Early Tuesday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT: F Justin Cox (Prince George) has had his contract dissolved by Duisburg (Germany DEL) for financial reasons. Cox had 10 goals and eight assists in 52 games this season. Duisburg, which finished in last place in the DEL this season, elected to leave the DEL on Sunday after negotiations with potential sponsors were unsuccessful. Duisburg had the lowest home attendance in the DEL this season, averaging just 1,792 per game, which is just over 4,000 below the league average.
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JUST NOTES: The WHL will hold its draft lottery for non-playoff teams at its office in Calgary on Wednesday. The bantam draft is scheduled to be held April 30 in Calgary. . . . D Taylor Ellington of the Everett Silvertips has signed a three-year contract with the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. They selected him 33rd overall in the NHL’s 2007 draft. He had 32 points and 130 penalty minutes this season. He has played 287 games with the Silvertips and that’s the franchise record. Ellington was a third-round pick in the WHL’s 2003 bantam draft. . . .The Prince George Cougars have added two players to their roster. F Brock Hirsche, the Cougars’ second pick in the 2007 bantam draft, played for the midget AAA Lethbridge Titans. Hirsche, 17, who is from Lethbridge, had 41 points in 34 games. D Daniel Gibb, 16, played for the major midget Cariboo Cougars, who are based in Prince George. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Gibb had seven points and 24 penalty minutes in 24 games. . . . The WHL has announced that Shaw TV will show the entire first-round series between the Saskatoon Blades and Lethbridge Hurricanes. That series opens with games in Saskatoon on Friday and Saturday nights.