And then there were seven. . . . Yes, what once was a field of 16 WHL playoff teams is down to seven following the departure of the Red Deer Rebels on 
Wednesday night. The Edmonton Oil Kings now are 8-0 in these playoffs after completing a sweep of the Rebels with a 4-2 victory in Red Deer last night. . . . The Oil Kings await the winner of the other Eastern Conference semifinal in which the Winnipeg Ice holds a 3-1 lead over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . .
In the Western Conference, the No. 4 Seattle Thunderbirds scored a 5-0 victory over the No. 3 Winterhawks in Portland. The Winterhawks hold a 2-1 lead in the semifinal with the next game in Kent, Wash., on Friday. . . .
There is one game scheduled for tonight and it features the other Western Conference semifinal with the No. 2 Kamloops Blazers, holding a 2-1 edge, facing the No. 8 Vancouver Giants in Langley, B.C. The host Giants won, 3-2, on Tuesday night.
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WEDNESDAY IN THE WHL:
Eastern Conference
In Moose Jaw, the No. 1 Winnipeg Ice rode three second-period goals to a 5-3 victory over the No. 4 Warriors. . . . The Ice holds a 3-1 edge in the conference semifinal. They’ll play Game 5 in Winnipeg on Friday night. . . . F Mikey Milne (8) got Winnipeg started at 16:28 of the first period, only to have F Jagger Firkus (5) tie it at 18:57. . . . The Ice took a 3-1 lead on two quick goals early in the second period, as F Jack Finley (6), at 6:45, and F Owen Pederson (5), on a PP, at 7:20, found the range. . . .Firkus (6), who also had an assist, cut into that lead, on a PP, at 13:09, but F Matt Savoie (4) got that one back just 29 seconds later. . . . F Cole Muir (1) stretched Winnipeg’s lead to 5-2 at 3:55 of the third period. . . . Moose Jaw D Majid Kaddoura (2) rounded out the scoring at 11:22. . . . Finley has goals in five straight games during which time he has totalled six goals and four assists. . . . F Ryder Korczak had three assists for Moose Jaw. . . . G Daniel Hauser stopped 30 shots for the Ice, four more than Moose Jaw’s Jackson Unger. . . . The Warriors were without F Robert Baco, who was hit with a TBD suspension after taking a charging major and game misconduct in Game 3. . . .
In Red Deer, the No. 2 Edmonton Oil Kings unleashed a 51-shot attack as they beat the No. 3 Rebels to complete a sweep of their conference semifinal. . . . The Oil Kings, who led 1-0 after the first period, took control with two goals 31 seconds apart in the first minute of the second. . . . F Jalen Luypen (3) had scored at 15:51 of the first period. Then F Dylan Guenther (8), scored eight seconds into the second and F Carter Souch (5) made it 3-0 at 0:39. . . . F Jhett Larson (3) pulled the Rebels to within two at 8:20, but Guenther (9) stretched the lead to three at 18:34. . . . D Blake Gustafson (2) got a shorthanded score for the Rebels at 13:47 of the third period. . . . Guenther also had an assist for a three-point outing. He’s got 12 points in eight playoff games. . . . The Oil Kings held a 42-10 edge in shots through two periods. . . . G Sebastian Cossa turned aside 14 shots for Edmonton. In these playoffs, he is 8-0, 1.48, .932. . . . The Rebels got 47 stops from G Connor Ungar.
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Western Conference
In Portland, F Lukas Svejkovsky scored once and added three assists, and G Thomas Milic turned aside 28 shots, leading the No. 4 Seattle Thunderbirds to a 5-0 victory over the Winterhawks. . . . This was the Winterhawks’ first loss in seven playoff games this spring. . . . Portland holds a 2-1 lead in the conference semifinal. This series is following a 1-2-1-1-1-1 format. They return to Kent, Wash., for Game 4 on Friday. . . . F Jared Davidson (5) gave Seattle a 1-0 lead at 6:14 of the first period, the third time in three games that the Thunderbirds opened the scoring. . . . Svejkovsky (5) scored at 5:29 of the second period, and F Conner Roulette (1), on a PP, made it 3-0 at 7:29 of the third. . . . Seattle added two empty-netters, from Davidson (6), who also had an assist, and F Lucas Ciona (5). . . . Milic, who had three shutouts in the regular-season, posted his second of these playoffs. He is 5-3, 1.82, .929. . . . Seattle was 1-for-4 on the PP; Portland was 0-for-3. . . .
As an interesting aside to this series, it seems that Dan Leckelt, one of the Thunderbirds’ owners, wasn’t enthralled with the officiating in Game 1, a 4-2 victory by visiting Portland, on Friday night.
He retweeted a tweet by a fan that read: “The reffing in this game has been disgusting. Our boys have been absolutely molested with no calls, yet they (bleeping) call a soft penalty on us in a tied game with 4 (bleeping) minutes left. #whlrefssuck”
Portland D Clay Hanus broke a 2-2 tie on a PP at 16:21 of the third period.
Leckelt later tweeted: “Development leagues need to develop more than players.” He may or may not have been referring to the WHL. What do you think?
JUNIOR JOTTINGS: F Riley Kidney scored at 16:14 of the third OT period to give the Acadie-Bathurst Titan a 4-3 victory over the host Halifax Mooseheads on Wednesday night. It was the third-longest game in QMJHL history. . . . The Titan held a 72-46 edge in shots. . . . Halifax won the first two games of the best-of-five series on the road, but now has lost twice at home. The deciding game is scheduled for tonight in Bathurst, N.B. . . .
Tim Speltz, the former long-time general manager and governor of the Spokane Chiefs, is the latest recipient of the WHL’s Governors Award. According to the WHL, this is the “highest honour” that it “bestows on an individual who has been associated with the league.” . . . Speltz was the Chiefs’ GM for 26 years before leaving the join the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs as director of western area scouting in 2016. He was promoted to head of amateur scouting in 2018 and filled the role for three years. He now is the general manager of the Henderson Silver Knights, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights. . . .
Brett Smith announced via Twitter on Wednesday that he has left the Prince Albert Raiders. The team’s manager of communications and community relations, Smith had been with the Raiders for six years. . . .
The Dauphin Kings won the Turnbull Cup as champions of the MJHL on Wednesday night, scoring a 2-1 victory over the host Steinbach Pistons in Game 7 of the final series. F Brayden Dube broke a 1-1 tie at 11:33 of the third period. . . . Dube, 16, is from Roblin, Man. He was a second-round selection by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the WHL’s 2020 draft and has signed with them. . . . The Kings, who last won the MJHL title in 2010, will represent the league at the Centennial Cup tournament that opens next week in Estevan, Sask. . . .
Rylan Ferster is the new general manager and head coach of the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. The team announced on Twitter earlier this week that Craig Didmon wouldn’t be back after 12 years with the organization. His contract expired and wasn’t renewed. . . . Ferster, who has spent the past two seasons working with the Philadelphia Hockey Club, previously has coached in Victoria. He spent two seasons (2004-06) as head coach of the BCHL’s Salsa and, after a regime change, spent 2006-07 as the Grizzlies’ head coach.
From The New York Times: Bill Gates, who has donated millions to pandemic relief efforts, tested positive for the coronavirus, he said on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, in the world of MLB, the Cleveland Guardians were to have played against the host Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. But the virus had other ideas. From MLB: “Following multiple positive COVID-19 tests within the Guardians organization, their game vs. the White Sox has been postponed to allow for continued testing and contact tracing.”
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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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.
teams getting back into their playoff series. . . . In Moose Jaw, the Warriors got past the Winnipeg Ice, 3-2, while, in Langley, B.C., the Vancouver Giants beat the Kamloops Blazers, also by a 3-2 count. . . . The Ice and Blazers hold 2-1 leads in those conference semifinals. . . .
and went on to beat the No. 1 Winnipeg Ice, 3-2. . . . The Ice leads the series, 2-1, with Game 4 in Moose Jaw tonight. . . . Game 5 is scheduled to be played in Winnipeg on Friday. . . . Last night, the Warriors got 38 saves from G Jackson Unger, who was making his first WHL playoff start. Unger, who turned 17 on Jan. 13, is a Calgarian who got into 18 regular-season games. He has played in all three games of this series, coming on in relief of starter Carl Tetachuk in each of the first two. . . . F Zach Benson (7) gave the Ice a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 3:37 of the first period. . . . The Warriors tied it when F Jagger Firkus (4) scored at 7:48 of the second, and took control with third-period goals from F Eric Alarie (2), who is from Winnipeg, at 3:12, and F Calder Anderson (2), shorthanded, at 9:42. . . . The Ice made things interesting when F Jack Finley (5) got it to within a goal at 19:00. . . . Winnipeg was 1-for-6 on the PP; Moose Jaw was 0-for-2. . . . The Warriors dodged a bullet in the second period when F Robert Baco was ejected with a charging major. . . . The Ice got 28 saves from G Daniel Hauser.
8 Vancouver Giants beat the No. 2 Kamloops Blazers, 3-2. . . . The Blazers lead the series, 2-1, with Game 4 in Langley on Thursday night. They’ll play Game 5 in Kamloops on Friday. . . . This was the Blazers’ first loss in seven games in these playoffs. . . . F Justin Lies (1) put Vancouver out front at 11:55 of the first period. . . . F Fraser Minten (4) got Kamloops even at 9:45 of the second period. . . . Vancouver went back in front at 15:55 as F Ty Thorpe (2) struck, on a PP. . . . The Blazers scored on the PP at 8:38 of the third period with F Drew Englot (3) getting the goal. . . . Cotton’s sixth playoff goal, on a PP at 16:36, stood up as the winner. . . . The Blazers thought perhaps they had scored off a wild scramble with 3.2 seconds left in the third, but the referees didn’t signal a goal and a lengthy video review didn’t produce a goal, either. . . . G Jesper Vikman earned the victory with 34 saves, five more than Dylan Garand of the Blazers. . . . The Giants were 2-for-2 on the PP; the Blazers were 1-for-6. . . . Kamloops F Caeden Bankier had his 16-game point streak come to an end. . . . Kamloops had F Luke Toporowski back in the lineup. He left early in Game 1 with an apparent shoulder injury and sat out Game 2.
first-round NHL playoff series with the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday night. McAvoy had missed Game 4 on Saturday because he had been placed in COVID-19 protocol. He cleared all protocols on Monday in time to play in the game. . . . Interestingly, the Bruins won, 5-2, without him in Boston, on Saturday, then lost, 5-1, with him in the lineup last night in Raleigh. . . .
on the road in Monday’s lone playoff game. Two others have the same opportunity tonight. . . . The Edmonton Oil Kings went into Red Deer last night and beat the Rebels, 5-4 in OT, to take a 3-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. . . . Tonight, the Winnipeg Ice takes a 2-0 lead into Moose Jaw for Game 3 with the Warriors, while the Kamloops Blazers are up 2-0 and in Langley, B.C., to face the Vancouver Giants. . . . The Blazers are likely to be without F Luke Toporowski for a second straight game, while the Giants aren’t likely to have D Mazden Leslie or F Colton Langkow available. Head coach Michael Dyck told Steve Ewen of Postmedia that both players are “doubtful.” All three of those players were injured in Game 1 of this series.
Kings a 5-4 victory over the No. 3 Rebels. . . . The Oil Kings hold a 3-0 lead in the conference semifinal and get their first opportunity to wrap it up on Wednesday night in Red Deer. . . . D Luke Prokop (2) put the visitors out front at 1:55 of the first period. . . . F Liam Keeler (2) scored the Rebels’ first goal of the series — they had been blanked 4-0 and 5-0 in Edmonton — at 9:44, on a PP. . . . The Oil Kings went ahead 3-1 on second-period goals from F Dylan Guenther (7), at 6:32, and F Carter Souch (4), on a PP, at 15:56. . . . Guenther has a goal in each of Edmonton’s seven playoff games. . . . Red Deer got back to within a goal at 18:22 when F Kalan Lind (1) scored. . . . F Justin Sourdif (2) scored while shorthanded, at 7:38 of the third period, to give the visitors a 4-2 lead and really put the home side in a hole. . . . But the Rebels climbed out of it with two goals 36 seconds apart — F Arshdeep Bains (4) scored at 12:50 and F Jhett Larson (2) tied the game at 13:26. . . . Neighbours won it with his first goal of the playoffs, at 7:17 of OT. . . . G Connor Ungar blocked 47 shots for the Rebels, 29 more than Edmonton’s Sebastian Cossa, who drew an assist on Neighbours’ winner. . . . The Rebels went without D Jackson van de Leest who served a one-game suspension under supplemental discipline from Game 2. Also out: G Chase Coward and D Christoffer Sedoff, both with undisclosed injuries.
Man., has one year left on a five-year deal worth US$20 million, so don’t be weeping too long for him. He also is the NHL’s third-winningest regular-season coach of all-time, with 914 victories. Under his guidance, the Islanders reached the NHL’s Final Four twice — in 2020 and 2021. But the Islanders didn’t make the playoffs this season, so Lamoriello pulled the plug on Trotz. . . . “I’d rather not get into any of the reasons because that’s my job upon the information that I have and I experienced to make these type of decisions,” Lamoriello, 79, said during a conference call. . . . Trotz, who played three seasons (1979-82) with the Regina Pats, was the head coach when the Washington Capitals won the Stanley Cup in the spring of 2018. The Capitals later let him go rather than extend his contract. That’s how he ended up with the Islanders. . . .
eight surviving teams were in on the action. When the smoke cleared, three teams, all playing at home, held 2-0 leads in the best-of-seven conference semifinal series. . . . In the other series, the Portland Winterhawks opened with a 4-2 victory over the host Seattle Thunderbirds. They will resume that series today in Portland. This series has a 1-2-1-1-1-1 format. It wasn’t able to open with two in Portland because the Winterhawks’ home arena was busy with grad ceremonies. . . . 
Hauser recorded the shutout as the No. 1 Ice steamrolled the No. 4 Moose Jaw Warriors, 7-0, in Game 2 of their semifinal. . . . The Ice had won the opener, 6-1, on Friday night. . . . The teams now head for Moose Jaw and Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . Finley, who has four goals in these playoffs, struck at 2:49 and 3:35 of the first period. . . . F Connor McClennon (5) made it 3-0, on a PP, at 9:01 and the Ice was off to the races. . . . F Matt Savoie (3), F Mikey Milne (7), F Zach Benson (6) and F Chase Wheatcroft (1) also scored. . . . Savoie and Benson, who also had three assists, scored while shorthanded; Milne struck on a PP.
Kings held serve on home ice with a 5-0 victory over the No. 3 Red Deer Rebels. . . . The series will resume in Red Deer with games on Monday and Wednesday, and with the Rebels still looking for their first goal. They were beaten 4-0 in Thursday’s opener. . . . Wiebe, who played the previous two seasons with Red Deer, opened the scoring with his first playoff goal at 11:45 of the second period. . . . F Dylan Guenther (6) upped the lead to 2-0 at 17:02. . . . F Justin Sourdif (1) counted Edmonton’s third goal on a penalty shot at 2:56 of the third period. . . . F Jakub Demek (2), on a PP, at 7:10, and Wiebe, while shorthanded, at 9:22, completed the scoring. . . . G Sebastian Cossa stopped 26 shots in posting his second straight shutout. In these playoffs, he is 6-0, 1.00, .957, with three shutouts.
a 2-0 lead in their semifinal. . . . Games 3 and 4 are scheduled for Langley, B.C., on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . F Drew Englot (2) gave the home team a 1-0 lead at 11:04 of the first period, but the Giants took a 2-1 lead into the second on goals from D Alex Cotton (5), at 12:49, and D Evan Toth (2), while shorthanded at 19:53. . . . Kamloops responded with three straight second-period goals, from F Connor Levis (2), at 1:21, F Caedan Bankier (3), at 6:41, and F Daylan Kuefler (3), on a PP, at 14:21. . . . Kuefler’s goal turned into the winner after F Ethan Semeniuk (2) pulled the Giants to within one at 15:53. . . . Bankier’s goal ran his point streak to 16 games — 10 to close out the regular season and six playoff games. . . . G Dylan Garand stopped 23 shots for Kamloops, 12 fewer than Vancouver’s Jesper Vikman. . . . Kamloops was 1-for-9 on the PP, with five of those coming in the third period. . . . Vancouver was 0-for-5 after going 0-for-3 in Game 1. When they eliminated the No. 1 Everett Silvertips in six games, Vancouver was 12-for-32 on the PP. . . . The Blazers were missing F Luke Toporowski, who left in the first period of Game 1 with an apparent shoulder injury. . . . The Giants lost D Mazden Leslie and F Colton Langkow to undisclosed injuries in Game 1. Vancouver already was without forwards Payton Mount, Cole Shepard and Jacob Boucher, none of whom travelled to Kamloops. . . . 
breaking a 2-2 tie and sending the Portland Winterhawks on their way to a 4-2 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Game 2 is scheduled for today in Portland, with a third game to be played there on Wednesday. . . . F Jared Davidson (4) gave Seattle a 1-0 lead at 9:28 of the first period. . . . Portland took a 2-1 lead on goals from F Marcus Nguyen (1), at 8:44 of the second period, and F James Stefan (3), at 14:44. . . . F Matthew Rempe (4) pulled Seattle even at 19:00. . . . OT was on the horizon when Hanus scored his first goal of these playoffs, at 16:21 of the third period, on Portland’s fourth PP opportunity. The Winterhawks finished 1-for-4; Seattle was 0-for-1. . . . Portland F Robbie Fromm-Delorme (1) iced it with the empty-netter. . . . G Taylor Gauthier stopped 23 shots for Portland, three more than Seattle’s Thomas Milic.
After taking a couple of nights off, the WHL playoffs resume tonight (Thursday) as the second round gets started with an Eastern Conference matchup — the Red Deer Rebels visiting the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . No, I’m not going to make predictions but I will tell you that the teams met 10 times this season — the Oil Kings were 5-3-2, while the Rebels were 5-5-0. . . . Edmonton had a 34-29 edge in goals scored. . . . Over 68 games, the Oil Kings finished 50-14-4, which left them 10 points ahead of the Rebels (45-19-4). . . . If you’re looking for a harbinger, perhaps this is it — they evenly split their last four regular-season meetings, all of which came in April, with each team winning once at home and once on the road. Edmonton outscored Red Deer, 16-15, in those four games. . . . Does that signal a close series? . . . The Oil Kings are coming off a sweep of the No. 7 Lethbridge Hurricanes, while the Rebels took six games to shake off the No. 6 Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . 
manager, replacing Scott Carter who announced earlier in the season that he is leaving for health and family reasons. Carter had been the GM for six seasons (2016-22). . . . Contract terms weren’t revealed, but you would be safe to say that Bardley got three years and perhaps as many as five. . . . Bardsley is only the Chiefs’ third GM since 1990. Carter had replaced Tim Speltz (1990-2016), who left to scout for the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. . . . Bardsley was the Kamloops Blazers’ general manager from 2018-21. Recently, he has been working as an amateur scout with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. . . . Bardsley, who is from Portland and spent 18 seasons in the Winterhawks’ organization, left Kamloops for family reasons in May 2021. . . . Bardsley was in Kamloops last week for the third game of the Chiefs’ first-round playoff series with the Blazers and, in fact, was spotted in the Spokane dressing room after the game. . . . The Chiefs’ news release is 
to win a series remains at 15 . . . 
Giants lit up the Silvertips to the tune of 11-6 to forge a 2-2 series tie. ICYMI, Vancouver scored the game’s last five goals in that one. . . . Should Everett win the series, it would face the Seattle Thunderbirds in the second round, with the Kamloops Blazers and Portland Winterhawks facing off in the other one. . . . A Vancouver series victory would put Kamloops against the Giants, while Portland clashed with Seattle. . . .
Vancouver Giants to a 3-0 victory over the Silvertips. . . . The Giants hold a 3-2 series lead and get their first chance to end it on Monday in Langley, B.C. . . . In the regular season, Everett finished atop the Western Conference with 100 points (45-13-10); the Giants (24-39-5, 53) tied for sixth but wound up eighth after going through two tiebreakers. . . . Everett scored 95 more goals than Vancouver in the regular season, while allowing 64 fewer. . . . Vikman, who turned 20 on March 11, is from Stockholm. The Vegas Golden Knights selected him in the fifth round of the NHL’s 2020 draft. . . . This season, with the Giants, he was 17-15-2, 3.05, .903 with three shutouts. However, he didn’t play after March 4 before returning for the playoffs. He has appeared in four of the first-round games, going 3-1-0, 3.85, .887. . . . Last night, F Adam Hall, who scored 17 times in 60 regular-season games, opened the scoring with his sixth goal of the series, at 10:42 of the first period. . . . F Fabian Lysell (4) made it 2-0 at 7:48 of the third, and D Connor Horning (1) added a PP score at 18:33. . . . Hall also had an assist on Lysell’s goal. . . . G Braden Holt blocked 28 shots for Everett.
before resuming with one game on Monday. That’s when the Spokane Chiefs and the Blazers will play Game 3 in Kamloops. ICYMI, a Paul McCartney concert in Spokane has forced this series into a 3-3-1 format. And the Chiefs are up against it, trailing 2-0 and having been outscored 15-2. . . . Two of the eight series are even, 1-1, with the higher-ranked team holding a 2-0 lead in the other six. . . . Here’s what happened on Saturday night . . .
a 5-2 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . The Ice leads the series, 2-0, with Game 3 scheduled for Prince Albert on Tuesday. . . . Winnipeg was 2-for-3 on the PP and now is 4-for-7 in the series. . . . G Daniel Hauser stopped 18 shots for the Ice. Including the regular season, he has a 36-3-1 record. . . . The Raiders lifted starter Tikhon Chaika at 2:10 of the second period after he had been beaten four times on 15 shots. . . . The Ice scratched F Matt Savoie, who left Game 1 with an apparent injury to his left leg. . . . 
second period, and the No. 2 Oil Kings went on to a 4-0 victory over the No. 7 Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Edmonton now leads the series, 2-0, with Game 3 in Lethbridge on Tuesday. . . . Golder, a 19-year-old from Smithers, B.C., had three goals in 46 regular-season games. . . . G Sebastian Cossa earned the shutout with 25 saves. He has 14 regular-season shutouts; this was his first career post-season blank job. . . . 
a 2-1 victory over the No. 3 Rebels. . . . This series is all even, 1-1, with Game 3 in Brandon on Tuesday. . . . Ginnell, a 14-goal man in the regular season, won this one at 7:16 of extra time, scoring off a face-off win by F Nolan Ritchie deep in Red Deer’s zone. . . . F Nate Danielson had given Brandon a 1-0 lead at 17:13 of the first period. . . . F Frantisek Formanek pulled Red Deer even at 4:30 of the third. . . . Rebels F Kai Uchacz wasn’t able to score on a penalty shot at 4:18 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Arshdeep Bains had his goal-scoring streak end at 10 games — nine in the regular season and one in these playoffs. . . . The Wheat Kings got 37 saves from G Ethan Kruger. . . . Red Deer G Chase Coward blocked 28 shots. . . . 
No. 4 Warriors to a 5-3 victory over the No. 5 Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Warriors lead the series, 2-0, with Game 3 in Saskatoon on Tuesday. . . . Yager gave the Blades a 1-0 lead 20 seconds into the second period, then tied the score, 2-2, at 18:27. . . . D Lucas Brenton snapped that tie just 1:29 later, and F Riley Niven made it 4-2 at 13:14 of the third period. . . . F Brandon Lisowsky scored twice for the Blades, the second one coming at 19:15 of the third period to cut the deficit to one. . . . Moose Jaw was 0-for-6 on the PP; Saskatoon was 0-for-2. . . . 
Silvertips dumped the No. 8 Vancouver Giants, 7-3. . . . The series is tied, 1-1, with Game 3 scheduled for Langley, B.C., on Wednesday. . . . The Giants had posted a 5-4 OT victory in Game 1 on Friday. . . . D Olen Zellweger added a goal and two assists for Everett, which scored four times in the first period. . . . Each team was 2-for-8 on the PP as Vancouver took 13 of 24 minor penalties. . . . G Jesper Vikman was scratched by the Giants. He earned the victory in Game 1, but it was his first appearance since March 4 due to an undisclosed injury. . . . With Vikman out, G Will Gurski stopped 38 shots. . . . The Silvertips got 29 stops from G Braden Holt. . . . Vancouver also scratched F Colton Langkow with an undisclosed injury. He had scored in Game 1. . . . 
3 Winterhawks got past the No. 6 Prince George Cougars, 2-1. . . . The Winterhawks lead the series, 2-0, as the scene shifts to Prince George for Game 3 on Tuesday. . . . F Kurtis Smythe, at 13:09 of the first period, and F Luca Cagnoni, at 13:54 of the second, gave the home side a 2-0 lead. . . . D Jonas Brøndberg, who began the season with the Winterhawks, scored for the Cougars at 16:29 of the second period. . . . G Taylor Gauthier, who came to Portland in the deal that had Brøndberg go north, stopped 22 shots. . . . G Tyler Brennan, making his first start for Prince George since April 1, blocked 44 shots. . . . The Winterhawks were 0-for-5 on the PP, while PG’s extra-man unit never got off the bench. . . . Portland scratched D Clay Hanus, who didn’t finish Game 1. . . . Prince George was without F Craig Armstrong, who drew a two-game suspension after taking a check-to-the-head major in Game 1. . . . 
Thunderbirds to a 7-3 victory over the No. 5 Kelowna Rockets. . . . Seattle holds a 2-0 lead in the series as the teams head to Kelowna for Game 3 on Tuesday. . . . Seattle held a 3-2 lead with a minute left in the second period and that’s when things turned. . . . Svejkovsky scored his second goal at 19:26 for a 4-2 lead, and F Henrik Rybinski got his second of the game just 17 seconds into the third to stretch it to 5-2. . . . Rybinski also had an assist, for a three-point outing. . . . Seattle D Kevin Korchinski, who had three assists in the opener, added a goal and two assists. . . . The Thunderbirds were 3-for-7 on the PP; the Rockets were 1-for-1. . . . 
learned a long time ago not to pay a lot of attention to post-season awards.
through when asked about injuries to any of their players, especially during playoffs. . . . Take the case of Dennis Williams, the general manager and head coach of the WHL’s Everett Silvertips, who will open their first round tonight against the visiting Vancouver Giants. . . . Everett didn’t have Olen Zellweger, the WHL’s highest-scoring defenceman, for its last two games, while F Jackson Berezowski, a 46-goal man, sat out the last game. . . . Asked on Wednesday about their status, Williams told Steve Ewen of Postmedia: “You’re just going to have to wait and see on Friday. I won’t be commenting on any injuries.” . . . That came a day after Williams, when asked about Zellweger, told Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald: “Olen will be set to play.” . . . The betting here is that Berezowski and Zellweger both are in the lineup.
victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . The Oil Kings lead the best-of-seven first-round series, 1-0, with Game 2 scheduled for Edmonton on Saturday. . . . Cossa lost his bid for his first playoff shutout when F Tyson Laventure scored, on a PP, at 18:12 of the third period. . . . Cossa has 14 regular-season shutouts in his career. But with the playoffs being cancelled each of the previous two seasons, this was his first post-season appearance. . . . F Carter Souch scored the game’s first goal, at 9:30 of the second period, with F Dylan Guenther upping the lead to 2-0 at 14:47. . . . The Hurricanes got 44 saves from G Bryan Thomson. . . . There are seven playoff games scheduled for tonight, with eight set for Saturday.
standings, the edge goes to the club with the most victories. Should the clubs have won the same number of games, then the higher position shall be awarded to the club having the greatest ratio when taking goals for and subtracting goals against in regular schedule play.”
TAKING NOTE 