Tag: Kamloops Blazers

That’s 60 for Bedard, but Pats stunned by Oil Kings . . . Coward a winner in return to Rebels . . . BCHL taking Showcase to Seattle

THE BEDARD REPORT: F Connor Bedard scored his 60th goal of the season on Wednesday night but it didn’t mean a whole lot as his Regina Pats dropped a 3-2 decision to the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Bedard, who was playing in his 49th game of the season, is the first WHLer with 60 goals since 2017-18 when F Jayden Halbgewachs of the Moose Jaw Warriors finished with 70 in 72 games. . . . The last Regina skater to get to 60 goals was F Ronald Petrovicky, who finished the 1997-98 season with 64 in 71 games. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in goals (60), assists (64) and points (124). However, he has only one point in his past two games. . . . Next up? The Pats, with eight games remaining in the regular season, venture into Alberta for two games — Friday in Lethbridge and Saturday in Medicine Hat.

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (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. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

WEDNESDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

In Red Deer, the Rebels clinched the Central Division title with a 2-1 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Red Deer last finished on top of the division in 2010-11. . . . F Kai Uchacz got his 47th goal for Red Deer in the first period, but it was F Jhett Larson’s 15th, shorthanded, at 14:04 of the second that was the winner. . . . D Chase Pauls (6) scored for Lethbridge with 17 seconds left in the third period. . . . G Chase Coward, in his first appearance this season, stopped 20 shots to earn the victory. The Rebels had announced prior to training camp that Coward, who turned 20 on Jan. 19, would be out for a while as he dealt with a medical situation. Last season, as a freshman, he was 22-10-2, 2.51, .906. . . . Red Deer (40-17-5) has points in three straight (2-0-1). It is 15 points ahead of the second-place Hurricanes (32-23-6), who have seven games remaining. . . .

Here’s more on Coward, this from Elliotte Friedman’s latest 32 Thoughts, which is right here:

“(I) wanted to recognize 20-year-old Chase Coward of WHL Red Deer. Coward is scheduled to start for the Rebels Wednesday night against Lethbridge. Last summer, Coward, not drafted by an NHL team, was invited to the Canadian World Junior Team’s summer camp, and also to Buffalo’s development camp. However, he failed his physical due to hip injuries, although the Sabres kindly allowed him to stay.

“In August, Rebels uberboss Brent Sutter announced Coward ‘underwent testing and discovered a congenital defect to his lower body. At this time Chase has decided he will not attend training camp or be a part of the Rebels roster to start the season, and we support him as he navigates through the process.’ There was concern Coward’s hockey career was over at waaaaaaaaaay too young an age. As I write this, I’m not 100 per cent sure of the procedures he went through, but it was a gruelling process and recovery against big odds. Wishing Chase good luck as he returns to action.” . . .

F Josh Pillar scored twice to help the Saskatoon Blades to a 5-3 victory over the visiting Swift Current Broncos. . . . Pillar, who turned 21 on Feb. 14, missed a good chunk of the season with an undisclosed injury. He has six goals in 21 games. He didn’t play between Nov. 26 and Feb. 17; these were his first two goals in nine games since returning to the lineup. . . . The Blades got out to a 3-0 lead — D Tanner Molendyk (8) made it 3-0 at 7:33 of the second period — and were never headed. . . . The Broncos twice got to within a goal but weren’t able to equalize. . . . F Brandon Lisowsky (32) iced it with the empty-netter. . . . F Josh Filmon (43) scored twice for the Broncos. . . . The Blades got 36 stops from G Ethan Chadwick (21-8-2, 2.53, .903). . . . Saskatoon (43-13-5) has points in 11 straight (10-0-1). . . . Swift Current (28-29-3) has lost two in a row and is clinging to the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot, one point ahead of Calgary and Brandon. . . .

The Edmonton Oil Kings, owners of the poorest record in the WHL, snapped an 11-game losing skid with a 3-2 victory over the Pats in Regina. . . . F Marshall Finnie (7) snapped a 1-1 tie at 15:36 of the first period and F Gavin Hodnett (12) made it 3-1, on a PP, at 12:20 of the second. . . . G Kolby Hay earned his sixth victory of the season with 31 saves. . . . Edmonton (9-48-3) won’t be in the playoffs this season after winning the championship last season. . . . Regina (31-26-3) has lost two straight. It is sixth in the Eastern Conference, four points ahead of Medicine Hat. . . .

G Nick Jones earned his first WHL shutout with 26 saves as the host Brandon Wheat Kings beat the Medicine Hat Tigers, 2-0. . . . F Zakhar Polshakov (7) gave Brandon a 1-0 lead at 5:19 of the second period and that’s all the offence that Jones needed. . . . Jones, an 18-year-old from Calgary, was a fifth-round pick in the WHL’s 2019 draft. This season, he is 4-12-3, 4.17, .865. . . . Brandon (25-28-8) has won two in a row and is only one point from a playoff spot. . . . Medicine Hat (26-26-9) has lost two straight and is seventh in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Swift Current. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers scored the game’s first four goals and went on to a 7-1 victory over the Silvertips in Everett. . . . D Owen Zellweger, who was acquired from Everett in January, had a goal (25) and two assists. He leads all WHL defencemen in goals. . . . F Jakub Demek also had a goal (2) and two assists. . . . The Blazers were without F Logan Stankoven, who left a 3-2 shootout victory over the host Seattle Thunderbirds in the second period on Tuesday with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return. The team is listing him as being out day-to-day. . . . Kamloops (42-11-6) has won four in a row and will finish atop the B.C. Division. . . . Everett (30-27-3) has lost three straight. It is tied with Tri-City for fifth in the Western Conference. . . .

The Prince George Cougars scored four times on the PP en route to a 6-2 victory over the Rockets in Kelowna. . . . The Cougars broke a 2-2 tie with four third-period goals, three of them on the PP. . . . F Riley Heidt recorded three assists, giving him 60 and Prince George’s single-season record for most assists. The previous record (59) was held by F Jansen Harkins 2014-15). . . . D Hudson Thornton also had three assists for the Cougars. . . . The visitors were 4-for-7 on the PP; the home side was 0-for-5. . . . Prince George had a 47-18 edge in shots. . . . The Rockets were without G Talyn Boyko (undisclosed injury) for a second straight game. . . . Prince George (31-24-5) has points in three straight (2-0-1). It is fourth in the Western Conference, four points ahead of Everett and Tri-City. . . . Kelowna (23-34-3) has lost three in a row. It is eighth in the conference and appears headed for a first-round meeting with Seattle. The Thunderbirds will open at home with games on March 31 and April 1. They announced last night that tickets for those two games will go on sale on March 15.

Orbit

JUST NOTES:

D Chloe Primerano, 16, led the Canada Winter Games women’s hockey tournament in scoring, with 14 points, including nine assists, in six games as her U-18 B.C. team won gold. You may recall that the Vancouver Giants selected her in the 13th round of the 2022 WHL draft and she attended their training camp. . . . This season, the North Vancouver native is playing for the U-18 female team at the Rink Hockey Academy in Kelowna, and the Giants are contemplating bringing her back to camp prior to next season. . . . In the meantime, she will be getting advice on her hockey-playing future from the Creative Artists Agency (CAA). The chances are far greater of her playing NCAA hockey than in the WHL and CAA will provide her with guidance. . . . Steve Ewen of Postmedia has more right here. . . .

The BCHL has announced that it will hold its annual Showcase featuring all 18 teams in Seattle next season. This will be the first time since the inaugural event was held in 2012 that it hasn’t been held in Chilliwack. . . . The 2023 Showcase will be held in the Kraken Community Iceplex, the practice facility for the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. The facility includes three rinks and 12 dressing rooms. . . . Each BCHL team will play two regular-season games during four days in October. The precise dates have yet to be announced. . . .

The Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL) is in Penticton for the long haul. From a Wednesday news release: “The CSSHL and its partners Okanagan Hockey Group, OVG360, Travel Penticton and the City of Penticton has reached an agreement for a 10-year agreement (five years, with an additional five-year renewal clause) to host the Western Championships beginning in March 2024.” . . . Also from that news release: “This month’s tournament features 86 teams and roughly 1,900 players and staff who are competing in the CSSHL Western Championships over a period of two weeks. Roughly 4,000 spectators are expected to attend the event. The sponsorship agreement, worth $100,000 per year, will see the number of participants increase to 95 Western Division teams next season as Penticton becomes host of the CSSHL’s Western championships.” . . .

Nela Lopušanová, the Slovakian Sensation, will leave home next season to play for the U-19 Bishop Kearney Selects, a program that is based in Rochester, N.Y. Lopušanová, who turned 15 on Feb. 26, is from Zilina. She perhaps first came to prominence earlier this season when, as a 14-year-old, she put up 12 points, nine of them goals, at the World Women’s U-18 tournament. She has 43 points, 18 of them goals, in 14 games with Zilina’s U-16 team, and has 28 goals and 21 assists in eight games with a Zilina club in a Slovakian women’s league.

Pyramids

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.

Idiots

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QMJHL has new commish, also moving to ban fighting . . . GTHL investigating irregularities . . . Blazers win battle of division kings

The QMJHL made it official on Tuesday — Mario Cecchini will be the new qmjhlnewcommissioner, replacing Gilles Courteau, who resigned effective immediately on Sunday after 37 years in office. . . . Cecchini is presently the interim president of the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes, so won’t take over his new position until May 8. . . . Martin Lavallee, who had been assistant commissioner, will serve as the interim commissioner until then. . . . The QMJHL had announced earlier that Courteau would be retiring in 2024, so a search for a replacement was well underway when he chose to leave his position on Sunday.

——

The QMJHL’s board of governors will vote in June on whether to ban fighting. . . . Le Journal de Quebec reported Monday that members voted in favour of the move last week, but that a move in that direction would have to be ratified in June. . . . Under the new regulations, according to the newspaper, a fight will result in automatic expulsion, with “certain exceptions,” such as when there is an instigator in a fight. . . . On Sept. 30, 2020, the QMJHL implemented a rule that results in a major and misconduct being given to a fighter. . . . The newspaper reported that during the 2010-11 season, the QMJHL averaged 0.78 fights per game. This season, through 536 games, that number was 0.14 (79 fights in 536 games).

If you’re not aware, it would appear that the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) is in a bit of a messy situation. Rick Westhead, who is doing such great work with TSN, reports that the GTHL “has opened multiple investigations into allegations that some teams and the non-profit companies that run them have been inappropriately bought and sold.” That is according to Scott Oakman, GTHL’s executive director. . . . Westhead’s story is right here and it is jam-packed with information, a lot of which will have you shaking your head. Such as this:

“One hockey parent whose son plays in the GTHL described to TSN his negotiations in July 2021 to buy a 25 per cent stake in a AAA organization for $1 million, and a current coach of a GTHL U14 AAA team told TSN that two parents approached him in October and informed him that they had ‘bought’ the right to control his team for $50,000.

“ ‘We went for coffee. They showed me what the new lineup was going to be, with a few kids literally benched for two of three periods, and they told me to take it up with our owner if I had an issue, which I did,’ the coach said. ‘I asked my owner how he was going to explain this to the GTHL and he told me he wouldn’t have to because it was an all-cash deal, all off the books.’ ”

Somehow I think it’ll be a while before we’ve heard the end of this one.

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (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. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

TUESDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The Kamloops Blazers scored the only two goals of a shootout and beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 3-2, in Kent, Wash. . . . This was a meeting between the Western Conference’s two division leaders. . . . Kamloops took a 1-0 lead at 12:02 of the first period when F Connor Levis (19) held the puck on a 2-on-1 and beat G Thomas Milic. . . . Blazers G Dylan Ernst preserved a 1-0 first-period lead by stuffing F Brad Lambert’s deke-to-the-backhand attempt on a penalty shot. . . . A tip by F Logan Stankoven (31) off a shot from the left wing by F Caedan Bankier just 38 seconds into the second period gave the visitors a 2-0 edge. . . . Seattle F Jared Davidson (35) cut into the Kamloops lead at 8:08, beating Ernst with a snapshot from the top rim of the left circle, and then tied the score at 12:20. . . . The Blazers won it on shootout goals from Bankier and F Matthew Seminoff. . . .  Ernst finished with 34 saves, five fewer than Milic. . . . Stankoven didn’t finish the game due to an undisclosed injury. Kamloops assistant coah Don Hay told Radio NL’s postgame show: “It might be a day-to-day, week-to-week type of injury.” . . . Kamloops (41-11-6) has won three in a row. . . . Seattle (48-9-3) had won its previous 13 games. . . . The Blazers and Thunderbirds are scheduled for two more meetings before the regular season ends — in Kent on March 21 and in Kamloops on March 22. . . .

G Ethan Eskit made 30 saves in his first WHL start to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 4-3 victory over the Raiders in Prince Albert. . . . Eskit, who turned 17 on Jan. 7, is from Calgary. He was a sixth-round pick in the 2021 WHL draft. . . . F Keaton Sorensen (23), in his 200th regular-season game, got the Raiders started when he scored on a penalty shot at 15:48 of the first period. . . . Eskit was solid after that as his teammates built a 4-1 lead on second-period goals from F Dawson Pasternak (12), F Ben Thornton (3), F Calder Anderson (15) and F Nolan Ritchie (23). . . . The Raiders got third-period goals from F Ryder Ritchie (18) and F Sloan Stanick (21), the latter scoring at 19:37. . . . Brandon (24-28-8) had lost its previous two games. . . . Prince Albert (25-32-3) has lost three in a row. . . . Brandon is 10th in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Calgary, three behind Swift Current and five in arrears of Medicine Hat. . . . Prince Albert is 11th, three points behind Brandon and now six points from a playoff spot. . . .

F Matt Savoie broke a 1-1 tie at 18:10 of the second period and the host Winnipeg Ice went on to a 3-1 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . This was the Ice’s first home game since Feb. 15; it went 8-2-0 on a lengthy road trip. Of its last nine games, including this one, seven will be played at home. . . . F Shane Smith (19) gave the visitors a 1-0 lead at 7:39 of the first period, only to have F Zach Benson (36) tie it at 10:03. . . . Savoie’s 34th goal, shorthanded, proved to be the winner. . . . F Conor Geekie (32) got the empty-netter. . . . The Ice has four 30-goal scorers on its roster and F Owen Pederson is at 29. The WHL record for most 30-goal scorers in one season is held by the 1986-87 Kamloops Blazers, who had nine of them. . . . G Daniel Hauser earned the victory with 29 saves. This season, he is 33-4-1, 2.36, .914. In his career, he has won 74 of 84 decisions. . . . Winnipeg (50-9-1) is the first WHL team this season to 50 victories and 100 points. . . . Medicine Hat (26-25-9) had won its previous two games. . . .

Moon

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.

Sandals

Bedard adds four more points in OT victory . . . Rocha a rock for Broncos . . . Blazers, Thunderbirds clinch division titles

BEDARD
CONNOR BEDARD

THE BEDARD REPORT: Ho hum . . . Yes, it was another one of those nights for F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats. . . . On Friday, he had a goal and four assists as he led his guys back from a 3-0 deficit to a 5-3 victory over the visiting Winnipeg Ice, the CHL’s No. 1-ranked team. . . . On Saturday, Bedard scored once and added three assists as he and his pals overcame a 3-1 deficit to beat the visiting Red Deer Rebels, 6-5 in OT. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in goals (59), assists (64) and points (123). . . . In 124 regular-season games, he has 251 points — 122 goals and 129 assists. . . . He has put up 32 points, including 14 goals, over his past nine games. . . . Bedard now has played in 19 games since return from the World Junior Championship; he has 32 goals and 27 assists over that stretch. . . . Next up? The Saskatoon Blades are in Regina this afternoon for what will be a third game in fewer than 48 hours for both teams.

Mike Stothers, an assistant coach with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks who did a turn as head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors, revealed on Saturday that he has been diagnosed with Stage 3 melanoma of the lymph nodes. He is to begin treatment, which is to involve surgery, in the near future. . . . “If I could share one simple message to all,” Stothers, 61, said. “Listen to your body. If you notice something unusual, or don’t feel like yourself, consult a doctor immediately. Please do no wait. It could be the best decision you ever make.” . . . Stothers spent three seasons with the Warriors (2011-14). The Warriors got into the third round of the playoffs in his first season, but then missed the playoffs each of the next two seasons. . . . He ended up the head coach of the Manchester Monarchs in 2014-15 and guided them to the Calder Cup as AHL champions.

CANADA WEST UPDATE: F Josh Prokop’s goal in OT gave the visiting U of Alberta Golden Bears a 5-4 victory over the Calgary Dinos on Saturday night. . . . The Golden Bears won despite coughing up a 4-0 lead as the Dinos scored four times in the third period. . . . The best-of-three Canada West final is 1-1 with the deciding game scheduled for tonight in Calgary.

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (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. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

SATURDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:
F Conor Geekie scored three times as the Winnipeg Ice wrapped up a 10-game road trip with an 8-3 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The Ice, which had lost its previous two games, went 8-2-0 on the trip. . . . Geekie opened the scoring with his 30th goal, at 3:01 of the first period, scored again at 13:51 of the second for a 5-1 lead, and completed his hat trick at 16:37 to put the Ice ahead 7-1. . . . Geekie has three hat tricks this season, with two of them in his past five games. . . . F Connor McClennon (41) had a goal and two assists for the winners, and F Owen Pederson had three assists. . . . Winnipeg (49-9-1) leads the Eastern Conference by 12 points over Saskatoon. . . . Brandon (23-28-8) has lost two in a row and now is five points from a playoff spot. . . .

G Joey Rocha stopped 24 shots to post his first WHL shutout as the Swift Current Broncos beat the Oil Kings, 8-0, in Edmonton. . . . Rocha, who turned 18 on Jan. 22, is a freshman from Nanaimo, B.C. . . . F Connor Hvidston (19) had two goals and an assist, and D Owen Pickering drew three assists. . . . F Josh Filmon scored his 40th goal in his 54th game this season, and D Sam Ward got his first. . . . Filmon went into this season with 25 goals in 84 games. . . . Ward, a 17-year-old from Kamloops, scored in his 26th game this season. . . . The Broncos held a 50-24 edge in shots and were 3-for-4 on the PP. . . . Swift Current (28-27-3) has won three straight. It is eighth in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Medicine Hat and three ahead of Calgary. . . . Edmonton (8-48-3) has lost 11 in a row and been outscored 70-14 in the process. . . . The Oil Kings have been blanked eight times this season. . . .

In Moose Jaw, the Warriors opened a 3-0 lead and went on to beat the Prince Albert Raiders, 5-3. . . . F Jagger Firkus (32), shorthanded, and F Eric Alarie (18) gave the hosts a 2-0 first-period lead, and D Matthew Gallant, with his first of the season, on a PP, made it 3-0 at 6:26 of the second. . . . The Raiders weren’t able to catch up, although they did get to within a goal, at 4-3, when F Evan Herman (15) scored at 12:39 of the third period. . . . Warriors F Ryder Korczak (24) iced it with the empty-netter. . . . The Warriors got 34 stops from G Jackson Unger. . . . Moose Jaw (36-22-3) had lost its previous three games. It is settling into fourth spot in the Eastern Conference, 12 points behind Saskatoon and five ahead of Lethbridge. . . . Prince Albert (25-31-3) has lost two in a row and now is six points from a playoff spot. . . .

F Alexander Suzdalev’s OT goal gave the host Regina Pats a 6-5 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Suzdalev scored his 35th goal of the season 55 seconds into extra time off a pass from F Connor Bedard, who finished with a goal, his 59th, and three assists. . . . Red Deer led this one 3-1 halfway through the second period. . . . D Stanislav Svozil (10), at 10:13 and F Riley Ginnell (7), at 11:30, got Regina even. . . . F Ben King (17) got Red Deer back in front before the period ended. . . . The Pats took their first lead on two goals from F Borya Valis (20), at 13:34 and 15:02 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Jayden Grubbe (16) forced OT at 19:08. . . . Svozil also had three assists for a four-point evening. . . . F Kai Uchacz (46) had a goal and two assists for Red Deer, which got three assists from D Mats Lindgren, who has eight points in two games. He had a goal and four assists in a 6-3 victory in Brandon on Friday. . . . Regina (31-24-3) has won six in a row. It is sixth in the Eastern Conference, five points behind Lethbridge and four ahead of Medicine Hat. . . . Red Deer (39-17-5) has points in two straight (1-0-1). . . .

In Saskatoon, the Blades scored the game’s first five goals en route to a 5-1 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . D Charlie Wright (6) gave the Blades a first-period lead and they broke it open with three second-period goals, from F Jake Chiasson (19), F Jayden Wiens (15) and F Egor Sidorov (38). . . . Saskatoon G Ethan Chadwick stopped 19 shots to record the victory over a Lethbridge side that included his brother, Noah. . . . Saskatoon (41-13-5) has points in nine straight (8-0-1). It looks like it will be the Eastern Conference’s No. 3 seed when the playoffs open. . . . Lethbridge (32-22-6) had won its previous two games. It is fifth in the conference, five points behind Moose Jaw and five ahead of Regina. . . .

G Thomas Milic stopped 32 shots to lead the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 5-0 victory over the Silvertips in Everett. . . . This was Milic’s fourth shutout this season and the eighth of his career. This season, he is 23-3-1, 2.06, .927. . . . F Nico Myatovic got Seattle a 2-0 lead with goals at 8:56 of the first period, via a PP, and 1:21 of the second. . . . Myatovic, an 18-year-old from Prince George, also had an assist. He has 25 goals in 58 games this season after scoring four times in 67 games last season. . . . F Reid Schaefer (26) also scored twice for Seattle. He has goals in five straight games. . . . Seattle (47-9-2) has won 12 straight games and has clinched first place in the U.S. Division for the first time since 2015-16. It also leads the Western Conference by 10 points over Kamloops. . . . Everett (30-25-3) had won its previous three games. It is tied with Tri-City for fifth in the conference, two points behind Prince George. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers clinched their fourth straight B.C. Division with a 7-2 victory over the Rockets in Kelowna. . . . The Blazers had beaten the Rockets, 8-1, in Kamloops on Friday. . . . Kamloops held a 109-50 edge in shots in the two games, including 56-28 last night. . . . The Blazers broke open a 1-1 game with six straight goals. . . . F Caedan Bankier (32) gave Kamloops a 2-1 lead, on a PP, at 16:30 of the first period, and F Connor Levis (18) made it 3-1 just 2:17 later while shorthanded. F Ryan Hofer (38), on another PP, upped it to 4-1 at 15:41. . . . D Olen Zellweger (24), with his second of the game, gave Kamloops a 5-1 edge at 19:58. . . . The Blazers got three assists from F Logan Stankoven. . . . Hofer added two assists to his goal. . . . Kamloops (40-11-6) isn’t likely to catch Seattle atop the Western Conference so, as B.C. Division champ, will be the No. 2 seed when the playoffs open. . . . Kelowna (23-33-3) is eighth in the conference, six points behind Victoria and 12 ahead of Victoria. . . .

F Adam Mechura’s PP goal in OT gave the visiting Tri-City Americans a 4-3 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . F James Stefan of the Winterhawks was given a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct at 19:45 of the third period for a hit on F Ethan Ernst. Mechura’s 21st goal of the season won the game at 2:35 of OT. . . . Tri-City F Jalen Luypen (12), who also had two assists, forced OT with a PP goal at 17:39 of the third period. . . . The Americans were 2-for-5 on the PP. Portland was 0-for-2. . . . D Lukas Dragicevic (15) had a goal and two assists for the winners. . . . Tri-City (28-24-7) had lost its previous three games. It is tied with Everett for fifth in the Western Conference, two points behind Prince George. . . . Portland (36-17-6) has lost nine in a row (0-7-2) and looks to be the conference’s No. 3 seed for the first round of the playoffs. . . .

F Chase Bertholet scored 28 seconds into OT to give the Spokane Chiefs a 5-4 victory over the Cougars in Prince George. . . . The Cougars had opened the weekend doubleheader with a 5-2 victory on Friday night. . . . F Berkly Catton, who had two goals and two assists, had tied the game, 4-4, with his 19th goal at 6:44 of the third period. . . . Catton, who turned 17 on Jan. 14, was the first overall selection in the WHL’s 2021 draft. He now has 46 points in 54 games. . . . F Chase Wheatcroft (41) had given the Cougars a 4-3 lead at 5:11 of the third. . . . D Mac Gross had three assists for the Chiefs. . . . The Cougars got a goal (16) and two assists from D Ethan Samson. . . . Spokane lost F Grady Lane to a charging major and game misconduct at 19:42 of the second period. . . . Spokane (14-38-7) had lost its previous two games. . . . Prince George (30-24-5) is fourth in the Western Conference, two points ahead of Everett and Tri-City. . . .

G Brett Mirwald turned aside 34 shots to lead the Vancouver Giants to a 4-2 victory over the Royals in Victoria. . . . The Giants had doubled up on the Royals, 4-2, in Langley, B.C., on Friday. . . . Mirwald came up with 14 saves in the third period as his guys were outshot, 15-5. This season, the 19-year-old from Saskatoon is 6-8-5, 3.30, .907. . . . D Carson Haynes (3) had a goal, an empty-netter, and two assists for Vancouver. . . . The Giants won this one with three second-period goals. . . . F Skyler Bruce (12) tied it 1-1 just 56 seconds into the period. F Ty Thorpe (32) gave the Giants the lead at 13:24 and F Ty Halaburda (18) made it 3-1 at 14:46. . . . Vancouver (24-28-7) clinched a playoff spot with its third straight victory. It is seventh in the Western Conference and appears headed to a first-round meeting with Kamloops. . . . Victoria (15-39-7) has lost eight in a row (0-7-1) and is 12 points from a playoff spot with seven games remaining.

Eagles

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.

Cookies

Bedard’s legend grows and grows . . . Silvertips rout Winterhawks . . . Thunderbirds run winning streak to 11

BEDARD
CONNOR BEDARD

THE BEDARD REPORT: So . . . what do you think? Is F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats one of those athletes who rises to the occasion, or what? . . . On Friday night, in a game being televised by TSN and with the highly touted F Zach Benson on the other side, Bedard scored four times and added an assist as the host Pats overcame a 3-0 deficit and posted a 5-3 victory. . . . Bedard has seven hat tricks this season — five three-goal outings and two four-goal games. . . . It was his second four-goal game this season and the third of his career. Last season, he had one three-goal game and one four-goal outing. . . . Bedard’s nine career hat tricks breaks the Pats’ record that he shared with F Jordan Eberle, who played four seasons. . . . Bedard now has 16 multi-goal games this season. . . . In his past eight games, he has 13 goals and 15 assists. . . . In 18 games since returning to the Pats from the World Junior Championship, where he led Canada to gold, Bedard has put up 31 goals and 24 assists. . . . In 123 career regular-season games, he now has 121 goals and 126 assists. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in goals (58) and points (119). And allow me to remind you once again that he won’t turn 18 until July 17. . . . Benson had two assists last night, giving him 61 this season. He is tied with Bedard and Ice D Ben Zloty for the league lead. . . . Next up for Bedard and the Pats? The Red Deer Rebels will be in Regina today with the Saskatoon Blades to visit on Sunday. . . .

And there’s more. . . . Chalk up at least two more sellouts to the Travellin’ Bedards. . . . The Lethbridge Hurricanes have said that their March 10 game against the Pats is sold out. . . . The Pats will go on to Medicine Hat the following night and the Tigers said Thursday that “a limited number of overflow tickets . . . are available now.” Overflow tickets? According to the tickets, overflow tickets “provide access into the venue but have no assigned seat or location.”

Grab

According to figures compiled by the WHL, the Saskatoon Blades’ average Saskatoonannounced attendance last season was 3,390. This season, through 28 home games, that average was at 3,876. . . . That number is going to go up simply because F Connor Bedard and the Regina Pats have two games left to play in Saskatoon. . . . Darren Zary of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix talked with Colin Priestner, the Blades’ president and general manager, about how things have gone this season. . . . That story is right here.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The U of Calgary Dinos scored a 3-2 OT victory over the Alberta Golden Bears in Game 1 of Canada West’s best-of-three men’s hockey championship on Friday. . . . F Josh Maser, who played four seasons (2016-20) with the WHL’s Prince George Cougars, scored the winner at 5:41 of OT. . . . They are scheduled to play the second game tonight in Calgary. . . .

F Jaxsen Wiebe of the Prince George Cougars has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks. Wiebe was an undrafted free agent. . . . The contract calls for an NHL salary of US$775,000, with $80,000 in the minors. There also are signing bonuses of $80,000, $77,500 and $75,000. . . . Wiebe, 20, is from Moose Jaw. The Cougars acquired him from the Edmonton Oil Kings early in this season. He has 28 points, 11 of them goals, in 29 games with the Cougars. In six games with Edmonton, which he helped to a WHL title last season, he had three goals and an assist in six games. . . . In 159 career games — he also played 73 games with the Red Deer Rebels — he has 88 points, including 33 goals. The Rebels selected him in the seventh round of the WHL’s 2017 draft. . . .

D Christoffer Sedoff of the Red Deer Rebels has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights. Sedoff, a 21-year-old from Helsinki, Finland, was an undrafted free agent. . . . The contract calls for a salary of US$870,000 in the NHL and $82,500 in the minors, with three $95,000 signing bonuses. . . . He is in his third season with the Rebels. This season, he has four goals and 42 assists in 54 games. Last season, he put up seven goals and 54 assists in 65 games. . . .

Brennan McConaghy has joined the Regina Pats as their interim athletic therapist. McConaghy, 29, has worked with the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos, the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves and the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . He takes over from Greg Mayer, who had been with the Pats for 19 years before joining the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders as their lead athletic therapist last week.

Stairs

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (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. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

FRIDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:
The Red Deer Rebels broke open a scoreless game with four second-period goals, the first two via the PP, en route to a 6-3 victory over the Wheat Kings in Brandon. . . . F Ben King (16) scored both PP goals, at 6:43 and 8:26. . . . D Mats Lindgren helped out with a goal (10) and four assists for Red Deer. His first career five-point game has him at 27 points in 55 games. Lindgren, who came over from Kamloops prior to the season, had had six three-point games, but had never reached four. . . . F Nate Danielson scored his 30th goal of the season for Brandon. . . . D Christian Sedoff, who signed with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, was back in Red Deer’s lineup after serving a four-game suspension. . . . Red Deer (39-17-4) had lost its previous two games. The Rebels are headed to a Central Division title. . . . Brandon (23-27-8) is 10th in the Eastern Conference, three points from a playoff spot. . . .

In Everett, the Silvertips scored six times in the second period en route to a 10-3 victory over the Potland Winterhawks. . . . F Gabe Klassen (32), who had two Portland goals, got the Winterhawks to within one, at 2-1, at 9:53 of the first period. . . . Everett scored the next eight goals. . . . F Matthew Paszkiewicz scored his first goal for Everett and it proved to be the winner. A 17-year-old from Calgary, he scored in his 43rd game. . . . F Austin Roest (32) led Everett with a goal and three assists. D Dexter Whittle and F Ben Hammering each had three assists and F Raphael Pelletier (15) and F Caden Zaplitny (12) each scored twice. . . . F Jackson Berezowski scored his 40th of the season for the winners. . . . Everett (30-24-3) has won three in a row. It is fifth in the Western Conference, one point behind Prince George and two ahead of Tri-City. . . . Portland (36-17-5) has lost eight straight (0-7-1) and is headed to a second-place finish in the U.S. Division. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers unleashed a 53-shot attack in beating the visiting Kelowna Rockets, 8-1. . . . They’ll play again tonight, this time in Kelowna. . . . F Logan Stankoven’s 30th goal of the season, on a PP, got Kamloops started at 4:57 of the first period. The Blazers took a 4-0 lead into the second period, their fourth goal, at 14:17, off the stick of F Jakub Demek (1). . . . F Connor Levis (17) had a goal and two assists for Kamloops. . . . F Caedan Bankier (31) and F Ryan Hofer (37), both of whom signed NHL contracts this week, both scored for the Blazers. . . . F Ethan Neutens, a 17-year-old from Cochrane, Alta., scored his first WHL goal in his 53rd game for Kelowna. . . . Kamloops (39-11-6) will finish atop the B.C. Division. . . . Kelowna (23-32-3) had won its previous two games. It is eighth in the Western Conference, four points behind Vancouver and 12 ahead of Victoria. . . . The same two teams will do it again tonight, this time in Kelowna. . . .

The Medicine Hat Tigers built up a 5-0 second-period lead en route to a 5-2 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The Tigers scored four times in the first period, two of them coming from F Brendan Lee (27). . . . F Tyler MacKenzie (17) had a goal and two assists in that outburst. . . . Edmonton D Rhys Pederson, a 16-year-old from Stettler, Alta., scored his first WHL goal; it came in his 28th game. . . . Medicine Hat (25-25-9) has won two straight. It is seventh in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Regina and four ahead of Swift Current. . . . Edmonton (8-47-3) has lost 10 in a row. . . .

G Bryan Thomson blocked 31 shots to lead the Lethbridge Hurricanes to a 3-0 victory over the Raiders in Prince Albert. . . . Thomson has three shutouts this season and five in his career. He missed a lot of the early season due to injury, but now has made 16 appearances. He is 9-4-2, 2.14, .933. . . . The Hurricanes took control with second-period goals from F Tyson Laventure (20) and F Brayden Edwards (8). . . . Duane Bartley worked his 1,500 game as the Raiders’ athletic trainer/equipment manager. . . . Lethbridge (32-21-6) has won two in a row and has closed to within three points of fourth-place Moose Jaw in the Eastern Conference. . . . Prince Albert (25-30-3) is 11th, four points from a playoff spot. . . .

D Hudson Thornton scored twice to help the Prince George Cougars to a 5-2 victory over the visiting Spokane Chiefs. . . . Thornton, who has 20 goals this season, gave his guys a 1-0 lead at 3:43 of the first period and then snapped a 2-2 tie at 17:27 of the second. . . . Thornton is one of two defencemen with at least 20 goals; Olen Zellweger (22) of Kamloops is the other. . . . The Cougars scored once on the PP and twice while shorthanded. . . . F Carter Streek (15) had a goal and an assist for Spokane. . . . Prince George (30-24-4) is fourth in the Western Conference, one point ahead of Everett. . . . Spokane (13-38-7) has lost two in a row. . . . They’ll complete the doubleheader tonight in Prince George. . . .

In Regina, the Pats erased a 3-0 second-period deficit and beat the Winnipeg Ice, 5-3. . . . D Carson Lambos (11) gave Winnipeg a 3-0 lead at 6:29 of the second period. . . . F Connor Bedard got Regina to within a goal with scores at 7:12 and 12:07 of the second, and F Tanner Howe, who also had two assists, tied it with his 30th goal at 18:43. . . . Bedard gave his guys the lead at 1:35 of the third and added the empty-netter at 19:38. . . . D Stanislav Svozil had three assists for the winners. . . . F Zach Benson of the Ice, who is second to Bedard in the scoring race, had two assists. . . . According to Rob Vanstone, who used to cover the Pats for the Regina Leader-Post, the Pats last beat the Ice on Feb. 20, 2019. Back then the Ice was playing out of Cranbrook. Regina had been 0-18-2 against the Ice since the franchise moved to Winnipeg. . . . Regina (30-24-3) has won five in a row and is sixth in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Medicine Hat. . . . Winnipeg (48-9-1), which leads the Eastern Conference and the East Division, will wrap up a 10-game road swing with a game in Brandon tonight.  The trek started with seven straight victories, but the Ice now has lost two in a row. . . .

The Saskatoon Blades got to 40 victories for the 19th time in franchise history by beating the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors, 4-1. . . . F Egor Sidorov scored twice for Saskatoon, giving him 37 this season. . . . Saskatoon F Conner Roulette picked up one assist, the 100th of his career. It came in his 181st game, the first 131 of which were played with Seattle. . . . Saskatoon (40-13-5) has points in eight straight (7-0-1). It is second in the East Division, 10 points behind Winnipeg. . . . Moose Jaw (35-22-3) has lost three in a row. It is fourth in the Eastern Conference, three points ahead of Lethbridge. . . .

The Seattle Thunderbirds scored the game’s last three goals to beat the Tri-City Americans, 4-1, in Kennewick, Wash. . . . F Gracyn Sawchyn (18) broke a 1-1 tie at 15:09 of the second period and F Lucas Ciona (26) added insurance at 17:55 of the third. . . . F Kyle Crnkovic had a goal (28) and an assist, running his career points total to 280 in 266 games, the first 210 with the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Americans had D Jackson Smith, 15, the second overall selection in the WHL’s 2022 draft, in their lineup for the third time this season. He plays for the U18 prep team at the Edge School in Calgary. . . . Seattle (46-9-2) has won 11 straight and leads the Western Conference by 10 points over Kamloops. . . . Tri-City (27-24-7) has lost three in a row. It is sixth in the conference, two points behind Everett. . . .

The Vancouver Giants scored two goals 57 seconds apart early in the second period and went on to a 4-2 victory over the Victoria Royals in Langley, B.C. . . . They’ll finish their two-game weekend series tonight in Victoria. . . . F Karen Gronick (4) opened the scoring at 1:31 of the second period and F Ty Halaburda (17) made it 2-0 at 2:28. . . . Victoria twice came to within a goal but couldn’t equalize. . . . F Samuel Honzek (21) had Vancovuer’s other two goals. . . . Vancouver was without F Kyle Bochek, who drew a five-game suspension for a cross-checking major and game misconduct he incurred on Wednesday night in Prince George. He also is a repeat offender; this is his third suspension totalling 12 games this season. . . . Vancouver (23-28-7) has won two straight. It is seventh in the Western Conference, four points ahead of Kelowna. . . . Victoria (15-38-7) has lost seven in a row (0-6-1). It is 12 points from a playoff spot with eight games to play.

Bottle

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.

PinkFloyd

Blades get help from Bedard in setting attendance record . . . Tigers skate past Ice . . . Ex-WHLer Lee dead at 37

The Travellin’ Bedards will play in Saskatoon on March 19 and the Blades announced Wednesday that they will be setting a single-game attendance Saskatoonrecord that evening. . . . The record for now is 12,588 from Feb. 9, 2013, when the Blades beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 5-2. . . . As of Wednesday afternoon, tickets sales for the March 19 game had exceeded the record. . . . The Pats will provide the opposition for the Blades’ final home game of this season, too, on March 24, and more than 11,500 tickets already have been sold for that one. . . . The reason, of course, is Regina F Connor Bedard, who almost certainly will be the No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2023 draft. . . . “Connor is an incredible player (who) comes along once every generation,” Colin Priestner, the Blades’ president and general manager, said in a news release. “As a league, we’re extremely fortunate Connor chose the WHL as his path because his star power has brought thousands of new fans to come see our product from across the country, and he’s been an outstanding ambassador for our game.”

It’s worth noting that the Blades and Pats could wind up as first-round opponents when the playoffs get here. And the Blades again are selling a $99 playoff pass. As the news release states: “This will guarantee your seat through the entire postseason, meaning you could enjoy as many as 16 playoff games for under $100!”

The Pats have made only one visit to Saskatoon to this point in the season; the Blades posted a 5-2 victory on Nov. 13 before 7,868 fans. That, to date, is the Blades’ largest home crowd this season.

Perhaps during the March 24 the Blades could thank Bedard for making all this possible by presenting him with a lifetime pass.

Two forwards with the Kamloops Blazers signed three-year entry-level NHL Kamloopscontracts on Wednesday. . . .

F Ryan Hofer signed with the Washington Capitals, who selected him in the sixth round of the NHL’s 2022 draft. He was with the Everett Silvertips at the time. His contract carries an AAV of US$851,666.67 in the NHL and $82,500 in the AHL. . . . There also is an annual signing bonus of $80,000, $80,000 and $70,000. . . . Hofer, 20, is from Winnipeg. He has 13 goals and nine assists in 22 games with the Blazers since being acquired from Everett. He had 23 goals and 13 assists in 36 games before being traded. In 142 career regular-season games, he has 67 goals and 58 assists. . . .

F Caedan Bankier signed with the Minnesota Wild, which selected him in the third round of the NHL’s 2021 draft. Bankier, who turned 20 on Jan. 26, had 62 points, including 30 goals, in 44 games with the Blazers this season. . . . His contract carries an AAV of US$867,500 in the NHL with an $80,000 salary in the minors. There also is an annual $92,500 signing bonus. . . . From White Rock, B.C., he has 165 points, 69 of them goals, in 189 career regular-season games with the Blazers. . . . Bankier also played for the gold medal-winning Canadian team at the 2023 World Junior Championship. . . .

There now are five players on the Blazers’ roster who have signed NHL contracts, the others being F Fraser Minten (Toronto Maple Leafs), F Logan Stankoven (Dallas Stars) and D Olen Zellweger (Anaheim Ducks).

Of all that I witnessed during more than 40 years of writing about sports the few seconds in time during which F Brad Hornung of the Regina Pats was injured is the only one that really, really stayed with me. Even now, all these years later, whenever I see a player get hit from behind and take a tumble into the boards, I cringe. . . . And, yes, there still is far too much checking from behind in the game of hockey. . . . We lost Brad more than a year ago — on Feb. 8, 2022. In the end, just to show that life really can be cruel, cancer took him from us. . . . He was five days from turning 53 when he died, meaning he spent almost 35 years as a quadriplegic. Courage, thy name was Brad Hornung.

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Swift Current (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. Tri-City (6)

Prince George (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

WEDNESDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The Medicine Hat Tigers erased an early 2-0 deficit and beat the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers, 6-4. . . . The Ice had an 11-game winning streak come to an end. . . . This was the Tigers’ second victory over one of the WHL’s top teams in recent times. They beat the visiting Kamloops Blazers, 7-3, on Friday. . . . Last night, the Tigers got two goals and two assists from F Oasiz Wiesblatt (24). His first goal tied the score, 2-2, at 14:22 of the first period. His second, at 8:03 of the third period, stood up as the winner. . . . F Cru Hanas, a 17-year-old from Highland Village, Texas, scored his first goal for the Tigers, breaking a 3-3 tie. It came in his 39th career game. . . . D Reid Andresen (7) had a goal and two assists for Medicine Hat. . . . The Ice got a goal (32) and two assists from F Matt Savoie and three assists from D Ben Zloty. . . . G Evan May earned the victory with 40 saves. May, an 18-year-old freshman from Nanaimo, B.C., got his fourth victory in his 17th appearance of the season. . . . Medicine Hat (25-24-9) is seventh in the Eastern Conference, two points behind the Regina Pats and two ahead of the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Winnipeg (48-8-1) will finish atop the East Division and the Eastern Conference. . . .

F Rylen Roersma scored three times to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 7-3 victory over the Warriors in Moose Jaw. . . . Roersma, who has 15 goals, notched his first hat trick in his 139th regular-season game, all with the Wheat Kings. . . . F Jagger Firkus scored twice for Moose Jaw, giving him 31 goals. He gave his guys a 1-0 lead at 1:04 of the first period, but Brandon erased the deficit with three goals, two from Roersma, in 4:28 before the period ended. . . . F Tony Wilson had a goal (7) and two assists for Brandon. His first career three-point game came in his 114th game. . . . Brandon F Ben Thornton had a goal (2) and an assist as he returned to the lineup for the first time since Oct. 14 when he was stretchered off the ice during a 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C. He spent two nights in hospital and then recovered at home in Chilliwack. He was left with concussion-related issues (headache and dizziness) and also had a hip injury. . . . Brandon (23-26-8) had lost three in a row (0-2-1). It now is three points from a playoff spot. . . . Moose Jaw (35-21-3) has lost two straight. It is fourth in the Eastern Conference, five points ahead of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . .

D Mazden Leslie scored three goals to lead the Vancouver Giants to a 6-2 victory over the Cougars in Prince George. . . . The Cougars had beaten the visiting Giants, 6-0, on Tuesday night. . . . Last night, Leslie enjoyed the third multi-goal game of his career in his 138th game; the first two — both two-goal outings — came in the first and sixth games he played in his freshman season (2020-21). . . . Leslie’s second goal broke a 2-2 tie at 2:30 of the third period. His third goal, No 11 for the season, made it 5-2 at 11:04. . . . F Skyler Bruce (11) had a goal and two assists for the winners. . . . D Hudson Thornton (18) had both Prince George goals. . . . The Giants lost F Kyle Bochek to a cross-checking major and game misconduct at 10:02 of the second period. He served a three-game suspension last month after taking a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct, and a four-game suspension in October for a charging major and game misconduct. . . . Vancouver (22-28-7) had lost its previous three games (0-2-1). It is seventh in the Western Conference, two points ahead of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Prince George (29-24-4) had a five-game winning streak end. It is fourth in the conference, one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips and Tri-City Americans. . . .

F Egor Sidorov and F Brandon Lisowsky each scored twice and added an assist to spark the host Saskatoon Blades to a 5-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Blades outshot the visitors 13-0 in the first period and came out of it with a 1-0 lead on Sidorov’s first goal. . . . Saskatoon ended with a 38-10 edge in shots. . . . Sidorov’s 35th goal made it 2-0 at 1:21 of the second period. . . . Lisowsky’s two goals — he’s got 31 — gave the Blades 3-1 and 4-1 leads late in the second and early in the third. . . . F Trevor Wong earned three assists for Saskatoon. . . . The Blades were 3-for-9 on the PP; the Rebels were 0-for-2. . . . A brouhaha at 7:59 of the third period resulted in 87 penalty minutes being handed out, including five majors and six game misconducts. The WHL’s Dept. of Discipline is certain to spend the morning looking at the video. . . . Saskatoon (39-13-5) has points in seven straight (6-0-1). . . . Red Deer (38-17-4) has lost two in a row. . . . So here’s the deal: The Blades have three more points — 83-80 — than do the Rebels. But Saskatoon, which also has two games in hand, is second in the East Division, while Red Deer is atop the Central Division. So it is looking like the Rebels will be the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed and the Blades No. 3 for the first round of the playoffs.

F Andrew Cristall and F Carson Golder each scored three times to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 7-4 victory over the visiting Spokane Chiefs. . . . F Chase Bertholet (24) pulled the Chiefs to within a goal, at 3-2, at 2:51 of the third period. . . . The Rockets then struck three times in 4:43 to take control. Golder, who has 28 goals, scored the first two of those goals to complete his second hat trick this season. . . . Golder, 20, was a defenceman prior to this season. He went into this season with three goals in 100 regular-season games, split between the Victoria Royals and Edmonton Oil Kings. This season, he has 28 goals in 57 games; with Kelowna, he has 20 goals in 33 games. . . . Golder also had an assist. . . . The Rockets got three assists from each of D Elias Carmichael and F Gabriel Szturc. . . . Cristall had 75 points, 33 of them goals, in 43 games. He had a four-goal game earlier in the season. . . . The Rockets got 41 saves from G Jari Kykkanen. . . . Kelowna (23-31-3) is eighth in the Western Conference, 12 points ahead of the Victoria Royals, who have nine games remaining. . . . Spokane (13-37-7) had points in each of its previous three games (2-0-1).

Casey Lee, who played five seasons in the WHL, has died. The native of Kindersley, Sask., was 37. . . . Lee was killed early Sunday morning in a single-vehicle accident in Calgary. . . . Lee played with the Kamloops Blazers and Kootenay Ice (2001-06). He totalled 127 points, including 40 goals, in 285 regular-season games. In 32 playoff games, he added a goal and three assists. . . . There is an obituary 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.

BakingSoda

Bedard nets winner in Brandon . . . Blazers’ victory streak hits 11 . . . Raiders roar back, stun Blades

There was a time when hockey people who do a lot of travelling would tell me that the Regina Leader-Post had the second-best sports section in Canada, behind only the Toronto Star. I was the sports editor then and I loved to hear from those people.

While that sports department covered the heck out of the CFL and the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the WHL and the Regina Pats we really prided ourselves on our local sports coverage. Our curling coverage was second to none. We had someone whose primary responsibility was the U of Regina; he also covered junior football’s Rams, the SJHL and the local stock car scene. We were all over the high school athletic scene and the local amateur sports people.

Well, as of today, that sports department is gone. Kaput. Nothing but a memory.

Murray McCormick, who had been there since 1985, spent his last day as a member of the sports department working from home. And somehow that was only fitting because the lights really had gone out a long time ago.

A department that once was home to at least 12 of us was down to three not that long ago. But then Greg Harder, whose primary beat had been the Regina Pats, moved over to entertainment.

That left McCormick and Rob Vanstone. But Vanstone announced his departure a few days ago. He now is the senior writer and historian with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders.

For now, Regina is home to arguably the biggest story of this hockey season. F Connor Bedard, who hasn’t yet turned 18, led Canada to a gold medal at the World Junior Championship and since returning to the Pats he has been selling out arenas throughout Western Canada, including Regina. Until a few days ago, Vanstone had done a masterful job of keeping all informed of Bedard and all the numbers that go with his story.

In a few months, Bedard will be the first selection in the NHL’s 2023 draft.

As things sit now, the Regina Leader-Post won’t be there because it no longer has a sports department to document his journey. It’s like a book without an ending and that’s a real shame.

Overseer

CANADA WEST UPDATE: The U of Calgary Dinos doubled the visiting Saskatchewan Huskies, 4-2, on Friday night to even their best-of-three Canada West semifinal series, 1-1. They’ll decide things at the Father David Bauer Arena in Calgary tonight. . . . The Dinos had won 23 in a row before dropping a 5-3 decision to the Huskies on Thursday. . . . In the other semifinal, the UBC Thunderbirds ran their winning streak to 15 games with a 4-3 victory over the visiting Alberta Golden Bears. They’ll play Game 2 in Edmonton tonight.

Juice

BEDARD
CONNOR BEDARD

THE BEDARD REPORT: The Travellin’ Bedards were in Brandon on Friday night and, according to Perry Bergson of the Brandon Sun, they drew a record 5,954 fans. “That’s a new record,” Bergson tweeted. “Maybe don’t tell the fire marshal.” . . . Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to ascertain what the previous single-game attendance record was. . . . F Connor Bedard only picked up one point on Friday night, but it was a big one as his goal, with 1:55 left in the third period, gave the Regina Pats a 4-3 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . Bedard tipped home a point shot by D Parker Berge to win this one. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in goals (53), assists (58) and points (111). Yes, he was at 111 points after having what originally was a six-point outing — a goal and five assists — on Wednesday in Regina’s 6-3 victory over the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. However, one of those assists later was taken away from him.

——

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Medicine Hat (8)

Red Deer (2) vs. Calgary (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)

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

——

FRIDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

In Brandon, G Drew Sim blocked 44 shots to lead the Regina Pats to a 4-3 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . According to one observer, Sim also sparked a post-game brouhaha by “waving goodbye to a Wheat Kings player at the end of the game.” Any resemblance to an old-fashioned bench-clearing was purely accidental, however. . . . Regina F Jaxsin Vaughan received a match penalty for attempt to injure in the post-game melee, while Brandon F Matt Henry was given a game misconduct for leaving the bench. . . . The Pats had taken three of the game’s four minor penalties until that point. . . . Vaughan already has served a five-game suspension for a headshot major and game misconduct in a Dec. 28 game at Brandon. . . . F Nate Danielson (27) got Brandon into a 3-3 tie at 8:17 of the third period. . . . Regina F Connor Bedard (53) won it at 18:05 of the third period. . . . The Wheat Kings are to play in Regina tonight. . . . Regina (28-24-3) has won three straight. It is sixth in the Eastern Conference, four points ahead of Calgary and Medicine Hat. . . . Brandon (22-25-8) is 10th, three points from a playoff spot. . . .

G Talyn Boyko stopped 27 shots to lead the visiting Kelowna Rockets to a 4-0 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Boyko has three shutouts this season and six in 136 career appearances. . . . F Dylan Wightman scored twice, his first one, at 9:55 of the first period, proving to be the winner. He’s got nine goals on the season. . . . Former Edmonton F Carson Golder (24) provided insurance at 3:45 of the second period. . . . F Max Graham was back in Kelowna’s lineup after a nine-game absence. He drew an assist on Wightman’s first goal. . . . Kelowna (21-30-3) has won four straight. It is eighth in the Western Conference, nine points ahead of Victoria and four behind Vancouver. . . . Edmonton (8-44-3) has lost six in a row. . . .

In Lethbridge, the Kamloops Blazers scored the game’s last five goals to beat the Hurricanes, 6-2. . . . F Fraser Minten (26) got the Blazers even, on a PP, at 19:00 of the second period and D Olen Zellweger (20) gave the visitors the lead, on another PP, at 9:53 of the third. . . . F Logan Stankoven scored his 29th goal and added two assists for the Blazers, who have won 11 in a row, five of them on a six-game swing through the Central Division that wraps up tonight in Medicine Hat. . . . Kamloops (38-10-6) will win the B.C. Division. . . . Lethbridge (30-21-6) has lost three in a row but appears headed to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. . . .

G Jackson Unger blocked 36 shots to lead the host Moose Jaw Warriors to a 4-3 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Broncos held a 39-24 edge in shots, including 15-6 and 12-6 in the final two periods. . . . F Atley Calvert scored his 34th goal, giving him the Warriors’ single-season record for most goals by a Moose Jaw-born player. That record had belonged to David Bararuk (33, 2001-02). . . . Calvert’s goal, at 17:55 of the second period, broke a 2-2 tie. . . . F Ryder Korczak (23) made it 4-2 at 5:05 of the third period. . . . The Broncos got to within a goal when F Josh Filmon (35) scored at 5:39, but they weren’t able to equalize. . . . They’ll have a rematch tonight in Swift Current. . . . Moose Jaw (35-19-3) has won two in a row and looks to be headed to a fourth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. . . . Swift Current (25-27-3) has lost five straight and is two points from a playoff spot. . . .

F Matt Savoie’s third-period goal stood up as the winner as the Winnipeg Ice got past the Rebels, 2-1, in Red Deer. . . . F Zack Ostapchuk (21) had given the Ice a 1-0 lead at 12:03 of the first period. . . . F Jace Isley (25) tied it 11 seconds into the second. . . . Savoie’s 29th goal of the season, at 4:38 of the third, turned into the winner. . . . G Daniel Hauser earned the victory with 29 saves. This season, he is 31-3-1, 2.39, .913. His career numbers are 72-6-3, 2.27, .911. . . . Yes, 72-6-3. Think about that for a minute or two. . . . The game featured the leaders of the East and Central divisions. . . . Winnipeg (46-7-1) has won nine in a row. It now leads the Eastern Conference by 14 points over Saskatoon. . . . Red Deer (37-15-4) has lost two straight, but will finish atop the Central Division and be the conference’s second seed. . . .

The Prince Albert Raiders erased a 5-2 deficit with three third-period goals and then beat the host Saskatoon Blades, 6-5 in OT. . . . D Aidan De La Gorgendiere (10) put the Blades ahead 5-2 at 10:53 of the third. . . . The Raiders tied with with three goals in 2:45 — D Landon Kosior (17), at 12:37; F Niall Crocker (13), at 14:23; and F Aiden Oiring (11), at 15:22. The first two came via the PP. . . . F Sloan Stanick won it with his 19th goal just 49 seconds into OT. . . . It was Stanick’s second OT goal of the week. He had the winner at 1:05 of OT on Monday as the Raiders won, 4-3, in Brandon. . . . Kosior, who was playing in his 200th regular-season game, added two assists to his goal. . . . Oiring also had two helpers. . . . Saskatoon got two goals and an assist from F Jake Chiasson (17). . . . The Raiders were 3-for-8 on the PP; the Blades were 2-for-5. . . . They’ll meet up again tonight, this time in Prince Albert. . . . The Raiders (24-28-3) have won five in a row; they are four points from an Eastern Conference playoff spot. . . . The Blades (37-13-5) have points in five straight (4-0-1). They are likely to be the conference’s third seed. . . .

The Seattle Thunderbirds scored three first-period goals en route to a 6-1 victory over the Tri-City Americans in Kent, Wash. . . . F Brad Lambert (12) scored 16 seconds into the game to put Seattle ahead. . . . F Jalen Luypen (10) got the Americans even just 33 seconds later, but the visitors weren’t able to score again. . . . Seattle was 2-for-5 on the PP and added a shorthanded goal. . . . F Reid Schaefer (22) scored twice and added two assists. He’s got 46 points in 43 games. . . . Lambert added an assist to his goal. He now has 23 points in 14 games. . . . F Dylan Guenther drew three assists, giving him 13 points in eight games. . . . Seattle (44-9-2) ran its winning streak to nine games. It leads the Western Conference by eight points over Kamloops. . . . Tri-City (27-22-7) is fourth, three points ahead of Prince George. . . .

F Carter Streek scored twice to lead the Spokane Chiefs to a 4-1 victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks. . . . Streek, who has 13 goals, gave his guys a 2-0 lead at 19:14 of the first period and added the game’s last goal at 14:53 of the second. . . . F Ty Cheveldayoff helped Spokane’s cause with his 20th goal. . . . G Dawson Cowan stopped 30 shots to earn the victory. . . . Spokane (12-36-7) had lost its previous two games (0-1-1). . . . Portland (36-15-5) has lost six straight (0-5-1) and is going to be the third seed when the Western Conference playoffs start. . . .

F Chase Wheatcroft scored twice, including an OT goal, as the Prince George Cougars beat the Vancouver Giants, 5-4, in Langley, B.C. . . . Wheatcroft, who has 36 goals, won it at 3:09 of OT. . . . The Cougars erased a 3-1 deficit with three goals 2:50 apart in the second period. . . . F Cole Dubinsky (17) gave them a 4-3 lead at 10:09. . . . F Skyler Bruce (10) got the Giants even with his second goal of the game, at 4:42 of the third period. . . . Wheatcroft also had an assist. . . . At one point in the first period, Vancouver D Damian Palmieri delivered seven cross-checks to the back of Prince George F Arjun Bawa, who was down in the Giants’ crease. Referee Adam Bloski was in perfect position at the back of the net and didn’t raise a finger. I know! I know! Stripes was waiting for the eighth one. . . . Prince George (27-23-4) has won three in a row. It has moved into fifth in the Western Conference, three points behind Tri-City and one ahead of Everett. . . . Vancouver (21-26-7) is seventh, four points ahead of Kelowna.

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.

Snow

Bedard inks another chapter . . . Fonteynes are great hockey story . . . Blazers run streak to 10 games

THE BEDARD REPORT: F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats enjoyed his second six-point night of this season on Wednesday in a 6-3 victory over the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Bedard finished the night with a goal and five assists. . . . He leads the WHL in goals (52), assists (59) and points (111), all in 43 games. He holds a 26-point lead over F Zach Benson of the Winnipeg Ice in the points derby. . . . Bedard, who won’t turn 18 until July 17, is on the verge of averaging two points per game for his career. He now has 239 points in 120 regular-season games. . . . This was Bedard’s first five-assist game of his career. . . . Since having a 35-game point streak come to an end on Feb. 3, Bedard has 21 points, including 13 assists, in six games. . . . Next up for Bedard and the Pats? A visit to Brandon for a Friday night game with the Wheat Kings.

Ants

When I was a youngster, I had an aunt and uncle who every Christmas would buy me a subscription to The Hockey News. That is how I came to be interested in the career of Val Fonteyne, who played 820 regular-season NHL games and another 149 in the WHA. . . . The amazing thing is that Fonteyne, a native of Wetaskiwin, Alta., who now is 89 years young, totalled 30 penalty minutes in all those games. Seriously! He never had more than four PiMs in any one season. However, somehow, in 1957-58, while with the WHL’s Seattle Americans, he actually ended up with 11 PiMs. I would love to know what he did to incur a major penalty that season.

I mention him today because it seems his grandson, Matt, is cut from the same cloth. Matt, who also is from Wetaskiwin, played with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips and now is with the U of Alberta Golden Bears. On Wednesday, Canada West handed out some post-season awards and the 25-year-old was named the winner of the Sportsmanship and Ability Award.

In five seasons (2013-18) in Everett, Fonteyne’s season-high in penalty minutes was 28. In 48 games over two seasons with the Golden Bears, he has 10 penalty minutes. This season, the team captain has 12 goals and 20 assists in 28 games, and four PiMs. . . .

Four other former WHL players were honoured by Canada West.

F Riley Sawchuk (Tri-City Americans, Edmonton Oil Kings) of the Mount Royal U Cougars was named the player of the year. He signed a pro contract with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins earlier this week. . . . Connor Hobbs (Medicine Hat Tigers, Regina Pats) of the U of Saskatchewan Huskies got top defenceman honours, with Carl Tetachuk (Lethbridge Hurricanes, Moose Jaw Warriors) of the U of Calgary Dinos the top goaltender. . . . F Jakin Smallwood (Winnipeg Ice) of the Golden Bears was saluted as rookie of the year. . . .

Mark Howell of the U of Calgary was named coach of the year. He played in the WHL with the Seattle Thunderbirds and Medicine Hat Tigers, and later was an assistant coach with the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Howell’s Dinos will play a best-of-three semifinal series with Saskatchewan this weekend. The Dinos are on a 23-game winning streak.

Conan

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Medicine Hat (8)

Red Deer (2) vs. Calgary (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. Prince George (6)

Tri-City (4) vs. Everett (5)

——

WEDNESDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

F Zach Benson scored once and added three assists as the Winnipeg Ice skated to a 5-2 victory over the Hitmen in Calgary. . . . Benson opened the scoring with his 30th goal at 8:25 of the first period. . . . F Matt Savoie (28) added two goals for the Ice, the first one a shorthanded effort, and F Connor McClennon (38) also scored twice. . . . G Daniel Hauser earned his 30th victory of the season with 24 saves, including a first-period stop on a penalty-shot attempt by F Sean Tschigerl. . . . Hauser is 30-3-1, 2.43, .911 this season. In 82 career regular-season appearances, he is 71-6-3, 2.29, .911. . . . Winnipeg (45-7-1) has won eight in a row and now leads the Eastern Conference by 13 points. . . . Calgary (24-25-7) and Medicine Hat are tied for seventh, two points behind Regina and two ahead of Swift Current. . . .

F Connor Bedard had a goal and five assists and wasn’t even the first star as the host Regina Pats beat the Medicine Hat Tigers, 6-3. . . . F Tanner Howe was selected as the No. 1 star after scoring twice and adding two assists. . . . While playing in Bedard’s shadow, Howe, who turned 17 on Nov. 28, is having quite a season. He now has 68 points, including 28 goals, in 53 games. Last season, he finished with 69 points, 27 of them goals, in 64 games. . . . Last night, it likely was Howe’s second goal that stung the Tigers the most. He scored seven seconds into the third period to gave the Pats a 4-1 lead. . . . Regina D Stanislav Svozil had three assists and that pushed him over the 100-point mark for his career. He now has 101 points, including 84 assists, in 101 games. . . . Regina (27-24-3) has won two in a row and now is sixth in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Calgary and Medicine Hat (23-23-9), which is 6-2-3 in its past 11 games. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers are on a 10-game winning streak after beating the Broncos, 6-3, in Swift Current. . . . The Blazers have won four in a row on this tour of the Central Division that continues in Lethbridge on Friday and Medicine Hat on Saturday. . . . Last night, the Blazers got two goals from each of F Ryan Hofer (36) and Connor Levis (16). . . . Hofer’s second goal gave the Blazers a 5-0 lead at 15:01 of the second period. . . . The Broncos opened the third period with three goals, but Levis put it away at 16:31. . . . F Josh Filmon got No. 34 for the Broncos, with F Connor Hvidston (17) adding a goal and an assist. . . . Kamloops held a 53-29 edge in shots, including 24-9 in the first period. . . . Kamloops (37-10-6) is second in the Western Conference, eight points behind Seattle. . . . Swift Current (25-26-3) has lost four in a row. It is ninth in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Calgary and Medicine Hat. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., the Tri-City Americans opened up a 4-0 lead en route to a 6-2 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . F Adam Mechura (20) and F Jalen Luypen (9) each had two goals and an assist for the winners. . . . F Ben Hemmerling scored his 20th of the season for Everett. . . . This may have been a playoff preview. . . . Tri-City (27-21-7) is fourth in the Western Conference, four points ahead of Everett (27-24-3) and five up on Prince George.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The SJHL’s Kindersley Klippers announced on Wednesday that they and Ken Plaquin, their general manager and head coach, “have agreed to part ways.” Plaquin was in his third season with the Klippers. . . . Tyler Traptow, who had been an assistant coach, will serve as the interim GM/head coach for the remainder of this season. . . . The Klippers, who lost 5-4 to the visiting Yorkton Terriers on Wednesday night, are 11-30-7, which is the poorest record in the 12-team SJHL.

Wrestling

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.

Snoopy

Demek returns in Kamloops win . . . Playoff preview in Prince George? . . . Seattle really rolling now

Happy birthday to Brian Pellerin, an assistant coach with the Portland Winterhawks. He not only knows where Old Drinnan Town is, he likely has been there.

Jack Todd, in the Montreal Gazette: “It’s been 73 years since a Canadian won alpine world championships gold in the women’s slalom. Quebec City’s Laurence St-Germain did it Saturday, beating the great Mikaela Shiffrin in the process — and chances are you didn’t hear about it because our sports networks were busy fawning over Tiger Woods or the Maple Leafs.”

——

Two more notes from Todd, whose complete column is right here:

“At least it’s not hard to locate Theo Fleury. You can find him at the corner of Ignorance and Misinformation pretty much any day of the week. . . .

“We need more of Cheryl Pounder between periods on the TSN Canadiens telecasts. Pounder is superb. Unlike most broadcasters of the ‘unbelievable’ school, Pounder actually tells you things you didn’t know and avoids belabouring the obvious.”

THINKING OUT LOUD:

Might the Winnipeg Ice be forced by the WHL to vacate their home arena, which seats about 1,600, for a larger venue, perhaps in Brandon or Regina, should it make a deep playoff run? All in the interests of TV and atmosphere, of course. . . . Why are WHL pooh-bahs and the Ice owners so reluctant to sit down in front of media folks and answer a few questions? . . . If the WHL was to get a team into Penticton how great would the rivalry be between the Kelowna Rockets and the Peaches? . . . With all of these junior hockey teams wearing ‘special’ sweaters at various times during a season and then making them available at auction, I’m wondering how many are purchased by Mom and Dad? . . . Sign of the times: The Regina Pats had 20 players in uniform on Sunday afternoon with only four of them wearing sweaters with numbers below 20. . . . Just wondering but is Darryl Sutter’s best-before-date almost here with the Calgary Flames?

Fireplace

If the WHL playoffs started today:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Winnipeg (1) vs. Medicine Hat (8)

Red Deer (2) vs. Calgary (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. Prince George (6)

Tri-City (4) vs. Everett (5)

MONDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

F Sloan Stanick scored one of those between-the-legs goals at 1:05 of OT to give the Prince Albert Raiders a 4-3 victory over the Wheat Kings in Brandon. . . . Stanick, who has 18 goals, is from Rapid City, which is about three slap shots north of Brandon. . . . The Raiders overcame 2-0 and 3-1 deficits. . . . F Keaton Sorensen had three assists for the winners. . . . F Evan Herman (14) scored twice, the second goal pulling the Raiders into a 3-3 tie at 11:54 of the third period. Herman, a 20-year-old from The Pas, Man., was playing in his 200th regular-season game, all with the Raiders. . . . F Nolan Ritchie scored his 20th goal and added an assist for Brandon. . . . Prince Albert (23-28-3) has won four straight and is 11th in the Eastern Conference, six points from a playoff spot. . . . Brandon (22-24-8) is 10th, three points out of eighth. . . . Perry Bergson of the Brandon Sun points out that “Brandon is 0-8 in games decided in OT; this could be the first season in the Internet era (it doesn’t) win an overtime game.” . . .

The Kamloops Blazers, playing their third game in four days, unleashed a 60-shot attack in beating the Oil Kings, 7-3, in Edmonton. . . . The winners got two goals from each of F Dylan Sydor (10) and F Daylan Kuefler (30). . . . Kamloops scored the game’s last three goals. . . . D Olen Zellweger had a goal and two assists for the winners. He has nine goals and 22 assists in 16 games since being acquired from Everett. . . . F Noah Boyko (15) had two PP goals for the Oil Kings. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven, who had a 35-game point streak snapped in Sunday’s 4-1 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen, was blanked for a second straight game. . . . F Jakub Demek, 19, made his Kamloops debut. He hadn’t played since undergoing shoulder surgery after he played for Slovakia in the World Junior Championship that was held in Edmonton in August. Last season, he had 54 points, including 20 goals, in 55 games with the WHL-champion Oil Kings. In trading him to Kamloops on Nov. 14, Edmonton acquired a first-round 2023 WHL draft pick that originated with Regina, a conditional 2024 second-round pick, a conditional third-rounder in 2026 and a fourth-rounder in 2026. . . . F Shea Van Olm, another player Kamloops acquired from Edmonton, was scratched after apparently being injured in Calgary. . . . Kamloops (36-10-6) has won nine in row and will finish atop the B.C. Division. . . . Edmonton (8-43-3) has lost six straight games. . . .

F Adam Kydd scored once and drew two assists to lead the host Kelowna Rockets to a 3-1 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Kydd’s 17th goal, at 17:02 of the second period, broke a 1-1 tie and stood up as the winner. . . . D Marek Rocak, a 16-year-old freshman from Czechia, scored his first WHL goal 45 seconds later to provide insurance. He has one goal and one assist in nine games. . . . Kelowna (20-30-3) has won three in a row. It is eighth in the Western Conference, five points behind Vancouver. . . . Tri-City (26-21-7) is fourth, two points ahead of Everett. . . .

F Zac Funk scored in the seventh round of a shootout to give the Prince George Cougars a 1-0 victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks in what may well have been a first-round playoff preview. . . . Funk was one of three skaters to score in the shootout. . . . Through OT, the Cougars got 31 saves from G Tyler Brennan, while G Dante Giannuzzi stopped 30 for Portland. This was Brennan’s first shutout this season and the sixth of his career. Giannuzzi has two this season and five in his career. . . These teams will meet in Prince George again tonight. . . . Prince George (25-23-4) had lost its previous two games. It is sixth, three points behind Everett. . . . Portland (36-13-5) has lost four in a row (0-3-1) and now trials U.S. Division-leading Seattle by nine points. . . .

F Brendan Lee’s two goals helped the Medicine Hat Tigers to a 4-1 victory over the Rebels in Red Deer. . . . Lee, who has 24 goals, gave his guys a 1-0 lead just 45 seconds into the game. He added an empty-netter at 19:02 of the third period. . . . The Tigers outshot the Rebels, 27-17, including 13-5 in the first period when they scored twice. . . . Red Deer lost D Christoffer Sedoff to a headshot major and game misconduct at 7:24 of the first period. . . . Medicine Hat (23-22-9) has points in three straight (2-0-1). It is tied with Regina and Calgary for sixth in the Eastern Conference. . . . Red Deer (37-14-4) lead the Central Division by 12 points over Lethbridge. . . .

In Regina, the Pats scored the game’s last three goals as they beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 4-2. . . . F Braxton Whitehead (8) got Regina into a 2-2 tie with a PP goal at 18:42 of the second period. . . . F Tanner Howe (26) snapped the tie just 16 seconds into the third period and F Zane Rowan (4) added insurance at 10:26. . . . D Stanislav Svozil (7) had a goal and an assist for the Pats in his 100th regular-season game. The sophomore from Czechia has 57 points in 41 games this season. In those 100 games, he has earned 98 points, including 81 helpers. . . . The announced attendance was 6,499, the fourth time in the Pats’ past five games that it has been a sellout crowd. . . . BTW, F Connor Bedard had two assists for the Pats. . . . Regina (26-24-3) is tied with Calgary and Medicine Hat for sixth in the Eastern Conference. . . . Lethbridge (30-19-6) had points in its previous four games (3-0-1). It is fifth in the conference, three points behind Moose Jaw. . . .

F Owen Pederson broke a 2-2 tie at 12:29 of the third period and the Winnipeg Ice sent on to a 4-2 victory over the host Swift Current Broncos. . . . Pederson’s PP goal stood up as the winner, and he added insurance at 19:03 with an empty-netter, his 29th goal of the season. Pederson, 20, also had an assist. He has 64 points in 50 games this season, after putting up 43 points, 17 of them goals in 50 games last season. . . . Winnipeg (44-7-1) has won seven straight games and leads the Eastern Conference by 11 points over Red Deer and Saskatoon. . . . Swift Current (25-25-3) has lost three in a row and is two points out of the playoffs. . . .

F Ty Thorpe scored had a goal and two assists as the Vancouver Giants beat the Spokane Chiefs, 4-3 in OT, in Langley, B.C. . . . Thorpe’s 28th goal won it at 4:16 of OT. . . . F Samuel Honzek, in his second game after returning from an injury suffered at the World Junior Championship, scored twice for Vancouver. He’s got 19 goals this season. . . . Honzek’s second goal, at 19:41 of the second period, gave the Giants a 3-2 lead. . . . Spokane tied it at 10:41 of the third when D Mac Gross scored his eighth goal, this one while shorthanded. . . . Vancouver (21-26-6) had lost its previous two games. It is settling into seventh in the Western Conference, now six points behind Prince George and five ahead of Kelowna. . . . Spokane (11-36-7) has lost two in a row (0-1-1). . . .

T Tomas Milic stopped 26 shots for his third shutout of the season as the Seattle Thunderbirds dumped the Royals, 7-0, in Victoria. . . . The Thunderbirds had beaten the Royals, 8-1, in Kent, Wash., on Saturday night. And they’ll meet each other again tonight in Victoria. . . . Milic has seven career shutouts in 84 appearances over parts of four seasons. This season, he is 21-3-1, 2.18, .922. . . . F Gracyn Sawchyn (17) led Seatte’s offence with two goals and an assist. . . . F Brad Lambert had two assists. He’s got 19 points, 10 of them assists, in 12 games with Seattle. . . . D Kevin Korchinski also had two assists, pushing him over the point-per-game mark for his career. He now has 132 points, 121 of them assists, in 131 regular-season games. . . . F Colton Dach added a goal and an assist, and now has four points in two games since making his Seattle debut on Saturday. . . . F Jared Davidson scored his 32nd goal as he reached the 200-point mark, including 93 goals, in his 243rd regular-season game over five seasons. . . . Seattle (42-9-2) has won seven in a row and is pulling away atop the Western Conference. . . . Victoria (15-35-6) has lost three straight and now is seven points from a playoff spot.

Memories are made of this . . .

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.

Password

Was it ‘the biggest regular-season upset in WHL history’? . . . Blazers run streak to eight; Stankoven streak halted

The piece that follows was to have appeared here a few days ago, but other news got in the way. . . . Thanks to Victoria Cougars Hockey Project (@victoriacougars) for alerting me to the 33rd anniversary of what may have been what the tweet described as “the biggest regular-season upset in WHL history.” . . . If you are a regular here, you will know that I am a sucker for that kind of stuff. So I did some research and came up with this. . . . Enjoy!

——

It was Feb. 16, 1990, a Friday night.

The Victoria Cougars and their 4-49-2 record were at Memorial Arena in Kamloops for a date with the high-flying Blazers, who were 45-12-0.

The Cougars were looking for their first two-game winning streak of the VictoriaCougarsseason, having beaten the visiting Portland Winter Hawks, 8-5, two nights earlier to end a 32-game — yes, 32 games — losing skid. Yes, that was a CHL and WHL record.

There were 2,284 fans in the seats and you know they were expecting their favourites to skate to victory.

But . . . you know what they say . . . That’s why we play the game!

The Cougars got a goal from Ryan Harrison at 4:34 of OT to beat the Blazers, 7-6.

Harrison, a Kamloops native, had been dealt to the Cougars by the Blazers earlier that season, with Clayton Young going the other way.

Shayne Green of the Cougars had forced OT by scoring at 18:33 of the third period with goaltender Corey Jones on the bench for the extra attacker.

Earlier goals had come from Dean Dyer, Dino Caputo, Mike Seaton, Rob Sumner, who suffered a knee injury in the third period, and Mark Cipriano.

The Blazers had gotten two goals from each of Murray Duval and Darryl Sydor, with singles coming from Joe Mittelstaedt and Phil Huber.

Jones finished with 47 saves, while the Blazers’ duo of Dale Masson, who played the first period, and Corey Hirsch combined to stop 18.

Dyer had given the Cougars a 1-0 lead 39 seconds into the game. But the Blazers led 3-1 before the seven-minute mark. They got a wakeup call, though, as the Cougars struck three times before the period’s end, with two of the goals coming in the last 30 seconds.

The Blazers then scored the only two goals of the second period for a 5-4 lead.

Duval upped it to 6-4 at 2:56, with Cipriano getting the Cougars back to within one at 6:43.

The Victoria Times Colonist wasn’t able to report on the game because of deadline issues. The Saturday paper included the game summary through the end of the second period, with a notation that the game was “in progress at press time.”

However, there was a story on the second sports page of the Sunday paper. The headline: Cougars win again.

“After this,” Victoria head coach Lyle Moffat said, “I hope the guys believe that they can beat any team. We got a monkey off our back by breaking the losing streak (beating Portland 8-5 on Wednesday) and we told the players to put it all behind them. We told them to simply look ahead. . . .

“They kept plugging away. With the reputation Kamloops has, they could have given up after betting down but they didn’t.”

Unfortunately for Moffat, the Cougars didn’t win another game that season, losing 15 in a row. They finished 5-65 with two ties, setting WHL records for fewest points (12), fewest victories in a minimum 68-game schedule, most losses, longest losing streak (32 games), and longest road losing streak (23, tie).

Moffat was the team’s third coach that season; the victory over Portland had left him as the only one with more than one victory. Garry Cunningham had gone 1-28-0, while Wayne Naka was 1-5-1.

After beating the Blazers, Moffat was 3-16-1. He finished the season 3-31-1.

If you care about the newspaper industry or have even a glimmer of interest in it, you should pour yourself a cup of your favourite brew and give this piece right here a read. . . . It’s from Jeremy Klaszus of The Sprawl, which, according to its website, provides “in-depth Calgary journalism.” . . . This piece takes a look at the rise and fall of the Calgary Herald, but it could be the story of any once-dominant newspaper in any Canadian city.

Toews

SUNDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

The Kamloops Blazers ran their winning streak to eight games with a 4-1 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen. . . . The game was played at the Tsuut’ina Seven Chiefs Sportsplex. . . . F Ryan Hofer, returning from a one-game suspension, scored his 34th goal and added an assist for the Blazers, who also got a goal (28) and an assist from F Daylan Kuefler. . . . F Caedan Bankier (27) got the Blazers started just 11 seconds into the first period. . . . Kamloops had a 50-20 edge in shots. . . . G Dylan Ernst won his 30th game of the season by blocking 19 shots. He is 30-8-3, 2.61, .909. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven had his point streak halted at 35 games. He had 79 points, including 27 goals, over that stretch. That is tied with F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats for the longest point streak this seaosn. . . . Kamloops (35-10-6) is tied with Portland, eight points behind Western Conference-leading Seattle. . . . Calgary is sixth in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Regina, Swift Current and Medicine Hat.

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.

Celery

WHL, Ice not taking questions . . . Why Winnipeg, but not Nanaimo? . . . Bedard now 50-50–100 but Pats lose

Earlier this week, Paul Friesen, a sports columnist with the Winnipeg Sun, wrote about how and why the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice might be on its last legs in the Manitoba capital.

Well . . . he had another column on Friday, this one digging a little more into WinnipegIcewhether the Ice ownership will be building an arena in the Rural Municipality of Macdonald.

The key points, at least from where I sit, are these:

1. On the subject of that possible construction project, Reeve Randy Erb said: “I haven’t heard a darn thing about it.”

2. “On Friday,” Friesen wrote, “team brass again wouldn’t take questions, choosing instead to issue a statement saying they’ve made some progress with the RM regarding development of their parcel of land, but making no mention of a new arena.”

3. “A request for follow-up questions was denied,” Friesen wrote.

4. Friesen added “the league also won’t take questions . . .”

There certainly seem to be a lot of folks not wanting to answer questions, isn’t there? Why is that?

Gee, I wonder what the folks of Cranbrook are thinking about now? And, yes, the hockey fans in Chilliwack, too.

Friesen’s complete column is right here and, again, it’s well worth a read.

——

The Victoria Royals began life as the Chilliwack Bruins, as I’m sure you will remember, but after a sale left for Vancouver Island following the 2010-11 season.

At the time, the WHL desperately wanted into Victoria and felt it had to act before the AHL got there, perhaps by having the Manitoba Moose relocate from Winnipeg.

You also may recall that Victoria had been home to the ECHL’s Salmon Kings until the franchise folded after that 2010-11 season.

Thus, the WHL hustled to get into Victoria.

And once it was there its pooh-bahs realized that it would be terrific if there WHLwas a second team on Vancouver Island. After all, it was turning out to be rather costly to ride a ferry there and back from the mainland to, in most instances, play one game. The logical place for another team would be Nanaimo, which had a population of about 90,500 in 2016. (That population grew to around 103,500 by 2022.)

The problem with Nanaimo, at least in the eyes of the WHL, was that it didn’t like the arena. The Frank Crane Arena, with its 2,400 seats, opened on Jan. 3, 1976. It is the home of the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers. For one season (1982-83), it had been home to a WHL franchise — the Nanaimo Islanders. (In 1981-82, the Islanders had been the Billings Bighorns; in 1983-84, they would be the New Westminster Bruins. Today, they are the Tri-City Americans.)

The Clippers’ lease was to end after the 2016-17 season, and a WHL franchise in Nanaimo would have led to that franchise’s demise.

All of this led to reports like this one, from CTV News on March 7, 2017:

“The Western Hockey League has raised the stakes in Nanaimo’s event centre debate.

“The league vowed Monday to bring a WHL club to the Harbour City if residents vote ‘yes’ this weekend on the proposed sports and entertainment complex, which could cost taxpayers close to $80-million.

“It’s the first time the WHL has outright committed to bringing a franchise to Nanaimo.”

Furthermore, the WHL said in a statement that a memorandum of understanding was in place between it and the City of Nanaimo, that a ‘yes’ vote would result in a team playing out of Nanaimo in time for the 2017-18 season and that there would be a 20-year lease in place if the new facility met WHL standards.

Ron Robison, the WHL commissioner, said in a statement: “The WHL remains fully committed to delivering a WHL franchise to Nanaimo, either through relocation or expansion, and will move forward to obtain the necessary final approvals should the residents of the City of Nanaimo vote in favour of a new events centre.”

On March 11, the day of the referendum, CBC reported that Jeff Chynoweth, then the general manager of the Cranbrook-based Kootenay Ice, had confirmed that a move by his team to Nanaimo “is under discussion.”

And so it was that Nanaimo voters went to the polls to vote on whether to borrow $80 million to build an events centre that would seat 5,700 for hockey and 7,100 for concerts.

The outcome was never in doubt. Voter turnout was 35.3 per cent, higher than the 2014 general election (34.1). All told, 23,885 ballots were cast and 80.3 per cent of those voted against borrowing the money.

About a month after the referendum, Chynoweth and his family sold the Ice to Greg Fettes, a Winnipeg businessman, and Matt Cockell, a former WHL goaltender who had been working with True North Sports + Entertainment, which owns the NHL’s Winnpeg Jets.

The Ice played two more seasons in Cranbrook but it became evident early that the franchise’s days there were numbered.

Indeed, on Jan. 29, 2019, the WHL confirmed hockey’s worst-kept secret — the Ice would relocate to Winnipeg after the 2018-19 season.

It didn’t seem to matter to the WHL that there wasn’t a suitable arena available in which the Ice could play its home games. It didn’t matter, perhaps, because Fettes was promising to build a 4,700-seat arena for his team.

So . . . here we are with the 2022-23 WHL regular season heading into the home stretch. The Ice is playing its third season in Winnipeg; it would be four but the abbreviated 2020-21 season ended up being played in a Regina bubble because of the pandemic.

And where does the Ice play its home games?

In Wayne Fleming Arena, on the campus of the University of Manitoba, a facility that also is home to Canada West’s U of Manitoba Bisons. It opened in 1981, about five years after Frank Crane Arena in Nanaimo. The Ice’s home seats about 1,600, and there have been improvements made over the past couple of years, with, among other things, a new ice plant having been installed in 2021.

As for Fettes’s promise to build a new arena. Well, there has yet to be even one shovel hit the ground. And now there are rumblings about the WHL possibly taking over the franchise . . . and perhaps having fined the Ice $500,000 for reneging on the arena promise, something the WHL and Ice both have denied . . . and a Paul Friesen column in the Winnipeg Sun this week detailed how it is that the Ice may be on its last legs in Winnipeg.

So . . . out of all this . . . can anyone explain why the WHL didn’t just move a team to Nanaimo and have it play in a 2,400-seat arena while waiting for someone to build a new facility.

No, the Frank Crane Arena doesn’t meet WHL standards, but neither does the Wayne Fleming Arena.

That didn’t seem to matter when putting a team into Winnipeg, so why was it a big deal when it came to Nanaimo?

You are free to play “What if . . .?”

Tacos

Tim McCarver, who made his name as an MLB catcher before becoming a prominent TV analyst, died on Thursday at the age of 81. . . . As Joe Posnanski points out, McCarver had one moment that stood out among all the rest. It was Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. Diamondbacks versus Yankees. Luis Gonzales against Mariano Rivera. Bottom of the ninth. 2-2. One out. Bases loaded.

Posnanski writes:

“Here’s what (McCarver) said while Gonzalez dug into the box and Rivera took the ball and readied for the next pitch. . . .

“ ‘The one problem is Rivera throws inside to lefthanders, so lefthanders get a lot of broken bat hits into . . . the shallow part of the outfield. That’s the danger of bringing the infield in with a guy like Rivera on the mound.’

“On the next pitch, Gonzalez hit a broken bat single over the drawn-in infield. The ball landed in the shallow outfield.

“Incredible. That might have been the greatest broadcasting prophecy in any sport.

“And, funny, you never really hear people talk about it. Tony Romo predicts a screen play correctly and people are ready to give him the Nobel Prize. McCarver perfectly called one of the most iconic hits in baseball history before it happened and . . . nothing.”

Headline at The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) — Stabbed man who got hit by 3 cars then thrown off bridge probably died from the vaccine

Apps

FRIDAY’S WHL HIGHLIGHTS:

THE BEDARD WATCH: F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats, playing in his 40th game of this season, ran his totals to 50 goals and 50 assists in a 6-5 loss to the host Prince Albert Raiders. . . . Bedard, who won’t turn 18 until July 17, finished with two goals and two assists, giving him his 10th game with at least four points. . . . Bedard is the first Regina player with back-to-back 50-goal seasons since F Mike Sillinger, who did it three seasons in a row (1988-91). . . . Bedard is the second-fastest skater in Pats history to reach 50 goals behind only F Jock Callander who did it in 39 games in 1981-82. In 1982-83, F Dale Derkatch got his 50th goal in his 41st game. . . . “The difference,” Callander told Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post this week, “is that I was 20 and he’s 17. . . . Bedard has scored 31 times in his past 17 games. . . . He leads the WHL in goals and points. . . . Oh yes, his presence also sold out another WHL arena, this time the Art Hauser Centre.

——

In Prince Albert, the Raiders scored the game’s last two goals to beat the Regina Pats, 6-5. . . . The home boys overcame deficits of 2-0, 3-1 and 5-4 in earning the victory. . . . F Grady Martin’s first WHL goal, in his 37th game, tied it 5-5 at 5:19 of the third period. Martin, 16, is from Oyen, Alta., and was a second-round pick in the WHL’s 2021 draft. . . . F Aiden Quiring (9) broke the tie at 9:19. . . . F Alexander Suzdalev got his 30th goal for Regina. He is the third Regina freshman in recent years with 30 goals, behind F Nick Henry (2016-17) and F Petr Kalus (2005-06). . . . Regina F Tanner Howe, who is from Prince Albert, scored his 25th goal. . . . The announced attendance was 3,299, a sellout and the largest crowd in the Art Hauser Centre this season, well ahead of the 2,798 who watched the Saskatoon Blades post a 5-2 victory on opening night. . . . Of course, the fans were there to watch Regina F Connor Bedard and he didn’t disappoint — he scored twice, becoming the first WHLer to 50 goals this season, and added two assists. . . . Prince Albert (21-28-3) is eight points out of a playoff spot. . . . Regina (25-23-3) is tied with Swift Current and Calgary for sixth in the Eastern Conference. . . .

The Spokane Chiefs scored four times in a shootout as they beat the host Everett Silvertips, 4-3. . . . The teams combined for seven goals in the five-round shootout. . . . Everett held a 3-0 lead halfway through the third period, only to have Spokane strike three times in 4:46 in the second half. . . . F Berkly Catton (16) keyed the comeback with a goal and two assists. The first overall selection in the 2021 WHL draft has 40 points in 47 games. . . . F Cade Hayes (16) had two goals for Spokane, forcing OT at 15:22. . . . Spokane (11-35-6) has points in three straight (2-0-1). . . . Everett (27-23-3) is tied for fourth with Tri-City. . . .

F Blake Swetlikoff scored two second-period goals to help the host Lethbridge Hurricanes to a 3-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Swetlikoff, who has 11 goals, broke a 1-1 tie at 1:29 and added insurance at 10:40. . . . Hurricanes G Bryan Thomson, coming off back-to-back shutouts, stopped 30 shots. . . . Lethbridge (30-18-6) has points in four straight (3-0-1) and is fifth in the Eastern Conference, three points behind Moose Jaw. . . . Brandon (21-24-7) is 10th, four points from a playoff spot. . . .

The Winnipeg Ice struck five times in the first period en route to a 7-1 victory over the Warriors in Moose Jaw. . . . The Ice got goals from five different players in that period, the scores coming in a span of 11:38. . . . Winnipeg got points from 15 players but no one had more than two. . . . Ice D Ben Zloty, a sixth-round pick in the WHL’s 2017 draft, scored his 10th goal. He now has 63 points in 49 games. He finished last season with 64 points, eight of them goals, in 62 games. . . . The Warriors lost F Robert Baco to a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct at 8:17 of the third period. . . . Winnipeg (42-7-1) now leads the Eastern Conference by nine points over Red Deer and Saskatoon. Red Deer leads the Central Division so would be the No. 2 seed. . . . Moose Jaw (33-18-3) is fourth in the conference, three points ahead of Lethbridge. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers coughed up 3-0 and 4-1 leads before coming back to beat the Rebels, 7-4, in Red Deer. . . . Kamloops has won seven in a row. . . . With the Scotties Tournament of Hearts — aka the Canadian women’s curling championship — in their home arena, the Blazers won’t play in Kamloops again until March 3. The Scotties began Friday and runs through Feb. 26. . . . The Blazers broke a 4-4 tie with a pair of PP goals early in the third period. . . . D Kyle Masters, who was acquired along with a first-round WHL draft pick from Red Deer in a deal that had D Mats Lindgren go the other way, got his ninth goal at 2:38 and F Daylan Kuefler (27) added insurance at 4:26. . . . D Olen Zellweger had a goal (18) and three assists for the winners, with F Connor Levis adding a goal (14) and two helpers. . . . Kamloops was 4-for-5 on the PP; Red Deer was 1-for-2. . . . Blazers F Logan Stankoven had three assists as he ran his point streak to 35 games, tying F Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats for the longest point streak this season. Stankoven, with 79 points in 35 games, has at least a point in every game he has played this season. . . . The Blazers held a 42-27 edge in shots, including 21-4 in the first period after which they led 3-0. . . . Kamloops (34-10-6) leads the B.C. Division by 22 points over Prince George. . . . Red Deer (36-13-4) leads the Central Division by 10 points over Lethbridge. . . .

F Dylan Guenther opened and closed the scoring as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Tri-City Americans, 4-3 in OT, in Kennewick, Wash. . . . Guenther won it with his third goal of the season at 4:10 of OT. . . . He also had an assist, giving him a three-point outing. He’s got seven points in four games since being assigned by the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes. . . . Seattle got a goal (8) and an assist from F Brad Lambert, who has 16 points in 10 games since the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets sent him to the Thunderbirds. He has a goal in five straight games. . . . Tri-City F Jordan Gavin, who won’t turn 17 until Nov. 13, had a goal and two assists. He’s got 42 points, 15 of them goals, in 46 games. . . . D Lukas Dragicevic had two PP assists for the Americans. . . . Seattle (40-9-2) has won five in a row. It leads the Western Conference by six points over Portland. . . . Tri-City (25-20-7) has lost six in a row (0-4-2). It is tied with Everett for fourth in the conference. . . .

The Saskatoon Blades opened a 5-0 first-period lead en route to a 6-4 victory over the Royals in Victoria. . . . The Blades are 3-1-0 on their tour through the B.C. Division. They’ll head for home after facing the Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C., tonight. . . . F Trevor Wong (20) scored two of those early goals — one on the PP and one while shorthanded — as the Blades struck five times in a span of 12:48. . . . F Egor Sidorov (33) had two goals and two assists for the Blades, with F Conner Roulette adding a goal (20) and two helpers. . . . F Jake Poole, the Royals’ leading scorer, had two goals (29) after not having played since Feb. 3. . . . Saskatoon (36-13-4) is second in the East Division, nine points behind Winnipeg. . . . Victoria (15-33-6) is ninth in the Western Conference. The Royals are three points out of a playoff spot and their next three games are against the conference-leading Seattle Thunderbirds. In their only meeting to date, Seattle put up a 3-0 shutout.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

F Josh Pillar of the Saskatoon Blades had his NHL rights dealt from the Minnesota Wild to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night. Pillar, who turned 21 on Feb. 14, is from Warman, Sask. He was a fourth-round pick by the Wild in the NHL’s 2021 draft. This season, he has four goals and eight assists in 12 games, but only returned to game action last night after being out since Nov. 26 with an undisclosed injury. . . .

The Moose Jaw Warriors honoured two former defencemen — Paul Dyck and Kevin Masters — this week by inducting them into the organizations Hall of Fame. . . . Dyck played from 1989-91; Masters from 1988-92. . . . They were saluted at a dinner on Thursday night and then were honoured Friday night as the Warriors played host to the Winnipeg Ice. . . . Brent Parker, who as the general manager of the Regina Pats may have tossed more than a little gasoline onto what was a fierce rivalry back in the day, was in attendance. In fact, he won the 50-50 draw and immediately gave half of it to the Warriors’ education fund. . . . I have it on good authority that there more than a few laughs were heard when Parker was announced as the winner. . . .

The Portland Winterhawks will add F Randy Heath, F Cam Neely, F Grant Sasser and F Ken Yaremchuk to their Hall of Fame on March 18. All four played on the 1983-champion Winterhawks. . . . Portland also will retire Neely’s No. 21. That will be the first number to have been retired by the Winterhawks. . . . The Seattle Thunderbirds are scheduled to provide the opposition on March 18.

Jelly

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

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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.

Water

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