Thursday . . .

WHL PLAYOFFS
FOURTH ROUND
CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL
(Ed Chynoweth Cup)
Calgary (1E) vs. Tri-City (1W)
(Calgary leads best-of-7 series 3-1))
(all times local)
April 30: Tri-City 0 at Calgary 7 (10,980)
May 1: Tri-City 1 at Calgary 4 (10,049)
May 4: Calgary 4 at Tri-City 1 (4,699)
May 5: Calgary 2 at Tri-City 4 (4,532)
Friday: Tri-City at Calgary, 7 p.m.
x-Sunday: Calgary at Tri-City, 5:05 p.m.
x-May 10: Tri-City at Calgary, 7 p.m.
x — if necessary.
———
FINALLY, SOMEONE SAYS SOMETHING: The WHL’s championship final has been rather timid to date, at least when it comes to the spoken word. But it seems Calgary Hitmen head coach Mike Williamson is a bit disgruntled, or is he playing games? Nah! That wouldn't happen, not in the playoffs.
Here’s a bit from a column written by George Johnson of the Calgary Herald:
An area Williamson hasn’t been remotely satisfied with lately is the penalty calls, or lack thereof in Tri-City’s case. He found the three power-play chances for his club over the two games in Kennewick, particularly in light of the long stretches of pressure the Hitmen piled on in Game 5, a trifle confusing: “For the most part, we did what we wanted to do. I thought there was lots out there that could’ve been called, but the ref decided not to. They tried to be non-factors, but became a factor because of it.’’
Johnson’s entire column is right here.
———
DID YOU KNOW: When Tri-City general manager Bob Tory was looking for a head coach last summer — Don Nachbaur had signed with the NHL’s Ottawa Senators to coach their AHL franchise, the Binghamton Senators — among the candidates he interviewed were Jim Hiller and Mike Williamson. In fact, it is believed that those two gentlemen were the last two candidates on Tory’s short list. . . . Tory ended up hiring Hiller, of course, while Williamson caught on as head coach of the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Williamson’s Hitmen hold a 3-1 lead on Hiller’s Americans going into Game 5 of the WHL final in Calgary on Friday night.
———
DID YOU KNOW II: In the spring of 1996, the Spokane Chiefs lost the first three games of a first-round series with the Portland Winterhawks and then came back to win the next four. . . . Brent Peterson, now the associate coach with the NHL’s Nashville Predators, was Portland’s head coach, while Mike Williamson, today the head coach of the Calgary Hitmen, was an assistant. . . . The head coach of the Chiefs was Mike Babcock, now the head coach of the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings, who are attempting to erase a 3-0 deficit in a second-round NHL series against the San Jose Sharks. . . . Spokane went on to the WHL final in 1996, losing in five games to the Brandon Wheat Kings.
---
THE COACHING GAME:
Another source told me Thursday that the Swift Current Broncos have made an offer to Darren Evjen to join their coach staff and that the offer will be on the table until after the Memorial Cup. Evjen spent this season as GM/head coach of the SJHL’s Notre Dame Hounds, but left his family in Saskatoon for the season. He resigned after the season and moved back to Saskatoon. . . .
Also heard some speculation that Hardy Sauter, dumped as head coach of the Spokane Chiefs earlier in the week, could end up as the head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings next season. The theory is that Kelly McCrimmon, the Wheat Kings’ owner, governor, GM and head coach, will step aside after the Memorial Cup and bring in a coach. Sauter is a former Wheat Kings defenceman (1989-92) and is from Maryfield, Sask., which is not too far west of Brandon. . . .
The OHL’s Oshawa Generals won’t be renewing the contracts of assistant GM/assistant coach Rich Ricci, assistant coach Randy Fitzgerald and goaltending coach Ron Tugnutt. The Generals went 24-39-3-2 this season and missed the playoffs. . . . Tugnutt, the former NHLer, is expected to land on the coaching staff of the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, who have, as the Peterborough Examiner reported early in the week, named Dave Reid as their new GM. . . .
The ECHL’s Bakersfield Condors will have Marty Raymond back for a seventh season as head coach. They are affiliated with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks. . . . The Condors won the first division title in franchise history this season and have made the playoffs in six of Raymond’s seasons as head coach. . . .
The QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles have re-signed GM/head coach Mario Durocher. He got a new two-year deal on Thursday. The Screaming Eagles went 41-22-2-3 this season. They lost out to the Moncton Wildcats in the first round of the playoffs. . . .
The NHL’s St. Louis Blues have fired Rick Wamsley, the head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. Wamsley took over as interim coach on Jan. 2, after the Blues fired head coach Andy Murray, and moved Peoria head coach Davis Payne to the big club. The Rivermen went 17-20-1-5 with Wamsley in charge. . . . Wamsley joined St. Louis on July 7, 2006, as assistant coach/goaltending coach. . . .
The BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs lost their GM/head coach Thursday with the announcement that Nolan Graham will be joining the RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) Red Hawks as an assistant coach. Graham played at RPI (1999-2003). . . . Paul Esdale, the Bulldogs’ assistant GM/assistant coach, was named the BCHL’s team’s GM and head coach. . . .
———
MEANWHILE . . .
The Moose Jaw Warriors will hold a news conference Friday to introduce F Torin White, who has signed with the club. White, from Balzac, Alta., was a first-round selection by the Warriors in the 2010 bantam draft. He played bantam in Airdrie, Alta.
———
F Mitch Wahl, a veteran of the Spokane Chiefs, scored his first two AHL playoff goals and set up another Thursday as the host Abbotsford Heat scored a 4-1 victory over the Hamilton Bulldogs. . . . Abbotsford got is first goal from F Lance Bouma. It was his first AHL goal. . . . Bouma played this season with the Vancouver Giants. . . . F Carter Bancks of the Lethbridge Hurricanes also drew an assist on Bouma’s goal. . . . .The series is tied 2-2 with Game 5 set for Saturday night in Abbotsford. . . . Attendance on Thursday night was2,631 .
———
F Mitch Czibere won a Memorial Cup with the Vancouver Giants in 2007. Now he has a shot at the RBC Cup with the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings. Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun has that story right here.
———
Robin Short of the St. John’s Telegram is reporting that Canada’s national junior team will hold its summer camp in the Newfoundland city, Aug. 5-11. . . . There’s more right here.
———
The Regina Pats will hold a news conference Friday afternoon at which time, Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post is reporting, “general manager Brent Parker is expected to announce a restructuring plan for the organization. The focal point of that plan is the veteran GM, who’s not expected to sever ties with the WHL club. However, it is anticipated that he’ll take a step back from the hockey side.” . . . Check The Leader-Post website right here for updates.