP, at 16:48 and Stefan (7), on another PP, at 19:58 completed the scoring. . . . Portland was 2-for-5 on the PP; Kamloops was 1-for-2. . . . G Dylan Ernst earned the victory with 28 stops, four fewer than Jan Spunar of Portland. . . . The Blazers are 5-0 in the playoffs; the Winterhawks are 4-2.


Freedom


When the conversation turns to the best player in the history of the Kootenay/Winnipeg Ice, F Nigel Dawes has to get an early mention. A 38-year-old native of Winnipeg, Dawes apparently has decided to retire after a pro career that began in 2005-06 and which included 12 seasons in Europe. . . . He was with the Kootenay Ice for four seasons (2001-05) and finished with 272 points, 159 of them goals, in 245 regular-season games. He also had 45 points, including 19 goals, in 49 playoff games. . . . He got into 212 NHL games over five seasons, scoring 39 goals and adding 45 assists; in the AHL, he had 233 points, 117 of them goals, in 232 games. . . . He went on to play 10 seasons in the KHL, totalling 267 goals and 238 assists in 543 games. . . . Dawes played the past two seasons with Adler Mannheim of the DEL, totalling 32 goals and 34 assists in 90 games. . . . At 5-foot-8 and 200 pounds, he wasn’t the tallest player on the ice, but he was as gritty as they came, and he was a whole lot of fun to watch.


D Stanislav Svozil of the Regina Pats made his NHL debut with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night, earning one assist in a 3-2 OT victory over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins. He played 19 minutes 13 seconds. . . . Last night was a bit of a different story, as he was minus-3 in 21:01 during a 5-2 loss to the visiting Buffalo Sabres. . . . Svozil, who turned 20 on Jan. 17, is from Prerov, Czechia. The Blue Jackets selected him in the third round of the NHL’s 2021 draft.


JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

F Parker Bell of the Tri-City Americans has joined the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers for their playoff run. Bell, 19, was a fifth-round selection by the parent Calgary Flames in the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . . This season, he had 25 goals and 39 assists in 55 regular-season games with the Americans. . . .

F Carson Golder of the Kelowna Rockets has signed an ATO with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. Golder, who played out his junior eligibility this season, was acquired by the Rockets from the Edmonton Oil Kings. This season, he put up 31 goals and 24 assists in 64 games. . . . He had been a defenceman until Edmonton’s championship playoff run last season, when he moved to the forward ranks.



JUST NOTES:

The U of Alaska-Fairbanks has signed head coach Erik Largen to a five-year contract worth US$200,000 per season. . . . Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks, N.D., Herald reports: “Largen’s deal spells out several investments into the hockey program — increased salaries for support staff like the strength and conditioning coaches, equipment manager and operations director, an increased recruiting budget, game guarantees for opponents traveling to Fairbanks and, perhaps most notably, salaries for three assistant coaches. . . . Largen’s contract calls for his associate coach to make $120,000 per year. The other two assistants will make $90,000 and $40,000.”


Snowmen


With the 10th anniversary of her kidney transplant within in sight, Dorothy is taking part in her 10th straight Kamloops Kidney Walk. So, yes, she is fund-raising. . . . The 2023 Walk is scheduled for June 4. . . . If you would like to donate to her cause, you are able to do so right here.

——

If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Train

Blades get help from Bedard in setting attendance record . . . Tigers skate past Ice . . . Ex-WHLer Lee dead at 37

The Travellin’ Bedards will play in Saskatoon on March 19 and the Blades announced Wednesday that they will be setting a single-game attendance Saskatoonrecord that evening. . . . The record for now is 12,588 from Feb. 9, 2013, when the Blades beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 5-2. . . . As of Wednesday afternoon, tickets sales for the March 19 game had exceeded the record. . . . The Pats will provide the opposition for the Blades’ final home game of this season, too, on March 24, and more than 11,500 tickets already have been sold for that one. . . . The reason, of course, is Regina F Connor Bedard, who almost certainly will be the No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2023 draft. . . . “Connor is an incredible player (who) comes along once every generation,” Colin Priestner, the Blades’ president and general manager, said in a news release. “As a league, we’re extremely fortunate Connor chose the WHL as his path because his star power has brought thousands of new fans to come see our product from across the country, and he’s been an outstanding ambassador for our game.”

It’s worth noting that the Blades and Pats could wind up as first-round opponents when the playoffs get here. And the Blades again are selling a $99 playoff pass. As the news release states: “This will guarantee your seat through the entire postseason, meaning you could enjoy as many as 16 playoff games for under $100!”

The Pats have made only one visit to Saskatoon to this point in the season; the Blades posted a 5-2 victory on Nov. 13 before 7,868 fans. That, to date, is the Blades’ largest home crowd this season.

Perhaps during the March 24 the Blades could thank Bedard for making all this possible by presenting him with a lifetime pass.



Two forwards with the Kamloops Blazers signed three-year entry-level NHL Kamloopscontracts on Wednesday. . . .

F Ryan Hofer signed with the Washington Capitals, who selected him in the sixth round of the NHL’s 2022 draft. He was with the Everett Silvertips at the time. His contract carries an AAV of US$851,666.67 in the NHL and $82,500 in the AHL. . . . There also is an annual signing bonus of $80,000, $80,000 and $70,000. . . . Hofer, 20, is from Winnipeg. He has 13 goals and nine assists in 22 games with the Blazers since being acquired from Everett. He had 23 goals and 13 assists in 36 games before being traded. In 142 career regular-season games, he has 67 goals and 58 assists. . . .

F Caedan Bankier signed with the Minnesota Wild, which selected him in the third round of the NHL’s 2021 draft. Bankier, who turned 20 on Jan. 26, had 62 points, including 30 goals, in 44 games with the Blazers this season. . . . His contract carries an AAV of US$867,500 in the NHL with an $80,000 salary in the minors. There also is an annual $92,500 signing bonus. . . . From White Rock, B.C., he has 165 points, 69 of them goals, in 189 career regular-season games with the Blazers. . . . Bankier also played for the gold medal-winning Canadian team at the 2023 World Junior Championship. . . .

There now are five players on the Blazers’ roster who have signed NHL contracts, the others being F Fraser Minten (Toronto Maple Leafs), F Logan Stankoven (Dallas Stars) and D Olen Zellweger (Anaheim Ducks).


Of all that I witnessed during more than 40 years of writing about sports the few seconds in time during which F Brad Hornung of the Regina Pats was injured is the only one that really, really stayed with me. Even now, all these years later, whenever I see a player get hit from behind and take a tumble into the boards, I cringe. . . . And, yes, there still is far too much checking from behind in the game of hockey. . . . We lost Brad more than a year ago — on Feb. 8, 2022. In the end, just to show that life really can be cruel, cancer took him from us. . . . He was five days from turning 53 when he died, meaning he spent almost 35 years as a quadriplegic. Courage, thy name was Brad Hornung.



If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (8)

Red Deer (2) vs. Medicine Hat (7)

Saskatoon (3) vs. Regina (6)

Moose Jaw (4) vs. Lethbridge (5)

——

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Seattle (1) vs. Kelowna (8)

Kamloops (2) vs. Vancouver (7)

Portland (3) vs. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

WEDNESDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The Medicine Hat Tigers erased an early 2-0 deficit and beat the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers, 6-4. . . . The Ice had an 11-game winning streak come to an end. . . . This was the Tigers’ second victory over one of the WHL’s top teams in recent times. They beat the visiting Kamloops Blazers, 7-3, on Friday. . . . Last night, the Tigers got two goals and two assists from F Oasiz Wiesblatt (24). His first goal tied the score, 2-2, at 14:22 of the first period. His second, at 8:03 of the third period, stood up as the winner. . . . F Cru Hanas, a 17-year-old from Highland Village, Texas, scored his first goal for the Tigers, breaking a 3-3 tie. It came in his 39th career game. . . . D Reid Andresen (7) had a goal and two assists for Medicine Hat. . . . The Ice got a goal (32) and two assists from F Matt Savoie and three assists from D Ben Zloty. . . . G Evan May earned the victory with 40 saves. May, an 18-year-old freshman from Nanaimo, B.C., got his fourth victory in his 17th appearance of the season. . . . Medicine Hat (25-24-9) is seventh in the Eastern Conference, two points behind the Regina Pats and two ahead of the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Winnipeg (48-8-1) will finish atop the East Division and the Eastern Conference. . . .

F Rylen Roersma scored three times to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 7-3 victory over the Warriors in Moose Jaw. . . . Roersma, who has 15 goals, notched his first hat trick in his 139th regular-season game, all with the Wheat Kings. . . . F Jagger Firkus scored twice for Moose Jaw, giving him 31 goals. He gave his guys a 1-0 lead at 1:04 of the first period, but Brandon erased the deficit with three goals, two from Roersma, in 4:28 before the period ended. . . . F Tony Wilson had a goal (7) and two assists for Brandon. His first career three-point game came in his 114th game. . . . Brandon F Ben Thornton had a goal (2) and an assist as he returned to the lineup for the first time since Oct. 14 when he was stretchered off the ice during a 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C. He spent two nights in hospital and then recovered at home in Chilliwack. He was left with concussion-related issues (headache and dizziness) and also had a hip injury. . . . Brandon (23-26-8) had lost three in a row (0-2-1). It now is three points from a playoff spot. . . . Moose Jaw (35-21-3) has lost two straight. It is fourth in the Eastern Conference, five points ahead of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . .

D Mazden Leslie scored three goals to lead the Vancouver Giants to a 6-2 victory over the Cougars in Prince George. . . . The Cougars had beaten the visiting Giants, 6-0, on Tuesday night. . . . Last night, Leslie enjoyed the third multi-goal game of his career in his 138th game; the first two — both two-goal outings — came in the first and sixth games he played in his freshman season (2020-21). . . . Leslie’s second goal broke a 2-2 tie at 2:30 of the third period. His third goal, No 11 for the season, made it 5-2 at 11:04. . . . F Skyler Bruce (11) had a goal and two assists for the winners. . . . D Hudson Thornton (18) had both Prince George goals. . . . The Giants lost F Kyle Bochek to a cross-checking major and game misconduct at 10:02 of the second period. He served a three-game suspension last month after taking a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct, and a four-game suspension in October for a charging major and game misconduct. . . . Vancouver (22-28-7) had lost its previous three games (0-2-1). It is seventh in the Western Conference, two points ahead of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Prince George (29-24-4) had a five-game winning streak end. It is fourth in the conference, one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips and Tri-City Americans. . . .

F Egor Sidorov and F Brandon Lisowsky each scored twice and added an assist to spark the host Saskatoon Blades to a 5-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Blades outshot the visitors 13-0 in the first period and came out of it with a 1-0 lead on Sidorov’s first goal. . . . Saskatoon ended with a 38-10 edge in shots. . . . Sidorov’s 35th goal made it 2-0 at 1:21 of the second period. . . . Lisowsky’s two goals — he’s got 31 — gave the Blades 3-1 and 4-1 leads late in the second and early in the third. . . . F Trevor Wong earned three assists for Saskatoon. . . . The Blades were 3-for-9 on the PP; the Rebels were 0-for-2. . . . A brouhaha at 7:59 of the third period resulted in 87 penalty minutes being handed out, including five majors and six game misconducts. The WHL’s Dept. of Discipline is certain to spend the morning looking at the video. . . . Saskatoon (39-13-5) has points in seven straight (6-0-1). . . . Red Deer (38-17-4) has lost two in a row. . . . So here’s the deal: The Blades have three more points — 83-80 — than do the Rebels. But Saskatoon, which also has two games in hand, is second in the East Division, while Red Deer is atop the Central Division. So it is looking like the Rebels will be the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed and the Blades No. 3 for the first round of the playoffs.

F Andrew Cristall and F Carson Golder each scored three times to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 7-4 victory over the visiting Spokane Chiefs. . . . F Chase Bertholet (24) pulled the Chiefs to within a goal, at 3-2, at 2:51 of the third period. . . . The Rockets then struck three times in 4:43 to take control. Golder, who has 28 goals, scored the first two of those goals to complete his second hat trick this season. . . . Golder, 20, was a defenceman prior to this season. He went into this season with three goals in 100 regular-season games, split between the Victoria Royals and Edmonton Oil Kings. This season, he has 28 goals in 57 games; with Kelowna, he has 20 goals in 33 games. . . . Golder also had an assist. . . . The Rockets got three assists from each of D Elias Carmichael and F Gabriel Szturc. . . . Cristall had 75 points, 33 of them goals, in 43 games. He had a four-goal game earlier in the season. . . . The Rockets got 41 saves from G Jari Kykkanen. . . . Kelowna (23-31-3) is eighth in the Western Conference, 12 points ahead of the Victoria Royals, who have nine games remaining. . . . Spokane (13-37-7) had points in each of its previous three games (2-0-1).


Casey Lee, who played five seasons in the WHL, has died. The native of Kindersley, Sask., was 37. . . . Lee was killed early Sunday morning in a single-vehicle accident in Calgary. . . . Lee played with the Kamloops Blazers and Kootenay Ice (2001-06). He totalled 127 points, including 40 goals, in 285 regular-season games. In 32 playoff games, he added a goal and three assists. . . . There is an obituary right here.


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


BakingSoda

Lazaruk’s WHL tour makes 40th stop . . . Lies and Bell both out of hospital . . . Ice, Winterhawks win first-place battles


The Saskatoon Blades visited the Calgary Hitmen for a Saturday matinee that was played in the Tsuu’tina Seven Chiefs Sportsplex. . . . I would hope the in-house DJ, if there was one, played some I’ve Been Everywhere, perhaps by Johnny Cash, in honour of Les Lazaruk, the long-time radio voice of the Blades. . . . Before the game, he tweeted: “By my foggy memory count, (it’s) the 40th building I’ve called WHL regular-season and/or playoff games from.” . . . When I asked him which building was first, he said: “Agridome in Regina.” The date! Sept. 23, 1994. . . . He has provided a list that shows Saskatoon’s SaskTel Centre and the 39 others, from east to west:

Three in Winnipeg

Brandon

Regina

Two in Moose Jaw

Prince Albert

Swift Current

Two in Medicine Hat

Lethbridge

Two in Calgary

Red Deer

Three in Edmonton

Two in Cranbrook

Two in Prince George

Kamloops

Two in Kelowna

Chilliwack

Two in Vancouver

Victoria

Two in Spokane

Tri-City

Everett

Three in Seattle

Tacoma

Two in Portland

And how many other people can say that they have been in each of those hockey facilities?

The time has come for the WHL to present Lazaruk with the Bob Ridley Award and for the folks in Saskatoon to name the SaskTel Centre’s broadcast booth in his honour.


So . . . you want to be a hockey player, do you? Well, you best buy some good luggage. . . . Let’s take a look at the career of F Lane Pederson, a Saskatoon native who spent three seasons (2014-17) in the WHL. . . . The NHL’s Vancouver Canucks recalled Pederson a few weeks ago from their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks. They placed him on waivers on Friday, and he played in Vancouver’s 5-2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets later that evening. On Saturday, those same Blue Jackets claimed him off waivers. . . . Despite being only 25 years of age, Columbus will be Pederson’s 11th team since he first played in the WHL. He played with the Seattle Thunderbirds, Red Deer Rebels and Swift Current Broncos in the WHL, then made AHL stops with the Tucson Roadrunners, San Jose Barracuda, Chicago Wolves and Abbotsford. In the NHL, he now has belonged to the Arizona Coyotes, San Jose Sharks, Vancouver and Columbus. . . . This season alone, he has been with the Wolves, Abbotsford, Vancouver and now Columbus. And there still is lots of season to be played.



F Justin Lies of the Saskatoon Blades, who left a Friday game against the host WHLRed Deer Rebels on a stretcher, was released from hospital early Saturday and rejoined his teammates in Calgary where they were playing the Hitmen. He was on the bus for the trip home after the game and is expected to be out a couple of weeks. . . Lies, 19, was injured at 5:29 of the second period. Red Deer F Carson Birnie was given an interference major and game misconduct on the play. . . . Birnie wasn’t suspended on Saturday and was in the lineup as the Rebels dropped a 5-1 decision to the visiting Winnipeg Ice. . . .

F Parker Bell of the Tri-City Americans also was released from hospital after being injured during a Friday night game with the visiting Everett Silvertips. Bell, 19, took a hit from Everett F Andrew Petruk, who was given a charging major and game misconduct. . . . On Saturday, the Americans tweeted that Bell “was taken to the hospital last night and released after undergoing testing. He is at home resting.” . . . Petruk has been suspended for three games. He began serving that suspension as the Americans played host to the Spokane Chiefs last night.


G Cody Creasy of the junior B Kamloops Storm of the Kootenay International KamStormnewJunior Hockey League saw a goaltender’s dream come to fruition on Friday night. Yes, he scored a goal. . . . Creasy, a 19-year-old from Brandon, hit the empty neat with two seconds left in the third period, icing a 5-2 victory over the visiting Summerland Steam. . . . Check out the second tweet below because there can’t be anything better than a goaltender’s Mom tweeting about her son having scored a goal. . . . One other note about Creasy’s night in the crease. Larry Read, a well-known Kamloopsian, is the British Columbia Cattlemen’s Association’s communications manager by day and usually handles the Storm play-by-play for home games. But he wasn’t able to attend Friday’s game. As he told Taking Note: “I miss one game and the goalie scores. Just my luck! Haha. . . .” In Read’s absence, Kris Armstrong, who usually is the colour guy, handled the play-by-play and he flew solo. You can bet that he won’t forget this one. . . . BTW, this is the 6-foot-3, 190-pound Creasy’s second season with the Storm. Last season, he was 9-3-0, 1.45, .938 in 15 appearances. This season, in 20 games, he is 10-6-0, 2.16, .915.


Debt


SATURDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The top two teams in the Eastern Conference met in Red Deer and the Winnipeg Ice dropped the Rebels, 5-1. . . . The victory allowed the Ice (34-6-1) to move back into first place, one point ahead of the Rebels (32-10-4). Winnipeg still holds five games in hand. . . . D Carson Lambos drew four assists for the winners, who opened up a 4-0 lead in the second period. . . . D Karter Prosofsky’s first goal of the season and his fourth in 112 career games stood up as the winner. . . .

The Western Conference’s top two teams met in Kent, Wash., where the Portland Winterhawks dumped the Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-2. . . . The Winterhawks (33-8-3) now lead the conference by one point over the Thunderbirds (33-8-2). Seattle has one game in hand. . . . F Chaz Lucius had a goal and two assists for Portland, picking up three points for a third straight game. He has played five games with the Winterhawks since being assigned to them by the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets — he had been with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose — and has at least two points in each outing. All told, he now has four goals and nine assists. . . . D Luca Cagnoni (12) scored twice for Portland. . . . Each team took two minor penalties and went 0-for-2 on the PP. . . . The Winterhawks got 36 saves from D Dante Giannuzzi, who now is 20-5-2, 2.97, .904. . . .

F Egor Sidorov’s OT goal gave the Saskatoon Blades a 3-2 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen. . . . Sidorov scored his 27th goal at 2:30 of extra time. . . . F Carter Yakemchuk (6) had pulled the Hitmen into a tie at 18:52 of the third period with his second goal of the game. . . . The Blades held a 45-26 edge in shots, including 7-1 in OT. . . . Saskatoon (29-11-4) is fourth in the Eastern Conference, one point behind the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . .

F Jagger Firkus scored 40 seconds into OT to give the host Moose Jaw Warriors a 3-2 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Firkus, whose winner came via the PP, has 24 goals this season. . . . The Warriors were 2-for-3 on the PP. The Tigers were 0-for-6. . . . Moose Jaw F Martin Rysavy (4) tied the score 2-2 at 15:45 of the third period. . . . G Connor Ungar of the Warriors ran his record to 25-6-3, 2.61, .924 with 34 saves. . . . The Warriors (30-15-3) are third in the Eastern Conference, six points out of first place. . . .

F Ben Hemmerling scored his third OT winner of the month as the host Everett Silvertips got past the Swift Current Broncos, 4-3. . . . Hemmerling, who has 16 goals, also had two assists. . . . His winner came at 1:10 of OT. . . . F Austin Roest (16) also had a goal and two helpers for the winners. . . . F Jackson Berezowski, Everett’s 20-year-old captain, scored his 29th goal of this season in his 250th career regular-season game. He has 205 points, including 111 goals. . . . The Broncos are 0-1-1 in their five-game tour of the U.S. Division. . . . The Silvertips (23-21-1) are fifth in the Western Conference, two points behind the Tri-City Americans. . . . The Broncos (22-19-3) are seventh in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of the idle Regina Pats, who are at home to Medicine Hat today. . . .

The Prince Albert Raiders opened a trek through the B.C. Division with a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . The Raiders scored the game’s last four goals, the final two from F Evan Herman (9). . . . G Max Hildebrand blocked 28 shots to earn the victory. . . . The Cougars (19-21-4) are tied with the Vancouver Giants for sixth place in the Western Conference. . . .

G Braden Holt turned aside 35 shots to lead the Victoria Royals to a 3-2 victory over the visiting Kamloops Blazers. . . . The visitors had posted a 7-4 victory on Friday night. . . . Holt is 7-2-2, 2.89, .913 since the Royals acquired him from the Everett Silvertips. . . . He had 13 victories with Everett, so this one was No. 20 on the season. . . . F Jake Poole (26) gave the Royals a 3-1 lead at 7:03 of the third period. He also had an assist. . . . Victoria F Teydon Trembecky (6) ran his goal streak to four games. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven had one assist, running his point streak to 29 games. Yes, he has at least a point in every game in which he has played this season. He has 65 points, including 25 goals, in that stretch. . . .  Kamloops (27-10-6) is third in the Western Conference, but leads the B.C. Division by 18 points so is all but certain to be the conference’s No. 2 seed when the playoffs start. . . . Victoria (14-28-5) is tied with the Kelowna Rockets for the conference’s eight and final playoff spot. One of those two teams is going to be left on the outside of the postseason tournament. . . .

The Tri-City Americans took a 5-0 lead into the second period and went to post a 6-2 victory over the Spokane Chiefs in Kennewick, Wash. . . . Tri-City was 3-for-4 on the PP and also had a shorthanded goal. . . . Lukas Dragicevic of the Americans, who leads all WHL defencemen in goals and points (55), had two goals (13) and an assist. Dragicevic and Denton Mateychuk of the Moose Jaw Warriors lead all defencemen in assists (42). . . . Tri-City (22-16-5) is fourth in the Western Conference, two points ahead of Everett. . . .

F Gabriel Szturc, Kelowna’s new captain, had a goal and two assists to lead the host Rockets to a 5-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . One night earlier, in Langley, B.C., the Giants had beaten the Rockets, 3-1. . . . Szturc’s 12th goal, at 8:21 of the second period, broke a 1-1 tie. . . . F Carson Golder (19) finished Kelowna’s scoring with three third-period goals. He also had one assist. . . . Kelowna (15-26-3) is tied with Victoria for eighth in the Western Conference. They are nine points behind Vancouver and Prince George.


Taxes


JUST NOTES:

G Matt Berlin, who played in the WHL (2015-18) with the Spokane Chiefs, Seattle Thunderbirds and Kootenay Ice, made his NHL debut with the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night. Berlin was backing up starter Jack Campbell and head coach Jay Woodcroft, in a wonderful moment, sent him in for the final 2:26 of a 7-3 victory over the visiting Chicago Blackhawks. . . . The Oilers had signed Berlin to an amateur tryout because Stuart Skinner was ailing and unable to play. Berlin, 25, now is with the U of Alberta Golden Bears. He is 4-0-1, 2.57, .892. . . . BTW, Berlin stopped the only shot he faced. . . .

Carl Stankowski, another former WHL goaltender, stopped 25 shots on Saturday as the U of Calgary Dinos beat the Mount Royal Cougars, 4-0. . . . The Dinos ran their Canada West-record winning streak to 19 games. They had set the record on Friday night.


StarWars


Dave Albright, a key member of the 1989 Grey Cup-winning Saskatchewan Roughriders, died Thursday in Redondo Beach, Calif., one day after his 63rd birthday. . . . The Roughriders were 9-9 in the CFL’s 1989 regular season and, after beating the Calgary Stampeders, advanced to meet the Edmonton Eskimos in the West Division final. Early in the second quarter, Albright returned a fumble 62 yards for a touchdown, a play that sparked the Roughriders to a 32-21 victory over the 16-2 Eskimos. . . . Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post has more on Albright right here.


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Moon

Remembering the night Oil Kings’ owner coached Calgary team . . . Hodgson finally gets hockey card . . . Dinos tie Canada West record

In going through some files the other night, I stumbled on a few interesting episodes from the WHL’s past, back when there were a whole lot of colourful characters who called it home. Here is one tale from the past. . . .

It was November of 1966 and the WHL, then called the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, was in its first season when one team’s owner and general manger ended up coaching another team, a team on whose board of directors he happened to sit.

BillHunter
BILL HUNTER

Yes, the gentleman in question was Bill Hunter, who was the Edmonton Oil Kings’ owner, president, chief executive offer, general manager and coach whenever he wanted to be. He also sat on the board of directors of the Calgary Buffaloes. Oh, he also was the chairman of the CMJHL’s board of governors.

The Buffaloes, under coach John Kell, were struggling at 1-9-0. As October turned into November, Kell stepped down amidst rumours that Hunter would put his Oil Kings’ stock in trust and move south to run the Buffs. Hunter, naturally, denied all of that, although he was in Calgary on Oct. 31 to run the Buffaloes through a practice session. With Hunter back in Edmonton, Jim Finney handled practices for the next four days.

On Nov. 4, Hunter and CMJHL commissioner Frank Boucher actually held separate news conferences on the same day in different cities during all of this. Hunter, speaking in Calgary, told the gathered newshounds that the Buffs would sign a coach “in three or four days” and then added that he couldn’t reveal the name just yet. Meanwhile, down the highway in Regina, Boucher was announcing that Alf Pike would coach the Buffaloes but that Pike wouldn’t be available for a few days.

The very next night the Buffaloes met the Regina Pats in Calgary. And guess who was behind the Calgary bench? Yes, it was Wild Bill Hunter, live and in person. The Pats ruined it all by winning, 3-1.

“I’m more convinced than ever the Buffs have the makings of a fine junior club,” Hunter said after the game. “When Alf gets here and implements a system, they’ll start winning their share of games.”

The Buffaloes, who were 1-11-0 after Hunter’s one game behind the bench, finished the season at 4-47-5.


Bored


When the subject turns to the greatest WHL players of all-time, the name Dan PrinceAlbertHodgson isn’t mentioned nearly enough. Hodgson played three seasons (1982-85) with the Prince Albert Raiders, putting up 493 points, including 305 assists, in 202 games. He also played two games with the Spokane Flyers in 1980-81 but didn’t record any points. . . . Hodgson won a Memorial Cup (1985) with the Raiders and played for Canada at two Wold Junior Championships. . . . He was a fifth-round selection by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL’s 1983 draft. . . . Hodgson, now 57, went on to play 114 games over four NHL seasons, picking up 29 goals and 45 assists. He then went on to a lengthy career in Europe. . . . And through it all he never once had a hockey card. But, as Abdulhamid Ibrahim of The Canadian Press points out, that has all changed with Upper Deck having issued its First Peoples Rookie Cards set. . . . This is a great story and it’s all right here.


ICYMI, Jan. 20 was the 20th anniversary of one of the great moments in NHL history. . . .


JUST NOTES:

The Regina Pats, aka the Travelling Bedards, are to face the Wheat Kings in Brandon on Feb. 24. The Wheat Kings announced on Friday morning that only standing room tickets are available for that one. . . . Those tickets were to go on sale later in the morning, so the SOLD OUT sign may well be up by now. . . .

The U of Calgary Dinos tied a Canada West record on Friday night as they ran their winnings streak to 17 games with an 8-2 victory over the Cougars in Regina. The Dinos now share the record with the1978-79 Albrerta Golden Bears. F Jake Gricius had a goal and two assists for Calgary, giving him six points in a two-game sweep of the Cougars. G Carl Tetachuk stopped 20 shots to post his CW-leading 14th victory.


Sewing


FRIDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The host Swift Current Broncos scored three times in the last seven minutes of the third period and beat the Regina Pats, 4-2. . . . F Drew Englot’s first goal with the Broncos since being acquired from the Kamloops Blazers at the trade deadline, at 13:18 of the third, stood up as the winner. Englot, 20, began is WHL career with the Pats. . . . Regina F Connor Bedard gave his guys a 1-0 lead with his WHL-leading 37th goal at 8:57 of the first period. It was his 100th career regular-season goal and ran his point streak to 31 games. . . . Announced attendance was 2,890 in a building that has a listed capacity of 2,879. . . . The Broncos are scheduled to visit Regina tonight. . . . The Broncos and Pats are tied for seventh place in the Eastern Conference, but Swift Current has three games in hand. . . .

F Misha Volotovskii scored twice to lead the Saskatoon Blades — there were the Saskatoon Bananas in a second annual promotion — dumped the visiting Prince Albert Raiders, 6-1. . . . Volotofskii, a 17-year-old sophomore from Saskatoon, has three goals in 38 games. Last season, he scored twice in 53 games. . . . The Blades are 5-0-0 against the Raiders this season, having outscored them 24-5. . . . D Landon Kosior was back in the Raiders’ lineup for the first time since Jan. 4. . . . They’ll do it all over again tonight, this time in Prince Albert. . . .

F Nolan Flamand had a goal (6) and two assists to help the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 4-2 victory over the Hitmen in Calgary. . . . D Quinn Mantei (2) broke a 2-2 tie at 17:10 of the third period. . . . The Wheat Kings, who are four points out of a playoff spot, welcomed back two injured players. D Andrei Malyavin last played on Dec. 18, while F Caleb Hadland had been out since Oct. 29. . . .

F Kyle Chyzowski scored at 2:30 of OT to give the host Portland Winterhawks a wild 7-6 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . F Jake Poole’s 23rd goal, at 14:20 of the third period, had given the visitors a 6-4 lead. . . . F Gabe Klassen (24) got Portland to within one at 16:50 and F Robbie Fromm-Delorme (23) tied it at 18:41, both with G Dante Giannuzzi on the bench for an extra attacker. Chyzowski won it with his 11th goal. . . . Klassen and Fromm-Delorme each scored twice, as did teammate James Stefan (15). . . . F Chaz Lucius made his Portland debut on a line with fellow Americans Jack O’Brien and Stefan, who scored 13 seconds into the first period. . . . O’Brien had three assists, Stefan two goals and an assist, and Lucius two assists. . . . The game included only four minor penalties, the last one to the Royals at 2:30 of OT. . . . The Royals are 0-2 on a three-game swing into the U.S. Division that ends tonight Spokane. . . .

In Red Deer, the Rebels scored four third-period goals and beat the Prince George Cougars, 8-5. . . . F Kai Uchacz scored twice (36) and added three assists for the winners, giving him his first career five-point game. . . . The Rebels were 5-for-7 on the PP. . . . F Ben King, who led the WHL with 52 goals last season, scored once (6) as he returned to the Rebels lineup for the first time since Oct. 22. . . . The victory lifted the Rebels into first place in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of the idle Winnipeg Ice, which holds five games in hand. . . .

Kelowna F Carson Golder, playing after a four-game absence, scored on his first shift back and later added a second goal to lead the Rockets to a 4-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C. . . . The Rockets had lost their previous six road games. . . . Golder has 16 goals. . . . The Giants were 0-for-8 on the PP. . . . The Twitter account New Westminster Bruins (@NewWestBruins) pointed out Friday afternoon that the Giants played the Rockets “just once in their first 41 games and now play EIGHT times in their final 27.” . . . Kelowna F Andrew Cristall, who has 62 points in 36 games, missed his fourth straight game. . . . These same teams are to meet again tonight, this time in Kelowna. . . . The eighth-place Rockets are seven points behind the Giants with two games in hand. . . .

F Parker Bell enjoyed his first three-goal game to spark the Tri-City Americans to an 8-2 victory over the Blazers in Kamloops. . . . Bell, who scored all three goals on the PP, now has 21 goals. . . . The Americans, who trailed 2-1 after a period, were 4-for-4 on the PP. . . . Interestingly, Tri-City’s Lukas Dragicevic, who leads WHL defencemen in points, only had one assist, while D Marc Lajoie drew four helpers. . . . Tri-City G Tomas Suchanek finished up with 48 stops. . . . With the Americans leading 6-2 in the third period, Kamloops G Dylan Ernst stopped his older brother, Ethan, on a penalty shot. . . . The same teams will play again tonight in Kamloops. . . .

F Reid Schaefer counted on a penalty shot in OT as the Seattle Thunderbirds got past the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 3-2, in Kent, Wash. . . . The Hurricanes were in OT for the fourth time in five games. They have won one of those games. . . . Schaefer, who has 18 goals, won it at 1:18 of extra time after tying the score, 2-2, at 6:58 of the third period. . . . Lethbridge is 0-0-2 on its three-game U.S. Division trek that concludes tonight in Portland. . . .

G Tyler Palmer turned aside 25 shots to help the host Everett Silvertips to a 5-2 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Spokane led 2-1 after the first period, but Everett scored the game’s last four goals. . . . The comeback was sparked by F Kyan Grouette’s first goal of the season in his 30th game. Grouette, who turned 18 on Jan. 7, is from Dauphin, Man. He tied the score, 2-2, at 6:22 of the second period.



Here’s Ken Campbell of Hockey Unfiltered:

“By my count there are 14 Russian Orthodox churches in Philadelphia and another 10 in Cherry Hill, N.J., where most of the Philadelphia Flyers live. I wonder how many of them Ivan Provorov has attended since he started playing for the Flyers six-plus years ago. I really want to believe that hockey doesn’t hate the LGTBQ+ community. I really do. But then I see that Provorov’s sweater (not a jersey) sold out after he opted out of the warm-up on the Flyers’ Pride Night and it depresses me.”


THINKING OUT LOUD: It has to be awfully hard to be a fan of the Vancouver Canucks these days what with the way ownership/management is treating head coach Bruce Boudreau. . . . The QMJHL’s 2022-23 Media Guide was available for download when the season got started. I’m told the OHL’s was ready sometime in November. The WHL’s isn’t available and the regular season is half over. Too bad, because its arrival once was a highlight of the season. . . . If you missed it, Boudreau, at the close of his post-game media availablity, said: “See you tomorrow . . . I hope.” The Canucks are at home to the Edmonton Oilers tonight, so this saga will get more play, this time on Hockey Night in Canada’s national stage. Unless a change is made early today. Oh, and the game will bring a conclusion to Hockey Day in Canada. . . . Bruce, there it is!


Lost


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Homeless

Bedard tour sure to sell out B.C. arenas . . . Wheat Kings make coaching change . . . Oil Kings still wheeling, dealing

F Connor Bedard’s I Can Sell Out the B.C. Division Arenas Tour will wrap up with Reginaa game against the Prince George Cougars on Friday night.

Taking Note was told that as of late Monday afternoon there were fewer than 100 tickets remaining for the game that will be played in the 5,971-seat CN Centre. Through 12 home games, the Cougars’ average announced attendance is 2,551.

A sellout in Prince George will mean that Bedard and his Regina Pats will have sold out all five games on their B.C. Division swing.

The trip opened Friday in Langley, B.C., with a 3-0 victory over the Vancouver Giants. The announced attendance was 5,276, the largest crowd for a Giants’ home game since they left the Pacific Coliseum for the Langley Events Centre prior to the 2016-17 season. Going into Friday night, the Giants’ average announced attendance through nine home games had been 3,017.

One night later, Bedard and his travelling show went into Victoria and dumped the Royals, 9-5, before an announced crowd of 7,006. That was the largest crowd in Victoria since Feb. 22, 2020, when 7,006 fans watched the Royals beat the Kelowna Rockets, 4-3 in OT. . . . The Royals had been averaging an announced attendance of 2,956 through 11 home games prior to Saturday’s game.

The Pats are to meet the Rockets in Kelowna tonight in 6,886-seat Prospera Place. Through 11 home games, the Rockets’ average announced attendance has been 4,021.

On Wednesday, Bedard and his mates will face the Blazers in Kamloops’ 5,464-seat Sandman Centre. Through 10 home games, the Blazers, the host team for the 2023 Memorial Cup, have average an announced attendance of 4,650 fans.

If the five B.C. Division teams aren’t prepared to offer up a cut of their gate receipts to Bedard, they should at least present him with keys to their arenas. Or coupons good for free meals whenever he should happen to visit their cities. He should never have to pay for a meal again in any of those communities.

That’s the least they could do to show their appreciation.

Right?

BTW, Bedard has three goals and two assists through the first two games of his trek through B.C. However, he has been overshadowed somewhat by F Tanner Howe, who turned 17 — yes, 17!!! — on Monday. Howe scored five times and added two assists in those two games, and was named the WHL’s player of the week on Monday.


The Brandon Wheat Kings became the first of the WHL’s 22 teams to make a coaching change this season when they fired head coach Don MacGillivray on BrandonMonday morning. . . . Marty Murray, who is in his first season as the team’s general manager, has taken over behind the bench. . . . This is the first firing in Brandon since Kelly McCrimmon announced on Sept. 8, 2020, that he had sold the franchise to the J&G Group of Companies, under Jared Jacobson. . . .

MacGillivray, 57, had been with the Wheat Kings since signing on as an assistant coach prior to the 2016-17 season. . . . He was working on a contract that is to run through 2023-24. . . . This season, the Wheat Kings are last in the six-team East Division, at 8-15-2, after being swept in a weekend doubleheader by the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes — 4-3 on Friday and 6-4 on Saturday. . . .

Since taking over as head coach on Nov. 24, 2020, prior to the pandemic-forced developmental season, MacGillivray had a 61-47-9 record. He replaced Dave Lowry, who left for the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. . . . Before joining the Wheat Kings, MacGillivray spent five seasons as the GM/head coach of the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues. . . . He also worked as the head coach of the MJHL’s St. James Canadians (1989-91), Southeast Blades (1992-93), and Neepawa Natives (1993-96); the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders (1996-98), the MJHL’s Portage Terriers (1998-2006) and the U of Manitoba Bisons (2006-09). . . .

Murray played four seasons (1991-95) with the Wheat Kings, putting up 392 points, including 260 assists, in 264 games. His time there included 114- and 128-point seasons. He has head-coaching experience from his time in the NAHL and USHL. He was the GM/head coach of the NAHL’s Minot Minotauros from 2011-20 and then spent two seasons with the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede. . . .

Mark Derlago and Del Pedrick, the Wheat Kings’ assistant coaches, remain on the coaching staff. . . .

The Wheat Kings, who have lost two in a row and are 2-7-1 in their past 10 outings, will be at home to the Prince Albert Raiders on Friday and the Swift Current Broncos on Saturday.


Umbrella


THE TRADING PLACE:

At 2:30 p.m. PT, Alan Caldwell (@smallatlarge) tweeted: “Will the last member of the 2021-22 Oil Kings to leave please turn out the lights? 18 players got a Edmontonpoint for the Oil Kings in the 2022 playoffs. Only 3 of them are still on the team today after the Golder trade. (Dowhaniuk, Wiebe, Seitz).”

At 3:10 p.m. PT, he followed up with: “This tweet was accurate for 37 minutes. Wiebe is gone now.”

Yes, the Edmonton Oil Kings, the WHL’s defending champions, made two more trades on Monday afternoon.

They started by sending F Carson Golder, a 20-year-old who also can play on Kelownathe back end, and a third-round selection in the WHL’s 2023 draft to the Kelowna Rockets for F Riley Kovacevic, 18.

It wasn’t long after that when Edmonton dealt F Jaxsen Wiebe, 20, and a conditional eighth-round pick in the 2026 WHL draft to the Prince George Cougars for F Noah Boyko, 20, a third-round pick in the 2023 draft and a conditional third-rounder in the 2026 draft.

This season, Golder, who is from Smithers, B.C., has eight goals and seven assists in 24 games. Last season, he scored three goals and added nine assists in 46 regular-season games, then scored three times and set up five others in 16 playoff games in helping the Oil Kings win the WHL championship. . . . Kovacevic, from Kelowna, has five goals and four assists in 20 games this season. Last season, he recorded three goals and four assists in 49 games. The Rockets selected him in the 10th round of the WHL’s 2019 draft. . . .

Meanwhile, the Cougars traded Boyko, who was acquired from the Saskatoon Blades for a fourth-round pick in the 2022 draft on May 19. From Fort PrinceGeorgeSaskatchewan, Alta., Boyko had five goals and five assists in 23 games with the Cougars. He was a first-round selection by the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 2017 bantam draft. In 198 career regular-season games, he has 94 points, including 48 goals. . . . Wiebe, from Moose Jaw, has three goals and one assist in six games with Edmonton this season. He is six games into a seven-game suspension that was handed down after he, a repeat offender, took a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct in Saskatoon on Nov. 12. Earlier, he sat out four games after being suspended following a knee-on-knee hit on Saskatoon F Josh Pillar. . . . In 130 regular-season games, the first 73 with the Red Deer Rebels, Wiebe has 60 points, 22 of them goals. Last season, he finished with 10 goals and 26 assists in 41 games, then added two goals and six assists in 13 playoff games. He also had three goals and one assist in three games at the Memorial Cup. . . . Obviously, he brings more edge to the game than does Boyko, and that would seem to be what the Cougars want. . . .

After all this, the Oil Kings are left with two 20-year-olds — Boyko and D Logan Dowhaniuk. Their roster also includes only one 19-year-old — D Ethan Peters. . . . The Rockets now have three 20-year-olds on their roster, with Golder joining F Adam Kydd and G Talyn Boyko. . . . And the Cougars also have three — Wiebe, F Cole Dubinsky, who was acquired from the Regina Pats on Nov. 4, and F Chase Wheatcroft, who came over in a June 10 deal with the Winnipeg Ice.

——

On Monday night, the Victoria Royals announced that they had acquired G VictoriaRoyalsNicholas Cristiano, 18, from the Kelowna Rockets for a fifth-round selection in the 2023 WHL draft. . . . With veteran G Tyler Palmer, 19, not having played since Nov. 12, the Royals needed a goaltender to pair with Logan Cunningham, 17. . . . Cristiano, from Langley, B.C., started this season with the Rockets — he was 0-1-0, 2.61, .879 — before being released and joining the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors. In three games with the Warriors, he was 1-2-0, 4.42, .867. . . . According to Dan Price, the Royals’ general manager and head coach, Palmer is “on personal leave and with his family.” . . . Palmer, who is 3-10-3, 4.22, .876 this season, is from Fernie, B.C. . . . The Royals (3-17-3) are scheduled to entertain the Moose Jaw Warriors (15-9-0) tonight.

——

Since Oct. 25, the WHL has featured 16 trades involving 27 players, 33 draft picks and six conditional picks.


Gate


With the Edmonton Oil Kings in rebuilding mode just months after winning the WHL championship, Guy Flaming (@TPS_Guy) tweeted the records last week of the four teams who appeared in the 2022 Memorial Cup tournament that was won by the host Saint John Sea Dogs. I have updated their records going into tonight’s games:

Edmonton, 4-20-1, last in six-team division.

Hamilton Bulldogs, 9-10-1, fourth in five-team division.

Shawinigan Cataractes, 11-12-2, last in four-team division.

Saint John Sea Dogs, 6-15-1, last in six-team division.


Ticket packages for the 2023 Memorial Cup tournament that is scheduled to be held in Kamloops are to go on sale Thursday through Ticketmaster. . . . According to a news release, one tournament package covering eight games plus a possible tiebreaker will set you back “$600 plus GST and applicable fees.” . . . The tournament is to run from May 26 through June 4. . . . There is more info, along with a tournament schedule, right here.


I have referred to Andrei Lupandin and his family a couple of times over the past few days. You will recall that Lupandin, who spent four seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings, his wife and their two sons have left Ukraine and now are in Saskatoon hoping to get a fresh start. . . . Jim Matheson of Postmedia takes a really good look right here at Lupandin and the situation in which he and his family find themselves.


Pets


A couple of tweets about a former WHL player from The MacBeth Report (@MacBethReport):

“Antti Boman (Kamloops, 1991-1992) refereed his 800th Liiga (Finland) game on Friday evening. He is the third referee in Liiga history to reach the 800-game mark and is first among active referees. Timo Favorin is the leader with 1,000 games and Jari Levonen is second at 979.

Boman is in his 15th season as a referee in Liiga, Finland’s top pro league. He ended his playing career in 2004-05 with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen). He also played in Germany, France, Sweden, and Scotland, in addition to Finland and the WHL.”

Boman played one game with the Kamloops Blazers in 1991-92. He didn’t record a point.


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Pizza

Recovering Leonard could use some $$ help . . . Ice victory streak at 15 . . . Winterhawks are rolling, too

Seth Leonard played games in six WHL seasons (1998-2004), spending time with the Kelowna Rockets (133 games) and Prince Albert Raiders (166). In his final season, he struck for 50 goals and added 40 assists in 72 games with the Raiders.

Now he could use some help from the hockey world.

Gina Ratcliffe, a family friend, has started a GoFundMe after Leonard was in a car accident near his hometown of Nakusp, B.C.

Leonard, writes Ratcliffe, “was on his way to Nakusp to pick up his daughter when he was in an bad accident due to the road conditions.”

According to Ratcliffe, Leonard’s back was broken “in three different spots.” He was taken to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops, where he underwent surgery. He now will be returning home to begin his recover.

Leonard’s girlfriend, Brittany, has taken time off work and there is no indication as to when Leonard will be able to return to work. Yes, they now find themselves in a financial pinch.

If you are able to help that GoFundMe is right here.


Headline at fark.com — Former FIFA boss says giving the World Cup to Qatar was a mistake. It sure took a long time for that check to clear.


SATURDAY IN THE WHL:

F Evan Herman, the Prince Albert Raiders’ new captain, scored twice and added PrinceAlbertan assist in a 5-4 victory over the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . The Raiders (8-12-2) have won three straight. . . . The Tigers (6-10-5) had points in each of their previous four games (2-0-2). . . . Herman, who has four goals this season, was named captain after the Raiders dealt D Nolan Allan to the Seattle Thunderbirds on Wednesday. . . . F Sloan Stanick (6) also scored twice and had an assist for the winners. His second goal broke a 3-3 tie at 10:56 of the third period and Herman made it 5-3 at 16:53. . . . The Raiders were 2-11 on the PP; the Tigers were 1-5. . . .

G Connor Ungar turned aside 33 shots to lead the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors to WarriorsNewa 6-0 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Warriors (13-8-0) have won two in a row. They beat the Broncos 5-4 in Moose Jaw on Friday night. . . . Swift Current (9-11-0) has lost two straight. . . . Ungar, a 20-year-old from Calgary, posted his first shutout of this season and the third of his career. . . . F Brayden Yager’s 10th goal, a shorthanded effort at 3:25 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . F Jagger Firkus scored once as he ran his scoring streak to 14 games. He has 10 goals and 10 assist over that stretch. . . . The Warriors are carrying four 20-year-olds, and D Cole Jordan was the odd-man out for a second straight game. The Warriors had Ungar, F Ryder Korczak, who had two assists, and F Riley Ginnell, who had one helper, in the lineup. . . .

The Edmonton Oil Kings won their second straight game, beating the EdmontonHurricanes, 4-2, in Lethbridge. . . . Edmonton now is 4-17-1. . . . The Hurricanes (11-9-1) had points in their previous seven games (6-0-1). . . . Trailing 2-1 with fewer than seven minutes remaining in the third period, the Oil Kings scored three times in 6:05, with the winner coming from F Marshall Finnie (4) at 19:42. . . . Finnie is from Lethbridge. . . . F Carson Golder, who has seven goals, figured in Edmonton’s last three goals, scoring twice and assisting on Finnie’s score. . . . The Oil Kings are without F Jaxsen Wiebe, who is serving a seven-game suspension. . . .

F Ryan McCleary struck late in OT to give the host Portland Winterhawks a 3-2 Portlandvictory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . The Winterhawks (16-1-2) have points in 10 straight (9-0-1). . . . The Blazers (9-4-4) have points in four in a row (2-0-2). Kamloops is 0-3 in OT this season. . . . Portland is 3-0-0 against Kamloops this season, winning twice in OT. . . . Kamloops took a 2-0 first-period lead on goals from F Matthew Seminoff (7) and F Daylan Kuefler (9), the latter on a PP. . . . F Marcus Nguyen (8) scored for Portland, on a PP, at 19:41. . . . D Luca Cagnoni (8) got the home team even at 2:30 of the second period. . . . McCleary’s fourth goal ended it at 4:45 of OT. . . . G Michael Schnattinger made his first start for the Blazers since Oct. 22 and he was just fine, with 41 stops. . . . It was a battle of Czech goaltenders, with Jan Špunar stopping 32 shots for Portland. . . . Portland scratched F Kyle Chyzowski after he suffered an undisclosed injury late in Friday’s 4-1 victory over visiting Everett. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven drew an assist on the first goal as he ran his point streak to 13 games. He has 27 points, 12 of them goals, in that streak. . . .

The Brandon Wheat Kings snapped a four-game losing streak with a 4-2 Brandonvictory over the Rebels in Red Deer. . . . The Wheat Kings (8-13-2) went 1-4-0 on a five-game road trip. . . . Red Deer (16-4-2) had points in each of its previous two games (1-0-1). . . . Brandon erased a 2-1 deficit with the game’s last three goals. . . . F Nolan Ritchie (9) tied it at 16:48 of the second period, on a PP, and F Nate Danielson (11) scored the next two goals, at 11:29 and 18:44 of the third, the latter into an empty net. . . . Red Deer F Jace Isley, who scored his 13th goal, was ejected at 13:45 of the second period with a major penalty for interference on a goaltender. . . . The Wheat Kings got 40 saves from G Nick Jones, an 18-year-old from Calgary who recorded his first WHL victory and was chosen as the game’s first star. A fifth-round pick in the WHL’s 2019 draft, he was 0-1-0 last season and began this season with five straight losses. . . . 

F Gracyn Sawchyn’s goal in OT gave the Seattle Thunderbirds a 2-1 victory over Seattlethe Everett Silvertips in Kent, Wash. . . . Seattle (13-3-1) has points in four straight (3-0-1). . . . Everett (12-7-1) has lost three in a row (0-2-1). . . . This was Everett’s first visit to Kent this season. In the other meeting between these teams, in Everett, the Thunderbirds rang up an 11-3 victory. . . . F Roan Woodward (2) gave Everett a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 4:52 of the second period. . . . F Kyle Crnkovic (8) got Seattle even, on a PP, at 8:19 of the third. . . . Sawchyn’s fifth goal of the season won it at 2:04 of extra time. . . . The Thunderbirds had D Nolan Allan, who was acquired this week from the Prince Albert Raiders, and D Kevin Korchinski paired together and in the starting lineup. Both are first-round NHL draft selections of the Chicago Blackhawks and both are from Saskatoon. . . .

The Calgary Hitmen unleashed a 60-shot attack in skating to a 6-2 victory over Calgarythe host Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Hitmen (11-5-3) had lost their previous two games (0-1-1). They went 3-1-1 on a U.S. Division swing. . . . The Chiefs (4-13-1) have lost two in a row. . . . Calgary held an 18-9 edge in shots in the first period and 29-8 in the second. . . . D Grayden Siepmann  (6) and F Carson Wetsch (4) each had a goal and two assists for the Hitmen. . . . G Dawson Cowan, a recent acquisition from the Winnipeg Ice, got his first start for Spokane. He went the distance, making 54 stops. . . .

In Winnipeg, the Ice erased a 1-0 deficit with four second-period goals and WinnipegIcewent on to beat the Regina Pats, 5-2. . . . Winnipeg (20-1-0) has won 15 in a row. . . . Regina (9-11-2) has lost three straight. . . . The Pats are 0-3-0 on their 10-game road trip that picks up Friday in Langley, B.C., against the Vancouver Giants. . . . After F Connor McClennon (16), playing in his 200th regular-season game, got the Ice even at 1-1 at 2:51 of the second, F Zach Benson (13) scored twice for a two-goal lead. His first goal game while shorthanded; the second came via the PP. . . . Benson also had two assists for a four-point outing. . . . Regina F Connor Bedard had two assists in extending his point streak to 21 games. He leads the WHL in goals (19), assists (29) and points (48). . . . G Mason Beaupit, acquired last week from the Spokane Chiefs, made his first start for the Ice. G Daniel Hauser, who is 14-0-0 this season, was scratched. . . . According to the online game sheet, the Ice didn’t dress a backup goaltender. . . . The Pats lost F Jaxsin Vaughan to a boarding major and game misconduct at 8:34 of the second period. . . .

The visiting Prince George Cougars ran their winning streak to three games PrinceGeorgewith a 5-2 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . The Cougars now are 12-9-0. . . . The Royals (3-16-3) have lost seven in a row (0-6-1). . . . The Cougars had cruised to a 10-3 victory in Victoria on Friday night. . . . F Cole Reschny’s first WHL goal pulled Victoria into a 2-2 tie at 15:17 of the second period. . . . But the Cougars, who got two goals from F Cole Dubinsky (8), scored the next three goals — in a span of 2:48 before the period ended. . . . Things got a bit heated in the game’s final minute with the officials handing out 132 penalty minutes, including 12 fighting majors and six game misconducts. . . . Cougars F Koehn Ziemmer extended  his scoring streak to 13 games with an assist. He has 23 points, 10 of them goals, in that stretch. . . . Cougars D Hudson Thornton also had an assist and now is on a 13-game streak. He has five goals and 18 assists in that time. . . .

In Kelowna, the Rockets scored the game’s last four goals as they beat the Tri-KelownaCity Americans, 5-3. . . . Kelowna (8-8-1) has won two in a row. . . . The Americans are 8-12-0. . . . The Americans held a 3-1 lead early in the second period but couldn’t hold it. . . . D Jackson DeSouza’s second goal of the game — and second of the season — got the Rockets to within one at 3:47 of the second. They were shorthanded at the time. . . . F Adam Kydd (9) tied it at 9:57, and F Andrew Cristall (15) broke the tie at 7:18 of the third. . . . Kydd (10) added an empty-netter. . . . F Gabriel Szturc had three assists for Kelowna, as did Cristall. . . . The Americans got a goal and two assists from F Ethan Ernst, who was acquired from the Rockets early last season. He has career highs in goals (13), assists (14) and points (27) in just 19 games. . . . Tri-City D Lukas Dragicevic ran his point streak to 14 games with two assists. He has 22 points, 18 of them assists, in that streak. . . . The Rockets lost F Colton Dach, their captain, to a headshot major and game misconduct at 19:00 of the second period.


YardSale


IT’S NOT OVER — From The New York Times: “John Kerry, the United States special envoy for climate change, has tested positive for Covid-19, a State Department spokeswoman said, a development that will sideline him at a crucial moment in the waning hours of negotiations at United Nations climate talks. Mr. Kerry, 78, tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday morning and worked from his hotel all day, said his spokeswoman, Whitney Smith, who described Mr. Kerry’s condition as ‘mild.’ ” . . . Kerry is at the COP27 conference in Sharm el-Sheikh Egypt.


Moonshine


JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Marty Williamson, the head coach of the Barrie Colts, picked up his 500th OHL regular-season victory on Saturday night, a 3-2 OT triumph over the visiting Sarnia Sting. . . . The retired Brian Kilrea is atop the victory list, with 1,194. . . .

Apologies to the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. They have won so many games in a row to open this season that I am unable to keep up. Yes, I shortchanged them by one here on Friday night, when they actually extended that streak to 19 games. . . . And, on Saturday night, they made it 20 in a row with a 4-1 victory over the visiting Prince George Spruce Kings. . . . The Vees are 12-0-0 on home ice. . . . Next up for the Vees? The Salmon Arm Silverbacks (11-7-1) will be in town on Wednesday, then it’s off to visit the Alberni Valley Bulldogs (Friday) and Powell River Kings (Saturday). . . . If anyone knows the BCHL record for consecutive victories to open a season, please email me at greggdrinnan.gmail.com. Thank you! . . .

F Jadon Joseph of the U of Calgary Dinos set a Canada West record for fastest three goals in one game on Saturday in a 5-2 victory over the Trinity Western Spartans in Langley, B.C. . . . Joseph actually red-shirted with the Spartans last season before transferring to Calgary over the summer. . . . With Calgary leading 2-1 in the second period when Joseph struck at 13:29, 14”13 and 15:05. . . . Three goals in 1:36 smashed the previous record of 5:17 that had been held by F Connor Rankin of the Mount Royal U Cougars since 2016. . . . Joseph, 23, played four seasons in the WHL, spending time with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, Regina Pats, Vancouver Giants, Moose Jaw Warriors, Kelowna Rockets and Tri-City Americans. . . . The Dinos have won nine games in a row.


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Fajita

Banned analyst issues apology for racial slur . . . Wheat Kings score OT goal to tie series . . . Huuhtanen helps Silvertips get back on even ground

Bruce MacDonald apologized on Saturday, less than 24 hours after being permanently banned by the BCHL from game broadcasts involving any of its teams.

MacDonald was the analyst on broadcasts of Alberni Valley Bulldogs’ home games, and the odd road game, on 93.3 The Peak, a local radio station that is owned by Pattison Media, a dominant player in the broadcast industry in Western Canada.

MacDonald was in that role on Friday night when he directed a racist remark at F Owen Kim, 17, of the Langley Rivermen. Kim, who was born in North Vancouver, is of Asian descent.

The remark was made during the second period. MacDonald was taken off the air after the period; the BCHL announced after the game that he had been banned.

In his apology, MacDonald said: “I’m deeply sorry for the hurt that I have caused Owen Kim, his family and anyone else who was affected by what I said.”

In confirming that MacDonald was fired on Saturday morning, Rod Schween, the president of Pattison Media, told CBC News: “Sometimes I think we think we’ve taken two steps forward, occasionally we take one step backwards. Hopefully, we all can learn from an incident like this.”

The CBC News story, written by Akshay Kulkarni, is right here.

MacDonald was the head pro at the Alberni Golf Club until his retirement in 2017.

A quick Google search for “Bruce MacDonald Bulldogs” brings up headlines from such media/Internet outlets as Awful Announcing, with 239,000 followers on twitter, the Toronto Star, the Georgia Straight, castanet.net, dailyhive.com, the Victoria Times Colonist, CBC News, CTV News, iheartradio.ca and on and on.

And, because of the Internet, MacDonald’s mistake will live forever.

(BTW, the Rivermen beat the visiting Bulldogs, 5-2, on Saturday night to win the best-of-seven series, 4-2.)



FlipPhone


SATURDAY IN THE WHL:

With all eight first-round series two games deep, the WHL takes today off WHLbefore resuming with one game on Monday. That’s when the Spokane Chiefs and the Blazers will play Game 3 in Kamloops. ICYMI, a Paul McCartney concert in Spokane has forced this series into a 3-3-1 format. And the Chiefs are up against it, trailing 2-0 and having been outscored 15-2. . . . Two of the eight series are even, 1-1, with the higher-ranked team holding a 2-0 lead in the other six. . . . Here’s what happened on Saturday night . . .

Eastern Conference:

In Winnipeg, the No. 1 Ice got three assists from D Carson Lambos in skating to WinnipegIcea 5-2 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . The Ice leads the series, 2-0, with Game 3 scheduled for Prince Albert on Tuesday. . . . Winnipeg was 2-for-3 on the PP and now is 4-for-7 in the series. . . . G Daniel Hauser stopped 18 shots for the Ice. Including the regular season, he has a 36-3-1 record. . . . The Raiders lifted starter Tikhon Chaika at 2:10 of the second period after he had been beaten four times on 15 shots. . . . The Ice scratched F Matt Savoie, who left Game 1 with an apparent injury to his left leg. . . .

In Edmonton, D Carson Golder scored the game’s first two goals, both in the Edmontonsecond period, and the No. 2 Oil Kings went on to a 4-0 victory over the No. 7 Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Edmonton now leads the series, 2-0, with Game 3 in Lethbridge on Tuesday. . . . Golder, a 19-year-old from Smithers, B.C., had three goals in 46 regular-season games. . . . G Sebastian Cossa earned the shutout with 25 saves. He has 14 regular-season shutouts; this was his first career post-season blank job. . . .

In Red Deer, F Riley Ginnell scored in OT to give the No. 6 Brandon Wheat Kings Brandona 2-1 victory over the No. 3 Rebels. . . . This series is all even, 1-1, with Game 3 in Brandon on Tuesday. . . . Ginnell, a 14-goal man in the regular season, won this one at 7:16 of extra time, scoring off a face-off win by F Nolan Ritchie deep in Red Deer’s zone. . . . F Nate Danielson had given Brandon a 1-0 lead at 17:13 of the first period. . . . F Frantisek Formanek pulled Red Deer even at 4:30 of the third. . . . Rebels F Kai Uchacz wasn’t able to score on a penalty shot at 4:18 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Arshdeep Bains had his goal-scoring streak end at 10 games — nine in the regular season and one in these playoffs. . . . The Wheat Kings got 37 saves from G Ethan Kruger. . . . Red Deer G Chase Coward blocked 28 shots. . . .

In Moose Jaw, F Brayden Yager scored two goals and added an assist to lead the MooseJawNo. 4 Warriors to a 5-3 victory over the No. 5 Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Warriors lead the series, 2-0, with Game 3 in Saskatoon on Tuesday. . . . Yager gave the Blades a 1-0 lead 20 seconds into the second period, then tied the score, 2-2, at 18:27. . . . D Lucas Brenton snapped that tie just 1:29 later, and F Riley Niven made it 4-2 at 13:14 of the third period. . . . F Brandon Lisowsky scored twice for the Blades, the second one coming at 19:15 of the third period to cut the deficit to one. . . . Moose Jaw was 0-for-6 on the PP; Saskatoon was 0-for-2. . . .

——

Western Conference:

In Everett, F Niko Huuhtanen scored two goals and added two assists as the No 1 EverettSilvertips dumped the No. 8 Vancouver Giants, 7-3. . . . The series is tied, 1-1, with Game 3 scheduled for Langley, B.C., on Wednesday. . . . The Giants had posted a 5-4 OT victory in Game 1 on Friday. . . . D Olen Zellweger added a goal and two assists for Everett, which scored four times in the first period. . . . Each team was 2-for-8 on the PP as Vancouver took 13 of 24 minor penalties. . . . G Jesper Vikman was scratched by the Giants. He earned the victory in Game 1, but it was his first appearance since March 4 due to an undisclosed injury. . . . With Vikman out, G Will Gurski stopped 38 shots. . . . The Silvertips got 29 stops from G Braden Holt. . . . Vancouver also scratched F Colton Langkow with an undisclosed injury. He had scored in Game 1. . . .

In Kamloops, F Luke Toporowski scored twice to help the No. 2 Blazers to a 6-2 Kamloopsvictory over the No. 7 Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Blazers will take a 2-0 lead into Game 3 in Kamloops on Monday. . . . Toporowski, who was dealt by the Chiefs to Kamloops during the season, opened the scoring at 17:11 of the first period. Toporowski, who had two goals and two assists in Kamloops’ 9-0 victory in Game 1, missed the last 12 games of the regular season with a knee injury after being hurt on March 11. . . . The Blazers scored the game’s first four goals to lead 4-0 at 8:25 of the third period. . . . The Chiefs got goals from F Graham Sward, at 9:37, and F Nick McCarry, at 10:54, to get within two. . . . Toporowski gave the Blazers a 5-2 lead, on a PP, at 13:59. . . . G Dylan Garand earned the victory with 21 saves. . . . G Mason Beaupit of the Chiefs left at 8:38 of the second period with an apparent injury to his right leg. He had allowed one goal on 22 shots. . . . Cooper Michaluk replaced Beaupit and was beaten five times on 15 shots. . . . Kamloops was 2-for-10 on the PP; Spokane was 1-for-10. . . . Kamloops F Drew Englot was hit with a match for attempt to injure at 19:28 of the third period. . . . Spokane was without F Grady Lane who sat out the first game of a two-game suspension for a cross-check to the face of Kamloops D Quinn Schmiemann late in Game 1. . . .

In Portland, F Robbie Fromm-Delorme set up both of his club’s goals as the No. Portland3 Winterhawks got past the No. 6 Prince George Cougars, 2-1. . . . The Winterhawks lead the series, 2-0, as the scene shifts to Prince George for Game 3 on Tuesday. . . . F Kurtis Smythe, at 13:09 of the first period, and F Luca Cagnoni, at 13:54 of the second, gave the home side a 2-0 lead. . . . D Jonas Brøndberg, who began the season with the Winterhawks, scored for the Cougars at 16:29 of the second period. . . . G Taylor Gauthier, who came to Portland in the deal that had Brøndberg go north, stopped 22 shots. . . . G Tyler Brennan, making his first start for Prince George since April 1, blocked 44 shots. . . . The Winterhawks were 0-for-5 on the PP, while PG’s extra-man unit never got off the bench. . . . Portland scratched D Clay Hanus, who didn’t finish Game 1. . . . Prince George was without F Craig Armstrong, who drew a two-game suspension after taking a check-to-the-head major in Game 1. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Lukas Svejkovsky scored three times to lead the No. 4 Seattle SeattleThunderbirds to a 7-3 victory over the No. 5 Kelowna Rockets. . . . Seattle holds a 2-0 lead in the series as the teams head to Kelowna for Game 3 on Tuesday. . . . Seattle held a 3-2 lead with a minute left in the second period and that’s when things turned. . . . Svejkovsky scored his second goal at 19:26 for a 4-2 lead, and F Henrik Rybinski got his second of the game just 17 seconds into the third to stretch it to 5-2. . . . Rybinski also had an assist, for a three-point outing. . . . Seattle D Kevin Korchinski, who had three assists in the opener, added a goal and two assists. . . . The Thunderbirds were 3-for-7 on the PP; the Rockets were 1-for-1. . . .


Dogs


My wife, Dorothy, is preparing to take part in her ninth Kamloops Kidney Walk. . . . It will be held on June 5, but thanks to the pandemic it again will be a virtual event. . . . If you would like to sponsor her, you are able to do so right here.

——

If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


Toddler

WHL teams start trimming 2001-born players . . . Oil Kings add d-man . . . ‘Quick lube guy’ doesn’t make Blazers’ short list

Milkyway2


The Tri-City Americans have released three 2001-born players, turning F AmericansBooker Daniel, F Edge Lambert and D Bryan McAndrews into free agents. . . . Daniel, from Vanderhoof, B.C., had four goals and five assists in 19 games this season. In 69 games over three seasons, he has 11 goals and 11 assists. . . . Lambert, from Grande Prairie, Alta., was a seventh-round selection by the Prince George Cougars in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. He had two goals and five assists in 18 games with the Americans this season. In 77 games over two seasons with Tri-City, he put up 19 goals and 14 assists. . . . The 6-foot-5 McAndrews, from Edmonton, was picked by Tri-City in the fifth round of the 2016 bantam draft. In 117 games over three seasons with the Americans, he had two goals and four assists. This season, he had one assist in 11 games. . . . The Americans still have five 2001-born players on the roster with which they finished this season — D Mitchell Brown, F Connor Bouchard, F Samuel Huo, F Sasha Mutala and Slovakian D Andrej Golian. . . .

Meanwhile, the Prince George Cougars have released F Brendan Boyle, another PG2001-born skater. . . . From Lake Country, B.C., Boyle had one assist in 12 games with the Cougars this season. In 132 games over four seasons, he totalled three goals and four assists. . . . Boyle’s departure leaves the Cougars with six 2001-born players on their roster — F Connor Bowie, F Ethan Browne, G Taylor Gauthier, F Jonny Hooker, D Majid Kaddoura and F Tyson Upper. . . .

And the Saskatoon Blades have released 2001-born F Alex Morozoff. . . . From BladesSaskatoon, he started his WHL career with the Red Deer Rebels. After 94 games with the Rebels, he played 22 with the Seattle Thunderbirds before finishing up with his hometown Blades. . . . In 172 regular-season games, he put up 27 goals and 18 assists. . . . Saskatoon still has five 2001-born players on its roster — G Nolan Maier, F Evan Patrician, D Rhett Rhinehart, F Tristen Robins and F Blake Stevenson.


The Edmonton Oil Kings have acquired D Carson Golder (2002) from the EdmontonVictoria Royals for a ninth-round pick in the WHL’s 2022 prospects draft. . . . The pick originally belonged to the Saskatoon Blades, who surrendered it when they acquired D Wyatt McLeod from Edmonton on Jan. 25. . . . Golder, from Smithers, B.C., had two assists in 50 games with the Royals in 2019-20. This season, he was with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters, putting up two goals and one assist in 15 games.


After Matt Bardsley announced that he was leaving his job as general manager Kamloopsof the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, did you think about applying for the position? . . . No. . . . Why not? . . . Don Moores, the team’s president, told Earl Seitz of CFJC-TV that he has received “some really good resumes from the outside. We’ve had lots of great resumes.” Moores also allowed that “we’ve had some unusual resumes.” . . . He added: “I did have a guy from Brampton, Ont., who works for quick lube who felt he would be perfect for the position.” . . . As Seitz reported: “The Blazers have short-listed five, according to Moores, and the quick lube guy isn’t one of them.”

Meanwhile, Moores told Jon Keen, the Blazers’ play-by-play voice, that Swedish F Viktor Persson is “committed to the organization.” Persson was a seventh-round pick by the Vancouver Canucks in the NHL’s 2020 draft. If not for the pandemic, it’s believed he would have been in Kamloops for the 2020-21 season. Persson, who turns 20 on Nov. 7, will be a two-spotter — a 20-year-old import — with the Blazers. . . . Swiss D Inako Baragano, the Blazers’ lone import this season, won’t be returning. Baragano, another 2001-born skater, has signed with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of Switzerland’s National League.


Children


Kevin Draper, writing in The New York Times:

“N.F.L. players who aren’t vaccinated will face severe restrictions next football season. The league has made vaccinations mandatory for coaches and other essential team personnel, but cannot do so for players. Still, teams can make the trade-off quite clear.”

Draper quoted Brian McCarthy, an NFL spokesman, as saying: “If you get vaccinated, you can go back to 2019 rules. If you don’t, you’ll have to follow 2020 protocols,” a strict regimen of testing, masking and social distancing guidance.


If you have been following the NBA playoffs, you will be aware that injuries to star players are turning into a huge story. . . . On top of that guard Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns now has tested positive. He was a key performer as the Suns ousted the defending-champion Los Angeles Lakers and then the Denver Nuggets, but now will miss the start of the Western Conference final against the Los Angeles Clippers or Utah Jazz. . . . Apparently, Paul has received at least one vaccination. . . . The Suns aren’t expected to update his situation before Saturday.

——

Meanwhile, the number of positive tests involving people who are connect with the Copa America soccer tournament in Brazil has reached at least 65, up from 53 on Wednesday. . . . Of those 65, 19 are players and 46 are staff members or officials. . . . Teams from Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Bolivia — that’s half the field — have confirmed positive tests. . . . Brazil, one of the world’s COVID-19 hotspots, stepped is as the tournament host only a short time before the games were to begin.


Germany has replaced Canada in the schedule for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup that is scheduled for Aug. 2-7 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia. . . . Canada cancelled its U18 selection camp for pandemic-released reasons so has bowed out of this year’s tournament. The 2020 event, you will recall, was to have been held in Edmonton and Red Deer but was cancelled due to the pandemic. . . . There is a news release that includes a schedule right here.


If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.


JUST NOTES: Ron Robison, the WHL’s commissioner for 21 seasons, has been given a three-year contract running through 2023-24 by the board of governors. Robison, 66, took over the position prior to the 2000-01 season. In a news release, Bruce Hamilton, the chairman of the board, said the governors “voted unanimously to extend” Robison’s contract. . . . The WHL also announced Yvonne Bergmann’s retirement. The vice-president, business, Bergmann has been in the WHL office for 20 years. The league has hired Marco De Iaco as vice-president, business development. He had been president and CEO of JMI Sport & Entertainment Projects in Calgary. . . .

The Red Deer Rebels have signed Mike Egener as an assistant coach to work alongside recently signed head coach Steve Konowalchuk. Egener played four seasons (2000-04) as a defenceman with the Calgary Hitmen. He retired from playing in 2015 after spending three seasons with the Coventry Blaze of the Elite Ice Hockey League. He has been coaching at the OHA Academy since 2017. With the Rebels, he fills the spot left when the Rebels chose not to renew Brad Flynn’s contract. . . .

Former WHLer James Henry has signed on as the first head coach in the history of the Federal Prospects Hockey League’s Binghamton Black Bears. Most recently, he was an assistant coach with the Southern Professional Hockey League’s Fayetteville Marksmen. Henry, 30, is from Winnipeg. He played five seasons (2007-12) in the WHL, getting into 281 games with the Vancouver Giants and 28 with the Moose Jaw Warriors. He finished with 72 goals and 142 assists, adding 15 goals and 22 assists in 59 playoff games. . . .

According to Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff), there won’t be a Young Stars exhibition tournament in Penticton in 2021. Paterson tweeted that the Vancouver Canucks “have confirmed no Young Stars in Penticton this season due to scheduling uncertainty. Team is working with city and South Okanagan Events Centre on long-term plan to ensure prospect tournament returns.”


Eyes

OHL adjusts rule on trading of draft picks . . . Seattle adds d-man from Kootenay . . . Kitchener’s profit tops $400G


MacBeth

F Travis Ewanyk (Edmonton, 2008-13) signed a one-year contract with the Krefeld Pinguine (Germany, DEL) after a successful tryout. Last season, he had 13 goals and 16 assists in 60 games with the Wichita Thunder (ECHL). Ewanyk holds dual German-Canadian citizenship. . . .

F Konstantin Panov (Kamloops, 1998-2001) signed a one-year contract with SC Csíkszereda Miercurea-Ciuc (Romania, Erste Liga). Last season, he had two goals and one assist in 43 games with Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk (Russia, KHL). He was the team captain. . . .

F Tomáš Slovák (Kelowna, 2001-03) signed a one-year contract with DVTK Jegesmedvék Miskolc (Hungary, Slovakia Extraliga). Last season, with Piráti Chomutov (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had three goals and eight assists in 48 games. . . . Jegesmedvék’ head coach is Glen Hanlon (Brandon, 1974-77; assistant coach Vancouver 2011-13; GM Vancouver 2016-18). . . . Slovák, in the Jegesmedvék news release: “I’ve been working with Glen Hanlon earlier on the Slovakian team, knowing each other, knowing what to expect.” Hanlon was the head coach of the Slovakian national team when Slovák played for the team in 2009-10.


ThisThat

The OHL issued a news release on Wednesday, passing along information from the board of governors’ annual meeting.

For starters, the league is instituting a rule that will limit the trading of draft choices in ohlwhat it calls the OHL Priority Selection. Whereas this used to be wide open, the OHL wants to get to where teams are able to trade draft picks a maximum of four years away.

Starting on Sept. 1, according to the news release, “teams will be allowed to trade draft choices a maximum of six years into the future, transitioning to five years prior to the commencement of the 2020 OHL Priority Selection and four years prior to the 2021 OHL Priority Selection. At the conclusion of the phase-in period, league policy will stipulate that OHL teams may only trade a draft choice four years into the future.”

The OHL news release is right here.


The Seattle Thunderbirds have acquired D Payton McIsaac from the Kootenay Ice for a Seattleninth-round selection in the WHL’s 2019 bantam draft. . . . McIsaac, who will turn 18 on Dec. 26, is from Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. He was a second-round pick by the Saskatoon Blades in the 2015 bantam draft. . . . He had one assist in 10 games with the Blades in 2015-16, then was pointless in one game with Saskatoon in each of the past two seasons. . . . It’s believed that the Blades dropped McIsaac from their list sometime after Christmas and the Ice added him. . . . On July 13, his Canadian junior A rights were dealt by the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders to the SJHL’s Humboldt Broncos.

Meanwhile, the Thunderbirds signed F Matthew Rempe, who had been added to their protected list on May 11, 2017. From Calgary, Rempe, 16, spent last season with the Okanagan Hockey Academy Elite 15s, putting up six goals and seven assists in 35 games. . . . According to a news release from the Thunderbirds, Rempe’s “older twin sisters, Steph and Alley, both play at Brown University in the NCAA.” As Seattle GM Bil La Forge said: “It is exciting he chose us to develop as a hockey player and to take advantage of the WHL scholarship program.”


A flash from the past . . . Dan Weaver of the Spokane Spokesman-Review on the retirement of Kerry Toporowski:


The Portland Winterhawks have signed F Tyson Kozak, 15, who was a sixth-round selection in the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft. Kozan, who will turn 16 on Dec. 29, is from Souris, Man. Last season, he had 10 goals and 25 assists in 44 games with the midget AAA Southwest Cougars. . . . Kozak is expected to make his WHL debut this weekend at an exhibition tournament in Everett.


The Victoria Royals have signed D Carson Golder, who is from Terrace, B.C., and was added to the team’s protected list in June. Golder, who will turn 16 on Oct. 29, played last season with the Pursuit of Excellence Elite 15s, putting up eight goals and nine assists in 34 games. He added one goal and two assists in eight games with POE’s midget prep team.



The Regina Pats have signed F Cale Sanders, 16, and D Steven Zonneveld, 17, both of Patswhom were free-agent invitees to training camp, to WHL contracts. . . . Sanders, from Claresholm, Alta., played last season with the Calgary-based Edge School Elite 15s, putting up 19 goals and 29 assists in 36 games. . . . Zonneveld, from Calgary, had seven goals and 11 assists in 35 games with the midget AAA Calgary Flames. . . . Both players are with the Pats and could see action during an exhibition tournament in Regina this weekend.



The OHL’s Kitchener Rangers got to Game 7 of a conference final before being eliminated from last season’s playoffs. While they didn’t win a championship, they won big at the bank, as they showed a profit of $432,080 for their 2018 fiscal year. It was the 23rd straight season that the franchise has shown a profit, but, as Josh Brown of the Waterloo Region Record writes, “the club hasn’t seen a profit this high since it made about $550K in 2011-12.” . . . Brown’s story is right here and it’s definitely worth a read, just to see where the profits are going.


Dorothy, my wife of 46 years, will celebrate the fifth anniversary of her kidney transplant by taking part in the 2018 Kamloops Kidney Walk. If you would like to support her with a donation — and she is closing in on $2,000 — you are able to do so right here.


The junior B Kamloops Storm of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League have KamStormshaken things up a bit, what with Ed Patterson choosing not to return after five seasons as head coach. . . . All told, Patterson worked as the Storm’s head coach for seven seasons, as he also ran the bench from 2007-09. . . . Former Storm F Jassi Sangha is the new head coach, while majority owner Barry Dewar, who had been the general manager, has stepped back, allowing assistant GM Matt Kolle to take over as GM. . . . Sangha, 30, played two seasons (2006-08) for the Storm and also spent three seasons (2009-12) with the now-defunct Thompson Rivers U Wolfpack. . . . Andrew Fisher, who also played at TRU with Sangha, is the assistant coach, with another one yet to be named, while former WHL G Lucas Gore (Chilliwack Bruins, 2008-11) will handle the goaltenders. . . . Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week has the complete Storm story right here. . . . And if you’re like me, you’re wondering how it is that Patterson didn’t end up with a WHL job.


Murray Nystrom has signed on as the 10th head coach in the history of the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns program. . . . Nystrom was the head coach of the St. Catharines, Ont.,-based Brock Badgers for 18 years, going 191-227-18-39 and making the playoffs on 14 occasions. . . . Nystrom left the Brock program in July 2017. . . . In Lethbridge, he will take over from Spiros Anastas, who left the Pronghorns earlier this month to sign on as head coach of the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays.


Tweetoftheday

%d bloggers like this: