Tag: Living Kidney Donor Program

Now that was game night to remember! . . . Firebirds in control in AHL final . . . Ex-WHLer to be named Flames’ head coach on Monday

It was one week ago tonight (Monday) when the Sonnes and the Priestners got together at the latter’s Saskatoon home. It was going to be a quiet night featuring dinner and small talk as they watched the second game of the Stanley Cup final.

They didn’t have any idea just how ‘small’ the talk would be!

Colin Priestner, the president and general manager of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, and Brennan Sonne, the team’s head coach and the WHL’s reigning coach of the year, were going to watch the hockey game.

Alanna Priestner, who had recently given birth to Elodie, a sister for Pala, 5, and Kaleigh Sonne, pregnant with their first, likely would be chatting . . . quietly. Right?

Except that the best laid plans were tossed into disarray when Kaleigh went into labour during dinner.

Later that night, Lowen arrived on the scene and the Sonne’s lives were changed for the better and forever.

The Vegas Golden Knights beat the visiting Florida Panthers, 7-2, to take a 2-0 leading in the Stanley Cup final that evening. That, however, was only an afterthought in the Priestner household on what was a night that will be long remembered by those who were there.

Snoopy

The Coachella Valley Firebirds have a 2-0 lead in the AHL’s best-of-seven final Firebirdsfor the Calder Cup after beating the Hershey Bears, 4-0, in Thousand Palms, Calif., on Saturday night. They’ll play again in Hershey on Tuesday and Thursday, with a fifth game, if needed, there on Saturday. . . . The Firebirds, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken, are in their first season of existence. . . . On Saturday, Coachella Valley scored four second-period goals to take control of the game. D Ryker Evans, who played with the WHL’s Regina Pats, had a goal and an assist. . . . G Joey Daccord stopped 33 shots in putting up his second straight shutout. The Firebirds won the opener, 5-0, on Thursday. . . . The last time an AHL goaltender opened the championship series with back-to-back shutouts? Moe Roberts of the Cleveland Barons did it in 1939 against the Philadelphia Ramblers. The Barons won the best-of-five final, 3-1.

Batman

The Florida Everblades became the fifth ECHL team to win back-to-back Floridachampionships when they completed a sweep of the Idaho Steelheads in Estero, Fla., on Thursday. . . . The Everblades completed the sweep with a 4-3 victory in front of a Hertz Arena record crowd of 7,855. Florida now is one of three teams to have three Kelly Cups. No team has won more than that. . . . The Steelheads erased a 2-0 first-period deficit and held a 3-2 lead 21 seconds into the third period. . . . D Stefan Leblanc’s first playoff goal pulled Florida even at 4:19 and F Tyler Irvine score the eventual winner at 7:59, with the primary assist going to former WHL F Levko Koper. . . . Florida, which is an affiliate of the NHL’s Florida Panthers, went 16-4 on its playoff run. . . . The Everblades’ Game 4 roster included Koper (Spokane Chiefs, 2006-11) and D Cole Moberg (Prince George Cougars, 2016-20). . . . Brad Ralph, who did a turn as the Kelowna Rockets’ head coach in 2015-16, is Florida’s head coach and director of hockey operations.

Grad

Mike Lupica, in the New York Daily News: “We can talk all day long about the business American companies and the American government does with Saudi Arabia. We can talk about the ties the NBA has with China, and how the Olympics keep showing up in China despite that country’s own hideous record on human rights. So China hides behind basketball and the Olympics. Now Saudi Arabia is hiding behind golf. And the Tour is complicit in that. You know what really happened this week? The Crown Prince won a major.”

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Lupica, again: “People in sports talk constantly about how Father Time is undefeated. So is money. Blood money in this case. And it will be about growing the game when pigs can fly.”

Dog

THE COACHING GAME:

The NHL’s Calgary Flames are expected to introduce Ryan Huska as their new head coach today (Monday), replacing the fired Darryl Sutter. Huska, 47, has been an assistant coach with the Flames for the past five seasons. He doesn’t have a Stanley Cup ring, at least not yet, but has been on four Memorial Cup winners, three as a player (Kamloops Blazers, 1992, 1994, 1995) and one as an assistant coach (Kelowna Rockets, 2004). . . .

The QMJHL teams held their annual draft in Sherbrooke, Que., on Saturday, but before it started the Cape Breton Eagles apparently fired head coach Jon Goyens. The team hadn’t made an official announcement as of Sunday night, but reports indicated that Goyens had been fired after one season and with one year left on his contract. . . . When Goyens was hired in July, he was the team’s third head coach in as many years. . . . The Eagles went 30-34-4 in 2022-23, then were swept in the first round by the Halifax Mooseheads. . . . Speculation has the Eagles talking to Louis Robitaille, who was fired by the Gatineau Olympiques after their season ended. . . . Cape Breton joins the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Drummondville Voltigeurs, Gatineau and Rimouski Oceanic as QMJHL teams without a head coach at the moment.

THINKING OUT LOUD: Ahh, it’s great to have another CFL regular season upon us. But I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that the Edmonton Elks lost their 18th consecutive home game on Sunday. . . . Whenever I watch the Florida Panthers in action, I wonder why no one has ripped that plastic thingy out of the pesky Matthew Tkachuk’s mouth. . . . Will the 2023 Canadian Open be remembered for Nick Taylor’s victory or the security guard’s hard tackle on Adam Hadwin as he tried spray the winner with champagne?

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

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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.

Ankle

QMJHL getting fighting out of its games; Memorial Cup champs had one scrap this season . . . Firebirds win AHL final opener . . . Blades’ coach, wife welcome first child

The QMJHL has firmed up its “new sanctions to prevent fighting” and released qmjhlnewthem to the public. . . . The regulations were set after committee meetings involving owners, general managers and members of the staff of Mario Cecchini, the league’s new commissioner. . . . The main points: Addition of a game misconduct penalty for any player involved in a fight; addition of an automatic one-game suspension for any player declared the instigator of a fight; addition of a minimum two-game automatic suspension for any player identified as the aggressor; and, in addition to the game misconduct, an automatic one-game suspension will be imposed once a player has reached his second fight, rather than his third. . . . If you click right here, you will a brief news release that includes a chart showing the automatic fighting-related penalties.

Tracking

The BCHL no longer wants to be referred to as a junior A league. In a post bchlinvolving frequently asked questions posted on its website on Thursday, the league notes: “The BCHL is simply the British Columbia Hockey League. We don’t need to classify ourselves otherwise.” . . . If you have any questions about what is happening with the league that left Hockey Canada as May turned into June, there is a lot of information right here. . . . For example, as things stand now, “Under BC Hockey and Hockey Canada regulations, any officials who work BCHL games after Sept. 30 will not be permitted to work in Hockey Canada-sanctioned leagues.” . . . As well, BC Hockey has said that any officials and/or staff working with BCHL teams won’t be able to coach minor hockey teams that are registered with Hockey Canada. That also means that those associated with BCHL teams won’t be able to work with minor hockey teams in any fashion. Nor will minor hockey players be able to take part in any BCHL pre-game or intermission happenings.

The first-year Coachella Valley Firebirds opened the AHL’s best-of-seven Firebirdsfinal on Thursday with a 5-0 victory over the Hershey Bears before a sellout crowd of 10,087 in Thousand Palms, Calif. . . . The Firebirds are affiliated with the NHL’s Seattle Krakken. . . . G Joey Daccord stopped 25 shots for the shutout. . . . F Kole Lind (Kelowna Rockets, 2014-18) had three assists. He leads the AHL scoring race with 26 points, 19 of them assists, in 20 games. . . . D Ryker Evans (Regina Pats, 2018-22) also had three assists. A first-year pro, Evans has three goals and 16 assists in 19 playoff games. . . . A note from the AHL: This was the 128th Calder Cup final game in Bears franchise history, and the 92nd game overall in Firebirds franchise history. . . . They’ll play Game 2 in Thousand Palms tonight, then head for Hershey and the next three games, on June 13, 15 and 17, if necessary. If more games are needed, they’ll finish up in Thousand Palms on June 19 and 21.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Brennan Sonne, the head coach of the Saskatoon Blades, and his wife, Kaleigh, welcomed Lowen, their first child, earlier this week. Sonne, who just completed his second season with the Blades, is the WHL’s reigning coach of the year. He joined the Blades after four seasons as head coach of the Ducs d’Angers of France’s Ligue Magnes. . . .

The Battlefords North Stars, the SJHL’s reigning champions, announced on Thursday that they have signed Brayden Klimosko, their general manager and head coach, to a five-year contract extension. . . . Klimosko has been with the North Stars for five seasons, winning two SJHL titles and three coach-of-the-year awards. . . .

The BCHL’s board of governors has approved the sale of the Langley Rivermen. Dana Matheson and Jamie Schreder, a pair of Langley businessmen, have purchased the franchise from John Henderson. The new owners already have taken over the operation. Henderson and his family have run the Rivermen since 2011-12.

Headline at The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) — Trump indicted for the thing you thought he was indicted for last time.

FayWray

THINKING OUT LOUD: Why doesn’t the WHL have a hall of fame? The other two major junior leagues — the OHL and the QMJHL — have them. BTW, the QMJHL added seven people to its Hall of Fame the other night — Stephane Richer, Clément Jodoin, Alain Vigneault, Dave Ezard, Simon Gamache, Stephane Robidas and Rick Vaive. . . . Could the Aquilinis, the owners of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, purchase the Winnipeg Ice and move the franchise to Abbotsford where it would share a facility with the AHL’s Canucks? . . . David Thompson, the owner of the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets, is worth US$52 billion, according to information that Online Betting Guide gleaned from Forbes and Bloomberg. So why doesn’t he buy the Winnipeg Ice and build a new arena that the team could call home? . . . If the Ice is available, that is. . . .

The Brandon Wheat Kings fired head coach Don MacGillivray on Nov. 28 and general manager Marty Murray took over. Will Murray continue as GM/head coach in a new season? . . . Is Brent Sutter, the owner, president, general manager and head bottle washer of the Red Deer Rebels, close to hiring a head coach to replace the departed Steve Konowalchuk? And has Sutter interviewed himself yet? . . . It was 35.3 C on my temperature gizmo on Thursday as the first period of Game 3 of the NHL final reached the 10:00 mark. Isn’t it time for all hockey seasons to end in mid-May?

2022

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——

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

Mysteries

I know nothing but there’s hot buzz about the Ice . . . Rockets get Iginla from T-Birds . . . Remparts trade three from championship roster

Schultz

Let me guess? You are wondering: What’s the latest on the Winnipeg Ice situation?

Well, I really don’t know anything, but a spy in Chilliwack tells me that he has heard that the “Aquilinis are working out a deal with the city to buy the building — or possibly get the city to manage it — and buy the Chiefs.”

The Aquilinis, of course, own the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks and the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks, along with assorted real estate properties and blueberry farms.

If you’re new to this situation, there has been ample speculation for a few months now that the Winnipeg Ice will be on the move at some point this WinnipegIcesummer. The move apparently has become necessary, or so the speculation goes, because the Ice’s owners, who moved the franchise from Cranbrook after the 2018-19 season, have failed to deliver on a promise to build a new arena, thus they are stuck in the 1,600-seat Wayne Fleming Arena on the U of Manitoba campus. The WHL, ’tis said, has had enough of that particular situation. (BTW, I believe there still is a lawsuit kicking around somewhere involving the City of Cranbrook versus the WHL and the Ice’s owners. Something about a lease.)

And so it is that Chilliwack is in the forefront of the rumour mill. Chilliwack, of course, once was home to the Bruins, who were sold and allowed to move to Victoria where they now are the Royals. That move, of course, meant that the WHL and its franchise owners didn’t get to divvy up the money they could have gotten had an expansion franchise been sold to someone eager to get into Victoria.

But we digress. . . .

The Chilliwack mole also tells me that Ron Toigo, the majority owner of the Vancouver Giants, “wants a WHL team in Chilliwack, and he may be the mastermind behind all of this.”

If Toigo, indeed, is pushing for the Ice to end up in Chilliwack it makes all kinds of sense. For starters, having his Giants match up with the Chilliwack TBAs for 10 games a season would certainly cut a chunk out of travel expenses.

It also could be the start of a beautiful rivalry. If you think back to 2010-11, the Bruins’ last season in Chilliwack, they were just at the point where they could compete hard with the Giants, something that only would have been good for attendance. In 2009-10, the Giants had beaten the Bruins in seven of 10 meetings. In 2010-11, they evenly split the season series — 5-5-0.

While the rumour mill is working overtime, the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs just go about their business, signing players and doing whatever is involved in being part of an outlaw, er, independent league. (Back in the day, when the fathers of the WHL — Bill Hunter and Scott Munro and their gang — left the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association, they were dubbed outlaws. In these days of political correctness, or maybe it’s because they haven’t robbed any stage coaches, the BCHL is referred to as being “independent.”)

BTW, the 5,000-seat Chilliwack Coliseum opened in 2004 as Prospera Centre. It is home to the Chiefs and is owned and operated by the Chiefs Development Group. Moray Keith, one of the Chiefs’ three owners, is the president of the Chiefs Development Group.

According to the Chilliwack mole, there already is a name being bandied about as the likely head coach should the Ice be sold to the Aquilinis and relocate. That would be Harvey Smyl, who, although he hasn’t coach in more than 10 years, has long ties to the Chilliwack hockey scene, having spent a bunch of seasons on the Chiefs’ bench back in the day. Oh yes, he also has at least one tie to the Aquilinis. That would be through his brother, Stan, one of the most popular Canucks of all time. Stan now is the Canucks’ vice-president of hockey operations.

Harvey Smyl as head coach in Chilliwack “is farfetched to me,” the mole told me. “But who knows these days?”

Who knows, indeed?

Filter

The Kelowna Rockets have acquired 2006-born F Tij Iginla from the Seattle Thunderbirds for 2005-born F Grady Lenton and two WHL draft picks — a first in 2024 and a second in 2027, the latter of which originated with Seattle. . . . That second-rounder was acquired by the Rockets from Seattle during the 2023 draft for third- and fifth-round selections in that draft. . . . Iginla is the son of former WHL/NHL star F Jerome Iginla, a Hockey Hall of Famer who now is a co-owner of the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Tij had six goals and 12 assists in 48 regular-season games with Seattle in 2022-23. He had one assist in three playoff games, all of them in the first round against Kelowna. . . . Seattle selected Iginla ninth overall in the 2021 WHL draft. . . . Lenton has four goals and four assists in 60 regular-season games with the Rockets. From Delta, B.C., he was selected by the Rockets in the eighth round of the 2020 WHL draft.

Three days after backstopping the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts to a Memorial qmjhlnewCup championship in Kamloops, G William Rousseau was dealt to the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies on Wednesday. . . . In return, the Remparts got a first- and a second-round draft pick, both in 2024. . . . The 2003-born Rousseau picked up the shutout on Sunday as the Remparts blanked the Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-0, in the winner-take-all championship game. . . . During the regular season, he was 35-11 with a 2.22 GAA. . . . Rousseau had been selected by the Remparts in the fifth round of the QMJHL’s 2019 draft. . . .

Also on Wednesday, the Remparts dealt 2003-born D Jérémy Langlois to the Huskies for two draft picks — a fourth in 2023 and a second in 2024. He had two assists in four games during the Memorial Cup. After three-plus seasons with the Cape Breton Eagles, the team captain was dealt to the Remparts 27 games into the 2022-23 season. He had 33 points, 25 of them assists in 34 regular-season games with Quebec. . . . Langlois was a first-round pick by the Eagles in 2019, and was taken by the Arizona Coyotes in the third round of the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . .

Quebec also traded D Charle Truchon, 20, to the Rimouski Océanic for F Simon Maltais, 20, and two draft picks — a third in 2023 and a fifth in 2024. He had a goal and an assist in four Memorial Cup games, after putting up 10 points in 16 playoff games and 24 in 68 regular-season games. . . .

Those trades were among numerous deals that took place in a QMJHL trading window that ran Wednesday, from 9 a.m. to noon. Another window is set for Friday, from 9 to 10 a.m. . . . BTW, the Remparts were honoured at Quebec City Hall on Tuesday and were at the National Assembly on Wednesday.

Lawyers

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Les Lazaruk may be the longtime play-by-play voice of the Saskatoon Blades, but deep at heart he’s a baseball guy. If you weren’t aware, he was half of the radio crew for baseball’s Winnipeg Goldeyes in their first season. And he was back in Winnipeg on Tuesday, having a reunion with Peter Young, the other half of that broadcast team, and watching the Goldeyes. . . . Paul Friesen of the Winnipeg Sun has that neat story right here. . . .

Nathan MacDonald, the Swift Current Broncos’ executive vice-president of business operations, has left the organization after five seasons there. He will be joining the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers in an unspecified front-office position.

THINKING OUT LOUD: When I entered the newspaper business more than 50 years ago, one of the first lessons I learned was that it’s always about the money. And when they say it isn’t about the money, you absolutely know that it’s about the money. Hey, Saudi Golf Tour — er, PGA Tour — you crossed the line, so I’m out. . . . Is there anything more irritating than the yelling by Seattle Mariners’ play-by-play voices when one of their favourites hits a home run? Sheesh, guys, it’s still June. How loud would you go for a World Series blast? . . . ICYMI, the Coachella Valley Firebirds are into their first AHL final. The Firebirds are the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. Did I mention that the Firebirds are in their first season? Yes, they are. They will open the best-of-seven final tonight against the visiting Hershey Bears, the AHL’s oldest franchise. Rich Franklin, who spent more than 10 years in the Portland Winterhawks’ front office, is the Firebirds’ senior director of corporate partnerships. . . . Rob Vanstone, who left the Regina Leader-Post’s sports department earlier this year, received a Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal on Wednesday “for his extraordinary leadership and service to local sports and the community.” These days, after spending years and years covering, among other things, the WHL and Regina Pats, Vanstone is churning out stories and more as the senior journalist and historian for the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Hyphen

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.

Fixage

Dorothy says thanks so much for the support . . . Here we go again with Ice relocation rumours . . . Full speed ahead for BCHL

A huge thank you to all of those who stop by here and chose to donate to Dorothy’s fund-raising effort on behalf of the Kidney Foundation. You proved once again that hockey people really are the best. The 2023 Kamloops Kidney Walk was held on Sunday and Dorothy was there for a 10th straight year. At the time of the walk, she had raised $4,810, which was her highest total yet. So, once again, thank you all so much. She is nearing the 10th anniversary of her kidney transplant and she really looks at the Kidney Walk as a way to give something back. Those of you who donated are part of all that so please reach around give yourselves a pat on the back. . . . As of this writing, she is fifth in all of B.C. Kamloops, meanwhile, surpassed its goal of $20,000 and is second only to Vancouver. . . . Again, thank you all so much!

Here we go again . . . those rumours about the Winnipeg Ice relocating to WinnipegIceChilliwack before another season gets here are flying, again. . . . Here’s Rick Dhaliwal, a co-host of the Donnie & Dhali Show that is on Victoria’s CHEK-TV, on Monday: “Out of the blue (Sunday), a lot of people reached out to me, hearing rumours again about Winnipeg moving to Chilliwack. A lot of people feel the Aquilini family may be behind this — involved, anyway. Sources in the Western Hockey League and the BC Hockey League have heard the same.” . . . The Aquilinis, of course, own the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks and the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. . . . In February, when the WHL was rumoured to be searching for a new home for the Ice, management with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, said that wasn’t’ going to happen. As Brian Maloney, the Chiefs’ general manager and head coach, said at the time: “We’ve tried that song and dance before . . . it rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.” . . . The WHL did have a WHL franchise at one time, but it allowed the Bruins to be sold and moved to Victoria where it now is the Royals. . . . The difference now is that there wasn’t any mention of the Aquilinis earlier in the year. Dhaliwal even suggested that the Chilliwack Coliseum “could also be part of the deal, as in selling it — buying it.” . . . Daniel Wagner of Vancouver Is Awesome sums it all up right here.

Best wishes in retirement to John Chapman, one of the colourful characters who used to inhabit the WHL. Chapman spent six seasons (1980-86) as the head coach of the Lethbridge Broncos and one (1986-87) as general manager of the Calgary Wranglers. He spent one season as director of scouting with the NHL’s Florida Panthers and two with the Florida Panthers as director of player personnel. He has been with the Philadelphia Flyers since 1995-96, 14 seasons as an amateur scout and past 14 as a pro scout. . . . Before joining the Broncos, he was the head coach of the AJHL’s Red Deer Rustlers. Through those organizations, he had a long history with the Sutter family.

Lard

The BCHL has been operating independent of Hockey Canada since June 1. On bchlMay 31, the league issued a news release covering its rules pertaining to the 18 teams’ rosters. . . . While each team will be allowed to have two players from outside North American on its roster, “Russian and Belarusian players are temporarily not allowed due to the political situation in Russia.” . . . Of interest, too, is that players from the CSSHL, BCEHL and B.C.’s junior B leagues no longer are allowed to associate with BCHL teams as affiliate players. . . . That news release is right here.

The Cowichan Capitals and West Kelowna Warrriors haven’t wasted time time in adding European players. The Capitals have received a commitment from Norwegian F Lars Petter Eckholm, 19, for 2022-23. He has been in the Rogle BK program in Sweden for the past four seasons. . . . The Warriors have commitments from Swedish F Viggo Nordström, who will turn 20 on Sept. 11, and Norwegian F Johannes Løkkeberg, 19. . . . There have been some other interesting moves, too. The Penticton Vees, for instance, have signed G Andrew Ness off the roster of the AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons. . . . And then there’s the case of G Ethan Morrow, who apparently is the property of two teams — Cowichan and the AJHL’s Blackfalds Bulldogs. . . . No one watches the BCHL closer than does Brian Wiebe, and he rounds up the latest BCHL-related developments right here. This is interesting stuff and it’s worth checking his stuff on a near-daily basis because of all that is happening.

Herring

Here is a chronological look at some items of note that occurred while I was sitting on our deck for the past few days . . .

May 22: The junior B Nanaimo Buccaneers of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League announced that Tali Campbell will be their general manager and that they have signed Troy Newans as head coach. . . . Both spots were vacant after Lee Stone, who had signed on in April, left to join the junior A Red Lake, Ont., Miners of the Superior International Hockey League. . . . Newans started 2021-22 as the head coach of the VIJHL’s Kerry Park Islanders but stepped down in January. . . . Campbell is a co-owner of the Buccaneers and also is the chief operating officer and general manager of the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express. As soon as the Buccaneers made their announcement, I received a text from a hockey coach wondering: “So Tali Campbell is GM of Coquitlam Express of the now unsanctioned BCHL. How can he also be GM of the Nanaimo Buccaneers of the sanctioned VIJHL” . . . How indeed?

May 23: The QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques announced that they and Louis Robitaille, their general manager and head coach, “have mutually agreed to part ways.” Robitaille signed with them in April 2020 and helped the team to a 104-38-25 regular-season record. They were 12-12 in 24 playoff games under Robitaille, and reached the league’s final four this season. . . . Jean-François Fortin, the assistant GM for three years, stepped in as interim GM, but he chose to leave the organization on June 2, just a week before the QMJHL draft.

May 24: The SJHL’s Weyburn Red Wings signed Cody Mapes, their general manager and head coach, to a multi-year contract extension. Mapes is preparing for his third season as the team’s head coach. He spent two seasons as an assistant coach before taking over as head coach. The team’s news release didn’t specify the length of the multi-year extension.

May 24: The BCHL’s Merritt Centennials signed Brian Passmore to a three-year contract as head coach and assistant general manager. Passmore, 43, hired on as the GM/head coach of the BCHL’s Cowichan Capitals prior to the 2020-21 season. He was fired on Nov. 16, 2022. . . . In Merritt, he replaces Curtis Toneff as head coach. Toneff, who also was the GM, was fired following this season. He had been with the Centennials since Dec. 22, 2021. . . . I don’t believe that the Centennials have yet signed a new general manager.

May 25: Matt Dagenais, an assistant coach with the Ottawa 67’s, left the OHL team to take over as head coach of the QMJHL’s Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. . . . Dagenais had been with the 67’s since August 2021. He also was the governor and director of hockey operations for the Ottawa Junior Senators of the CCHL. . . . With the Huskies, he replaces Brad Yetman, the head coach for the past two seasons.

Herman

May 26: The Spokane Chiefs acquired a fifth-round pick in the WHL’s 2026 draft from the Kelowna Rockets for 2004-born F Michael Cicek. . . . The Rockets announced it as a conditional fifth-round pick but didn’t outline the conditions. . . . This season, Cicek had four goals and eight assists in 41 games with the Chiefs. . . . From Winnipeg, he was the Chiefs’ sixth-round pick in the WHL’s 2019 draft. He is the younger brother of D Nick Cicek, who played with the Portland Winterhawks and now is on the roster of the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.

May 26: The Summerside Capitals of the junior A Maritimes Hockey League signed head coach Billy McGuigan through the 2023-24 season. Under McGuigan’s guidance, the Capitals are 338-133-29 in the regular season, with a 51-32 playoff record, and two MHL championships. . . . McGuigan, 47, is a former WHL assistant coach (Regina Pats, 2013-14). Other than that one season, he has been a fixture with Summerside since 2011-12.

May 26: Devon Fordyce, a former WHL goaltender, has joined the MJHL’s Neepawa Titans as their goaltending coach. Last season, Fordyce was the goaltending coach with the Yellowhead Chiefs of the Manitoba AAA U18 League. . . . Fordyce played for Ken Pearson, the Titans’ general manager and head coach, with the 2014-15 Winkler Flyers. . . . Fordyce, 29, played 18 games with the Prince George Cougars (2011-13).

May 29: The Vancouver Giants announced that Jamison Derksen, their director of media relations and video coach, has left the organization in order “to pursue other opportunities.” . . . He had been with the Giants since 2017-18 when he was a volunteer intern as their game-day operations co-ordinator.

May 29: The Swift Current Broncos acquired F Tyson Laventure, 20, from the Lethbridge Hurricanes for a fourth-round selection in the WHL’s 2026 draft. Laventure, from Lloydminster, Alta., was taken 31st overall by the Prince Albert Raiders in the 2018 draft. The Hurricanes acquired him on Jan. 1, 2022. . . . He had 22 goals and 26 assists in 62 games in 2022-23. In 195 career regular-season games, he has 43 goals and 56 assists.

Hiring

May 30: The Moose Jaw Warriors announced that Rose Mary Hartney, their long-time education advisor, died. She was 73 when she died on May 25. She had been their education advisor since 1984 when the franchise moved to Moose Jaw from Winnipeg. She spent 38 years as a teacher at Vanier Collegiate in Moose Jaw, then stayed on with the Warriors following her retirement. She was inducted into the Warriors and Legends Hall of Fame in 2012.

May 30: The AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons signed Carter Duffin as an assistant coach. From a news release: “Duffin previously worked as assistant coach/assistant general manager of the Lloydminster Bobcats (AJHL) from 2021-2023. Prior to his time in Lloydminster, Duffin served as head coach/general manager of the Castlegar Rebels (KIJHL) from 2018-2021, and was the assistant coach/director of operations of the Estevan Bruins from 2017-2018 where he helped lead the club to the SJHL final.”

May 31: The Kelowna Rockets signed F Hiroki Gojsic, 17, after acquiring him from the Victoria Royals for two WHL draft picks — a second-rounder in 2025 and a fifth in 2027. Gojsic was a second-round selection by the Royals in the 2021 WHL draft. He spent 2022-23 with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, putting up 10 goals and 11 assists in 36 games. From Langley, B.C., Hiroki is the brother of Kanjyu Gojsic, 15, a third-round pick by the Rockets in the 2023 draft who also has signed a WHL contract.

May 31: The Spokane Chiefs acquired F Conner Roulette, 20, from the Saskatoon Blades for two WHL draft picks — a second-rounder in 2024 and a third in 2027. . . . Roulette had 24 goals and 38 assists in 60 games with the Blades, who had acquired him and a third-round pick in the 2026 draft from the Seattle Thunderbirds for F Kyle Crnkovic on Aug. 30. . . . In 191 regular-season games, Roulette has 73 goals and 106 assists.

May 31: The Saskatoon Blades signed associate coach Dan DaSilva to a two-year extension. DaSilva, 38, is from Saskatoon. He has been with the Blades through two seasons.

May 31: The BCHL’s Penticton Vees added Mark McMillan to their staff as an assistant coach. He had been the general manager and head coach of the junior B Summerland Steam of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League since October 2021.

May 31: The Edmonton Oilers acquired F Jayden Grubbe, the 20-year-old captain of the Red Deer Rebels, from the New York Rangers and signed him to a three-year entry-level NHL contract. He has 39 goals and 95 assists in 194 regular-season WHL games with the Rebels. . . . The Oilers gave up a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NHL draft for Grubbe, whom the Rangers had selected in the third round of the 2021 draft.

Coyote

May 31: The Vancouver Giants hired Nathan Kanter as their director of media relations and broadcasting. He will be the radio voice of the Giants, replacing Eddie Gregory. . . . Kanter has been with the Regina Pats for the past two seasons, working as their manager of digital media, fan and community engagement. He had been the play-by-play voice of the BCHL’s Salmon Arm Silverbacks for two seasons (2019-21) and the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars for two seasons prior to heading west.

June 1: The SJHL’s Estevan Bruins added Drew Kocur to their staff as an assistant coach. He had been the Prairie Junior Hockey League’s coach of the year for 2022-23, a season during which he guided the Pilot Butte Storm to to the provincial junior B title.

June 2: The Victoria Royals acquired F Justin Lies from the Saskatoon Blades for what they said in a news release is a “conditional third-round pick in 2026.” . . . The word “conditional” doesn’t appear in the Blades’ news release. . . . Lies will turn 20 on Nov. 24. . . . Lies, from Flin Flon, had nine goals and 14 assists in 56 games with the Blades in 2022-23. He added three goals and an assist in 15 playoff games. . . . In 176 career regular-season games — he also has played with the Vancouver Giants — Lies has 21 goals and 32 assists.

June 2: The AJHL’s Bonnyville Pontiacs signed head coach Mario Pouliot to a two-year extension. Pouliot has been with the Pontiacs since September when he took over after the departure of Brad Flynn. Despite getting a late start, Pouliot guided the Pontiacs to the North Division final, the first time they have been there since 2015.

June 6: The SJHL’s Melville Millionaires signed Doug Johnson as their new general manager and head coach. He spent the past season as the head coach and assistant GM of the MJHL’s OCN Blizzard, getting it into the playoffs and being a finalist for coach of the year. . . . Earlier, Johnson spent 11-plus seasons (2010-22) with the SJHL’s Nipawin Hawks, three times being named coach of the year. . . . In Melville, Johnson will take over from Mike Rooney, who left in April after three seasons with the organization.

Dinner

The biggest holes to fill in the WHL next season may well be in the officiating crew because referees Chris Crich and Steve Papp worked their final games on June 4 when they did the Memorial Cup final in Kamloops.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Mike Sawatzky of the Winnipeg Free Press has reported that Gord Burnett, who spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach with the Moose Jaw Warriors, is expected to be the new head coach of the U of Manitoba Bisons. Burnett, 42, takes over from Mike Sirant, who has retired after 27 seasons as the Bisons’ head coach. . . . Sawatzky also reported that Don MacGillivray, who was fired as head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings early in 2022-23, “was considered an obvious candidate for the U of M job but did not apply.” MacGillivray ran the Bisons for three seasons (2006-09) while Sirant coached the Danish national men’s team.

Former WHLer Marc Habscheid has signed on as head coach of the Vienna Capitals of the ICE Hockey League. He takes over from Dave Barr, who left the club after two seasons that included a 24-17-7 record this season. Habscheid, 60, spent this season as head coach of that league’s Berner Pioneers Vorarlberg, who play out of Feldkirch, Austria. They went 11-34-3 and Habscheid took his leave shortly after season’s end. . . . Thanks to Darren Steinke for bringing this one to my attention as it obviously had fallen through the cracks. . . .

Dan Lambert, a former WHL player and coach, lost his job as an assistant coach on May 30 when the NHL’s Nashville Predators fired him and head coach John Hynes. Both had one year left on their contracts. . . . Lambert spent four seasons with the Predators. . . . Lambert, 53, played four seasons (1986-90) with the Swift Current Broncos. He was on the Kelowna Rockets’ staff for six seasons — five as an assistant coach and the last one (2014-15) as head coach. He also spent two seasons (2017-19) as the head coach of the Spokane Chiefs before going to Nashville. . . .

F Owen Pederson, who played out his junior eligibility this season with the Winnipeg Ice, has signed a two-year contract with the AHL’s Providence Bruins. Pederson, 21, had 32 goals and 42 assists in 65 games with the Ice this season. In 237 games over five seasons, he put up 205 points, including 94 goals. . . .

F Connor McClennon, who played five seasons with the Kootenay/Winnipeg Ice, has signed a two-year deal with the Chicago Wolves, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes. He was a sixth-round pick by the Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL’s 2020 draft. . . . He had 46 goals and 46 assists in 64 games with the Ice in 2022-23. . . .

manure

Yanick Lemay, who had been on the scouting staff of the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets for 12 seasons, is the new general manager of the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs. He replaces Philippe Boucher, who left the organization in February. . . . On June 2, the Voltigeurs announced that Éric Bélanger, their interim head coach, won’t be returning. According to a team-issued news release, the decision was reached “by mutual agreement.” He took over as the interim head coach in November, winning 18 of 45 regular-season games and four of eight playoff assignments. . . .

Brett McLean, who played with the WHL’s Tacoma/Kelowna Rockets and Brandon Wheat Kings, is the new head coach of the Iowa Wild, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. McLean played five WHL seasons (1994-99), finishing up with the Wheat Kings. . . . He was an assistant coach in Iowa for three seasons (2017-20) and has been an assistant in Minnesota for the past three seasons. . . .

Jamie Lundmark, who played three seasons in the WHL (Moose Jaw Warriors, Seattle Thunderbirds, 1998-2001) has joined the Princeton women’s hockey program as the director of player development and assistant coach. Lundmark, who retired as a player in 2018, is the founder of Method Hockey. It is based in West Chester, Pa., and works with elite players.

Math

Please take five minutes out of your day and read the story in the tweet below. You’ll learn a whole lot about the Boulets, their son, Logan, and the role that Ric Suggitt played in their story. Wonderful stuff!

——

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.

Opinion

Memorial Cup field set . . . Remparts, Petes to join Thunderbirds, Blazers . . . Will Kamloops be Roy’s swan song in QMJHL?

PLAYOFF NOTES:

Friday night leftovers:

Geoffrey Brandow (@GeoffreyBrandow): “I will open the floor for anyone to respond if I am wrong or can verify this statement, but I believe this is the first time that an American team has won the Ed Chynoweth Cup on American soil since Portland in 1982 (outlasted Regina in five games).” . . .

Brandow, again: “Thomas Milic is full marks adding another 30 saves to the total and becomes 12th goaltender to win Playoff MVP.  Improves to 30-12-2 in 44 career postseason games and has played all but 17 empty-net minutes combined over past two postseasons. 13-1-0-1 this year blocking 30+.” . . .

Brandow, in reference to Seattle F Nico Myatovic scoring on a penalty shot: “Other penalty shots in WHL championship (since 1996): 2006, Game 2 — Dustin Boyd (MJ) scores on Dustin Slade (VAN), 1:25/3rd; 2011, Game 2 — Sven Bartschi (POR) misses on Nathan Lieuwen (KTN), 2:42/2nd; 2017, Game 3 — Sam Steel (REG) misses on Carl Stankowski (SEA), 12:45/3rd .” . . .

Thunderbirds radio voice Thom Beuning (@ThomBeuning): “The Thunderbirds allowed zero goals to Matthew Savoie and Conor Geekie in the five games. The pair had combined for 17 through the first three rounds.” . . .

Beuning, again: “Luke Prokop joined the Seattle Thunderbirds in early November. He would play 22 home games at the ShoWare Center. Did you know all four of his goals this season were scored on home ice (4g, 8a)? He added 3 assists in 10 home playoff games, including an assist on the Game 4 winner.” . . .

One more from Beuning: “Kyle Crnkovic only called the ShoWare Center home for one season. In 33 home games he put up 33 points (18g, 15a). In 10 home playoff games he contributed 9 points (3g, 6a), including the final home game goal to secure the Cup!” . . .

The field has been set for the four-team 2023 Memorial Cup tournament. . . . It will open in Kamloops on Friday with the host Blazers meeting the QMJHL-champion Quebec Remparts and continue Saturday as the WHL-championship Seattle Thunderbirds meet the OHL-champion Peterborough Petes. . . . The Remparts and Petes both wrapped up league titles on Sunday, winning best-of-seven series in six games. . . .

The Remparts scored two goals in the last 2:08 of the third period to beat the host Halifax Mooseheads, 5-4, and win the best-of-seven series, 4-2. . . . F Zachary L’Heureux (11) have the Mooseheads a 4-3 lead at 16:47 of the third period. . . . F Kassim Gaudet (5) pulled the Remparts even at 17:52 and F Pier-Olivier Roy (6) got the eventual winner at 19:01. . . .

Patrick Roy, the former NHL star goaltender who is the Remparts’ general manager and head coach, will be looking for his second Memorial Cup title. In 2006, the Moncton Wildcats beat the Remparts, with Roy in his first season as their head coach, in the QMJHL final. However, the Wildcats were the host team for the Memorial Cup, so the Remparts got the QMJHL’s berth and went on to win the tournament. It was the first time in Memorial Cup history that the winner was neither a league champion nor the host team. . . . At that point, Roy was an owner as well as GM and head coach. He joined the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche as vice-president of hockey operations and head coach in 2013-14 and stayed through 2015-16. He returned to the Remparts for the 2018-19 season, by which time the franchise had been sold to Quebecor. Now he is simply the GM and head coach. . . . These days, there is ample speculation that this will be Roy’s last season as the Remparts’ head coach. Former NHLer Simon Gagné, now completing his first season as a Remparts’ assistant coach, is the likely successor. . . .

In the OHL, the host Peterborough Petes won their 10th OHL title, but their first in 17 years, with a 2-1 victory over the London Knights to win that series, 4-2. . . . F Tucker Robertson (9) broke a 1-1 tie at 11:10 of the third period. Robertson had drawn the primary assist on the game’s first goal, by F Avery Hayes (12), at 14:33 of the second period. . . . F Max McCue (4) got London into a 1-1 tie at 7:59 of the third period. . . . Petes G Michael Simpson, who made 36 saves, was named the playoff MVP. . . . Peterborouh was without F Owen Beck who drew a two-game suspension for a slew-footing match penalty he incurred late in Game 5. One supposes, then, that he will sit out the Petes’ game against Seattle on Saturday in Kamloops to complete the suspension.

Check out Geoffrey Brandow on Twitter (@GeoffreyBrandow) for even more information after each CHL game.

People

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The NHL’s Buffalo Sabres have assigned F Matt Savoie of the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice to the Rochester Americans, their AHL affiliate. Rochester is to open the Eastern Conference final against the Hershey Bears on Tuesday. . . . Savoie, 19, had 95 points, including 38 goals, in 62 regular-season games with the Ice this season, then added 11 goals and 18 assists in 19 playoff games. . . . The Sabres selected him ninth overall in the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . .

The AJHL’s Brooks Bandits won their third consecutive Centennial Cup title on Sunday, beating the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars, 4-0, in the one-game final in Portage la Prairie, Man. . . . The Bandits allowed only four goals in six games during the 10-team tournament that features a host team and champions from the nine leagues that play under the CJHL umbrella. That, of course, doesn’t include the BCHL. . . . The Bandits won the Centennial Cup in 2019, 2022 and 2023, with the pandemic having prevented tournaments in 2020 and 2021.

Shingle

——

The 2023 Kamloops Kidney Walk is scheduled for June 4, which means that Dorothy’s fund-raising efforts are running out of time. Her 10th anniversary as a kidney-transplant recipient arrives in September, and this is her 10th straight year of participating in the Kidney Walk. All of the money raised goes directly to the Kidney Foundation. . . . Among the latest hockey people to join her team is the head coach of the defending Memorial Cup champions and — my oh my — she was thrilled to have him back for another go-round. . . . If you would like to join people like that in supporting Dorothy, you may do so 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.

Drummer

Milic backstops T-Birds to second WHL title . . . OHL, QMJHL both going to Game 6. . . . Who’s up next in Red Deer? . . . Giants, Wheat Kings make deal

Let’s be honest . . . the $64,000 question in WHL circles these days is: Will Brent RedDeerSutter be back coaching the Red Deer Rebels when another season gets here?

ICYMI, Steve Konowalchuk, the Rebels’ head coach for the past two seasons, resigned on Thursday, citing personal and family reasons.

The answer to that $64,000 question at this point, it seems, might be “Yes . . . no . . . maybe.”

When Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com asked Sutter if he is interested in going back behind the bench, he replied: “Right now, no. With that being said, if we don’t find the right person I would have to rethink it through. Right now my goal is to find someone different.”

So . . . if you happen to be a bettor, do you take Sutter or the field?

Sutter, the Rebels’ owner and president, was the general manager and head coach from 1999-2007. He then spent two seasons as the head coach of the NHL’s New Jersey Devils and three as head coach of the Calgary Flames.

Sutter returned as the Rebels’ head coach during the 2012-13 season and stayed there until stepping aside after the 2020-21 season, which is when he hired Konowalchuk.

The Rebels went 86-36-6 in two regular seasons under Konowalchuk. This season, they went 43-19-6 and finished atop the Central Division. They got into the second round of playoffs, where they lost a seven-game series to the Saskatoon Blades. The Rebels won the first three games of that series, then lost the next four.

“It’s disappointing to see Steve resign,” Sutter said. “But I also understand when it comes to personal/family reasons. He’s a great coach, and even more so a great man.”

Konowalchuk had one season left on his contract.

The Rebels also announced that assistant coach Ryan Colville has left after five seasons on the staff.

According to a Rebels news release, Colville “plans to pursue other professional opportunities.”

Sutter said that Colville “is looking for a coaching opportunity closer to home in Cincinnati.”

Meachem’s story is right here.

PLAYOFF NOTES:

Half of the Memorial Cup field is set with the Seattle Thunderbirds having won the Ed Chynoweth Cup as as WHL champions on Friday night in Kent, Wash. The Thunderbirds beat the Winnipeg Ice, 3-1, to win the series, 4-1. . . . The Thunderbirds join the host Kamloops Blazers as the two confirmed teams for the four-team Memorial Cup tournament. It is to open on May 25 with the Blazers facing the QMJHL champion. . . . The Thunderbirds’ first game is set for May 27 against the OHL champion. . . . Seattle went 16-3 in its run to the WHL title; two of those losses were to the Blazers. . . .

In the OHL, the London Knights beat the visiting Peterborough Petes, 4-1, on Friday night, a decision that forced a sixth game. Still, the Petes will take a 3-2 series lead into a Sunday game (4 p.m. ET) in Peterborough. A seventh game, if needed, would be played on Monday in London (4 p.m. ET). . . . Last night, London erased a 1-0 first-period deficit with the game’s last four goals. F Ryan Humphrey (8) broke a 1-1 tie at 4:31 of the second period. . . . Petes F Owen Beck took a match penalty for slew-footing at 19:20 of the third period. That penalty is expected to draw a suspension, perhaps of two games in duration. Beck had 66 points, including 24 goals, in 60 regular-season games, and has 16 points, eight of them goals, in 22 playoff games. . . .

In the QMJHL, the Halifax Mooseheads dumped the Quebec Remparts, 3-2, in Quebec City to stay alive in the best-of-seven championship final. . . . The Remparts hold a 3-2 edge going into Game 6 in Halifax on Sunday (4 p.m. ET). A seventh game, if needed, would be played on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET) in Quebec City. . . . Last night, the Mooseheads got 35 saves from G Mathis Rousseau. . . . F Zachary L’Heureux (10) gave Halifax a 3-1 lead at 6:32 of the second period and it stood up as the winner. . . .

Check out Geoffrey Brandow on Twitter (@GeoffreyBrandow) for even more information after each CHL game. . . .

The Memorial Cup is scheduled to arrive in Kamloops on May 25 with the first game — the QMJHL champion against the host Blazers — set for May 26. . . . The good news is that the smoke that arrived Kamloops in the wee hours of Wednesday had pretty much moved on by Friday morning. Here’s hoping it stays gone.

FRIDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Winnipeg (1) at Seattle (2) — The Seattle Thunderbirds won their second WHL Seattlechampionship, beating the Winnipeg Ice, 3-1, in Kent, Wash. . . . The Thunderbirds won the last four games as they took the series, and the Ed Chynoweth Cup, in five games. . . . This was the first time the Thunderbirds won the title on home ice. In 2017, they beat the Pats in a six-game series that ended in Regina. . . . Last season, Seattle lost the final in six games to the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Seattle G Thomas Milic was named the playoff MVP. He stopped 30 shots last night. He led the playoffs in victories (16), GAA (1.95) and save percentage (.933). . . . The championship-winning goal came off the stick of F Nico Myatovic, an 18-year-old from Prince George, who went into the game with three goals in 18 games in these playoffs. He got his fourth goal on a penalty shot at 2:27 of the third period, a score that gave his guys a 2-0 lead. . . . F Sam Popowich (2) had Seattle’s first goal, at 13:45 of the second period. . . . F Evan Friesen (7) got the Ice within a goal at 5:02 of the third period. . . . F Kyle Crnkovic (6) gave Seattle insurance with the empty-netter at 18:54. . . . Seattle was 0-for-1 on the PP; Winnipeg was 0-for-2. . . . The Ice had a late-game PP, too, as Seattle F Lucas Ciona was hit with a boarding minor at 15:40 of the third period. However, the Ice, despite have good possession in the Seattle zone, passed up a number of shooting opportunities and when skaters did pull the trigger they weren’t able to beat Milic. . . . The Ice got another superb game from G Daniel Hauser, who finished with 35 saves. . . . F Jordan Gustafson played in his first game in the series after being injured on April 30. He played a key role on Seattle’s first goal as he and Popowich provided some net-front presence, with Popowich tipping in D Jeremy Hanzel’s point shot. . . . F Dylan Guenther and D Luke Prokop of the Thunderbirds won their second straight WHL title. Both were with the Oil Kings last season. Guenther suffered a knee injury in last season’s final series and wasn’t able to play in the Memorial Cup. . . . F Logan Stankoven of the Kamloops Blazers won the playoff scoring race with 30 points, one more than teammate Olen Zellweger and Winnipeg F Matt Savoie. . . . Guenther had a WHL-leading 16 goals, two more than Ice F Connor McClennon. . . . Winnipeg D Ben Zloty was tops in assists, with 23, three more than Stankoven and Seattle F Brad Lambert.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The Vancouver Giants have acquired D Logan Hammett, 20, from the Brandon Wheat Kings for a fourth-round selection in the WHL’s 2024 draft. Hammett, from Regina, had four goals and 33 assists in 144 regular-season games with Brandon. The Wheat Kings selected him in the fifth round of the 2018 WHL draft. . . .

F Daylan Kuefler of the Kamloops Blazers has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s New York Islanders. Kuefler, 21, is from Red Deer. He has played four seasons with the Blazers, totalling 144 points, 77 of them goals, in 184 regular-season games. This season, he put up 30 goals and 31 assists in 54 games. . . . The Islanders selected him in the sixth round of the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . .

The Brandon Wheat Kings and Swift Current Broncos will have new play-by-play voices next season. . . . Brandon announced on Friday that it and “broadcast partner Q Country 91.5 Radio . . . have parted ways with director of media relations and play-by-play host Chase Johnston.” Johnston was in that position for one season. . . . Craig Beauchemin is leaving the Broncos after four seasons as broadcast and community relations manager. There is speculation that he will surface as the radio voice of another WHL team. . . . The Tri-City Americans also are looking for a new play-by-play voice following the decision by veteran Craig West to leave the organzation last month. . . .

You may recall that F Spencer Smith of the BCHL’s Penticton Vees was taken to hospital in Port Alberni late in the first period of Wednesday’s playoff game. According to the Vees, Smith, 20, “went into medical distress after a high hit. . . . He went to the Port Alberni hospital for further evaluation where he was cleared and later released Wednesday evening.” . . . The Vees won the game, 4-1, to sweep the Alberni Valley Bulldogs and win their second straight championship.

LowFlying

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

——

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.

Spock

Thunderbirds win terrific Game 4; can wrap up series on Friday . . . Petes, Remparts in control of their series . . . Vees win second straight BCHL title

PLAYOFF NOTES:

The Seattle Thunderbirds will have a chance to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL champions when they entertain the Winnipeg Ice in Game 5 of the final series in Kent, Wash., on Friday night. The Thunderbirds scored a 4-2 victory over the Ice on Wednesday night to assume a 3-1 series lead. . . . The Thunderbirds are in the final for the second straight season, having lost in six games to the Edmonton Oil Kings a year ago. . . . Seattle won its only WHL championship in 2016-17. . . .

In the OHL, the host Peterborough Petes erased a 1-0 deficit with four straight goals en route to a 5-3 victory over the London Knights. . . . The Petes hold a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven championship series with Game 5 in London on Friday night. . . . If Games 6 and/or 7 are needed, they’ll be played in Peterborough on Sunday and London on Monday. . . . Last night, F Easton Cowan (8) gave London a 1-0 lead at 1:19 of the first period. . . . The Petes took control with the next four goals, three in the second period. F J.R. Avon (9) scored twice in the second, with F Owen Beck (8) getting the other. D Donovan McCoy (2) made it 4-1 at 7:44 of the third period. . . . London got to within a goal on a pair of PP goals, from D Sam Dickinson (4), at 13:59, and F Denver Barkley (10), at 16:51. . . . F Avery Hayes (11) iced it for the Petes with an empty-netter at 17:24. . . . G Michael Simpson earned the victory with 50 saves, 24 of them in the third period. . . .

In the QMJHL, the visiting Quebec Remparts broke a 1-1 tie in the third period as they beat the Halifax Mooseheads, 2-1, to take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven championship final. . . . The Remparts get their first opportunity at wrapping it up when the play Game 5 in Quebec City on Friday night. . . . If needed, a sixth game would be played in Halifax on Sunday with a seventh game in Quebec City on Monday. . . . Last night, F Zachary Bolduc (10) scored the game-winner at 13:11 of the third period. Remparts F Theo Rochette likely should have been assessed a slashing penalty in the defensive zone as he forced a turnover, skated up ice, split the defence and fed Bolduc on the left side. He rifled the winner past G Mathis Rousseau on the short side. . . . Rochette (4) had the Remparts’ other goal, at 2:54 of the first period, with Bolduc drawing an assist. . . . F Evan Boucher (8) scored for Halifax at 11:53 of the second period. . . .

Check out Geoffrey Brandow on Twitter (@GeoffreyBrandow) for even more information after each CHL game. . . .

The Memorial Cup is scheduled to arrive in Kamloops on May 25 with the first game — the QMJHL champion against the host Blazers — set for May 26. Of note: Smoke from various forest fires moved into Kamloops in a big way on Wednesday. Hopefully, it moves out long before tournament time arrives.

WEDNESDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Winnipeg (1) at Seattle (2) — F Dylan Guenther broke a 2-2 tie at 7:47 of the Seattlethird period as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Winnipeg Ice, 4-2, in Kent, Wash. . . . The Thunderbirds, having won three straight games, lead the best-of-seven series, 3-1. . . . Game 5 is scheduled for Kent on Friday night. . . . If needed, Game 6 would be played in Winnipeg on Sunday with Game 7, if needed, there on Monday. . . . Guenther ended up with the game-winner in what was a terrific game. He one-timed a pass from F Reid Schaeber from the top of the right circle for his WHL-leading 16th goal. . . . F Nico Myatovic (3) iced it with an empty-netter at 19:52. . . . Ice F Carson Latimer (4) had opened the scoring at 16:25 of the first period, using his speed to get to a loose puck about 10 feet in front of G Thomas Milic from where he lifted it over him. Latimer has goals in three straight games. . . . D Kevin Korchinski (3) pulled Seattle even when he scored off a quick wrist shot from the top of the right circle with 16.3 seconds left in the first period. . . . Seattle F Gracyn Sawchyn (3) gave his side its first lead at 4:31 of the second period when he banged home a rebound off the end boards while on a PP. . . . F Evan Friesen (6) got the Ice into a 2-2 tie by tucking home a loose puck at 8:33. . . . The Ice felt it had a 3-2 lead at 10:54 when Latimer was able to beat Milic from in close by knocking in the puck out of midair. The call on the ice was a goal but it was disallowed after a lengthy video review, because, according to an entry on the online scoresheet, the puck was “directed in by a player’s glove.” . . . Both goaltenders, Milic and Winnipeg’s Daniel Hauser, were nothing short of superb. Milic finished with 31 saves, two fewer than Hauser. . . . Seattle was 1-for-5 on the PP; Winnipeg was 0-for-3.

Psychic

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The Penticton Vees won their second straight BCHL championship on bchlWednesday night, beating the host Alberni Valley Bulldogs, 4-1, to sweep the best-of-seven series. . . . The Vees went 16-1 in winning last season’s Fred Page Cup, and they replicated that this time around. . . . F Brett Moravec scored twice for the winners, giving him 10 goals. . . . The game was halted with 4:02 left in the first period following an injury to Penticton F Spencer Smith following a high hit. From St. Catharines, Ont., Smith is to turn 21 on Saturday. The first intermission was held at that point. . . . During that intermission, the BCHL tweeted: “Smith is alert and was helped off the ice. We hope for a speedy recovery.” . . . The Vees tweeted in the second intermission: “Spencer Smith is doing well at Port Alberni’s hospital. His spirits are high.”

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

——

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.

Spider

Early three-goal burst lifts T-Birds to Game 3 victory . . . Take 2-1 lead into Game 4 tonight . . . Vees close in on second straight BCHL title

PLAYOFF NOTES:

Phil Varney is the Seattle Thunderbirds’ athletic trainer. He posted the above tweet from Winnipeg long after Game 2 of the WHL’s championship final. . . .

The WHL’s best-of-seven championship series resumed with Game 3 in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday night. The Seattle Thunderbirds dumped the Winnipeg Ice, 6-3, to take a 2-1 series lead. . . . They’ll be back on the ice tonight in Kent for Game 4, with Game 5 there on Friday night. . . .

While the remainder of the WHL’s championship series will be shown on TSN, Fox 13+ in Seattle had announced it would televise Games 3 and 4. On Tuesday, it announced that it also will show Game 5, along with Games 6 and 7 from Winnipeg, if the latter two are necessary. . . .

In the QMJHL, the visiting Quebec Remparts scored a 5-4 OT victory over the Halifax Mooseheads on Tuesday night to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven championship final. . . . They’ll play Game 4 in Halifax tonight, with Game 5 set for Quebec City on Friday. . . . F James Malatesta scored the Game 3 winner at 4:25 of OT. Malatesta, who scored twice and added an assist, has 12 goals in these playoffs. . . .

The OHL’s championship final, featuring the London Knights and Peterborough Petes, is set to continue tonight. The host Petes won Games 2 and 3 so will take a 2-1 series lead into Game 4. . . . They’ll play Game 5 in London on Friday night.

TUESDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Winnipeg (1) at Seattle (2) — The Seattle Thunderbirds broke a 1-1 first-period Seattletie with three goals in 45 seconds en route to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Ice in Kent, Wash. . . . The Thunderbirds lead the best-of-seven series, 2-1, with Game 4 in Kent tonight. Game is to be played there on Friday night. . . . Game 3 began with an exchange of goals in the first 87 seconds, with Seattle F Kyle Crnkovic (5) scoring at 0:25 and Winnipeg F Carson Latimer (3) equalizing at 1:27. . . . D Jeremy Hanzel (4) gave Seattle a 2-1 lead, on a PP, at 13:24 of the first period. . . . F Brad Lambert (6) upped it to 3-1 at 13:47, and F Jared Davidson (11) made it 4-1 at 14:09. . . . The WHL record for fast three goals  by one team in a playoff game is 26 seconds and belongs to the Winnipeg Jets from a 10-1 victory over the visiting Flin Flon Bombers on April 19, 1970. Henry Boucha (18:50, first period), Brian Howe (19:04) and Jim Hargreaves (19:16) had the goals. . . . The Ice was chasing from that point on and just wasn’t able to catch up. . . . F Dylan Guenther, with his WHL-leading 15th goal, scored on a PP at 8:09 of the second period for a 5-1 lead. . . . The Ice got a goal from F Zach Benson (7) at 13:42, only to have Hanzel (5) get it back at 18:25. . . . Winnipeg F Zack Ostapchuk (9) completed the scoring, on a PP, at 12:12 of the third period. . . . Lambert also had an assist as he recorded his eighth multi-point game of the playoffs. . . . Hanzel added an assist to his two goals. . . . Seattle was 2-for-3 on the PP; Winnipeg was 1-for-4. . . . The Thunderbirds got a big game from G Thomas Milic, who finished with 35 saves. . . . Winnipeg starter Daniel Hauser was beaten six times on 22 shots. Mason Beaupit played the third period and stopped all 11 shots he faced. . . . Announced attendance was 5,505. . . . Seattle F Jordan Gustafson and Winnipeg D Wyatt Wilson continued to be among the scratches.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

With the BCHL having chosen to leave Hockey Canada and operate on an independent basis, there are a whole lot of questions — and rumours — floating around out there. Brian Wiebe of the BCHL Network tries to answer a few of the player-related questions right here.

On the ice, the Penticton Vees struck for five goals in the second period en route to a 6-3 victory over the host Alberni Valley Bulldogs in Game 3 of the BCHL’s championship final. . . . The Vees hold a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series and have their first chance to wrap up their second straight title tonight in Alberni Valley. . . . Last night, the Vees got two goals and two assists from F Aydar Suniev, who now has nine playoff goals. . . . F Josh Nadeau also scored twice for Penticton, giving him 15 goals.

Exits

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

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.

HoleFoods

Ice, T-Birds resume WHL final tonight . . . Robertson’s OT goal gives Petes OHL lead . . . QMJHL’s final also picks up tonight

WHL

PLAYOFF NOTES:

Some Game 2 leftovers from the WHL’s championship final . . .

Geoffrey Brandow (@GeoffreyBrandow): “Winnipeg’s Zach Benson does his best, scoring twice, including the icebreaker, in loss, ending the club’s 8-game winning streak. First multi-goal game of postseason after doing it eight times in the original 68. 27 goals, 62 points at home this year.” . . .

And on to Game 3, which is scheduled to be played tonight in Kent, Wash. The series is tied, 1-1, with the Winnipeg Ice having won, 3-2, at home on Friday, and the Seattle Thunderbirds bouncing back with a 4-2 victory on Saturday. . . . They’ll play Game 5 in Kent on Friday night. Game time is 7 p.m. PT. . . . Starting with tonight’s game, TSN will televise the remainder of the championship series. Play-by-play man Dan Robertson and analyst Kevin Sawyer, who handle Winnipeg Jets’ telecasts on TSN, will be in Kent. . . .

In the OHL, F Tucker Robertson scored his eighth goal of the playoffs at 2:32 of OT to give the host Peterborough Petes a 6-5 victory over the London Knights. . . . The Petes lead the best-of-seven championship final, 2-1. . . . Game 4 is scheduled for Peterborough on Wednesday, with Game 5 in London on Friday. . . . F Chase Stillman, who had two goals and an assist, had pulled the Petes into a 5-5 tie with his fourth playoff goal at 1:13 of the third period. . . . Peterborough had erased 2-0, 3-2 and 5-4 deficits. . . . Victor Findlay and Marc Methot had the call on TSN, as they will for Games 4 and 5. . . .

In the QMJHL, the Quebec Remparts and Halifax Mooseheads are 1-1 after two games in Quebec City. They’ll play Game 3 tonight in Halifax, and it is to be televised by TSN. Game time is 4 p.m. PT.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Lee Stone is the new general manager and head coach of the junior A Red Lake, Ont., Miners of the junior A Superior International Junior Hockey League. He spent 10 seasons as GM/head coach of the junior B Campbell River Storm of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League . . . . Stone signed on as GM/head coach with the VIJHL’s Nanaimo Buccaneers on April 6. . . . Tali Campbell has taken over as interim GM while the Buccaneers begin the hiring process. . . . In Red Lake, Stone replaces Kevin Walker, whose contract wasn’t renewed after the season.

The 2023 Kamloops Kidney Walk is scheduled for June 4, and Dorothy is taking part once again. She will celebrate 10 years as a kidney-transplant recipient in September, so the annual Kidney Walk is a big deal for her. In fact, she is participating for a 10th straight year. Yes, that means she is fund-raising, with all donations going to the Kidney Foundation. . . . If you are interested in helping, like maybe pushing her past $4,000, you are able to do so on her home page, which is right here.

——

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

GoodPerson

Lambert, Guenther spark Seattle victory . . . Series heads for Washington state . . . QMJHL, OHL finals all even, too

Thinking of Joanne Boogaard and other mothers in her situation on days like this. Be safe!

WHL PLAYOFF NOTES:

Darren Steinke, the travellin’ blogger from Saskatoon, made the trek to Winnipeg for the first two games of the WHL’s championship final between the Seattle Thunderbirds and Winnipeg Ice. Here’s his Game 1 report. . . .

On Saturday night, the three visiting teams each won and now all three CHL championship finals are even at 1-1. . . . In Winnipeg, the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Ice, 4-2. The series will resume in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday night. . . . In the QMJHL, the Halifax Mooseheads beat the host Quebec Remparts, 6-3 in front of a second straight sellout crowd. They will get back at it in Halifax on Tuesday night. . . . In the OHL, the Peterborough Petes beat the Knights, 5-3, in London. That series is all even as they head for Peterborough and a Monday night game. . . .

Remember that TSN has said it will televise Games 3-7 in each of the championship series, so check your TV listings.

SATURDAY IN THE WHL PLAYOFFS:

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Seattle (2) at Winnipeg (1) — F Brad Lambert, who began this season with the SeattleAHL’s Manitoba Moose, scored twice to lead the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 4-2 victory over the Winnipeg Ice in Game 2. . . . The series is tied, 1-1, with the teams heading to Kent, Wash., for games on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. . . . The Ice won the opener, 3-2, on Friday night. . . . Lambert, a 19-year-old native of Lahti, Finland, was a first-round selection by the Winnipeg Jets in the NHL’s 2022 draft. He began this season with the Moose, then left to play for Finland at the 2023 World Junior Championship. After the tournament, the Jets assigned him to Seattle, which had acquired his rights from the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Lambert put up 17 goals and 21 assists in 26 regular-season games with Seattle. In the playoffs, he has 23 points, including 18 assists, in 14 games. . . . F Zach Benson, who turned 18 on Friday, gave the Ice a 1-0 lead at 4:11 of the first period. . . . D Jeremy Hanzel (3) got Seattle even at 1:24 of the second period. . . . The remainder of the scoring occurred in the third period. . . . Lambert (4) gave Seattle the lead at 5:02 and F Reid Schaefer (8) made it 3-1 just eight seconds later. Schaefer has goals in five straight games. . . . Benson (6) got his guys back to within a goal at 8:27, but Lambert (5) added insurance at 17:14. . . . Seattle got three assists from F Dylan Guenther, who now has 25 points, including 11 assists, in 16 playoff games. . . . Seattle was 0-for-3 on the PP; Winnipeg was 0-for-5. . . . Seattle held a 39-31 edge in shots, although Winnipeg led 14-8 in the third period when the Thunderbirds scored three times. . . . G Thomas Milic stopped 29 shots for Seattle, six fewer than Winnipeg’s Daniel Hauser. . . . Seattle remains without F Jordan Gustafson, while Winnipeg is without D Wyatt Wilson. . . . The announced attendance in the Canada Life Centre, home of the Jets, was 5,691. . . . Kelly Moore of Winnipeg radio station CJOB has a game story with some quotes right here.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

F Alexandre Doucet scored twice and added two assists to lead the visiting Halifax Mooseheads to a 6-3 victory over the Quebec Remparts before 18,259 fans on Saturday night. . . . The QMJHL’s championship final is tied, 1-1, with the next two games in Halifax on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Game 5 is to be played in Quebec City on Friday. . . . The Remparts led 2-0 late in the first period, but Doucet scored at 19:49 and Halifax added four straight second-period goals to take control. . . . Doucet’s second goal, his 12th, was into an empty net. . . .

In the OHL, the visiting Peterborough Petes beat the London Knights, 5-3, to even the championship series, 1-1. . . . The Knights took a 3-2 lead into the third period, but gave up the game’s last three goals. . . . F Tucker Robertson had two goals and two assists for the Petes, who got 51 stops from G Michael Simpson, who just happens to be from London. . . . The Knights had won their previous nine home playoff games. . . . Announced attendance was 9,046. . . . London had won, 3-0, on Friday night. . . . They’ll play the next two games in Peterborough, on Monday and Wednesday nights, before returning to London for Game 5 on Friday. . . .

In the BCHL, the host Penticton Vees erased a 2-1 second-period deficit en route to beating the Alberni Valley Bulldogs, 4-3, in Game 2 of the championship series. . . . The Vees hold a 2-0 lead in the series as it heads to Alberni Valley and games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . F Josh Nadeau had a goal and two assists for Penticton. . . . The announced attendance was 3,148.

Woody

Prior to the release of the NFL’s regular-season schedule, Bob Molinaro of the Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot hit the nail on the head with this:

“Up next: In its ongoing quest to eclipse all other sports news and conversation, the NFL will grab headlines again . . . with the release of its regular-season schedule. As always, media will treat it like the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

Thanks to an old friend and former NHL scout for pushing Dorothy past the $4,000 mark as she fund-raises for the Kidney Foundation. . . . The 2023 Kamloops Kidney Walk is scheduled for June 4, and Dorothy is taking part once again. She will celebrate 10 years as a kidney-transplant recipient in September, so the annual Kidney Walk is a big deal for her. In fact, she is participating for a 10th straight year and is closing in on a personal-best. . . . If you are interested in helping, you are able to do so on her home page, which is right here.

——

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

Tanning