On the 12th day of our annual Christmas countdown, we have three good ones for you . . .
First, we’ve got John Berry with Oh Holy Night, and it’s right here.
——
Second, we’ve got Johnny Reid, with Waiting for Christmas to Come, and it’s right here.
——
And, finally, if you click right here you’ll find Sarah McLachlan and her Music Outreach project with Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
——
Yes, I finished my Christmas shopping on Sunday. . . . But I have questions. . . . There is an up escalator and there is a down escalator; in between, there is a flight of stairs. So why do people walk up or down the escalators, rather than take the stairs? . . . Why does a shopper stop in the middle of an aisle, without checking for traffic, just to stare at a phone’s screen? . . . Why are so many shoppers in such a rush at this time of the year when, really, it’s a time to slow down and enjoy the season? But if they did slow down it would destroy some of this shopping season’s entertainment value, wouldn’t it?
Do you get the feeling that whoever is calling the shots with the Philadelphia Flyers is using some kind of system involving a revolving wheel and darts?
Please! Please!! Please!! . . . The World Junior Championships aren’t being held in Vancouver and Victoria. The World Junior Championship is being held there. There is one championship up for grabs. It’s singular. Please!
A note from Brad Dickson, formerly of the Omaha World-Herald: “Kids, think about it. The Postal Service can’t get a letter delivered across town — how the hell is it gonna get your letter to Santa to the North Pole?”
Hockey leagues that no longer print annual guides are doing a real dis-service to their fans. You simply can’t pick up an online guide and flip through it, stopping here and there for a visit, like you can with the printed version.
Patti Dawn Swansson, The River City Renegade, is handing out goals and lumps of coal in her latest post. . . . It’s all right here. Enjoy!
Dorothy always includes Nanaimo bars in her Christmas baking. The late Charlie Hodge, who was a favourite among the hockey scouting fraternity, loved Nanaimo bars. That’s why I always find myself remembering Charlie at this time of year.
Headline at TheOnion.com: U.S. military honors sacrifices of NFL players by wearing jerseys throughout December.
“According to AAA,” reports Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times, “112.5 million Americans will travel during the holidays. In keeping with the theme, there are five NBA games on Christmas Day.”
——
Perry has a nomination for the penalty of the year: “Washington receiver Josh Doctson was penalized 15 yards for taunting against the Giants — with his team trailing 40-16.”
Here’s a nomination for quote of the year, this one from Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin after they beat the New England Patriots to end a three-game skid: “Sometimes you’ve got to cut your eyelids off when you want to blink, when it gets thick.”
A note from RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com: “Scholars can’t agree who has travelled farther. The Magi on their biblical journey? Or James Harden on his way to the basket.”
——
Currie, again: “Leafs forwards Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews appeared in a stage production of The Nutcracker. Afterwards, TSN said Matthews is a shoo-in for Best Actor at this year’s Tony Awards.”
TC Chong, the blogger from Richmond, B.C., wonders: “Sears execs are expecting to be paid over $25 million in bonuses, while the workers will be getting a lump of coal. Would it be fitting if the execs received payment in Sears gift cards?”
——
One more from Chong, who may, or may not, be related to Tommy: “Budweiser is testing cannabis-based drinks. Will it be marketed as BC Bud?”
If you feel so inclined, please click on the DONATE button over there on the right. Thanks in advance, and Merry Christmas.
a bouncing baby girl, 9 pounds 7 ounces, who’ll probably grow up to be our first woman President.
firing in 48 hours days.
loss to the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings on Oct, 26. The WHL’s roster report of Oct. 30 showed him as having been deleted from Kootenay’s roster with no mention of having been placed on a suspended list.
in Langley, B.C. . . . The WHL had won the opener of the CIBC Canada Russia Series, 2-1, in Kamloops on Monday night. . . . Starkov’s first goal of the series came at 18:18 of the third period with WHL F Nolan Foote serving a high-sticking minor. The WHL had failed to score on a PP opportunity just four minutes earlier. . . . Russia was 1-3 on the PP; the WHL lads were 0-3. . . . The WHL took a 1-0 lead on a goal from D Ty Smith of the Spokane Chiefs at 5:10 of the first period. . . . F Bulat Shafigullin tied it at 19:07 of the first. . . . The Russians put it away at 19:10 of the third period as F Ivan Muranov got the empty-netter. . . . The Russian side got 33 saves from G Pyotr Kochetkov, who had backed up Daniil Tarasov on Monday. . . . G David Tendeck of the Vancouver Giants stopped 25 shots in a solid night’s work. . . . F Dillon Hamaliuk was added to Team WHL’s roster yesterday, replacing F Justin Almeida of the Moose Jaw Warriors who was injured in Monday’s game. Almeida suffered an apparent shoulder injury and left the game early in the first period. . . . The series is scheduled to continue on Thursday in Sarnia, Ont., with the Russians playing Team OHL. Game 4 is to be played on Monday in Oshawa. . . . The games featuring Team QMJHL are scheduled for Sherbrooke on Nov. 13 and Drummondville on Nov. 15.
having become the first father-son combination to serve as head coaches in a WHL regular-season game.
over the Warriors in Moose Jaw. . . . The Raiders (14-1-0) lead the overall standings by six points over the Vancouver Giants and 11 over the Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Warriors slipped to 5-4-2. . . . D Kaiden Guhle’s first WHL goal, on a PP, at 7:56 of the second period gave Prince Albert a 3-1 lead and stood up as the winner. Guhle was the first overall selection in the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft. . . . F Carson Miller (6) scored two first-period goals as the Raiders got off to a 2-0 lead. He later added an assist. . . . Raiders F Brett Leason scored his WHL-leading 14th goal, a shorthanded empty-netter, and added an assist. He also leads the WHL in assists (18) and points (32). He holds an eight-point lead over F Joachim Blichfeld of the Portland Winterhawks. . . . F Keenan Taphorn (2) scored for the Warriors in his first game since being acquired from the Kootenay Ice on Tuesday. His twin brother, Kaeden, who came along in the same trade, had the secondary assist on the goal. . . . Prince Albert lost F Noah Gregor to a cross-checking major and game misconduct for a hit on D Jett Wood at 16:44 of the third period. . . . G Ian Scott stopped 25 shots for the Raiders. He now is 12-1-0, 1.54, .945.
Blades in Saskatoon. . . . Everett (8-5-0) is 2-2-0 on its East Division trip. . . . The Blades (8-4-1) had been 1-0-1 in their previous two games. . . . That was Wolf’s first shutout of his sophomore season and the fifth of his career. . . . F Akash Bains (2) gave the visitors a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 13:31 of the first period. . . . Everett held a 31-23 edge in shots, including 10-4 in the third period. . . . The Silvertips remain without F Connor Dewar, who is serving a four-game suspension. . . . This was the first meeting between Everett and Saskatoon since the Blades signed Mitch Love as their head coach during the off-season. Love spent two seasons as a hard-rock defenceman with Silvertips, then was on staff as an assistant coach for seven seasons.
Wheat Kings, 4-3, in Cranbrook, B.C. . . . The Ice (4-5-3) had lots its previous six games (0-3-3). Four of the Ice’s last six games have gone to extra time; Kootenay is 1-2-1 in those four games. . . . The Wheat Kings (6-2-4) have lost three in a row (0-1-2). They are 0-1-1 on a two-week trek that continues Saturday against the Royals in Victoria. Brandon next plays at home on Nov. 9. . . . F Jaeger White (8) scored two goals and drew the lone assist on Krebs’ game-winner at 2:09 of OT. Krebs also had two assists. . . . Brandon D Zach Wytinck (1) had given Brandon a 3-2 lead with a shorthanded goal at 3:56 of the third period. . . . Kootenay tied it when D Jonathan Smart (1) scored a PP goal at 4:28. . . . With G Jesse Makaj scratched — he wasn’t mentioned on Tuesday’s roster report — the Ice brought in Will Gurski, who turned 16 on Tuesday, as the backup behind Duncan McGovern. From Duncan, B.C., Gurski was a fourth-round pick in the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft. He is playing for the prep team at Shawnigan Lake School. . . . As for the above tweet, from Branden Crowe, the radio voice of the Wheat Kings, a source with knowledge of the situation told Taking Note that the goal judge “had to attend to an urgent family matter. There was a fire at his home.” Thankfully, no one was injured.
over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Tigers now are 7-6-1. . . . The Rebels (8-4-1) had won their previous three games. . . . Søgaard, a freshman from Denmark who turns 18 on Dec. 13, now is 4-0-1, 2.04, .936. . . . The Tigers scored the game’s first three goals to lead 3-0 before the second period was a minute old. . . . D Cole Clayton (1) got the first one at 8:00 of the opening period. . . . F Tyler Preziuso (6), F James Hamblin (7) and F Bryan Lockner (4) added PP goals for the winners. . . . Hamblin also drew two assists. . . . With GM/head coach Brent Sutter away for a second straight game, assistant coach Brad Flynn was the head coach of record. His record now is 1-1-0, after a 3-1 victory over the visiting Calgary Hitmen on Tuesday night.
George Cougars, 4-3. . . . The Americans (8-4-0) have won four in a row. They won the opener of the doubleheader, 5-1, on Tuesday. Tri-City is 3-0-0 on an 11-game road trip. . . . The Cougars (5-6-2) have lost two in a row. . . . D Rhett Rhinehart (1) gave the home side a 3-1 lead, on a PP, at 10:35 of the second period. . . . The Americans tied it on third-period goals from D Parker AuCoin (8), on a PP, and F Krystof Hrabik (3), the latter at 8:32. . . . F Nolan Yaremko, who scored his ninth goal earlier, and F Isaac Johnson, who had two assists, had the shootout goals for the visitors. . . . Tri-City lost F Blake Stevenson to a headshot major and game misconduct for a hit on F Jackson Leppard at 14:35 of the first period.
Cougars went on to beat the visiting Swift Current Broncos, 3-1. . . . The Cougars (5-5-1) have won three in a row. . . . The Broncos (1-11-0) have lost four in a row, with all losses coming on a B.C. Division tour that wraps up Tuesday in Kelowna. . . . Leppard also had two assists as he figured in all three Prince George goals. It was the third three-point night of his 116-game career. This season, he has two goals and four assists in 11 games. . . . Broncos G Joel Hofer stopped 37 shots. He has started four of the Broncos’ past five games, stopping 192 of 205 shots (.937). . . . The start of the game was delayed 45 minutes as the on-ice officials were late getting to the arena.
. . . Everett (7-4-0) is 1-1-0 on its East Division trek. . . . Regina (3-9-0) has lost three in a row. . . . Everett got F Sean Richards back after he served a five-game suspension, and he scored his club’s first goal, his first of the season. . . . F Reece Vitelli (1) broke the tie at 1:06 of the second period. . . . The Silvertips were without their captain, F Connor Dewar, after he drew a four-game suspension for a cross-checking major and game misconduct in a 5-2 loss in Brandon on Friday night. He also will miss games in Prince Albert (Tuesday), Saskatoon (Wednesday) and Moose Jaw (Friday). He will be eligible to return on Saturday in Swift Current, the last game of the Everett’s East Division swing.
a 6-3 victory over the visiting Kootenay Ice. . . . The Oil Kings (6-7-1) had lost their previous eight games (0-7-1) after opening the season with five straight victories. . . . Kootenay (3-5-3) has lost six in a row (0-3-3). . . . Fix-Wolansky, who has nine goals, broke a 1-1 tie at 17:56 of the first period, on a PP, and the Ice was left to chase the game for its remainder. He now has 23 points in 14 games. . . . F Peyton Krebs (4) got Kootenay to within a goal, at 4-3, at 13:09 of the second period, on a PP. However, Edmonton F Jake Neighbours (3) upped his club’s lead to 5-3, on a PP, at 19:46. . . . Fix-Wolansky iced it at 18:06 of the third period. . . . The Oil Kings also got two goals from F Andrei Pavlenko (4). A sophomore from Belarus, he has four goals and two assists in 14 games; last season, he finished with three goals and one assist in 20 games.
Kelowna Rockets in Langley, B.C. . . . Vancouver (10-2-2) was playing its third game in fewer than 48 hours, having gone 0-1-1 in a home-and-home with the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Kelowna (4-10-0) also was playing its third game in fewer than 48 hours. It had swept two games in Victoria before travelling to Langley. . . . Hardy gave the Giants a 1-0 lead at 15:26 of the first period and provided them with a 3-1 edge at 11:48 of the third period. He’s got four goals this season. . . . D Bowen Byram had two assists for the Giants. He has five goals and seven assists in 14 games. . . . Kelowna gave G Roman Basran his third start of the weekend. He stopped 21 shots. . . . At the other end, Trent Miner blocked 28 shots. His 1.24 GAA and .958 save percentage are the best in the WHL. . . . The Giants were without F James Malm, who suffered an undisclosed injury on Saturday night. . . . The Rockets scratched F Lane Zablocki for a second straight game after he had made his season debut on Friday.
giving up a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft in return.
CHL’s 2018 import draft. The 6-foot-3 Malysjev, who has dual Swedish/Russian citizenship, played last season with HV71’s J18 and J20 teams, putting up two goals and five assists in 15 games with the former and four assists in 29 games with the latter. . . . Malysjev’s parents are from Russia, but he was born in Sweden — thus the dual citizenship. Interestingly, he has never lived in Russia. . . . Malysjev, who is fluent in English, was to arrive in Saskatoon late Tuesday. He could make his WHL debut in Regina at an exhibition tournament this weekend. . . . Earlier this week, the Blades signed their other 2018 import draft selection — Norwegian F Kristian Roykas Marthinsen, 19, whose NHL rights belong to the Washington Capitals, who selected him in the seventh round of the 2017 draft.
overall selection in the WHL’s 2018 bantam draft. . . . Brennan, who will turn 15 on Sept. 27, played at the Winnipeg-based Rink Hockey Academy last season, going 11-3-1, 1.52, .947 with the bantam prep team. He led the Canadian Sport School Hockey League’s bantam prep division in GAA, save percentage and shutouts (5). . . . With Brennan signed, it means that 21 of the WHL’s 22 first-round selections in the 2018 bantam draft are under contract. The only unsigned first-round pick is F Trevor Wong, who was taken 18th overall by the Kelowna Rockets. He has been in Kelowna’s camp, but has made a verbal commitment to the U of Denver for 2021-22.
to WHL contracts. . . . Arntsen, 15, is from Swift Current and was a second-round pick in the 2018 bantam draft. Last season, he had 19 goals and 31 assists in 31 gams with the bantam AA Swift Current Raiders. He added two goals and six assists in six playoff games, and was pointless in six games with the midget AAA Swift Current Legionnaires. . . . Dorrington, a list player, is from Langley, B.C. Last season, he played for the Yale Hockey Academy Elite 15s in Abbotsford, B.C., scoring 17 goals and adding 15 assists in 33 games. He then had two goals and five assists in four playoff games. . . . Jones, 16, was placed on the Hurricanes’ protected list last year. From Olds, Alta., he played last season with the midget AAA Airdrie CFR Bisons, putting up 16 goals and six assists in 33 games. . . . All three players remain with the Hurricanes, who open the exhibition season on Friday against the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers.
to WHL contracts on Tuesday. . . . D Braden Miller, 16, is a list player who was added after attending the 2017 training camp. From Sherwood Park, Alta., he had four goals and nine assists in 28 games last season with the minor midget Sherwood Park Squires. . . . F Cade Hayes of Leader, Sask., was an eighth-round selection in the 2017 bantam draft. Hayes, 16, had 19 goals and 17 assists in 44 games with the midget AAA Tisdale Trojans. While he led the Trojans in scoring, he was tied for second in freshman scoring in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League. . . . 
I’ll be on Cobra which is expensive. I have had writeups in Portland Tribune and GoFundMe and still have a huge need,.
coaching change. According to a news release, Peter Schaefer, 41, has taken over as head coach after the Eagles and Brandon West “mutually agreed to part ways.” . . . West, the news release reads, “will be stepping away from the organization because of personal reasons.” . . . The Eagles went 26-22-8 last season, West’s first in Surrey, and got into the second round of the playoffs. . . . Schaefer, the WHL’s player of the year with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 1996-97, was the Eagles’ head coach in 2013-14. They had brought him back as an assistant coach for this season. With his promotion, the Eagles now are looking for an assistant coach. . . . One BCHL insider tells me there now have been 14 coaching changes in the BCHL over the past 18 months.
other day, it revealed the four finalists — the 1995 Kamloops Blazers, 2000 Rimouski Oceanic, 2005 London Knights and 2013 Halifax Mooseheads.
Medicine Hat, the home of the Tigers, a team that ended up playing the Brandon Wheat Kings in the first round in two straight years. That also meant travelling to Dauphin, Man., where the Wheat Kings played their first-round home games in both series because their home arena had been taken over by the annual Royal Manitoba Winter Fair.
Victoria Royals in the second round, meaning it avoids a potential clash with Everett or the Portland Winterhawks for another round. Everett and Portland are preparing for a second-round series after the Winterhawks beat the visiting Spokane Chiefs, 3-1, in Game 7 last night.
kidney transplant in November 2010 after suffering complete kidney failure due to complications from lupus in 2004. She spent six years doing peritoneal dialysis, hooking up to a machine called a cycler every night and using it to do a fluid exchange to get the toxins out of her body.
over the Broncos. . . . Swift Current (47-16-6) has lost two in a row and has three games remaining. . . . The Warriors went 4-2-2 in the season series; the Broncos were 4-4-0. . . . The Warriors have won 50 games for the first time in franchise history. The previous record of 45 victories was set in 2011-12, when they finished atop the East Division and then bowed out in the conference final. . . . Klatt, who is from Moose Jaw, went into the game with 11 goals in 179 regular-season WHL games. This season, he now has five goals and eight assists in 65 games. . . . Klatt opened the scoring at 5:00 of the first period and F Jayden Halbgewachs made it 2-0, on a PP, at 16:20. He has a WHL-high 67 goals. . . . F Justin Almeida (41), who also had two assists, gave the Warriors a 3-0 lead at 7:36 of the second period. . . . F Kaden Elder (16) got Swift Current’s first goal at 2:02 of the third period. . . . Klatt got that one back at 11:03. . . . The Broncos’ second goal came from F Beck Malenstyn (16), on a PP, at 17:53. . . . F Tristin Langan had two assists for the Warriors. . . . F Aleksi Heponiemi had two assists for the Broncos. . . . Swift Current was 1-5 on the PP; Moose Jaw was 1-8. . . . The Warriors got 21 saves from G Brody Willms. . . . G Stuart Skinner started for the Broncos and was beaten three times on 21 shots in 27:36. Joel Hofer finished up by stopping 17 of 18 shots in 31:00. . . . The Warriors took 57 of the game’s 107 penalty minutes. . . . Moose Jaw F Barrett Sheen was tossed with a charging major and game misconduct at 4:59 of the third period. . . . The Broncos lost F Giorgio Estephan for a few shifts after he was struck in the ice by an errant puck in the first period. . . . Also in that first period, the Warriors lost D Brandon Schuldaus and D Dmitri Zaitsev to undisclosed injuries. . . . The Warriors were without F Brayden Burke for a third straight game. . . . Swift Current F Glenn Gawdin, the WHL’s leading scorer, is ill and missed his second game in as many nights, as did freshman D Jacson Alexander. . . . Gawdin has 124 points, two more than Halbgewachs and seven more than Heponiemi. Burke is fourth, with 113. . . . Announced attendance: 4,765.
Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot, seven points ahead of Saskatoon, which has four games remaining. . . . Calgary (21-36-11) is 1-0-1 in its past two games. It had won 5-4 in OT in Saskatoon on Friday night. . . . The Hitmen took a 1-0 lead at 13:46 of the first period as F Mark Kastelic scored. . . . The Raiders tied it at 1:27 of the second period as F Jordy Stallard scored No. 43. . . . F Carson Focht (13) gave the Hitmen a 2-1 lead at 16:13. . . . The Raiders went out front 3-2 on third-period goals from D Vojtech Budik (14), on a PP, at 5:51, and F Cutis Miske (26), at 6:38. Miske also had two assists. . . . Kastelic forced OT with his 20th goal, on a PP, at 9:02. . . . Pachal won it at 4:09 of OT when he scored his seventh goal of the season. . . . Stallard also had two assists, as he finished the night with 201 regular-season points in 234 games. This season, he has 43 goals and 46 assists in 68 games. . . . The Hitmen got two assists from F Tristen Nielsen. . . . Each team was 1-3 on the PP. . . . G Ian Scott earned the victory with 20 saves. . . . Calgary G Matthew Armitage was busier, with 40 saves. The Raiders held a 26-2 edge in shots in the third period. . . . Prince Albert’s franchise record for longest winning streak is 15 games, from 1985-86. . . . Announced attendance: 2,326.
three points behind Regina. The Wheat Kings also hold down the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot, four points ahead of Prince Albert. . . . Brandon will play its first-round home games in Dauphin, Man., because the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair will be in Westoba Place at the same time. . . . Saskatoon (32-32-4) is seven points from a playoff spot with four games to play. . . . Brandon leads the season series, 5-2-0; the Blades are 2-5-0. . . . Last night, the Wheat Kings got the game’s first two goals, from F Stelio Mattheos (41), at 19:13 of the first period and F Linden McCorrister (18), at 9:38 of the second. . . . F Michael Farren (10) got the Blades to within a goal at 12:58. . . . Brandon F Luka Burzan (13) restored the two-goal lead at 15:27. . . . F Josh Paterson’s 31st goal, on a PP, left Saskatoon trailing by one at 6:47 of the third period. . . . F Cole Reinhardt (18) got the empty-netter for Brandon at 19:42. . . . McCorrister and Reinhardt each had an assist. . . . Saskatoon was 1-5 on the PP; Brandon was 0-4. . . . G Dylan Myskiw stopped 29 shots for the Wheat Kings. . . . G Nolan Maier stopped 12 shots for the Blades in his ninth straight start. . . . G Logan Thompson was among Brandon’s scratches. He left Friday’s 6-3 victory over visiting Swift Current after two periods because of an apparent leg injury. . . . The Wheat Kings had Ethan Kruger, 16, backing up Myskiw. He was a fifth-round pick in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. Kruger, from Sherwood Park, Alta., played this season with the midget AAA Sherwood Park Kings. . . . Announced attendance: 5,826.
three points ahead of Brandon. . . . Lethbridge (32-30-6) has lost five straight. It is second in the Central Division, eight points behind Medicine Hat and five ahead of Red Deer. . . . F Koby Morrisseau (6) opened the scoring at 3:29 of the first period, with F Jesse Gabrielle (13) making it 2-0, on a PP, at 8:48. . . . F Nick Henry (13) scored at 1:20 of the second, and F Robbie Holmes (16) made it 4-0 at 9:55. . . . The Hurricanes got to within a goal as F Brad Morrison scored at 14:35 of the second; D Calen Addison (10) counted two minutes later; and Morrison added another, his 27th, at 17:18 of the third. . . . Regina F Sam Steel (31) iced it with an empty-netter at 19:04. . . . Gabrielle added two assists to his goal. . . . D Igor Merezhko had two assists for Lethbridge. . . . Regina was 1-2 on the PP; Lethbridge was 0-2. . . . There weren’t any penalties issued after the first period. . . . G Max Paddock stopped 27 shots for Regina. . . . Lethbridge got 38 stops from G Reece Klassen. . . . Regina went 7-1-0 on an eight-game road trip. The Pats were away from home because the Tim Hortons Brier (the Canadian men’s curling championship) is being contested in the Brandt Centre. . . . Announced attendance: 4,234.
Division, meaning the idle Kootenay Ice (25-38-5) was eliminated. . . . “You look back to Jan. 24, we were 12 points out of a playoff spot and to accomplish what we accomplished says a lot about the kids inside the room,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ general manager and head coach, told Greg Meachem of 
Division, six points behind Spokane. The Americans hold the Western Conference’s first wild-card spot, three points ahead of Seattle with each team having five games remaining. . . . Portland (42-21-5) had points in each of its previous eight games (7-0-1). The Winterhawks are second in the U.S. Division, six points behind Everett. . . . Portland went 7-3-0 in the season series; Tri-City was 3-6-1. . . . Tri-City got out to a 2-0 first-period lead on goals from F Michael Rasmussen, on a PP, at 15:00, and D Juuso Valimaki (13), at 18:26. . . . Portland F Alex Overheard (15) but into the lead 27 seconds into the second period, but the Americans got the next three goals. . . . F Isaac Johnson got his 17th at 7:39. . . . Rasmussen (27) got another PP goal at 1:40 of the third period, and former Winterhawks F Brett Clayton (4) scored at 4:55. . . . F Joachim Blichfeld (24) got Portland’s second goal at 10:27. . . . F Riley Sawchuk (13) scored Tri-City’s final goal at 17:17, into an empty net. . . . Tri-City got three assists from F Morgan Geekie and two each from F Sasha Mutala, for his first three-point game, and Valimaki. . . . Overhardt added an assist to his goal. . . . Tri-City was 2-3 on the PP; Portland was 0-2. . . . Dea got off to a great start with 18 saves in the first period. . . . Portland starter Shane Farkas surrendered five goals on 23 shots in 44:55. Cole Kehler came on to stop all five shots he faced in 14:35. . . . Prior to the game, the Winterhawks the 1998 Memorial Cup-winning team, and inducted D Andrew Ference, F Marian Hossa, F Brenden Morrow and F Todd Robinson into their Hall of Fame. . . . Announced attendance: 8,463.
B.C. Division, by five points over Victoria. . . . Kamloops (29-35-5) has lost three in a row. It was eliminated from the playoff chase when it lost, 4-2, to the visiting Rockets on Friday. . . . The Rockets have won 40 games for a sixth straight season. . . . Kelowna went 8-0-0 in the season series; Kamloops was 0-7-1. . . . F Leif Mattson gave the Rockets a 1-0 lead at 13:28 of the first period. . . . D Gordie Ballhorn (5) upped that to 2-0 at 14:30. . . . Mattson’s 23rd goal, shorthanded, made it 3-0 at 9:46 of the third period, and F Dillon Dube (34) rounded out the scoring at 11:05. . . . Dube and Ballhorn also had an assist each. . . . Kelowna was 0-3 on the PP; Kamloops was 0-7. . . . Porter, a freshman from Bonners Ferry, Idaho, has three shutouts this season. . . . The Blazers got 27 saves from G Max Palaga. Kelowna F Liam Kindree wasn’t able to beat Palaga on a second-period penalty shot. . . . The Blazers scratched G Dylan Ferguson, who appeared to injury his right hip in a goal-mouth collision at 14:22 of the second period on Friday night. He stayed in and was able to finish the game, but there were times when he appeared to be favouring his right side. . . . Announced attendance: 5,607.
the Western Conference, by six points over Portland. . . . Seattle (32-26-10) had won its previous two games. It holds the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, three points behind Tri-City. . . . Everett went 6-2-2 in the season series; Seattle was 4-4-2. . . . Everett got first-period goals from F Matt Fonteyne (33), on a PP, at 3:41, and Kindopp, at 13:38, to go up 2-0. . . . F Nolan Volcan (31) scored for Seattle, on a PP, at 11:03 of the second period. . . . Kindopp (22) gave Everett a two-goal lead at 15:02 of the third period. . . . Seattle D Austin Strand (24) made it a one-goal game at 17:56. . . . F Donovan Neuls had two assists for Seattle. . . . Everett F Patrick Bajkov drew an assist on Fonteyne’s goal. Bajkov now has 93 points, tying him with F Zach Hamill (2006-07) and F Josh Winquist (2013-14) for the franchise’s single-season record. . . . Each team was 1-2 on the PP. . . . G Carter Hart stopped 33 shots for Everett. He is 28-4-4, 1.54, .950 this season. . . . Seattle G Liam Hughes turned aside 34 shots. . . . Everett D Ondrej Vala was given a cross-checking major and game misconduct for a hit on Seattle F Zack Andrusiak at 19:29 of the second period. Andrusiak returned to the game in the third period. . . . Announced attendance: 6,039.
three points behind Victoria. . . . Spokane (39-23-6) has lost two in a row (0-1-1). It is third in the U.S. Division, five points behind Portland. . . . The Chiefs took a 1-0 lead at 11:43 of the first period on a goal by F Jake McGrew (17). . . . Vancouver F Aidan Barfoot (5) tied it at 12:16. . . . F Jaret Anderson-Dolan (37) put the Chiefs back in front, on a PP, at 16:28. . . . The Giants tied it when F Tyler Benson scored at 12:27 of the second period. . . . But the Chiefs went back out front at 15:14 when F Hudson Elynuik scored No. 30. . . . F Riley Woods gave Spokane a two-goal lead, on a PP, at 4:58 of the third period. . . . Holt (12) pulled the Giants back to within a goal, at 4-3, on a PP, at 11:31, only to have Woods (24) restore the two-goal margin at 12:43. . . . The Giants then got two PP goals to force OT. F Tyler Popowich (8) scored at 14:26, and Benson (26) followed at 17:39. . . . Holt won it with a second-round goal in the shootout. . . . Vancouver was 3-5 on the PP; Spokane was 2-6. . . . G Trent Miner stopped 29 shots for the Giants. . . . The Chiefs got 24 stops from G Dawson Weatherill. . . . Vancouver F Ty Ronning left the game with a clipping major and game misconduct for a hit on Spokane F Ethan McIndoe at 2:42 of the third period. . . . The Chiefs continue to play without injured F Zach Fischer. . . . The Giants scratched F Milos Roman, who had played Friday night in a 6-3 loss to the host Tri-City Americans for the first time since Jan. 9. He had been out with an ankle injury. . . . Announced attendance: 10,508.
TAKING NOTE 