Tuesday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT: F Ryan Finnerty (Medicine Hat, Swift Current, 1997-99) signed a contract with the Cardiff Devils (UK Elite) for the rest of this season and next season. He had four goals and 10 assists in 15 games for Bloomington (IHL) this season. Last season, Finnerty had 21 goals and 30 assists in 61 games for Sheffield Steelers (UK Elite). . . .
D Trevor Johnson (Kootenay, Seattle, Tri-City, 1998-2003) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Bolzano (Italy Serie A). He had no goals and three assists in 16 games with Kassel Huskies (Germany DEL) this season and eight goals and 26 assists in 44 games with Asiago (Italy Serie A) last season. Johnson holds dual Canadian/Italian citizenship and was a member of the Italian national team at last season's Division 1 World Championship in Poland. He had three goals and five assists in five games and was named the tournament’s best defenceman.
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There was a time when stuff used to happen in WHL games. . . . A coach might lean over from the bench and lift the toupee off a linesman’s head. . . . A coach might throw a garbage can onto the ice. . . . A player might stop by the other team’s goal and take a drink from the goaltender’s water bottle. . . . Well, there was some old-time excitement in the WHL on Tuesday night . . . Yes, there was. . . . Witnesses maintain a player squirted water at a referee. “He thought his hair was on fire,” said one observer. . . . Who was it? . . . Read on. . . .
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There has been and is a lot of buzz among fans concerning Lethbridge Hurricanes D Luca Sbisa, 19. Will the Hurricanes trade him before the Jan. 10 deadline, or will they hang on to him? . . . Well, I spoke with one general manager on Tuesday who suggested that were a team to trade for Sbisa it should be prepared to have a tired player on its hands . . . whenever he is able to find time to play for them. “He’s going to be gone for so long,” the GM said. “You’re not getting him until . . . World junior . . . Olympics . . . he’s going to be burnt out. He won’t be anything good for you until playoffs. His whole focus will be World junior and Olympics; that’s all those players think about, their country.”
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The Vancouver Giants have added former Lethbridge Hurricanes head coach Michael Dyck to their scouting staff. Dyck, a former assistant coach with the Giants, is helping out with the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns and will serve as head coach of Team Pacific at the U-17 World Hockey Challenge in Timmins, Ont., after Christmas.
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If you haven’t seen this yet, check it out. It involves former WHL D Brendan Witt (Seattle, 1991-94) getting hit by a vehicle while crossing a street in Philadelphia. Make sure to read the comments at the end.
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F Cass Mappin of the Vancouver Giants drew a two-game suspension for a cross-checking incident — he popped D Jeff Einhorn in the face — in Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the Bruins in Chilliwack. He’ll sit out the rematch Wednesday and a Friday game against the visiting Kamloops Blazers. Mappin will be eligible to return Saturday when the Giants are in Kamloops.
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F Ronald Petrovicky (Tri-City, Prince George, Regina, 1994-98) has signed a pro tryout deal with the Springfield Falcons, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. Petrovicky, from Zilina, Slovakia, is a veteran of 342 NHL games, having played with the Calgary Flames, New York Rangers, Atlanta Thrashers and Pittsburgh Penguins.
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Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate reports that the Rebels will be missing two players when the play host to the Medicine Hat Tigers on Wednesday. F John Persson (concussion) and F Landon Ferraro (knee) won’t play. Ferraro remains in Vancouver where he is seeing a specialist.
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If you missed it, Tom left a note here earlier about Dawson Creek getting into the NAHL. Here is the press release:
The Dawson Creek Rage will begin play in the North American Hockey League in September of 2010. The team will play 31 home games a year (including exhibition) at the Encana Events Centre.
The Rage will be Canada's first team in the NAHL, which currently features 19 teams playing Junior 'A' level hockey.
Dawson Creek will presumably play in the 'West' division, which features three teams in Alaska, and one in Washingon State. Other teams play in northern U.S. states, while the 'South Division' features clubs from as far south as Texas.
The City of Dawson Creek has pledged significant funding to the team, including $250,000 for the first year, $225,000 for the second year, and $200,000 for the third year of operation. But, Rage officials say there is "a strong business case towards supporting the Hockey Society as a major tenant at the Encana Events Centre," and the city hopes to recoup costs with increased revenue at the EEC.
Visit the Dawson Creek Rage's new website at dcrage.com.
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TUESDAY:
At Everett, F Nino Niederreiter scored two goals, including the winner in overtime, as the Portland Winterhawks erased a 2-0 deficit and beat the Silvertips, 4-3. . . . Niederreiter has 19 goals, including two in OT. His 36 points lead all WHL freshmen. . . . At 19:12 of the first period, Portland F Tayler Jordan was tossed from the game after squirting water at referee Andy Thiessen. . . . Everett play-by-play voice Jon Rosen said during the broadcast that he has been told by people associated with the Winterhawks that they feel Thiessen far too often gives them a raw deal. . . . The Winterhawks, down 1-0 when Jordan went for a squirt, fell behind 2-0 when F Tyler Maxwell scored his 20th goal of the season at 1:15 of the second period. . . . The Winterhawks took a 3-2 lead with three goals before the period was half over. . . . The Silvertips were 1-for-9 on the PP; Portland was 1-for-6. . . . The Winterhawks (20-12-0-1) have won four of five and are 4-1 versus Everett. Portland also has won more games than it did all of last season when it finished 19-48-3-2. . . . The Silvertips (16-11-2-0) have lost four in a row, three of them at home. . . . Portland F Luke Walker left the game late in the third period after being struck in the face by the puck as Everett D Radko Gudas attempted to clear it while on the penalty kill. Portland GM/head coach Mike Johnston said the resulting gash was “very bad, one of the worst I’ve seen.” . . . Portland G Ian Curtis stopped 44 shots, 20 more than Everett’s Kent Simpson. . . . Attendance was 3,806.
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In Spokane, G Michael Tadjdeh stopped 25 shots to help the Chiefs to a 3-0 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . It was Tadjdeh’s first shutout this season and the second of his career. . . . The Chiefs and Brandon Wheat Kings lead the WHL with four shutouts; the Cougars and Regina Pats have been blanked a league-high four times. . . . The Chiefs (19-8-2-0) took control with two first-period goals, from D Jared Spurgeon, his second, and D Jared Dowen, his fifth. . . . The Chiefs, who have won five straight, are fourth in the Western Conference, but just a point behind the Vancouver Giants and Portland Winterhawks. . . . The Chiefs have allowed 66 goals, the lowest figure in the league. . . . The Cougars (5-23-1-1) have lost six of seven and have won just once in 16 road games.
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In Swift Current, the Kelowna Rockets opened an East Division swing with a 3-2 victory over the Broncos. . . . F Cody Chikie’s 10th goal, unassisted at 2:22 of the third period, gave the visitors a 3-1 lead. . . . F Stepan Novotny, acquired by the Broncos from Kelowna last month, had a goal, his 16th, and an assist. . . . The Rockets led 2-0 before the first period was 13 minutes old. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 33 shots. . . . Broncos G Morgan Clark stopped 27 shots. . . . The Rockets (16-15-1-0) have won four in a row. They meet the Pats in Regina on Wednesday. . . . The Broncos (16-15-0-2) have lost three of four. . . . Kelowna G Mark Guggenberger, who hasn’t played since last spring’s Memorial Cup, was scratched but is expected to back up Brown on Wednesday in Regina. The Rockets say Guggenberger will start on Friday (against the Wheat Kings in Brandon) or Saturday (against the Warriors in Moose Jaw). . . . Kelowna F Kyle St. Denis, back in the lineup after sitting out with a concussion, left in the second period after taking a hit. He will be re-evaluated on Wednesday. . . . Attendance was 1,996.