Tag: Jon Keen

How much will Ernst’s ‘May Miracle’ impact series? . . . Ice moves into WHL final . . . Blades’ amazing run comes to end

Goal
Where is the puck? Was it in Dylan Ernst’s glove?

Only time will tell whether it was a save that at least helped to turn around the WHL’s Western Conference final.

But this one particular save definitely played a key role in the host Kamloops KamloopsBlazers beating the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1, on Tuesday night, an outcome that tightened the series. Seattle now leads, 2-1, with Game 4 in Kamloops tonight.

The play in question occurred late in the second period with the Blazers holding a 2-1 lead. The Thunderbirds thought they had tied it when a puck that originated with Seattle F Gracyn Sawchyn took a crazy bounce and ended up behind G Dylan Ernst — perhaps in his glove or pinched between the glove and his back. Or was it on his right shoulder?

A screen shot from a highlights package on the WHL’s website shows Ernst’s glove completely over the goal line. Except that the puck isn’t visible. If you watch the entire series on video and then watch the replays, the puck actually appears to end up on his right shoulder before he collapses and ends up gloving it.

Anyway . . . here’s how Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week explained the goings-on . . .

“A Seattle shot pinged off the backboards and boomeranged back over the net, falling dangerously onto the backpedaling backstop . . . who has Sesame Street character Ernie painted on the back of his mask.

“Physics dictates that momentum would on most occasions have carried or propelled the (puck) over the goal line.

“But this occasion belonged to contortionist Ernst, who, with Ernie’s eyes in the back of his head, pinched the puck into his No. 35 with his mitt and fell forward to deny the T-Birds — and physics.

“ ‘I wasn’t too sure where it was,’ Ernst said. ‘It hit off the crossbar and I felt it hit my back. I got lucky when I swung my hand around and caught it.’

“Ernst shot up, prize raised high above head in glove, and drank in the chant: ‘Ernie! Ernie! Ernie!’

“ ‘Honestly, I wasn’t too sure if I was over the goal line or not,’ Ernst said. ‘I was hoping. Obviously, I wasn’t.’

“No goal was the call after the review, which (resulted in) another chant: ‘Whose house? Ernie’s house!’ ”

That’s how the score remained at 2-1. The Blazers put it away with two late third-period goals.

Hastings’ complete story is right here.

Hunting

WHL

WHL PLAYOFF NOTES:

There was a point on Wednesday night when the Winnipeg Ice became huge fans of the Kamloops Blazers.

The No. 1 Ice completed an Eastern Conference final sweep of the No. 2 Saskatoon Blades last night, winning 3-2 in the Saskatchewan city.

The Western Conference final, with the No. 1 Seattle Thunderbirds holding a 2-1 edge on the No. 2 Blazers, is to resume tonight in Kamloops.

The Blazers will be the host team for the 2023 Memorial Cup tournament, meaning that if they reach the WHL’s championship final their opponent will get the WHL’s spot in the four-team tournament.

Sure, the Ice wants to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup, but you can bet it would take some of the pressure off if the Memorial Cup berth already was in their left hip pocket. Right?

The Ice will have home-ice advantage in the championship final and, yes, I’m told Winnipeg’s home games will be played in the Wayne Fleming Arena, which seats about 1,700.

Meanwhile, after playing tonight in Kamloops, the Blazers and Thunderbirds will head for Kent, Wash., and Game 5 on Saturday night.

BTW, Kamloops D Olen Zellweger lost a goal at some point after Tuesday’s game, going from 10 to nine. So he no longer is tied for the playoff points lead, his 26 now one behind teammate Logan Stankoven and F Matt Savoie of the Ice.

The 2023 Kamloops Kidney Walk is scheduled for June 4, and Dorothy is taking part once again. She will celebrate 10 years as a kidney-transplant recipient in September, so the annual Kidney Walk is a big deal for her. In fact, she is participating for a 10th straight year. Yes, that means she is fund-raising, with all donations going to the Kidney Foundation. . . . If you are interested in helping, you are able to do so on her home page, which is right here.

WEDNESDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) at Saskatoon (2) — The Winnipeg Ice brought an end to WinnipegIceSaskatoon’s playoff run, beating the host Blades, 3-2, to sweep the conference final. . . . The Blades had reached the conference final by winning two seven-game series — the first after losing the first two games at home, the second after opening with two home-ice losses and one on the road. They became the third team in WHL history to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first three games. . . . The Ice outscored the Blades, 17-5, in the four games. . . . Last night, D Aidan De La Gorgendiere (3) gave the Blades their first lead of the series when he opened the scoring at 15:08 of the first period on a delayed penalty situation. . . . F Connor McClennon followed with two goals, at 18:40 on a PP, and at 13:30 of the second period, for a 2-1 Ice lead. . . . McClennon, who scored six times in the last three games, leads the WHL playoffs with 13 goals. . . . F Trevor Wong (3) got the Blades even at 2:45 of the third period, only to have F Briley Wood (3) break the tie at 6:19. . . . Wood, who turned 20 on Jan. 15, is from Rivers, Man. He had two goals in 13 regular-season games with the Ice this season. In 91 career regular-season games, the first 78 with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, he put up four goals. He has three in 14 games in these playoffs. In his career, he has one regular-season game-winner and now one playoff winner. . . . A note from Lucas Punkari (@lpunkari): “Prior to coming back to the Ice in mid-March, Wood was with the MJHL’s Neepawa Titans. The 20-year-old Rivers product recorded 57 points (19 goals and 38 assists) in 39 games.” . . . The Blades took the game’s only four minor penalties; the Ice was 1-for-4 on the PP. . . . The Ice got 16 saves from G Daniel Hauser. . . . Saskatoon G Austin Elliott stopped 36 shots. . . . The Ice again was without D Wyatt Wilson, while the Blades remained without D Ben Saunderson and D Blake Gustafson.

This is just so Canadian minor hockey. . . . The coach of a U11 team takes his guys off the ice because they are being subjected to all kinds of racial abuse. He ends up being suspended and losing his coaching position. There comes a time when there just aren’t words.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

It sounds as though Chris Crich, the WHL’s top referee each of the past two seasons, is into the final days of his whistling career. Crich worked the game in Kamloops between the Blazers and Seattle Thunderbirds on Tuesday night. . . . Later, Jon Keen, the radio voice of the Kamloops Blazers, tweeted that Crich had told him: “This is pretty much it. It’s been a good run. It is probably getting to be time with the family and the job.” . . .

The Quebec Remparts earned a spot in the QMJHL’s championship final on Wednesday, beating the host Gatineau Olympiques, 3-1, to sweep the series. . . . The Patrick Roy-led Remparts won two of the games in OT. . . . The Remparts had the league’s best regular-season record (53-12-3), finishing four points ahead of the Olympiques (49-12-7). . . . The other semifinal, featuring the Sherbrooke Phoenix and Halifax Mooseheads, is to resume tonight in Sherbrooke. The Phoenix holds a 2-1 lead. They’ll play a fifth game in Halifax on Saturday afternoon. . . .

In the BCHL, the Alberni Valley Bulldogs advanced to the Fred Page Cup final for the first time with a 3-2 victory over the host Chilliwack Chiefs. The Bulldogs swept the Coastal Conference final. They won last night’s game when F Ethan Bono broke a 2-2 tie with his eighth goal at 19:31 of the third period. . . . In the Interior Conference final, the Salmon Arm Silverbacks stayed alive with a 3-2 OT victory over the visiting Penticton Vees. Salmon Arm won on F Isaac Lambert’s sixth goal at 3:36 of OT. The Vees, who had a 27-game playoff winning streak come to an end, lead the series, 3-1. They are to play Game 5 in Penticton on Friday night.

Paint

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.

Remembering Rob Brown’s two nine-point games 10 days apart . . . Had 29 points in five-game span . . . Bedard adds five more points to his legend

F Matt Seminoff of the Kamloops Blazers put up eight points — four goals and Kamloopsfour assists — on Wednesday night in an 11-1 victory over the visiting Victoria Royals.

The next day, the WHL tweeted that only two other players “in the Internet era” had had eight-point games — D Ty Smith of the Spokane Chiefs on Feb. 28, 2020, against the Seattle Thunderbirds, and F Peter Schaefer of the Brandon Wheat Kings on Dec. 6, 1996, against the Calgary Hitmen.

Smith scored three times and drew five assists in a 9-2 victory over the Thunderbirds in Spokane.

Schaefer had three goals and five assists as the host Wheat Kings dumped the Hitmen, 10-2.

But what of players who played in the WHL in the 30 years prior to “the Internet era”?

Once again, the WHL should be embarrassed by not being able to acknowledge the accomplishments of those who played back in the day. The time is long past for the WHL to remedy the situation so that the players from the league’s first 30 years can be given their due when necessary.

Players like Rob Brown. A prolific scorer with Kamloops, Brown, according to Blazers’ radio voice Jon Keen, had two nine-point games in 1986-87.

That was the season in which Brown totalled 212 points, including 136 assists, in 63 games.

It didn’t take long for me to learn that Brown enjoyed a pair of nine-point games just 10 days apart.

On Nov. 11, 1986, Brown struck for six goals and three assists in a 10-3 victory over the visiting Chiefs.

On Nov. 21, he had three goals and six assists in a 15-8 victory over the Victoria Cougars in Kamloops.

In between, he had a goal and an assist in a 5-3 victory in Spokane, two goals and four assists in a 10-5 victory in Spokane, and a goal and two assists in an 8-5 victory over visiting Seattle.

In those five games, Brown put up 29 points, including 16 assists.

He had missed the start of the season while in camp with the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins. But after that second nine-point outing, Brown had 64 points, 25 of them goals, in 14 games.

Without looking too hard, I also found two other nine-point games.

On Jan. 27, 1985, F Cliff Ronning of the New Westminster Bruins scored six times and added three assists in a 16-4 victory over the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors.

On Feb. 11, 1984, F Al Conroy of the Medicine Hat Tigers scored five times and had four assists in a 19-2 victory over the visiting Winnipeg Warriors.

Of course, the WHL record for points in one game is 10, something that has been accomplished on five occasions, most recently by F Brian Sakic of the Tri-City Americans. On Oct. 3, 1990, he had two goals and eight assists in a 19-3 victory in Seattle.

F Gerry Pinder of the Saskatoon Blades was the first to enjoy a 10-point game. He had six goals and four assists in a 17-5 victory over the visiting Calgary Buffaloes on March 12, 1967.

On Dec. 30, 1971, F Tom Lysiak of Medicine Hat had four goals and six assists in a 12-6 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings.

On Jan. 19, 1973, F Dennis Sobchuk of the Regina Pats scored six times and added four assists in an 11-3 victory over the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings.

On Jan. 9, 1983, F Kelly Glowa of the Wheat Kings had five goals and five assists in a 12-6 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders in Brandon.

I have a feeling that Bobby Clarke of the Flin Flon Bombers may have had a nine-point game or two, and there likely are three or four others from back in the ‘live puck’ era. But I’m only guessing.

Evel

BEDARD
CONNOR BEDARD

THE BEDARD REPORT: F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats recorded his eighth hat trick of the season but it went for naught as his club dropped a 9-5 decision to the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors before a sold-out crowd of 6,499. . . . Bedard also had two assists, meaning he figured in all five of the Pats’ goals. . . . Bedard, who has played 53 games this season, leads the WHL in goals (66) and points (134). He and F Riley Heidt of Prince George are tied for the lead in assists (68). . . This was the ninth time Bedard has scored at least five points in one game. He has seven five-pointers and one six-point outing. . . . He is the first WHLer with 66 goals since F Jayden Halbgewachs scored 70 with the Warriors in 2017-18. Halbgewachs was 20 that season; Bedard won’t turn 18 until July 17. . . . From Rob Vanstone (@robvanstone): “With 4:21 left in the second period, it is Moose Jaw Warriors 6, Connor Bedard 2. Bedard’s 65 goals are the most by someone who has played an entire season with the Pats since Tim Iannone scored 65 times in 1985-86.” . . . Bedard has nine points in his past two games; he had two goals and two assists in a 6-3 victory over visiting Brandon on Wednesday. . . . A note from a Regina friend on Thursday afternoon: “You should see the tickets from ‘verified resellers’ for the last two Regina Pats games. I looked today . . . and found one set for $750 per ticket.”

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Calgary (8)

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

Saskatoon (3) vs. Regina (6)

Moose Jaw (4) vs. Lethbridge (5)

——

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Seattle (1) vs. Kelowna (8)

Kamloops (2) vs. Vancouver (7)

Portland (3) vs. Everett (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Tri-City (5)

——

FRIDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

F Sloan Stanick’s second goal of the game and 25th of the season, at 17:37 of the third period, gave Prince Albert a 4-2 lead and the Raiders went on to a 4-3 victory over the Wheat Kings in Brandon. . . . Prince Albert (27-34-3) is five points from a playoff spot with four games remaining. . . . Brandon (26-31-8) has lost three straight and is two points from a playoff spot. . . .

F Tyson Laventure had a goal and two assists to lead the Hurricanes to a 6-4 victory over the Calgary Hitmen in Lethbridge. . . . Laventure has 21 goals. . . . The Hurricanes erased a 3-2 deficit with three goals within 7:10 in the third period. . . . The Hitmen had beaten the visiting Hurricanes, 7-1, on Wednesday. . . . Lethbridge (34-24-6) is fifth in the Eastern Conference and appears headed for a first-round matchup with Moose Jaw. . . . Calgary (27-28-8) holds down eighth in the conference, two points ahead of Swift Current and Brandon. . . .

G Kyle Kelsey stopped 34 shots, 20 of them in the third period, as the host Red Deer Rebels beat the Swift Current Broncos, 2-0. . . . Kelsey has put up two straight shutouts. . . . Red Deer (42-17-6) has points in six straight (4-0-2) and will be the second seed in the Eastern Conference for the first round of playoffs. . . . Swift Current (28-32-4) has lost six in a row (0-5-1) and is two points out of the playoffs. . . .

F Jagger Firkus scored three times and added an assist to lead the Moose Jaw Warriors to a 9-5 victory over the Pats in Regina. . . . He’s got 36 goals this season. . . . Moose Jaw (39-22-3) has won four in a row. It is fourth in the Eastern Conference, seven points ahead of Lethbridge, which has four games remaining. . . . Regina (32-28-4) is sixth, three points ahead of Medicine Hat. . . .

D Dru Krebs scored three times, all in the third period, to lead the Medicine Hat Tigers to a 7-2 victory over the Oil Kings in Edmonton. . . . Krebs, who has eight goals, recorded his first WHL hat trick. He scored once while shorthanded, once on the PP and once at even strength. . . . The Tigers (28-26-9) have won two in a row and are seventh in the Eastern Conference, three points behind Regina and three ahead of Calgary. . . . The Oil Kings (9-50-4) have lost three in a row (0-2-1). . . .

G Dylan Ernst stopped 24 shots for his WHL-leading 38th victory of the season as the Kamloops Blazers dumped the visiting Kelowna Rockets, 5-2. . . . Kamloops F Caedan Bankier, who had three goals and three assists in an 11-1 victory over the visiting Victoria Royals on Wednesday, had two assists. . . . The Blazers (46-11-6) have won eight in a row and 19 of 20. With five games remaining, they are seven points behind Western Conference-leading Seattle. . . . Kelowna (26-36-3) has lost two straight. With three games left, it is eighth in the conference, five points behind Vancouver. . . .

D Hudson Thornton, F Riley Heidt and F Chase Wheatcroft each had a goal and two assists to lead the host Prince George Cougars to a 7-1 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . The teams combined for 120 minutes in penalties, with the Cougars taking 68 of those. . . . Prince George (35-24-6) has points in eight straight (6-0-2) and is fourth in the Western Conference. . . . Victoria (15-43-7) has lost 12 in a row (0-11-1). . . .

F Dylan Guenther had a goal (8) and two assists to help the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 5-2 victory over the Portland Winterhawks in Kent, Wash. . . . Guenther has 23 points in 16 games since joining the Thunderbirds from the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes. . . . Seattle (51-9-3) has points in 17 straight (16-0-1). It is two points behind the idle Winnipeg Ice in the race for the WHL’s best record. Each team has five games remaining. . . . Portland (39-18-7) had points in each of its previous five games (3-0-2). The Winterhawks will be Western Conference’s No. 3 seed when the playoffs begin. . . .

G Tomas Suchanek stopped 23 shots to help the Tri-City Americans to a 3-1 victory over the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . Tri-City (30-26-8) has points in three straight (2-0-1). It is fifth in the Western Conference, three points ahead of Everett. . . . Spokane (14-41-9) has lost five in a row (0-3-2). . . .

G Jesper Vikman stopped 32 shots for his first shutout of the season as the Vancouver Giants beat the Everett Silvertips, 3-0, in Langley, B.C. . . . Vancouver (26-29-8) has won two in a row. It is seventh in the Western Conference, five points ahead of Kelowna. . . . Everett (31-30-3) is five points ahead of Vancouver.

Noah

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.

Stupid

Pats waste Bedard’s four-pointer . . . KIJHL coach waves white towel . . . Americans complete three-win weekend

BEDARD
CONNOR BEDARD

THE BEDARD REPORT — F Connor Bedard scored three times and added an assist on Sunday afternoon but it wasn’t enough as his Regina Pats dropped a 6-4 decision to the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Bedard gave his guys a 2-0 lead in the first period and a 4-1 edge at 13:47 of the second period. But it all went for naught. . . . The 17-year-old leads the WHL in goals (42) and points (85). . . . Bedard and teammate Stanislav Svozil are tied for the lead in assists (43). . . . Bedard has 20 goals in a nine-game scoring streak; the WHL has a total of 40 20-goal scorers at this point. . . . This was Bedard’s fifth hat trick this season. . . . He is riding a 33-game point streak, having picked up at least one point in all but the first game he played in this season. . . . In 111 regular-season games, he has 213 points, including 105 goals. . . . In six games since returning from the World Junior Championship, Bedard has 21 points, including 15 goals. . . . The Pats now head into Alberta for four games in six days — Red Deer on Tuesday, Calgary on Wednesday, Lethbridge on Friday and Medicine Hat on Sunday. . . . The Pats and Hitmen drew 3,279 fans in Calgary on Oct. 2. This time they’re talking about perhaps 17,000.

Hockey fans in the state of Washington were out in full force on Saturday night . . .

Former NHLer Jan Ludvig now is the head coach of the junior B Kamloops kijhlStorm of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. He also will be soon to hear from Jeff Dubois, the KIJHL commissioner, if he hasn’t already.

That’s because Ludvig is on the other end of the stick in the below tweet, the one with the white flag on the end of it.

Ludvig was given a gross misconduct at 12:01 of the third period as his Storm was dropping a 4-2 decision to the Posse in Princeton.

The Storm next is scheduled to play Friday against the Grizzlies in Revelstoke with a return match the following night in Kamloops.

——

D Zach Peitsch of the KIJHL’s Kelowna Chiefs is in Kelowna General Hospital after being injured during a Friday night game against the host Grand Forks Border Bruins. . . . Peitsch, a 17-year-old from Kelowna, was hit in the throat by an opponent’s stick, suffering damage to his windpipe. He was taken by ambulance to KGH where he underwent surgery. . . . On Saturday night, the Chiefs tweeted: “Zach’s surgery was successful, although the damage was worse than the doctors initially believed. He is awake and will remain in ICU for tonight at least.” . . . The Chiefs added: “On behalf of Zach and the Peitsch family, we thank everyone for their comments wishing him well.”

Demons

SUNDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The Medicine Hat Tigers overcame a 4-1 deficit and beat the Pats, 6-4, in front of a sellout crowd (6,499) in Regina. . . . What did John Paddock, the Pats’ general manager and head coach, think about the outcome? “I’ll call it stupidity,” he said, according to the Regina Leader-Post’s Rob Vanstone. . . . The victory lifted the Tigers (19-21-8) into an eighth-place tie with the Pats (22-21-2) in the Eastern Conference. That is the conference’s final playoff spot. They are one point behind the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Medicine Hat is 5-1-2 in its past eight games as it makes a run for a playoff spot. . . . Regina led 4-2 after the second period; it went into the game with a 19-0-0 record when leading after 40 minutes. . . . The Tigers scored the last five goals, four of them in the third period, with D Bogdans Hodass (9) getting two of them. . . . F Tomas Music (7) broke the 4-4 tie at 16:41 of the third period and F Brayden Boehm (18) added the empty-netter. . . . Regina D Stanislav Svozil had two assists. He has five goals and 43 assists in 33 games, after putting up 41 points, including 31 assists, in 59 games last season. . . . Vanstone’s game story is right here. . . .

G Dante Giannuzzi stoned the Spokane Chiefs on a 3-on-0 break in OT that allowed the Portland Winterhawks to scored a 4-3 victory on home ice. . . . Shortly after Giannuzzi’s save, F Marek Alscher (7) won it at 3:09 of extra time. . . . F Chaz Lucius had pulled Portland into a 3-3 tie at 19:43 of the third period. He also had an assist. . . . Lucius has at least two points in each of the six games he has played since joining Portland. All told, he has five goals and 10 assists. . . . The Chiefs held a 3-1 lead before D Ryan McCleary (11) got Portland to within one at 14:31 of the third. . . . F James Stefan added his 18th goal and two assists for the winners. . . . The Chiefs got 41 saves from Cooper Michaluk. . . . Portland (34-8-3) leads the Western Conference by three points over the Seattle Thunderbirds (33-8-2), who hold two games in hand. . . . The Chiefs (9-32-4) are 11 points from a playoff spot. . . . The Winterhawks were 3-0-0 in a three-game weekend, while the Chiefs were 0-2-1. . . .

F Owen Pederson scored at 2:42 of OT as the Winnipeg Ice beat the Hitmen, 5-4. . . . That was his 21st goal of the season. . . . The Hitmen had forced OT on late third-period PP goals from F Oliver Tulk (19), at 14:25, and F Sean Tschigerl (15), at 15:45. . . . Pederson and Tschigerl each scored twice. Tulk also had two assists. . . . The Ice (35-6-1) now leads the Eastern Conference by three point over the Red Deer Rebels (32-10-4). Winnipeg has four games in hand. . . . The Hitmen (23-17-6) are sixth in the conference. . . . Winnipeg went 2-1-0 in playing three games in fewer than 48 hours in Alberta. . . . Calgary also played three times in fewer than 48 hours, that last two at home. It finished 0-1-2 in those games. . . .

F Hayden Smith scored three times and added an assist as the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes beat the Edmonton Oil Kings, 10-2. . . . Smith, 18, went into the game with eight goals in 119 career regular-season games. This season, he has nine goals and four assists in 47 games. He has four goals and two assists in his past two games. . . . F Anton Astashevich (5) and F Jett Jones (17) each had a goal and two assists. . . . Lethbridge had a 51-24 edge in shots. . . . The Oil Kings took 72 of the 104 penalty minutes that were doled out. . . . The Hurricanes (26-16-5) are fifth in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Oil Kings (7-36-3), the WHL’s defending champions, won’t be in the playoffs this time around. . . .

The Tri-City Americans erased a 1-0 deficit with three straight goals and went on to beat the Silvertips, 3-2, in Everett. . . . F Jalen Luypen’s seventh goal, at 15:41 of the second period, proved to be the winner. . . . F Ethan Ernst got No. 25 for the Americans. . . . F Jackson Berezowski (30) scored his 112th career regular-season goal for Everett. That ties him with F Patrick Bajkov (2013-18) for the franchise record for most career goals. . . . Berezowski, who also had an assist, has 207 points in 251 games. . . . Bajkov, who is from Nanaimo, is playing professionally in Sweden. He put up 288 points in 342 games with Everett. . . . The Americans (23-16-5) went 3-0-0 on the weekend, beating Everett twice and Spokane once. G Tomas Suchanek went the distance in all three games. . . . Tri-City, fourth in the Western Conference, now is four points ahead of Everett (23-22-1). The Silvertips had a 1-2-0 weekend.

Idiots

Jack Todd, in the Montreal Gazette: “Not buying Novak Djokovic’s claim that his father was ambushed into a Down Under photo op by a bunch of pro-Putin Serbs. Everyone in Eastern Europe knows what the ‘Z’ T-shirts are about. Ditto the Wagner Group gear. Srdjan Djokovic knew what he was doing.”

——

Todd, again: “So the dysfunctional Vancouver Canucks organization has followed the awkward mess of the Bruce Boudreau firing by hiring Rick ‘Toxic’ Tocchet, who pleaded guilty in New Jersey in 2007 to charges of promoting gambling and conspiring to promote gambling. What could possibly go wrong?”

Treadmill

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.

Planets

Cents’ Astorino has quite a story to tell . . . Jarvis unlikely to return to Portland now . . . Blazers’ Clouston moving on up

F Blake Astorino of the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials was among the residents of that B.C. community who were forced out by horrific flooding on Nov. 15. In MerrittMerritt, Astorino, a 20-year-old from Prince George, was billeting with Jenny and Jesse Pierce, whose home is a snapshot away from the Coldwater River.

Here’s a bit of what Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen wrote in a story about Astorino’s experiences . . .

It was just past 5 a.m. and the flood waters hadn’t reached the end of the driveway but within 15 minutes nature’s fury was lapping at their feet and waves rippled as a torrent of rising water enveloped their yard. As a third-generation Merritt resident, Jenny knew the house her grandparents built was prone to flooding occasionally, because it was only a short walk from the river, and Jesse told Blake they would likely be back later that day when the water level dropped. But it didn’t.

“I didn’t really pack as much stuff as I probably should have, and when I looked outside the water was starting to get a little worse, but it wasn’t serious,” Astorino said. “So I went back to my room for a bit and I heard (Jenny) yelling, ‘OK, we’ve got to go, we’ve got to go,’ and it happened within five minutes. It was like nothing to water almost in the house in 20 minutes. It was coming so fast and the water was strong.”

By the time Astorino got into his car, the rushing water was already lapping at the doors and as soon as he backed out of the driveway and started down the road his car was half-submerged.

“It was pretty scary for me because my car is so low to the ground and the water was coming up to my windshield and going over the roof,” Astorino said. “If I had left any later I would have been stuck. Luckily, it didn’t stall and I got out.”

Clarke’s complete story — and it’s an excellent one — is right here.

Bronx

It now is really doubtful that the Portland Winterhawks will have F Seth Jarvis in their lineup this season. Jarvis, 19, played in his 10th regular-season game with the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday night, meaning the first-year of his three-year entry-level contract has started. . . . The Hurricanes lost, 2-1 in OT, to the host San Jose Sharks. . . . Carolina selected Jarvis with the 13th pick of the NHL’s 2020 draft. . . . He has four goals and one assist in 10 games with the Hurricanes this season. . . . Interestingly, it was an injury to F Nino Niederreiter that opened a spot in the lineup for Jarvis on Oct. 31. Niederreiter also is a product of the Winterhawks. . . . Jarvis put up 73 goals and 93 assists in 154 regular-season WHL games, all with Portland. . . . Yes, Jarvis still could be assigned to the Winterhawks, but that isn’t likely to happen because the first year of his contract would be burned in any case.

QUESTIONS: Did the late Nat King Cole release only one Christmas song, that one being The Christmas Song? You know the one: Chestnuts roasting . . . Considering the battering that TE Rob Gronkowski of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has taken — and continues to take — how is it that he is still able to walk, never mind run? . . . Have you seen enough of that Connor McDavid commercial yet? Or do you agree that Sportsnet could/should squeeze it in a few more times each evening?

Mitch Love suffered the first regulation-time defeat of his AHL head-coaching career on Monday night when the Stockton Heat dropped a 5-3 decision to the host Ontario Reign. . . . Love, a former WHL player and coach, spent the previous three seasons as the head coach of the Saskatoon Blades. That followed seven seasons as an assistant with the Everett Silvertips. . . . In last night’s loss, the Heat goals came from F Matthew Phillips, F Glenn Gawdin and and F Luke Philp, all three former WHLers. . . . The Heat now is 10-1-2.

Humor

Jon Keen, the radio voice of the Kamloops Blazers, reminds us via Twitter (@JonKeenNLSports) that Shaun Clouston, the team’s general manager and WHLhead coach, is moving up the WHL’s all-time victories ladder. “He sits at 464,” Keen tweeted. “One more win ties him with Dean Clark and Kelly McCrimmon for 12th all-time. Peter Anholt and Jack Shupe are next at 466.” . . .

Officially, the top five on that list won’t change, with Don Hay (750) on top, followed by Ken Hodge (742), Don Nachbaur (692), Lorne Molleken (626) and Mike Williamson (572). Of course, Hay, now the associate coach with the Portland Winterhawks, could add to his total should he have an opportunity to run the bench if head coach Mike Johnston is absent. That happened earlier this season but the Winterhawks dropped a 5-2 decision to the visiting Everett Silvertips with Johnston away on a scouting trip. . . .

Marc Habscheid of the Prince Albert Raiders is the winningest active coach. He’s in sixth spot, at 560, ahead of Ernie (Punch) McLean (548), Brent Sutter (526) and Pat Ginnell (518). . . .

Shupe and Anholt are tied for 10th, at 466, with McCrimmon and Clark next, at 465. . . . Clouston, whose club next is scheduled to play Wednesday in Kent, Wash., against the Seattle Thunderbirds, is 14th and has a chance to join the 500 Club before this season ends. . . . The Blazers (14-2-0) are on pace to win 60 games, but it isn’t likely they can play to an .875 winning percentage for 68 games. Still, a 50-victory season would have Clouston at an even 500 victories, making him the 10th head coach in WHL history to reach that milestone. . . .

Also in the 400 Club: Bob Lowes (453), Mike Johnston (420), Doug Sauter (417) and Marcel Comeau (411). . . . Johnston moved past Sauter this season. . . . Next into the 400 Club will be Willie Desjardins with the Medicine Hat Tigers. He is at 392, good for 19th on the all-time list.

NOTE: The WHL hasn’t updated its Media Guide and Record Book since before the 2019-20 season, so the totals for active coaches are unofficial.

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Shaun Clouston and his Blazers are one game into something of a bizarre road Kamloopstrip. They beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-1, in Kent, Wash., on Saturday night and are scheduled to play their again on Wednesday. But rather than stay in Kent or return home, the Blazers moved into Vancouver for a couple of days. . . . “Some guys went and rode bikes on the seawall and a bunch of our players went to the Canucks game (Sunday) night,” Clouston told Radio NL. “It was a nice break.” . . . The Blazers skated with players from St. George’s School at UBC on Monday. Tom Gaglardi, the Blazers’ majority owner, has served on the board at St. George’s and has had sons play hockey there. . . . After playing in Kent, the Blazers are scheduled to meet the Winterhawks in Portland on Friday and the Silvertips (15-0-1) in Everett on Saturday.

Fryer

It doesn’t appear that the situation involving the USHL’s Omaha Lancers has reached any sort of resolution just yet. Chris Peters of faceoff.com has been following the goings-on and his latest report is right here.

A tip of the fedora to F Carter Streek of the Spokane Chiefs, who just happens to Spokanebe from Kamloops. Due to injuries and a couple of positive tests, the Chiefs were short of forwards earlier this month, which is one of the reasons they gave up a seventh-round selection in the WHL’s 2022 draft to acquire Streek, 17, from the Saskatoon Blades on Nov. 11. . . . In 21 games with the Blades, six of them this season, Streek had yet to score. So guess what happened in his first game with the Chiefs? Yes, he scored his first WHL goal — it was Spokane’s first goal, tying the score 1-1 at 3:54 of the second period, in what would be a 5-3 loss to the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds.

COVID-19 NOTES: Boston College has postponed a pair of weekend men’s hockey games “due to COVID-19 protocols and out of an abundance of caution.” The Eagles were to have met host Notre Dame on Friday and then entertained Harvard on Nov. 30. . . . D Ethan Bear of the Carolina Hurricanes didn’t play Monday night against the Sharks in San Jose after testing positive. . . . You do realize that more people died from COVID-19 in 2021 than in 2020. USA TODAY reported on Monday: “The disease was reported as the underlying cause of death or a contributing cause of death for an estimated 377,883 people in 2020, accounting for 11.3% of deaths, according to the CDC. As of Monday, more than 770,000 people have died from the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University data. That means over 15,000 more people have died in 2021 than last year from COVID-19 — and there’s still more than a month left.” . . . On Monday, The New York Times reported that “as Americans travel this week to meet far-flung relatives for Thanksgiving dinner, new virus cases are rising once more, especially in the Upper Midwest and Northeast.”

Cow

A group in Quesnel, B.C., that is headed up by Cory Broadhead is preparing to kijhlmake a proposal to the junior B Kootenay International Junior Hockey League in the hopes of landing a franchise that would be known as the Thunder and begin play in 2022-23. . . . Broadhead told George Henderson of mycariboonow.com: “We’ve received letters of support from some of the businesses in the community and a letter of support from the North Cariboo Advisory Committee to rent us the ice at the West Fraser Centre. I haven’t heard anything negative in town. It’s all been really positive and it sounds like this town would really support a team and go to the games.” . . . Broadhead said a proposal would be into the league “by the end of the week.” He added that according to its bylaws the KIJHL has “about 30 days to have a meeting.” A decision apparently would be announced three or four days after that meeting. . . . Henderson’s complete story is right here.

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

Taxes

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

Milkyway2

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

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

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

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

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

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

Children

Kevin Draper, writing in The New York Times:

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

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

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

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

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

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

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

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

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

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

Eyes

IIHF women’s tournament rescheduled for August; site TBA . . . Portland finally solves Everett . . . Oil Kings just keep on rolling

The IIHF announced on Friday that the 2021 Women’s World Championship will be held from Aug. 20-31 in Canada, although it apparently has yet to decide on a venue. . . . The 10-team tournament had been scheduled to begin next week in Nova Scotia — in Halifax and Truro — but was cancelled on April 21 by the provincial government. . . . The 2020 event also was to have been held in Halifax and Truro, but it, too, was cancelled because of the pandemic. . . . This time, Iain Rankin, Nova Scotia’s premier, was concerned about rising COVID-19 numbers. Earlier this week, Nova Scotia, which now is in a two-week lockdown, announced a pandemic-high 96 new positives. On Friday, it said there were 67 new cases, so the numbers may be starting to come down. . . . With Red Deer having played host to the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp last year and with Edmonton having played host to the 2021 World Junior Championship, you have to think those cities are favoured for the women’s event. But there may be other options. For starters, Tim Reid, the president and CEO of the Regina Exhibition Association Limited, told Claire Hanna of CTV News that his organization has spoken with the IIHF about playing host to the women’s tournament.

The Detroit Tigers visited the New York Yankees on Friday night in what was the first MLB game this season in which masks weren’t required in dugouts. Protocols agreed upon by MLB and the MLBPA before the season began called for a loosening of health and safety protocols if 85 per cent of what are referred to as Tier 1 staff were vaccinated. . . . Two other undisclosed teams have surpassed 85 per cent and five more are at 85 per cent and need only get two weeks past the vaccination date to have protocols loosened. . . . All told, according to an MLB news release, more than 81 per cent of all Tier 1 individuals across baseball, including players, are considered partially or fully vaccinated.” . . .

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies have placed SS Didi Gregorius on the COVID-19 list. Todd Zolecki of mlb.com wrote: “It does not mean Gregorius tested positive for COVID. Players can be held out because of contact tracing or other reasons. Gregorius until recently wore a mask at all times on the field. Earlier this week, he stopped wearing a mask when playing defense.” . . . The Phillies already are without INF Ronald Torreyes, who tested positive and is 10 days into quarantining in his hotel room.

Title

The WHL announced Friday that it didn’t receive any positives from the tests that were administered from April 25 through April 30. . . . According to the WHL, the five Alberta teams experienced a total of 159 tests, with the five U.S. Division teams seeing 467 and the five in B.C. getting 141. . . . The five Saskatchewan and two Manitoba teams completed their seasons in the Regina hub on Wednesday and apparently weren’t tested before heading home. . . . From the WHL’s news release: “To date, the WHL has administered a total of 9,006 tests for COVID-19 from Feb. 12 through April 30, with 14 positive test results.”

Meanwhile, there were four games played on Friday as the WHL closed out April . . .

In Portland, the Winterhawks scored the game’s last five goals and beat the PortlandAlternateEverett Silvertips, 5-2. . . . Everett had won the first five meetings between these teams this season. . . . Portland improved to 9-6-3, while Everett (15-4-0) had a six-game winning streak snapped. . . . F Hunter Campbell (9) and F Jackson Berezowski (4), on a PP, gave Everett a 2-0 first-period lead. . . . F Simon Knak got Portland’s comeback started at 11:24 of the second period. . . . Knak (12) tied it at 13:10 of the third and F Mason Mannek (8) broke the tie at 15:04. . . . The Winterhawks got insurance from D Kade Nolan (3), at 18:22, and F Tyson Kozak (3), at 18:52. . . . Sophomore F Jack O’Brien, who played most of this season with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars, made his Portland debut. He earned the lone assist on Knak’s first goal. . . . The Winterhawks had a 39-20 shot advantage, including 13-4 in the second and 17-4 in the third. . . .

F Josh Williams, playing in his 200th regular-season game scored three times Edmontonand added an assist to help the Edmonton Oil Kings to an 8-3 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen. . . . Edmonton, with points in 10 straight (9-0-1), is 18-1-1. . . . Calgary (8-8-2) has lost two in a row. . . . The Hitmen handed the Oil Kings their only regulation-time loss this season — 2-1 on March 28. . . . Williams picked up his second hat trick of this season and the third of his career. He played the first 92 games of his WHL career with the Medicine Hat Tigers, before being dealt to the Oil Kings. This season, he has 15 goals and 13 assists in 19 games. . . . The Hitmen were in this game until early in the third period. . . . F Adam Kydd (7) gave Calgary a 1-0 lead just 49 seconds into the game. . . . Williams put his guys out front 2-1 with goals at 4:28 and 8:44. . . . F Riley Stotts (5) pulled the Hitmen even at 10:03, but Edmonton D Matthew Robertson (4) broke the tie, on a PP, at 16:52. . . . After that five-goal first period, Edmonton D Ethan Cap (3) got the only goal of the second, at 16:12. . . . F Sean Tschigerl (11) pulled Calgary back to within a goal, on a PP, at 3:27 of the third period. . . . F Jalen Luypen (15) got that one back for Edmonton 21 seconds later. . . . F Caleb Reimer (3), F Carter Souch (6) and Williams completed Edmonton’s scoring, the latter two striking on the PP. . . . Souch also had three assists, giving him his first career four-point outing. . . . Luypen added two assists to his goal. . . . Edmonton was 3-for-7 on the PP; Calgary was 1-for-3. . . . F Scott Atkinson, the Oil Kings’ captain, was back in the lineup for the first time since March 28. . . . F Jake Neighbours of the Oil Kings had two assists to run his point streak to 19 games. He’s got nine goals and 24 assists. . . .

The Victoria Royals stopped a 10-game losing skid with a 2-1 OT victory over Royalsthe Prince George Cougars in Kamloops. . . . F Brayden Schuurman (5) won it at 3:00 of the extra period. . . . The Royals now are 2-13-1. . . . The Cougars (6-7-3) had won their previous two games. . . . F Brandon Cutler (6) gave Victoria a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 17:48 of the first period. . . . Prince George tied it on a goal by F Tyson Upper (3) at 8:06 of the third period. . . . Victoria G Adam Evanoff was the game’s first star, with 40 saves. . . . The Cougars got 21 stops from G Ty Young, an eighth-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft who was making his second WHL start. . . . The Royals, with 12 freshmen on their roster, came within one loss of tying the franchise record of 11 straight losses that is shared by the 2006-07 Chilliwack Bruins and the 2012-13 Royals. . . .

The Kelowna Rockets scored five times in a 6:38 stretch of the first period en Rocketsroute to a 6-1 victory over the visiting Kamloops Blazers. . . . The Rockets (8-2-0) have won five in a row. . . . The Blazers (12-4-0) have lost two straight. . . . If there aren’t any more schedule disruptions, the Blazers will play 22 games this season, with the Rockets getting into 16. Because they won’t play equal games, the B.C. Division title will go to the team with the best points percentage. After this game, Kelowna, with 16 points, is at .800, with the Blazers, who have 24 points, at ,750. . . . These two teams will play again tonight, this time in Kamloops. . . . D Elias Carmichael (2), F Dylan Wightman (4), F Dillon Hamaliuk (5), Turner McMillen (2) and F Jake Poole (2) scored Kelowna’s first-period goals. The last four came in a stretch of 2:41. . . . F Daylan Kuefler (3) got a shorthanded goal for Kamloops at 11:02 of the third period. . . . F Nolan Flamand (1), on a PP, had Kelowna’s last goal. Flamand, a second-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft, scoring his first WHL goal in his 13th game, 10 of them this season. He also has six assists this season. . . . G Cole Schwebius stopped 31 shots for the Rockets. . . . McMillen’s father, Dave, scored 13 goals in 188 WHL games split between the Moose Jaw Warriors, Victoria Cougars and Tacoma Rockets (1988-93). In two seasons (1991-93) with Tacoma, he had seven goals and 12 assists in 118 games. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers were without F Connor Zary, their captain, when they played in Kelowna on Friday night. He took a high hit from F Jonny Hooker of the Prince George Cougars in Kamloops on Wednesday night and didn’t return. . . . Hooker was given a minor penalty for charging on the play. . . . On Friday, according to the WHL website, Hooker was handed one of those TBD suspensions under supplemental discipline. . . . The Blazers also are without F Logan Stankoven, who is with Canada’s U18 team at the IIHF World Championship in Texas.

In the QMJHL, G Thomas Sigouin of the Quebec Remparts scored an empty-net goal as his guys beat the host Drummondville Voltigeurs, 5-2, to sweep a best-of-five first-round playoff series. When he wasn’t scoring, Sigouin was stopping 36 shots. Sigouin, 20, is the first goaltender in QMJHL history to score a goal in a playoff game. According to Geoffrey Brandow (@GeoffreyBrandow), the goal was Sigouin’s first point in 63 QMJHL appeearances.

F Olen Zellweger of the Everett Silvertips had four assists and Team Canada U18scored five PP goals on Friday as they dumped Switzerland 7-0 at the IIHF U18 World Championship in Texas. . . . G Thomas Milic of the Seattle Thunderbirds earned the shutout for Canada, but he wasn’t at all busy as he was tested only 11 times. . . . Canada (3-0-0) will conclude its Group A round-robin schedule today (Saturday) against Belarus. . . . In Friday’s only other game, Finland skated to a 10-0 victory over Germany in Group B. . . . In today’s other Group A game, Latvia plays Sweden. . . . In Group B, it’s Russia against Czech Republic, and Team USA against Finland.

Electrician

Dorothy is preparing to take part in her eighth Kamloops Kidney Walk, albeit virtually, on June 6. If you would like to be part of her team, you are able to make a donation right here.

——

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

JUST NOTES: After seven seasons at Burnaby Winter Club, Leland Mack is off to the Northern Alberta Xtreme as head coach of the U16 prep team. While with BWC, Mack had stints with the U16 prep and U15 prep teams. He also has spent 10 years as a scout with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Former WHLer David Schlemko (Medicine Hat, 2004-07) will join NAX as Mack’s assistant coach. Schlemko, whose professional career included 415 games over 11 seasons, retired as a player after the 2018-19 season.

Moon

Thomas’s ‘pilot project’ sounds great from here . . . Hockey gang coming through again; Sopotyk fund tops 100 grand

It seems so simple in theory . . . make semi-truck driving a trade, just like plumbing and electrical work and heavy-duty mechanic. If someone wants to be a truck driver, they would have to attend a trade school, one like Saskatchewan Polytechnic, aka SIAST, or the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT). . . . Candidates would be eligible for student loans.

Why not? Are there any politicians out there who are paying attention?

As Scott Thomas puts it: “The trucking industry needs to have its drivers treated with more respect.”

You will recall that Thomas’s son, Evan, died in the crash involving the Humboldt Broncos’ bus almost three years ago. In the aftermath, Scott has been advocating for changes to driver training, including turning it into a trade, something that he refers to at the moment as a “pilot project.”

Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, who was driving the truck that pulled into the path of the Broncos’ bus at a highway intersection, is serving an eight-year sentence and is eligible to apply for parole in September. Thomas has been in email contact with Sidhu and his family, and, in fact, has written in support of Sidhu not being deported.

“Jaskirat Sidhu took his semi drivers job as a second job to put his wife through dental hygiene school,” Thomas says. “No one should have a second job as a semi-driver operating in a part of the world he has never been before. His second job should have been selling 50/50 tickets at a Flames game, not in charge of a lethal weapon rolling down a highway!”

As Thomas has pointed out time and again, the trucking industry “needs federal regulation just as our rail lines and skies are federally regulated . . . our highways should be as well for commercial trucking purposes.”

The point, of course, is to increase accountability in the trucking industry and to make our highways safer.

I happen to agree wholeheartedly with Thomas. I live on a plateau a couple of km north of the Trans-Canada Highway just east of Kamloops. I can see the highway from our back deck and the eye test tells me that truck traffic has really, really increased over the past few years.

So all Thomas needs now is for a courageous politician or two or three to throw their support behind this “pilot project” and get things rolling.

Surely there are some of those out there, aren’t there?

Sopotyk
Kyrell Sopotyk: Zamboni driver.

The GoFundMe page that was started on Sunday afternoon in support of Kyrell Sopotyk and his family has surpassed $100,000. Sopotyk, 19, played two seasons (2018-20) with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers. From Aberdeen, Sask., he was left paralyzed following a snowboarding accident on Friday at Table Mountain, which is near North Battleford. . . . The GoFundMe page was started by Kathleen Zary, the mother of Blazers F Connor Zary, who has been friends with Sopotyk since they were youngsters. . . .

On Nov. 25, Jon Keen, the Blazers’ play-by-play voice, tweeted that he had asked Sopotyk what he was up to during the pandemic. The response: “I’m working at the rink in Aberdeen. You get ice whenever you want and I get to drive the Zamboni.” Sopotyk even supplied Keen with photographic evidence that he, indeed, got to drive the Zamboni. . . .

As of Monday, 10 p.m. PT, 1,268 people had donated $129,274. The GoFundMe page is right here.

Opinion

As the AHL gets ready to begin play next week, it has become obvious that the Calder Cup that goes to the winner of its playoff champion won’t be awarded for a second straight season. . . . Instead, the league reportedly will feature the top four teams in each division meeting in best-of-three series to decide division champions. Those ‘playoffs’ will last a week. . . . What this means, of course, is that the AHL season is being held for developmental reasons only. . . . That is exactly the purpose of the WHL’s decision to “commit” to a 24-game schedule. It isn’t at all concerned with declaring a champion; it is all about playing games for developmental purposes.

Judy Battista of nfl.com posted an interesting story on Monday. It starts with this . . .

“A paper published Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that during the season, the NFL found that transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19 occurred in less than 15 minutes of cumulative contact between individuals — the timeframe the CDC initially used in its definition of close contact. That led the NFL to redefine what made a close contact high risk — factors like masking and ventilation — findings that the CDC and the NFL hope will be broadly applicable to the public to limit the spread of the virus, especially in schools, long-term care facilities and high-density essential workplaces, like manufacturing centers.” . . . The complete piece is right here.

Clint

THE COVID-19 CHRONICLES . . .

CBC News — Manitoba reports 113 new COVID-19 cases, 5 more deaths.

CBC News — Sask. reports 239 new COVID-19 cases and 1 more death. Province aims to vaccinate all nursing home workers and residents by end of March.

CBC News — 2,000 students from two Edmonton high schools are being sent home due to COVID-19. More than 700 students and staff already in quarantine.

Richard Zussman, Global BC — There are 1,344 new cases of COVID in BC over 3 days. That is from Fri to Sat 527 new cases, Sat to Sun 471 new cases, Sun to Mon 346 cases, There has been a total of 64,828 cases in BC. . . . There are 328 people in hospital with COVID, up 13. There 68 in ICU, down 6. . . . There have been 26 additional COVID deaths over the past 3 days. There have been 1,154 deaths in BC due to COVID-19.

Richard Zussman, Global BC — The sense I am getting from this briefing is there is nothing more many people can give in the fight against COVID. And that is what makes this so terrible. The majority of people in BC are fighting the battle for those unwilling (or unable) to change their behaviour.

CBC News — Ontario is reporting 1,958 new cases of COVID-19, including 727 cases in Toronto, 365 in Peel and 157 in York Region.

CBC News — Quebec is reporting 1,203 new cases of COVID-19. The province is also reporting 43 additional deaths, 12 of which occurred in the last 24 hours.

CBC News — N.B. reports 27 new cases of COVID-19 and one more death.

CBC News — No new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Nova Scotia. The number of known active cases in the province is down to 15, the lowest number since early November. No one is in hospital because of the virus.

CBC News — N.L., with no new COVID-19 cases for 3rd straight day, eyes St-Pierre-Miquelon outbreak.

CBC News — Nunavut is reporting 2 new cases of COVID-19, both in Arviat, for a total of 17 known active cases in the territory. A news release from the Nunavut government says: ‘All individuals are asymptomatic, doing well and are isolating.’

Public Health Agency of Canada, Monday, 4 p.m. PT — Total cases: 753,011 . . . Active cases: 62,447 . . . Deaths: 19,338.

CNN, Monday, 2 p.m. PT — 25.2 million people in the United States have tested positive for coronavirus.

CNN, Monday, 2 p.m. PT — 420,000 people in the United States have died from coronavirus.

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The U of Alabama-Huntsville hockey team has postponed games scheduled for Thursday and Friday at Minnesota State. AUH next is scheduled to play on Feb. 5 and 6. . . .

The NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, with six players on the COVID-19 protocol list, now have had four games postponed. The latest game to be scrubbed was scheduled for tonight (Tuesday) against the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning. . . . You will recall that the Dallas Stars, who played their first game on Friday, lost their first four games to postponements after having 17 players test positive during training camp. . . .

The NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks have placed F Alex DeBrincat and D Adam Boqvist to the COVID-19 protocol list. . . .

The U of Michigan shut down all athletics programs for at least two weeks over the weekend. On Monday, the U of Maine announced that it was pausing all of its athletic teams at least through Feb. 4. . . .

The NBA postponed Monday’s game that was to have the San Antonio Spurs playing the Pelicans in New Orleans. Neither team would have had eight players available for the game. . . . The NBA now has had to postpone 22 games. . . . Kawhi Leonard and Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers won’t play tonight (Tuesday) against the Atlanta Hawks due to protocols. ESPN reported that the two didn’t travel to Atlanta with the team on Monday. Interestingly, both played in a 108-100 victory over the Oklahoma City Heat on Sunday.

The Colorado College Tigers men’s hockey team has had a player test positive so its weekend series against the Denver Pioneers has been scratched. . . .

The Interlake Minor Hockey Association, which is based in the Interlake region of Manitoba, has cancelled its 2020-21 season. “Unfortunately,” the association said in making the announcement, “this is not at all what any of us were hoping for, but it is what it is and we can only move forward from here and start looking towards next season.”

——

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

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Or, for more information, visit right here.

Snapchat

Hanlon leaving Giants . . . Blazers’ top pick gives them the word . . . Thunderbirds’ import will stay home

MacBeth

F Adam Kambeitz (Red Deer, Saskatoon, Seattle, 2008-13) a signed one-year contract with Gap (France, Ligue Magnus). This season, with the U of Calgary (Canada West), he had two goals and eight assists in 28 games. . . .

F Dominik Uher (Spokane, 2009-12) signed a two-year contract with the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (Germany, DEL). This season, with Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had three goals and three assists in 48 games. . . .

F Dustin Johner (Seattle, 1999-2004) signed a one-year contract extension with the Belfast Giants (Northern Ireland, UK Elite). He had three goals and seven assists in 19 games. . . .

D Tomáš Kundrátek (Medicine Hat, 2008-10) signed a one-year contract with Kunlun Red Star Beijing (China, KHL). This season, with Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (Russia, KHL), he had two goals and 11 assists in 53 games. . . .

D Zack Yuen (Tri-City, 2008-13) signed a one-year two-way contract extension with Kunlun Red Star Beijing (China, KHL). He had two goals and one assist in 21 games this season. He also was pointless in eight games with KRS Heilongjiang Harbin (China, Russia Vysshaya Liga).

ThisThat

The Vancouver Giants became the third B.C. Division team searching for a general manager when they revealed on Monday that Glen Hanlon is leaving after two seasons in that role. . . . The Prince George Cougars, who didn’t bring back Todd Harkins, and Kamloops Blazers, who dumped Stu MacGregor, also are looking to hire general managers. . . . According to a Giants news release, Hanlon “has decided to pursue other opportunities.” . . . Hanlon, 61, spent two seasons (2011-13) with the Giants as an assistant coach under Don Hay before spending a couple of seasons coaching in Belarus and Switzerland. . . . Dean Chynoweth, the Giants’ associate coach, may be the leading candidate to replace Hanlon. Chynoweth, 49, spent five seasons (2004-09) as the general manager and head coach of the Swift Current Broncos. He just completed his first season with the Giants, working alongside head coach Jason McKee.

The Hamilton Bulldogs won the OHL championship on Sunday night. Here are a few paragraphs written earlier in the week by Scott Radley of the Hamilton Spectator:

When the Canadian Hockey League awarded the Memorial Cup to Regina, it cited the failings of FirstOntario Centre as the main reason why.

“At the end of the day, it was the facility that would not allow Hamilton to stay in the race,” CHL president David Branch said back then.

That may be true. Then again, the yellow-T-shirt-wearing, noise-making, atmosphere-creating, lower-bowl-filling crowd — which was 2,100 people bigger than will be at any of the Memorial Cup games at the Brandt Centre (capacity 6,500) — sure looked good and suggested the tournament really should’ve been here.

Not to mention the fact that Hamilton has a championship-calibre team that’s playing the country’s best outfit to a standstill right now. The host Regina Pats? They were eliminated from their playoffs 40 days ago.”

Here’s more from Radley:

Sure, most teams’ TV and radio announcers are homers to one degree or another. Many are employees of the team, so it’s hardly a surprise. Most keep it reasonably in check, however.

That said, is there any call in sports more finger-nails-on-a-chalkboard grating than Buck Martinez yelling “Get up, ball!” every time a Blue Jay hits a home run? It’s just one step short of running onto the field and hugging the guy as he rounds third base.

It seems that Tom Gaglardi, the majority owner of the Kamloops Blazers, didn’t give us all of the organization’s bad news when he announced the departure of four people from Kamloops1the front office on Thursday.

Jon Keen, the radio voice of the Blazers, reported Tuesday that the Blazers were told before the May 3 bantam draft that F Massimo Rizzo is “pursuing an NCAA scholarship and will not be coming to training camp in the fall.”

The Blazers selected Rizzo with the 15th overall selection of the 2016 bantam draft. This season, Rizzo had 13 goals and 25 assists in 50 games with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. He will be back with the Vees in 2018-19.

On Thursday, Gaglardi announced the departures of general manager Stu MacGregor, head coach Don Hay, assistant coach Mike Needham and director of player personnel Matt Recchi.

The NHL’s Edmonton Oilers signed G Stuart Skinner of the Swift Current Broncos to a three-year entry-level contract on Monday. Skinner, who is from Edmonton, was a third-round selection by the Oilers in the NHL’s 2017 draft. . . . He posted a record-tying six shutouts in helping the Broncos to the WHL championship.

So . . . if you’re Eli Manning, the New York Giants’ starting quarterback, what’s it like playing in Philadelphia?

“Philly, you just gotta get used to,” Manning tells Steiner Sports. “. . . because you’re not used to seeing a nine-year-old cursing at you and talking about my mom and stuff. Once you get used to it, it’s fine. It just takes a year or two. Now (15 years later) he’s 24 and training his four-year-old to curse at me.”

The Prince Albert Raiders have signed D Nolan Allan, the third overall selection in the WHL’s 2018 bantam draft. Allan, from Davidson, Sask., had 12 goals and 32 assists in 26 games with the bantam AA Humboldt Broncos.

Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times notes that Kiyaunta Goodwin of Louisville, Ky., “is six-feet-seven, weighs 370 pounds, wears size-18 shoes, leg presses 1,000 pounds, bench presses 315, displays uncanny agility, likes art music and robotics, and has a football offer from Georgia in his pocket, according to Bleacher Report.” . . . Perry then adds: “Oh and did we mention that he’s only 14 years old and an eighth-grader?”

It appears that F Sami Moilanen won’t be back with the Seattle Thunderbirds for what Seattlewould have been his 19-year-old season. From Sipoo, Finland, Moilanen played two seasons with Seattle. He had 43 points, including 21 goals, in 70 games as a freshman, adding 16 points, seven of them goals, in 20 playoff games as the Thunderbirds won the Ed Chynoweth Cup. This season, he had 22 goals and 23 assists in 50 games as he was hampered by injuries. . . . Seattle’s second import, Russian F Nikita Malukhin, had five goals and four assists in 52 games as a freshman this season.

Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe, is a hockey fan, and as he writes: “A difference between Canadian and U.S. hockey fans — at least Canadian fans can find Winnipeg on a map?”

“Vegas Golden Knights and Tampa Bay Lightning should both do well with playoff ticket sales,” Hough notes. “As we get into mid- May, I’m guessing people in both cities will pay well for a chance to spend three hours inside out of 30-plus degree weather.”

“So the Leafs are bounced in the first round,” pens Jack Todd of the Montreal Gazette, “the Raptors pull an epic choke after Drake makes an ass of himself, and the Jays get no-hit the night Stroman pitches. This Toronto 24/7 thing is entertaining.”

A note from RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com: “Reuters reports a Paris museum is offering special viewing hours to ‘naturists.’ Nudes taking in nudes? Busts before busts? Art-wise I’m not sure how to frame it.”

Currie, again: “The Toronto Raptors fired coach Dwane Casey two days after he was named NBA coach of the year.  It’s the fastest fall from grace for a Casey since the Mudville nine.”