Taking Note

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Stanislav Balan (Portland, 2005-06) was reassigned from Lev Poprad (Slovakia, KHL) to SKP Poprad (Slovakia, Extraliga). He had eight goals and eight assists in 50 games for Zlin (Slovakia, Extraliga) last season. Balan has been injured and played in only one of Lev's nine exhibition games. The KHL opens its regular season on Wednesday. . . .
D Ross Lupaschuk (Lethbridge, Prince Albert, Red Deer, 1996-2001) signed a one-year contract with the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga) after a successful tryout. He had one goal in three exhibition games for the Capitals. Last season, Lupaschuk had two goals and one assist in 15 games for Kölner Haie (Germany, DEL). Capitals head coach Tommy Samuelsson: "With Ross Lupaschuk, we have found the strong man on the blue line that we were looking for. He can decide games and also take on a leadership role." The Erste Bank Liga regular season opens Friday. . . .
D Paul Albers (Calgary, Regina, Vancouver, 2001-06) signed a one-year contract with the Tohuku Free Blades (Japan, Asia Hockey League). He had 12 assists in 46 games for the Krefeld Pinguine (Germany, DEL) last season. Tohuku plays out of Hachinohe, at the northern end of Honshu, the largest island in Japan. The Asia Hockey League begins regular-season play on Sept. 17. . . .
F David Svagrovsky (Seattle, 2003-05) signed a one week tryout contract with Nitra (Slovakia, Extraliga). He had eight goals and 16 assists in 41 games for Berounsti Medvedi (Czech republic, 1.Liga) and was pointless in one game with Slavia Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga) last season. The Slovakian Extraliga regular season starts Sept. 16.
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By now, you may be aware that F Liam Stewart, the son of actress Rachel Hunter and rocker Rod Stewart, is in camp with the Spokane Chiefs.
He was with the Chiefs during the weekend tournament in Everett. Here’s what one WHL scout saw in a brief look:
“Liam does not look out of place at all. (Spokane head coach Don) Nachbaur had him on the second line and playing on the second PK unit. I thought he didn't look out of place at all. Competed in the corners, skates well; seemed to know what to do and where to go in the period I watched. Granted, it was only one period . . .”
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JUST NOTES: The Brandon Wheat Kings have lost veteran D Brodie Melnychuk, 20, indefinitely with a broken wrist suffered in training camp over the weekend. . . . The Wheat Kings got down to 27 players, including two goaltenders and 10 defencemen following their Sunday intrasquad game. The goaltenders are veterans Corbin Boes and Liam Liston, both 18. . . . The Spokane Chiefs went 3-0 at the Everett tournament on the weekend. Veteran F Anthony Bardaro played two of the games and totalled six points, four of them goals. . . .
Reports out of Kelowna indicate that Rockets F Jason Siebert, the 17th overall pick in the 2009 bantam draft, won’t play until at least after Christmas. Siebert, 17, played only 17 games last season because of a broken wrist. The injury hasn’t healed properly and Siebert needs more surgery. . . . Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun has reported that F Brenden Walker, who suffered a concussion last season in the playoffs, is being held out of the Brandon Wheat Kings’ training camp as a precaution. . . . The Kelowna Rockets have acquired F Carter Rigby, 17, from the Prince George Cougars. The Rockets also got a conditional 2012 sixth-round bantam draft pick. The Cougars ended up with a third-round pick in the 2012 draft. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Rigby played most of last season with the junior B Osoyoos Coyotes before finishing with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. Rigby, from Penticton, was an eighth-round pick by the Cougars in the 2009 bantam draft. He has been in camp with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. . . . The Vancouver Giants released F Neil Tarnasky, 19, after a 6-3 victory over the visiting Kamloops Blazers on Saturday. He had played the previous two seasons with the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
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DEPT. OF DISCIPLINE: Three players have drawn ‘tbd’ suspensions for weekend fouls. . . . F Jesse Mychan of the Everett Silvertips picked up a major and game misconduct for a check to the head during a game against the Spokane Chiefs on Saturday. . . . D Dallas Ehrhardt of the Moose Jaw Warriors drew a cross-checking major and game misconduct against the host Regina Pats on Friday night, while F Mike Aviani of Spokane took a boarding major and game misconduct while playing the Seattle Thunderbirds in Everett on Friday.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
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