Tom Cadieux – TAKING NOTE

Evason: ‘He’s from Manitoba. Right?’ . . . Ice completes doubleheader sweep of Rebels . . . Four WHLers enjoy five-point nights

There was a rather funny moment during Wednesday night’s NHL game Wild between the visiting Minnesota Wild and Anaheim Ducks. . . . Wild F Connor Dewar, a product of the Everett Silvertips who is a native of The Pas, Man., got into a second-period scrap with D Nathan Beaulieu. . . . A few minutes later, Darren Pang, who was the TNT reporter at ice level, chatted with Wild head coach Dean Evason. “Young kid fighting, too . . . gotta like that,” Pang said. . . . Evason, who wears intensity like a fitted suit, smiled as much as he ever does during a game and replied: “He’s from Manitoba. Right?” . . . Evason, former WHL player and coach, was born in Flin Flon and grew up in Brandon. . . . Dewar let set up former WHL D Matt Dumba for what turned out to be the game-winner in a feisty 4-1 victory.

THE WHL ON WEDNESDAY . . .

The Winnipeg Ice ran their winning streak to 12 games with a 7-4 victory over WinnipegIce the visiting Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Rebels arrived in Winnipeg riding a season-opening 15-game winning streak. The Ice beat them, 3-1, on Tuesday, then completed the doubleheader sweep last night. . . . While Winnipeg improved to 17-1-0, Red Deer now is 15-2-0. . . . The Ice took control early, scoring four times before the first period was 16 minutes old. . . . The Ice, which was 4-5 on the PP, got two goals and three assists from F Owen Pederson, two and two from F Connor McClennon, and two and one from Skyler Bruce. . . . Pederson, who enjoyed his first career five-point night, has nine goals and 19 assists in 18 games. . . .

F Borya Valis scored three times and added an assist, and F Connor Bedard had five points in leading the host Regina Pats to a 7-4 victory over the Edmonton Regina Oil Kings. . . . F Marshall Finnie pulled Edmonton into a 2-2 tie at 10:51 of the second period, but Regina scored the next five goals with Bedard scoring once and setting up three others. He finished with a goal and four assists in running his point streak to 16 games. . . . This was Bedard’s second five-pointer in three games; he has three goals and nine assists in the three games. He also had two five-point outings last season. . . . Bedard leads the WHL in assists (22) and points (36). His 14 goals are one behind the leaders (F Kai Uchacz of the Red Deer Rebels and F Koehn Ziemmer of the Prince George Cougars). . . . Valis, an 18-year-old sophomore from Boulder, Colo., enjoyed his first career hat trick and his first four-point outing. He has eight goals and seven assists in 15 games. . . . Edmonton F Luca Hauf, an 18-year-old freshman from Krefeld, Germany, had had goal and two assists. . . . The Pats improved to 8-8-1; Edmonton now is 2-14-1. . . . F Zane Rowan, an 18-year-old from Torrence, Calif., was back in Regina’s lineup after not playing since Sept. 29. . . . F Zack Shantz, 17, made his Regina debut after being acquired from the Prince George Cougars in a Nov. 4 deal that had F Cole Dubinsky, 20, go the other way. . . .

In Lethbridge, the Hurricanes scored the game’s first two goals and hung on for a 2-1 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . The Hurricanes (9-8-1) have points in five straight (4-0-1). . . . The Raiders (4-12-2) have lost three in a row. . . . Lethbridge got goals from F Tyson Laventure and D Joe Arntsen, the latter providing a 2-0 lead at 6:12 of the third period. . . . C Carson Latimer got the Raiders to within a goal at 16:57. . . . G Harrison Meneghin stopped 21 shots for Lethbridge. . . .

F Reid Schaefer’s 14th goal of the season, at 1:24 of OT, gave the Seattle Seattle Thunderbirds a 2-1 victory over the Blazers in Kamloops. . . . F Caedan Bankier had given the Blazers a 1-0 lead at 18:26 of the first period. . . . F Sam Popowich pulled Seattle even with a shorthanded goal at 1:19 of the second. . . . Seattle (11-3-0) had lost its previous two games. . . . Kamloops (7-4-3) has lost two in a row. . . . Kamloops F Logan Stankoven drew an assist to run his point streak to 10 games. He has 21 points, 10 of them goals, in that stretch. . . . G Thomas Milic stopped 38 shots for the visitors, including a stop on a Stankoven penalty shot attempt in OT. . . . D Luke Prokop, 20, who was added to Seattle’s roster on Tuesday, was in the starting lineup, but the Thunderbirds remain without F Jared Davidson. . . .

F Adam Kydd scored three times and added two assists to help the Kelowna Kelowna Rockets to a wild 8-6 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . It was the first WHL three-goal game — and first five-pointer, too — for Kydd, who has eight goals. . . . F Andrew Cristall drew five assists for the Rockets, who held leads of 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 3-1, 4-3, 5-3, 6-5, 7-6 and, finally, 8-6. . . . F Rilen Kovacevic snapped a 6-6 tie at 16:44 of the third period and F Colton Dach added the empty-netter, his second goal of the game. . . . Cristall has 27 points, including 11 goals, in 14 games this season. This was his second five-point outing; he had two goals and three assists in an 8-4 victory over the visiting Vancouver Giants on April 9. . . . F Riley Heidt had four assists for the Cougars, who got two goals and an assist from each of F Chase Wheatcroft and F Koehn Ziemmer. . . . Kelowna (6-7-1) has won two in a row; Prince George (9-8-0) had a three-game winning streak ended. . . . F Cole Dubinsky, 20, who was acquired from Regina on Nov. 4, was in the Cougars’ lineup for the first time. He scored once and added an assist.

Sewer

Allen Lazard, a receiver with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers, suffered a shoulder injury in a game with the Washington Commanders this season. He explains the feeling: “A pop, a crack — snap, crackle, pop. Three Rice Krispies men showed up, too. Not the good kind. All three of them.”

Dennis Williams, the head coach of the Everett Silvertips, will be the head coach HockeyCanada of Team Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championship. . . . The tournament is to open on Dec. 26 in Halifax and Moncton. . . . Williams was an assistant coach on the 2022 Canadian team that won a gold medal in Edmonton. . . . Canada’s assistant coaches will be Stephane Julien of the QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Phoenix, Brent Kisio of the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Alan Legant of the OHL’s Sarnia Sting. . . . Kelly Guard of the Prince Albert Raiders will serve as the goaltending consultant. . . . While Hockey Canada hasn’t yet announced a selection camp roster, that camp is scheduled to be held in Moncton, from Dec. 9-12.

Congratulations to California voters for a couple of decisions they made on Tuesday. Here’s Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle:

“Two California ballot props that would have legalized and expanded sports wagering went down in flames.

“Our lovable state remained the largest market in America closed to legal sports betting. We overwhelmingly rejected the promised riches that would have come from allowing casinos and racetracks to offer in-person sports betting (Prop. 26), and from allowing online and mobile sports betting for adults (Prop. 27). For some reason, we don’t trust people in the gambling industry when they say, ‘Trust us.’ ”

“The Brooklyn Nets’ Kevin Durant — who called for coach Steve Nash’s ouster last summer — said he was ‘shocked’ when Nash was fired last week,” notes Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times. “Somewhere, Steve Urkel is giggling.”

Morgue

JUNIOR JOTTINGS:

The Kamloops Blazers have acquired 2004-born F Shea Van Olm from the Edmonton Oil Kings for a conditional seventh-round selection in the WHL’s 2024 draft. . . . Van Olm, from Calgary, was a fourth-round pick by the Oil Kings in the 2019 draft. This season, he has two goals and an assist in 16 games. . . . In 74 games over three seasons, Van Olm had 10 goals and seven assists with Edmonton. . . . Van Olm didn’t play for the Blazers last night against the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds. . . .

The Vancouver Giants have made an adjustment to their 20-year-old situation. They have signed D Dylan Anderson, while releasing D Tom Cadieux, who had been one of their alternate captains. . . . Anderson, from Langley, B.C., started this season with the BCHL’s Salmon Arm Silverbacks after spending three seasons with the Everett Silvertips. . . . He totalled five goals and 26 assists in 143 regular-season games with Everett. Last season, he put up three goals and 17 assists in 62 games. . . . Cadieux, from Saskatoon, also has played with the Tri-City Americans and Regina Pats. In 179 regular-season games, he has six goals and 27 assists. This season, in 11 games, he earned three assists. . . . The Giants had acquired Cadieux from Regina on Jan. 17, surrendering a 2022 fifth-round WHL draft pick and a third in 2023. . . .

G Keegan Maddocks, 19, has joined the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He had been with the Winnipeg Ice before being released on Oct. 27. . . . Maddocks also has made WHL stops with the Victoria Royals and Kamloops Blazers. . . .

If you were wondering, the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, who are 16-0-0 to open the season, next are scheduled to play Friday when the Vernon Vipers (7-7-2) are to visit. On Saturday, the Vees are to face the host Trail Smoke Eaters (7-8-1). . . . It’s worth noting that the Vees closed out last season by winning their last 16 playoff games. . . . Yes, Penticton has won its last 32 games.

Keith

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Or, for more information, visit right here.

Unsub

Beyak chooses to end things on his terms . . . Revisiting two epic WHL comebacks . . . Oil Kings end Hurricanes’ season

Special treat at tonight’s @SeattleKraken game. Four and a half years ago Christine rode on the @pdxwinterhawks Fanboni with me prior to open heart surgery. Tonight I met up with Christine and her dad at @ClimateArena. And she still has the stuffie I gave her for luck! pic.twitter.com/VbFbEB0ZH2

— Rich Franklin (@RichFranklin66) April 28, 2022

Rich Franklin spent time in the front office of the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks and now is an executive with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. . . . The above tweet is from the Kraken’s home game on Wednesday night and I have to tell you that it warms my heart.

A message from @TSN_Sports regarding Dennis Beyak: pic.twitter.com/cuaPiK5Hdq

— TSN PR (@TSN_PR) April 28, 2022

Dennis Beyak, one of hockey’s best play-by-play voices, has decided to partially retire when this season is over, something that will happen for him on Sunday. Beyak has been the voice of the Winnipeg Jets on TSN since 2011. Unfortunately, because of blackout regulations, a lot of hockey fans likely have never heard him call an NHL game. . . . Beyak, who turned 70 on Nov. 23, will call his final Jets’ game on Sunday afternoon when they meet the visiting Seattle Kraken. . . . Thankfully, we will be able to hear him on occasion as TSN plans on giving him some international assignments. His work on many World Junior Championship games that don’t involve Team Canada has been terrific. . . . Here’s hoping he’s on the call for some games from the WJC in Edmonton in August. . . .

If you aren’t aware, Beyak is a former WHL play-by-play man and also a former WHL executive. . . . He began his play-by-play career at CFAR in Flin Flon in 1970 as the voice of the Bombers at a salary of $57.50 per week. He would go on to call the play for the Saskatoon Blades, Victoria Cougars and Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . He had stints in management, too, as the Blades’ assistant general manager and as GM of the Seattle Thunderbirds and Tri-City Americans. . . . He also has been the play-by-play voice of the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs. . . .

Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun wrote that Beyak explained his decision this way: “When I turned 70, I started to think about this, about how much longer I wanted to do this. I always wanted to kind of go out while I was still able to do it. I didn’t want to get to the point where I was questioning myself — should I have done it earlier?” . . .

Oh, and did I mention that he is an excellent emcee, who could have been a standup comedian?

Weight

Only two teams in WHL history have fallen behind 0-3 and gone on to win a best-of-seven series — the 1995-96 Spokane Chiefs and the 2012-13 Kelowna Rockets.

Let’s take a brief look back, shall we . . .

The Chiefs completed the 1995-96 regular season with a 50-18-4 record — that Spokane four denotes ties (remember them?). They wound up atop the seven-team West Division. The Portland Winterhawks, meanwhile, finished in sixth place, at 30-39-3.

The series opened in Spokane with games on March 22 and 23, and the Winterhawks skated to 3-2 (OT) and 7-4 victories. They won the opener on F Brad Isbister’s goal at 6:23 of OT, then got three goals and two assists from F Richard Zednik in Game 2.

Playing at home on March 26, Portland got two goals and two assists from Todd Robinson, with Zednik chipping in two goals and an assist, in a 6-4 victory. And just like that the Winterhawks led the series, 3-0.

But one night later the Chiefs got out to a 4-1 lead before the first period was 13 minutes old and went on to a 5-3 victory. F Darren Sinclair and F Jason Podollan each scored twice for the visitors.

Back in Spokane on March 29, G David Lemanowicz turned aside 34 shots as the Chiefs won, 5-0. Podollan had three goals and an assist, giving him six scores in the five games.

The series headed back to Portland for Game 6 and the Chiefs won, 4-3, to get back on equal footing. After Spokane F Joe Cardarelli tied it on a PP with his second goal of the game, and fourth of the series, at 19:29 of the third period, the teams went into double OT before deciding it. It ended when F Randy Favaro struck for his first goal at 3:50.

On April 3, the Chiefs, playing at home, wrapped up the series with a 4-3 victory. Again, the teams went to OT, with Sinclair winning it 58 seconds into extra time.

The Chiefs went on to eliminate the Kamloops Blazers in six games, then would lose the WHL championship final to the Brandon Wheat Kings in five games. Only one of Spokane’s last 11 playoff games needed OT.

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In 2012-13, the Rockets finished with a 52-16-4 record, good for second place Kelowna in the Western Conference, while the Seattle Thunderbirds wound up 24-38-10 and in seventh place.

Their seven-game series would feature five games that needed extra time to decide a winner.

The first two games were played in Kelowna with the Thunderbirds winning twice in OT — 5-4 on a goal by F Luke Lockhart at 19:09 and 2-1 when F Alex Delnov scored at 2:41.

The series then headed for Kent, Wash., where Seattle won Game 3, 3-2, scoring the game’s last three goals and winning when D Evan Wardley counted at 4:55 of OT. That left the Thunderbirds with what appeared to be a commanding 3-0 lead.

The Rockets started the long road back on March 27, winning 4-0 in Kent, behind two goals and an assist from F Tyson Baillie, a goal and two assists from F Zach Franko, and 25 saves from G Jordan Cooke.

They played Game 5 three nights later in Kelowna, with the Rockets building a 4-1 lead and hanging on to win, 4-3, as Seattle counted twice in the game’s last minute.

Then it was back to Kent for an April 2 game that the Rockets won, 4-3 in OT, to tie the series, 3-3. Game 6 was bizarre in that the first six goals all were scored in the first period. Lockhart’s third goal of the series gave Seattle a 3-1 lead at 9:23. Kelowna tied it on goals from F Tyrell Goulbourne (14:56) and F Cody Fowlie (16:20). The Rockets, who held a 59-43 edge in shots, won it when D Myles Bell got his fourth goal of the series at 10:39 of OT.

The very next night the series ended in Kelowna as the Rockets completed their remarkable comeback with a 3-2 victory and, yes, it took overtime.

Wardley gave Seattle a 1-0 lead at 9:04 of the second period. The Rockets grabbed a 2-1 lead on two goals from Baillie — his fifth and sixth of the series — at 9:17 of the second period and 13:09 of the third. Lockhart’s fourth goal in seven games tied it at 19:53. That left it for Baillie to complete his hat trick at 5:10 of OT. Baillie finished the series with seven goals and five assists.

The Rockets moved onto the second round where they were swept by the Kamloops Blazers. The last two games of that series needed OT, meaning Kelowna went into extra time in seven of its 11 playoff games that spring.

Tickets for game 1 of the playoffs in Torontolololol pic.twitter.com/MqP7tHvvQv

— Steve McLean (@SteveMcLean888) April 28, 2022

THURSDAY IN THE WHL:

There was one playoff game last night, and there are six on tap tonight. While the Edmonton Oil Kings completed a sweep of the host Lethbridge Hurricanes last night, four more teams — the Kelowna Rockets, Prince Albert Raiders, Saskatoon Blades and Spokane Chiefs — will face elimination on tonight’s six-game schedule. . . . Here’s a brief look at last night’s game . . .

Eastern Conference

In Lethbridge, F Josh Williams broke a 4-4 tie late in the third period and the Edmonton Oil Kings went on to a 6-4 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . The Oil Kings won the series, 4-0, and now await a second-round opponent. . . . F Justin Hall (1) pulled the Hurricanes into a 4-4 tie at 15:17 of the third period. Williams scored his first goal of the series just 40 seconds later. . . . F Jakub Demek (1) iced it with the empty-netter. . . . Edmonton held a 47-17 edge in shots. . . . F Dylan Guenther scored Edmonton’s first goal, giving him one in each of the four games. . . . The Hurricanes took all four of the game’s minor penalties and surrendered two PP goals. . . . The Hurricanes join Prince George on the outside looking in after the Cougars were swept by the Portland Winterhawks on Wednesday night.

JUNIOR JOTTINGS: The Vancouver Giants will be without D Tom Cadieux and F Matthew Edwards when they entertain the Everett Silvertips in Game 4 of their first-round series tonight in Langley, B.C. Each player drew a one-game suspension for indiscretions in Game 3. The Silvertips hold a 2-1 edge in the series. Game 5 is scheduled for Everett on Saturday. . . . Steve Ewen of Postmedia has an advancer for tonight’s game right here, including a few words about how things are heating up between the two head coaches. . . .

The AJHL’s Drayton Valley Thunder has named Sean Brown the interim general manager and head coach. He has been operating his hockey development business, Breakout Hockey, but joined the Thunder earlier as assistant GM/assistant coach. The Thunder announced Wednesday that Eric Thurston was out as GM/head coach after four seasons. . . .

Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks, N.D., Herald tweets that “Scott Langer is out after one season” as head coach of the USHL’s Fargo Force. According to Schlossman, “The top candidate to replace him will be SCSU assistant Nick Oliver, a highly regarded young coach who played for the Force.”

Cops

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.

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