Saturday . . . early

It appears that RW Josh Manson, the son of former WHL D Dave Manson, will play for the BCHL’s Salmon Arm SilverBacks in the fall. Josh, 17, was the captain of the midget AAA Prince Albert Mintos last season. "I haven't signed the papers yet, but that's kind of my mindset right now," he told the Prince Albert Daily Herald. "It seemed like the right route for me to take to better my chances of going farther in hockey." Manson, who has spurned his hometown Prince Albert Raiders, was at the SilverBacks’ spring camp last month. His father also has served as an assistant coach with the Raiders.
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The Edmonton Oil Kings have claimed D Garrett Thiessen, 20, on waivers from the Prince Albert Raiders. Thiessen also has played for the Kamloops Blazers and Prince George Cougars during his WHL career. . . . The Raiders also placed G Matt Esposito and C Bryce Lamb, both 20-year-olds, on waivers, but they weren’t claimed. Lamb has said he will play for the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings next season. . . . The Raiders are left with F Dustin Cameron, D Patrick Kozyra and G Garrett Zemlak as the 20-year-olds on their roster.
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THE COACHING GAME: Dean Blais is back in the U.S. college game as head coach of the U of Nebraska at Omaha. Blais leaves the USHL’s Fargo Force after one season as its head coach. He was named the USHL’s coach of the year after getting the Force into the Clark Cup final. Blais also is the head coach of the U.S. national junior team that will play in the 2010 world junior tournament in Regina and Saskatoon. He was the head coach at North Dakota for 10 seasons (1994-04). . . . Former WHL D Ray Maluta, who now lives in Rochester, N.Y., has been named head coach of the 2010 U.S. Paralympic sledge hockey team. Maluta coached the team to its first world title at the 2009 International Paralympic Committee Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic, last month. The 2010 Paralympic Games run March 12-21 in Vancouver.