Tuesday . . . early

THE MacBETH REPORT: D Jason Beckett (Seattle) and F Jonathan Filewich (Prince George) have signed one-year contracts with Salzburg (Austria Erste Bank Liga). . . . Beckett started this season with Fort Wayne (IHL) before heading to Dresden (Germany 2.Bundesliga). He had two assists in eight games with Fort Wayne and two goals and 12 assists in 31 games with Dresden. . . . Filewich had seven goals and 12 assists in 68 games split between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL) and Peoria (AHL).
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JUST NOTES: The Prince George Cougars won’t renew the contract of Russ Smart, the club’s director of scouting, when it expires in July. Smart has been with the Cougars for 18 years. It is expected that Wade Klippenstein, who stepped in as interim head coach this season, will be the club’s head scout and work out of Lethbridge. . . . Brent Sutter, who owns the Red Deer Rebels, has announced that he won’t be returning as head coach of the NHL’s New Jersey Devils. Sutter had one year left on a three-year deal with the Devils. Sutter cited family reasons in stepping down. . . . Might Brent end up as head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames? Allan Maki of The Globe and Mail, who is based in Calgary, weighs in on that right here. . . . The Edmonton Oil Kings have signed head coach Steve Pleau through the 2011-12 season. Pleau has been the Oil Kings' head coach since they came into the WHL as an expansion franchise prior to the 2007-08 season.