Friday . . . early

Kelly Chase, who was a tough cookie for three seasons with the Saskatoon Blades (1985-88), is one of the good guys in all of sports. He, of course, went on to a professional career that included 458 NHL games, the majority of them with the St. Louis Blues. These days, among other things, he is the analyst on Blues’ radio broadcasts. He continues in that role despite some healthy problems that cropped up over the summer, all of which is detailed in this newspaper story.
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If your favourite WHL team is carrying a lot of players, well, there could be some changes today. WHL teams have to be down to 25 players by tonight (Friday) at midnight. If a team is carrying more than three 20-year-olds, the extras are excluded until Thursday (Oct. 16) when teams must declare a maximum of three 20-year-olds. Also exempt from tonight’s roster cutdown are players on the injured list.
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A Portland source indicates via e-mail that D Brock Cornish has left the Winter Hawks and asked for a trade. Cornish, who turns 19 on Dec. 30, is shown as one of 11 defencemen on Portland’s roster at whl.ca. He is pointless in five games with Portland this season after missing all of last season with an injury. He had 10 points in 31 games with the Tri-City Americans in 2006-07 before being dealt to the Winter Hawks. He was traded to Portland for a third-round pick in the 2008 bantam draft on Aug. 29, 2007, promptly dislocated a shoulder and had season-ending surgery. . . . Cornish, who is from Mission, B.C., reportedly would prefer to be dealt to a B.C. team. Perhaps he has been keeping tabs on the situation in Kelowna and is hoping to be dealt to the Rockets, thinking that would be an upgrade. . . . The Winter Hawks’ roster shows three goaltenders, 11 defencemen and 15 forwards, which would seem to indicate there will be some changes before tonight’s deadline. . . . However, upon further review, the Portland roster at whl.ca still includes D Lee Morrow, who has been released. The Winter Hawks also showed four players on this week’s injury report – D Daniel Johnston (neck, indefinite), LW Ryan Anderson (shoulder, six weeks), D Scott Gabriel (concussion, week to week), and RW Jason Grecica (knee, indefinite). Of those four, only Johnston isn’t listed on the roster, which would seem to indicate that he is on the injured list. . . . The Winter Hawks, then, may have 28 players on their roster, which would be 27 if Cornish actually has left the team and perhaps been placed on the suspended list. And only three of them are 20-year-olds – F Matt Schmermund, G Jordan White and Gabriel – so perhaps there are two roster moves – or more players to go on the injured list – to be made here. . . . And, gee, whatever happened to former Winter Hawks D Bo Montgomery?
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On the subject of the Winter Hawks, Boaz Herzog of the Oregonian takes a look at how much the situation there is weighing on management and players. His story is right here.