The Kelowna Rockets are exploring the possibility of adding C Brock Trotter to their roster. Trotter, a 20-year-old from Brandon, led the Denver University Pioneers in scoring last season and was No. 1 again this season until apparently leaving the team prior to last weekend. There are rumours that he will return to the USHL’s Lincoln Stars, where he played prior to heading for Denver. . . . Trotter had 31 points this season; he had 76 points in 69 career games with the Pioneers. Trotter presently is on Kelowna’s college list and Rockets’ president/general manager Bruce Hamilton said Wednesday night that “we are looking into it with the league.” . . . Of course, Kelowna has three 20-year-olds on its roster – LW James McEwan, the injured team captain, RW Brady Leavold and G Kris Westblom. The Rockets, however, have a ways to go before they have to decide whether to make a move. Hamilton simply is exploring his options. . . .
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If you were wondering just what the folks in the WHL’s Calgary office do with the money collected from team personnel in the form of fines, you have come to the right place. Yes, I was wondering, too. So I asked Richard Doerksen, the WHL’s vice president, hockey. And here is his response: “Any fine money collected by the WHL office is used to assist with development programs for WHL players and officials, and for technological improvements in the WHL office.” . . . Just in case you thought it was used for Christmas shopping or dinner at TGIFs on Fridays. . . .
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SOME NOTES: The Regina Pats expect to have RW Brett Leffler back for a weekend home-and-home series with the Moose Jaw Warriors. Leffler has missed 10 games with a collarbone/shoulder injury. The Pats and Warriors meet Friday in the Crushed Can and Saturday in Regina. . . . D Justin Schultz of the BCHL’s Westside Warriors has committed to the Wisconsin Badgers, likely for the 2009-10 season. His WHL rights belong to the Kootenay Ice. . . .
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WEDNESDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS:
In Spokane, G Dustin Tokarski stopped 30 shots to lead the Chiefs to a 4-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The victory was the 100th of Bill Peters’ head-coaching career with the Chiefs. . . . “Nice even number . . . would have been nice to come quicker,” Peters told Jessica Brown of the Spokane Spokesman-Review. . . . Spokane (39-10-1-4) moved back into first place in the Western Conference. . . . The Silvertips (29-25-0-2) have lost five in a row. . . . Spokane led 3-0 before LW Lukas Vartovnik scored for Everett at 4:30 of the third period. . . . Everett had won three of the first four games with the Chiefs this season. . . . Spokane C Chris Bruton scored on a backhander, after beating Everett LW Kyle Beach on the play. This was the first game in which the two had faced each other since Jan. 16 when Bruton punched Beach and knocked him out of the lineup with a concussion. Bruton drew a two-game suspension for that one. . . . "I definitely knew who I beat out there," Bruton told Brown. . . .
In Brandon, C Tyler Ennis scored on the PP at 1:12 of overtime to give the Medicine Hat Tigers a 7-6 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . Ray Ferraro, who set the WHL single-season record for goals (108, 1983-84), was in the house and dropped the ceremonial first puck. So it was only fitting that the teams should erupt for 13 goals. Ferraro will be the keynote speaker at the Wheat Kings’ annual Sportsman’s Dinner on Thursday night. . . .The Tigers (31-18-5-1) have won five straight on the road and have moved into fifth in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Wheat Kings (31-20-0-2) have lost three of four and are eighth in the conference. . . . The Wheat Kings led this one 3-1 at 5:21 of the first period but the Tigers scored three times before the period ended and then got the lone goal of the second period to go up 5-3. Brandon forced OT with goals from LW Daniel Bartek at 16:56 of the third period and Matt Lowry, with his 22nd, shorthanded at 19:41. . . . Lowry was acquired by Brandon from Medicine Hat earlier this season. . . . Medicine Hat was on the PP in overtime as Brandon D Matt McCue had taken a kneeing major at 19:19 of the third period. . . . McCue picked up 35 minutes in penalties on the night – three majors and a double game misconduct. . . . Medicine Hat outshot Brandon 28-23, meaning the teams combined for 13 goals on 51 shots. . . . The Tigers got two goals from F Mikael Ahlen. . . . C Tyler Dittmer got his 30th of the season for Brandon. . . . Brandon C Andrew Clark, who suffered a broken leg on Dec. 15, is skating again and may play this weekend. . . .
In Moose Jaw, C Riley Holzapfel scored in the circus to give the Warriors a 5-4 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Warriors (30-15-4-5) are 4-1 versus the Blades this season. . . . Moose Jaw is within two points of the East Division-leading Regina Pats. And the teams go home-and-home this weekend. . . . The Blades (18-32-3-3) have lost three in a row. . . . Saskatoon forced overtime with two late shorthanded goals, from Curtis Hamilton, at 18:33 of the third period, and C Travis Toomey 44 seconds later. Toomey also drew an assist on Hamilton’s goal. . . . LW Brian Sommers scored his first goal for the Warriors in the second period. It, too, was shorthanded. . . . The Blades were 1-for-9 on the PP; the Warriors were 1-for-6. . . .
In Portland, RW Spencer Machacek had two goals and three assists to lead the Vancouver Giants to a 7-2 victory over the Winter Hawks. . . . The Giants (36-12-1-5) have won four in a row. They are 3-0 versus Portland this season and have outscored the Winter Hawks 19-5 in the process. . . . The Winter Hawks (9-45-1-1) have lost 11 in a row. . . . Vancouver held a 60-15 edge in shots. . . . C Mario Bliznak also had two goals for Vancouver. . . . Vancouver D Craig Schira had an assist and was plus-5. . . .
In Prince George, RW Arnaud Jacquemet’s goal in the circus gave the Kootenay Ice a 3-2 victory over the Cougars. . . . The Ice (31-18-4-2) had lost four of five going into this one. . . . Kootenay is 13-4 against Prince George over the last five seasons. . . . The Cougars (15-35-1-3) are 2-6-0-3 in their last 11 games. . . . Jacquemet also had a goal in regulation. . . . C Ben Maxwell, who returned last week after missing most of the season with a thigh injury, gave the Ice a 2-1 lead in the second period. . . . Cougars RW Brad Riege forced the overtime with a goal at 7:37 of the third period. . . . Prince George G Real Cyr stopped 37 shots through OT, while the Ice’s Thomas Heemskerk turned aside 36 shots. . . . The Cougars have lost G Ian Curtis (left rotator cuff) for an undetermined length of time. They had Joel Danyluk, up from the SJHL’s Yorkton Terriers, backing up Cyr. . . .
In Seattle, C Jim O’Brien, who once was selected by Kamloops in the bantam draft, scored twice to help the Thunderbirds beat the Blazers, 6-3. . . . O’Brien, a first-round pick by the Ottawa Senators in the NHL’s 2007 draft, was selected by Kamloops with the 151st pick of the 2004 bantam draft. He went to from the U.S. National Team Development Program to the U of Minnesota, then to Seattle after signing with the Senators. . . . O’Brien, who also had an assist, has 32 points, including 13 goals, in 50 games this season. . . . C David Richard, who isn’t related to the Rocket and the Pocket Rocket, also scored twice for Seattle. He has 14 on the season. . . . The Thunderbirds (27-18-5-2) have won eight of their last 11; they won the season series with Kamloops, 3-1. . . . Seattle is fifth in the Western Conference. . . . The Blazers (25-28-1-2) have lost four of their last five and remain seventh in the conference. . . . RW Ian McKenzie had a goal and two assists for Seattle. . . . The Blazers held a 40-37 edge in shots on goal.
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