The social media hills were alive with the sound of accolades on Saturday as word circulated that Rob Vanstone has chosen to leave the Regina Leader-Post after almost 36 years of chronicling everything there is to know about the sporting scene in Regina and, indeed, all over Saskatchewan. . . . Accolades, it must be said, that are certainly well-deserved. . . . But what’s next for someone who is not yet old enough to walk off into the sunset? . . . “A new opportunity, the details of which are to be divulged soon, is to begin on Tuesday,” he wrote in one final column. . . . There aren’t words to describe the size of the hole his departure from the printed page and the newspaper’s website will leave in that area’s sporting community. Yes, he is perhaps best known for his writings on the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders. But his most important work has resulted from his love for high school sports, junior football, university sports, the so-called amateur sports, his love for all the “little people” of the sporting world. He loved nothing better than to stumble on a story in a far corner of a gymnasium and take it from there. That was Vanstone at his best. . . .
With Vanstone’s departure, you are free to wonder what’s next for what once was a wonderful sports department, one that in the 1990s featured an editor, a columnist, six reporters, three copy editor/layout people, and an agate clerk. It was nothing for coverage of a Roughriders’ home game to involve five writers. . . . Now there is one — ONE! — person left in the department. That would be Murray McCormick, who is going to be a whole lot busier than the Maytag repairman. . . .
Of course, The Leader-Post is owned by Postmedia, which seems to be sending people to the high jump almost every day. So . . . who knows? Perhaps that once terrific sports department soon is to be nothing but a memory.
And the thought of that is enough to make a grown man cry.
JUST NOTES:
Sparked by the play of F Diego Cuglietta of Kamloops, SG Cortina won the Italian Hockey League Series A last weekend with a 2-1 victory over Ritten Sport. It was a four-team round-robin series and Cortina went 3-0 to win its 17th national title, but first since 2007. . . . Cuglietta scored Cortina’s first goal in the final victory. Cortina also beat HC Meran (3-0) and the Unterland Cavaliers (3-1). . . . In Alps League play, Cuglietta put up 41 points, including 15 goals, in 30 games to lead the team. . . . Cuglietta played three seasons with the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials before going on to spend four seasons at Lake Superior State. He did time in the AHL and ECHL before joining Cortina prior to this season. . . .
From the better-late-than-never department, the WHL’s 2022-23 Guide and Record Book is available for download at whl.ca. Perhaps someone in the Calgary office will put up a link on the home page. Otherwise, go to MORE on the menu near the top of the home page, then to MEDIA INFORMATION and click on the encircled plus sign. You’ll find the link right there. Happy downloading!
SATURDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:
THE BEDARD REPORT: F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats added a goal and two assists to his eye-popping numbers, but his side dropped a 7-4 decision to the visiting Winnipeg Ice. . . . The goal came with the Pats shorhanded. It was his fifth shortie of the season and sixth of his career. . . . This was Bedard’s 41st game of the season; he has put up multiple points in 29 of them. . . . He now has a WHL-leading 103 points, including 51 goals. He finished last season with 100 points, 50 of them goals. . . . Since returning to the Pats after leading Canada to gold at the World Junior Championship, Bedard has scored 24 goals and added 15 assists in 13 games. . . . In 118 regular-season WHL games, he now has 231 points, including 114 goals. . . . When Bedard struck for his 50th goal of the season in his 40th game on Friday night, I forgot to mention that the WHL record for quickest to 50 is held by F Bill Derlago, who did it in 27 games — YES, 27!!! — with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 1977-78. . . .
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In Regina, the Ice erased a 3-1 deficit with five straight goals en route to a 7-4 victory over the Pats. . . . F Evan Friesen (10) got the Ice into a 3-3 tie at 1:27 of the third period and F Matt Savoie (25) gave the visitors their first lead at 8:06. . . . F Connor Geekie (25) and F Zack Ostapchuk (19) stretched the lead to 6-3. That was Ostapchuk’s second goal; he also had an assist. . . . Savoie later put his 25th into an empty net. . . . Winnipeg (43-7-1) has won six in a row and leads the Eastern Conference by nine points. . . . Regina (25-24-3) has lost its past two and is tied with Swift Current and Medicine Hat for seventh in the conference. . . .
The Calgary Hitmen struck four times on the PP en route to a 7-2 victory over the Oil Kings in Edmonton. . . . The Hitmen finished 4-for-6 on the PP; Edmonton was 1-for-5 and gave up a shorthanded goal. . . . F Gavin Hodnett (11) gave Edmonton a 2-1 lead at 11:29 of the first period. . . . Calgary scored the last five goals. . . . F Sean Tschigerl (18) tied it on a PP at 13:07. . . . D Vojtech Husinecky’s first WHL goal, at 2:47 of the second period, stood up as the winner. Husinecky, a 17-year-old freshman from Czechia, has a goal and two assists in 28 games. . . . D Carter Yakemchuk (11) and F David Adaszynski (11) each had two goals for Calgary, with F Riley Fiddler-Schultz getting three assists. . . . Calgary (24-23-7) had lost its previous 10 games (0-7-3) and now is alone in sixth in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Regina, Swift Current and Medicine Hat. . . . Edmonton (8-42-3) has lost five straight. . . .
The Kelowna Rockets, outshot 46-15, were able to hang on and beat the visiting Portland Winterhawks, 3-1. . . . Kelowna G Talyn Boyko was the difference. He finished with 45 saves, 16 of them in the second period when the Rockets were outshot, 16-1. . . . The Rockets scored the last three goals. . . . F Game Klassen’s 30th goal gave Portland a 1-0 lead at 13:25 of the first period. . . . F Marcus Pacheco (9) got Kelowna even with a shorthanded score at 17:29 of the second. . . . The Rockets won it on third-period goals from F Turner McMillen (7) and F Adam Kydd (16). . . . The teams combined to take 11 minors — five to Kelowna F Andrew Cristall. . . . Kelowna (19-30-3) has won two in a row. It is eighth in the Western Conference but now is five points ahead of Victoria. . . . Portland (36-13-4) is on a three-game losing skid and now trails first-place Seattle by eight points in the conference. . . . .
F Kai Uchacz scored twice, including the winner, as the Red Deer Rebels beat the Tigers, 5-4 in OT, in Medicine Hat. . . . Red Deer has needed extra time for each of its past five victories — two in OT, three in shootouts. . . . Uchacz, who is second to F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats in the goal department, got his 43rd goal at 3:34 of OT. . . . F Shane Smith (18) had pulled the Tigers into a 4-4 tie at 3:37 of the third period. . . . The Tigers led 3-1 midway through the second period, but surrendered the next three goals, all via the PP. . . . Red Deer was 4-for-6 on the PP; Medicine Hat was 2-for-3. . . . Red Deer (37-13-4) leads the Central Division by 12 points over Lethbridge. . . . Medicine Hat (22-22-9) is tied with Regina and Swift Current for the Eastern Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot. . . .
F Niall Crocker scored twice to help the host Prince Albert Raiders to a 5-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Crocker, who has 11 goals, gave his guys a 1-0 lead at 14:19 of the first period and closed out the scoring, on a PP, at 17:32 of the third. . . . F Ryder Ritchie helped the winners with three assists. Ritchie, a 16-year-old from Calgary, was a first-round pick in the WHL’s 2021 draft. He has 37 points, including 22 assists, in 46 games as a freshman. This was his first three-assist outing and his second three-point game. . . . Crocker’s first career two-goal game came in his 138th regular-season game. A first-rounder from 2019, the native of Delta, B.C., has 23 points in 51 games this season, after recording three goals and three assists in 64 games last season. . . . Prince Albert (22-28-3) has won three in a row and is six points from a playoff spot. . . . Moose Jaw (33-19-3) has lost three straight. It is fourth in the Eastern Conference, three points ahead of Lethbridge. . . .
The Seattle Thunderbirds scored six times in the game’s first half as they skated to an 8-1 victory over the Victoria Royals in Kent, Wash. . . . D Kevin Korchinski finished with four assists; he had three of them just 8:20 into the first period. . . . It was Korchinski’s second four-point game this season and the fourth of his career. Korchinski was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the seventh overall pick of the NHL’s 2022 draft. This season, he has 55 points, including 48 assists, in 39 games. He now is a point-a-game player for his career, with 130 points in 130 regular-season games. . . . F Jared Davidson (31) and F Kyle Crnkovic (27) each scored twice for Seattle. . . . F Colton Dach, who last played a WHL game on Dec. 4, made his Seattle debut and had two assists. He suffered a shoulder injury while playing for Canada at the World Junior Championship, then was traded by the Kelowna Rockets — he had been their captain — to the Thunderbirds. . . . Seattle G Scott Ratzlaff stopped 24 shots for the victory. He now is 19-6-1, 2.15, .920 this season. . . . Seattle (41-9-2) has won six straight and looks headed to a first-place finish in the Western Conference. . . . Victoria (15-34-6) has lost two in a row and is five points from a playoff spot. . . . This was the first of three straight between these teams; they’ll play again Monday and Tuesday in Victoria. . . .
The Brandon Wheat Kings scored two first-period goals and went on to a 3-1 victory over the Broncos in Swift Current. . . . F Nolan Ritchie drew assists on the first-period scores from F Nate Danielson (26) and F Calder Anderson (13). . . . Brandon was 2-for-4 on the PP; Swift Current was 0-for-4. . . . Brandon (22-24-7) had lost its previous two games. It is 10th in the Eastern Conference, but just two points from a playoff spot. . . . Swift Current (25-24-3) has lost two in a row and is tied with Regina and Medicine Hat for the conference’s last playoff spot, two points ahead of Brandon. . . .
G Tomas Suchanek blocked 39 shots to lead the Tri-City Americans to a 3-0 victory over the Spokane Chiefs in Kennewick, Wash. . . . That was Suchanek’s first shutout this season and the second of his career. This season, he is 21-11-2, 3.16, .912. . . . F Deegan McMillan’s 13th goal, at 4:45 of the first period, was all the offence Suchanek would need. . . . Tri-City (26-20-7) had lost its previous six games (0-4-2). It is fourth in the Western Conference, two points ahead of Everett. . . . Spokane (11-36-6) had points in each of its previous three games (2-0-1). . . .
Blanked for almost 50 minutes, the Saskatoon Blades scored twice late to beat the Vancouver Giants, 2-1, in Langley, B.C. . . . The Blades went 4-1-0 in the B.C. Division, the lone loss coming by a 5-2 count in Kamloops on Feb. 10. . . . F Ty Thorpe (27) returned after sitting out a week with an undisclosed injury to give the Giants a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 13:51 of the second period. . . . F Jayden Wiens (12) got the Blades even, on a PP, at 9:43 of the third and F Conner Roulette (21) won it at 13:30. . . . The Blades got 19 stops from freshman G Austin Elliott. The 18-year-old from Strathmore, Alta., who was a 12th-round pick in the WHL’s 2019 draft, is 20-5-2, 1.97, .919. . . . The Giants also had Samuel Honzek back for the first time since he left for the World Junior Championship. He suffered a skate cut to one leg while playing for Slovakia in the WJC. Honzek has 43 points, 17 of them goals, in 31 games, so his offence will help the Giants. . . . Saskatoon (37-13-4) has four straight victories. It is tied with Red Deer for second in the Eastern Conference. But the Rebels are likely to win the Central Division so will be the second seed with the Blades third, both of them behind Winnipeg. . . . Vancouver (20-26-6) is seventh in the Western Conference, six points behind Prince George and five ahead of Kelowna.
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Kelowna Rockets, was traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds on Saturday morning. . . . Dach, who suffered an injury to his right shoulder in a game against Sweden on Dec. 31, won’t play for Seattle for perhaps eight weeks. The good news is that it doesn’t appear that he will need surgery to repair the damage. . . . The Rockets also gave up a fifth-round selection in the WHL’s 2024 draft, while getting back F Ty Hurley, D Ethan Mittelsteadt, a first-rounder in 2024 — it originated with the Regina Pats — two conditional picks, a second-rounder in 2025 and a fourth-rounder in 2023. The latter originally belonged to the Everett Silvertips. . . . 
Saskatoon Blades selected him in the first round, sixth overall, of the WHL’s 2018 draft. He had 22 goals and 27 assists in 82 games over two seasons with the Blades. . . . The Rockets acquired him from the Blades on Sept. 28, 2021, in exchange for F Trevor Wong. Last season, Dach put up 29 goals and 50 assists in 61 games with Kelowna. This season, he had nine goals and eight assists in 14 games. . . . He missed time early in the season because of two concussions, one incurred in training camp with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago picked him in the second round of the 2021 NHL draft. These days, the Blackhawks’ medical staff will be keeping close tabs on Dach and his shoulder. . . . 
suspended for the remainder of the 2022-23 regular season and the playoffs. . . . The suspension amounts to the regular-season’s final 15 games and whatever playoff games the Leafs end up playing. . . . The move followed a New Year’s Eve line brawl between the host Leafs and Beaver Valley Nitehawks. . . . Earlier in the week, the KIJHL issued 35 games in suspension to Nelson players and eight to the Nitehawks. . . . Later Friday, the Leafs, who won’t appeal any of the disciplinary decisions, announced that they had accepted DiBella’s resignation. . . . “Our investigation determined that the incident in Saturday’s game was instigated by the Leafs at Mr. DiBella’s direction,” Jeff Dubois, the KIJHL commissioner, said in a news release. “The KIJHL has zero tolerance for these types of actions by any team staff member, and the severity of Mr. DiBella’s suspension reflects the seriousness that we place on leadership and player safety.” . . . Should DiBella want to coach in the KIJHL in the future, he will have to apply to the 
commissioner for reinstatement. . . . The KIJHL also ruled that DiBella won’t be allowed in “any KIJHL facility for a period beginning one hour before and ending one hour after any Nelson Leafs game. He may not travel on the team bus and he may not be present on the ice, players’ bench, dressing room or office immediately before, during or after team practices. He is not to conduct any official business as a representative of the Nelson Leafs, such as player meetings, trade negotiations and athlete recruitment.” . . . As well, the Leafs were fined $5,000 “and instructed to take proactive steps to ensure all team staff are sufficiently trained and educated in the standards of conduct required under KIJHL regulations. A written report outlining steps taken by the organization in these areas must be submitted to the Commissioner no later than June 1, 2023.” . . . 
hasn’t played for the Red Deer Rebels since Oct. 22 due to an undisclosed injury. Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner and general manager, told Greg Meachem of 
The NAHL has approved a franchise for Greeley, Colo. The Colorado Grit will begin play in the Greeley Ice Haus in time for the 2023-24 season. The Grit will play out of the South Division. One of the team’s three owners is former NHLer David Clarkson. . . . There’s more right here.
This followed the decision by the WHL’s board of governors to approve the sale of the Kootenay Ice and the subsequent move to the Manitoba capital.
WHL season, with the Ice still playing out of the Wayne Fleming Arena.
indefinitely by the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League
be quick to salute Calder Anderson, Jake Chiasson, Nolan Ritchie and Ben Thornton of the Brandon Wheat Kings as this site’s sportsmen of the year. . . . In case you missed it, in the words of the Brandon Sun’s Perry Bergson, they “successfully interceded to help a distressed man who was contemplating suicide on the First Street Bridge” on the evening of Nov. 29. . . . “We’re very happy that we were able to save him and get him some help,” Thornton told Bergson, who added: “They also learned another lesson when 30 or 40 vehicles drove by without stopping in the short span they were trying to help the man. Yet they never considered leaving until the man was safe.” . . . Gentlemen, I salute you. . . . Bergson’s complete story is 
abysmal record unless being selfish and uncaring is the objective. Really, had you told me four years ago that the time was coming when our children would by dying, when our children would be unable to get much-needed surgical procedures, when our hospital’s emergency rooms would be over-run and that society would refuse to help by doing something as simple as masking up, well, I would have told you that you were crazy. . . . But, well, here we are.
in NHL history. So stop trying to tell me that he is. He’s still 88 behind Wayne Gretzky. Have people already forgotten just how great Gretzky was? . . . Allow me to point out that Gretzky also scored 92 goals in the WHA, which was a better league than many of those same people seem to recall. As for Gordie Howe, well he scored 801 NHL goals and another 174 in the WHA. . . . But when Ovechkin puts in No. 895, then you can call him the greatest goal scorer in NHL history. OK?
Canada beat Sweden, 5-1 — and left the game in obvious discomfort thanks to an injury to his right shoulder area. Dach, who turns 20 on Wednesday, has 17 points, nine of them goals, in 14 games with the Rockets this season. Earlier, he missed some time with a concussion. . . . The Rockets (12-18-3), who have lost five in a row, are eighth in the conference, seven points ahead of the Victoria Royals (8-24-4). . . . 
suffered a skate cut to the back of his left leg on Wednesday as his Slovakian side beat the U.S., 6-3. The 18-year-old Honzek, who is expected to be out as long as six weeks, leads the Giants in assists (26) and points (43) in 31 games. . . . Vancouver (14-16-6) is tied for fourth in the conference with the Tri-City Americans, who hold two games in hand. They are one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips. . . .
personal reasons, was dealt to Everett in exchange for Braden Holt. . . . Palmer, from Fernie, B.C., was in his second season with Victoria. He left the Royals sometime after a 7-4 loss to the visiting Portland Winterhawks on Nov. 12. . . . Holt, from Bozeman, Mont., was in his fourth season with Everett. In his first start with Victoria, he stopped 35 shots in a 3-0 victory over the host Vancouver Giants. . . . Having acquired Holt, the Royals then traded G Logan Cunningham, a 17-year-old from Sherwood Park, Alta., to the Edmonton Oil Kings for a fifth-round pick in the 2025 WHL draft. . . . After adding Cunningham to their roster, the Oil Kings dropped G Ronin Geraghty, 18. From Burnaby, B.C., he was 0-5-0, 6.48, .819 in seven games with Edmonton. . . .
Kootenay International Junior Hockey League took time out from chasing a puck to exchange Happy New Year greetings as they began the second period on Saturday evening. . . . The Leafs are the team in white in the above video, and the video evidence would seem to indicate that they were first off the mark. . . . The puck now has been passed to Jeff Dubois, the KIJHL commissioner. . . . Happy New Year, Mr. Dubois.
4 victory over the visiting Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Warriors (12-8-0) had lost their previous two games. . . . The Broncos slipped to 9-10-0. . . . The Warriors got two goals from F Jagger Firkus (11). . . . 
the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . The Blades (15-4-0) have won four straight. . . . The Tigers (6-9-5) have points in four straight (2-0-2). . . . Sidorov’s ninth goal came at 1:11 of OT. . . . F Brendan Lee, who played 30 games with the Blades last season, had a goal and an assist for the Tigers. His goal, at 3:56 of the third period, tied the score, 3-3. . . . Lee went into this season with 40 points in 123 regular-season games. This season, he has 19 points, 11 of them goals, in 20 games. . . . Darren Steinke was in attendance and posted this report 
victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Hurricanes (11-8-1) have points in seven straight (6-0-1). . . . The Rebels (16-3-2) have points in their past two outings (1-0-1). . . . F Jayden Grubbe had a goal (6) and an assist for the Rebels, his goal tying the score 2-2 at 1:07 of the third period. . . . F Tyson Zimmer (3) had a goal and an assist for Lethbridge. . . . G Bryan Thomson, who has yet to play after having off-season surgery, was on the Lethbridge bench in support of starter Harrison Meneghin, who made 35 stops. . . . G Kyle Kelsey stopped 33 shots for Red Deer, 15 of them in the first period when his guys were outshot, 16-4. . . . D Kale Tipler, a sixth-round pick in the 2021 WHL draft, made his WHL debut with the Hurricanes. He plays for the U18 AAA Lloydminster Bobcats. . . .
losing skid with a 5-3 victory over the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Edmonton now is 3-17-1. . . . Brandon, which has lost four straight, is 7-13-2. . . . F Gavin Hodnett, who had gone eight games without a point, led Edmonton with three goals, his first goals in the WHL, and two assists. A first-round pick in the 2021 bantam draft, the Winnipegger had two assists in five games last season; this season, he now has three goals and seven assists in 16 games. . . . F Cole Miller (5) added two goals and an assist for the winners. . . . F Nolan Ritchie (8) scored twice for Brandon. . . . G Kolby Hay of the Oil Kings stopped 36 shots. . . .
beat the Everett Silvertips, 4-1. . . . Portland (15-1-2) has points in 10 straight (8-0-2). . . . Everett (12-7-0) has lost two in a row. . . . After a scoreless first period, the Winterhawks struck three times in the second period. . . . D Ryder Thompson got Portland started with his first goal of this season and his second in 87 career games. He also had an assist. . . . F Robbie Fromm-Delorme (11) and F Aidan Litke (5) also had a goal and an assist each. . . . Portland finished with a 36-27 edge in shots; it has outshot each of its opponents through 18 games. . . . 
Spokane Chiefs, 10-3. . . . The Rockets are 7-8-1; the Chiefs now are 4-12-1. . . . F Marcus Pacheco (5), F Colton Dach (5) and F Andrew Cristall (14) each had two goals and two assists. . . . F Grady Lenton scored his first WHL goal for the Rockets. It came in his 12th game. . . . G Dawson Cowan, who arrived in Spokane in a deal that had G Mason Beaupit go to the Winnipeg Ice, got into his first game with the Chiefs as he took over from Cooper Michaluk with the score 5-0. . . . 
Americans a 4-3 victory over the Calgary Hitmen in Kennewick, Wash. . . . The Americans (8-11-0) had lost their past three games. . . . The Hitmen (10-5-3) are 2-1-1 on their U.S Division trek that wraps up tonight in Spokane. . . . Greenway, who has 10 goals, tied it, 3-3, at 7:44 of the third period, then won it at 2:50 of OT. . . . The Americans overcame 2-0 and 3-2 deficits. . . . Tri-City D Lukas Dragicevic had two assists in running his point streak to 13 games. He has two points in each of his past five games. . . . F Oliver Tulk (10) scored twice for Calgary. . . . F Ethan Ernst scored once for the Americans. He has 12 goals and 12 assists in 18 games; last season, he finished with 12 goals and 12 assists in 62 games. . . . G Jared Picklyk, acquired by the Americans from the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday, wasn’t dressed. They started Tomas Suchanek and had Nick Avakyan on the bench. . . .
dumped the Victoria Royals, 9-1. . . . The Cougars (11-9-0) have won two in a row. . . . The Royals (3-15-3) have lost six straight (0-5-1). . . . Thornton finished with six points — his first three-goal game and three assists — as he ran his point streak to 12 games. . . . Thornton, a 19-year-old from Winnipeg, has 29 points 22 of them assists, in 20 games. . . . F Chase Wheatcroft scored his 15th goal for the Cougars, making them the only one of the WHL’s 22 teams with two 15-goal men. F Koehn Ziemmer, who was held to one assist last night, also has 15 goals. . . . The Royals released F Caleb Willms as they got down to the mandated three 20-year-olds. They kept F Alex Thacker, who was acquired Thursday from the Lethbridge Hurricanes, F Jake Poole and F Riley Gannon. Thacker was in the lineup last night. . . . F Grant Reid, a third-round pick in the WHL’s 2022 draft, made his debut with Victoria. Reid, 15, plays for the U18AAA team at the Yale Hockey Academy in Abbotsford, B.C. . . . The Royals also had F Cole Reschny, the third overall selection in the 2022 draft, in the lineup for the third time this season. He plays for the U18 AAA Saskatoon Blazers. . . . And, with G Tyler Palmer out for personal reasons, Victoria had Jayden Kraus, who turned 16 on Friday, backing up Logan Cunningham. Kraus plays for the U18AAA Prince Albert Mintos. He was a third-round pick in the 2021 draft. Kraus entered the game with his guys trailing 5-0 and stopped 17 of 21 shots. . . . The Cougars and Royals will meet again tonight in Victoria. . . . 
Blazers to a 4-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C. . . . The Blazers (9-4-3) have points in three straight (2-0-1). . . . Vancouver (7-9-4) has lost two in a row. The Giants played at home for the first time since Oct. 23. They were 4-3-1 on their road swing. . . . Stankoven , who had a shorthanded goal and two assists, has 26 points, 12 of them goals, in the 12 games in which he has played since being returned by the NHL’s Dallas Stars. In eight of those games, he has put up at least two points. . . . In 189 career regular-season games with the Blazers, the Kamloops native has 93 goals and 96 assists.
outings — as they come out of a bye week and prepare to meet the visiting Calgary Stampeders on Saturday. . . . The fun began on Tuesday when Cody Fajardo, the starting quarterback, didn’t take an active role in practice. Head coach Craig Dickenson, whose job would seem to be on the line, said that Fajardo was taking a “vet” day and that he would start on Saturday. Headline at leaderpost-com — Cody Fajardo given ‘vet day’; will start Saturday against Calgary. . . . On Wednesday, however, Dickenson said that backup Mason Fine will start. On top of which, Fajardo told the newshounds that he had been told five days previous that he wouldn’t be starting. . . . “Cody Fajardo has absorbed more than his fair share of hits during the 2022 CFL season,” writes Murray McCormick of The Leader-Post, “but even he was blindsided by his demotion from starting quarterback to second string with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.” . . . As for Fajardo, he told those same newshound: “I hope there’s somebody out there that might still want me. I don’t think this is the end of the Cody Fajardo book. But it might be the end of this chapter.” . . . With two games remaining — they finish up next weekend in Calgary — the Roughriders haven’t yet been eliminated from the playoff picture, but time is of the essence. . . . “We need a spark,” Dickenson said in giving his reason for the QB switch. . . . Well, take a trip around social media and check out the Saskatchewan fans. I think Dickenson’s spark has started a fire. Yes, they do take their football seriously on the flatlands.
beaten, 3-0, by the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The Rockets find themselves with three goaltenders on their roster after the NHL’s New York Rangers returned Boyko on Monday. Boyko, selected in the fourth round of the NHL draft, has signed with the Rangers, who had assigned him to the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen. . . . The Rockets acquired the 6-foot-8 Boyko from the Tri-City Americans early last season. With Kelowna, he was 28-12-4, 2.79, .913 in 46 games. In 102 career WHL regular-season games, he is 43-43-8, 3.56, .899. . . . The other two goaltenders on the Rockets’ roster are both 18-year-old freshmen — Nicholas Cristiano of Langley, B.C., and Jari Kykkanen of Lloydminster, Alta. Kykkanen, a sixth-round pick in the WHL’s 2019 draft, is 3-3-1, 3.71, .883 in seven appearances; Cristiano, who has been in three games, is 0-1-0, 2.61, .879. . . . The Rockets now are carrying two 20-year-olds — Boyko and F Adam Kydd. . . . 
hard hit in a game with the Vancouver Giants at the Langley Events Centre on Friday night.
the team’s six owners and the organization’s president.
tonight (Monday) when they visit his former club, the Dallas Stars. Bowness tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday and missed that night’s home game, a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers. The Jets are hopeful that Bowness will be available on Friday when they meet the Colorado Avalanche in Denver. . . . With Bowness sidelined, associate coach Scott Arniel is in charge.
Everett on Friday night. Dach, 19, needed help getting off the ice after a hit from D Dexter Whittle, who was given a major and game misconduct. On Saturday, he was hit with a three-game suspension.
point lead atop the WHL scoring race after scoring two goals and setting up another in a 4-3 victory over the Broncos in Swift Current. Bedard has 19 points, five ahead of F Gabriel Szturc of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . In Swift Current, Bedard’s WHL-leading ninth goal broke a 3-3 tie with 7.8 seconds left in the third period. . . . The Pats are 6-4-0 and Bedard has four game-winners. . . . From Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post: “Bedard didn’t score his 19th point until his 23rd game last season, which he finished with 100 points (including 51 goals) in 62 games.”
an assist to help the visiting Red Deer Rebels to a 4-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors on Friday night. King, 20, was playing in his first game after being in camp with the Anaheim Ducks, who selected him in the fourth round of the NHL’s 2022 draft. The Rebels now are 6-0-0. . . . In Kennewick, Wash., F Logan Stankoven, the CHL’s player of the year for 2021-22, had two goals and an assist as the Kamloops Blazers dropped the Tri-City Americans, 7-1. Stankoven, 19, was playing in his first game since being returned to Kamloops by the NHL’s Dallas Stars. . . . A rematch of last season’s WHL final didn’t turn out to be much as the Seattle Thunderbirds (of Kent, Wash.) dumped the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings, 7-0. While the Thunderbirds ran their record to 6-0-0, the Oil Kings slipped to 1-7-1.
from Bill Chow, who resigned after spending 11 years in the position. . . . From an SJHL news release: “McIntyre, a Saskatoon product, played U18 hockey with his hometown Contacts and Blazers before playing four seasons in the SJHL with Swift Current and Yorkton. He also served recently on the board of directors for the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos and Saskatchewan High School Athletics and was heavily involved in both minor hockey and minor baseball in Swift Current.
Monday night as the host Vancouver Giants eliminated the Everett Silvertips. . . . So now it’s on to the second round, which will open on Thursday with the No. 3 Red Deer Rebels visiting the No. 2 Edmonton Oil Kings. The other Eastern Conference series is to being on Friday with the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors in Winnipeg to meet the No. 1 Ice. . . . In the Western Conference, the No. 8 Giants will be in Kamloops to face the No. 2 Blazers on Friday, while the No. 4 Seattle Thunderbirds will open at home in Kent, Wash., to the No. 3 Portland Winterhawks on Saturday. Due to building availability in Portland — the arena is booked for high school graduation ceremonies — the Portland-Seattle series will have a 1-2-1-1-1-1-1 format. . . . Meanwhile, here’s a look at what happened last night in Langley, B.C. . . . 
history with a 6-3 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The No. 8 Giants, who finished 47 points behind the No. 1 Silvertips, won the series, 4-2. . . . How large was this upset? Prior to the game, Steve Ewen of Postmedia wrote: “Since the junior league went to a 16-team post-season split between two conferences in 2002, a No. 8 seed has never beaten a No. 1 in the first round of the playoffs, according to the league office.” . . . D Connor Horning (2) gave the Giants 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 1:15, with D Alex Cotton (4) upping it to 2-0 at 3:15, and D Mazden Leslie (2) making it 3-0 at 11:43. . . . After Horning’s goal, the Giants’ PP was 13-31 (41.9) in the playoffs. In the regular season, it operated at 17.7, good for 18th in the 22-team league. . . . F Ben Hemmerling (1) got Everett to within two goals at 12:40 of the second, only to have F Zack Ostapchuk (3), who assisted on each of the first two goals, get that one back at 17:51. . . . F Ryan Hofer’s sixth goal of the series, on a PP, at 10:00 of the third period cut the Everett deficit to two. . . . Vancouver restored its three-goal lead when D Damian Palmieri (1) scored at 15:32. . . . F Adam Hall’s seventh goal in six games, at 16:52, upped the lead to 6-2. . . . Everett D Jonny Lambos (1) closed out the scoring at 18:35. . . . Ostapchuk finished with a goal and four assists, giving him a WHL-leading 16 points, including 13 assists, in the series. . . . F Fabian Lysell added four assists. He totalled 15 points in the series. . . . The Silvertips were without three of their five leading scorers. Already without 46-goal F Jackson Berezowski (season-ending surgery), they lost F Niko Huuhtanen to an apparent leg injury in Game 5 on Saturday. He didn’t play last night and neither did F Michal Gut. Those three combined for 101 goals and 126 assists in the regular season.
player who started the season as the Regina Pats’ head coach, have been named to the coaching staff of the Canadian team that will play in the IIHF U-18 world championship. . . . That tournament is to be held in Landshut and Kaufbeuren, Germany, from April 23 through May 1. . . . Team Canada’s coaching staff also includes Kori Cheverie, who will be the first female to coach one of the country’s national men’s teams. She spent five seasons (2016-21) as an assistant with Ryerson U’s men’s team and this season worked with the Canadian women’s Olympic team. . . . Baumgartner was a defenceman with the Kamloops Blazers when they won the 1994 and 1995 Memorial Cup titles. He had been part of the Vancouver Canucks organization since 2012 until he was let go in a regime change this season. He was with the Canadian men’s Olympic team at the Winter Games in Beijing earlier this year. . . . Struch spent nine seasons with the Regina Pats before being fired as head coach earlier this season. He played four seasons (1988-92) with the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The U-18 team’s coach staff also includes assistant coach Todd Miller, who is a former head coach of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals and was an assistant coach with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 2020-21, and goaltending consultant Brad Kirkwood, who works with the Calgary Hitmen and the U of Calgary women’s and men’s teams. . . . The complete news release is 
TAKING NOTE 