From The Daily News of Friday, Oct. 12, 2007. . . .
The WHL’s 20-year-old deadline didn’t disappear over the horizon Thursday without some fuel being added to one of the league’s youngest rivalries.
That happened when the Vancouver Giants claimed RW Ken Petkau from Chilliwack, just eight days after the Surrey native left the Bruins, saying he wanted to retire.
All of which means Petkau could be in the lineup Sunday when the defending Memorial Cup-champion Giants meet the host Bruins, who are in their second WHL season. That is if his tryout with the Central league’s Oklahoma City Blazers doesn’t pan out.
“It’s a little disappointing,” Bruins general manager Darrell May told the Vancouver Sun. “When I asked Kenny if he wanted to still play hockey he said, no, he wanted to get on with life.”
As for the possibility of Petkau playing Sunday against his former team, May said: “It won’t make much difference to me. Kenny’s the one who has to look across the ice at his former teammates after telling them he was retiring.”
Vancouver GM Scott Bonner had yet to speak with Petkau, who had one goal in five games with Chilliwack, as of last evening, but had spoken with his agent.
However, according to the Vancouver Province, the Giants had the WHL office “call the CHL and demand that Petkau not play” in Oklahoma City.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes selected Petkau 13th overall in the 2002 bantam draft. He played more than two seasons there before being dealt to the Red Deer Rebels, who lost him to the Bruins in the expansion draft prior to last season. He had 42 points, including 24 goals, in 55 games with the Bruins and it is that kind of offence for which the Giants are looking.
l The Giants had cleared room to add a 20-year-old by releasing LW Mike Wuchterl. The Edmonton native was claimed yesterday by the Hurricanes, who had dealt him to Vancouver at last season’s trade deadline. Lethbridge then released C Yashar Farmanara, a West Vancouver native who came over from the Seattle Thunderbirds in 2005-06.
l The Brandon Wheat Kings dealt D Mark Louis to Red Deer for a 2009 third-round bantam draft pick. Louis had been the Wheat Kings’ active leader in games played (241). In six games this season, he had two assists and 15 penalty minutes. His departure leaves Brandon with LW Tyler Dittmer, D Darryl Boyle, who is the team captain, and D Theran Yeo, who is back skating as he recovers from arthroscopic knee surgery.
JUNIOR JOTTINGS: RW Brandon Campos, picked up by Chillwack from the Everett Silvertips to fill the 20-year-old hole left when Petkau ‘retired,’ has four points in three games with the Bruins. . . . The Saskatoon Blades released D Curtis Patterson and RW Michael Kaye to get down to the 20-year-old maximum of three. Both are from Saskatoon and were acquired in offseason trades. Kaye, like Petkau, is in Oklahoma City trying to crack the Blazers’ roster. . . . The Kelowna Rockets got down to the limit by releasing D Lyon Messier, the son of former NHL great Mark Messier.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca