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.
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.
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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.
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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.
third 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.
Wednesday 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.”
tie 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
sports journalism career that began at the Brandon Sun.
games on Sept 4. On Friday, however, the Thunderbirds reversed field, tweeting that “training camp begins Aug. 31 and starting Thursday (Sept. 1) it is open to the public.” . . . Meanwhile, Sarah Brusig of 
have F Justin Robidas, 19, the captain of the Val-d’Or Foreurs, move to the Quebec Remparts for a package that will include G Mathys Fernandez, 17, and a number of draft picks. The intriguing part is that, as Mikael Lalancette of Le Soleil reported, the transaction will “be announced during the holiday season.” That would be “holiday” as in Christmas. . . . Yes, because it’s the Q. . . . BTW, Robidas’ father, Stéphane, is a former NHLer who now is an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens.
Leon Okonkwo Prada, their two selections in the CHL’s 2021 import draft on June 30. . . . From Italy, Segafredo, who won’t turn 17 until Sept. 15, played in Switzerland last season. He had a team-high 52 points, including 25 goals, in 26 games with the ZSC Lions U17 team in 2020-21. He also had a goal and an assist in one game with ZSC’s U20 team, and 10 goals and an assist with the GCK Lions U20 side. . . . Okonkwo Prada, who turns 18 today (Wednesday), was born in Colchester, Great Britain. He played in Sweden in 2020-21, putting up a goal and six assists in eight games with Rögle BK’s U18 team. . . . Each WHL team is allowed to use two import players. Seattle also holds the rights to F Vladimir Alistrov, a 20-year-old from Belarus, having acquired them from the Edmonton Oil Kings on Jan. 25 for D Simon Kubicek, who is from Czech Republic. . . . Alistrov, who had 19 goals and 16 assists in 57 games with the Oil Kings in 2019-20, spent this season in the KHL with Dinamo Minsk. He had a goal and three assists in 38 games, then signed a one-year contract extension on April 30. . . . The Oil Kings announced last week that Kubicek, who will turn 20 on Dec. 19, is committed to play for them in 2021-22.
John, N.B. The QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts and Saint John Sea Dogs both are putting together bids in the hopes of earning hosting rights. Bids are to be in to the CHL by Aug. 23, with a winner to be announced the week of Sept. 6. . . . The Remparts have played host to the four-team tournament in 2003 and 2015; Saint John never has been the host city. . . . The 2022 tournament is scheduled for June 3-12. . . . Due to the pandemic, the Memorial Cup tournament hasn’t been held since 2019. The 2020 tournament was to have been held in Kelowna, with the 2021 tournament in Oshawa or Sault Ste. Marie. Both events were cancelled due to the pandemic.
Wheat Kings on Monday, giving up a conditional ninth-round pick in the WHL draft. Thiessen, who is from Brandon, had three goals in 25 games with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, who had signed him as an undrafted free agent. He later was dealt to the Wheat Kings, for whom he had one goal and nine assists in 31 games over two seasons. . . . Other 2001-born players on the Broncos’ roster that finished the 2020-21 season: D Cayde Augustine, F Aiden Bulych, F Eric Houk, D Alex Moar, F Cole Nagy and G Isaac Poulter. . . . The Wheat Kings still have four 2001-born defencemen on the roster that completed the 2020-21 season: Braden Schneider, who has signed with the New York Rangers, Jonny Lambos, Chad Nychuk and Neithan Salame, as well as forwards Marcus Kallionkieli, who is from Finland, and Ben McCartney. 
Everett Silvertips, 5-2. . . . Everett had won the first five meetings between these teams this season. . . . Portland improved to 9-6-3, while Everett (15-4-0) had a six-game winning streak snapped. . . . F Hunter Campbell (9) and F Jackson Berezowski (4), on a PP, gave Everett a 2-0 first-period lead. . . . F Simon Knak got Portland’s comeback started at 11:24 of the second period. . . . Knak (12) tied it at 13:10 of the third and F Mason Mannek (8) broke the tie at 15:04. . . . The Winterhawks got insurance from D Kade Nolan (3), at 18:22, and F Tyson Kozak (3), at 18:52. . . . Sophomore F Jack O’Brien, who played most of this season with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars, made his Portland debut. He earned the lone assist on Knak’s first goal. . . . The Winterhawks had a 39-20 shot advantage, including 13-4 in the second and 17-4 in the third. . . . 
and added an assist to help the Edmonton Oil Kings to an 8-3 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen. . . . Edmonton, with points in 10 straight (9-0-1), is 18-1-1. . . . Calgary (8-8-2) has lost two in a row. . . . The Hitmen handed the Oil Kings their only regulation-time loss this season — 2-1 on March 28. . . . Williams picked up his second hat trick of this season and the third of his career. He played the first 92 games of his WHL career with the Medicine Hat Tigers, before being dealt to the Oil Kings. This season, he has 15 goals and 13 assists in 19 games. . . . The Hitmen were in this game until early in the third period. . . . F Adam Kydd (7) gave Calgary a 1-0 lead just 49 seconds into the game. . . . Williams put his guys out front 2-1 with goals at 4:28 and 8:44. . . . F Riley Stotts (5) pulled the Hitmen even at 10:03, but Edmonton D Matthew Robertson (4) broke the tie, on a PP, at 16:52. . . . After that five-goal first period, Edmonton D Ethan Cap (3) got the only goal of the second, at 16:12. . . . F Sean Tschigerl (11) pulled Calgary back to within a goal, on a PP, at 3:27 of the third period. . . . F Jalen Luypen (15) got that one back for Edmonton 21 seconds later. . . . F Caleb Reimer (3), F Carter Souch (6) and Williams completed Edmonton’s scoring, the latter two striking on the PP. . . . Souch also had three assists, giving him his first career four-point outing. . . . Luypen added two assists to his goal. . . . Edmonton was 3-for-7 on the PP; Calgary was 1-for-3. . . . F Scott Atkinson, the Oil Kings’ captain, was back in the lineup for the first time since March 28. . . . F Jake Neighbours of the Oil Kings had two assists to run his point streak to 19 games. He’s got nine goals and 24 assists. . . . 
the Prince George Cougars in Kamloops. . . . F Brayden Schuurman (5) won it at 3:00 of the extra period. . . . The Royals now are 2-13-1. . . . The Cougars (6-7-3) had won their previous two games. . . . F Brandon Cutler (6) gave Victoria a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 17:48 of the first period. . . . Prince George tied it on a goal by F Tyson Upper (3) at 8:06 of the third period. . . . Victoria G Adam Evanoff was the game’s first star, with 40 saves. . . . The Cougars got 21 stops from G Ty Young, an eighth-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft who was making his second WHL start. . . . The Royals, with 12 freshmen on their roster, came within one loss of tying the franchise record of 11 straight losses that is shared by the 2006-07 Chilliwack Bruins and the 2012-13 Royals. . . .
route to a 6-1 victory over the visiting Kamloops Blazers. . . . The Rockets (8-2-0) have won five in a row. . . . The Blazers (12-4-0) have lost two straight. . . . If there aren’t any more schedule disruptions, the Blazers will play 22 games this season, with the Rockets getting into 16. Because they won’t play equal games, the B.C. Division title will go to the team with the best points percentage. After this game, Kelowna, with 16 points, is at .800, with the Blazers, who have 24 points, at ,750. . . . These two teams will play again tonight, this time in Kamloops. . . . D Elias Carmichael (2), F Dylan Wightman (4), F Dillon Hamaliuk (5), Turner McMillen (2) and F Jake Poole (2) scored Kelowna’s first-period goals. The last four came in a stretch of 2:41. . . . F Daylan Kuefler (3) got a shorthanded goal for Kamloops at 11:02 of the third period. . . . F Nolan Flamand (1), on a PP, had Kelowna’s last goal. Flamand, a second-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft, scoring his first WHL goal in his 13th game, 10 of them this season. He also has six assists this season. . . . G Cole Schwebius stopped 31 shots for the Rockets. . . . McMillen’s father, Dave, scored 13 goals in 188 WHL games split between the Moose Jaw Warriors, Victoria Cougars and Tacoma Rockets (1988-93). In two seasons (1991-93) with Tacoma, he had seven goals and 12 assists in 118 games. . . . 
scored five PP goals on Friday as they dumped Switzerland 7-0 at the IIHF U18 World Championship in Texas. . . . G Thomas Milic of the Seattle Thunderbirds earned the shutout for Canada, but he wasn’t at all busy as he was tested only 11 times. . . . Canada (3-0-0) will conclude its Group A round-robin schedule today (Saturday) against Belarus. . . . In Friday’s only other game, Finland skated to a 10-0 victory over Germany in Group B. . . . In today’s other Group A game, Latvia plays Sweden. . . . In Group B, it’s Russia against Czech Republic, and Team USA against Finland.
Bombers, totalling 62 goals and 62 assists in 110 games. He also earned 230 penalty minutes as he sometimes rode shotgun with Bobby Clarke and Reggie Leach. Steve was selected 11th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in the 12-team NHL’s 1968 draft — 24 players were selected over three rounds.
hoping to get their regular seasons started in December. The QMJHL, meanwhile, has one weekend under its belt and has lost three teams. . . . The Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and Sherbrooke Phoenix have suspended all in-person activities. That comes after an Armada player tested positive following a weekend doubleheader between the teams. . . . At the same time, the Armada and Quebec Remparts have been shut down at least for the rest of this month as they are in a red zone as defined by the provincial government. . . . Armada staff and players are in isolation as they await further testing and results, and the outcome of contact tracing. . . . The Armada and Remparts each has eight games on their October schedules.
TAKING NOTE 