Travis Green, it seems, will be the man in Portland for the duration of this season.
Green began the season as the Winterhawks’ assistant general manager/assistant coach. He has been the interim GM/head coach since Nov. 28, which is when the WHL suspended Mike Johnston for the remainder of this season, including the playoffs.
You will recall that the Winterhawks, who were convicted of what most observers felt were minor rules violations, also were banned from the first five rounds of the 2013 bantam draft, lost first-round draft picks in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, and were fined $200,000.
The WHL held meetings in Las Vegas on Monday and Tuesday, during which the Winterhawks, with owner Bill Gallacher in attendance, made their case for some relief.
While there hasn’t yet been an announcement, I am told that there will be some relief, but none of it will involve the sentence handed to Johnston.
The Winterhawks apparently offered up apologies for what had transpired and expressed contriteness, all of which is expected to result in the reduction of some penalties but not Johnston’s reinstatement, not even for the playoffs.
Since Johnston was forced by the WHL to leave the team, the Winterhawks are 23-4-2, including last night’s 4-3 loss to the visiting Calgary Hitmen.
Still, the Winterhawks lead the WHL’s overall standings, by five points over the Kelowna Rockets and six over the Edmonton Oil Kings, are the only WHL team with a winning percentage above .800 (.824), and are the No. 1 team in the CHL’s weekly rankings.
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Having started a stretch of four games in five nights last night with a 5-0 victory over the visiting Kelowna Rockets, the Spokane Chiefs have added D Adam Power to their roster. He had been with the junior B Spokane Braves, who play in the Kootenay International Junior League. Power, 17, is from Post Falls, Idaho. He had one assist in eight games with the Chiefs earlier this season. . . . The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder has two goals in nine games with the Braves
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The Regina Pats, with a number of players out with injuries, have brought in D Sean Whelan, 18, from the SJHL’s Kindersley Klippers. Whelan, 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, has four points in 30 games with the Klippers. Whelan, from Moose Jaw, is to turn 19 on Monday. He was an 11th-round selection by the Pats in the 2009 bantam draft.
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The Everett Silvertips, with eight players on the injury list, have added G Adam Todd, 18, D Kevin Davis, 15, and F Kyle Raymond, 16, to their roster, at least for tonight’s game in Kamloops against the Blazers. . . . Todd, who played 11 games with the Saskatoon Blades last season, has been with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He will fill in for injured G Austin Lotz (ankle) and back up G Daniel Cotton. . . . The Silvertips had G Nik Amundrud, 15, with them for a bit, but he has been returned to the midget AAA Tisdale, Sask., Trojans. . . . Davis, who is from Kamloops and plays for the major midget Thompson Blazers, already has played four games with Everett this season. He was the 11th overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft. . . . Raymond has been brought in from the junior B Princeton, B.C., Posse of the Kootenay International Junior League.
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What kind of a season has it been for the Everett Silvertips? Well, perhaps this note from Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald sums it up: “There’s been a revelation about defenceman Austin Adam. Adam has been out an extended period with lingering concussion symptoms. However, it was discovered that Adam has mononucleosis, and the mono may have been the cause of those symptoms. Of course, having mono means Adam will remain out for a while, but hopefully that means the concussion wasn't as severe as it appeared.”
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
Now that last night’s games are out of the way, folks can focus on the upcoming doubleheader in Kelowna between the Rockets (40-11-4) and Portland Winter hawks (43-8-3). . . . They’ll play Friday and Saturday nights in Kelowna. . . . Both teams lost last night, the Winterhawks falling 4-3 to the visiting Calgary Hitmen and the Rockets losing 5-0 to the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . The Rockets and Winterhawks haven’t met since Sept. 28 and 29 when they played a doubleheader in Portland. The Winterhawks won the opener 1-0 behind 31 saves from G Cam Lanigan, who now is with the Medicine Hat Tigers, and a goal from D Derrick Pouliot, who now is injured. The Rockets took the second game, 4-3, on F Zach Franko’s goal at 19:01 of the third period.

In Spokane, the Chiefs won the 1,000th game in franchise history, dropping the Kelowna Rockets, 5-0. . . . Kelowna had been 17-0-2 in its previous 19 outings. . . . Spokane G Eric Williams stopped 33 shots in earning his third shutout this season and the fifth of his career. . . . F Todd Fiddler scored his 36th goal and added two assists for the Chiefs, while F Mike Aviani scoed No. 24 and added two assists. . . . Chiefs D Brenden Kichton scored his 17th goal and added an assist. He is tied with Portland’s Troy Rutkowski for the goal lead among defencemen, and has the outright lead in assists (45) and points (62). . . .

In Portland, the Calgary Hitmen erased a 3-1 third-period deficit and beat the Winterhawks, 4-3. . . . Calgary G Chris Driedger stopped 42 shots. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic took over the WHL goal-scoring lead, with his 37th, which gave his side a 3-1 lead at 17:30 of the second period. . . . F Ty Rattie had scored his 30th goal just 14 seconds earlier, via the PP. . . . Calgary captain Cody Sylvester scored 56 seconds into the third period, with F Brooks Macek tying the score at 6:57. . . . Sylvester won it with his 28th goal at 18:28. . . . Sylvester also had an assist. . . . Portland F Nic Petan, the WHL scoring leader, had one assist. . . . The Hitmen, who are five games into a nine-game road trip, had lost their last three games, the last two by shutout. . . . A tweet from Portland freelance writer Scott Sepich: “With the 4-3 win, @WHLHitmen have won 4 straight in Portland. Former Hawks coach Mike Williamson 2-0 with Hitmen in PDX.” . . . Portland D Troy Rutkowski set a franchise record by playing in his 222nd consecutive game. The previous record had been held by D Andrew Ference (1994-99). . . .

In Brandon, F John Quenneville’s eighth goal broke a 1-1 tie and the Wheat Kings went on to a 4-1 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . F Axel Blomqvist pulled Lethbridge into a 1-1 tie at 19:46 of the first period. . . . Quenneville broke that tie at 15:52 of the second. . . . F Jens Meilleur scored twice for Brandon, giving him nine, while linemate Taylor Cooper had a goal and two assists and Tim McGauley, the third skater on the line, had three assists. . . . Brandon G Curtis Honey stopped 36 shots. . . . With G Corbin Boes (knee) out of action, the Wheat Kings have brought back Jordan Papirny from the midget AAA Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club Southgate Lions to back up Honey. . . . The Wheat Kings pulled into an 11th-place tie with the idle Regina Pats in the Eastern Conference. Both teams are nine points out of a playoff spot. . . .

In Saskatoon, F Michael Ferland scored the game’s first two goals and the Blades went on to a 7-1 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . With the victory, their sixth in a row, the Blades moved to within four points of the East Division-leading Raiders. . . . Ferland scored twice in 1:57 late in the first period and the Blades put it away with two goals 22 seconds apart in the opening minute of the second period. . . . F Shane McColgan scored 31 seconds into the period and F Matej Stransky made it 4-0 at 0:53. . . . Ferland has eight goals, McColgan has 12 and Stransky 28. . . . Blades F Brenden Walker, playing in his 250th regular-season game, had three assists. . . . Saskatoon G Andrey Makarov, making his 13th straight start, stopped 30 shots. . . .

In Prince George, the Red Deer Rebels scored twice in the circus and beat the Cougars, 4-3. . . . Red Deer G Patrik Bartosak made 50 saves through OT. . . . Rebels F Christian Stockl tied the game 3-3 with his third goal of the season at 10:10 of the third. . . . F Rhyse Dieno and F Dominik Volek scored the shootout goals to win it. . . . Cougars F Zach Pochiro scored twice, giving him 10, and added an assist. . . . D Jordan Harris, the 10th pick in the 2011 bantam draft, was in the Cougars’ lineup. He joined them from the midget AAA Prince Albert Mintos a few weeks ago but was out with post-concussion syndrome. . . . D Mark McNulty was back in Prince George’s lineup after missing eight games with what is believed to have been a concussion. . . . The loser point lifted the Cougars to within three points of Seattle, which holds down eighth place in the Western Conference. . . . Red Deer is fourth in the Eastern Conference, a point ahead of Saskatoon. . . . When the Rebels travelled into the U.S. Division earlier in the season, they weren’t able to play the Seattle Thunderbirds (of Kent) because the arena was booked for an ice show. So the Rebels now are on a three-game road swing. They opened last night in Prince George, will travel to Kent today and play the Thunderbirds there on Friday, and then will meet the Blazers in Kamloops on Saturday. . . .

In Victoria, F Jamie Crooks scored twice as the Royals beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . One night earlier, the Royals also beat the Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . The Royals were without F Alex Gogolev, their leading scorer, who suffered a skate cut to a leg in Tuesday’s game. . . . Crooks has 26 goals. . . . It was a five-point night for Victoria’s Walker boys, with Ben getting his 14th goal and adding two assists, and Jack drawing two assists. . . . The Royals are tied with Spokane for fifth in the Western Conference, a point behind the Tri-City Americans.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Colten Mayor, Calgary

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Tim Traber, Victoria
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Portland Winterhawks D Derrick Pouliot (@dpouliot51): “Off to Pittsburgh for a few days.”
Pouliot is rehabbing a high-ankle sprain. He has played one game since Jan. 11 and only four since Dec. 18. He was a first-round selection, eighth overall, by the Penguins in the NHL’s 2012 draft. He has 38 points and is plus-31 in 39 games with Portland.

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Kris Russell (Medicine Hat, 2003-07) has returned to Finland and TPS Turku (SM-Liiga) after recovering from an undisclosed injury suffered in the first shift of his second game with TPS on Sept. 30. Video highlights showed that he had a shot go off the inside of his right foot. Russell was expected to arrive in Turku on Tuesday and will play in Friday's game against Jokerit Helsinki. He has one goal and one assist in the two games he has played with TPS this season. . . .
D Nick Ross (Regina, Kamloops, Vancouver, 2004-09) has signed a one-year contract with the Augsburger Panther (Germany, DEL). He started the season with Red Bull Salzburg (Austria, Erste Bank Liga), where he had one goal and three assists in nine games. Ross is scheduled to join Augsburg in time for practice today.
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The Swift Current Broncos have assigned F Dakota Odgers, 16, to the midget AAA Yorkton Harvest. Odgers was the 24th overall selection in the 2011 bantam draft. He had 12 penalty minutes in six games with the Broncos. Last season, in 43 games with the Harvest, he had 36 points, including 19 goals, and 35 penalty minutes.
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According to Brian Wiebe, who keeps close tabs on the BCHL, G Adam Todd, 18, who got into 11 games last season with the Saskatoon Blades, was involved in a trade on Tuesday as he moved from the Alberni Valley Bulldogs to the Trail Smoke Eaters. . . . The Smokies then dropped G Braden Krogfoss, 17, from their roster. Krogfoss was an eighth-round selection of the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL’s 2011 bantam draft. He had a good camp with the Blazers prior to this season before going to Trail.
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TUESDAY’S STUFF:
The Brandon Wheat Kings scored the game’s last three goals as they opened a seven-game road trip with a 7-6 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Brandon D Ryan Pulock got his side to within one, at 6-5, at 8:38 of the third and D Ryley Miller tied it at 10:28. . . . Pulock got the winner just 22 seconds after that and that was the first time Brandon led in this one. . . . F Alessio Bertaggia also scored twice for Brandon. . . . F Elgin Pearce had two goals for the Tigers. . . . Brandon trailed 2-0, 4-2 and 6-4 in this one. . . .

In Moose Jaw, the Warriors scored the game’s last five goals and beat the Everett Silvertips, 5-2. . . . F Torrin White had two goals and two assists, with three of his points coming via the PP. . . . White, a 17-year-old sophomore from Balzac, Alta., has eight points in 10 games. He had 17 points in 62 games last season. . . .

The Kamloops Blazers remained the only WHL team not to have lost in regulation time as they dumped the Rebels 4-0 in Red Deer. . . . Freshman G Taran Kozun stopped 32 shots for his first WHL shutout. . . . F Colin Smith had a goal and two assists. F Tim Bozon added two goals and F JC Lipon had two assists, giving that line a seven-point night. . . . The Blazers improved to 9-0-1 as they ran their winning streak to seven. They meet the Oil Kings in Edmonton tonight. . . . Lipon, who has won back-to-back WHL and CHL player of the week honours, now has a WHL-leading 24 points, three more than Smith. . . . The Smith-Bozon-Lipon line has combined for 60 points in 10 games. . . . With 19 points, the Blazers are off to the best 10-game start in franchise history. . . . The Rebels have followed a three-game winning streak with two straight losses. . . .

The Tri-City Americans won their fourth straight game, beating the host Prince Albert Raiders 2-1 in a shootout. . . . According to the WHL’s online scoresheet, Tri-City F Jesse Mychan pulled the visitors into a 1-1 tie at 2:02 of the third period. However, according to an Americans news release, F Connor Rankin got the equalizer. . . . F Brian Williams and Rankin then scored in the circus, while Prince Albert was blanked. . . . Tri-City D Brodie Clowes (shoulder) played his first game with the Americans. He was acquired from the Victoria Royals on Sept. 12. . . . However, the Americans were without D Mitch Topping (undisclosed) and F Ryan Chynoweth (shoulder). Topping was injured Saturday in Brandon. Chynoweth went down Sunday in Moose Jaw. . . . The Americans, who have won three in a row on their East Division swing and five straight on the road, face the Blades in Saskatoon tonight. Tri-City is 1-14 in Saskatoon, with that lone victory in 1995-96. . . . The Raiders are off until Friday when they play host to the Everett Silvertips. . . .

G Chris Driedger stopped 30 shots to lead the Calgary Hitmen to a 5-0 victory over the Cougars in Prince George. . . . Driedger has one shutout this season and four in his career. . . . F Zane Jones scored twice for Calgary. . . . G Mac Engel, acquired by the Cougars from the Spokane Chiefs on Monday, came in at 13:59 of the second period, with his side trailing 5-0, and stopped all 20 shots he faced. . . . Prince George started G Brett Zarowny, meaning G Devon Fordyce was a scratch. In fact, he is headed home to Cochrane, Alta., to await a move. . . . Calgary F Brooks Macek drew three assists, running his point streak to 10 games. . . . The Hitmen set a franchise record for shots in one period, when they had 27 in the second. . . .

Russian F Alex Delnov had two goals and two assists to lead the host Seattle Thunderbirds to a 6-4 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Delnov has four goals. . . . Seattle has won three in a row and four of five. . . . F Connor Sanvido, with his first two goals of the season, and F Luke Lockhart also had two goals for Seattle. Lockhart’s second was an empty-netter. . . . F Mitch Holmberg scored his 10th of the season for the Chiefs. . . . Spokane D Brenden Kichton had two assists, giving him a career total of 147 points. That broke the Chiefs’ franchise record of 146 assists by a defenceman that had been held by Frank Evans (1988-92). Kichton also holds the franchise career records for goals (48) and points (195) by a defenceman.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Joey Santucci, Prince Albert
F Matt Needham, Kamloops

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F JC Lipon, Kamloops
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
Portland Winterhawks G Brendan Burke (@bburke_1): “First time ever watching a debate not gonna take sides on twitter because I don’t feel like being criticized right now #debate”


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D Collin Bowman, who played out his eligibility with the Calgary Hitmen last season, has signed with the ECHL’s Colorado Eagles. Bowman, who is from Littleton, Colo., played three seasons (2007-10) with the Kelowna Rockets before being dealt to the Moose Jaw Warriors. He captained with the Warriors in 2010-11 and they sent him to Calgary early last season. Bowman had 149 points and 364 penalty minutes in 346 regular-season WHL games. . . . His older brother, Drayson, is with the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes.
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Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports that the Saskatoon Blades are without four players due to injuries. G Alex Moodie (hamstring) is expected to sit for up to 10 days, while F Shane McColgan (knee) is out for a week or so. They join D Dalton Thrower (groin) and D Ryan Graham (back) on the shelf. Nugent-Bowman’s story is right here.
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The Saskatoon Blades on Tuesday dropped two 18-year-old veterans – D Tommy Stipancik and G Adam Todd. . . . Stipancik was given his release after playing in 46 games over the last two seasons. His development was hampered by concussion problems over the previous two seasons. Stipancik, from Vancouver, was the 60th overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft. . . . He is expected to join the BCHL’s Surrey Eagles. . . . Todd, from Courtenay, B.C., has been in 12 games with the Blades over the last two seasons. The 86th selection in the 2009 bantam draft, he is expected to play for the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs.
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The Regina Pats signed six players on Tuesday — D Rob Fulton, G Patrick Gora, D Griffin Mumby, F Bryar Ortynski, F Austin Wagner and F Rylee Zimmer.
Fulton, a sixth-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, picked up 16 points and 57 penalty minutes in 23 games with the bantam AAA Camrose, Alta., Vikings last season. He stands 6-foot-2 and weighs more than170 pounds.
Gora was a ninth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. He played last season for the minor midget AAA St. Albert, Alta., Flyers, going 12-3-5, 2.02, .931. He went home after the Pats’ intrasquad game.
Mumby, a third-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft, had 18 points in 31 games with the midget AAA Calgary Flames last season. He remains on the Pats’ roster.
Ortynsky was a second-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft. He had 14 points in 33 games with the midget AAA Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club last season. He also remains on the Pats’ roster.
Wagner, a fifth-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft, had 27 points and 94 penalty minutes in 32 games with the bantam AAA Calgary Northstar Sabres.
Zimmer, a fifth-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, put up 30 points in 35 games with the midget AA Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask., last season. He is from Winnipeg.
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With WHL teams getting closer to their final rosters, there may be an opportunity for a veteran goaltender in the QMJHL. Don Campbell of the Ottawa Citizen reports that Gatineau Olympiques G Robert Steeves, 19, is to have knee surgery in the next few days and will be out for up to seven months. . . . The Olympiques acquired Steeves from the Acadie-Bathurst Titan over the summer. Without Steeves, the Olympiques have two goaltenders, Eric Brassard and Simon Bergeron, neither of whom has any QMJHL experience. . . . The Olympiques open the season on Sept. 20. . . . Campbell’s story is right here.
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F Spencer Main has left the Kelowna Rockets, bringing to a close his WHL career.
Main, 20, missed the final 60 games of last season with post-concussion syndrome and, after getting medical clearance to return to play, the symptoms returned in training camp.
From a Rockets news release: “Main suffered a concussion early in the 2011-12 WHL season and sat out the Rockets final 60 games. In the off-season he was medically cleared to work out and return to the ice but his symptoms returned after participating in games at Rockets training camp.”
A second-round pick in the 2007 bantam draft, Main, from North Vancouver, played 197 games with the Rockets over the last four seasons. However, he got into only 12 games last season.
Veteran F Zach Franko (@Franky_939) tweeted this: “Would like to congratulate spencer main on a great 5 years with the @Kelowna_Rockets. Gonna miss you not only as a teammate but as a friend.”
Prior to the start of last season, the Rockets lost F Max Adolph to post-concussion syndrome. He played 97 games over three seasons with them.
Kelowna also lost F Kyle St. Denis to post-concussion syndrome after 2009-10, although he later played as a 20-year-old with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies.

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