Showing posts with label Adam Brooks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adam Brooks. Show all posts

Thursday, June 29, 2017

Ex-WHLer heads to Vegas ... 'Canes add assistant coach ... Ice gets forward from Rebels


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 F Garry Nunn (Vancouver, Edmonton, 2007-10) has signed a one-year contract with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen). Last season, with the San Antonio Rampage (AHL), he had eight goals and 10 assists in 53 games. . . .
F T.J. Foster (Edmonton, 2008-13) has signed a one-year contract with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen). Last season, with the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL), he had two goals and three assists in 12 games. He also had 23 goals and 32 assists in 50 games with the Norfolk Admirals (ECHL). He led the Admirals in goals, assists and points. . . .
D Daine Todd (Medicine Hat, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with Örebro (Sweden, SHL). Last season, he had four goals and 11 assists in 36 games with Luleå (Sweden, SHL). . . .
F Roberts Libsbergs (Seattle, 2012-15) has signed a one-year extension with Dinamo Riga (Latvia, KHL). Last season, he had three goals and four assists in 31 games.
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RYAN McGILL
(Photo: attackhockey.com)
Ryan McGill, a former WHL player and coach, has left the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack to join the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights as an assistant coach. McGill, 48, spent two seasons as the Attack’s head coach and was the OHL and CHL coach of the year for 2016-17. With the Golden Knights, he joins head coach Gerard Gallant and fellow assistants Mike Kelly and Ryan Craig. . . . In the WHL, McGill began his coaching career as an assistant with the Edmonton Ice (1996-98), and took over as head coach during the 1997-98 season. . . . He was the head coach of the Kootenay Ice (1998-2002, 2012-15), guiding them to the 2002 Memorial Cup title. He played four seasons (1985-89) in the WHL, splitting that between the Lethbridge Broncos, Swift Current Broncos and Medicine Hat Tigers. He helped the Tigers to the 1988 Memorial Cup championship.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes have added Jeff Hansen as an assistant coach. Hansen, 35, spent the previous four seasons as video coach with the Calgary Hitmen. For the first two of those seasons, Brent Kisio, the Hurricanes’ head coach, was an assistant coach with the Hitmen. . . . Before joining the Hitmen, Hansen was an assistant coach with the AJHL’s Calgary Mustangs. He also has coached in the Alberta Major Midget Hockey League. . . . With the Hurricanes, Hansen fills the vacancy created when Mike Craig left the team in May. He had been on staff through four seasons. . . . The Hurricanes' staff also includes Darcy Wakaluk, a former goaltender coach with the Hitmen.
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Bruce Gordon played three seasons (1979-82) in the WHL, starting with the Medicine Hat Tigers (71 games) and finishing up with the Saskatoon Blades (112 games). A grinding, tough forward who played hard at home and on the road, he totalled 22 goals, 65 assists and 818 penalty minutes. . . . Gordon, 54, has been incredibly fit. He’s an Ironman triathlete. He lifts, he cycles, he does it all. He was a member of the Saskatoon Police Service, then, at 50, he decided to become a defence lawyer. . . . The other day, things changed when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. . . . Dan Zakreski of CBC News has the story right here.
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CAMERON HAUSINGER
The Kootenay Ice has acquired F Cameron Hausinger, 18, from the Red Deer Rebels for a fourth-round selection in the 2018 WHL bantam draft. . . . The Ice had gotten that fourth-round pick from Lethbridge on Jan. 8 in a deal that had F Zak Zborosky, F Matt Alfaro and a sixth-round pick in 2018 go to the Hurricanes for F Brett Davis, F Colton Kroeker and a 2018 second-round pick. . . . Hausinger, who is from Anchorage, had seven goals and eight assists in 61 games split between Red Deer and the Saskatoon Blades last season. . . . The Blades selected him in the seventh round of the 2014 bantam draft. He had six goals and five assists in 58 games with the Blades in 2015-16. . . . The Blades traded him to Red Deer on Nov. 25 for two draft picks — a seventh-rounder in 2017 and a fifth in 2018.
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MASSIMO RIZZO
The Kamloops Blazers have yet to sign F Massimo Rizzo, their first pick in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. But he hasn’t yet turned them down, either. . . . Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week reports that “the Blazers brought the heavyweights — (majority) owner Tom Gaglardi, part-owner Shane Doan, general manager Stu MacGregor and head coach Don Hay” to a meeting with Rizzo and his father in Vancouver on Wednesday. . . . Last season, Rizzo put up 84 points in 48 games with the midget prep team at the Burnaby Winter Club. Rizzo also played in a few games with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. He was pointless in three regular-season games and had one goal in seven playoff games. But he really hit is stride at the Western Cup, where he had a goal and four assists in five games and got some power-play time. He also had a goal in five games at the RBC Cup. . . . Hastings’ story is right here.
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OHLThe OHL-champion Erie Otters have signed Chris Hartsburg as their new head coach. He takes over from Kris Knoblauch, who now is an assistant coach with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. . . . Hartsburg, a former assistant coach with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips 2009-13), has been the head coach of the USHL’s Lincoln Stars for the past three seasons. . . . He spent 2013-14 as an assistant under Knoblauch with the Otters. . . . From Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., he is the son of former NHL player/coach Craig Hartsburg, who also did a stint (2009-11) as Everett’s head coach. . . . The Otters also signed GM Dave Brown to a three-year extension through 2019-20, and promoted assistant coach B.J. Adams to associate coach. Adams and assistant coach Wes Wolfe were extended through 2019-20.
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The QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads have signed Sylvain Favreau as an assistant coach to work alongside head coach Jim Midgley. Favreau, 39, had been the director of hockey operations and head coach with the CCHL’s Cumberland Grads. From Orleans, Ont., he has been coaching in the CCHL, with Cumberland the Gloucester Rangers, since 2009.
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D Jordan Wharrie, who has played the past three seasons in the WHL, has decided to play for the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers in 2017-18. Wharrie, 20, is from Port Moody, B.C. . . . The Everett Silvertips selected him in the fifth round of the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft. . . . He played seven games with Everett in 2013-14, then spent 2014-15 with the Silvertips. In 2015-16, he played for the Victoria Royals. He split last season between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Vancouver Giants. . . . In 162 regular-season games, he had eight goals and 10 assists.
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The junior B Creston Valley Thunder Cats of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League have signed Brad Tobin as their new general manager and head coach. He takes over from Jeff Dubois, who has signed on as assistant GM/assistant coach with the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. . . . Tobin joined the Thundercats a year ago as assistant GM/associate coach. He had been an assistant coach with the BCHL’s Surrey Eagles (2010-16). . . . Creston also promoted assistant coach Jeff Wagner to assistant GM/associate coach. . . . Dubois had been the head coach in Creston for three seasons, going 97-42 with four ties. He is the KIJHL’s reigning coach of the year.
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F Adam Brooks, who completed his junior eligibility with the Regina Pats last season, has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. They selected him in the fourth round of the NHL’s 2016 draft. . . . Brooks, who is from Winnipeg, won the WHL scoring title in 2015-16 when he put up 120 points. In 2017-18, he totalled 130 points and finished second to teammate Sam Steele in the scoring race. . . . Brooks finished his WHL career with 335 points, including 119 goals, in 317 regular-season games. He added 49 points, 33 of them assists, in 42 playoff games.
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The SPHL’s Knoxville Ice Bears have named Jeff Carr as their new head coach. He had been an assistant coach with the Ogden, Utah, Mustangs of the Western States Hockey League for the previous two seasons. . . . Carr replaces Mike Craigen, whose contract wasn’t renewed after the 2016-17 season ended. Craigen had been the Knoxville head coach for seven seasons.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:33 PM
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Thursday, May 11, 2017

Source: Silvertips have deal with coach ... Brooks skating, but future uncertain ... Cougars lose goaltender


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 The Everett Silvertips appear poised to introduce Dennis Williams as their new head coach.
He would replace Kevin Constantine, who was told on April 18 that his contract wouldn’t be renewed.
Constantine, in his second go-round with the Silvertips, had been their head coach through four seasons.
One source told Taking Note on Thursday that he has heard from “a few different people that Everett has a done deal” with Williams. This was the second time in two days that Taking Note has received the same information from different sources.
Williams, 37, is a native of Stratford, Ont., He has spent three seasons as the general manager of hockey operations and head coach of the USHL’s Bloomington, Ill., Thunder. One source told Taking Note that Williams has two years left on his contract with Bloomington.
Before working with the Thunder, Williams was the director of hockey operations and head coach with the NAHL’s Amarillo, Texas, Bulls.
The Silvertips, Thunder and Bulls are owned by CSH International, Inc., the sports property division of The Monarch Corporation, a private investment company that is headquartered in Medicine Hat and is headed up by Bill Yuill, its chairman.
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The WHL’s championship final for the Ed Chynoweth Cup resumes tonight (Friday) in Kent, Wash., with the Regina Pats and Seattle Thunderbirds each having won twice. The Thunderbirds posted the most convincing victory over the series on Wednesday when they skated to a 6-1 victory.
The Pats, of course, have been without F Adam Brooks since he suffered a suspected concussion when he was hit by Seattle D Turner Ottenbreit during Game 1. Brooks, who won last season's WHL scoring title, put up 250 points between last season and this one.
Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reported Thursday that “Brooks is skating but it remains to be seen when he’ll get the green light.”
John Paddock, the Pats’ general manager and head coach, told Harder: “I don’t really have an answer. I definitely think there’s a chance to a good chance (he’ll play again in the series). In saying that, he’s not a lock to play (Friday) or the next two games after that.”
After Game 5, the teams will return to Regina for Game 6, which is scheduled for Sunday, and Game 7, if necessary, on Monday.
Harder’s complete story is right here.
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G Nick McBride has told the Prince George Cougars that he won’t be returning for his 20-year-old
NICK McBRIDE
season. Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen reports that McBride informed the Cougars of his decision “about a month ago.” . . . This season, McBride played in 22 games, going 14-5-1, 3.05, .903, as he backed up Ty Edmonds, 20, who made 53 appearances. . . . A native of Maple Ridge, B.C., McBride started his WHL career with the Prince Albert Raiders. He played two seasons there, before being dealt to the Cougars. . . . McBride, a former WHL scholastic player of the year, is expected to attend school rather than return to the Cougars. . . . Tavin Grant, 19, would appear to be No. 1 on the Cougars’ depth chart now. He played this season with the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. Also on the depth chart is G Taylor Gauthier, the ninth overall selection in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. Gauthier, 16, played this season with the midget AAA Calgary Buffaloes. . . . According to Clarke, the Cougars also will bring in Ty Taylor, who turns 18 on July 5. He played this season with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers. . . . McBride is the second goaltender to leave the WHL for school in recent days, rather than return for his 20-year-old season. Zach Sawchenko won’t be back with the Moose Jaw Warriors, choosing instead to attend the U of Alberta and play for the Golden Bears. . . . Clarke’s story is right here.
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D Dallas Valentine, who played out his junior eligibility with the Kamloops Blazers this season, has decided to attend the U of Lethbridge and play for the Pronghorns. Valentine, who is from Red Deer, played four seasons in the WHL. Six games into his third season, the Moose Jaw Warriors traded him to the Blazers. . . . In 260 regular-season games, the 6-foot-4, 205-pounder had 10 goals and 55 assists.
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Aaron Keller, who has played and coach in Japan since 1997, announced his retirement via Facebook on Thursday. Keller, 42, is a native of Kamloops. A defenceman, he played four seasons (1992-96) with the Kamloops Blazers and was part of two Memorial Cup-championship teams (1994 and 1995). . . . Keller played one season of pro in North America, before joining the Snow Brand Sapporo in Japan for the 1997-98 season. Since 2002-03, he has been part of the Oji Eagles’ organization. He also represented Japan in various international competitions. Keller last played in 2013-14. This season, he was the Eagles’ head coach.
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The Red Deer Rebels have brought back a familiar face as their athletic therapist. The team announced that Josh Guenther has left the team, “due to personal reasons,” after one season, and that it has hired Terence Robertson as athletic therapist. . . . Robertson was the team’s athletic therapist from 2004-13. Since 2013, he was with Collegiate Athletic & Sports Medicine in Red Deer.
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The Tri-City Americans have signed F Kaden Kohle to a WHL contract. The Americans selected Kohle, who is from Humboldt, Sask., in the first round — 12th overall — of the 2017 WHL bantam draft. This season, Kohle, 6-foot-2 and 170 pounds. had 66 points, including 38 goals, in 29 games with the bantam AA Humboldt Broncos. In 2015-16, he had 12 goals and 14 assists in 26 games with the Broncos.
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THURSDAY’S GAME:

No Game Scheduled.
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FRIDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m. (Series tied, 2-2)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:39 PM
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Saturday, May 6, 2017

WHL final all even ... Pats' Mahura wins Game 2 in OT ... Brooks out of action


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 While the Seattle Thunderbirds welcomed back F Keegan Kolesar, their top scorer in these playoffs, from a one-game WHL suspension, the Regina Pats were without F Adam Brooks for Game 2 of the championship final in the Saskatchewan capital on Saturday night.
If you haven’t seen it, here’s the hit Brooks, a point-a-game man, absorbed from Seattle D Turner Ottenbreit in Game 1:

There was much debate after the game and well into Saturday as to whether Ottenbreit should have been suspended. This was one of those classic cases where it depends whose ox is being gored.
Regina fans, for the most part, are of the opinion that, yes, Ottenbreit should have been slapped with a suspension. Seattle fans are saying it was a legal hit.
Of course, had that been Seattle F Mathew Barzal, say, on the receiving end of a hit from Regina D Sergey Zborovskiy, chances are that the opinions would have been reversed.
While the check may have been legal, I really question, in this day and age when player safety is supposed to be first and foremost, whether that’s the kind of hit that should be welcomed in junior hockey. Keep in mind that this is precisely the kind of hit that the NFL has outlawed when it involves an defenceless receiver.
Of course, if all the junior hockey talk about player safety being a priority is just lip service, well then, hit away.
In the meantime, Brooks, who won the 2015-16 scoring champion and who put up 250 points over the past two seasons, most likely is going through the concussion protocol. He has five goals and 13 assists in these playoffs.
Brooks suffered a knee injury in Game 2 of the second-round series against the Swift Current Broncos and never skated another shift until the Eastern Conference final with the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
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In the QMJHL, the host Saint John Sea Dogs scored a 4-0 victory over the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada on Saturday night and now lead the championship series, 2-0. . . . Announced attendance was 5,872. . . . F Julien Gauther had two goals and an assist, giving him six points in the first two games of the series. . . . G Callum Booth earned the shutout with 27 stops. . . . They’ll play Game 3 on Tuesday in Blainville-Boisbriand.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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Coaching

 The Prince George-based Cariboo Cougars of the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League have shaken up their front office. Trevor Sprague, a two-time coach of the year, has stepped aside as head coach, but will remain the organization’s general manager. Sprague goes out on top as the Cougars won the league championship this season; they also were the host team for the TELUS Cup national championship tournament. . . . The new head coach is Tyler Brough, who has worked as an assistant coach with Sprague for the past two seasons. . . . The assistant coaches will be Justin Fillion and RJ Berra, while Bryan MacLean, who had been an assistant coach, now is the assistant GM. . . . Fillion and Berra both played for the Cougars and the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. . . . Pam Solmonson is returning for a second season as the Cougars’ trainer.
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SATURDAY’S GAME:


At Regina, D Josh Mahura scored two PP goals, the second in OT, to lead the Pats to a 4-3 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Regina scored the game’s last three goals as it erased a 3-1 deficit to tie the WHL’s championship series for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, 1-1. . . . The Thunderbirds had won Game 1, 2-1 in OT, on Friday. . . . The series will resume with Game 3 in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday night. In fact,
JOSH MAHURA
the next three games will be played in the ShoWare Center in Kent, meaning the Thunderbirds now have the opportunity to win their first WHL title on home ice. . . . A year ago, the Thunderbirds lost the WHL final to the Brandon Wheat Kings, 4-1. The first three games all went to OT, with Brandon posting three 3-2 victories. . . . Last night, the Thunderbirds appeared to take control when they struck for three goals in 56 seconds early in the second period to take a 3-1 lead. . . . The Pats took a 1-0 lead just 50 seconds into the game as F Sam Steel (9) took advantage of a Seattle turnover deep in its zone. . . . D Austin Strand (5) pulled the Thunderbirds even at 3:56 of the second period, his shot from just above the left circle getting through traffic and changing directions before beating G Tyler Brown. . . . Just 16 seconds later, D Turner Ottenbreit’s second goal, a slap shot from the point, gave the visitors the lead. . . . Just 40 seconds after that, F Alexander True (9) scored on a rebound while on a PP. . . . The Pats’ comeback began as Mahura pinched on a 5-on-3 PP and scored from beside the Seattle net at 18:35 of the second period. . . . Regina tied it at 5:20 of the third when F Filip Ahl (5) forced a turnover deep in the Seattle and then scored off it. . . . Seattle F Keegan Kolesar was giving a kneeing minor after he gave the business to Regina D Connor Hobbs following a stoppage at 4:59 of OT. Mahura, who has six goals in the playoffs, scored just 23 seconds later, beating Seattle G Carl Stankowski with a 70-foot snapshot through some traffic. . . . Brown finished with 27 saves, five more than Stankowski. . . . Regina was 2-7 on the PP; Seattle was 1-3. . . . F Dawson Leedahl had two assists for Regina, while Steel and Ahl each had one. . . . Steel, the regular-season scoring champion, now has 27 points in the playoffs, one behind F Reid Gardiner of the Kelowna Rockets, who leads with 28. Steel leads playoff scorers in assists (18). . . . The Thunderbirds got back Kolesar from a one-game suspension. He went into the game leading them in goals (9) and points (22) in these playoffs. . . . Regina scratches: F Adam Brooks, D Dawson Davidson and F Jake Leschyshyn, all with injuries, G Max Paddock, F Duncan Pierce and F Owen Williams. With Brooks out, F Kjell Kjemhus got into the lineup. . . . Seattle’s scratches: G Rylan Toth (injured), F Elijah Brown, F Tyler Carpendale, F Dillon Hamaliuk, D Jake Lee and F Luke Ormsby. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484.
Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here.
Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle has a game story right here.
Darren Steinke, the Travellin’ Blogger, posted this piece right here.
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TUESDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)
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WEDNESDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
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FRIDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:30 PM
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Friday, May 5, 2017

Grenfell fella is Game 1 hero . . . Seattle wins in OT . . . Bear has hand in victory


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 F Šimon Stránský (Prince Albert, 2014-17) has signed a long-term contract with Vítkovice Ostrava (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, he had 22 goals and 26 assists in 57 games with the Raiders. Stransky, who will turn 20 on Dec. 21, would have been eligible to return to the Raiders for one more season. . . .
F Brock Nixon (Kamloops, Calgary, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with the Graz 99ers (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with Esbjerg (Denmark, Metal Ligaen), he had 20 goals and 27 assists in 45 games. He was the team captain, an all-star and finished sixth in the league’s scoring race. . . .
D Rory Rawlyk (Medicine Hat, Vancouver, Prince Albert, Red Deer, 2000-03) has signed a one-season contract with the Sydney Ice Dogs (Australia, AIHL). The AIHL regular season began on April 22. Rawlyk signed a one-year contract for next season with Memmingen (Germany, Oberliga) on Tuesday. . . .
F Tyler Spurgeon (Kelowna, 2001-06) has signed a one-year extension with Innsbruck (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). The team captain, he had 14 goals and 29 assists in 52 games this season. . . .
F Pavel Padakin (Calgary, Regina, 2012-15) has signed a one-year one-way extension with Sochi (Russia, KHL). This season, he had six goals and six assists in 52 games. . . . 
F Vitali Karamnov (Everett, 2007-08) has signed a one-year extension with Dynamo St. Petersburg (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). This season, the team’s captain had nine goals and 10 assists in 49 games. . . .
F Steven Kuhn (Spokane, 2008-12) has signed a one-year contract with Caen (France, Division 1). This season, he had 10 goals and 10 assists in 24 games with Neuilly-sur-Marne (France, Division 1). Kuhn is spending our summer playing with the Newcastle North Stars (Australia, AIHL). In four games, he has a goal and four assists. . . .
F Marcin Kolusz (Vancouver, 2003-04) has signed a one-year contract with Podhale Nowy Targ (Poland, PHL). This season, with Tychy (Poland, KHL), he had nine goals and 13 assists in 32 games. . . . 
F Maximilian Brandl (Prince Albert, Portland, 2007-09) has signed a one-year contract with Bad Nauheim (Germany, DEL2). This season, he had seven goals and 13 assists in 52 games with the Revensburg Towerstars (Germany, DEL2).
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 I was MIA on Thursday, thanks to a flu bug, but here’s a look at a couple of trades that took place during the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft.
The Victoria Royals surrendered a sixth-round selection in the 2018 bantam draft to get F Yan Khomenko, 19, from the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Khomenko, who is from Novosibirsk, Russia, is preparing for his third WHL season and the Royals will be
YAN KHOMENKO
his fourth team. He began his career with the Everett Silvertips in 2015-16, then split this season between the Prince George Cougars and Moose Jaw.
This season, he totalled 15 goals and 16 assists in 68 games. In Everett, he had five goals and three assists in 46 games.
Cam Hope, the Royals’ general manager, has had good luck in acquiring European players from elsewhere in the WHL, rather than go through the machinations of the CHL import draft.
Hope picked up F Vladimir Bobylev from the Vancouver Giants, and got D Marsel Ibragimov from the Edmonton Oil Kings. Both are from Russia.
Bobylev had three goals and six assists in 52 games with the Giants in 2014-15, then had 67 points, 28 of them goals, in 72 games with Victoria the next season. After that season, the Toronto Maple Leafs selected him in the fifth round of the 2016 NHL draft. This season, he had 36 points, including 27 assists, in 38 games with the Royals.
On Oct. 10, 2014, the Royals claimed Ibragimov off waivers after he had played one game with the Oil Kings. In 182 games with Victoria, he has three goals and 18 assists.
Bobylev and Ibragimov are eligible to return for their 20-year-old seasons, but would be two-spotters, so it’s unlikely both would be back. Considering that Bobylev started this season playing professionally in Russia, it could be that he won’t be back in Victoria.
Moose Jaw now has room to add one import player, who will join Russian D Dmitri Zaitsev, 19, who is expected to return for his sophomore season.
Meanwhile, the Red Deer Rebels acquired F Mason McCarty, 20, from the Saskatoon Blades for a
MASON McCARTY
second-round selection in Thursday’s bantam draft.
The Blades still have at least five 20-year-olds on their roster — D Evan Fiala, G Logan Flodell, G Brock Hamm, F Cameron Hebig and F Braylon Shmyr.
McCarty, a fourth-round pick by the Rebels in the 2012 bantam draft, had been dealt to the Blades on Dec. 14, 2014, as part of a deal that brought D Nelson Nogier to Red Deer.
In 2015-16, McCarty had 18 goals and 10 assists in 64 games. This season, he put up 21 goals and 16 assists in 45 games.
The Rebels now have three 20-year-olds on their roster, the others being G Lasse Petersen and F Grayson Pawlenchuk.
“We have an overage spot available,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ general manager and head coach, told Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com, “and we’re still undecided about what we’re going to do about the goaltending situation. That might not be decided until September or October.”
The Blades used Red Deer’s second-round pick to select F Braden Plaschewsky of Calgary.
Meachem’s story is right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks have signed F Mason Mannek, 17, who is from Herriman, Utah. This season, Mannek captained the midget AAA Colorado Thunderbirds, putting up 16 goals and 27 assists in 32 games. He was fourth in scoring in the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League. . . . F Jake Gricius of the Winterhawks also is out of the Thunderbirds program, as are ex-Winterhawks F Dominic Turgeon and F Alex Overhardt.
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The host Saint John Sea Dogs opened the QMJHL final with a 6-3 victory over the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada on Friday night before an announced crowd of 5,883. They’ll play Game 2 today in Saint John. . . . The Sea Dogs got two goals and an assist from each of F Julien Gauthier and F Matthew Highmore. . . . 
In the OHL, the host Erie Otters opened the championship final with a 2-1 victory over the Mississauga Steelheads on Thursday night. They’ll play Game 2 in Erie on Sunday afternoon.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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FRIDAY’S GAME:




At Regina, F Donovan Neuls scored 14 seconds in OT as the Seattle Thunderbirds opened the WHL’s championship final for the Ed Chynoweth Cup with a 2-1 victory over the Pats. . . . They’ll play Game 2 in Regina tonight. . . . Seattle F Mathew Barzal, who finished with two assists, took a shot from the left side and the rebound went almost to the blue line from where D Ethan Bear took a shot that hit the cross-bar
DONOVAN NEULS
behind Regina G Tyler Brown. Neuls, from off the right post, banged in the rebound for the victory. . . . The Brandon Wheat Kings won the 2016 WHL title, beating the Thunderbirds in five games. In that series, the first three games went to OT, with Brandon winning each of them by a 3-2 score. . . . Regina now has lost the first game of three straight playoff series. . . . Neuls is from Grenfell, Sask., which is 90 minutes east of Regina. . . . Both regulation-time goals came via 4-on-3 PPs. . . . Regina D Connor Hobbs tied the score at 12:11 of the third period, pinching in and scoring off something of a backdoor play from the lower left faceoff circle. That was his fifth goal of these playoffs. . . . Bear had given Seattle a 1-0 lead as he returned from a three-game absence thanks to a hand injury. He showed no ill effects in slapping home a shot from the top of the left circle at 4:55 of the second period. Bear’s shot may have changed direction after hitting Regina D Josh Mahura’s stick. . . . Bear is from the Ochapowace First Nation, which is located not quite two hours east of Regina, so he had lots of fans in the building. . . . Bear hadn’t played since April 25 when he suffered an injury to his left hand late in Game 3 of the Western Conference final against the Kelowna Rockets. Since then, he had been spotted with a soft cast on the hand and a splint protecting two fingers. . . . The Thunderbirds were without F Keegan Kolesar, their leading scorer in these playoffs, as he served a one-game WHL suspension. . . . Regina lost F Adam Brooks, one of their top scorers, 3:37 into the second period when he left the game after absorbing a hit from Seattle D Turner Ottenbreit. It was the second time in these playoffs that Brooks, who put up 250 points over the past two regular seasons, left a game with an injury. He suffered a knee injury in Game 2 of a second-round series with the Swift Current Broncos and didn’t play in the last five games, although he dressed and was on the bench for the last three of those. . . . Following the game, John Paddock, Regina’s general manager and head coach, wouldn’t comment on Brooks’ status, but he was bleeding from the left side of his face as he exited. . . . Bear gave Seattle its first lead just 1:18 after Brooks left the game. . . . Seattle G Carl Stankowski continued his kingly playoff run with 31 saves. He now is 13-2, 2.39, .917 in these playoffs. His night’s work included a third-period save on Regina F Austin Wagner, who broke in alone while killing a penalty. . . . At the other end, Brown stopped 24 shots. . . . The Pats were 1-3 on the PP; the Thunderbirds were 1-4. . . . F Riley Krane, an eighth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft from Dawson Creek, B.C., made his playoff debut with the Pats. . . . Regina’s scratches: G Max Paddock, D Owen Williams, F Jake Leschyshyn (knee), F Duncan Pierce, F Kjell Kjemhus and D Dawson Davidson (undisclosed injury). Leschyshyn and Davidson are regulars but aren’t expected to play in this series. . . . Seattle’s scratches: G Rylan Toth, who has yet to dress in these playoffs due to an undisclosed injury, F Elijah Brown, D Jake Lee, F Tyler Carpendale, Kolesar (one-game suspension) and F Dillon Hamaliuk. . . . If you were wondering, the record for the fastest OT goal in a WHL playoff game is held by F Gord Williams of the Lethbridge Broncos. He scored nine seconds in for a 7-6 victory over the visiting Calgary Wranglers on April 11, 1979. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484.
Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here.
Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle has a game story right here.
Darren Steinke, the Travellin’ Blogger, posted this piece right here.
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SATURDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Seattle at Regina, 7 p.m. (Seattle leads, 1-0)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:37 PM
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Friday, April 28, 2017

Owners prepping plan for new Ice age ... Pats, T-Birds take control; series resume Sunday

Scattershoot

When the host Ottawa Senators opened the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday night, there were more than 2,000 empty seats in the Canadian Tire Centre.
The howls of outrage could be heard all the way to Kamloops. Where were the fans?
According to Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen, “Ticket prices jump for Round 1 playoff tickets and jump again for Round 2. Those $25-$30 cheap seats in the regular season become $100. Lower-level seats are about $300, rich by local standards even if most other NHL clubs charge more.”
It likely didn’t help, either, that a parking lot close to the arena jacked up its fee fro $20 to $30.
And did I mention that a double bacon cheeseburger and a tall boy beer would total $27.75?
At some point, and perhaps we’re there now, sporting fans are going to tire of paying high prices to watch athletes who pull down much higher salaries than they do. Those in the corporate seats may always be there, but the average folks, I think, have about run out of the funds necessary to watch a lot of professional sports.
I have always found it interesting when people, often media types who can’t remember the last time they had to pay for a ticket, question the loyalty of fans because they, for whatever reason, choose not to fork over their hard-earned dollars, not even for a playoff game.
Of course, then there’s Edmonton, where thousands show up at Rogers Place even when the Oilers are playing a playoff game away from home. Last night, the winner of the 50/50 draw went home with $51,522.
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Two recent headlines of note . . . 
At TheOnion.com: Clogged rain causes Orioles’ dugout to overflow with chewing-tobacco spit.
At The kicker.com: LeBron passes Popovich for most wins by active head coach.
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Saw a young lady today who was wearing those cut up jeans that seem so popular these days. Had a thought: How do you put those on without catching your toes in the holes and causing even more damage?
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I spent 17 years at the Regina Leader-Post, the last 12 as sports editor, and for a lot of that time the Saskatchewan Roughriders weren’t far removed from the youngster next door with the lemonade stand. They were far removed from the big business that they are today. How much have times changed? The organization swallowed another $36,500 in fines on Friday, something that ran the tab to $116,500 since Aug. 2. . . . As Rob Vanstone of The Leader-Post writes right here: “Six figures worth of sanctions do not take into account other questionable moves by the Roughriders.” . . . Ohh, how times have changed!
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Hey, Sportsnet, how about getting rid of the giant computer-generated logos that you love to put up on the hitters’ background on the camera shot from behind home plate? There is a reason why that background is big and blank.
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The Toronto Blue Jays jettisoned backup catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia on Friday, then went out and blew a 3-1 seventh-inning lead in losing 7-4 to the visiting Tampa Bay Rays, who hit three eighth-inning home runs. Can we assume, then, that the 6-17 start wasn’t Saltalamacchia’s fault, even if he was only 1-for-25? . . . The Toronto bullpen now has blown eight of 12 save opportunities.
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The NHL’s Calgary Flames have lost 29 straight games in Anaheim; Calgary last won there on April 25, 2006. The Edmonton Oilers just posted two victories there in three days.
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 D Spencer Humphries (Tri-City, Calgary, 2008-13) has signed a one-year extension with the Stavanger Oilers (Norway, GET-Ligaen). This season, in 45 games, he had 14 goals and 19 assists. Humphries led the league’s defencemen in goals as the Oilers won the Norwegian championship. . . .
F David Vrbata (Calgary, 2000-01) has announced his retirement from hockey. This season, with Neumarkt/Egna (Italy, Alps HL), he had fige goals and six assists in 12 games. He had four assists in 12 games with Benátky and Jizerou (Czech Republic, 1. Liga). Vrbata has accepted an offer to work in the marketing department for Czech Extraliga team Mladá Boleslav. He is from Mladá Boleslav.
G Chet Pickard (Tri-City, 2005-09) has signed a two-year contract with Adler Mannheim (Germany, DEL). This season, with the Iserlohn Roosters (Germany, DEL), he was 6-14, 2.98, .920 in 26 games.
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 Matt Cockell, the new president and general manager of the Kootenay Ice, says he and partner Greg Fettes will need help to get the WHL franchise back on track.
“We wouldn’t be getting into this if we weren’t confident that we could make it a success,” Cockell told Cranbrook radio station Summit 107 FM. “Of course, in order to do that, we are going to need the help of everybody — we’re going to need the help of the community, we’re going to need the help of the city,
MATT COCKELL
we’re going to need the help of the entire East Kootenay region.”
The WHL’s board of governors unanimously approved the transfer of the franchise from the Chynoweth family to Fettes and Cockell, both of whom have been headquartered in Winnipeg, on Thursday.
Earlier this month, Fettes and Cockell are said to have met with Lee Pratt, the mayor of Cranbrook, for about five hours. Mayor Pratt has told people that he felt “very positive” about the meeting.
"This really is the City of Cranbrook and the East Kootenay region's team,” Cockell said. “That's how my partner, Greg, and I are approaching this, and in order for that partnership to be something that's really exciting and allows everybody to participate, we need to first and foremost get the chance to hear what that means for everybody.
"The franchise in its current state needs some investment, and that's what we're going to do. We're going to come in and we're prepared to invest and engage all the stakeholders. Our sincere hope and commitment is to ensure the long term viability of the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook.”
WHL commissioner Ron Robison told the Cranbrook Townsman that the new ownership’s plans will be “contingent, obviously, on the level of support from the community.”
Robison went one step further, in fact, and used the word “immediately.”
“The attendance levels are at a point where they need to improve immediately,” he said, “and (the new owners) are focused not only on being very engaged in the community but (also) on improving the fan experience in the building.”
The Ice plays in the 4,264-seat Western Financial Place, which also has room for 352 standees. This season, the Ice had the poorest average attendance (1,754) in the 22-team league. that was down from 1,957 in 2015-16 and 2,239 in 2014-15.
There was a time, in the early 2000s, when the Ice drew more than 3,000 fans per game.
Of course, on the other hand, had the taxpayers of Nanaimo voted to allow city council to borrow $80 million that would have gone towards a new arena, the moving vans would be in Cranbrook and the Ice would be moving to Vancouver Island in time for the 2017-18 season.
Nanaimo taxpayers voted 80 per cent not to allow city council to borrow the money, so the Ice now has new owners who are about to get to work in Cranbrook.
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Austria and Korea have advanced to the top division of the IIHF World Championship after finishing in the top two spots at the Division I Group A championship that concluded Friday in Kyiv, Ukraine. . . . Austria finished the tournament in top spot after beating Poland, 11-0, in the final game. The Austria roster includes F Brian Lebler, who was a seventh-round selection by the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL’s 2003 bantam draft. He had four goals and an assist in five games. . . . Korea finished second after scoring a 2-1 shootout victory over host Ukraine. D Alex Plante, a former WHLer, is on the Korean roster. He had two goals and an assist in three games. . . . Plante was named to the tournament all-star team, was was F Nigel Dawes, another former WHLer, who plays for Kazakhstan. Dawes led the tournament in goals (5) and was tied for the points lead (9), in five games. . . . Former NHLer Jim Paek is the Korean team’s head coach. He won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins. . . . The 2018 World Championship is scheduled to be played in Copenhagen and Herning, Denmark.
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In the OHL, the host Erie Otters scored a 4-2 victory over the Owen Sound Attack on Friday and now lead the Western Conference final, 3-2. Game 6 is scheduled for Sunday in Owen Sound. The winner of that series will meet the Mississauga Steelheads in the championship final.
In the QMJHL, the host Saint John Sea Dogs blanked the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, 4-0, to take a 3-2 lead in that semifinal. Game 6 is scheduled for Sunday in Chicoutimi. . . . The other semifinal, featuring the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and Charlottetown Islanders, resumes today. The Aramada holds a 3-1 lead as they go into Charlottetown for Game 5.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES:

At Regina, F Adam Brooks drew four assists to lead the Pats to a 5-3 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Regina now leads the Eastern Conference, 3-2, with Game 6 scheduled for Lethbridge
ADAM BROOKS
on Sunday. . . . Brooks, the Pats’ captain, has seven points over the last two games. . . . Last night, Regina F Dawson Leedahl broke a 3-3 tie with his 11th goal of these playoffs, at 6:25 of the third period. Leedahl one-time a nifty backhand pass from Brooks, who was cruising behind the Lethbridge net. . . . Leedahl has goals in three straight games. . . . F Josh Tarzwell gave Lethbridge a 1-0 lead at 2:53 of the first period as he scored his first WHL playoff goal. He left shortly after that with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return. . . . The Pats tied it as D Josh Mahura (3) scored at 15:37. . . . Lethbridge went back in front when F Ryan Vandervlis, who had eight regular-season goals, scored his seventh of the playoffs, on a PP, at 3:04 of the second period. . . . The Pats took the lead on second-period goals from F Sam Steel (8), on a PP, at 5:10, and F Filip Ahl (3), at 11:29. That was Ahl’s first goal of the series. . . . Lethbridge pulled even at 13:54 as F Egor Babenko got his ninth goal. . . . That set the stage for Leedahl’s winner, with F Austin Wagner (13) adding an empty-netter at 19:57. . . . Shortly after Leedahl’s goal, the Hurricanes found themselves with a 5-on-3 PP for 1:30, but they weren’t able to score. . . . Wagner also had two assists, with Steel and Leedahl adding one each. . . . Vandervlis added an assist to his goal for Lethbridge. . . . G Tyler Brown earned the victory with 29 saves, three more than Lethbridge’s Stuart Skinner. . . . Regina was 1-2 on the PP; Lethbridge was 1-4. . . . The Pats had the speedy Wagner back in the lineup after he missed the previous game with an undisclosed injury. . . . The Hurricanes again scratched F Matt Alfaro, and they also took out F Ryan Bowen. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484, the 23rd sellout at the Brandt Centre this season.
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At Kent, Wash., the Seattle Thunderbirds broke a 2-2 tie with a pair of late second-period goals and went on to a 5-3 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Thunderbirds hold a 3-2 lead in the Western
ALEXANDER TRUE
Conference final with Game 6 in Kelowna on Sunday. . . . In a game that featured 18 power-plays and six PP goals, Seattle took advantage of two Kelowna turnovers to grab a 2-0 first-period lead, F Scott Eansor (5) scoring while shorthanded at 3:15 and F Sami Moilanen (4) counting on a breakaway at 10:57. . . . Kelowna pulled even on PP goals from F Calvin Thurkauf (8), at 12:07 of the first period, and F Nick Merkley (6), at 9:23 of the second. . . . Seattle countered with a pair of PP goals in a span of 1:20 late in the period. F Alexander True (6) broke the 2-2 tie at 17:34 and F Ryan Gropp (4) added insurance at 18:54. . . . True added a second goal, on another PP, at 6:57 of the third period. . . . Kelowna F Dillon Dube (7) completed the scoring with, yes, another PP goal, at 19:25. . . . Seattle was 3-8 on the PP; Kelowna was 3-10. . . . Seattle F Mathew Barzal had three assists, with D Turner Ottenbreit adding two and Moilanen one. . . . The Rockets got two assists from D Cal Foote. . . . The Thunderbirds got 37 saves from G Carl Stankowski, while Kelowna’s Michael Herringer turned aside 19. . . . Seattle D Ethan Bear took the pregame warmup but it was apparent that he was having difficulty handling the puck and he was scratched. He suffered a hand injury — Taking Note has been told that there is a break — while blocking a shot late in Game 4. . . . Seattle G Rylan Toth was scratched again. He has yet to dress for a playoff game. . . . With Bear out, D Jake Lee, a 16-year-old who played four regular-season games, made his WHL playoff debut with Seattle. . . . Announced attendance: 5,001.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Seattle at Kelowna, 5:05 p.m. (Seattle leads, 3-2)
Regina at Lethbridge, 6 p.m. (Regina leads, 3-2)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:08 PM
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