Tag: Dale Woodard

Does Minten have WHL’s best hands? . . . Wheat Kings, Ice preparing for return to home ice . . . Hey, KIJHL, it’s about those coaches

F Fraser Minten, 17, is in his second season with the Kamloops Blazers. After scoring four goals and adding 14 assists in the developmental season of 2021, he has 27 points, including 16 assists, in 39 games this season. From Vancouver, he was a fourth-round selection in the WHL’s 2019 draft. . . . Whenever the pandemic loosens enough that the WHL will able to hold an awards luncheon, Minten will tickle the ivories in providing the pre-game entertainment. Hey, talk about good hands . . . 

The Brandon Wheat Kings will play a home game on Tuesday night for the first Brandontime since Dec. 30 when they dropped a 3-2 shootout decision to the Edmonton Oil Kings. The Manitoba government has had restrictions in place that limit teams in that province to 250 fans. That restriction will change to 50 per cent of capacity as of Tuesday. The Red Deer Rebels were to have played in Brandon on Jan. 1, but that was postponed to Feb. 7. That game now will be played on Tuesday. . . . The Winnipeg Ice last played a home game on Dec. 18 when it was beaten 4-2 by Brandon. The Ice is scheduled to entertain the Wheat Kings on Feb. 10.

Parachute

Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon, had some interesting numbers in his Wednesday musings . . .

“For the 2021 MLB season, teams paid out $$871,443,647 to 852 players who missed a total of 48,029 games due to placement on the Injured List. I believe my observation at the time was something like ‘that’s a lot of cheese. . . .’

“For the NBA season to date, there are similar staggering numbers. Spotrac.com makes a distinction in the case of the NBA that was not present in its MLB compilation — there are three lists: one is for players who are injured, another is for players who don’t play so they can ‘rest,’ and the third is for players who have missed games for ‘personal reasons’.

“For games missed due to injury, 464 players have missed 4,631 games and have received $568,370,291 in salary. The NBA regular season is about 65% over so that salary number projects to be about $874M.

“For games missed due to ‘resting,’ 25 players have missed a total of 50 games and earned $4,010,706 while ‘resting.’ If that keeps on the same pace, that money projection is another $6.2M.

“For the ‘personal’ list, 27 players have missed 274 games while earning $81,809,966. That figure projects to be $126M at season’s end.

“So, the total amount of money paid to NBA players while not playing so far this year is $654,190,963. Using a crude linear extrapolation, the end of the regular season will see that total rise to $1.0B. Indeed, it looks as if the NBA teams will pay out more than the MLB teams did last year to non-performing players.”

The Sports Curmudgeon’s complete piece is right here.

“The NFL fined Kansas City Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill for using a cheerleader’s pom-poms to celebrate a touchdown,” reports Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times. “League bean-counter, penciling out the unsportsmanlike-conduct tally: “Two bits, four bits, six bits . . . $12,875.”

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Perry, again: “The Beijing Winter Olympics have cut down on ticket sales because of the pandemic, NBC and ESPN are calling the action remotely from Connecticut and organizers have to import man-made snow because the real stuff is a no-show. Other than that, let the Games begin!”

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And thanks to Perry for this one, which I had forgotten: “New York Islanders Hall of Famer Clark Gillies, who died at 67 on Jan. 21, when once asked where his native Moose Jaw was located: ‘Six feet from the moose’s ass.’ ”

Ignorance

If you’ve watched the NHL’s Minnesota Wild over the last while, you may have wondered about head coach Dean Evason’s complexion. Well, Wild GM Bill Guerin answered the question. Here’s what Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet wrote in his latest 32 Thoughts: “Guerin did answer one mystery: how does Evason have a tan wintering in Minnesota? ‘He plays 250 rounds of golf a year. It’s permanent.’ ” . . . Friedman’s latest good read is right here.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS: Dale Woodard, who among other things has covered the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes for the Lethbridge Herald, tweeted on Thursday: “An upcoming change at the Lethbridge Herald. After 13.5 great years, I will be stepping down. My last day is March 4. To my co-workers, colleagues/friends and all you amazing people I’ve been able to talk to: thank you all so much. You guys are the reason I love this city so much.” . . .

The Everett Silvertips have signed assistant coach Dean DeSilva to a two-year contract extension. He is in his first season working alongside head coach Dennis Williams and associate coach Louis Mass. From a news release: “DeSilva is primarily tasked with working with the Silvertips’ forward group, focusing on skill development, face-offs, individual video breakdown and pre-scout of opponents.” . . .

Congrats of some kind must be in order for the junior B Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. Is there another junior league that can boast of having had seven head coaches suspended since Jan. 1? . . . Travers Rebman of the Kelowna Chiefs sat out two games for “harrassment of officials,” Chuck Wight of the Golden Rockets, Ty Valin of the Fernie Ghostriders and Derek Stuart of the Kimberley Dynamiters drew two games each for “failing to control the bench at the end of a period,” and Terry Jones of the Beaver Valley Nighthawks, Geoff Grimwood of the Kamloops Storm and Dave Hnatiuk of the Grand Forks Border Bruins drew three apiece for harassment of officials. . . . And that doesn’t even include Mason Spear, an assistant coach with Beaver Valley, who got five games for harassment of officials. He got game and gross misconducts at the time. . . . Might be time for the 19-team league to start giving its on-ice officials danger pay.

Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun listed his all-time favourite Penguins the other day: “Sidney Crosby, Mario Lemieux, Burgess Meredith, Jaromir Jagr, Bob Johnson and Danny DeVito.”

Elevator

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.

Kids

Gov’t money helps Hurricanes show profit . . . Veteran Ridley on health-related break . . . Gaume moves into broadcast booth in Red Deer

Despite not being able to have fans attend any of their 12 home games in the LethWHL’s 2021 developmental season, the Lethbridge Hurricanes showed a profit of $72,250 for 2020-21. The team, which is publicly owned, revealed its financial statement at its annual general meeting on Monday night. . . . At its previous AGM, delayed by the pandemic and held virtually on Jan. 18, the shareholders had been told that in a worst-case scenario, there could be a $1.3-million loss for 2021. That was based on projected expenses of $1.7 million and revenues of $383,000. Obviously, the worst-case scenario didn’t happen. . . . A big part of being able to show a profit was government grant funding that came in at $668,000. . . . Terry Huisman, the team’s general manager of business operations, said that it cost the Hurricanes $850,000 to prepare for and play in 2021’s abbreviated schedule. . . . Dale Woodard of the Lethbridge Herald quoted Huisman as saying: “Had we not gotten that money we would have been probably right back to where we were when I started six years ago and we all know that wasn’t fun. So for me, I sit here and I’m happy about it, but there is a tremendous amount of work that went in behind the scenes. Not only just to secure that money, but also to make sure we ran as lean as possible and we capitalized on every opportunity to increase revenue.” . . . In the period from 2011-15, the Hurricanes lost more than $1.25 million. Starting with 2015-16 and running through 2018-19, the Hurricanes showed profits of $197,000, $737,710, $422,443 and $282,168. . . . With the 2019-20 season halted in March by the pandemic, the Hurricanes announced a loss of $1,030 at their 2020 AGM. . . . Woodard’s complete story is right here.

A familiar voice — and face — will be missing on Friday night when the Medicine Hat Tigers open their 2021-22 regular season against the Broncos in Swift Current. The teams will meet again Saturday night, this time in Medicine Hat.

This will be the Tigers’ 52nd season in the WHL, but Bob Ridley, the play-by-play voice of the Tigers for the first 51, won’t be on the air.

Ridley, who reached the 4,000-game mark during the WHL’s developmental season last spring, tweeted on Monday that he will be in Lethbridge undergoing radiation treatments.

In Ridley’s absence, Scott Roblin will be calling the play of Tigers games.

As amazing as it sounds, Ridley has called the play of every single Tigers’ game over those first 51 seasons — with one exception. In the spring of 1973, he was sent to Saskatoon to cover a curling event in which — yes! — his boss’s wife was playing.

Sleep

Hockey Canada announced on Monday that has cancelled the 2021 national women’s U-18 championship, the 2021 Para Hockey Cup, and the 2021 World Junior A Challenge. . . . The women’s tournament was to have been held in Dawson Creek, B.C., from Oct. 31 through Nov. 6. . . . The Para Hockey Cup was going to be decided in Bridgewater, N.S., Dec. 5-12. . . . The Junior A event was scheduled for Cornwall, Ont., Dec. 12-19.

The NHL’s New York Islanders have found a place to play for their one unvaccinated player — D Bode Wilde. He will join Västerviks IK of HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second tier pro league. The Islanders announced on Tuesday that they have loaned Wilde, 21, to Västerviks IK. A second-round pick by the Islanders in the NHL’s 2018 draft, he had three goals and three assists in 22 games with the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers last season.

G Mackenzie Blackwood of the New Jersey Devils, who missed some games last season while ill with COVID-19, admitted Tuesday that he has yet to get vaccinated. “I’ve not decided one way or the other . . . I’m taking a little bit of extra time,” Blackwood, 24, said. . . . Greg Wyshynski of ESPN has a whole lot more on that story right here.

Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon, closed his Tuesday entry with this — “With all the sturm und drang surrounding which NBA players have been vaccinated and which have not, I believe this observation by Oscar Wilde is relevant: ‘Thinking is the most unhealthy thing in the world, and people die of it just as they die of any other disease.’ ”

The Tampa Bay Rays may be without LHR Adam Conley when the MLB playoffs start after he tested positive on Monday. Although he is asymptomatic, he is in quarantine for 10 days, so likely will be missing when the postseason begins.

When the Rolling Stones’ No Filter Tour stops in Atlanta on Nov. 11, the Zac Brown Band is scheduled as the opening act. Uhh, not so fast, says COVID-19. . . . The Zac Brown Band has its own tour on the go — Comeback Tour — but that has been put on hold after Zac tested positive. For starters, the band has had to cancel four shows through Oct. 3. . . . Time will tell whether Zac and his gang can keep their date with Mick and the boys.

Hiring

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.

www.transplant.bc.ca/health-info/organ-donation/living-donation

Steve

JUST NOTES: Former WHL F Nick Drazenovic has joined The Sports Corporation as its director of player development. TSC is an Edmonton-based sports agency. Drazenovic, 34, played four-plus seasons (2002-07) with his hometown Prince George Cougars. He retired as a player after the 2015-16 season. He then spent three seasons with the Cougars as director of player development and one on the coaching staff of the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. . . . Dallas Gaume is taking over from Mike Moller as the analyst on broadcasts of Red Deer Rebels’ games. Moller, who had filled the role for 23 years, told the team after last season that he wouldn’t return. “Cam (Moon) and I were buddies and I always said to Cam that ‘when you leave, I leave,’ and of course he went up to Edmonton earlier this year.” Moon, the long-time voice of the Rebels, now works Edmonton Oilers’ games. Gaume, a former Rebels assistant coach (1999-2010), now manages the Red Deer Minor Hockey Association. Gaume will work alongside Troy Gillard, who took over from Moon. Greg Meachem of the Rebels has more right here.

Shot

Scattershooting on a Saturday night while wondering when COVID-19’s winning streak will end . . .

The Boston Bruins were to have played the Sabres in Buffalo on Saturday, but nhl2that didn’t happen. Boston’s game against the visiting New York Islanders that was to have been played on Tuesday also has been postponed and the Bruins’ team facilities are closed until at least Wednesday. . . . Yes, it’s all because of the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols. . . . Boston F Sean Kuraly went on the list on Thursday, and four more players — F Jake DeBrusk, F David Krejci, F David Pastrnak and F Craig Smith — were added on Friday . . . The Bruins had won, 4-1, in Buffalo on Thursday, as the Sabres had a staff member enter protocol. From Feb. 2-13, the Sabres missed six games and had nine players on the protocol list. Ralph Krueger, then the Sabres’ head coach, also tested positive during that time. . . . The NHL now has had to postpone 37 games because of COVID-19 protocols.

The Okotoks Oilers were to have met the host Brooks Bandits in an AJHL game ajhlon Saturday night. However, the league announced Saturday morning that the game “has been canceled due to precautionary measures within the AJHL Return to Play Plan.” . . . Brooks is scheduled to visit the Calgary Canucks today at 2 p.m. . . . On Thursday, the AJHL announced that it had “completed a fourth round of testing . . . with no positive COVID-19 results across 391 players and staff.” . . . Don’t be expecting anyone from the AJHL or any of its teams to be talking about this latest development, either. The last person who talked to the media on the subject got drilled with a 15-game suspension and a $1,000 fine. That discipline was dished out before Christmas but there doesn’t seem to be any mention of it on the AJHL’s website.

Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon, after watching an early March Madness game: “The officials in the UCLA/Michigan State game may have been auditioning for jobs in the NBA. They certainly ignored enough traveling violations to demonstrate to the NBA mavens that they have that part of their officiating duties down pat.”

Vaccine

It won’t show up on your bracket, but COVID-19 actually won a game in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament on Saturday in Indianapolis. No. 7 Oregon was to have met No. 10 Virginia Commonwealth. However, the game was declared a no-contest because of COVID-19 issues with VCU, so Oregon was handed the victory. . . . Oregon will play No. 2 Iowa on Monday. . . . Matt Norlander of CBS Sports reported that VCU experienced positive tests on Wednesday and Friday evenings and Saturday morning. . . . Don’t forget that the virus knocked Duke, Kansas and Virginia out of their conference tournaments just a week earlier.

Headline at TheOnion.com — Report: Most NFL teams just 1 or 2 overpriced free agents away from Super Bowl victory.

“We concern ourselves with the money athletes make,” notes Nick Canepa of The San Diego Union-Tribune. “The video game Grand Theft Auto II has made $6 billion.”

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Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times checked out the transaction wire the other day and found this: “Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez: headed for free agency one day, exercising their mutual option the next.”

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Perry also has discovered that “Tigerleg has supplanted dogleg as the more currently discussed golf term.”

The NBA’s San Francisco Warriors were left without even one centre after Kevin Looney went into the league’s health and safety protocols and missed Saturday’s 111-103 loss to the host Memphis Grizzlies. . . . If Looney is out for a week, as is often the case in the NBA, he’ll miss four games. . . . The Warriors also have centre James Wiseman and forward Eric Paschall on protocol list.

Cukes

With MLB working hard to find gimmicks that will draw new fans to its game, Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle pointed out a few things in a recent column. Here’s part of it:

“Major League Baseball announced it will ‘slightly deaden’ the balls this season, enough to take a couple feet off deep drives. Maybe promote more hitting, less clouting.

“This comes after decades of commissioners insisting MLB has no control over the juiciness of the ball. MLB was always like the hot-dog vendor telling his customer, ‘Buddy, I have no idea what goes into these tube steaks, I just sell ’em. You want to ask questions, go on Jeopardy!, OK?’

“Suddenly Rob Manfred and his crew are micro-controlling the flight of the balls? Did they just find out where the ball factory is and phone the juicemaster?

“In the 2015 season, total homers jumped from 4,186 to 4,909, and the total in 2019 was 6,776, and MLB officials shrugged and said they had no idea what was going on.

“Now they’re microtweaking the ball like it’s the intake manifold of a moon rocket.

“How about getting one ball you like and sticking with it?

“At least MLB has a swell new motto for the 2021 season: ‘Baseball: Slightly deadened!’ ”

Ostler’s complete column is right here.

The Toronto Blue Jays were back on Sportsnet on Saturday afternoon, beating the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-1. If you’re a Blue Jays fan, you had the pleasure of listening to the Phillies’ broadcast crew. . . . On Sunday, it’s the Blue Jays and the New York Yankees on Sportsnet, and I’m betting it’ll be Michael Kay of the YES Network calling the play, perhaps with David Cone riding shotgun. So if you’re wanting to learn about the Blue Jays’ players and how their spring has been, well, you’re going to have to wait. Yes, Rogers is taking an interesting approach to promoting its baseball team by picking up telecasts from other teams.

Pie

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: The AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders fired general manager Kyle Chase on Friday. He had been GM since May 27, 2016, with the going 153-83-8 since then. Chase had been with the organization since 2004 and also had been co-owner and governor. . . . Colorado College is looking for a new men’s hockey coach now that Mike Haviland is out after seven seasons with the Tigers. This was one of those mutual agreement decisions with athletic director Lesley Irvine announcing that Haviland had “decided to move on.” The Tigers were 4-17-2 this season during which they were shut down three times by positive tests. . . . The U of Wisconsin won the NCAA women’s hockey championship on Saturday, beating Northeastern 2-1 in OT in Erie, Pa. Wisconsin’s roster included Dara Greig of Lethbridge, whose brother Ridly plays for the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings, along with Saskatoon’s Shirley sisters, Sophie and Grace. Their brother, Collin, played 344 regular-season games over five WHL seasons (Kootenay Ice, Kamloops Blazers, 2012-17).

Smoking

Let’s all strive to ‘Be Like Scott’ . . . Ice coming out of Pats’ home arena . . . Ex-Hurricanes defenceman dies at 37

It was in 1992 when Gatorade launched its “Be Like Mike” advertising campaign, one that was wrapped around then-NBA star Michael Jordan.

Here we are, almost 30 years later, and all I want is to Be Like Scott.

That would be Scott Thomas.

As hard as it may be to believe, almost three years have slid by since the bus crash involving the SJHL’s Humboldt Broncos. Thomas and his wife, Laurie, lost their son Evan in the crash. He was one of the 16 people who died as a result of the bus colliding with a big rig while en route to Nipawin for a playoff game.

Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the truck’s driver, is serving an eight-year sentence, and will be eligible to apply for parole in September. He also is waiting for a decision on whether he will be deported.

Not only does Scott Thomas think that shouldn’t happen, he has written a letter in support of Sidhu’s staying in Canada to the Canadian Border Services Agency. Thomas also has been in communication via email with Sidhu and his family.

“I don’t have the energy for hatred, our family just doesn’t,” Thomas told Ken Campbell of The Hockey News. “For me to go on and function and to be the best father I can be to the one daughter I have left and to leave this place with a positive impact and do something for our son’s legacy . . . for us to move forward, the best thing for us to do is forgive. There are days when I want to scream and there are days I do scream at the world, but for us to move forward, the easiest path to that is forgiveness and compassion.”

Pat McKay of CTV has a story right here, and Campbell’s piece is right here.

Take a few minutes out of your day and read them both. You’ll be a better person for having done it.

Let’s not forget, too, that Scott Thomas continues to advocate for standardized training across Canada for semi-truck drivers. You can bet that we’ll be hearing from him on that subject again and again and again, all the while wondering why politicians don’t sit up and take notice.

Bighorns
This was the scene just a few kilometres east of downtown Kamloops on Friday afternoon as five male bighorn sheep were on the prowl above the South Thompson River.

The Regina Exhibition Association announced Friday that the ice is being taken out of the Brandt Centre, the home of the WHL’s Regina Pats. . . . Under the present public health restrictions in Saskatchewan, the Brandt Centre is closed through Jan. 29. . . . . In making Friday’s announcement, the association suggested to renters that “if the ice is installed for any reason over the next three months, ice may become available to rent.” . . . Should the WHL get to play the 24-game schedule that it has said it is “committed” to, games almost certainly will be played in empty facilities. Without ice in the Brandt Centre, the Pats could play next door in the Co-operators Centre. . . .

Earlier in the week, the Edmonton Oil Kings told season-ticket holders that if they get to play games this spring they’ll be in the Downtown Community Arena rather than Rogers Place, which also is home to the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. . . . The Spokane Arena, home of the WHL’s Chiefs, is to be used as a mass vaccination site starting on Wednesday.

In the midst of a global pandemic that is not showing any signs of abating, we take a look at messaging from a pair of under-18 hockey leagues.

In Saskatchewan, the under-18 female and male leagues have postponed their seasons, and it sure sounds as though the boys might be finished for this season.

“Due to the ongoing pandemic and health restrictions, the SU18AAAHL schedule will be postponed effective Jan. 19, 2021,” reads a release on the league’s website. “If public health measures allow for a return to game play at any time, the executive will meet and review game play options for any teams that wish to continue. “

Among the reasons for the decision: “Provide parents the freedom to move their son(s) home for personal reasons. For some parents this will take some pressure off their decision. . . . Provide billets the option to continue hosting players during the COVID-19 19 crisis. This will give them a freedom to evaluate their involvement.”

Meanwhile, next door in Manitoba, the male U18 AAA league has sent what it calls an “open letter” to Premier Brian Pallister, Heather Stefanson, the minister of health and senior services, and Dr. Roussin, the province’s chief health officer. In the letter, signed by Levi A. Taylor, the commissioner, the league makes a case for why it should be allowed to return to play.

At one point, the letter claims that “the continued prohibition of social interaction and limitation of permitted physical activities has caused immeasurable harm to the children of this province.”

Later, there is this: “The Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League calls on you to reopen recreation facilities, gyms, and fitness centres for use by children and youth. It can be done (safely), and it must be done now to curtail the harms inflicted.”

The complete letter is right here.

As of Friday morning, there had been 28,260 cases of COVID-19 recorded in Manitoba, with 795 deaths. . . . Saskatchewan’s totals were 21,643 and 247.

Energy

THE COVID-19 CHRONICLES . . .

CBC News — 173 COVID-19 cases in Manitoba, above the province’s 7-day average of 160. 2 additional deaths are also being reported. On the vaccine front, 23,884 doses have been administered so far.

CBC News — Saskatchewan reported 312 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Friday along with eight additional deaths.

CBC News — Alberta reports 643 new COVID-19 cases, 12 additional deaths.

CBC News — Nine additional deaths, 508 new COVID-19 cases reported in British Columbia on Friday.

CBC News — Ontario is reporting 2,662 new cases of COVID-19 and 87 new deaths. 779 of the new cases are in Toronto, 542 are in Peel and 228 are in York Region.

CBC News — Quebec is reporting 1,631 new cases of COVID-19 and has added 88 deaths to its tally, 18 of which occurred in the last 24 hours.

CBC News — 30 new COVID-19 cases in New Brunswick. This is the 4th time in a week the number has exceeded 30; the 7-day average for new cases in 29.

CBC News — Full lockdown announced in New Brunswick’s Zone 4 Health Zone. All schools to move to virtual learning, non-essential businesses to close, indoor formal gatherings not allowed. 19 of the 30 new cases on Friday are in Zone 4, which is the province’s northwest and includes Edmundston.

CBC News — Nunavut has its 1st new case of COVID-19 since Dec. 28. The new case is in Arviat. The person is asymptomatic and self-isolating.

KTVZ-TV — Oregon reports 22 more COVID-19 deaths, death toll at 1,865; 877 new cases, total at 136,839. . . . Oregon has now administered a cumulative total of 270,453 first and second doses of COVID-19 vaccines. All vaccinations were administered by Oregon hospitals, long-term care facilities, emergency medical service (EMS) agencies, urgent care facilities and Local Public Health Authorities (LPHAs).

The Olympian — The Washington State Department of Health on Friday reported 2,162 news confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 49 new deaths. Statewide totals . . . are at 298,249 cases and 4,114 deaths.

Public Health Agency of Canada, Friday, 4 p.m. PT — Total cases: 737,407. . . . Active cases: 65,750. . . . Deaths: 18,828.

CNN, Friday, 4:31 p.m. PT — 413,000 people in the United States have died from coronavirus.

CNN, Friday, 7:21 p.m. PT — 24.8 million people in the United States have tested positive for coronavirus.

The New York Times — Since March of last year, at least 424,000 more Americans have died than would have in a normal year, showing that the true toll of the pandemic may be higher than previously known.

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Former MLB player and manager Davey Johnson is back in his Florida home after spending time in hospital with COVID-19. Johnson, now 77, was the New York Mets’ manager when they last won the World Series, in 1986. He played for the Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs (1965-78). He managed the Mets, Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore, Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals (1985-2013. . . .

Matt Norlander, CBS Sports: “Multiple conference commissioners and athletic directors told CBS Sports in the past week-plus that there is a growing sense of nervousness over the stability of the college basketball season. . . . With Joe Biden now holding office, high-ranking NCAA officials are in wait-and-see mode about monitoring case counts across the country and bracing for the possibility of federal shutdowns that could impact dozens if not hundreds of schools — prompting a midseason pause in the process.” . . .

After having their first four NHL regular-season games postponed after at least 17 players tested positive, the Dallas Stars were in action on Friday night. They were without F Blake Comeau, who was placed on the COVID-19 list earlier in the day, as they beat the visiting Nashville Predators, 7-0. . . . The Detroit Red Wings added F Filip Zadina to the list on Friday, too. He joined teammates F Robby Fabbri, F Adam Erne and F Sam Gagner, and D Jon Merrill on the list. . . . The Washington Capitals were without F Alex Ovechkin, F Evgeny Kuznetsov, D Dmitry Orlov and G Ilya Samsonov as they beat the visiting Buffalo Sabres, 4-3 in OT, on Friday night. All four, one of whom reportedly tested positive, will miss three more games as they all are on the COVID-19 list. . . .

The Memphis Grizzlies have had four straight games postponed, bringing the NBA’s total of such games to 20. The Grizzlies were to have met the Trail Blazers in Portland on Wednesday and last night (Friday) and were to have played the Kings in Sacramento on Sunday and Monday. . . .

Glasses

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.

Clay Plume, who spent three seasons in the WHL, died on Tuesday. He was 37. Plume was from Standoff, Alta. . . . Plume, a defenceman, spent two-plus seasons (2001-04) with the Lethbridge Hurricanes before finishing the 2003-04 season with the Prince George Cougars. In 181 regular-season games, he has 22 goals and 43 assists. . . . He went on to play one season in the ECHL and six in the CHL. . . . Plume played 24 games over the past two seasons with the senior AA Fort Macleod Mustangs of the Alberta-based Ranchland Hockey League. . . . Dale Woodard of the Lethbridge Herald has more on Plume right here.

JUST NOTES: F Nigel Dawes, who doesn’t get nearly enough plaudits when the conversation turns to great WHLers, picked up the 500th regular-season point of his KHL career in a 4-3 OT loss to host Lokomotiv on Friday. Dawes, 35, is in his 10th KHL season, but his first with Ak Bars Kazan. This season, he has 22 goals and 17 assists in 40 games. He had a goal and an assist on Friday, leaving him with 501 points, including 266 goals, in 536 games. In his WHL career, he put up 272 points, 159 of them goals, in 245 games. He played four seasons (2001-04) with the Kootenay Ice (remember them?). . . . The QMJHL returned to action with four games on Friday night, its first action since Nov. 29. Playing what it calls a “controlled environment” rather than a bubble, there were games in Shawinigan, Drummondville, Rimouski and Chicoutimi. There will be games in the same venues Saturday and Sunday.

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Thank, thank you, Rhonda . . . A toast to our newest kidney hero . . . Wheat Kings launch cardboard cutout promo . . . Blazers taking Teddy Bear Toss donations

Rhonda Dawes of Lethbridge, Alta., is another kidney hero. Yes, she is. . . . She is back at home in Lethbridge after donating a kidney through a live donor exchange program. . . . “I really wanted it done because 2020 has been such a crappy year,” Dawes told Dale Woodard of the Lethbridge Herald.“For me, I can’t imagine living in 2020 when you have an illness like kidney disease. I thought if I could get this donation done in 2020 that makes my 2020 amazing and someone else’s 2020 amazing.” . . . She had been wanting to donate a kidney since March 2017 but due to a number of things, including the pandemic, it wasn’t able to happen until recently. . . . This is a tremendous story and it’s all right here.

If you have watched MLB or NFL games over the last while, you will have BrandonWKregularnoticed the cardboard cutouts in the stands. Well, you now have the opportunity to have your own cutout in the stands at Brandon Wheat Kings’ home games. . . . The Wheat Kings have partnered with eBrandon.ca on “Fans In The Stands.’ From a news release: “For $50 (after tax), fans can upload a picture that will be made into a cardboard cutout of themselves, their child, their pet, a celebrity, a former Wheat Kings player — anybody they’d like to ‘attend’ home games this season at Westoba Place. . . . The WHL is hoping to open its regular season on Jan. 8. . . . The Wheat Kings’ news release is right here.

The Kamloops Blazers won’t play any WHL games between now and Christmas, Kamloops1but that won’t keep them from holding a virtual kind of Teddy Bear Toss. . . . From a news release: “While we won’t be able to physically toss the bears and other stuffed animals onto the ice, we can still ensure that children in the Pediatric Department at Royal Inland Hospital are comforted with a stuffed animal — by donating online at www.trellis.org/teddybeartoss2020. Donations will be accepted until midnight Dec. 15 and will be used to purchase much-needed teddy bears and other comfort items. . . . The complete release is right here.

When the 22-team Ontario Junior Hockey League begins play at some point in mid-January, games will be played without body contact. As well, among other things, the league said there won’t be any post-whistle scrums or altercations; players will wear bubbles and facial coverings; and benches will be disinfected after each period.

What do you do if teams from your minor hockey association are found to have violated the region’s pandemic response system? In the case of the minor hockey association in Minnedosa, Man., you shut things down for a week. . . . That’s what happened after a public health investigator reported that teams that travelled to play had too many people in their dressing rooms. In this particular region, dressing rooms are limited to 25 per cent capacity. The association received a formal legal warning and then cancelled all home and away games from Nov. 5-9. The association also was planning on meeting with parents in every age group “to re-educate and gain alignment on expectations on compliance” at home and on the road.

The junior B Kootenay International Junior Hockey League cancelled two CrestonValleyweekend games that were to have involved the Creston Valley Thunder Cats. Bradley Jones of myeastkootenaynow.com reported that “a team member was told to self-isolate due to contact with another individual who tested positive for COVID-19.” . . . Creston Valley was to have played at home to the Columbia Valley Rockies last night and against the host Fernie Ghostriders on Saturday. . . . Earlier, the Kimberley Dynamiters had a someone in their organization test positive, resulting in the cancellation of their final three exhibition games. Nine other members of the organization were to self-isolate. There aren’t believed to have been any other positive tests, so the self-isolation should end on Nov. 11. . . . Bill Rotheisler, a veteran junior coach in the west, is in his first season with Creston Valley after battling lymphatic cancer in his esophagus, so he is a high-risk individual.

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COVID-19 CHRONICLES . . .

680 CJOB Winnipeg: The ongoing surge of new COVID-19 cases continued in Manitoba Friday as health officials reported 243 new cases, five additional deaths and said further restrictions are coming to the province’s Southern Health region.

Vancouver Province: B.C. health officials announce 589 new cases, warn of ‘gathering storm clouds’

CBC News: B.C. sets new COVID_19 record for 2nd straight day as province announces 589 new cases and 2 more deaths

CBC News: Alberta reported 609 new COVID-cases today, 1 day after identifying a record 802 new cases. Currently 171 people are in hospital with the disease, 33 of them in ICU. 9 people have died over the last 2 days.

APTN News: Nunavut is no longer the only region of Canada with no cases of COVID-19. The territory announced the first confirmed positive test today in Sanikiluaq, a small community of nearly 900 people.

SaskNOW.com: Province records 87 new cases of COVID-19, mandatory mask policy begins today in Prince Albert.

KOMO News: Washington state records highest-ever daily number of COVID-19 cases.

Washington State COVID-19 Bot: Washington State COVID-19 numbers for Wednesday, November 04, 2020: 1070 new positive case(s) out of 21580 test(s) (5.0%); 49 new hospitalization(s); 15 new death(s).

Albany Democrat-Herald: Five Oregon counties must have a “social pause” for two weeks to fight a spike in COVID-19 infections that led to a record 805 new cases on Thursday and 770 on Friday.

NBC New York: The U.S. has reported at least 122,000 new COVID-19 cases in a single day, according to an NBC News tally — the third day in a row that cases surged past 100,000.

The Pac-12 didn’t even get its season started before it had to cancel two games that were scheduled for Saturday. . . . First, it had to dump the Washington-Cal game due to positive tests with the host Golden Bears. . . . On Friday, the Arizona-Utah game also went by the wayside due to positive tests among the Utes. . . .

The NFL fined the Las Vegas Raiders $500,000 and took away a sixth-round draft pick, and also fined head coach Jon Gruden $150,000. That ran the tab to $1,215,000 for the organization, Gruden and players for coronavirus-related violations. . . . Head coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly was fined $100,000 and the team hit for $250,000 for coaches improperly wearing facemasks on Sunday. . . .

Meanwhile, MLB didn’t discipline Justin Turner or the Los Angeles Dodgers for his embarrassing performance after the club’s World Series-clinching Game 6 victory. Turner had been taken out of the game in the eighth inning after MLB was told that he had tested positive. Turner, a 35-year-old who should have known better, later returned to the field to partake in the post-game festivities, sometimes wearing a mask and sometimes not. Sorry, MLB, you blew it after the game and you blew it again with your weak-kneed statement on Friday. . . . Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY has more on MLB’s love letter to Turner right here. . . .

Later Friday, Bob Nightengale and Josh Peter of USA TODAY reported:

“Five members of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and a family member have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

“The disclosure comes 10 days after Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner was notified during Game 6 of the World Series that he had tested positive for COVID-19.

“It is unclear if Turner or any other players are among the five people. According to a person with knowledge of the situation, most of the people who tested positive were outside the so-called bubble at the World Series in Arlington, Texas. The person requested anonymity because of privacy issues.”

The story is right here.

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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: Mike Lysyj has resigned after spending one season as an assistant coach with the Everett Silvertips. According to general manager Garry Davidson, Lysyj, 31, resigned to pursue new career opportunities. . . .  F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats has played five games with the HV71 organization in Sweden. Bedard, 15, had a goal and an assist in one game with the U-18 team, and has two goals and two assists in four games with the U-20 side. . . . D Carson Lambos of the Winnipeg Ice is in Sweden with JYP. Lambos, 17, has two assists in three games with the U-20 club.

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Scattershooting: On organ donor awareness and a little bit more

Scattershooting

Roy MacGregor of The Globe and Mail is the best essayist in Canada today. It’s not even close. No one knows his/her way around a keyboard the way MacGregor and his magic fingers do. . . . Click right here and you will find his words on the Humboldt Broncos.

A service and prayers in memory of Brock Hirsche is scheduled for Thursday, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., at the Martin Brothers Chapel in Lethbridge. The funeral will be held on Friday, 1 p.m., at Nicholas Sheran Arena, also in Lethbridge. Hirsche, who played for the Prince George Cougars before going on to skate with the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns, was from Lethbridge. He died Sunday after a battle with testicular cancer. . . . Ryan O’Donnell, the play-by-play voice of the Pronghorns, adds that “the Hirsche family would like everyone to wear sports jerseys of any kind.” . . . Dale Woodard has more on Hirsche right here.

By now you are aware that D Logan Boulet who was killed in the crash involving the Humboldt Broncos’ bus on Friday, had signed his organ donor card after he turned 21 on March 2. His story has received a lot of play over the past couple of days, something that has resulted in a whole lot of people registering as organ donors in various jurisdictions. . . . There’s a story right here wrapping up all of this.

Here is the list of those killed in the bus crash, as corrected Monday by the Office of the Chief Coroner and the RCMP:

Players

Adam Herold – 16-year-old male from Montmartre, SK
Connor Lukan – 21-year-old male from Slave Lake, AB
Evan Thomas – 18-year-old male from Saskatoon, SK
Jacob Leicht – 19-year-old male from Humboldt, SK
Jaxon Joseph – 20-year-old male from Edmonton, AB
Logan Boulet – 21-year-old male from Lethbridge, AB
Logan Hunter – 18-year-old male from St. Albert, AB
Logan Schatz – 20-year-old male from Allan, SK
Stephen Wack – 21-year-old male from St. Albert, AB
Parker Tobin – 18-year-old male from Stony Plain, AB

Team Personnel

Brody Hinz – 18-year-old male from Humboldt, SK
Darcy Haugan – 42-year-old male from Humboldt, SK
Glen Doerksen – 59-year-old male from Carrot River, SK
Mark Cross – 27-year-old male from Strasbourg, SK
Tyler Bieber – 29-year-old male from Humboldt, SK