Tag: Stu MacGregor

MacGregor will be on Wall of Honour

The Western Canada Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation will hold its second annual Wall of Honour induction dinner in Okotoks, Alta., on July 29. We will salute 29 past and present-day scouts as they take their spots on our Wall of Honour. We also will spend A Night With the Sutters, with members of the hockey-playing family from Viking, Alta., joining us. . . . Tickets for the dinner are available at tickets.hockeyscoutsfoundation.com. . . . Before we get there, we want to introduce everyone to some of those who will be honoured, so let’s meet Stu MacGregor. . . . 

STU MacGREGOR

(March 15, 1957 — )

A native of Edmonton, MacGregor has been scouting for more than 40 years. . . . A minor hockey coach (1978-86), he started scouting as a part-timer with the Kamloops Jr. Oilers (1982-84) and then the Blazers (1984-90). . . . Hired full-time by Blazers as assistant GM and director of player personnel In March 1990. . . . Scouted with Dallas Stars for two seasons (1998-2000). . . . Was with Edmonton for seven seasons (2000-07) before the Oilers named him director of amateur scouting (2007-15). . . . Returned to Kamloops as GM (2015-18). . . . Back with Dallas as part-timer for 2018-19.  . . . Was back in WHL as part-time scout with Victoria Royals (2019-23). . . . Joined Moose Jaw Warriors’ scouting staff in October 2023. . . . Was part of four WHL championship teams and three Memorial Cup champs while with Kamloops.

WCPHS Foundation announces 2025 Wall of Honour inductees

OKOTOKS, Alta. (Jan. 7, 2025) — The Western Canada Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation will add 29 names to its Wall of Honour when it holds its second induction dinner this summer.

The foundation announced today that the 2025 class will include three pioneers of scouting, seven from the early era (1968-80), 17 from the modern era, and two from the major junior ranks.

The 2024 class featured 44 inductees — five Pioneers, 17 from the modern era, 20 from the modern era, and two major junior scouts.

The Wall of Honour, which features a rolling video display with a brief bio of each inductee, is located in the Viking Rentals Centre in Okotoks, Alta. The induction dinner will be held there at a date yet to be announced.

“It’s a difficult process,” said Scott Bradley, who is a member of the Wall of Honour selection committee. “It’s an honour to be one involved in the Foundation and the process.”

Bradley is in his 32nd season with the Boston Bruins and now is in his sixth season as senior advisor to the general manager. His father, Bart, was a long-time Bruins’ scout who was inducted into the Wall of Honour in 2024.

“A lot of us have worked with all of these guys,” Scott added. “I come from a scouting family. The founding fathers . . . the pioneers . . . these men are legends to me.”

The three pioneers to be inducted this summer spent more than 70 years in the scouting business. Denis Ball, Jeep George and Jimmy Walker, all deceased, were true legends of the game.

The early era inductees feature Dennis McIvor, Tom McVie and Doug Overton Sr., along with the late Larry Hornung, Jim Pedersen, Larry Popein and George Wood.

The modern era scouts to be inducted are Darwin Bennett, Jim Benning, Shane Churla, the late Glen Cochrane, Milt Fisher, Ernie Gare Jr., Erin Ginnell, Brian Gross, Dennis Holland, the late Brad Hornung, Tim Lenardon, Stu MacGregor, Ray Payne, Brad Robson, Carter Sears, Marty Stein and Al Tuer.

The major junior scouts to be honoured in 2025 are Keith Wilson and the late Al Macpherson.

“It’s exciting to be included in the Wall of Honour,” said Gare Jr., who wrapped up his scouting career by spending 15 seasons with the New York Rangers.

The Hornungs, Larry and Brad, are father and son. Ginnell is the Foundation’s president; his late father, Pat (Paddy), was part of the inaugural induction class in 2024, as were Tuer’s late father, Graham, and Benning’s late father, Elmer.

“I was very surprised and honoured when Ron Delorme called me with the news,” said Payne, who has been scouting for more than 30 years.“I wasn’t aware of how the selection process worked, or who was part of the selection group. It was nice to know that it was something that was voted on by peers.” 

Stein, who won four Stanley Cups while scouting for the Detroit Red Wings for 25 years, said: “I’m very honoured to receive this accolade on the Wall of Honour.”

Stein, who now is with the Buffalo Sabres, added that he really wanted “to thank the Wall of Honour committee for this tribute.”

The inductees are chosen by the foundation’s selection committee, which comprises Dennis Beyak, Scott Bradley, Ron Delorme, Gregg Drinnan, Erin Ginnell, Ross Mahoney, Garth Malarchuk, Shane Malloy, Mike Penny and Blair Reid, all of whom are on the board of directors or act as advisors to the board.

In making its choices, the committee looks at such things as longevity and dedication within the industry.

“Scouting is a tough and demanding job that requires a lot of travel and time away from your family,” said Mahoney, the Foundation’s vice-president who is an assistant general manager with the Washington Capitals. “I had the privilege of knowing most of the honourees from this 2025 class of inductees. They all were committed and dedicated individuals who represented their respective teams in a professional and classy manner.”

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Giants have their man, do Hurricanes have their’s, too? . . . Ex-Ice coach joins Royals’ front office . . . Raiders get goaltender from Rebels

The Vancouver Giants are expected to introduce Manny Viveiros as their new Vancouverhead coach during their annual golf tournament today (Thursday). . . . Viveiros, a former WHL player and coach, has spent the past three seasons as the head coach of the Henderson Silver Knights, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights. . . . In Vancouver, Viveiros, 57, will take over from Michael Dyck, who left the Giants after five seasons for a position as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. . . . Viveiros also worked in the WHL as the director of player personnel and head coach of the Swift Current Broncos for two seasons, winning the WHL title in 2018. He was the head coach of the Spokane Chiefs for one season (2019-20). . . .

That will leave the Lethbridge Hurricanes as the only one of the WHL’s 22 Lethbridgeteams without a head coach. The leading candidate to replace Brent Kisio in Lethbridge is believed to be Bill Peters. The 58-year-old Peters has had two WHL coaching stints, both with the Spokane Chiefs.  He was an assistant coach for three seasons (1999-02) and their head coach for three seasons (2005-08). . . . He also spent three seasons (2002-05) as the head coach of the U of Lethbridge men’s hockey team. . . . Peters was the head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames when he resigned on Nov. 29, 2019. The resignation came after former NHL F Akim Aliu alleged that Peters had directed racist comments at him a few years earlier in the dressing room of the Rockford Ice Hogs, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks. Peters was Rockford’s head coach at the time. . . . He signed on as head coach of Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg of the KHL on April 15, 2020, and was fired on Nov. 30, 2022. . . . Kisio left the Hurricanes on Aug. 10 for an assistant coaching position with the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights. Kisio spent eight seasons as the Hurricanes’ head coach.

Socrates

The Victoria Royals have added James Patrick to their organization. The former Kootenay/Winnipeg Ice head coach has signed on as director of player VictoriaRoyalsdevelopment. . . . Patrick, 60, spent the past six seasons as the Ice’s head coach. . . . Patrick is the third key off-season hiring for the Royals, joining Joey Poljanowski, the vice-president of hockey operations, and Jake Heisinger, the associate general manager. Poljanowski joins the Royals from the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes, while Heisinger had been in Winnipeg with the Ice. . . . Interestingly, Patrick has spent the past 17 seasons in the coaching game, the first 11 as an NHL assistant coach with the Buffalo Sabres and then the Dallas Stars. That followed a playing career that included 1,280 regular-season NHL games over 21 seasons. . . .

While the Royals haven’t updated their website in quite a while, Taking Note has been told that two men whose pictures are on the ‘Hockey Staff’ page no longer are with the organization. J.F. Best, who is shown as the assistant general manager and director of player personnel and player development, is gone, as is longtime WHL executive and scout Stu MacGregor, who is listed as a senior regional scout out of Kamloops. . . . Best had been with the Royals since signing as an assistant coach on June 27, 2017. . . . MacGregor joined the Royals four years ago. He was the Kamloops Blazers’ assistant GM and director of player personnel for three Memorial Cup titles (1992, 1993 and 1995), part of 13 seasons over two stints with the organization. He also was with the Edmonton Oilers for 13 seasons, the last eight as director of amateur scouting. MacGregor was the Blazers’ GM when he was swept out the door when majority owner Tom Gaglardi made some changes after the 2017-18 season.

Parol

Keeping Score was told on Wednesday that Robbie Sandland no longer is Kamloopswith the Kamloops Blazers. He had been one of their two assistant general managers and also was the director of player personnel. . . . Sandland 40, is from Nanaimo. He joined the Blazers as their head B.C. scout in 2018 and was promoted to director of player personnel a year later. He added the AGM tag a year ago. . . . Shaun Clouston is the Blazers’ GM and head coach. Tim O’Donovan is the other assistant GM. . . . The Blazers’ website still shows Sandland as the team’s assistant GM and director of player personnel. But, then, it still shows Ken Fox as one of three head scouts and he told Taking Note on Aug. 8 that he had retired, a move the team acknowledged two days later on X, formerly know as Twitter.

Fence

The Prince Albert Raiders have acquired G Chase Coward, 20, from the Red Deer Rebels for a conditional fifth-round selection in the WHL’s 2024 draft. . . . From PrinceAlbertSwift Current, Coward played in 45 games over four seasons with the Rebels, going 25-23-4, 2.66, .904. . . . Due to hip issues — he underwent double hip surgery — he got into only four games last season (1-2-1, 2.98, .902). He was 0-2-0, 4.76, .830 in two playoff games. . . . Tikhon Chaika, the Raiders’ starter last season who is from Belarus, won’t be returning after signing with the KHL’s Dinamo Minsk. Chaika, 20, is from Minsk. He made 101 regular-season and playoff appearances with the Raiders over the past two seasons. . . . It could be that the Raiders start the season with Coward and Max Hildebrand, 19, as their goaltenders. Hildebrand was 11-14-3, 3.71, .871 as a sophomore last season. . . . The trade would appear to leave Kyle Kelsey, 19, as the Rebels’ starting goaltender. Last season, in 37 games, he was 21-11-5, 2.64, .907. He followed that up by going 7-2-1, 2.36, .912 in 11 playoff appearances.

Injuries

The Lethbridge Hurricanes have hired Brodan Salmond as their goaltending consultant following the resignation of Kevin Swanson, who had been the organization’s goaltending coach for five seasons. . . . Salmond, 24, played four seasons in the WHL, splitting time with the Kelowna Rockets and Moose Jaw Warriors. He spent the past four seasons playing with the U of Calgary Dinos. . . . The Hurricanes also announced that D Nolan Bentham, 20, has chosen not to play in 2023-24. That decision leaves Lethbridge with three 20-year-olds on its roster — D Joe Arntsen, D Chase Pauls and F Blake Swetlikoff.

The Regina Pats have signed Dale McMullin, their director of scouting, to a Reginacontract extension. The length of the extension wasn’t released. . . . McMullin is going into his 12 season as the club’s director of scouting. . . . McMullin, 68, played five seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings back in the day. A prolific scorer, he put up 418 points, including 168 goals, in 309 regular-season games. The Wheat Kings weren’t very good back in those days, and he only got into 10 playoff games. That only makes his regular-season scoring feats even more impressive.

Condolences to Tim Lenardon and family on the death of his father, Norm, on Tuesday. Norm was 89. He was a player on the 1961 Trail Smoke Eaters, who went 6-0-1 to win the 1961 World championship in Geneva, Switzerland. . . . Tim was a longtime scout with the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. Like his father before him, Tim played for his hometown Smoke Eaters (1979-83), who then were in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. Tim put together seasons of 56, 109, 139 and 172 points with the Smokies before going on to play three seasons at Brandon University. His pro career included 15 NHL games — one goal in seven games with the New Jersey Devils (1986-87) and one goal in eight games with the Vancouver Canucks (1989-90). . . . His father was a key contributor to the Smoke Eaters and scored perhaps the biggest goal of the 1961 World championship. . . .  If you haven’t seen the documentary about that Trail team, find it and spend an hour with it. It’s titled Trophy Town. It won’t disappoint you. . . . Greg Nesteroff of mykootenaynow.com has more on Norm Lenardon 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

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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.

Amazon

Duvernay-Tardif a real Canadian hero . . . CHL looking for money from feds . . . Zary: ‘It’s just a waiting game . . .’

Just a few months ago, Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, a native of the Montreal suburb of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, was on the offensive line as the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl. He played every offensive snap in finishing his fifth season as the team’s starting right guard. . . . On Friday, he became the first NFL player to opt out of the 2020 season, choosing to work on the front lines of the battle against the pandemic over football. . . . His contract with the Chiefs called for him to be paid US$2.75 million this season; instead, he will receive US$150,000 from the NFL’s opt-out deal with the NFLPA. . . . Duvernay-Tardif, 29, has his medical doctorate from McGill U in Montreal, but his football career has kept him from a full-time residency. He worked as an orderly at a long-term care facility in Montreal through June and now is waiting for another role. . . . In making his announcement, he wrote: ”Being at the frontline during this offseason has given me a different perspective on this pandemic and the stress it puts on individuals and our healthcare system,” he wrote. “I cannot allow myself to potentially transmit the virus in our communities simply to play the sport that I love. If I am to take risks, I will do it caring for patients.”

Rick Westhead of TSN reported on Friday that “The Canadian Hockey League has hired lobbyists in Ottawa to discuss financial aid” as we continue to steer our way through this pandemic. . . . Those lobbyists have met with government officials going back to late June. . . . As Westhead wrote: “It’s unclear whether the CHL will be able to hold a 2020-21 season, given restrictions on large public gatherings and how crucial ticket revenue is to the CHL’s business model.” . . . Westhead’s story is right here.

F Connor Zary of the Kamloops Blazers is training as though the WHL season is going to Kamloops1start on Oct. 2, but he is a realist and senses that isn’t likely to happen. . . . “I’m training as if I was starting in August,” he told Chad Klassen of CFJC-TV on Kamloops on Friday. “Obviously, we’re not. Honest opinion is we won’t be able to start in October, but I’ve still got to train and still got to have the train of thought that I’m training as hard as I can, and that’s what I can do to be ready no matter when it does start.” . . . The WHL has said that it is aiming for an Oct. 2 start, but it hasn’t yet released a schedule. . . . However, Zary is expecting a later start, but, like everyone else, hasn’t any idea when that might be. “Just the way everyone’s talking and you hear things,” he told Klassen. “Obviously no one can give you a final answer that ‘yeah, it’s happening.’ It’s up in the air with every single thing that’s going on this year. It’s just a waiting game to see what happens.” . . . Zary, who is preparing for his fourth season with the Blazers, will be an early first-round selection in the NHL’s 2020 draft, which now is scheduled for Oct. 9 and 10. He had 86 points, including 38 goals, in 57 games when last season was halted in March.

Former Kamloops Blazers general manager Stu MacGregor will be back for a second season as a co-GM of the Thompson zone U18, U16 and U15 minor hockey teams for 2020-21. MacGregor will be teaming up with Jan Antons to run the Kamloops-based teams. . . . MacGregor also is a senior regional scout (west) for the WHL’s Victoria Royals.

COVID-19 CHRONICLES . . .

Michigan State said Friday that its entire football team was being quarantined for 14 days after one student-athlete and one staff member tested positive. The school had halted workouts on Wednesday after a different staff member tested positive. . . . David Cobb of CBS Sports wrote that “the full-team quarantine is in accordance with athletic department policy. The policy also mirrors guidelines released by the NCAA last week that mandate 14-day quarantines for student-athletes who are found to have been in ‘high-risk’ contact with others who have tested positive. That means other schools are likely to be faced with similar situations.” . . .

The 2020 Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix officially was cancelled on Friday. It originally was to have run June 12-14, but had been postponed to Oct. 9-11. . . . The U.S., Mexico and Brazil Formula 1 races also have been cancelled. . . .

Before playing the visiting New York Mets on Friday afternoon, the Atlanta Braves scratched their top two catchers. Travis d’Arnaud and Tyler Flowers tested negative but were exhibiting symptoms so were left in Atlanta. It had been hoped that one or both would be feeling better by Friday morning and would then fly to New York. But it wasn’t to be. . . .

D Brett Kulak of the Montreal Canadiens told reporters on Friday that he tested positive after arriving in Montreal for Phase 3 of the NHL’s return-to-play protocol. He was back on the ice with the team on Thursday. Kulak said he tested negative, but then had two positives. He’s feeling fine now, but said he experienced headaches, respiratory issues and a lack of energy. . . .

The Falkland, B.C., Stampede has been cancelled, meaning it won’t be held for the first time since the inaugural event in 1919. Normally held on the May long weekend, it was postponed to Aug. 28-30 before being cancelled.

Scattershooting on a Thursday evening while wondering if Regina is Queen City of Distracted Driving . . .

Scattershooting

A note from Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times: “A pride of lions ate three poachers who broke into a South African game reserve to hunt rhinoceroses, Newsweek reported. This partial score just in: Lions 3, Raiders 0.”

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Here’s another report from Perry: “Heretofore doughy Phil Mickelson, via Twitter, after his sister posted a beach photo in which the golfer looks absolutely ripped: ‘FYI, those weird bumps on the side of my stomach we’ve never seen before, Doc called them obliques and said it’s nothing to worry about.’ ”

Las Vegas bookies have had the most early NFL action on the Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. That resulted in this from Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe: “There’s a reason they’ve been able to afford to build all those amazing resorts.”

Department of Pet Peeves — A couple of submissions from Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon: 1. “People who refer to something as ‘very unique’ or ‘rather unique.’ Unique doesn’t take modifiers easily; something is either ‘unique’ or it is not. . . . 2. ‘Imply’ and ‘infer’ aren’t synonyms and cannot be used interchangeably.

ParallelParking

Congrats to old friend Jim Swanson and the Victoria HarbourCats, who have led baseball’s West Coast League in attendance for a sixth straight season. The HarbourCats had 27 home games in 2019, and drew 62,400 fans for an average of 2,311 per game. Throw in five non-league games, an exhibition game and three playoff games and the total is 79,737. . . . Swanson, a long-time newspaper man before his life-long love affair with baseball took him to Victoria, is the HarbourCats’ managing partner and general manager.

It is embarrassing the way Canada’s two sports networks treat MLB fans . . .

On Monday night, TSN scheduled a doubleheader, with the second game to have started three hours after the first one began. Unfortunately for fans, both were ESPN games and ESPN telecasts never end in less than three hours. . . . Of course, TSN does have a bunch of channels — five of them in my house — so when the first game runs late you are free to wonder why the second game doesn’t start on another channel, like maybe the one that was showing Sports Centre? . . . Sorry, but I didn’t hang around for Yankees and Mariners, the second game, on Monday night. Instead, it was over to the Diamondbacks and Giants with Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper, two broadcasters who get it right.

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One night later, it was Sportsnet’s turn. On this night, Yankees and Mariners were joined in progress at 8:05 p.m. PT, about an hour after the game had started. . . . There are eight Sportsnet channels on my package — the World Poker Tour was on two of them, Highlights of the Night was on one and Sportsnet Central was on five. . . . No sense treating baseball fans with a modicum of respect and putting the Yankees and Mariners on one of those eight channels at 7 p.m. PT. . . . On top of all that, Sportsnet showed Yankees-Mariners highlights before joining the game in progress at 8:05 p.m., with the New Yorkers leading, 5-0, in the top of the third. . . . Hey, Sporstnet, thanks for the poke in the eye. . . . Hey, Sportsnet, I went back to Twins at White Sox, then to Diamondbacks at Giants.

treadmill

ICYMI, Sportsnet dumped Nick Kypreos, John Shannon and Doug MacLean from its NHL coverage this week. Don’t worry, though, because Don Cherry still is there, as is Brian Burke. . . . Daren Millard, who was shown the door by Sportsnet last August, was named to the Vegas Golden Knights’ TV team on Thursday.

ICYMI Part 2 . . . Stu MacGregor, who lost his job as the Kamloops Blazers’ general manager after the WHL’s 2018-19 season, now is the Victoria Royals’ western senior regional scout. Tom Gaglardi, the Blazers’ majority owner, dumped MacGregor in a major reshuffling of deck chairs, and added him to the scouting staff of the NHL’s Dallas Stars, his other toy, er, team. . . . MacGregor lasted one season with the Stars before moving on down the road.

Another WHL note . . . Each August, Alan Caldwell compiles, or attempts to compile, training camp rosters, puts them on spreadsheets, and makes them available to fans. On top of that, he adds and deletes as teams make player moves. . . . After the Kelowna Rockets informed him earlier this week that they wouldn’t be making a roster available, someone in the Little Apple took photos of a roster— it included last names only — that was posted in the arena and got them to Caldwell. He then was able to put together the Rockets roster that is right here. . . . The surprising thing about all of this is that there was someone in the arena in Kelowna who apparently isn’t part of Bruce Hamilton’s choir.

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Why would a WHL team choose not to release a training camp roster? Other than shortsightedness, who knows? . . . There was a time, more than 20 years ago, when WHL teams sometimes had players in camp under assumed names — hello, Bob Bell! hey there, Connor McRae! — supposedly to allow said players to try to protect their NCAA eligibility. Those days are over, though, so who knows what they’re afraid of in Kelowna? . . . It is interesting, though, that the WHL has established standards for the arenas in which its teams play — resulting in some cities having to purchase and install new boards, glass and score clocks with video boards — but doesn’t have any standards for something as simple as the releasing of training camp rosters.

Hey, Regina . . . Do the math: 910 x $280 is a lot of dough. My wife, Dorothy, had a kidney transplant on Sept. 23, 2013. She is getting ready to take part in her sixth Kidney Walk. Had each of you donated $100 to support her — you can do so right here — you would have saved yourself a lot of money and gotten an income tax receipt. . . . BTW, when did Reginans become wealthy enough to throw away money in this fashion? . . . I wonder if Regina’s distracted drivers are aware that there isn’t a prize for No. 1,000?

Ritchie moves into GM’s office. . . . Wright, Henderson go to Edmonton. . . . MacGregor no longer with Dallas

MacBeth

F Colton Kroeker (Regina, Lethbridge, Kootenay, 2014-18) has signed a one-year contract with the Dundee Stars (Scotland, UK Elite). Last season, in 28 games with Mount Royal U (USports, Canada West), he had six goals and 16 assists. . . .

F Ben Maxwell (Kootenay, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with Langnau (Switzerland, National League). Last season, with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL), he had 11 goals and 12 assists in 59 games.

ThisThat

Darren Ritchie is the new general manager of the Brandon Wheat Kings, a team for BrandonWKregularwhich he has played, coached and scouted. Ritchie, from Winnipeg, played four full seasons (1991-95) for the Wheat Kings, putting up 152 goals and 126 assists in 232 regular-season games. . . . He spent 10 seasons (2006-16) as an assistant coach, and has been the team’s director of scouting for the past three seasons. . . . Ritchie, 45, takes over from Grant Armstrong, whose contract wasn’t renewed after he spent three seasons as GM. Armstrong now is on the scouting staff of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. . . . Ritchie now will be working to sign a new head coach — David Anning’s contract wasn’t renewed after last season — and a director of scouting. . . . The Wheat Kings’ news release is right here.

Chad Harden’s 2019 Calgary Stampede is over and he could be looking at a lifetime ban. That was the verdict Friday after Harden was involved in an incident during Heat 7 of Thursday’s Rangeland Derby chuckwagon races in which one horse was killed and three others suffered minor injuries. . . . Harden was disqualified from the final three days of the 2019 Stampede and fined $10,000 for his role in what happened. He also must pay $10,000 to Evan Salmond, the driver whose horse was killed. . . . Harden, who scouts for the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen, won’t be invited to compete in future Stampedes, but he is able to appeal by Sept. 1. . . . Harden went into Thursday night in third place in the aggregate standings and with a real chance to be competing for the big money on Sunday. But he was hit with 30 seconds in penalties after the heat and fell to 33rd. Later, of course, he was disqualified. . . . Sammy Hudes and Alanna Smith of the Calgary Herald have more right here.

At the same time, other chuckwagon drivers are of the opinion that, considering Harden’s record, there was some over-reaction here and that the punishment was too harsh. Hudes has that story right here.

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JUST NOTES:

The NHL’s Edmonton Oilers have hired Tyler Wright as their director of amateur scouting and Archie Henderson as director of pro scouting. Both had been working for the Detroit Red Wings. Ken Holland, the Oilers’ new general manager, joined Edmonton from the Red Wings. . . . Wright played four seasons (1989-93) with the Swift Current Broncos. He had been Detroit’s director of amateur scouting for six seasons. . . . Henderson played three seasons in the WHL (Lethbridge Broncos, Victoria Cougars, 1974-77). . . .

According to a Facebook post by former NL radio sports director Rick (The Bear) Wile in Kamloops, former Blazers’ general manager Stu MacGregor “has parted ways” with the NHL’s Dallas Stars. . . . MacGregor signed on as the Blazers’ GM on Oct. 13, 2015. He lasted until May 20, 2018, when he was reassigned to the Stars’ scouting staff. Dallas owner Tom Gaglardi is the Blazers’ majority owner. . . . MacGregor and ex-Blazers head coach Don Hay are spending this weekend at the Kamloops Coaches Conference.

Tweetoftheday

Hay may be retired from Blazers, but he’s not done . . . What next in Kamloops? . . . Little Montreal days a distant memory

Don Hay is many things . . . father . . . grandfather . . . runner . . . a man who works out regularly . . . proud Kamloopsian . . . an icon in the community . . .

One thing he isn’t is retired.

Oh, he may be done as the head coach of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, but it’s obvious he doesn’t feel that his coaching career is done.

That became evident Friday morning as Hay read a prepared statement and then answered questions from the media vultures outside the Blazers’ dressing room.

Less than 24 hours earlier, Tom Gaglardi, the majority owner of the WHL franchise, had

DonHay
Don Hay, as the head coach of the Kamloops Blazers, talks with the media after a game earlier this season. (Photo: Gregg Drinnan)

announced that Hay had decided to retire. Gaglardi also said that once he learned of Hay’s decision — as incredible as it sounds, Gaglardi didn’t speak to Hay— the owners decided to move out general manager Stu MacGregor, lead assistant coach Mike Needham and Matt Recchi, the director of player personnel, as well.

Hay completed the fourth season of his second stint as the Blazers’ head coach in March. His first stint, with the Blazers’ then under  community ownership, included a couple of Memorial Cup titles. His second stint, under private ownership headed up by Gaglardi, didn’t go nearly as well.

In fact, the Blazers experienced two first-round playoff exits and two non-playoff seasons during Hay’s most-recent stop. This season, they lost their first nine games and weren’t able to dig out of that hole.

Between the end of the season, during which Hay never once indicated that he was the least bit interested in retirement, and Gaglardi’s announcement, Hay spent a month as the head coach of the Canadian under-18 team that played in the IIHF World Championship in Chelyabinsk and Magnitogorsk, Russia. Does that sound like something a career coach would do just before retiring?

Also, do you really think that Hay, who turned 64 on Feb. 13, wants to go out on the kind of season his team had in 2017-18?

No. No. No . . . just no to everything.

At one point on Friday, Hay was asked: “Do you think cleaning house is the right way to go?”

Hay replied: “I don’t know if that is a good question to ask somebody who just got let go, so, you know . . . who just made the decision to move or go to a different role.”

Whether that was a slip of the tongue or a look into what really went on, Hay, who has more regular-season and playoff victories than any coach in WHL history, isn’t retired. OK?

What he is right now, more than anything, is confused. That is what showed through on Friday.

He appeared to be confused and hurt by the fact that his decision to walk away from the Blazers’ bench apparently resulted in ownership clearing out three other people.

It seems that Hay had conversations with Don Moores, the franchise’s president, COO and alternate governor. (Moores, once a shareholder in the community-owned team, spoke out against the sale of the franchise in 2006 and 2007, then joined the front office two summers ago.) Moores obviously reported to Gaglardi, one thing led to another, and Hay’s decision led to three other departures.

MacGregor is gone after having completed three seasons in his second turn as general manager. He replaced Craig Bonner six games into the 2015-16 season and now, like Bonner, has had a soft landing on the Dallas Stars’ scouting staff. The Stars, of course, are owned by Gaglardi.

The Blazers also dumped Needham, who had been on the coaching staff, in either a part-time or full-time role, since 2010. Needham — wink! wink! — has been told that he can apply for the head-coaching position or the assistant’s spot from which he was just deposed.

Recchi spent 10 seasons as the director of player personnel. He is the brother of Mark Recchi, who is one of the four ex-Blazers in Gaglardi’s ownership group, the others being Shane Doan, Jarome Iginla and Darryl Sydor.

Hay will remain with the Blazers as an advisor, which is the same thing they did with Guy Charron after his first go-round as head coach.

I would suggest that Hay likely saw some writing on the wall and chose to walk away from the Blazers’ bench. I’m sure he is aware that this is an ownership group that has been stumbling around like a thirsty man in the Serengeti for the better part of 11 years. I’m sure Hay knows that the Blazers haven’t drafted well and that there isn’t a light at the end of the tunnel. At this stage of his career, he has to know that there are a lot of different places to coach if he wants to continue, and he does. He also knows that the ownership group’s dream of playing host to the 2020 Memorial Cup tournament is a pipe dream, so that didn’t figure in any part  of his decision.

In an interview with Jon Keen, the radio voice of the Blazers, Gaglardi said: “I think we have failed in all three facets. We haven’t coached well enough, we haven’t drafted well enough and we haven’t managed well enough . . . and I guess by extension, we haven’t owned well enough.”

No, they haven’t owned well enough. Not even close. And this is on ownership. All of it. The whole mess.

This goes back to when these guys bought the franchise. In 11 seasons under this ownership group, the Blazers have missed the playoffs four teams and lost out in the first round on five occasions. They have been beaten in the second round once and made it to the Western Conference final once.

This ownership group has burned through eight head coaches, nine if you count both of Charron’s turns. Dean Clark, Greg Hawgood, Barry Smith, Scott Ferguson, Charron, Dave Hunchak, Mark Ferner, Charron (again), and Hay. Hawgood, Ferguson and Ferner were interim head coaches, signalling midseason coaching changes.

None of those coaches has moved to a higher level. At least five of them, including Hay, aren’t even coaching, at least not now.

There has been a distinct lack of excitement around the organization, which didn’t even hold a news conference when Hay returned to Kamloops after a 10-season run as head coach of the Vancouver Giants.

What must happen now is that these owners have to find a general manager who has no loyalties to anyone in the organization, and who is prepared to make like he is taking over an expansion franchise. Yes, it’s time to start over, to rebuild this organization from the ground up.

How sad are things in Kamloops, whose WHL franchise once was so successful that the city was known in hockey circles as Little Montreal?

Had you visited the Blazers’ website on Friday evening, more than 24 hours after Gaglardi announced the purge, you would have discovered that Don Hay is the team’s head coach, and Stu MacGregor is the general manager, and Mike Needham is an assistant coach, and Matt Recchi is the director of player personnel.

Embarrassing? Yes. Sad? For sure. But that seems to be the way of the Kamloops Blazers these days.

Vipers’ owner dies at 68 … WHL hits two GMs with fines … Raiders guarantee win over Broncos

MacBeth

F Brady Ramsay (Lethbridge, 2010-14) has signed a contract for the rest of this season with the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite). He started the season with the Sheffield Steelers (England, UK Elite), scoring one goal and adding four assists in 13 games. He was released by the Steelers on Dec. 5.

A LITTLE OF THIS . . .

The hockey community is in mourning today following the death of Duncan Wray, the longtime owner of the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers. Wray, who had owned the franchise since 1992, died suddenly Thursday morning, which happened to be his 68th birthday. . . . Besides owning the Vipers, Wray also was the chairman of the BCHL’s board of governors. . . . It was just on Saturday when the Vipers and Prince George Spruce Kings played the final game in the history of Vernon’s Civic Arena. Prior to the game, Wray had, according to Roger Knox of the Vernon Morning Star, “received a loud ovation” when he was introduced to the crowd. . . . Former Vipers head coach Troy Mick too Knox: “This is the saddest day of my life. Part of my heart feels ripped out. I haven’t stopped crying since this morning.” . . . Knox’s story is right here.

The WHL’s disciplinary office added to its coffers on Thursday, having fined a couple of its general managers.

Peter Anholt of the Lethbridge Hurricanes got touched for $750 “for actions following” a whlJan. 5 game against the visiting Vancouver Giants, who won that contest, 5-2.

Stu MacGregor of the Kamloops Blazers will be $500 lighter after being fined “for actions following” a game against the visiting the Spokane Chiefs on Sunday night. The Blazers won that game, 2-1.

Meanwhile, two players have drawn three-game suspensions.

D Matthew Benson of the Moose Jaw Warriors will sit out after taking a headshot major and game misconduct in a game against the host Edmonton Oil Kings on Saturday.

F Max James of the Tri-City Americans got hit with three games after he took a charging major and game misconduct for a hit during a game against the host Everett Silvertips on Wednesday night.

The Swift Current Broncos, having gone all-in at the WHL trade deadline, are hoping their fans will follow suit at the box office. The team announced Thursday that it is selling SCBroncospro-rated season tickets — prices are based on the number of regular-season home games remaining — through Jan. 31.

Season-ticket holders, of course, also have the first option on their seats for the 2018 playoffs. As well, should the Broncos have 2,100 season tickets sold by Jan. 31 — they went over 2,000 on Thursday — they will be giving away one free 2017-18 season ticket during each of the last 10 home regular-season games.

According to Dianne Sletten, the team’s director of business operations, “We’ve sold (more than) 250 season tickets this week and are thrilled to see an electric atmosphere as we push forward.”

The Broncos are at home Saturday when they entertain the Edmonton Oil Kings. Three of the Broncos — D Tyler Steenbergen, Canada’s golden boy, D Artyom Minulin (Russia) and F Aleksi Heponiemi (Finland) — will be saluted for having played in the WJC in Buffalo.

The Swift Current Broncos are scheduled to play their first game since the trade deadline tonight against the host Prince Albert Raiders.

What makes this game noteworthy is that the Raiders, who are 19th in the 22-team PrinceAlbertWHL’s overall standings, have guaranteed a victory over the No. 2 Broncos.

Yes, they have!

“Here’s how it works,” reads a Raiders’ news release. “After we beat Swift Current, we’ll all be happy. To be honest, we don’t think we’re going to lose.

“In the small chance that the Broncos pull off a miracle, here’s what we’ll do. We’ll hand out ticket vouchers to all fans in attendance on the way out. Each fan can bring that voucher, as well as the used game ticket from Friday night, to the Raiders box office on Saturday, Jan. 13, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., and redeem it for a free ticket to Saturday night’s game against the Moose Jaw Warriors.”

After the Raiders post the victory, they will trail the Broncos by 21 points.

On the subject of players having returned from the WJC, the Kelowna Rockets honoured D Cal Foote and F Dillon Dube prior to a 7-4 victory over the visiting Spokane Chiefs on Wednesday night. Both played for Canada in Buffalo, with Dube serving as team captain. . . . Unfortunately, Dube wasn’t in attendance on Wednesday, as a flu bug kept him out of action.

Meanwhile, the Portland Winterhawks welcomed back F Kieffer Bellows (U.S.) and D Henri Jokiharju (Finland) on Thursday. Both players are expected to play tonight (Friday) in Kennewick, Wash., against the Tri-City Americans. The Americans should have D Jake Bean, who also played for Canada, in their lineup tonight, too. Bean was acquired by the Americans from the Calgary Hitmen earlier in the week. He arrived in Kennewick on Thursday.

The Tri-City Americans have signed F Blake Stevenson, 16, to a WHL contract. Stevenson has five goals and three assists in 27 games with the AJHL’s Calgary Canucks and will remain there for the remainder of this season. Last season, he had 23 goals and 32 assists for the minor midget AAA CNHA Canucks. . . . The Americans selected him in the fourth round of the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft.

The Saskatoon Blades have released F Dryden Michaud, 19, and he has joined the BCHL’s Surrey Eagles. From Maple Ridge, B.C., Michaud had two goals and two assists in 29 games this season. Last season, he had one goal in 29 games with the Blades.

The Saskatoon Blades have added F Tristen Robins and F Kyle Crnkovic to their roster for a three-game road trip that features stops in Red Deer on Saturday, Cranbrook, B.C., on SaskatoonSunday, and Calgary on Tuesday. . . . Robins, who turned 16 on Nov. 15, is from Brandon and plays at the Rink Hockey Academy in Winnipeg. He is the son of former Blades G Trevor Robins. Tristen was acquired from the Regina Pats earlier in the week. They had selected him in the fourth round of the 2016 bantam draft. . . . Crnkovic, the Blades’ first-round pick in the 2017 bantam draft, played two WHL games earlier this season. He is playing for the Northern Alberta X-Treme prep team in the CSSHL. . . . The Blades won’t have F Kirby Dach on this trip. Dach, who is to turn 17 on Jan. 21, has four goals and 19 assists in 23 games. However, he hasn’t played since Dec. 27 and is sidelined on a weekly basis with an undisclosed injury.

F Ian Briscoe, 18, who was released by the Seattle Thunderbirds, has signed with the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings. Briscoe, from Winnipeg, had three assists in 24 games this season. Last season, he had two goals in 20 games. He also played 22 games with Dauphin last season, recording six goals and 10 assists. . . . Seattle selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 bantam draft.

The Moose Jaw Warriors have dropped D Brenden Kwiatkowski, 17, from their roster. He is expected to join the AJHL’s Grande Prairie Storm. Kwiatkowski, who is from Grande Prairie, had one assist in 22 games with the Warriors.

If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).

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Scoreboard

THURSDAY:

No Games Scheduled.

FRIDAY (all times local):

Edmonton at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.

Swift Current at Prince Albert, 7 p.m.

Medicine Hat at Regina, 7 p.m.

Calgary at Brandon, 7:30 p.m.

Lethbridge at Red Deer, 7 p.m.

Prince George at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.

Portland vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.

Kamloops at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.

Kelowna vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.

TWEET OF THE DAY