Taking Note

Don Hay, the head coach of the Vancouver Giants, issued a broad apology Monday night after, his team had to use Kamloops Blazers training camp jerseys during a game in Kamloops on Saturday night. The Giants’ jerseys missed the bus to Kamloops on Saturday afternoon, so they wore black Kamloops jerseys that included a Blazers logo on the fronts.
“It’s embarrassing to our organization and we’re not happy about it,” Hay said in his weekly appearance with Dan Russell on SportsTalk, Vancouver radio station CKNW’s nightly show. “It’s not something that we’re very proud of . . . not taking our jerseys and not representing our organization.
“We made the best of it and we’re moving on.”
Hay, who is from Kamloops and is a former Blazers coach, did admit that he was OK with wearing the logo.
“Having spent 10 years there and growing up watching the Blazers . . . obviously, I was comfortable wearing that sweater more than any other team’s in the league,” Hay said.
Then he added: “It was something different and not something we’d like to do every game.”
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Robert Schnabel (Red Deer, 1997-99) has been loaned for the rest of this season to Chomutov (Czech Republic 1.Liga) by Mlada Boleslav (Czech Republic Extraliga). He had one goal and four assists in 26 games for Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia Extraliga) earlier this season during a two-month stint as an injury replacement. Schnabel's Czech playing rights were held by Mlada Boleslav and a "loan exchange" was made between Mlada Boleslav and Chomutov, where Chomutov loaned F/D Jan Benda to Mlada Boleslav in exchange for Schnabel. Schnabel's loan to Chomutov will continue for next season should Chomutov win promotion to Extraliga.
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F Burke Gallimore of the Seattle Thunderbirds wore a microphone on Jan. 18 when they met the visiting Kamloops Blazers in Kent, Wash.
The clip that ended up on KCPQ-TV is right here.
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JUST NOTES: D Josh Morrissey, the sixth overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft, is scheduled to make his WHL debut Wednesday with the Prince Albert Raiders against the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. Morrissey plays for the midget AAA Calgary Royals; he has 36 points in 26 games, leaving him 13^th overall in the AMHL scoring race. He played in the league’s all-star game last weekend in Fort Saskatchewan. . . . The Kootenay Ice has recalled G Mackenzie Skapski and F Levi Cable for its next five games. Skapski, a third-round pick in the 2009 draft, has a 4.27 GAA and a .894 save percentage with the junior B Ridge Meadows Flames. Cable, 16, has 45 points in 34 games with the midget AAA Yorkton, Sask., Harvest. . . . The Ice is without D Joey Leach and F Steele Boomer, both of whom will miss up to six weeks with ankle problems. . . . C Tyler Johnson of the Spokane Chiefs is the WHL’s player of the week. He recorded 10 points, including two goals, in four games to move to the top of the scoring race. He and F Linden Vey of the Medicine Hat Tigers are tied for the lead, with 79 points. . . . Mark Segal of the Vancouver Giants is the WHL nominee as the CHL’s goaltender of the week. He was 3-0-0, 1.06, .953 last week. . . .
F Nino Niederreiter tied a Portland Winterhawks’ franchise record Sunday when he scored the OT winner to beat the visiting Spokane Chiefs, 6-5. That was Niederreiter’s fourth OT goal, pulling him even with F Todd Robinson (1994-95) and F Ken Yaremchuk (1980-83). Robinson played 317 regular-season games, while Yaremchuk was in 210. Niederreiter has played in 97 games. . . . Portland, by the way, is 26-0-0 when scoring four or more goals. . . . The Winterhawks have scheduled their annual Buckaroos Salute for Feb. 5 when they are playing the Tri-City Americans. Among the former Buckaroos players who will be in attendance are Jim Hay, Art Jones and Tom McVie.