Friday's first news

The Chilliwack Bruins have signed top prospects C Kevin Sundher and D Carter Berg to WHL contracts.
Sundher, the Bruins’ first pick, seventh overall, in the 2007 bantam draft recently was honoured as Hockey B.C.’s minor hockey player of the year. That came after he captained the Burnaby Winter Club bantam AAA team to the western Canadian championship. In 68 games, the 5-foot-11, 170-pounder had 173 points, including 77 goals, and 196 penalty minutes.
Berg was the Bruins’ second pick, 26th overall, in the 2007 draft. The 6-foot-1, 170-pounder was captain of the bantam AA Saskatoon Generals. In 48 games, he totalled 46 points and -- get this! -- 244 penalty minutes.
The Bruins also named Garry Pochipinski as their director of scouting. Pochipinski, who has been with the Bruins pretty much since their inception, had been one of the team’s three scouting co-ordinators.

Interesting speculation out of Regina today, courtesy of the Regina Leader-Post’s Greg Harder. With the Pats having lost Garrett Festerling and Kyle Ross to graduation, Harder reports that his sources tell him Regina GM Brent Parker has talked with the Vancouver Giants about the possibility of acquiring C Tim Kraus, 20.
When last we saw Kraus, he was so deep in head coach Don Hay’s doghouse that he couldn’t see the ice during the latter stages of the Memorial Cup. Kraus didn’t even dress for the tournament’s final two games, this despite a 66-point regular season.
This is an interesting scenario because the Giants need defencemen -- they’ll lose Brett Festerling, Cody Franson, Brendan Mikkelson and A.J. Thelen -- and the Pats could help them out in that department.
But wait! There are whispers from the Left Coast that perhaps Kraus isn’t as well ensconced in the doghouse as he used to be.
Now you don’t suppose those whispers would coincide with the fact that a team or two suddenly has expressed an interest in acquiring the Californian, do you?