WHL GOALTENDERS WITH 40 VICTORIES IN ONE SEASON:
49:
Glen Hanlon, Brandon, 1976-77
48:
Corey Hirsch, Kamloops, 1989-90
Grant Fuhr, Victoria, 1980-81
47:
Trevor Kruger, Swift Current, 1988-89
46:
Milan Hnilicka, Swift Current, 1992-93
45:
Bart Hunter, Regina, 1979-80
44:
Kelly Guard, Kelowna, 2003-04
Tim Cheveldae, Saskatoon, 1987-88
42:
Matt Keetley, Medicine Hat, 2006-07
Matt Keetley, Medicine Hat, 2005-06
David Lemanowicz, Spokane, 1995-96
41:
Chad Pickard, Tri-City, 2007-08
Norm Maracle, Saskatoon, 1993-94
Travis Laycock, Prince Albert, 1991-92
40:
Kevin Nastiuk, Medicine Hat, 2003-04
Cam Ward, Red Deer, 2002-03
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MOST SHUTOUTS IN A CAREER:
21:
Leland Irving, Everett, 2003-08, 191 games
Bryan Bridges, Seattle-Kootenay, 2001-06, 213 games
20:
Justin Pogge, Calgary-Prince George, 2003-06, 151 games
Dustin Slade, Kamloops-Brandon-Regina-Vancouver, 2002-07, 132 games
19:
Tyson Sexsmith, Vancouver-Medicine Hat, 2004-08, 122 games
Kelly Guard, Kelowna, 2002-04, 115 games
18:
Taylor Dakers, Kootenay, 2003-07, 137 games
Matt Keetley, Medicine Hat, 2003-07, 152 games
17:
Jeff Glass, Kootenay, 2002-05, 143 games
16:
Kyle Moir, Swift Current, 2002-07, 233 games
Derek Yeomans, Kelowna-Seattle, 203-07, 171 games
15:
Devan Dubnyk, Kamloops, 2002-06, 192 games
Scott Bowles, Calgary-Prince George, 2003-07, 143 games
Carey Price, Tri-City, 2002-07, 193 games
JUST NOTES: There were three shutouts Saturday night, bringing the season’s total to 83, the fifth-highest single-season total in WHL history. The goaltenders are on pace for 92, which would be the fifth-highest total. The top four: 2004-05 (141), 2006-07 (120), 2003-04 (107) and 2005-06 (103). . . . The Vancouver Giants and Lethbridge Hurricanes have put up eight blank jobs apiece; the Portland Winter Hawks have been shut out 11 times. . . . Only the Brandon Wheat Kings and Swift Current Broncos haven’t been blanked this season. . . . Sunday’s big game has the Calgary Hitmen in Regina to meet the Pats. Regina continues to lead the East Division and, as such, is the Eastern Conference’s second seed. However, the Pats are only five points ahead of the Moose Jaw Warriors, who are fourth in the division and eighth in the conference. . . . Jon Keen, the radio voice of the Swift Current Broncos, reports that club has added former captain Luke Hunter to its coaching staff for the rest of this season. Hunter will start by working with the team to improve its prowess in the faceoff circle. . . . The Broncos have added F Taylor Vause, the 108th pick in the 2006 bantam draft, to their roster for the rest of the season. He ;had 49 points in 35 games with the midget AAA Calgary Royals, whose season is over.
SATURDAY IN THE WHL:
In Saskatoon, C Colton Gillies and LW Ondrej Fiala each scored one goal and set up another as the Blades edged the Kamloops Blazers, 3-2. . . . The Blades (26-34-3-4) have won two in a row and are 8-2-0-1 in their last 11 games. They are ninth in the Eastern Conference and won’t make the playoffs. . . . The Blazers (26-36-2-2) are 0-8-1-0 in their last nine games. They went 0-6-0-0 on their East Division swing, the first time in franchise history they didn’t earn at least one point. They are eighth in the Western Conference, four points behind the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . Gillies’ 22nd goal, at 9:07 of the third period, gave the Blades a 3-1 lead that withstood a late goal from Kamloops LW Ivan Rohac. . . . RW Chris Durand, who plays on a line with Gillies and Fiala, had two assists. . . . Saskatoon held a 40-26 edge in shots on goal, its 40 shots a season high. It was the 27th time in 31 games since the Christmas break that Kamloops has allowed at least 30 shots on goal. . . . If you add Kamloops’ overtime and shootout losses to the loss column, the Blazers have lost 40 games for the first time since the franchise’s first season in the league (1981-82) when it lost 53 games as the Junior Oilers. . . .
In Everett, RW Dan Gendur’s second goal of the game with 6.5 seconds left in OT gave the Silvertips a 4-3 victory over the Portland Winter Hawks. . . . The Silvertips (37-25-0-3) are 8-0-0-1 in their last nine games and moved into fifth in the Western Conferece, a point ahead of the Kelowna Rockets and two behind the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . The Winter Hawks are 0-17-2-0 in their last 19 games, their last victory a 3-2 shootout decision over the Prince George Cougars on Jan. 16. . . . Everett appeared home and cooled out with a 3-1 lead late in the third period, but Portland forced OT with two late goals. F Tristan King scored at 18:56 to get Portland to within one and F Keith Voytechek equalized just 23 seconds later. King and Voytechek have eight goals apiece this season. . . . Gendur won it with his 28th of the season. . . . The Winter Hawks have added D David Watt, 16, to their roster for the remainder of this season. He made his debut in this one. He was the 93rd pick in the 2006 bantam draft. Watt spent this season with the midget AAA Medicine Hat Big Country Energy Tigers. . . .
In Moose Jaw, C Jason Bast scored two goals to lead the Warriors to a 4-3 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . The Warriors (33-18-6-7) are 3-0-1-1 in their last five outings. . . . The Hurricanes (41-19-2-3) have lost two in a row but remain third in the Eastern Conference. . . . Lethbridge took a 2-0 lead only to have the Warriors score four straight goals. . . . F Zach Boychuk got his 30th goal of the season for the Hurricanes. . . . Bast increased his total to 32. . . . Moose Jaw was 2-for-7 on the PP; Lethbridge was 0-for-5. . . .
In Cranbrook, the Tri-City Americans got two goals in the circus and beat the Kootenay Ice, 3-2. . . . The Americans (47-14-2-2) lead the WHL’s overall standings by two points over the Vancouver Giants and four over the idle Spokane Chiefs. . . . Tri-City set a franchise record for points (98) and tied the franchise record for victories in a season. . . . C Shaun Vey and LW Colton Yellow Horn had goals in the circus for the Americans. . . . Tri-City F Adam Hughesman forced the OT with a PP goal at 8:31 of the third period. . . . Tri-City G Chet Pickard stopped 35 shots to earn his WHL-leading 41st victory of the season. He was beaten by C Steve Da Silva in the shootout, but stopped F Steele Boomer and F Dustin Sylvester. . . . The Americans were 1-for-3 on the PP; the Ice was 2-for-5. . . . Pickard’s evening included stopping RW Michael Stickland on a penalty shot. Jeff Bromley of the Kootenay NewsAdvertiser reports that “Stickland went forehand-backhand but, like most chances on the night, was stopped by Pickard.” . . . Bromley also reports that Ice C Ben Maxwell has signed his first NHL contract with the Montreal Canadiens, who selected him with the 49th pick of the 2006 draft. . . .
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In Seattle, RW Prab Rai scored two first-period goals to get the Thunderbirds off to a 5-1 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Thunderbirds (36-21-5-2) are fourth in the Western Conference, two points ahead of the Everett Silvertips. Seattle is 8-3-0-0 in its last 11 outings. . . . The Rockets (34-23-2-6) slid from fifth to sixth in the conference, a point behind Everett. . . . Kelowna has lost two in a row and is 3-7-0-1 of late. . . . Rai scored two special-team goals, one shorthanded and one on the PP. He has 17 goals this season. . . . F Greg Scott notched his 33rd goal of the season and added three assists for Seattle. F Bud Holloway also got his 33rd for Seattle. . . . G Jacob DeSerres, making his fourth straight start, stopped 25 shots for Seattle to improve his record to 18-10-0-1. . . . LW James McEwen, Kelowna’s captain, was back in the lineup after a 25-game absence. He suffered a terribly cut wrist in a scrap with Vancouver RW Garet Hunt. . . . Seattle was 2-for-8 on the PP; the Rockets were 1-for-3. . . . It was celebrity night in Seattle with the annual Challenge Game following the WHL game. Check out Regan Bartel’s website to see who he was drooling all over. . . .
In Red Deer, G Morgan Clark stopped 28 shots to lead the Rebels to a 4-0 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The Rebels (18-41-4-3) snapped a three-game winless streak. They are last in the Eastern Conference, eight points behind the 11th-place Oil Kings. . . . This was the first shutout of the season for Clark, who had one as a rookie last season. . . . The Rebels have put up two shutouts this season; Edmonton has been blanked 10 times, second only to the Portland Winter Hawks (11). . . . Edmonton G Dalyn Flette faced 37 shots. . . .
In Brandon, F Matt Calvert scored the winner in the circus as the Wheat Kings got past the Calgary Hitmen, 2-1. . . . Brandon (39-22-2-2) remains sixth in the Eastern Conference, but is just two points behind the East Division-leading Regina Pats, who were idle on Saturday. . . . Brandon, which concluded a six-game homestand with a 5-1 record, also is two points behind the Kootenay Ice and one in arrears of the Medicine Hat Tigers, and is two points ahead of the Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Hitmen (44-17-1-4) lead the conference. . . . Calvert and fellow freshman Brayden Schenn scored for Brandon in the circus while the Hitmen came up empty. . . . C Brock Nixon, who is from the southwestern Manitoba town of Russell, scored for Calgary in the first period, with Wheat Kings D Daryl Boyle evening the score on a PP late in the period. . . . Calgary was 0-for-1 on the PP; Brandon was 1-for-3. . . .
In Prince Albert, the Medicine Hat Tigers outshot the Raiders 41-21 en route to a 3-1 victory over the Raiders in a penalty-filled game that featured a line brawl. . . . The Tigers (38-21-5-2), who had lost two straight, are fifth in the tight Eastern Conference race. . . . The Raiders (24-37-3-2) are 10th in the conference. . . . Medicine Hat was 2-for-10 on the PP; the Raiders were 0-for-3. . . . The home team was hit with 134 penalty minutes to the Tigers’ 97. . . . There were two fights before the game was five minutes old. . . . Referees Chris Crich and Trevor Hryciuk then handed out 142 penalty minutes after a line brawl at 9:26 of the first period. . . . Neither team has had to write a cheque to the WHL office this season but that may change early in the week. . . . Prince Albert LW James Dobrowolski may also hear from the WHL office after taking a major for cross-checking in the third period. . . .
In Swift Current, G Mark Guggenberger stopped 22 shots to help the Broncos to a 2-0 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . The Broncos (37-22-1-5) are 3-0-1-0 in their last four games. They are seventh in the Eastern Conference but just four points shy of the East Division-leading Regina Pats. . . . The Bruins (26-32-4-4) are seventh in the Western Conference. They went 0-5-1-0 on their East Division swing and moved four points ahead of the Kamloops Blazers, who went 0-6-0-0. . . . Guggenberger, whose rights were acquired from Portland at the trade deadline, has four shutouts in eight appearances with the Broncos. He is 5-1-1-0 with a 1.54 GAA and a .946 save percentage with Swift Current. . . . C Matt Tassone and D Jesse Dudas scored third-period goals to win it. . . . This was the only game of the trip in which the Bruins didn’t hold at least one lead. . . .
In Prince George, G Real Cyr turned aside 47 shots to lead the Cougars to a 2-0 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . The Cougars (18-43-1-3) halted a three-game losing skid. They are ninth in the Western Conference and had been eliminated from playoff contention the previous night. . . . Vancouver (44-14-2-6) went in with an 8-0-1-1 mark in its last 10 games. . . . The loss prevented Vancouver from keeping pace with Tri-City. The Giants now trail the WHL-leading Americans by two points. Tri-City, which has seven games left, holds a game in hand. . . . RW Dale Hunt’s first-period goal stood up as the winner. It was his eighth goal of the season. . . . It was Cyr’s second shutout this season and the 14th of his career. . . . Vancouver G Kraymer Barnstable stopped 19 shots. . . . Vancouver has been blanked three times this season, including twice by the Cougars.
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