Saturday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT: Our man with both eyes on the European scene never sleeps, not even on Saturdays. . . . D Michael Hengen (Swift Current/ Saskatoon/Calgary/Moose Jaw/Edmonton) signed with Deggendorf (Germany Oberliga) after starting the season with Bremerhaven (Germany 2.Bundesliga), where he had no points in five games. Hengen has a German passport according to the Deggendorf press release. . . . F Mike Maneluk (Brandon) signed a one-year-plus-option contract with Langenthal (Swiss NL B) after his release by Dynamo Minsk (Kontinental Hockey League). He had no points in seven games with Dinamo Minsk. . . . G Rob McVicar (Brandon) signed with Totempo HvIK Hvidovre (Denmark Elitserien) He played with Arizona Sundogs (Central Hockey League) last season.
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SATURDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS:
In Lethbridge, D Jon Blum had a goal and two assists and D Brett Regner set up two goals to help the Vancouver Giants to a 4-1 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . The Giants (10-0-0-3) ran the table on their three-game Alberta swing. . . . The Hurricanes (8-5-0-0) had won seven of eight at home. . . . Vancouver C Evander Kane drew one assist to keep his point streak alive. He has at least one point in each of the Giants’ 13 games this season. However, C Casey Pierro-Zabotel had his streak halted at a dozen games. . . . Kane leads the WHL, with 25 points, one more than Pierro-Zabotel. . . . Vancouver was 2-for-7 on the PP as it opened up a 3-0 lead. . . . Freshman G Jamie Tucker stopped 16 shots to run his record to 4-0-0-1. . . . The Giants had a 39-17 edge in shots, including 17-2 in the second period. . . . Some nights they are just Like a Rolling Stone.
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In Kelowna, D Colby Robak’s two goals, the first just 21 seconds into the game, propelled the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 3-2 victory over the Rockets. . . . Brandon (8-4-1-0) was opening a five-game western swing after not playing for a week. . . . The Rockets (9-7-0-0) were coming off back-to-back shutout victories over the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . Robak’s second goal, on a PP at 15:55 of the second period, gave the Wheaties a 3-1 lead. . . . LW Jamie Benn scored his WHL-leading 13th goal for Kelowna. . . . The Rockets, after going 3-0 with freshman Adam Brown in goal, went back to veteran Kris Lazaruk, who stopped 27 shots. . . . G Andrew Hayes made 17 saves for Brandon. . . . Brandon F Brayden Schenn was ejected with an elbowing major and game misconduct at 16:37 of the third period after a big hit on Kelowna F Dylan Hood – who was left singing Freight Train Blues -- behind the Wheat Kings’ net. . . . The Rockets were without RW Kyle St. Denis, who suffered a broken right scaphoid (a bone in the wrist) in Friday’s 6-0 victory over visiting Chilliwack. He is expected to be out at least a month. . . . D Chad Erb was back in Brandon’s lineup. He had missed eight games with a jaw injury.
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In Cranbrook, freshman F Burke Gallimore scored the game’s last two goals to give the Saskatoon Blades a 5-4 OT victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . The Blades (10-4-0-1) have won seven straight on the road. . . . The Ice (8-5-2-3) had a five-game winning streak end. They had won four in a row at home. . . . Gallimore, 16, has 10 goals this season, tops among WHL freshmen. . . . The Ice lost freshman F Drew Czerwonka after he took a hit from Saskatoon F Walker Wintoneak. . . . Gallimore tied the game with eight seconds left in the third period and won it at 3:01 of OT. . . . The Ice actually led this one 4-2 with two minutes left in the third period before it got away from them, which perhaps is why head coach Mark Holick, who felt like he was living on Desolation Row, met with his captain and alternates after the game. . . . F Darian Dziurinzynski also scored twice for Saskatoon, his first two of the season. . . . Veteran F Derek Hulak pulled Saskatoon to within one, at 4-3, at 18:10 of the third.
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In Medicine Hat, the Calgary Hitmen scored the game’s last three goals and beat the Tigers, 5-2. . . . The Hitmen (13-3-0-0) sit atop the WHL’s overall standings and have won six in a row. . . . The Tigers (7-4-2-2) had won three in a row. They now are 6-1-0-1 at home. . . . F Brandon Kozun broke a 2-2 tie with his 12th goal of the season at 5:26 of the third period. D Matt Mackenzie (8:06) and D Michael Stone (13:44), with his fifth of the season on a PP, put it away. . . . F Kyle Bortis set up three goals for Calgary. . . . G Martin Jones stopped 25 shots for Calgary to improve his record to 7-1. . . . When Jones is in goal, It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue.
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In Prince Albert, F Dustin Cameron and F Matt Robertson had shootout goals to give the Raiders a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The Raiders (9-7-0-0) have won three in a row since returning from the other side of the Rockies. . . . The Oil Kings (6-10-1-0) are 3-2-1-1 on the road. . . . Prince Albert G Steven Sanford, who stopped 29 shots, foiled Edmonton F Jeff Lee on a second-period penalty shot. . . . G Torrie Jung, who didn’t quite stop Every Grain of Sand, made 34 saves for the Oil Kings. . . . Edmonton forced OT with third-period goals by Rhett Rachinski (13:28) and Brenden Dowd (18:23), the latter on the PP.
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In Red Deer, G Darcy Kuemper stopped 35 shots as the Rebels dumped the Moose Jaw Warriors, 6-0. . . . The Rebels (5-7-0-5) had lost four in a row and nine of 10. . . . The Warriors (5-8-0-1) have dropped three straight. . . . LW Brett Ferguson had a goal and two helpers for Red Deer. . . . Kuemper, an 18-year-old from Saskatoon, posted his first career shutout, telling his mates Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right. . . . Red Deer F Cass Mappin, the 12th overall pick in the 2005 bantam draft, scored his ninth goal of the season. He had five in 64 games last season.
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In Seattle, F Prab Rai had a goal and two assists to lead the Thunderbirds to a 5-2 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The Thunderbirds (4-9-0-1) have won two in a row. This was only their third home game of the season as they prepared to move into a new building in Kent, Wash., late in December. . . . The Silvertips (6-6-1-0) are 1-5-1-0 on the road. . . . Rai has nine goals this season. . . . Seattle led 3-0 before Everett got two second-period PP goals. . . . This was Everett’s last visit to KeyArena. The Thunderbirds own them there -- 19-4-0-1 with three ties. The Silvertips must have felt like it was Stone Walls and Steel Bars. . . . Seattle outshot the visitors 38-21. . . . Everett was without D Shayne Brown (hip) and D Mike Alexander (ankle).
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In Spokane, G Dustin Tokarski stopped 32 shots to lead the Chiefs to a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . The Chiefs (9-2-0-3) have surrendered only 25 goals in their 14 games. . . . The Cougars (7-9-0-0) have lost five in a row. They finished 1-8 on a nine-game road swing. When the Cougars left on their trip, they may have thought things would be tough, but I don’t think they knew A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall. . . . Prince George G Kevin Armstrong played for the Chiefs last season and was presented with his Memorial Cup ring prior to the season. He was dealt to the Cougars over the summer. . . . Armstrong stopped 24 shots. . . . The Chiefs, with 21 points, moved past the idle Tri-City Americans and into first place in the U.S. Division. . . . The game was 1-1 with less than seven minutes left in the third period when the Chiefs got goals from forwards Tyler Johnson (13:18), Levko Koper (18:58, empty-netter) and Dustin Donaghy (19:29).
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In Swift Current, F Justin Dowling and F Geordie Wudrick had two goals each to lead the Broncos to a 6-2 victory over the Portland Winter Hawks. . . . The Broncos (10-5-0-0) had lost their last two games. They are 4-5 after starting the season 6-0. . . . The Winter Hawks (2-12-0-0) went 1-5 on their Eastern Division swing. . . . The Winter Hawks, who must feel like it’s Highway 61 Revisited, are expected to undergo wholesale changes upon their arrival home, what with the franchise in the midst of being sold. . . . The Broncos held a 47-24 edge in shots, including 16-4 in the third period.
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In Chilliwack, the Kamloops Blazers broke a 2-2 tie with three goals and beat the Bruins, 5-2. . . . The Blazers (6-8-0-2) have won two in a row after having lost five straight. . . . The Bruins (5-8-1-1) have lost six in a row, all of them since D Jesse Craige went down with a broken jaw. . . . RW Jimmy Bubnick, who had nine goals last season as a freshman, scored his 11th of the season for Kamloops. . . . LW Shayne Wiebe scored on a first-period penalty shot for the Blazers. . . . Wiebe’s second goal of the game, late in the second period, snapped a 2-2 tie. It was his ninth of the season, equaling his total from all of last season. . . . F David Robinson scored the Bruins’ first goal, snapping a club goalless streak of 150 minutes 37 seconds. They were coming off back-to-back shutouts at the hands of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Bruins are banged up, especially on the back end, where Matt Strong (shoulder), also is out. It all has made head coach Jim Hiller a Man of Constant Sorrow.
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Yes, Bob Dylan was in Kamloops on Saturday night. And I’m still trying to figure out why so many people pay big dollars to attend such a show and then all they do is walk around and around and around, and get drunk. . . . For the cost of one ticket, a person could drink a lot of beer and eat a lot of pizza while sitting at home listening to Live at the Gaslight 1962 or Blonde on Blonde.