Former WHL commissioner Dev Dley, QC, has been appointed to the bench of the B.C. provincial court. Dley will work in Kamloops, where he has been practising law for 25 years, with time out for a stint as WHL commissioner. Dley is scheduled to begin hearing cases in Kamloops on June 23. . . .
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D Bretton Stamler, who split last season between the Edmonton Oil Kings and Swift Current Broncos, has committed to attend the U of New Brunswick and play for the Varsity Reds. Stamler played out his junior eligibility last season after a career that included four seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . .
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The OHL’s Erie Otters have signed former NHL head coach Robbie Ftorek to a three-year deal as head coach. Sherry Bassin, the Otters’ GM and managing partner, made the announcement Monday during the club’s awards banquet. . . . Ftorek, 56, took over as the Otters’ head coach on Oct. 29 and went 15-34-2-2. . . .
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THE MacBETH REPORT: Garth MacBeth has plenty of news from the European scene. . . . F Garrett Festerling (Portland/Regina) signed with Hannover (Germany DEL). He had 50 goals and 70 assists in 45 games for Fussen (Germany Oberliga) this season and was the league’s leading scorer. . . . D Michael Hengen (Edmonton) signed with Bremerhaven (Germany 2.Bundesliga). He holds dual Canadian-German citizenship. . . . F Alex Leavitt (Swift Current/Everett) signed with Kassel (Germany DEL). He was with Arizona (Central Hockey League) for most of this season but was called up to San Antonio (AHL) for four games. . . . F Clarke Wilm (Saskatoon) signed with Hamburg (Germany DEL). He had nine goals and 24 assists in 55 games for Jokerit Helsinki (Finland SM-Liiga) this season.
F Grant Jacobsen (Regina/Kamloops) signed with Manchester (UK Elite Hockey League). He was with Texas Brahmas (Central Hockey League) this season. . . . G Billy Thompson (Prince George) and F Taggart Desmet (seven games with Calgary in 2000-01) signed with Tilburg (Netherlands). Thompson was with Victoria (ECHL) and Desmet was with Idaho (ECHL) this season. . . . F Kirby Law (Saskatoon/Lethbridge/Brandon) signed with Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk (Continental Hockey League). He had 17 goals and 25 assists in 36 games for Geneve-Servette (Swiss National League A) this season. . . . F Brent Twordik (Swift Current) signed with HC Appiano (Italy Serie A). He was at the University of Saskatchewan this season.
And in the world of Dynamo Minsk of the Continental Hockey League. . . . They have signed Paul Gardner to a contract (one year plus option) as head coach. He also will assist Glen Hanlon with the Belarus national team. . . . Gardner got the coaching job after Dynamo Minsk was unable to reach contract terms with Wayne Fleming, who is under contract to the NHL’s Calgary Flames. . . .
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A note from Garth MacBeth about the Continental league. . . . It is interesting how the Continental Hockey League has split up its divisions. It certainly is not geographic. The league will operate in four divisions of six teams and every division has teams on both sides of the Urals. In fact, the Kharlamov Division has Dinamo Riga (on Baltic Sea), Lada Togliatti (south central European Russia), Lokomotov Yaroslavl (central European Russia), Avangard Omsk (Western Siberia), Sibir Novosibirsk (Central Siberia), and Amur Khabarovsk (Eastern Siberia). As Garth notes: “I’m sure the Riga boys can’t wait for their trips to Khabarovsk.” . . . Garth closes with “no word on whether players get to keep their frequent flyer miles.”
If you’re interested there is a Google map here showing the Continental league franchises. . .
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Kelly McCrimmon, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings, told the Brandon Sun on Monday that assistant coaches Dwayne Gylywoychuk and Darren Ritchie and goaltending coach Matt Cockell should be back for another season. “Dwayne, Darren and Matt Cockell will be back in their same roles,” McCrimmon told The Sun. “I think that Darren and Matt were both real good additions to our organization and I think Dwayne has continued to grow into a bigger role and gain experience as a coach.” . . .
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Hockey Canada executives have gathered in Toronto this week to hear bids from Canadian communities interested in playing host to World Junior Championship tournaments. . . . A five-person Saskatchewan delegation, chaired by Saskatoon Blades owner Jack Brodsky and including Premier Brad Wall, is up today. The Saskatchewan presentation will conclude the bidding. . . . The Saskatchewan group is interested in either the 2010 or 2012 event. A Manitoba group has bid on 2010, as has a bunch from Halifax-Moncton. A Calgary-Edmonton group and Toronto also are chasing the 2012 tournament. . . . A five-man Winnipeg-Brandon delegation, including Wheat Kings owner Kelly McCrimmon, appeared in front of the Hockey Canada committee on Monday. . . . Hockey Canada is expected to announce the host cities for both tournaments sometime this summer.
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