Priestner has agreement to purchase Blades

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Lukas Vantuch (Calgary, Lethbridge, 2005-07) signed a tryout contract with Landshut (Germany, DEL2). He had one goal and four assists in 31 games with Liberec (Czech Republic, Extraliga), one assist in five games on loan to Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga), and was pointless in two games on loan to Benatky nad Jizerou (Czech Republic, 1. Liga) last season. . . .
F Judd Blackwater (Spokane, 2005-08) signed a one-year contract with Olimpija Ljubljana (Slovenia, Austria Erste Bank Liga). He had 19 goals and 31 assists in 69 games with the Las Vegas Wranglers (ECHL) last season. Blackwater is expected to arrive in Ljubljana on Friday. . . .
F Adam Chorneyko (Kamloops, Lethbridge, Saskatoon, 2004-09) signed a one-year contract with the Friesland Flyers Heerenveen (Netherlands, Eredivisie). He had no points in two games with the Colorado Eagles (ECHL), no points in four games with the Rapid City Rush (CHL), and two assists in five games with the Arizona Sundogs (CHL) last season.
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An agreement to sell the Saskatoon Blades to Mike Priestner has been reached. Jack Brodsky, his brother, Bob, and their sister, Debbie, have applied to the WHL’s board of governors for a transfer of ownership. The board will meet in Calgary on Sept. 4 to review the application. . . . Priestner, who attempted to purchase the Kamloops Blazers over the summer of 2007, is the owner of Go Auto, an Edmonton-based company that owns more than 30 automobile dealerships. . . . According to a WHL news release: “A special resolution vote of two-thirds majority from the Board of Governors is required in order to grant approval for the sale. If approval is granted at the Sept. 4 meeting, Mr. Priestner will assume control of the Saskatoon Blades franchise prior to the start of the 2013-14 WHL season.”
After issuing the news release, the WHL then dropped the cone of silence on the entire situation, as it did after it whacked the Portland Winterhawks in November. “The WHL, the Brodsky family and Mr. Priestner will not be making any further comments on this matter until following the WHL Board of Governors Meeting on Sept. 4,” concluded the news release.
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The Victoria Royals have signed F Matthew Phillips and D Ralph Jarratt to WHL contracts. . . . Phillips was the 33rd overall selection in the 2013 bantam draft. He had 77 points, 40 of them goals, in 37 games with the Calgary Bisons of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League last season. . . . Jarratt, from Fort St. John, B.C., was taken selecctions after Phillips. Jarratt played last season in the Pursuit of Excellence’s bantam AAA program, putting up 29 points in 28 games. . . . F Dante Hannoun, Victoria’s first selection in the 2013 bantam draft, has left the Royals’ camp. Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist reports that Hannoun “took ill” and he and the team decided it would be best for him to return home to Delta, B.C., so that he could get proper rest and get better.
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The Tri-City Americans have signed F Maxwell James to a WHL contract. James, from Kamloops, was a sixth-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft. Last season, he put up 12 points in 40 games with the major midget Thompson Blazers. . . . The Americans now have signed their first six selections from the 2012 bantam draft.
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Pat Mangold, who played with the Calgary Wranglers and Kamloops Blazers (1981-85), died in a personal watercraft accident on Okanagan Lake near Kelowna on Saturday evening. According to Castanet.net, Mangold, 47, “was riding his (personal watercraft) on Okanagan Lake about 8:30 p.m. Saturday when (he) struck a log boom near Traders Cove” on the west side of the lake. . . . It is believed that Mangold died instantly, and that speed and visibility may have been factors. . . . Mangold, who was from Kelowna, played three games for the Wranglers in each of the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons, and 69 games in 1983-84. He moved to the Blazers early in 1985-86. In 133 regular-season games, he had 52 points, including 28 goals.
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The Kootenay Ice has added Mike Dyck to its coaching staff. Dyck, a former head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, will attend training camp and will return to the team to help first-year assistant Jay Henderson on the bench when head coach Ryan McGill serves as an assistant coach with Canada’s national junior team in December. . . . “With Ryan going to the World Juniors and this being Jay's first year coaching in the WHL,” Chynoweth said in a news release, “we felt another coach was needed during this time frame. We feel very fortunate to be able to add a coach with the experience that Mike has in the WHL." . . . Dyck spent five seasons as Lethbridge’s head coach, going 132-120-16 and reaching the WHL’s championship final in 2008. He also worked as an assistant coach with Lethbridge and the Vancouver Giants.
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The Swift Current Broncos have signed F Brandan Arnold, 16. Arnold, from Dodsland, Sask., was taken by the Broncos in the seventh round of the 2012 bantam draft. He has 23 points with the midget AAA Tisdale Trojans last season. . . . Arnold signed in time to play in the Broncos’ 5-4 victory over the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors last night. He picked up an assist on the game’s first goal, a power-play score 9:18 into the opening period.
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JUST NOTES: F Lucas Grayson, 19, now is on the roster of the BCHL’s Powell River Kings. From Port Hardy, B.C., Grayson had a goal and two assists in 117 regular-season WHL games split between the Red Deer Rebels (41) and Everett Silvertips (76). . . . F Colten Mayor, 20, has joined the AJHL’s Whitecourt Wolverines. He split last season between the Calgary Hitmen and Regina Pats. He also played with the Red Deer Rebels during his WHL career. The native of St. Albert, Alta., put up 94 points, including 38 goals, in 228 WHL games.
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From Saskawhat (@saskawhat): “So it begins. Warriors coach Stothers on tonights rookie game loss to @SCBroncos: ‘1 team actually played rookies; the other team didn't.’ ”

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Friday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Karel Hromas (Everett, 2004-06) signed a one-year contract with Chomutov (Czech Republic 1.Liga). He had seven goals and four assists in 52 games for Sparta Prague (Czech Republic Extraliga) this season. . . .
D Justin Kurtz (Brandon, 1993-97) signed a one-year contract with the Black Wings Linz (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had seven goals and 33 assists in 48 games for the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (Germany 2.Bundesliga) this season.
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The WHL’s championship final opened in Portland on Friday night, with F Ty Rattie tipping in a shot on a PP just 55 seconds into OT to give the Winterhawks a 4-3 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . Rattie tipped in a shot by C Craig Cunningham after a faceoff in the Kootenay zone. The second assist went to D Derrick Pouliot, a 16-year-old who quarterbacks one of Portland’s PP units. He was the first overall pick in the 2009 bantam draft. . . . The Ice had its playoff winning streak snapped at 11 games, one shy of the WHL record. . . . Rattie has goals in three straight games. . . . Kootenay had a late PP after Portland F Brad Ross was penalized for high-sticking at 17:28 of the third. . . . Portland’s final PP came after Ice D James Martin went off for tripping at 19:04. He dumped Portland F Ryan Johansen. . . . Ice F Kevin King forced OT with an unassisted goal at 11:11 of the third period. The goal came moments after play was delayed while a broken pane of glass was replaced. . . . The game’s first five goals all came in the first period. . . . F Sven Bartschi scored Portland’s first two goals, with Ice D Hayden Rintoul scoring between those goals. . . . Ice F Joe Antilla tied it 2-2 at 17:50 of the first, with Portland F Nino Niederreiter giving his side a 3-2 lead with 3.9 seconds left in the first. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 39 shots, nine more than the Ice’s Nathan Lieuwen. . . . The Winterhawks were 1-for-6 on the PP; the Ice was 0-for-5. . . . The referees were Pat Smith and Derek Zalaski. . . . Attendance was 7,595. . . . Game 2 is scheduled for tonight in Portland. . . . The Ice remains without F Brock Montgomery (mononucleosis) remains out, while the Winterhawks are still without D Brett Ponich (knee) and F Oliver Gabriel (shoulder). Ponich is back skating but isn’t yet ready to return.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Two minors:
Kootenay D Brayden McNabb
Portland F Tayler Jordan
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In Victoria, the Salmon Kings were laid to rest on Friday as RG Properties announced that it won’t operate the ECHL franchise next season. And, just like that, the franchise, which spent seven seasons in Victoria, is dead and buried.
RG Properties, which manages the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, owned the ECHL franchise. It announced Friday that it “has withdrawn from the League with the full approval of the ECHL Board of Governors.”
According to a Salmon Kings news release: “The withdrawal effectively ends the Salmon Kings organization. The players have been awarded free-agency, and given the opportunity to choose the future direction of their hockey careers.”
The focus now has shifted to the former Chilliwack Bruins franchise, which is soon to be renamed the Victoria Tide or something like that. Andrew A. Duffy of the Victoria Times Colonist has that story right here.
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“Forget hunting for steroids and performance-enhancing substances: This is the real issue. Even if its not as sexy or black-and-white moralistic,” writes Jeff Blair in The Globe and Mail. Yes, he’s writing about Dr. Charles Tator and others and the research they are doing on concussions. If you’re a parent, or if you are playing a contact sport, you should give this a read. It’s right here.
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Meanwhile, James Mirtle of The Globe and Mail sat down with Brian Levine, senior scientist at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest in Toronto, and talked about the work they are doing with the NHL alumni association. That interview is right here.
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F Adam Chorneyko (Kamloops, Lethbridge, Saskatoon, 2004-09) scored at 4:35 of the third OT on Thursday night in Loveland, Colo., giving the Colorado Eagles a 2-1 victory over the Rapid City Rush in the fifth-longest game in Central league history. . . . The Eagles hold a 3-1 lead the Turner Conference final 3-1 with Game 5 in Rapid City, S.D., tonight. . . . The New York Rangers have signed Czech F Roman Horak to a three-year NHL contract. Horak played the last two seasons with the Chilliwack Bruins. He had 78 points, including 26 goals, in 64 games this season. Horak, who turns 20 on May 21, was a fifth-round pick in the 2009 NHL draft. . . . Former WHL D and coach Mark Ferner has been named head of Canada West for the 2011 World Junior A Challenge. Ferner is in his fourth season as GM/head coach of the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers, who have a chance to win their third straight national title this weekend in Camrose, Alta. A host community for the 2011 WHC has yet to be announced. . . . Former WHLer Dalyn Flette was named the RBC Cup’s top goaltender and most valuable player on Friday in Camrose, Alta. Flette now plays for the host Camrose Kodiaks. . . .
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In the OHL, D Matt Petgrave scored early in the first OT period Friday, giving the visiting Owen Sound Attack a 6-5 victory over the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors. Attendance was 4,053. . . . Mississauga holds a 2-1 lead in the championship final with Game 4 scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Owen Sound.
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A Friday morning tweet from Willy Palov of the Halifax ChronicleHerald: “Announcement coming on Monday at Lewiston Maneaics will move to Summerside, PEI.” . . .
That was followed by this from QMJHL_Fanhouse: “Lewiston to Summerside relocation rumors are heating up once again. Usually smoke leads to fire but we'll see.” . . .
However, Charles Reid of the Charlottetown Guardian reports that it isn’t that simple. His story is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME: Mel Pearson Jr., an assistant or associate coach for 23 seasons with the Michigan Wolverines, is the new head coach of the Michigan Tech Huskies. Pearson is a Michigan Tech alum. A native of Vancouver, Pearson is the son of the late Mel Pearson Sr., who played (1955-57) and coached the Flin Flon Bombers for two full seasons (1973-75) and part of one other (1975-76). . . . As expected, the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads have named Dominique Ducharme as their head coach. He spent the last three seasons as a head coach with the Montreal Junior.
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Tweet of the day, from @mpysyk03: Congrats to @backhandsauce07 for finally graduating high school! And also happy 25th birthday buddy! You did it!

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