Friday notes . . .

The Brandon Sun reports that the Wheat Kings will be without their three 20-year-olds when they wrap up a road trip against the Tigers in Medicine Hat. . . . C Tyler Dittmer (fractured finger), who leads the team in goals, D Daryl Boyle (shoulder) and D Theran Yeo (ankle) all will be scratched. . . . The Wheat Kings (34-20-2-2) go into the game tied for fifth with the Kootenay Ice in the Eastern Conference, one point behind the Tigers (33-19-5-2) and Swift Current Broncos and apoint ahead of the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Dittmer was hurt in Wednesday’s 4-3 overtime victory over the Giants in Vancouver, while Boyle went down in an 8-2 Thursday loss to the Rockets in Kelowna. Yeo has missed the last eight games. . . . The Sun also reports that C Brayden Schenn could become the first 16-year-old to lead the Wheat Kings in scoring since 1970-71. Schenn has 58 points in 53 games. As a 16-year-old, the incomparable Ron Chipperfield had 83 points in 64 games to lead the 1970-71 Wheat Kings. . . .

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FRIDAY IN THE WHL:
In Lethbridge,
Hurricanes (36-16-2-3) won 12 of 17 this year, Boychuk 5-6-7-13, 3-1 vs. Calg
Calgary Hitmen (41-15-1-3) Nine point lead on Hurricanes

In Seattle, G Jacob DeSerres stopped 27 shots to lead the Thunderbirds to a 4-1 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . The Thunderbirds (31-19-5-2) have won seven straight at home. They stayed in fifth in the Western Conference, a point ahead of the Everett Silvertips. . . . The Bruins (25-25-3-4) had won two in a row. They are seventh in the conference, one point ahead of the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Seattle C Jim O’Brien broke a 1-1 tie with his 16th goal at 11:55 of the second period on the PP. . . . Chilliwack was 0-for-5 on the PP; Seattle was 2-for-10. . . .

In Swift Current, the Broncos won for the 11th time in 12 games, beating the Moose Jaw Warriors 4-3 in overtime. . . . D Bretton Stamler won this won 1:01 into extra time. . . . The Broncos (34-21-0-5) are 5-0 against the Warriors this season, with four of those victories coming in ovetime or the circus. The Broncos are into a tie for fourth with the idle Medicine Hat Tigers in the Eastern Conference. . . . .The Warriors (30-17-5-6), who have been in a WHL-high 19 OT games, have lost four in a row and are eighth in the conference. . . . Moose Jaw was without C Riley Holzapfel (abdominal strain) and LW Frazer McLaren, who served Game 2 of a two-game suspension. . . . Moose Jaw was 0-for-7 on the PP and hasn’t scored in its last 23 opportunities. . . . F David Steiler gave Swift Current a 3-2 lead at 8:57 of the second period. . . . LW Terrance Delaronde of the Warriors tied it at 7:01 of the third. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Adam Hughesman scored four goals and set up another to help the Tri-City Americans to a 9-2 victory over the Portland Winter Hawks. . . . When the game began, Hughesman had five goals. When it ended, he had nine. . . . The Americans (44-12-1-2) have won nine in a row and are the first team to 90 points. . . . The Americans are 7-1 versus the Winter Hawks (9-49-1-1), who have lost 15 in a row. . . . The Americans, who boast the WHL’s best record, are at home to the Spokane Chiefs on Saturday. . . . Portland dressed only 17 players due to injuries and a suspension. . . . LW Colton Yellow Horn scored once for Tri-City, upping his WHL-leading total to 44. . . . F Radek Meidl added a goal and three assists for Tri-City. . . . Tri-City G Chet Pickard won his WHL-leading 38th game of the season. . . . Portland was without Keith Voytechek (hand), Jason Grecica (knee), Bo Montgomery (concussion), Riley Boychuk (hip), Brock Cornish (shoulder), Ryan Kerr (shoulder), Lee Morrow (shoulder), Kevin Undershute (shoulder) and Scott Gabriel (WHL suspension). Boychuk, Cornish, Kerr, Morrow and Undershute won’t play again this season. . . .

In Vancouver, G Kraymer Barnstable, making an infrequent start, stopped 24 shots to help the Giants to a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . Attendance was 12,234, the Giants’ largest crowd this season. . . . Vancouver (38-13-2-5) had lost two of its previous three games. . . . The Cougars (15-40-1-3) have lost seven in a row. . . . Barnstable, 17, has won his last two starts and is 4-3-0-0 on the season. . . . C Mario Bliznak, who was minus-4 in a 4-3 overtime loss to the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings on Wednesday, scored twice for Vancouver. . . . C Evander Kane got his 21st for Vancouver and is within four of Gilbert Brule’s franchise record for goals in a season by a rookie. . . .

In Everett, LW Kyle Beach and RW Dan Gendur scored in the circus as the Silvertips got past the Spokane Chiefs, 3-2. . . . The Silvertips (33-25-0-2) have won four in a row and are sixth in the Western Conference, a point behind Seattle and four behind Kelowna. . . . The Chiefs (39-13-1-5) have lost four in a row. They trail the conference-leading Tri-City Americans by seven points. . . . F Judd Blackwater’s second power-play goal, at 14:04 of the third period, gave the Chiefs a 2-1 lead. . . . Everett C Zach Hamill tied it with his 21st of the season at 18:43. . . . Beach had a goal, his 26th, and an assist. . . . Spokane C Mitch Wahl left with a match penalty for attempt to injure late in the second period. . . . Everett goaltender Leland Irving stopped 53 shots as Spokane held a 55-30 edge in shots through overtime. . . . .

In Kamloops, G Dalyn Flette stopped 23 shots to lead the Edmonton Oil Kings to a 4-0 victory over the Blazers. . . . The Oil Kings (19-29-4-6) had lost their previous four games and scored once in the process. . . . The Blazers (26-29-2-2) are eighth in the Western Conference, one point behind the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . Flette, who was traded by Kamloops to Edmonton for RW Kenton Dulle in June, has one shutout this season and two in his career. He blanked Portland 8-0 while with Kamloops last season. . . . RW Tomas Vincour scored twice for Edmonton. . . .

In Cranbrook, F Rudolph Cerveny broke a 1-1 tie with two third-period goals as the Regina Pats dumped the Kootenay Ice, 3-1. . . . Regina (36-18-3-2), as the East Division leader, remains the second seed in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Ice (33-20-4-2) is tied for sixth with the idle Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Cerveny, a Czech freshman, has eight goals this season. He scored at 4:04 of the third period and then added insurance at 19:58. . . . Regina G Jeff Bosch stopped 27 shots, while Kootenay’s Kris Lazaruk turned aside 24. . . . Regina was 1-for-9 on the PP; the Ice was 1-for-6. . . . Kootenay C Chad Greenan, a 20-year-old veteran, was a healthy scratch. . . . The Pats began a six-game road trip with the victory. They are out of town while the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women’s curling championship, is played in the Brandt Centre. . . .

In Red Deer, the Saskatoon Blades scored three power-play goals and beat the Rebels, 3-1. . . . The Blades (21-32-3-3) have won three in a row but are 23 points out of a playoff spot with 13 games left. They went 4-0 against Red Deer this season. . . . The Rebels (16-37-4-2) have lost three in a row. . . . Saskatoon was 3-for-8 on the PP. . . . Red Deer C Brandon Sutter scored the game’s first goal while shorthanded in the first period. . . . Saskatoon C Chris Langkow tied it five minutes later and LW Ondrej Fiala scored what turned out to be the winner early in the second. . . . Saskatoon captain Colton Gillies left with an apparent facial injury following a scrap with Red Deer LW Troy Ofukany just 13 seconds into the game and didn’t return.