Blazers box

From The Daily News of Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2007. . . .

THE SCORE
Calgary 4, Kamloops 2

WHAT HAPPENED
The Blazers were beaten soundly in all aspects of the game except
goaltending.

THE SHOTS
Calgary outshot its hosts 11-2 in the first period, a lot of that due to the
disparity in power plays, which were 3-1 for the Hitmen. On the game,
Calgary ended up with an 8-3 edge in power plays and a 40-13 edge in shots.

THE HOME ICE
The Blazers, who lost only seven times at home last season, are 2-3-0-0 at
home this season.

HOW MANY MEN?
Late in the second period, the Hitmen twice could have been called for too
many men or, at least, illegal substition. But none of the four on-ice
officials saw either incident. Maybe next season the WHL will add a fifth
official.

THE ROAD TRIP
This was the second game of a six-game road trip for the Hitmen, who beat
the Cougars 5-3 in Prince George on Sunday. It is Calgary’s longest road
trip off the season.

THE OFFICIALS
Referees Saad Al-Jadir and Matt Kirk issued 12 minors, with eight of them
going to the Blazers. Kirk handed out nine of the penalties, six to
Kamloops.

THE SATURDAY GAME
Kamloops C Brock Nixon had a goal and an assist in Saturday's 4-2 victory
over the Bruins in Chilliwack. That ran his regular-season total to 151
points and tied him with assistant coach Steve Gainey for 47th on the club’s
all-time list. . . . Kamloops LW Alex Rodgers had two goals and an assist
Saturday for the first three-point game of his career. It was the second
time he has scored two goals in a game. It was his 50th regular-season game.

THE SCORING CHANGES
The scoring plays on the Blazers’ first three goals in Chilliwack all were
changed after the game. Check the summary in Scoreboard for the corrected
scoring, which should be reflected on the WHL website today.

THE DEFENCEMEN, PART I
D Alex Plante played his first game of the season for the Hitmen. Plante, a
first-round pick by Edmonton in the NHL’s 2007 draft, suffered a
charleyhorse during the Oilers’ rookie camp. His dad, Cam, was a defenceman
with the Brandon Wheat Kings (1980-84) and still holds some WHL offensive
records.

THE DEFENCEMEN, PART II
Two other Hitmen defencemen — Dan Mercer (hand) and D Keith Seabrook
(shoulder) — have yet to play this season. Seabrook, younger brother of
Chicago Blackhawks D Brent Seabrook — left the U of Denver to join the
Hitmen.

THE DAILY NEWS THREE STARS

1. G Justin Leclerc, Kamloops. Almost stole one.

2. D Eric Frere, Calgary. Steady and two points.

3. C Brett Sonne, Calgary. Continues terrific start.

UP NEXT
The Blazers open a four-game U.S. Division swing in Everett on Friday. They
also will play in Seattle, Portland and Kennewick, Wash., before returning
home to face the Kelowna Rockets on Oct. 26.