Monday . . .

Could Dean Chynoweth be the next head coach of the Regina Pats? No. How about Michael Dyck? Curtis Hunt? Might the Pats’ former head coach return? . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has written an interesting piece on the Pats’ coaching situation, and it is right here. . . . Of course, if GM Brent Parker would tell Dale Derkatch that he’s still the head coach, it would put an end to all the speculation, wouldn’t it?
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THE MacBETH REPORT: G Juha Metsola (Lethbridge) has signed a two-year contract with HPK Hämeenlinna (Finland SM-Liiga). He had a 2.80 GAA and a .907 save percentage in 53 games with the Hurricanes this season.
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With the AHL having voted to allow the NHL’s Calgary Flames to move the Quad City Flames to Abbotsford in time for next season, Winnipeg Free Press columnist Tim Campbell chimes in right here.
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THE WENATCHEE WATCH: Some season-ending notes from someone who watched the NAHL’s Wenatchee Wild in its inaugural season . . .
“The Wild ended up winning the Western Division of the NAHL, beating the Alaska Avalanche 3 games to 1 and the regular-season division champion Fairbanks Ice Dogs, 3-1, winning the first two games of the series in Fairbanks. That sent the team to the Robertson Cup championship series held in Mason City, Iowa, home of the North Iowa Outlaws. It was a five-team round-robin with the division champions playing North (Bismarck Bobcats); East (Mahoning Valley Phantoms of Youngstown, Ohio); and, South (St. Louis Bandits, the two-time defending champs).
“The Wild beat host North Iowa 3-2; got handled 6-0 by St. Louis in Game 2; then fell behind 4-0 to Mahoning before staging a comeback to beat the Phantoms 5-4 in OT. The Wild needed to beat Bismarck to qualify for the final, which it did, 3-2. This set up a rematch against St. Louis, which was played Sunday. The Bandits scored a 3-2 OT victory to win it all.
“It was quite an end to what really turned into a dream season for the Wild.
“The Wenatchee area has taken to the team in a big way. There was great attendance that built throughout the season. The team averaged 3,200 for the playoff games held in Wenatchee, with one sellout of 4,200. From an expansion team that got blown out in its first four games by Topeka to playing for the championship in the end was just amazing. The team had a big heart and made everyone very proud. The ownership team led by Bill Stewart and head coach Paul Baxter did not miss a single thing. From how the team was marketed, recruited and coached to the game presentation and play on the ice, the team was first class.
“Everyone is looking forward to Year 2 and the hopes of playing host to the Robertson Cup in Wenatchee next spring!”
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JUST NOTES: F Mikael Backlund of the Kelowna Rockets is the Boston Pizza WHL player of the week. He had five goals and an assist as the Rockets won three games last week. . . . Kelowna G Mark Guggenberger is the WHL nominee as the ADT CHL goaltender of the week. He went 3-0 with a 2.28 GAA and a .907 save percentage.
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WHL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL:
GAME 3: G Mark Guggenberger stopped 21 shots Monday night to lead the host Kelowna Rockets to a 2-0 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . The Rockets lead the final series 3-0. . . . Game 4 will be played Wednesday in Kelowna. . . . It was Guggenberger’s third shutout of these playoffs. . . . The Rockets got on the scoreboard first when LW Ryley Grantham banged home a rebound at 15:15 of the first period, not long after they had failed to score on a PP. It was Grantham’s fourth goal of these playoffs. . . . The second period was scoreless. . . . Calgary F Carson McMillan hit a goal post early in the third period. . . . Kelowna F Cody Almond added an empty-net goal, his ninth goal of the postseason, with 5.7 seconds left in the third period. . . . Kelowna outshot the visitors 24-21 in the game, including 10-3 in the first period. It was the first time in this postseason that Calgary was outshot. . . . Calgary had a 10-3 edge in shots in the third period. . . . Kelowna was 0-for-3 on the PP, but one of those came with six seconds left in the third period. . . . Calgary was 0-for-1 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 6,329. . . . The Hitmen hadn’t played in Kelowna since Oct. 10, 2007. On that night, Kelowna beat them, 5-0. . . . The Rockets have scored 10 goals in the three games, with three of those goals of the empty-net variety. . . . Kelowna was without LW Jamie Benn, who left in the first period of Game 2 after taking a hard hit from Calgary D Keith Seabrook. Benn, who is believed to have a concussion, leads all WHL playoff scorers in goals (13) and points (31). . . . The Rockets also scratched F Kyle St. Denis (suspected concussion). . . . Kelowna fans gave Seabrook the Chris Pronger treatment on most occasions when he touched the puck. . . . Among the luminaries in the crowd: Calgary Flames GM Darryl Sutter, Flames/Hitmen president Ken King, and Montreal Canadiens D Josh Gorges, who is from Kelowna and is a former Rockets captain. . . . The quote of the night from Kelowna radio analyst Gord McGarva, with a second-period message for one of the night’s referees: “Matt Kirk, if you’re just going to watch, buy a ticket.” . . . Calgary D Alex Plante set a franchise record in Game 2 on Saturday when he played in his 66th postseason game for the Hitmen. That broke the record that had been held by D Rod Sarich (1996-2002). . . . With the Hitmen trailing 0-3, you can bet they are well aware that only one team (the 1996 Spokane Chiefs) in WHL history has lost the first three games of a best-of-seven series and bounced back to win the next four. The Chiefs did that in a first-round series with the Portland Winter Hawks.
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WHL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL (all times local):
Friday: Kelowna 3 at Calgary 1
Saturday: Kelowna 5 at Calgary 2
Monday: Calgary 0 at Kelowna 2
Wednesday: Calgary at Kelowna, 7 p.m.
Thursday: Kelowna at Calgary, 7 p.m.
x-Saturday: Calgary at Kelowna, 7 p.m.
x-Monday: Kelowna at Calgary, 7 p.m.

x -- if necessary.
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THE PICKS:
John Down (13-1), Calgary Herald: Calgary, in 6.
Jeff Bromley (12-2), Kootenay NewsAdvertiser: Calgary, in 6.
Alan Caldwell (12-2), Small Thoughts At Large: Calgary, in 6.
Scott Fisher (12-2), Calgary Sun: Calgary, in 6.
Dan Russell (11-3), CKNW Radio, Vancouver, and Shaw Cable: Calgary, in 5.
Gregg Drinnan (11-3), Kamloops Daily News: Kelowna, in 6.
Rob Vanstone (11-3), Regina Leader-Post: Calgary, in 4.
Cory Wolfe (11-3), Saskatoon StarPhoenix: Kelowna, in 6.
Kevin Mitchell (10-4), Saskatoon StarPhoenix: Calgary, in 7.