Tag: SJHL

Ferris went for a walk. How was your Tuesday? . . . Ball hockey gold for three WHLers . . . SJHL commish gets multi-year deal

Ferris1070523
A smiling Ferris Backmeyer continues to recover from a kidney transplant at a Toronto hospital. (Photo: Lindsey Backmeyer/Facebook)

Ferris went for a walk on Tuesday. Yes, she did!

Ferris Backmeyer, the six-year-old from Kamloops who underwent a kidney transplant last week, continues her recovery at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

As her mother, Lindsey, wrote on Facebook on Wednesday: “Post op day 5 . . . she’s actually slaying all of this. Being sooo incredibly brave.”

That doesn’t mean things have been easy to this point, but everything seems to be pointing in the right direction.

“It’s not been easy at all,” Lindsey wrote, “but it also hasn’t been the hardest thing we’ve ever done. Not so far anyways.”

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Ferris climbed out of bed and enjoyed a stroll down a hospital hallway on Tuesday. (Photo: Lindsey Backmeyer/Facebook)

If you’ve been following along, you know that there were some issues over the weekend. An ultrasound detected a bladder leak. According to Lindsey, that is “a somewhat common complication post-transplant . . . likely a clog in the catheter created back pressure and the leak happened. Catheters in post-op tiny humans are super tricky to manage. The tubing kinks so easily. Clots off so easily. She has a large amount of urine still leaking out of her drain.”

The really good news is that through it all the new kidney is motoring right along. Her creatine readings are good and Lindsey said that Ferris is having “solid labs” and “progressing really nicely otherwise!”

They freed her hands from IV hookups “so she is way less frustrated and can play. In fact, she played until 4:30 a.m. last night!! . . . She made it out for her first walk yesterday and made it look easy.”

Ferris also is eating well enough that Lindsey reported “they’ve stopped all daytime feeds . . . working towards getting all the extra fluid off without upsetting her kidney. She’s 2kg heavier than she was on surgery day and there’s nooooo way it was a 2kg kidney!!”

Adding weight is a really big deal with Ferris because that has been an issue for a lot of her young life and has impeded her route to a transplant in the past.

All-in-all, a tired Lindsey wrote, she “really couldn’t be happier with how things have gone. I feel like looking back we won’t even remember the hard times that much because the payoff is going to be soooo big!

“I’m certain if we make it home to Kamloops with this kidney, people are gonna be floored when they see her! She will be a totally different kid in the best ways possible!!”

A city awaits . . .

Polka

Craig West and the Tri-City Americans announced in April that he was stepping aside as their play-by-play voice. West, 68 this month, says he hasn’t retired, but that he simply is moving along down life’s highway. . . . West, who started in the WHL by calling Spokane Chiefs’ game, ended up doing 2,584 games. . . . Jeff Morrow, the former sports editor of the Tri-City Herald, spent some time with West and also touched base with a few hockey people and friends. It all resulted in a terrific look at West and his career . . . to this point. And that piece is right here.

F Conner Roulette of the Spokane Chiefs was named the tournament MVP after helping Team Canada to a gold medal at the International Street and Ball Hockey Foundation’s U20 Ball Hockey World Championship in Liberec, Czechia. . . . Roulette, Team Canada’s captain, had three goals as Canada beat Slovakia, 10-3, in the final. . . . Canada’s roster also included F Dawson Pasternak of the Brandon Wheat Kings, who had three goals and three assists in the final, and F Evan Friesen of the Wenatchee Wild.

Birds

James Patrick, who was the head coach of the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice for the past six seasons, thinks he’ll be taking a season away, with the franchise having relocated to Wenatchee, Wash., where it will play as the Wild. . . . Patrick, whose contract expired with the end of the 2022-23 season, told Mike Sawatzky of the Winnipeg Free Press that he had planned to coach at least one more season in Winnipeg. Sawatzky wrote that Patrick “had heard speculation about the possibility of a franchise move but only found out about the sale following an announcement by the league.” In other words, the Ice’s owners didn’t inform him of the move. Hmmm. . . . Sawatzky’s story is right here.

THE COACHING GAME:

Josh Dixon, an associate coach with the WHL’s Prince George Cougars for the past two seasons, has left the WHL team to take over as head coach of the U of Guelph Gryphons. . . . In Guelph, Dixon takes over from Shawn Camp, who ran the program for 16 seasons. . . . Camp retired following the 2022-23 season. . . .

Benoit Desrosiers has agreed to a three-year contract as the new head coach of the QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques. Desrosiers, 34, has worked as an assistant coach with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, Sherbrooke Phoenix and Quebec Remparts in past seasons. He spent 2022-23 as an assistant coach with the Memorial Cup-champion Remparts. . . . In Gatineau, he replaces Louis Robitaille, who spent three years in the position. . . .

The AJHL’s Lloydminster Bobcats have hired Brad Rihela as their head coach. He had been with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, as assistant GM and associate head coach, for the previous five seasons. . . . In Lloydminster, Rihela takes over from Nigel Dube, who remains with the organization as general manager. Dube had been the head coach since Nov. 12, 2018. . . . The Bobcats also announced that Jeff Woywitka has been named associate head coach and skill development coach. He had joined the team after last season’s Christmas break. . . .

The BCHL’s Coquitlam Express has hired Brett Sonne as an assistant coach. Sonne, from Maple Ridge, B.C., played four seasons (2005-09) with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen. For the past two seasons he has been an assistant coach with the junior B Ridge Meadows Flames of the Pacific Junior Hockey League. . . . Sonne’s brother, Brennan, is the head coach of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades. . . .

The AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints are in the market for a head coach after six seasons with Bram Stephen at the helm. The Saints announced Stephen’s departure on Wednesday, although no reason was provided. . . . “I will look fondly on my time in Spruce Grove as I look forward to the next opportunities in my career,” Stephen said in a news release. . . . He guided the Saints to the AJHL championship in 2018.

Think

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Kyle McIntyre has signed a multi-year deal to continue as commissioner of the SJHL. He is heading into his second season leading the 12-team league. . . . From a news release: In 2022-23, “the SJHL improved overall broadcast standards for both the fans and saw significant improvements in followers on all the league’s social media channels. Attendance levels over the season averaged 674 fans per game with over 222,498 fans for the season. In playoffs the average attendance was 1,137 per game and the league saw over 38,641 fans attend playoffs games. The league also saw a record number of NCAA and USport player commitments.” . . .

D Blake Heward, who cleared WHL 20-year-old waivers, has signed on with the SJHL’s Estevan Bruins. Heward had four goals and 21 assists in 103 regular-season WHL games, split between the Edmonton Oil Kings and Calgary Hitmen. . . .

F Kyle Bochek, who played last season with the Vancouver Giants, has cleared WHL waivers and is a free agent. Bochek, 20, had one goal and three assists in 48 games with the Giants last season. In 2021-22, he had three assists in 30 games. . . . 

F Jared Davidson, who played the past five seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds, has signed a one-year contract with the Laval Rocket, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens. Davidson, who will turn 21 on Friday, had 38 goals and 44 assists in 60 games with the WHL-champion Thunderbirds last season. He was a fifth-round selection by the Canadiens in the NHL’s 2022 draft.

Merge

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.

Cat

McCrimmon, Golden Knights on top of hockey world . . . Gretzky’s last NHL sweater sells for big dough . . . Roy leaves Memorial Cup champions

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Kelly McCrimmon and his newest best friend, the Stanley Cup. (Photo: Mike Fraser/Facebook)

We can only imagine the emotions that dominated Kelly McCrimmon’s very being on Tuesday night as the general manager of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights watched his charges win the Stanley Cup.

If you spent the night under a rock, the Golden Knights, playing at home in front of the NHL’s most raucous fans, beat the Florida Panthers, 9-3, to win the best-of-seven final in five games.

And there was McCrimmon taking it all in from his seat alongside George McPhee, the president of hockey operations.

You can bet that McCrimmon’s late brother, Brad, was first and foremost in Kelly’s thoughts. The McCrimmon boys, from Plenty, Sask., were close, really close.

Brad’s name already is on the Stanley Cup; he was a leader on the 1988-89 Calgary Flames. And now Kelly’s name will be there, too.

The thought of having his name on hockey’s Holy Grail, right there where Brad’s name has been for all these years, will have been overwhelming. In fact, Kelly used that exact word — overwhelming — in an emotional post-game interview with Sportsnet’s David Amber and Elliotte Friedman.

“It’s an honour,” McCrimmon said. “It’s surreal. It’s overwhelming.”

It turns out that Liam, Maureen and Brad’s son, was among family members in Vegas last night.

As Kelly told Ambler and Friedman: “These things are only special if you have the right people to share them with.”

Brad, of course, was killed on Sept. 7, 2011. He had joined the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl as head coach and the team was en route to its first game of the season when it went down.

Kelly, whom I have known since the fall of 1978, may be the smartest, shrewdest and most patient person I have met in more than 50 years of being around the world of hockey.

Consider that after playing two seasons (1978-80) with the Brandon Wheat Kings, he went on to spend four seasons with the U of Michigan Wolverines, the last one as team captain. You’re right! How many WHL players move on to play four years with an NCAA team?

Patience?

He almost ended up with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was interviewed for a front-office position with them in the summer of 2015. Toronto didn’t have a GM at the time and McCrimmon, the owner, GM and head coach of the Wheat Kings at the time, was the WHL’s reigning executive of the year.

In the end, he chose to stay in Brandon, citing loyalty to a Wheat Kings team that he and his staff had worked hard to put together with an eye on contending in 2015-16. That edition of the Wheat Kings would win the WHL championship, and a couple of months later, the time and the place now being right, he joined the Golden Knights as assistant GM. He was promoted to GM on May 2, 2019, with McPhee moving into the president’s office.

And, last night, there was Kelly McCrimmon, a Stanley Cup champion.

And please don’t be buying any of that bunk about the NHL handing the Golden Knights a championship on a platter. Yes, they were able to take advantage of the rules granted them as an expansion franchise, but, hey, you shouldn’t get chopped liver when you’re paying US$500 million. Was it their fault that they were able to get Jonathan Marchessault, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner, from Florida in the expansion draft?

They reached the Stanley Cup final that season, 2017-18, too, only to lose to the Washington Capitals. One year later, McCrimmon moved up to GM and he hasn’t stopped dealing.

If you weren’t aware, the Golden Knights’ roster includes one of their own draft picks — F Nic Hague, who scored their second goal last night.

This is a team that was put together by McCrimmon, with input from McPhee, and a staff that includes Vaughn Karpan, the director of player personnel; Bob Lowes, the assistant director of player personnel; pro scouts Kelly Kisio, Jim McKenzie and Craig Cunningham, and amateur scouts Bruno Campese, Erin Ginnell and Brad McEwen. The coaching staff includes Ryan Craig.

What do they all have in common? Each of them has ties to the WHL, and that’s a thread that runs through the Golden Knights, from captain Mark Stone, who played for McCrimmon in Brandon and was his captain there, too, to four of the five goaltenders on the roster. All Stone did last night was score three times — the game’s most-important goal, the first one (shorthanded), his club’s fifth one and the game’s final goal. The last time someone scored three goals in Stanley Cup-clinching game? Babe Dye did it with the Toronto St. Pats in on March 28, 1922, scoring four times in a 5-1 victory over the Vancouver Millionaires.

(Steve Simmons of Postmedia has a column right here that details how this Vegas team was built.)

Knowing McCrimmon, I can imagine that spent last night celebrating and enjoying the moment. In the morning, he will have started planning for next season.

F Riley Sutter’s second playoff goal gave the host Hershey Bears a 5-4 victory over the Coachella Valley Firebirds in Game 3 of the AHL’s Calder Cup final on Tuesday night in front of 10,580 fans. . . . The Firebirds, in their first season of existence, hold a 2-1 edge in the best-of-seven final with Game 4 in Hershey on Thursday and Game 5 there on Saturday. . . . Sutter played four seasons (2015-19) with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips. . . . The Firebirds trailed 4-2 before F Cameron Hughes scored twice, the first one on a PP, at 15:26 and 19:09 of the third period. . . . F Garrett Pilon, a former WHLer, had a goal and an assist for Hershey.

Unsinkable

There was an interesting development in the world of NCAA hockey on Tuesday as the U of Maine Black Bears announced that D Artyom Duda has committed to join them for the 2023-24 season. Duda, 6-foot-1 and 187 pounds, is from Moscow, Russia. The 19-year-old was a second-round selection by the Arizona Coyotes in the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . . The interesting part of this signing is that Duda played 14 games with CSKA Moskva of the KHL in 2022-23. The KHL is a professional league, so it will be interesting to see what how the NCAA deals with his eligibility. . . . Hey, if WHL players are ineligible to go the NCAA route because that organization sees them as professionals . . .

The sweater that Wayne Gretzky wore for the final game of his NHL career with the New York Rangers on April 18, 1999 sold for US$715,120 at Grey Flannel Auctions on Sunday night. From a news release: “It’s the third most valuable hockey jersey to sell at auction behind Gretzky’s final Stanley Cup jersey during the 1987-1988 season with the Oilers, which sold for $1.452 million and Paul Henderson’s 1972 jersey from the Summit Series which sold for $1.3 million. It’s the highest price realized for a US-based hockey jersey. Mike Eruzione’s 1980 Miracle on Ice jersey vs. the USSR is the second highest total selling for $657,250.”

THE COACHING GAME:

Jacques Tanguay, the Quebec Remparts’ president, and Patrick Roy, the general manager and head coach, both announced on Tuesday that they are leaving the QMJHL franchise. The announcements came nine days after the Remparts, the QMJHL champions, won the Memorial Cup with a 5-0 victory over the WHL-champion Seattle Thunderbirds in Kamloops. . . . “In life,” Roy said during a news conference in Quebec City, “you must be able to leave at the right time. Today, I can leave my positions and say ‘Mission accomplished.’ ” . . . Roy’s decision wasn’t unexpected as there had been speculation about his future all season. His announcement came on the same day that the sale of the NHL’s Ottawa Senators to a group headed by Michael Andlauer was announced. As he assumes ownership of the Senators, Andlauer has to unload his 20 per cent share in the Montreal Canadiens. All of this has led to speculation that Roy could end up on the Senators’ coaching staff. . . . Roy, however, says there hasn’t been any interest shown by any NHL team or teams. . . . Luc Lang of The Canadian Press has more on the Roy story right here. . . .

It’s official! The QMJHL’s Cape Breton Eagles announced on Tuesday that Jon Goyens is out as head coach after one season. According to the Eagles’ news release, this was one of those deals where the two parties “mutually agreed to part ways.” . . . In his only season as head coach, Goyens guided the Eagles into the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. . . .

The BCHL’s Langley Rivermen have signed Tyler Kuntz as associate general manager and associate head coach. Kuntz is a former assistant coach with the Vancouver Giants (2015-17). . . . Langley’s ownership change was approved at the league’s recent annual general meeting. . . . Kuntz spent two seasons (2018-20) as GM/head coach of the BCHL’s Powell River Kings, then moved to St. George’s School as head coach of the U18 prep team.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Longtime scout Ray Dudra has decided to retire after almost 40 years with WHL teams. Dudra started in 1983-84 as a regional scout with the Medicine Hat Tigers. He also spent 18 seasons with the Spokane Chiefs, as a scout, director of player personnel and director of player development. He also scouted for the Prince Albert Raiders and Saskatoon Blades. Most recently, he has been with the Tri-City Americans. . . . Dudra rides off into retirement with the sunset reflecting off his four Memorial Cup rings — Medicine Hat in 1987 and 1988, Spokane in 1991 and 2008). . . . Congrats, Ray, and here’s to a long and healthy retirement. . . .

The SJHL held its annual general meeting last weekend in North Battleford. If you’re wondering what all went on, there’s a news release right here. . . . The one item involving change that I found particularly interesting is that “any Saskatchewan-born player a team is attempting to trade out of province must be placed on an internal waiver before the player can be moved outside of the league.”

PriusTruck

THINKING OUT LOUD:

Does the end of the NHL playoffs mean the end of Hyundai making WAH! . . . Having Nick Taylor, two days from winning golf’s Canadian Open, do the voice-over to open Tuesday’s NHL show was a stroke of genius from Sportsnet. It was brilliant! . . . And to end the broadcast with the late Gordon Lightfoot’s If You Could Read My Mind, well, things got a bit misty here. . . . I saw this comment on Facebook on Tuesday, and it pretty much says it all: “They have to put warnings on Subway wrappers telling people not to eat the wrapper. This is where we are now.” . . . Sheesh, Kelowna, what has happened to you? . . . Is Gene Hackman one of the most under-rated actors of our time, or what?

——

As you make your way through this week, please keep the Backmeyer family of Kamloops in your thoughts. The five of them — Lindsey and Pat, Ferris and her older sisters, Tavia and Ksenia — flew out of Vancouver on Sunday, en route to Toronto where Ferris, 6, is scheduled to undergo a second kidney transplant at some point in the near future. . . . You want strength and courage? Well, Ferris has been battling kidney disease all of her young life and has been on dialysis, either peritoneal or hemo, all that time. . . . She underwent a transplant in Vancouver on March 6, 2021, but there were complications and the kidney was removed that night. So, if all goes according to plan, another attempt will be made in the next few weeks.

Late Sunday, Lindsey posted on Facebook: “According to the itinerary it’s just hemo (Monday), sooooo shouldn’t be too bad. Her final crossmatch is drawn on Tuesday. Results should be back by the following Monday. It’s another point in which things could get called off. Heck there’s so many variables it’s really a one-day-at-a-time situation!”

And congratulations to Pat who, through all of this, graduated from Thompson Rivers University’s nursing program a week ago. What an accomplishment!

——

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.

Ricky

T-Birds trade for Rockets’ captain . . . Leafs’ coach resigns after being hit with suspension . . . How about those North Stars?

The WHL’s trade deadline arrives on Tuesday. Here are the trade numbers since Oct. 25:

No. of trades — 29.

No. of players traded — 48.

No. of WHL draft picks traded — 49.

No. of WHL conditional draft picks traded — 11.

Teams involved in trades — 8: Edmonton; 6: Victoria; 5: Winnipeg, Seattle; 4: Kamloops, Lethbridge, Prince George, Regina; 3: Kelowna, Spokane; 2: Everett, Moose Jaw, Prince Albert, Red Deer; 1: Brandon, Saskatoon, Swift Current, Tri-City; 0: Calgary, Medicine Hat, Portland, Vancouver.

Why did I start with Oct. 25? Because that was the day that the Seattle Thunderbirds acquired D Luke Prokop from the Edmonton Oil Kings, signalling to me that the countdown to deadline day had started.

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Less than 48 hours after celebrating Team Canada’s gold medal-winning effort at the World Junior Championship in Halifax, F Colton Dach, the captain of the SeattleKelowna Rockets, was traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds on Saturday morning. . . . Dach, who suffered an injury to his right shoulder in a game against Sweden on Dec. 31, won’t play for Seattle for perhaps eight weeks. The good news is that it doesn’t appear that he will need surgery to repair the damage. . . . The Rockets also gave up a fifth-round selection in the WHL’s 2024 draft, while getting back F Ty Hurley, D Ethan Mittelsteadt, a first-rounder in 2024 — it originated with the Regina Pats — two conditional picks, a second-rounder in 2025 and a fourth-rounder in 2023. The latter originally belonged to the Everett Silvertips. . . .

Dach, who turned 20 on Wednesday, is from Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. The KelownaSaskatoon Blades selected him in the first round, sixth overall, of the WHL’s 2018 draft. He had 22 goals and 27 assists in 82 games over two seasons with the Blades. . . . The Rockets acquired him from the Blades on Sept. 28, 2021, in exchange for F Trevor Wong. Last season, Dach put up 29 goals and 50 assists in 61 games with Kelowna. This season, he had nine goals and eight assists in 14 games. . . . He missed time early in the season because of two concussions, one incurred in training camp with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago picked him in the second round of the 2021 NHL draft. These days, the Blackhawks’ medical staff will be keeping close tabs on Dach and his shoulder. . . .

Hurley, an 18-year-old from Sherwood Park, Alta., now has been traded twice this season. The Thunderbirds had acquired him from the Swift Current Broncos, who picked him in the fourth round of the WHL’s 2019 draft. He had one assist in 16 games with the Broncos, and recorded one assist in 15 games with Seattle. . . . Last season, he had a goal and two assists in 31 games with Swift Current. . . .

Mittelsteadt, who turned 17 on Dec. 18, is from Victoria. Seattle selected him in the fifth round of the WHL’s 2020 draft. He had two goals in 16 games with the Thunderbirds last season; this season, he had a goal and an assist in 24 games. . . .

Hurley and Mittelsteadt both played for Kelowna on Saturday night as the Rockets dropped a 5-1 decision to the host Kamloops Blazers, who had Team Canada forwards Caedan Bankier and Logan Stankoven back in their lineup. . . .

When Dach finally gets into the Thunderbirds’ lineup, he will join four teammates from Team Canada — D Nolan Allan, D Kevin Korchinski, Thomas Milic and F Reid Schaefer. (By coincidence, the Blackhawks also hold the NHL rights to Allan and Korchinski.) Earlier in the season, the Thunderbirds acquired Allan from the Prince Albert Raiders. They also added Luke Prokop, a high-end defenceman, in a deal with the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . .

Since Oct. 25, the Thunderbirds have made five trades, acquiring five players and four WHL draft picks, while giving up six players, eight draft picks and six conditional picks. . . .

The Thunderbirds (28-5-2) lead the U.S Division, the Western Conference and the overall standings. They presently are on a six-game East Division trip that opened with a 6-0 victory over the Regina Pats on Friday and continued Saturday with a 6-2 loss to the Moose Jaw Warriors. The Thunderbirds will face the Brandon Wheat Kings on Tuesday and then be in Winnipeg on Wednesday to meet the Ice (28-5-0) in a game that some observers see as a likely preview of the WHL’s championship final.

——

In another Saturday swap, the Winnipeg Ice acquired F Easton Armstrong, who is to turn 20 on Jan. 24, from the Regina Pats for D Omen Harmacy, 17. . . . Armstrong, 19, has 13 goals and nine assists in 39 games this season, his third with the Pats. From Los Angeles, he was a 10th-round pick by the Pats in the WHL’s 2018 draft. He has 20 goals and 14 assists in 121 regular-season WHL games. . . . Harmacy, from Winnipeg, was an eighth-round pick by the Ice in the 2020 draft. A sophomore, he has three assists in 30 games after recording six assists in 32 games last season.

The junior B Kootenay International Junior Hockey League announced on Friday that Adam DiBella, the head coach of the Nelson Leafs, has been kijhlsuspended for the remainder of the 2022-23 regular season and the playoffs. . . . The suspension amounts to the regular-season’s final 15 games and whatever playoff games the Leafs end up playing. . . . The move followed a New Year’s Eve line brawl between the host Leafs and Beaver Valley Nitehawks. . . . Earlier in the week, the KIJHL issued 35 games in suspension to Nelson players and eight to the Nitehawks. . . . Later Friday, the Leafs, who won’t appeal any of the disciplinary decisions, announced that they had accepted DiBella’s resignation. . . . “Our investigation determined that the incident in Saturday’s game was instigated by the Leafs at Mr. DiBella’s direction,” Jeff Dubois, the KIJHL commissioner, said in a news release. “The KIJHL has zero tolerance for these types of actions by any team staff member, and the severity of Mr. DiBella’s suspension reflects the seriousness that we place on leadership and player safety.” . . . Should DiBella want to coach in the KIJHL in the future, he will have to apply to the Nelsoncommissioner for reinstatement. . . . The KIJHL also ruled that DiBella won’t be allowed in “any KIJHL facility for a period beginning one hour before and ending one hour after any Nelson Leafs game. He may not travel on the team bus and he may not be present on the ice, players’ bench, dressing room or office immediately before, during or after team practices. He is not to conduct any official business as a representative of the Nelson Leafs, such as player meetings, trade negotiations and athlete recruitment.” . . . As well, the Leafs were fined $5,000 “and instructed to take proactive steps to ensure all team staff are sufficiently trained and educated in the standards of conduct required under KIJHL regulations. A written report outlining steps taken by the organization in these areas must be submitted to the Commissioner no later than June 1, 2023.” . . .

In announcing DiBella’s resignation, the Leafs also issued an apology to the “Beaver Valley Nitehawks, all Nelson Leafs fans, hockey fans in general and all member clubs of the KIJHL. . . . As a proud member of the KIJHL, the Nelson Leafs failed to abide by league principles to encourage participation in hockey in a manner so as to foster clean play and good sportsmanship. As an organization the Nelson Leafs intend to ensure that our club is seen as a healthy, competitive and respectable recreational activity for our players and fans and as a club that promotes hockey, education and life skills.” . . .

The Leafs (17-9-5) opened a three-game road swing Friday night in Chase with a 4-3 victory over the Heat, then were beaten, 3-2, by the 100 Mile House Wranglers on Saturday night. The Leafs will finish the trip against the Kamloops Storm on Sunday. General manager Lance Morey and assistant coach Tyson Soobotin are running things while the board of directors makes “a decision concerning the head-coaching position in the days to come.”

The KIJHL’s news release is right here.

The Leafs’ news release is right here.

Swing

Here is Ken Campbell at Hockey Unfiltered on Friday:

“The Regina Pats have been very clear to this point that they have no intention of trading World Junior hero and future NHL superstar Connor Bedard, despite the fact that they currently sit in seventh place in the Eastern Conference of the Western Hockey League and are likely first-round fodder. In fact, they’re not even a lock at this point to make the playoffs.

“This comes despite the fact that the Seattle Thunderbirds . . . are apparently prepared to offer an enormous package of players and picks to the Pats in exchange for Bedard. ‘I don’t know how you don’t do it,’ one scout said. ‘Regina could get 10 assets for this guy. And if Seattle were to get Bedard, you might as well just give them the Memorial Cup right now.’ ”

——

Meanwhile, there have been reports that the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets will assign F Brad Lambert, who turned 19 on Dec. 19, to Seattle. Lambert is fresh off playing for Finland at the World Junior Championship; he had one goal in five games. . . . The 30th overall selection in the NHL’s 2022 draft, Lambert has two goals and one assist in 14 games with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. The Thunderbirds acquired his WHL rights from the Saskatoon Blades on June 30, giving up two conditional draft picks — fourth- and sixth-rounders in 2023 — in the exchange.

F Ben King, who led the WHL with 52 goals during the 2021-22 regular season, RedDeerhasn’t played for the Red Deer Rebels since Oct. 22 due to an undisclosed injury. Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner and general manager, told Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com this week that King might return in two weeks. “We’re getting a hell of a player back in a couple of weeks who’s been out of our lineup for a long time,” Sutter said. “We’re looking forward to that.” . . . Sutter admitted that knowing King is close to returning will impact his thinking at Tuesday’s trade deadline. “If something comes up we’ll look at it, but we like our team the way it is,” Sutter said. . . . King, who started this season in camp with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, had five goals and five assists in five games when he was injured.

Bags

THINKING OUT LOUD: It always amazes me that major junior teams are in such a rush to get their World Junior Championship players back into the lineup. Why not send them home for a few days, if possible, allowing them to get some rest — mentally and physically — and getting them as far away from the coaches as possible? . . . Just because I know you’re wondering, it looks like pitchers and catchers will report on Feb. 14 and spring training games are to start on Feb. 24. . . . The U of Calgary Dinos men’s hockey team ran its winning streak to 15 on Saturday with a 4-1 victory over the host MacEwan Griffins. The Dinos, who put it away with two empty-net goals, now are 17-3-0. . . . Nothing ruins a day like having the power go out just as the lasagna is going in the oven. So guess what’s on the menu for Sunday evening? . . . QB Nathan Rourke of the CFL’s B.C. Lions is able to sign an NFL deal starting Monday, but he still has more team visits on his schedule. Unfortunately for CFL fans, I have to think NFL money will be awfully hard for him to leave on the table.

Becky Sullivan of npr.org reports that the faculty of Lake Superior State University has issued its “annual list of words that is says deserve to be ‘banished’ from our vocabularies over ‘misuse, overuse, and uselessness.’ ” . . . And it’s hard to argue with any of them, from GOAT to ‘it is what it is.’ ” . . . Irregardless of all that, and moving forward, Sullivan’s story is absolutely right here.

Headline at The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) — Single-use plastic bags to be replaced by reusable bags you will use a single time.

——

Headline at The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) — Pigeon with meth backpack caught in B.C. prison yard, says officers’ union president.

Mummy

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars won their 31st game of the season on Saturday, beating the host Kindersley Klippers, 5-1. Why is that worth noting? Because the North Stars have yet to lose in regulation time this season. They now are 31-0-3. . . . Battlefords had beaten visiting Kindersley, 5-1, on Friday. . . . The North Stars next are scheduled to play on Thursday against the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask. . . .

The Chilliwack Chiefs announced that they set a BCHL attendance record on Saturday night when their announced attendance was 5,008 for a 4-3 victory over the Cranbrook Bucks. . . . The Chilliwack Coliseum, which once was home to a WHL franchise, lists its capacity as 5,000 for hockey. . . . Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find anything about the previous BCHL single-game attendance record. . . .

ColoradoGritThe NAHL has approved a franchise for Greeley, Colo. The Colorado Grit will begin play in the Greeley Ice Haus in time for the 2023-24 season. The Grit will play out of the South Division. One of the team’s three owners is former NHLer David Clarkson. . . . There’s more 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.

Muppet

Sim overshadows Bedard in Pats’ victory . . . Warriors hang on to win in Kamloops . . . Thunderbirds slow down Portland express

A reminder that former WHLer Andrei Lupandin and his family have left their native Ukraine and are in Saskatoon hoping to start a new life after losing their home in the ongoing Russian onslaught.

Lupandin, 44, and his wife and two sons arrived in Saskatoon “with little more than a hockey bag and one suitcase for the family of four,” according to a GoFundMe page that is up and running.

“They have no work and need to start over. We are raising funds to help them with buying essentials, saving money to live and for future accommodations and household items.”

That GoFundMe page is right here.

FRIDAY IN THE WHL:

F Connor Bedard’s I Can Sell Out the B.C. Division Arenas Tour got started in Langley, B.C., as his Regina Pats beat the Vancouver Giants, 3-0, before an Reginaannounced crowd of 5,276. . . . That is the largest crowd for a Giants’ home game in the Langley Events Centre since they moved there to start the 2016-17 season. . . . The Pats (10-11-2) had lost their previous three games. . . . The Giants now are 8-10-4. . . . G Drew Sim was huge for the Pats, kicking out 47 shots to record his second shutout this season and the third of his career. Sim, 19, was a third-round pick by the Giants in the WHL’s 2018 draft. His first 11 WHL appearances were with the Giants. . . . Vancouver dealt him to Regina on Oct. 21, 13, 2021, for a conditional fourth-rounder in 2024. . . . Bedard, who takes his tour on to Victoria to meet the Royals tonight, was playing in his 100th regular-season game. He had one assist as his point streak reached 22 games. He was blanked in the season’s first game and hasn’t been shut out since then. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in goals (19), assists (30) and points (49). . . . Bedard is from North Vancouver, and this was his first WHL game on the Lower Mainland of B.C. . . . F Borya Valis (10), who had missed the last two games, got Regina’s first goal, on a PP, at 12:47 of the first period. . . . F Riley Ginnell, 20, made his Regina debut after being acquired from the Moose Jaw Warriors earlier in the week. . . .

The visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes scored three PP goals en route to a 4-3 Lethbridgevictory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Lethbridge improved to 13-10-1. It is 1-2 on a six-game road trip. . . . The Wheat Kings are 8-14-2. . . . These teams will play in Brandon again tonight. . . . The Wheat Kings took a 2-1 lead into the second period, but the Hurricanes scored the next three goals. . . . F Tyson Laventure (5) had two goals and an assist for the winners, with D Logan McCutcheon (1) chipping in a goal and two assists. . . . Lethbridge was 3-4 on the PP; Brandon was 2-5. . . . The Hurricanes got 37 stops from G Harrison Meneghin. . . .

In Calgary, F Sloan Stanick and F Keaton Sorensen each had four points to help PrinceAlbertthe Prince Albert Raiders to a 4-2 victory over the Hitmen. . . . The Raiders (9-12-2) have won four in a row. . . . The Hitmen (11-6-3) had points in each of their previous two games (1-0-1). . . . After F Zac Funk (6) gave Calgary a 2-1 lead 48 seconds into the second period, the Raiders scored the game’s last four goals. . . . Sorensen (11) had two goals and two assists, with Stanick drawing four assists. . . . Raiders F Evan Herman, the team’s captain, scored his fifth goal this season — it was the 50th of his career — and added two assists. . . . The Raiders got 32 stops from G Tikhon Chaika. . . .

The Kelowna Rockets struck three times in the second period and went on to Kelownabeat the Silvertips, 4-2, in Everett. . . . Kelowna improved to 9-9-1; the Silvertips, who had been 0-3-1 in their previous four games, now are 12-9-1. . . . F Colton Dach (6), Kelowna’s captain, broke a 2-2 tie at 17:24 of the second period. He also had an assist. . . . F Max Graham (2) iced it with an empty-netter. . . . Kelowna D Jackson DeSouza had two assists and now is on a four-game point streak, with seven points over that stretch. He went into this season with one goal and 10 assists in 70 games. This season, he has three goals and five assists in 17 games, with all eight points having come over the past five games. . . . Everett F Jackson Berezowski, who hadn’t played since Nov. 4 as he missed six games, scored his 13th goal. . . .

The Moose Jaw Warriors scored the game’s first three goals, two via the PP, and WarriorsNewhung on to beat the Blazers, 3-2, in Kamloops. . . . The Warriors (14-9-0) are 1-1-0 on this seven-game road swing. . . . The Blazers (10-5-4) had points in each of their previous five games (3-0-2). . . . F Brayden Yager (11) had a goal and an assist for the Warriors, the goal giving them a 3-0 lead at 13:52 of the second period. . . . F Jagger Firkus of the Warriors ran his point streak to 16 games with an assist. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven (14) scored 45 seconds into the third period and later added an assist to extend his point streak to 15 games; he has hit the scoresheet in each game in which he has played this season. . . . The Warriors got a big game from G Connor Ungar, who made 36 stops. . . .

The Medicine Hat Tigers scored three times in the shootout to beat the Rebels, MedicineHat3-2, in Red Deer. . . . The Tigers (8-10-5) have won two straight. . . . The Rebels (16-4-3) have lost three in a row (16-4-3). . . . F Kai Uchacz (17) scored while shorthanded to give Red Deer a 2-1 lead at 2:26 of the second period. . . . F Brendan Lee got the Tigers even with his 14th goal at 15:39 of the third. . . . Lee, who also had an assist, has goals in six straight games, putting in eight over that stretch. He also scored Medicine Hat’s first goal in the shootout. . . . The Tigers had a 42-31 edge in shots. . . .

In Saskatoon, the Winnipeg Ice broke a 1-1 tie with three straight goals en route Saskatoonto a 5-3 victory over the Blades. . . . The Ice (22-2-0) has won two in a row. . . . The Blades (15-5-0) had a four-game winning streak snapped. . . . The will have a rematch tonight, also in Saskatoon. . . . F Ty Nash (11) gave the Ice a 4-1 lead at 4:16 of the third period. He has goals in five straight games. . . . The Blades got PP goals from F Josh Pillar (4) and F Justin Lies (4) to get within a goal, but weren’t able to equalize. . . . The Ice got a goal and two assists from D Ben Zloty (6), while F Connor McClennon had three assists. . . . Zloty, 20, has 28 points in 24 games this season. . . . G Daniel Hauser made 30 saves to earn the victory. This season, he is 16-0-0, 2.43, .914. In his career, he is a remarkable 57-3-2. . . . F Zach Benson was one of the Ice’s scratches. . . .

The Seattle Thunderbirds have points in six straight games after beating the SeattlePortland Winterhawks, 6-1, in Kent, Wash. . . . The Thunderbirds (15-3-1) are 5-0-1 in their past six games. . . . The Winterhawks (17-3-1) had points in each of their previous 12 games (10-0-2) and had won nine in a row. . . . F Kyle Crnkovic (10) led Seattle with a shorthanded goal and two assists. . . . The only goal of the first period came from Seattle D Nolan Allan. He has five on the season, but this was his first with Seattle since being acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders on Nov. 16. . . . Seattle outshot Portland, 35-21, including 24-7 through two periods. . . . The Winterhawks had F Jack O’Brien and F Robbie Fromm-Delorme back after one-game absences. Joshua Critzer (@jjcritzer) tweeted that “both are wearing full shields/fish bowls due to coming off illness.” . . . The Thunderbirds remain without injured D Luke Prokop. . . .

F Josh Davies scored the game’s first three goals to lead the host Swift Current SwiftCurrentBroncos to a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The Broncos (10-11-0) had lost their previous two games. . . . The Oil Kings (4-19-1) have lost two in a row. . . . The same teams will meet again tonight, also in Swift Current. . . . Davies, who has eight goals, scored twice while shorthanded — at 14:02 of the first period and 9:39 of the second — to complete his first WHL hat trick in his 106th game.

Looters

THE TRADING PLACE:

The Regina Pats skated at the Langley Events Centre on Thursday in advance of their Friday night game against the Vancouver Giants. Afterwards, John Paddock, the Pats’ senior vice-president of hockey operations, general manager and head coach, met with the media. Of course, he was asked about the possibility of trading highly touted F Connor Bedard. Paddock’s response: “That’s a stupid question. That’s my response. There’s only one place where that’s come out of all year and that’s in B.C.” . . . You will note that he didn’t say “NO!” Could it be that the Pats are keeping open all of their options? . . . Hey, John, any chance of your trading Tanner Howe? . . .

The Brandon Wheat Kings have acquired F Anthony Wilson, 17, and D Luke Shipley, 18, from the Victoria Royals for F Teydon Trembecky, 17, and three WHL draft picks — a third-rounder in 2023 that originally belonged to the Red Deer Rebels, a fifth in 2024 and a fourth in 2026. . . . Wilson, a third-rounder selection in the 2020 WHL draft, had nine goals and nine assists in 81 games with the Royals. He is from Swift Current. . . . Shipley was a sixth-round pick in the 2019 draft. From Powell River, B.C., he had four goals and 18 assists in 105 games with Victoria. . . . Trembecky, a third-round pick by Brandon in the 2020 draft, is from Strathcona, Alta. He had two assists in 24 games with the Wheat Kings. . . . 

Since Oct. 25, WHL teams have combined on 13 trades involving 22 players, 30 draft picks and four conditional picks. . . . Only the Calgary Hitmen, Everett Silvertips, Kelowna Rockets, Medicine Hat Tigers, Portland Winterhawks and  Vancouver Giants haven’t made at least one deal in the past month.

Spotted

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The Regina Pats got down to three 20-year-olds by releasing F Jakob Brook. He is expected to join the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings. . . . The Pats had indicated in Tuesday’s WHL roster report that they had dropped Brook. But there wasn’t an announcement until Thursday. . . . A second-round pick by the Prince Albert Raiders in the WHL’s 2017 draft, Brook had three assists in seven games this season. In 164 career regular-season games, split between the Pats and Raiders, he put up 14 goals and 23 assists. . . . Brook’s brother, Aidan, 19, also is on Dauphin’s roster. Aidan has WHL experience with the Medicine Hat Tigers (24 games) and Prince George Cougars (11). . . .

F Max Streule, a sophomore from Zurich, Switzerland, has cleared WHL waivers and has left the Winnipeg Ice for the QMJHL’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. Streule, 19, had two goals and nine assists in 52 games last season; this season, he was pointless in six games. . . . Streule’s departure leaves F Vladislav Shilo, who is from Minsk, Belarus, as the Ice’s lone import. . . .

G Ève Gascon, who made history last season as the third female to play in a QMJHL regular-season game, with the Gatineau Olympiques, has committed to play NCAA hockey for the U of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. . . .

The BCHL’s Penticton Vees ran their season-opening winning streak to 22 games on Friday, as they dumped the host Alberni Valley Bulldogs, 7-1. . . . The Vees are to travel to Powell River to meet the Kings tonight. . . .

Meanwhile, we shouldn’t be ignoring the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars, who have opened the season by playing 23 games without a regulation-time loss. . . . They will take a 20-0-3 record into their next game, against the visiting Notre Dame Hounds on Dec. 2.

Freedom

THINKING OUT LOUD — Just how big is the NFL in the world of TV and sports. Well, you may have noticed that the NHL didn’t have even one game scheduled for Thursday, which was American Thanksgiving and featured three NFL games. One of those games — New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys — averaged 42 million viewers on FOX-TV. It now is the most-watched NFL regular-season game in history. . . . I never cease to be amazed by the number of people on the sidelines of a football game in the U.S., be it NFL or NCAA. Does each one of those people have a particular responsibility, or are they just there? . . . Mask up whenever the situation calls for it. Those people with suppressed immune systems will thank you for it.

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.

Breakfast

Hasek speaking out against Russian invasion . . . Clouston: Pats ‘going to try to add’ . . . TWU adds Beach as assistant coach

As another hockey season arrives and dictator Vladimir Putin’s Russia continues its war on Ukraine, the impact, or lack of same, on professional hockey hasn’t been much of a story.

But former NHL goaltender Dominik Hasek is working to get it into the headlines.

Here’s a chunk from Ken Campbell of Hockey Unfiltered:

More than a decade after his Hall of Fame career, Hasek has not stopped taking the road less travelled. He’s one of the very few athletes, past or present, who has the courage to speak out against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying Russian NHLers should be suspended and Czech players should be barred from playing in the KHL, the league in which he played in the final season of his career. He also thinks that the government in Czechia should bar any Russians playing for the Nashville Predators (winger Yakov Trenin) and San Jose Sharks (wingers Alexander Barbanov and Evgeni Svechnikov) from playing in Prague when the two teams kick off the NHL’s regular season there Oct. 7 and 8.

“It will be a beautiful hockey celebration,” Hasek told Hockey Unfiltered in a telephone interview. “At the same time, however, I am doing everything to ensure that no Russian players can play here and that they cannot make multimillion-dollar advertisements for Russia and its war and killings in Ukraine.”

Hasek also has thoughts on Russians playing in the NHL. Campbell writes: “Hasek believes all Russian-born NHL players should be suspended by the NHL, with the suspensions lifted only if and when they denounce Russia’s actions.”

Of course, there are people in the hockey community who don’t agree with Hasek.

If you haven’t already, you should hunt up Campbell’s Hockey Unfiltered site and check out stories like this one.

——

Are you waiting for the Regina Pats to trade F Connor Bedard, who is the favourite to be the No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2023 draft? Well, perhaps you Reginashouldn’t be holding your breath. In fact, what if the Pats are working to add to their roster in the hopes of making a run this season? . . . The Kamloops Blazers will be the host team for the 2023 Memorial Cup and there has been ample speculation that they are eager to land Bedard. Shaun Clouston, the Blazers’ general manager and head coach, isn’t so sure that Bedard will come available. “I think Regina is going to evaluate things,” Clouston told Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week. “The information we have is they’re not trading him right now. They believe they have a generational-type player and they’re going to try to add. So, right now, that’s the direction they’re going and I guess time will tell if they’re able to get to a place where they feel confident kind of going all-in at some point with Connor Bedard as the centrepiece or whether they change that mindset. But that, right now, from our understanding, is their mindset They’re looking to add right now.” . . . Hastings’ complete story is right here.

Cotton

The Medicine Hat Tigers have added F Alex Drover, 20, to their roster. Drover, from Port-aux-Basques, Nfld., spent the previous four seasons in the QMJHL. MedicineHatHe played with the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, Saint John Sea Dogs and Rimouski Oceanic, totalling 29 goals and 48 assists in 178 regular-season games. Last season, he put up 37 points, including 14 goals, in 44 games with Rimouski. . . . Drover is one of four 20-year-olds in camp with the Tigers, the others being F Brendan Lee, F Dallon Melin and Finnish F Oskari Kuntonen, who was selected by Medicine Hat in the CHL’s 2020 import draft. Last season, he had six goals and 20 assists in 24 games with KooKoo’s U20 side. Melin is coming off four seasons with the Red Deer Rebels; he had 11 goals and 13 assist in 67 games in 2021-22. Lee was acquired from the Saskatoon Blades last season; he finished with 10 goals and 11 assists in 52 games, 22 of them with the Tigers. . . . Melin had two assists Friday in a 6-3 victory over the host Swift Current Broncos. Lee had one assist; Drover was pointless.

WillieNelson

Ann Killion of the San Francisco Chronicle, on the retirement announcement from tennis great Roger Federer:

“Once a teenage brat who would throw his racket on the court, Federer grew up and evolved and became the definition of class and sportsmanship.

“He was doing that in an era of what often seemed relentlessly boorish and unbecoming behavior by professional athletes. When star athletes too often seemed to do something to let their public down, to embarrass themselves or to fail to understand the privilege and position they have.

“Federer never did that. In a modern era of scrutiny and social media, he was a safe harbor.”

The Tofino Resort and Marina, on the west coast of Vancouver Island, is owned by a group that includes retired NHLers Willie Mitchell and Dan Hamhuis. The latter also is one of the six men who own the WHL’s Prince George Cougars. . . . Something happened at the resort on Sunday night that has resulted in a management change, the closure of the place for a week or so, and a whole lot of speculation as to what caused it all. . . . Patrick Johnston of Postmedia has that story right here.

THINKING OUT LOUD — F Nick Suzuki may have been given the captain’s ‘C’ this week, but isn’t F Brendan Gallagher really the captain? Gallagher is one of those players who doesn’t need the ‘C’ to be the captain. . . . If F Connor Bedard really is a generational talent — and all signs point to that being an accurate evaluation — how would the Regina Pats explain it to their fans were they to trade him away? . . . There looked to be a lot of empty seats at Mosaic Stadium on Friday night, but the ticket holders who did show up didn’t hesitate to let their feelings be known as their favourites dropped a 26-24 decision to the Edmonton Elks. Yes, it was ugly. . . . The Roughriders are 3-5 at home. They once were 3-0. Whoops!

THE COACHING GAME:

Former WHL F Kyle Beach has joined the Trinity Western U Spartans of the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League as an assistant coach. . . . From Ian Kennedy of The Hockey News: “Last fall, Beach made headlines stepping forward as ‘John Doe’ in a case in which Beach was sexually assaulted by Chicago Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich during the 2009-10 season. The case made international news headlines, and eventually resulted in a confidential settlement between the Blackhawks and Beach made in December of 2021.” . . . Beach, 32, is from Kelowna. He played in the WHL with the Everett Silvertips, Lethbridge Hurricanes and Spokane Chiefs (2005-10). . . . Beach and TWU head coach Ben Walter, who is in his first season, were teammates with EC Salzburg in Austria’s EBEL and won championships together in 2015 and 2016. . . . Beach spent the past two seasons with the Ten Art BlackDragons in Austria, playing in Germany’s Oberliga. In those two seasons, he totalled 110 points, including 58 goals, in 68 games.

Shifter

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Gino De Paoli is the new play-by-play voice of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers. The team made the announcement on Friday, three days after he announced he was leaving the AJHL’s Okotoks Oilers. He had been the voice of the Oilers for 11 seasons. . . . Scott Roblin handled the Tigers’ play-by-play on CHAT last season after Bob Ridley, the only radio voice the team had known since it entered the WHL for the 1970-71 season, took time off for health-related reasons. . . . Roblin left Medicine Hat over the summer and now is covering sports for Global TV in Saskatoon. . . .

Kevin Kaminski, the general manager and head coach of the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves, begins the regular season by starting a 10-game suspension. From the Ice Wolves: “The suspension is the result of reports received by the league after the final playoff game of last season that was played March 27. The sanction is under appeal but until this is finalized, we will comply with the suspension and assistant coach Kyle Schneider will lead the bench.” . . . Playing at home on March 27, the Ice Wolves dropped a 5-3 decision to the Humboldt Broncos in Game 6. The Broncos won the series, 4-2. . . . The Ice Wolves opened their regular season on Friday night with a 7-4 victory over the visiting Nipawin Hawks.

Sales

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.

Milkshake

Scattershooting on a Thursday night while remembering Queen Elizabeth II and her wonderful sense of humour . . .

Scattershooting2

WHERE ARE THEY NOW DEPT. — Ian Henry had been with the Seattle Thunderbirds since July 2002 when he lost his job a year or so into the pandemic. He was their director of media, communications and digital at the time. These days, he is the communications co-ordinator for the Mercer Island School District where he is doing great work as can be seen in the below tweet. Go ahead. Click on the link. You’ll love it.

There are times when Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon, steps outside the sporting arena to offer up a gem, and this is just another reason to read him on a daily basis:

“I feel sorry for people who misuse two English words — unique and masterpiece. Unique cannot have modifiers; things are not very unique or somewhat unique; things are either unique or they are not unique. . . . Masterpiece does not have a proper plural form. An artist or an author can only produce one masterpiece. This is not a pet peeve of mine because I am only allowed one ‘pet peeve’ in life and this one is not nearly important enough to have earned that status.”

That was from his Thursday post, which also included this gem:

“I will spend less time using Facebook. I have spent about 1.5 hours per week on the site over the last month — and it is just not worth it.”

THINKING OUT LOUD — A tip of the fedora to Kyle McIntyre, the SJHL’s new commissioner, on his use of social media to connect with fans. Asked on Twitter for clarification on a player suspension, McIntyre (@SJHLCommish) responded that “the suspension includes all remaining exhibition games and five regular-season games.” That amounts to transparency without any redactions and that’s a breath of fresh air. . . . The NFL’s regular season begins and we are bombarded with gambling-related TV commercials. I bet you’re surprised. . . . How much will the New York Yankees pay Aaron Judge when they get around to signing him after this season? Might he become the first US$50-million-a-year MLB player? Remember that he turned down $213.5 million over seven seasons, starting in 2023, prior to the start of this season.

THE COACHING GAME:

The junior B Osoyoos Coyotes of the Kootenay International Hockey League have a new head coach in Ken Law. He takes over from Carter Rigby, who apparently has joined the Prince George Cougars as an assistant coach. . . . It should be noted that while the Coyotes have announced the move, the Cougars haven’t yet said a word, although they just might today (Friday) or early next week. . . . Law spent eight seasons (2010-18) with the Coyotes, as their general manager and head coach. He was with the KIJHL’s Kelowna Chiefs for four seasons (2018-22) — three seasons as assistant GM/head coach and last season as GM. . . . Rigby played four games with the Cougars in 2009-10 and three in 2010-11. He went on to play three seasons plus seven games (2011-15) with the Kelowna Rockets before getting into 55 games with the Swift Current Broncos in 2014-15 to conclude his WHL playing career. Rigby, 28, had been preparing for his fourth season as the head coach in Osoyoos.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

Ian Wilson is the new play-by-play voice of the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express, taking over from Eddie Gregory, who has filled the position for the past 18 seasons. Gregory now is the voice of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants. . . . From an Express news release: “Wilson comes to the Express with a ton of experience. He currently is the voice of the UFV Cascades, Fraser Valley Bandits and Arena Lacrosse League West. He also brings along his experiences working with the Chilliwack Chiefs, Chilliwack Jets, Richmond Sockeyes and Delta Ice Hawks.”

There was a time back in the day when curling on radio was a big deal, especially on the Prairies. No one was bigger in that area than Chuck Pachkowsky of radio stations CFSL-Weyburn and CJSL-Estevan. He died on Wednesday at the age of 89. . . . Glenn Rogers of discoverweyburn.com has more 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.

Scattershooting on a Monday night while watching smoke roll in from the west . . .

scattershooting

You have to think that organizers of the 2022 World Junior Championship have their fingers and toes crossed. You will recall that the event actually got started COVIDin Edmonton in December, but the plug was pulled after a number of players and on-ice officials tested positive for COVID-19. The rescheduled event is to begin Aug. 9 in Edmonton and, well, there has been a player test positive. D David Jiricek wasn’t with Team Czechia when it left for Edmonton after he tested positive. He is in quarantine after which it is hoped that he will join the team. . . . Jiricek, who will turn 19 on Nov. 28, was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the sixth pick in the NHL’s 2022 draft. His WHL rights belong to the Spokane Chiefs, who selected him in the CHL’s 2020 import draft. . . . Jiricek has played the past three seasons with HC Škoda Plzeň of the Czech Extraliga.

——

Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals will be without QB Kyler Murray for at least five games as they go through training camp. He tested positive on Monday. . . . Oh, and the Seattle Seahawks are without head coach Pete Carroll after he, too, tested positive on Monday. He will continue to communicate with the team virtually.

Dinos

Wait! What’s that? Oh, Canada just scored another goal against Switzerland at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Red Deer.

Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times is keeping an eye on NFL training camps for us. Here’s an early report: “Breaking news from Panthers camp: WR Robby Anderson wants to go by Robbie now. Three days in, and we’re already down to stuff like this?”

Here’s Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle, with a few words on unvaccinated baseballers: “As they say in baseball, we’ll shoot any random stuff into our bodies, as long as it’s not something that will help stop a worldwide killer pandemic.”

Headline from The Beaverton: Pope Francis closes Commonwealth Stadium mass with 52-yard Hail Mary.

Headline from fark.com: Mike Trout diagnosed with rare spinal condition that’s been aggravated by carrying the Angels for the last 10 years.

Peanuts

A regular reader responds to something I mentioned here the other day:

“You have mentioned how irritating the (Sleeman) 2.0 ads are. I agree but I find the betting ads are bad enough with the amount of them. But when the sports shows give a segment away to talk about the odds is horrible.”

Hard to disagree with him. It also has made it hard, if not impossible, to watch intermission and halftime shows.

Wayne Kartusch, a longtime president of the SJHL, died in Red Deer on Thursday. He was 82. . . . Kartusch played two seasons (1958-60) with the SJHL’s Regina Pats, before going on to attend the U of Michigan. . . . He later was the SJHL president for 25 years. . . . Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post has a whole lot more on Kartusch right here.

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

Taxes

WHL final opens tonight in Edmonton . . . Thunderbirds, Oil Kings ready to roll . . . Another hall of fame opens doors to Kid Dynamite

The 2022 Kamloops Kidney Walk is almost upon us. It will take place (virtually, Dorothy-040719thanks to the pandemic) on Sunday. . . . What this means is that you’re running out of time if you would like to sponsor my wife, Dorothy, who received a kidney on Sept. 23, 2013, and is fund-raising for a ninth straight year. . . . Thanks to so many of you who stop by here, she has set a new personal-best as she closes in on $4,000. . . . If you would like to join an NHL head coach, a former WHL franchise owner, a former WHL general manager who once won three Memorial Cups in four years, three former WHL play-by-play voices, the wife of a WHL general manager and head coach, the head coach of a team that will play in the Memorial Cup later this month, someone who once worked in the WHL office and a whole lot of other friends and acquaintances by donating, you are able to do so right here. . . . Thank you so much in advance.

Breakfast

The WHL’s 2022 championship final for the Ed Chynoweth Cup gets started tonight (Friday) in Edmonton as the Oil Kings face the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . EdCupEdmonton went into these playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed. The Oil Kings swept the No. 7 Lethbridge Hurricanes and No. 3 Red Deer Rebels, then dismantled the No. 1 Winnipeg Ice, 4-1. So the Oil Kings go into this final with a 12-1 record. . . . Seattle, the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference, has travelled a much more difficult road. It started by eliminating the No. 5 Kelowna Rockets, 4-1, then went seven games to sideline the No. 3 Portland Winterhawks and seven more to oust the No. 2 Kamloops Blazers. That all adds up to the Thunderbirds taking a 12-7 record into Game 1. . . . In the process, the Thunderbirds went 5-0 in elimination games, became the 16th team in WHL history to win a series after trailing 3-1, and became the first team in WHL history to win two Game 7s on the road in one playoff year. No, playing at Rogers Place in Edmonton isn’t going to bother these guys. . . . The Oil Kings were 29-4-1 at home in the regular season; they are 7-0 in the playoffs. On the road, they were 21-10-3 in the regular season and are 5-1 in the playoffs. . . . The Thunderbirds were 23-10-1 on the road in the regular season and are 6-4 in the playoffs; at home, they were 21-8-5 in the regular season and now are 6-3 in the playoffs. . . .

The Oil Kings will be a whole lot fresher, having played six fewer games this spring. . . . For what it’s worth, the Oil Kings are averaging 4.38 goals per game, while allowing 2.08. . . . The Thunderbirds are scoring 3.32 per game, and surrendering 2.42. . . . Edmonton G Sebastian Cossa is 12-2, 1.97, .909, while Seattle’s Thomas Milic is 12-7, 2.16, .926. . . .

It doesn’t mean a thing, but these teams last faced each other on Oct. 26, 2019, when the host Oil Kings scored the game’s first three goals and the last three in a 6-2 victory. F Dylan Guenther, who will be a key figure in the championship final, had two goals and an assist.

There is a comprehensive series preview right here.

——

So . . . the Seattle Thunderbirds’ home arena is booked for graduation ceremonies, meaning their WHL championship series will follow a 2-2-3 format. Should the series go seven games, five of them will be played in the home of the Edmonton Oil Kings.

But, you’re wondering, why couldn’t the Thunderbirds play in the Everett Silvertips’ home arena, or where the NHL’s Seattle Kraken play? . . . Here’s the explanation . . .

If you watched Game 1 of the NBA final on Thursday night, you were listening to Mark Jones call the play, with Mark Jackson providing the analysis and Lisa Salter on the sidelines. It was the first time in the history of the NBA final that a telecast featured all Black announcers. . . . How did that come to be? Because Mike Breen, who had been scheduled to call the play, remains out after testing positive for COVID-19, and because analyst Jeff Van Gundy and ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski both have tested positive. . . . Breen missed Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final after testing positive last week.

Gerry James, who once was the head coach of the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors, doesn’t get nearly his dues as one of Canada’s all-time greatest athletes. Sheesh, this is a man who played in the CFL and the NHL at the same time; in fact, he is the only man ever to play in the Grey Cup game (Nov. 28, 1959) and a Stanley Cup game (April 9, 1960) in the same season. . . . The Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame will be the sixth such honour for James. He also is an honoured member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame (1981), Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame (1982), Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (1994), Yorkton Sports Hall of Fame (1998) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers Hall of Fame (1999). . . . Through it all, he also was a huge supporter of Special Olympics. . . . Hey, Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, are you paying attention? It’s long past time for you to make room for Gerry (Kid Dynamite) James alongside his father, Eddie, who already is an honoured member.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS: The MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals have signed general manager and head coach Tyson Ramsey to a four-year contract extension that is to run through the 2025-26 season. Ramsey joined the Oil Capitals as an assistant coach prior to 2018-19 and took over as GM/head coach for the 2019-20 season.

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

Living Kidney Donor Program

St. Paul’s Hospital

6A Providence Building

1081 Burrard Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6

Tel: 604-806-9027

Toll free: 1-877-922-9822

Fax: 604-806-9873

Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca

——

Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney 

Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre

Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street

Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9

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

kidneydonornurse@vch.ca

——

Or, for more information, visit right here.

Meteor

Bilous, Bruins win Game 7 . . . Ice opens by beating Warriors . . . Bankier streak to 15 as Blazers dump Giants

The host Estevan Bruins won the SJHL championship on Friday night, taking Game 7, 4-0, over the Flin Flon Bombers. G Boston Bilous earned the shutout with 29 saves. . . . Both teams will play in the 10-team Centennial Cup, though, because the Bruins are in as the host team. The national junior A championship tournament runs from May 20 through May 29.

The Brandon Wheat Kings announced Friday that general manager Doug Gasper Brandonhas chosen to leave the organization “for personal reasons.” . . . Gasper joined the Wheat Kings as assistant GM on Aug. 15, 2019, and was named GM on April 16, 2021. . . . Gasper took over from Darren Ritchie, who moved on to the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs as an amateur scout. . . . According to the news release, Gasper “will transition out of his current position over the coming weeks and will assist in hiring his replacement.” . . . Kelly McCrimmon was the Wheat Kings’ general manager for 27 seasons before leaving to join the front office of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights. Since 2016, Grant Armstrong, who now scouts for the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning, Ritchie and Gasper have held the position.

With 14 of the WHL’s 22 teams having had their seasons reach the end of the road, you can bet that the coaching carousel is soon to start spinning.

For starters, the Spokane Chiefs introduced Matt Bardsley as their new general Spokanemanager this week, and you have to think there might be a coaching change in the offing there.

Ryan Smith has been the Chiefs’ interim head coach since head coach Adam Maglio was fired on Feb. 10. Smith had been the club’s associate coach.

Should Bardsley choose to hire his ‘own’ coach, you have to think Kyle Gustafson, who just completed his first season as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, will be in the running. Gustafson had been on the Portland Winterhawks’ coaching staff since 2003 when he chose to join former Winterhawks associate coach Travis Green with the Canucks. Of course, Green was fired as head coach by the Canucks early in the season. Gustafson finished up the season under head coach Bruce Boudreau, who replaced Green.

Bardsley spent 18 seasons in the Winterhawks’ front office, so he and Gustafson are quite familiar with each other. In fact, early in Bardsley’s stint as general manager of the Kamloops Blazers, he offered the Blazers’ head-coaching job, and a four-year contract, to Gustafson.

There are expected to be changes in the Canucks organization and the coaching staff likely won’t escape unscathed. Thomas Drance of The Athletic tweeted on Friday that amateur scouts Brandon Benning, Pat Conacher, Tim Lenardon and Derek Richard have been dropped by the Canucks. Patrick Johnston of Postmedia added that Ted Hampson, another amateur scout, also is gone.

With change in the wind, perhaps Gustafson might be interested in making a pre-emptive move by returning to the WHL. Should that happen, expect Smith to stay on with the Chiefs as associate coach.

Meanwhile, the owners of the Regina Pats would seem to have a coaching Reginadecision on their hands, too.

You will recall that John Paddock, already the vice-president of hockey operations and general manager, took over as head coach after the firing of David Struch on Nov. 18. At the time, ownership stated that Paddock would be the head coach through the 2022-23 season. However, assistant coach Brad Herauf ended up the interim head coach from Feb. 11 through season’s end as Paddock was forced to deal with some health concerns.

It will be worth watching to see if Paddock, who will turn 68 in June, will remain the head coach.

Your daily reminder that the pandemic isn’t over, this one from The New York Times: “George Cheeks, the president and chief executive of CBS, tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday, just days after sitting beside President Biden at the White House Correspondents Dinner, the network confirmed on Friday.”

Gift

There were two WHL playoff games on Friday night as the Winnipeg Ice and WHLplayoffs2022Kamloops Blazers opened best-of-seven conference semifinal series with victories. . . . The pace will pick up tonight with all eight remaining teams in action. . . . In the Eastern Conference, the No. 1 Ice will again play host to the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors, who fell 6-1 last night, while the No. 3 Red Deer Rebels visit the No. 2 Edmonton Oil Kings, who hold a 1-0 edge. . . . In the Western Conference, the No. 2 Blazers and No. 8 Vancouver Giants will meet again in Kamloops, where the home team won, 3-1, last night, while the No. 3 Portland Winterhawks and No. 4 Seattle Thunderbirds open their series in Kent, Wash.

——

FRIDAY IN THE WHL:

Eastern Conference

In Winnipeg, the No. 1 Ice scored in the first minute of each period en route to a WinnipegIce6-1 victory over the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . The Ice leads the conference semifinal, 1-0, with Game 2 set for tonight in Winnipeg. . . . F Owen Pederson (4) gave the Ice a 1-0 lead 18 seconds into the first period. . . . F Jakin Smallwood (4) upped it to 3-0 just 57 seconds into the second period. . . . F Mike Milne (6) made it 6-0 at 0:11 of the third period. . . . Pederson finished with two goals, giving him five in these playoffs, and an assist, while Milne added two assists to his goal. . . . Winnipeg G Daniel Hauser stopped 18 shots. He lost his shutout bid when F Brayden Yager (3) scored at 17:48 of the third period. . . . Winnipeg was 2-for-4 on the PP; Moose Jaw was 0-for-4.

Western Conference

In Kamloops, F Caedan Bankier had a goal and an assist, running his point Kamloopsstreak to 15 games in the process, as the No. 2 Blazers opened with a 3-1 victory over the No. 8 Vancouver Giants. . . . Game 2 will be played in Kamloops tonight. . . . Bankier (2) opened the scoring, on a PP, at 18:28 of the first period. . . . Bankier, who put up 60 points in 68 regular-season games, has quietly put together a 15-game point streak. He finished the regular-season on a 10-game tear (five goals, 11 assists) and has put up two goals and six assists in five playoff games. . . . F Reese Belton (1), at 2:43, and F Ethan Rowland (1), at 16:29, gave the Blazers a 3-0 lead with second-period goals. . . . F Adam Hall (8) got the Giants on the board at 7:04 of the third. . . . Kamloops G Dylan Garand stopped 30 shots. In these playoffs, he is 5-0, 0.80, .968. . . . The Blazers lost F Luke Toporowski late in the first period with what appeared to be an injury to his left shoulder. F Daylan Kuefler moved into his spot on the team’s top line, alongside Logan Stankoven and Drew Englot. . . . Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week tweeted later that Shaun Clouston, the Blazers’ GM/head coach, said the “early feel” is that Toporowoski’s injury isn’t long-term, that he’s “sore,” and that he’ll be re-evaluated Saturday. . . . Toporowski missed the last 12 games of the regular season with a knee injury. . . . On the same stoppage during which Toporowski left, the Giants lost D Mazden Leslie, who left while favouring his right leg.

JUST NOTES: Greg Brown is the new head coach of the Boston College Eagles men’s hockey team. After spending 14 seasons as an assistant coach or associate coach with the Eagles, he now takes over from the retiring Jerry York. Brown also played at BC before going on to a pro career that included 94 games in the NHL and eight seasons in Europe. . . .

Manny Viveiros was back behind the Henderson Silver Knights’ bench for an AHL playoff game on Friday night. Viveiros, a former WHLer, had been away from the team while undergoing treatment for prostate cancer. In his absence, Jamie Heward, another former WHLer, handled the head-coaching duties. . . . Viveiros was the general manager and head coach, and Heward his assistant, with the Swift Current Broncos when they won the 2017-18 WHL championship. . . . Last night, the host Colorado Eagles beat Henderson, 5-2, thus winning the best-of-three first-round series, 2-0.

Donut

My wife, Dorothy, is preparing to take part in her ninth Kamloops Kidney Walk. . . . It will be held on June 5, but thanks to the pandemic it again will be a virtual event. . . . If you would like to sponsor her, you are able to 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.

Will

Ostapchuk sparks Giants in first-round WHL stunner . . . SJHL has new commissioner . . . Allan, Dach off to AHL

You are free to wonder about the chances of the Lucius brothers both playing in the WHL next season, Chad with the Portland Winterhawks and Cruz with the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . After completing his freshman season at the U of Minnesota with nine goals and 10 assists in 24 games, Chad signed with the Winnipeg Jets on April 27. He was the 18th overall selection in the NHL’s 2021 draft. That came three years after the Winterhawks selected him in the fourth round of the WHL’s 2018 draft. . . . Chad, who turned 19 on Monday, is eligible to play next season in the NHL, with the Jets’ AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, or in Portland. . . . Cruz, 18, had committed to playing at Minnesota starting in 2022-23; however, he de-committed on Monday and now is exploring his options. The Thunderbirds selected him in the eighth round of the WHL’s 2019 draft. Cruz is coming off two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program. Chad spent two seasons there, too, before going to Minnesota.

Kyle McIntyre is the new commissioner of the 12-team SJHL. He takes over SJHLfrom Bill Chow, who resigned after spending 11 years in the position. . . . From an SJHL news release: “McIntyre, a Saskatoon product, played U18 hockey with his hometown Contacts and Blazers before playing four seasons in the SJHL with Swift Current and Yorkton. He also served recently on the board of directors for the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos and Saskatchewan High School Athletics and was heavily involved in both minor hockey and minor baseball in Swift Current.

“McIntyre holds a Master of Educational Administration and a Bachelor of Education from the University of Saskatchewan and recently retired after a 30-year career in education including the past 20 years in a senior leadership position. McIntyre will assume the role fully on June 1.”

Dumbass

And then there were eight. . . . The first round of the WHL playoffs concluded on WHLplayoffs2022Monday night as the host Vancouver Giants eliminated the Everett Silvertips. . . . So now it’s on to the second round, which will open on Thursday with the No. 3 Red Deer Rebels visiting the No. 2 Edmonton Oil Kings. The other Eastern Conference series is to being on Friday with the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors in Winnipeg to meet the No. 1 Ice. . . . In the Western Conference, the No. 8 Giants will be in Kamloops to face the No. 2 Blazers on Friday, while the No. 4 Seattle Thunderbirds will open at home in Kent, Wash., to the No. 3 Portland Winterhawks on Saturday. Due to building availability in Portland — the arena is booked for high school graduation ceremonies — the Portland-Seattle series will have a 1-2-1-1-1-1-1 format. . . . Meanwhile, here’s a look at what happened last night in Langley, B.C. . . .

——

MONDAY IN THE WHL:

Western Conference

In Langley, B.C., the Vancouver Giants scored three first-period goals, each one from a defenceman, as they completed one of the biggest playoff upsets in WHL Vancouverhistory with a 6-3 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The No. 8 Giants, who finished 47 points behind the No. 1 Silvertips, won the series, 4-2. . . . How large was this upset? Prior to the game, Steve Ewen of Postmedia wrote: “Since the junior league went to a 16-team post-season split between two conferences in 2002, a No. 8 seed has never beaten a No. 1 in the first round of the playoffs, according to the league office.” . . . D Connor Horning (2) gave the Giants 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 1:15, with D Alex Cotton (4) upping it to 2-0 at 3:15, and D Mazden Leslie (2) making it 3-0 at 11:43. . . . After Horning’s goal, the Giants’ PP was 13-31 (41.9) in the playoffs. In the regular season, it operated at 17.7, good for 18th in the 22-team league. . . . F Ben Hemmerling (1) got Everett to within two goals at 12:40 of the second, only to have F Zack Ostapchuk (3), who assisted on each of the first two goals, get that one back at 17:51. . . . F Ryan Hofer’s sixth goal of the series, on a PP, at 10:00 of the third period cut the Everett deficit to two. . . . Vancouver restored its three-goal lead when D Damian Palmieri (1) scored at 15:32. . . . F Adam Hall’s seventh goal in six games, at 16:52, upped the lead to 6-2. . . . Everett D Jonny Lambos (1) closed out the scoring at 18:35. . . . Ostapchuk finished with a goal and four assists, giving him a WHL-leading 16 points, including 13 assists, in the series. . . . F Fabian Lysell added four assists. He totalled 15 points in the series. . . . The Silvertips were without three of their five leading scorers. Already without 46-goal F Jackson Berezowski (season-ending surgery), they lost F Niko Huuhtanen to an apparent leg injury in Game 5 on Saturday. He didn’t play last night and neither did F Michal Gut. Those three combined for 101 goals and 126 assists in the regular season.

Marty Hastings covers the Kamloops Blazers for Kamloops This Week.

PhoneBooth

JUNIOR JOTTINGS: D Nolan Allan of the Prince Albert Raiders has joined the Rockford IceHogs, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks. Allan, 19, has signed with the Blackhawks, who selected him 32nd overall in the NHL’s 2021 draft. . . . F Colton Dach of the Kelowna Rockets also has joined the IceHogs. Dach, 19, was selected by Chicago in the second round of the 2021 draft and signed an NHL contract on Oct. 1. . . . Rockford opens a best-of-three first-round series against the visiting Texas Stars on Wednesday. . . .

Nick Oliver is the new head coach of the USHL’s Fargo Force. He had been an assistant coach with the St. Cloud State Huskies since 2018, after working as assistant coach/director of scouting with the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede for three seasons (2015-18). He also spent two seasons (2009-11) playing with the Force. He replaces Scott Langer, who spent one season as head coach. The Force was 28-28-4 and lost out in the first round of the playoffs. Langer remains the winningest regular-season coach in NAHL history, thanks to a five-season run with the Aberdeen, S.D., Wings.

Oz

My wife, Dorothy, is preparing to take part in her ninth Kamloops Kidney Walk. . . . It will be held on June 5, but thanks to the pandemic it again will be a virtual event. . . . If you would like to sponsor her, you are able to 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.

Brunch