Scattershooting on a Sunday night while wondering if the Calgary Wranglers are coming back . . .

scattershooting

Camper2

Hello, friend. Yes, you . . . from the white one-ton truck that was pulled in off Wittner Road east of Kamloops on Saturday morning. You know, on the south side of the South Thompson River, just across from the Lafarge plant.

I was wondering if you lost your camper?

When I walked past your truck with the white camper on the back I didn’t see anyone, so I assumed you were fishing off the shore. I even wondered if you might be camping there for the weekend.

Then when I went for my Sunday morning stroll, I noticed your truck was gone but the camper was still there, albeit on its roof.

I can only assume that it slid off the back of your truck as you drove away and that you didn’t notice it. I mean, you wouldn’t be ignorant enough just to dump the old camper right there now, would you? Perhaps you were too busy trying to figure out how to use your turn signals to notice that the camper was gone. Hey, it happens to all of us.

Anyway . . . by now you likely have noticed that it’s missing and now you know where it is, so I’m sure you’ll drop by one day this week and pick it up.

Right?

Camper3



Dwight Perry, in the Seattle Times: “Jon Berti of the Miami Marlins leads all of baseball in steals, with 25,  at the season’s halfway point. Unless you count the former treasurer of the Oakville, Ont., Minor Baseball Association, who is accused of  embezzling $468,000 from the league.”

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Perry, again: “Green Bay Packers QB  Aaron Rodgers has a new tattoo on his left arm — intricate astrological designs by Hungarian artist Balazs Bercsenyi. What were you expecting, a bull’s-eye with the words ‘insert vaccination here?’ ”


THINKING OUT LOUD: If you were on Twitter the afternoon of July 4, I think you’ll admit it was kind of surreal with tweets about the mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill., and a hot dog-eating contest in Coney Island, N.Y., seemingly alternating in that particular social media universe. . . . During the NHL’s 2022-23 regular season, the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames will meet three times — none once in the season’s second half. Seriously! In the CFL this season, the Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Eskimos meet on four occasions. . . . Battle of Alberta? Not in the NHL, I guess. . . . In the WHL, the Edmonton Oil Kings and Calgary Hitmen will clash on eight occasions. . . . Still with the NHL’s 2022-23 schedule, the New York Rangers and New York Islanders will see each other only three times, all before Christmas. . . .

Hey, Blue Jays fans, how did you survive Friday night with your favourites and the host Seattle Mariners available only on Apple TV+? In its attempts to find new fans, MLB does that every once in a while just to remind some of us that at the end of the day it really does take those of us who are regular viewers for granted. . . . Don’t look now but here come the Baltimore Orioles. . . .

Yes, the Saskatchewan Roughriders should release DT Garrett Marino after that embarrassing performance on Friday night. Will they? Marino, in his second season with the Roughriders, has proven he can be a productive player, so I would be shocked if he is cut loose. . . . Until Sunday night, I haven’t been eagerly awaiting the arrival of robo umps in Major League Baseball. But after watching Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees take six pitches, all of which were balls, and be called out on strikes, well, I guess it’s time.



“Kevin Durant is turning into the Taylor Swift of baseball,” writes Janice Hough, aka the Left Coast Sports Babe. “But at least her breakups result in good songs.”



Lazuli
I had company for a brief time on my Sunday morning walk. Lazuli buntings are frequent visitors to our neighbourhood in Campbell Creek.

After I posted a story here the other day about the Kelowna Rockets switching radio stations — they left AM 1150 after more than 20 years and now are with 104.7 The Lizard — one reply to the tweet about the piece had me chuckling. . . .

BTW, some WHL fans really are waiting anxiously to find out if Regan Bartel, the long-time radio voice of the Rockets, will ever pitter-patter and get at ‘er again. . . . Hey, TSN, do you still need a play-by-play voice for your Winnipeg Jets telecasts?


JUNIOR JOTTINGS: The Brandon Wheat Kings have promoted Chris Moulton to director of hockey operations. He had been the director of player personnel since joining the organization on July 2, 2021. Before signing on with Brandon, Moulton spent 13 seasons with the Spokane Chiefs as director of scouting and director of player personnel. . . . Moulton’s promotion follows the May 6 announcement that general manager Doug Gasper had resigned for personal reasons. He had been with the Wheat Kings for three seasons, the first two as assistant general manager and the last one as GM. . . .

The OHL’s board of governors has approved the sale of the Niagara IceDogs to a group headed by majority owner Darren DeDobbelaer and including minority owner Wayne Gretzky. . . . DeDobbelaer and Gretzky both are from Brantford, Ont. . . . They purchased the IceDogs from Denise and Bill Burke, who had bought the franchise from the late Eugene Melnyk. . . . Ken Campbell of Hockey Unfiltered has reported that the price the DeDobbelaer group paid is “believed to be $18 million, which is actually 10 percent less than the $20 million owners Bill and Denise Burke were seeking for the franchise.” . . . The IceDogs play out of St. Catharines, Ont. . . . This isn’t Gretzky’s first time being involved in the ownership of a major junior franchise. He was involved in the ownership of the OHL’s Belleville Bulls (1982-84) and  owned a piece of the QMJHL’s Hull Olympiques (1985-92).



DeerApple
We had a visitor to our Jon Gold apple tree at noon on Sunday. She helped herself — without asking, I might add — and then laid down under the tree and digested her meal.

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.


Posters

Advertisement

A pandemic check in WHL territories as new season nears . . . Pats, Thunderbirds swing deal . . . Nachbaur not afraid of some Heat

Bridge


Teams in the WHL are about three weeks from opening training camps, and about four weeks from the start of the exhibition season. . . . While the OHL and QMJHL have adopted mandatory vaccination policies, it would appear that the WHL has no such plan because there hasn’t been a peep out of the Calgary office about it. . . . The WHL and its teams also have yet to announce any plans, protocols or anything else regarding fans in any of the arenas in the four provinces and two states in which the franchises operate. Perhaps the league and its 22 teams are still in discussions with provincial and state health officials on that subject. . . . Anyway, here’s a look at some of Tuesday’s pandemic related news from WHL country . . .

The New York Times — Oregon is preparing to restore a statewide mandate on Wednesday, ordering both vaccinated and unvaccinated people to use face coverings when gathering indoors. . . . Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon, a Democrat, said on Tuesday that she would formally announce the return of the mask mandate on Wednesday. She said that masks were needed to fight rising caseloads driven by the Delta variant, and that face coverings were a simple tool to help keep schools and businesses open.

CBC Kamloops — 7-day average nearly doubles in 1 week as B.C. records 395 new cases of COVID-19. . . . The seven-day rolling average of new cases has nearly doubled in one week from 196 on Aug. 3 to 383. . . . (Note: 187 of the new cases revealed Tuesday were in Interior Health, an expansive region that is home to Kamloops and Kelowna, and where numbers haven’t been good for the past while.)

Tri-City Herald — Franklin County has highest COVID rate in 4 Western states. Benton County 2nd in WA. . . . The number of people hospitalized locally for COVID-19 continues to climb, matching the previous high during the past 12 months, based on Tri-City Herald records. . . . The 74 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment Tuesday accounted for nearly 20% of the 380 patients in the Richland, Kennewick, Pasco and Prosser hospitals. Hospital officials and doctors are urging Tri-Cities area residents to be vaccinated, saying almost all COVID-19 patients they are treating in hospitals have not been vaccinated against COVID-19. . . . (Note: Kennewick, home of the Tri-City Americans, is in Benton County. Pasco and Richland, which with Kennewick comprise the Tri-Cities, are in Franklin County.)

KOMO News — Snohomish County held a briefing Tuesday, where it announced a mask directive for anyone indoors older than five. This includes both vaccinated and unvaccinated people. (Note: Everett is located in Snohomish County.)

Tina Karst, CJOC Lethbridge — Lethbridge COVID stats for Aug 9 (released today): 14 new cases out of 37 in the South Zone; no deaths; no recoveries; active cases up by 14 to 80 — the highest count since June 4 (84).

CBC News — Alberta reported 279 net new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday and two additional deaths. . . . The number of known active cases rose by 83 since the last update to 3,463. . . . Four more Albertans have been admitted to hospital to be treated for COVID-19 since the last update. There are now 133 hospitalizations, including 29 patients in intensive care units. . . . There were 5,424 tests conducted Monday. The province’s test positivity rate is 5.25 per cent.

CBC News — Manitoba’s COVID-19 website shows 31 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths on Tuesday. . . . The current five-day test positivity rate in Manitoba is 2.7 per cent, up from 2.5 on Monday. 

CBC News — Saskatchewan reports 2 additional deaths and 65 new cases of COVID-19. That pushes the 7-day case average to 80; a week ago it was 51.

Oregon Public Broadcasting — Masks are back. Beginning this Friday, all people in Multnomah County (including Portland) will be required to wear a mask in indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccination status. This applies to everyone age 5 or older.



Snowman


The Boston Bruins have signed Swedish F Fabian Lysell, 18, to an entry-level Vancouvercontract (ELC). The Bruins selected him in the first round, 21st overall, of the NHL’s 2021 draft. . . . The Vancouver Giants grabbed Lysell’s major junior rights in the CHL’s 2021 import draft and have been hoping that the Bruins might steer Lysell their way. . . . Because he was drafted out of Europe, Lysell is eligible to play in the NHL, AHL or WHL. That means the Bruins could choose to assign him to the AHL’s Providence Bruins. . . . He had three goals and six assists in seven games for Sweden at the 2021 IIHF U-18 World Championship in Texas. . . . Lysell is seen as a tremendous skater with a great work ethic who is a real offensive threat. . . .

Meanwhile, Joshua Critzer, who covers the Portland Winterhawks for Portland@pnwhockeytalk, tweeted on Monday afternoon that he is “hearing Jesper Wallstedt and the Minnesota Wild have informed” the WHL team that “he will not be reporting.” . . . Wallstedt, a native of Västerås, Sweden, who will turn 19 on Nov. 14, was selected 20th overall by the Wild in the NHL’s 2021 draft. . . . The Winterhawks acquired the rights to Wallstedt from the Moose Jaw Warriors on June 7, giving up a sixth-round pick in the WHL’s 2023 draft. . . . In 2020-21, Wallstedt was 12-10-0, 2.23, .908 with Lulea HF of the SHL, Sweden’s top pro league. . . .

On Tuesday, the Winterhawks announced that F Dawson Pasternak, 18, “will be joining our roster from the Chicago Steel of the USHL.” . . . From Winnipeg, Pasternak had six goals and 17 assists in 61 games with the Steel in 2020-21, up from five and nine in 35 games in 2019-20. . . . The Winterhawks selected him in the fourth round of the WHL’s 2018 bantam draft.


The Regina Pats have added some size and experience to their roster with the Patsacquisition of D Luke Bateman, 19, from the Seattle Thunderbirds for a sixth-round selection in the WHL’s 2021 draft. . . . That draft, which normally is held in the spring, is scheduled for Dec. 9, thanks to the pandemic. . . . The 6-foot-6, 220-pound Bateman was picked by Seattle in the fourth round of the 2017 bantam draft. . . . From Kamloops, he has two goals and 16 assists in 83 regular-season games. . . .

Thom Beunig, the long-time radio voice of the Thunderbirds, pointed out on Twitter that Seattle has only six defencemen on its roster at the moment — Tyrel Bauer, 19; Ryan Gottfried, who turns 20 on Aug. 21; Jeremy Hanzel, 18; Kevin Korchinski, 17; Spencer Penner, 17; and recent Import selection Leon Okonkwo Prada. From Colchester, England, Okonkwo Prada played last season in Sweden. He has signed with the Thunderbirds after being selected in the CHL’s 2021 import draft.


Time


Sir Vincent Rogers Sr., a 35-year-old offensive lineman with the CFL’s Edmonton Elks, tested positive and has a few things he wants to say about his experience . . .


Dusty Imoo, 51, is a former WHL goaltender from New Westminster, B.C. He played four seasons (1987-91) with the New Westminster Bruins, Lethbridge Hurricanes and Regina Pats. . . . He went on to a pro career that included 13 seasons in Japan. He also played for Japan in three IIHF World Championships and in the 1998 Olympic Winter Games. . . . Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun has more right here.


Chris Moulton, a long-time WHL scout and front-office type, now is director of player personnel with the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . It’s not even the middle of August and he has a rather pertinent message for parents and young players . . . 


Ethan in the below tweet is former Seattle Thunderbirds D Ethan Bear, who was traded by the Edmonton Oilers to the Carolina Hurricanes last month . . .


Don Nachbaur has left the Tri-City Americans for the AHL’s Stockton Heat. Nachbaur, the third-winningest head coach in WHL history, joined the Americans as associate coach in February. Now he is off to the Heat as an assistant coach where he will work alongside new head coach Mitch Love, who signed on after spending the previous three seasons as the head coach of the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Nachbaur has had a couple of other AHL coaching stints, as the head coach of the Binghamton Senators (2009-10) and as an assistant with the Philadelphia Phantoms (2000-02). . . . From a Heat news release: “In his 26-year coaching career, Nachbaur has accumulated 20 seasons of WHL experience, three campaigns in the AHL, two behind an NHL bench as an assistant with the Los Angeles Kings (2017-19) and one with HKM Zvolen in Slovakia. He won the WHL’s Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy, awarded to the league’s coach of the year, three times (2010-11, 2007-08, 1994-95) and had a role with Canadian national junior teams at the 2011-12 U-18 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and 2012-13 World Junior Championship.”


Earth


Jason Benetti, the TV play-by-play voice of the Chicago White Sox, is on the sidelines after testing positive. He had been at the Tokyo Olympics for NBC-TV, calling baseball and softball. Benetti is fully vaccinated and has said that he is “mildly symptomatic.”

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NewsRadio 610 KONA — Washington will soon require most state employees, on-site contractors, and workers in private healthcare to be vaccinated as a condition of employment. Governor Jay Inslee says they’ll have until October 18 to do so.

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“A charity hockey tournament at Abbotsford’s The Rinks at Summit Centre has been flagged by Fraser Health as having a COVID-19 public exposure,” reports Ben Lypka of the Abbotsford News. . . . Lypka’s complete story is right here.

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Lamar Jackson, the starting quarterback for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, has returned to practice after testing positive for the second time in eight months. No, he isn’t vaccinated. . . . His plan is, uhh, to “keep learning as much as I can about it. We’ll go from there.” . . . Jamison Hensley of ESPN wrote: “Jackson said last December that he ‘wouldn’t wish (COVID) on anybody’ and reiterated that Monday. But he still wouldn’t budge on whether he would get the vaccine, even when pressed that it puts the Ravens at a competitive disadvantage.” . . . According to head coach John Harbaugh, the Ravens went into training camp with 90 per cent of their players fully vaccinated, meaning Jackson is one of a relatively few who aren’t vaccinated.

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U of Ottawa — University of Ottawa announces that vaccination will be mandatory for all students, faculty, staff, and anyone returning to or visiting campus as of September 7th, 2021.

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The New York Times — A Dallas school district announced that everyone — students, employees and visitors — must wear a mask while on school property starting Tuesday, defying an executive order by Gov. Greg Abbott that bans school districts from requiring masks.

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CBC News — Anyone wanting to go to a restaurant, bar, theatre, festival or gym in Quebec will have to produce a vaccine passport as of September 1.

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CBS News — Pentagon announces COVID-19 vaccines will be mandatory for troops by mid-September.

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In the west, we’ve had the pandemic and a heatwave or two, wildfires that have all but destroyed two B.C. communities, and now we’re in the middle of a drought. How bad is it? . . . A ski resort in Manitoba announced on Monday that it won’t be opening for the 2021-22 season. Holiday Mountain, located southwest of Winnipeg at La Rivière. . . . A tweet from the resort: “We use 17 million gallons of water for snowmaking and the Pembina River is so dry you can walk across it. No chance of that kind of recovery in the next few months. We’re talking 10+ feet below normal.” . . . The plague of locusts is expected to arrive by month’s end.

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Pete Muntean, CNN — Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, and Delta Air Lines will NOT REQUIRE employees to get vaccinated, breaking with United Airlines’ mandate that workers get vaccinated by October 25th or face getting fired.

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Rolling Stone — Jason Isbell’s upcoming shows will require proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test. “If the venue won’t allow that, we won’t play,” performer says.

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Sign

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Rolling Stone — The Eagles have added an additional Seattle date to their rescheduled Hotel California tour, but unlike the other shows, attendees will have to provide proof of vaccination upon entering. The November 5th show at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena requires that guests be fully vaccinated 14 days prior to the show, while children under 12 years old may show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test. Tickets go on sale Friday at 1 pm E.T.

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Rolling Stone — Stevie Nicks has withdrawn from her upcoming festival appearances due to the spread of the Delta variant. Nicks was slated to headline the Jazz Aspen Festival and BottleRock Napa Valley early next month; Chris Stapleton will be replacing her for the latter. She was scheduled to perform both weekends at Austin City Limits in October, but the Texas festival has yet to announce a replacement. (Nicks was also on the bill for the New Orleans Jazz Fest, but the event was cancelled just the other day.) “These are challenging times with challenging decisions that have to be made,” Nicks tells Rolling Stone. “I want everyone to be safe and healthy, and the rising Covid-19 cases should be of concern to all of us. While I’m vaccinated, at my age, I am still being extremely cautious and for that reason have decided to skip the five performances I had planned for 2021.”

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Rolling Stone — A group of Nashville clubs has announced new Covid-19 rules: to enter, fans must show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test.

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Ana Cabrera, CNN — Average pace of new vaccinations (people getting their first shot) tops 500,000 people per day for first time since June, CDC data shows.

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Rolling Stone — Milwaukee’s Summerfest 2021 joins the growing list of events requiring a Covid-19 vaccine or negative test for entry.

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Rolling Stone — Bonnaroo just released a statement announcing that it will require attendees to show proof of vaccination or a negative test.

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Rolling Stone — The Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam, a country-music festival set for Labor Day weekend in Florida, has been postponed until next year, as Covid cases spike across the state.


Bell


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: Jake Wagman, who had been Kelowna’s director of video and hockey operations, is leaving the Rockets to join the NHL Arizona Coyotes organization. He will be the video coach for the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners, replacing Brady Morgan, who now is a video assistant with the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. Morgan spent one season as a hockey operations assistant with the Seattle Thunderbirds before joining Tucson.


Batman

Where there’s smoke, there are fires. Lots of them . . . Moulton back in WHL . . . Flynn’s next stop is in OHL

Fires

If you are wondering how things are going in Kamloops and area, well, the map pictured above is from Friday evening. Each of the golden triangles represents one fire . . . Yes, all those fires are generating a lot of smoke. No, we don’t have any windows open today. . . . Looking like we have more than a few long, hot, smoke-filled days ahead of us. . . . The bags are packed; we’re ready to go . . . if the situation calls for it.


The Brandon Wheat Kings have hired Chris Moulton as their director of player Moultonpersonnel. He will work alongside general manager Doug Gasper. . . . Moulton spent 14 seasons (2005-19) with the Spokane Chiefs, filling the roles of director of scouting, director of player personnel and assistant general manager at one time or another. . . . He also spent three seasons (2012-15) as an amateur scout with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. . . . Moulton also scouted for the Calgary Hitmen in the franchise’s early days. . . . Moulton left the Chiefs in July 2019 to join the Wasserman hockey division as Western Canada player recruitment and development advisor. Wasserman is a Los Angeles-based sports marketing and talent management company.


Brad Flynn, a former WHL assistant coach, has signed on as the associate coach Spiritwith the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit. Flynn, 26, spent the previous three seasons as an assistant coach with the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels. Prior to that he worked in the NAHL (Corpus Christi Ice Rays), QMJHL (Acadie-Bathurst Titan) and MJHL (Swan Valley Stampeders). . . . According to a Spirit news release: “Brad and his father, Danny, are the first ever father and son to coach in all three leagues of the Canadian Hockey League.” . . . Danny, a highly successful major junior coach, spent one season (2017-18) as an assistant coach with the Portland Winterhawks. He now scouts for the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets. . . . That news release is right here.



The junior B Westshore Wolves of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League Wolveshave been sold, with Shawn Vincent buying the franchise from a group headed by Ken Carson. . . . Vincent has hired Derek Sweet-Coulter as general manager and head coach. Sweet-Coulter, who is from Victoria, spent the previous two seasons as the GM and head coach of the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials. . . . Ian Birnie will be staying on as assistant GM and director of player development. He has been with the Wolves for three years.


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.

Moulton moves on from Chiefs. . . . Silvertips lose coach, add one. . . . Pats get forward from Winterhawks

ThisThat

Chris Moulton, who had been with the Spokane Chiefs since 2005, has left to join the hockey division of the Los Angeles-based Wasserman Media Group. Moulton had been the Chiefs’ assistant general manager of hockey operations. . . . With Wasserman, he will fill the newly created position of Western Canada player recruitment and development advisor. . . . Wasserman bills itself as a sports marketing and talent management company. . . . Moulton started with the Chiefs as director of player personnel, and was promoted to his most-recent position in 2016. He also spent 11 seasons as a scout with the Calgary Hitmen.


Harry Mahood has left the Everett Silvertips after one season as an assistant coach. . . . In Everetta news release, Mahood said: “Returning this season became difficult after moving to New York for an opportunity of a lifetime, for my wife Sarah within the airline industry, and this allows for continued work in hockey with development consulting and player representation.” . . . Mahood, 56, played for four WHL teams back in the day (1979-82) — the Great Falls Americans, Spokane Flyers, Billings Bighorns and Nanaimo Islanders. . . .

Shortly after announcing Mahood’s departure, the Silvertips revealed that they have added Mike Lysyj as their new assistant coach. Lysyj, 30, is from Hillsborough, N.J. . . . He spent last season as a volunteer assistant coach with the RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) Engineers. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as an assistant coach with the State University of New York at Fredonia Blue Devils, who play in NCAA Division III. . . . Everett’s coaching staff now comprises head coach Dennis Williams, assistant coach Louise Mass and goaltending coach James Jensen.



The Regina Pats have acquired F Haydn Delorme, 19, from the Portland Winterhawks for an undisclosed conditional pick in the 2021 WHL bantam draft. Last season, as a freshman, he had one goal and three assists in 31 games. . . . Delorme, who is from Port Moody, B.C., was a ninth-round pick by the Vancouver Giants in the 2015 bantam draft.


The Edmonton Oil Kings have signed Finnish F Jesse Seppälä to a WHL contract. . . . EdmontonOilKingsEdmonton selected him in the CHL’s 2019 import draft. . . . The 17-year-old, who is listed at 5-foot-8 and 148 pounds, had 17 goals and 31 assists in 42 games with Tappara’s U-18 team last season. He also had four goals and eight assists in 24 games with Finland’s U-17 team. . . . The Oil Kings also have Belarusian F Vladimir Alistrov, 18, on their roster. He had 12 goals and 26 assists in 62 games as a freshman in 2018-19. . . . Edmonton released F Andrei Pavlenko, 19, who also is from Belarus. He had 12 goals and 18 assists in 78 games over two seasons with the Oil Kings.


The Kamloops Blazers have promoted Robbie Sandland to director of player personnel. He had been their head B.C. scout. . . . Sandland had been one of the team’s three head scouts, with Ken Fox handling Saskatchewan and Jason Pashelka in Alberta. . . . The Blazers had been without a director of player personnel since May 10, 2018, when they announced that Matt Recchi’s contract wasn’t going to be renewed.


There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping here, why not consider donating to the cause? All that’s involved is clicking on the DONATE button over there on the right and following the instructions. Thank you very much.


JUST NOTES:

Mike Burnstein, the Vancouver Giants’ athletic therapist, will be working with Canada’s national junior team for a second straight season when the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship is held in Czech Republic from Dec. 26 through Jan. 5. . . . Burnstein, who worked with the Vancouver Canucks for 20 seasons, is preparing for his third season with the Giants. He will be in Plymouth, Mich., with Team Canada for the Summer Showcase, July 30 through Aug. 3. . . .

The Kootenay International Junior Hockey League, a 20-team junior B circuit, is searching for a commissioner. If you think you have the right stuff, check out the above tweet. . . . I don’t know what it pays, but judging by the “duties and responsibilities,” I’m thinking $200,000 — that’s 10 grand per team — would be about right. . . .

The 15-team Quebec Midget AAA Hockey League has cut a deal with HockeyTech that will result in the broadcasting of all games in 2019-20. Each of the league’s teams plays a 42-game schedule. . . . The games will be shown via HockeyTV, Hockey Tech’s streaming platform.


Tweetoftheday

Writers resting after MVI involving elk . . . Hurricanes’ future looks bright . . . Where were Americans’ fans? . . . A full MacBeth Report

ThisThat

Jesse Geleynse and Andy Eide, two members of the media who were in Kennewick, Wash., to cover a WHL game on Monday night, were injured in a car accident on their way back to the Seattle area early Tuesday morning.

Geleynse, who works for the Everett Herald, and Eide, from 710 ESPN Seattle, had driven to Kennewick to cover Game 6 of the WHL’s Western Conference final between the Tri-City Americans and Everett Silvertips.

On the return trip on Interstate 90, their car was behind a semi tractor-trailer when an elk got in the way.

KOMOnews.com reported: “A preliminary investigation found that the semi and the Mazda were both heading east on I-90 when the semi hit an elk that was standing on the freeway. The Mazda driver swerved to avoid the elk that had been struck, lost control, and the car rolled over onto its top in the median.”

Those in the car were taken to hospital in Ellensburg, Wash.

Eide told Taking Note late Tuesday afternoon that he was at home and resting.

Geleynse also is at home, nursings cuts, bruises and a concussion.

The KOMO story is right here.


Three years have come and gone since Ron Robison, the WHL commissioner, recommended that shareholders in the Lethbridge Hurricanes put a ‘For Sale’ sign on their franchise and sell to private owners.

“It’s not to say that this community organization can’t get things turned around,” Robison Lethbridgetold media after speaking to shareholders on May 4, 2015. “But we think, when you look at the franchise moving forward, that private interests would be in the best interest of the club.”

At that point, the Hurricanes hadn’t been in the playoffs for six seasons and were somewhere around $1.25 million in debt.

And then along came Peter Anholt. He hitched his white horse to the rail at the edge of town and . . .

Anholt had stepped in as general manager and head coach in December 2014. After the season, he signed a three-year contract as general manager.

The shareholders voted not to sell, and, well, the rest is history.

In the past three seasons, the Hurricanes have played 22 home playoff games, including 10 in 2017 and nine this season when they lost a third-round series in six games to the heavily favoured Swift Current Broncos.

The Hurricanes now can afford to buy lunch for their banker, rather than using a line of credit to pay for it.

Keep in mind, too, that Hurricanes’ fans wear their sunglasses at night because the future is that bright. Their favourite team reached the Eastern Conference final even though Anholt turned into a seller at the January trade deadline.

The Hurricanes’ roster now includes three of the WHL’s top young players — F Logan Barlage, who was acquired from the Broncos, and F Dylan Cozens, both of them having completed their 16-year-old seasons, along with D Calen Addison, who turned 18 on April 11.

Yes, things are looking good in Lethbridge, so good, in fact, the prospective private owners need not bother venturing into city limits.


You are free to wonder if the Tri-City Americans are long for the Kennewick-Richland-Pasco area of Washington State.

The Americans drew an announced crowd of 3,033 fans to Game 6 of the WHL’s Western Conference final against the Everett Silvertips on Monday night. In seven home games in TriCity30these playoffs, in what was their 30th season, the Americans’ average announced attendance was 3,053.

The Americans play in the 5,797-seat Toyota Center, which opened in 1988 and now is in need of upgrading.

However, the Kennewick Public Facilities District has asked voters three times for the OK to increase a sales tax to fund a project that would include, among other things, an upgrade for the hockey facility. Three times it has been rejected.

In November, with the latest referendum having been defeated, Bob Tory, the Americans’ general manager who owns a piece of the franchise, told the Tri-City Herald that the arena’s “infrastructure is certainly in trouble.”

According to Wendy Culverwell of the Herald, Tory said team expenses have doubled under current ownership while revenue has been flat.

“There comes a time when that doesn’t make sense any more,” Tory told Culverwell.

Culverwell wrote: “The Americans’ lease runs through 2020, but contains language that allows it to negotiate for a lower rent or even an early termination if it isn’t up to WHL standards.”

Tory, who has never cried wolf or threatened to relocate, also told Culverwell: “If you look around the WHL, our facility is not just the worst facility in the U.S. Division, but it’s probably at the very bottom of the league as far as the quality of the amenities.”

In the regular season, the Americans’ announced average attendance was 3,649, easily the lowest figure among the five U.S. Division teams. The Seattle Thunderbirds were the closest divisional opponent, at 4,950.

The Tri-Cities area of Washington State is home to around 300,000 people.


The MJHL-champion Steinbach Pistons got a goal and two assists from F Bradley Schoonbaert as they dumped the host Nipawin Hawks, the SJHL champs, to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series for the ANAVET Cup.  . . . Game 4 is scheduled for tonight (Wednesday) in Nipawin, with Game 5 there on Friday. . . . Last night, the Pistons held period leads of 1-0 and 4-0. . . . F Brandan Arnold had an assist on Nipawin’s goal. He has been in on all six of the Hawks’ scores in the series. . . . G Matthew Thiessen stopped 16 shots for Steinbach. . . . The winner of this series will move on to the Royal Bank Cup in Chilliwack, B.C., later this month.


The BCHL’s Wenatchee Wild is one victory away from a berth in the Royal Bank Cup, the junior A championship tournament that opens in Chilliwack, B.C., on May 12. . . . The Wild beat the host Spruce Grove Saints, the AJHL champions, 4-3 on Tuesday night to take a 3-0 lead in the Doyle Cup series. The Wild is trying to became the first American-based team to win the Doyle Cup. . . . They’ll play Game 4 in Spruce Grove tonight (Wednesday). . . . Last night, goals from F Nathan Iannone and D Cooper Zech gave the Wild a 3-1 lead after two periods. . . . F Sam Hesler upped it to 4-1 at 8:10 of the third period. . . . The Saints made it close as F Parker Seretsky and F Chase Olsen scored at 12:34 and 12:57, respectively. . . . G Austin Park earned the victory with 34 saves.


JUST NOTES:

Tyler Kuntz is the new general manager and head coach of the BCHL’s Powell River Kings. Kuntz, 39, spent this season as the assistant coach of the Daemyung Killer Whales in South Korea. Prior to that, he spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants. . . . Kuntz takes over from Brock Sawyer, an assistant coach who took over as interim head coach when the Kings fired GM/head coach Kent Lewis on Jan. 29. . . .

The Spokane Chiefs have signed Chris Moulton, their assistant general manager, to a contract extension. The length of the deal wasn’t revealed. Moulton has been with the Chiefs since 2005, and has been the assistant GM since November 2016. . . .

D Mark Rubinchik, who turned 19 on March 21, won’t be back for a third season with the Saskatoon Blades. According to The MacBeth Report, Rubinchik, who is from Moscow, has signed a two-year, two-way contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL). . . . Rubinchik had 23 assists in 63 games as a freshman in 2016-17. This season, in 67 games, he recorded four goals and 19 assists. . . . The Blades didn’t make the playoffs this season. Rubinchik was their lone import player after the Jan. 10 trade deadline, when they moved Czech D Libor Hajek to the Regina Pats. . . .

F Brad Morrison, 21, who leads the WHL playoff scoring race, has signed a three-year entry-level deal with the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings. Morrison, whose Lethbridge Hurricanes were eliminated from the playoffs on Monday night, was a fourth-round pick by the New York Rangers in the NHL’s 2015 draft but was never signed. . . . In 16 playoff games this spring, he put up 37 points, including 16 goals. He also leads all playoff scorers with 21 assists. . . . In 334 WHL regular-season games, split between the Prince George Cougars, Vancouver Giants and Lethbridge, Morrison had 263 points, including 112 goals.


MacBeth

G Juha Metsola (Lethbridge, 2007-09) signed a two-year contract with Salevat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL). This season, in 52 games with Amur Khabarovsk (Russia, KHL), he was 28-17-6, 2.25, .923 with three shutouts and two assists. He twice was named the KHL’s goaltender of the week (Nov. 8 and Jan. 29). . . .

F Jan Eberle (Seattle, 2006-08) signed a one-year contract with Plzeň (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Olomouc (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had nine goals and 18 assists in 50 games. . . .

F Daniel Rákos (Swift Current, 2005-07) signed a “multi-year” contract with Hradec Králové (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Třinec (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had five goals and 15 assists in 47 games. . . .

D Michal Hlinka (Moose Jaw, Prince Albert, 2010-12) signed a one-year contract with Hradec Králové (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, he was pointless in 12 games with Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia, KHL), and had four goals and five assists in seven games while on loan to Dukla Trenčín (Slovakia, Extraliga). . . .

F Marek Kalus (Spokane, Brandon, 2010-13) signed a one-year contract with Orli Znojmo (Czech Republic, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with Havířov (Czech Republic, 1. Liga), he had 18 goals and 16 assists in 46 games. He led his team in goals and points. . . .

G Andrei Makarov (Saskatoon, 2011-13) was traded by Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk to Spartak Moscow (both Russia, KHL) for cash compensation. This season, in 12 games with Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, he was 6-4-0, 2.11, .922 with one shutout. . . .

F Jakub Herman (Moose Jaw, 2009-10) signed a one-year contract with Zlin (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Olomouc (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had nine goals and 11 assists in 39 games. . . .

D Mark Rubinchik (Saskatoon, 2016-18) signed a two-year, two-way contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL). This season, he had four goals and 19 assists in 67 games with Saskatoon. . . .

F Filip Ahl (Regina, 2016-17) signed a one-year contract with Tingsryd (Sweden, Allsvenskan). This season, he had seven goals and one assist in five games with Örebro J20 (Sweden, J20 SuperElit), one assist in 15 games with Örebro (Sweden, SHL), and 11 goals and four assists in 29 games while on loan to Karlskoga (Sweden, Allsvenskan). . . .

F Nathan Burns (Vancouver, Saskatoon, Swift Current, 2009-14) signed a one-year contract extension with Halle (Germany, Oberliga). He had seven goals and 31 assists in 37 games, leading his club in assists and points. . . .

F Ladislav Ščurko (Seattle, Tri-City, 2004-07) signed a one-year contract extension with Detva (Slovakia, Extraliga). In 54 games, he had 17 goals and 11 assists. An alternate captain, he led the team in goals. . . .

F Andrej Kudrna (Vancouver, Red Deer, 2008-11) signed a one-year contract extension with Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had 14 goals and 13 assists in 52 games. He led his team in goals.


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