F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) has signed a one-year contract with Katowice (Poland, PHL). Last season, with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite), he had four goals and nine assists in 21 games. He also had nine goals and 12 assists in 25 games with the Edinburgh Capitals (Scotland, UK Elite). . . .
D Kirill Vorobyev (Portland, 2012-13) has been assigned by CSKA Moscow (KHL, Russia) to Zvezda Chekhov (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). Last season, with CSKA Moscow, he had three assists in 28 games. He also had two goals and six assists in 16 games with Zvezda Chekhov . He had one assist in two games with Krasnaya Armiya Moscow (Russia, MHL). MHL (Molodezhnaya Liga) is Russia's top junior league.
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It isn’t much, but it’s a profit, and that’s important to the community-owned teams in the WHL. The Prince Albert Raiders held their annual meeting on Monday and reported a profit of $3,892 for the 2015-16 season. . . . The Raiders showed a profit despite that fact that their attendance dropped 62 fans per game from 2014-15, when the franchise reported a loss of $61,365. In 2015-16, the Raiders averaged 2,369 fans per game. . . . The Raiders definitely would appear to be headed in the right direction; after all, they reported a loss of more than $262,000 for the 2013-14 season.
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The Brandon Wheat Kings, the WHL’s defending champions, announced Tuesday that they have signed Grant Armstrong as their general manager. He replaces Kelly McCrimmon, the franchise’s owner and governor, who is joining the NHL’s Las Vegas franchise as assistant general manager. McCrimmon had been the GM since 1989, when he took over from Bill Shinske. . . . Guy Flaming of The Pipeline Show was the first to suggest that Armstrong could be headed to the Wheat Kings. . . . “I think it’s time,” Armstrong told Taking Note. “Hopefully, we’ll provide Kelly with a team he’s going to be proud of.” . . . . Armstrong, 54, from North Vancouver, had been with the Victoria Royals for four seasons, the past two as assistant GM, player personnel. Before that, he was the director of player personnel for two seasons. . . . Prior to that, Armstrong spent four seasons as the Portland Winterhawks’ head scout. . . . He has been a familiar face in Lower Mainland hockey circles, having coached the junior B North Delta Devils, while serving as the North Vancouver Minor Hockey Association’s director of hockey operations. He also has been involved with the North Delta Minor Hockey Association as a coach and development co-ordinator. He was honoured with the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association’s Coaching Development Award in 2003. . . . The Wheat Kings also announced that Mick McCrimmon, 30, will be the team’s assistant GM. McCrimmon, Kelly’s son, has a law degree, and will assist in hockey and business operations.——
The Kootenay Ice has signed Roman Vopat as an assistant coach. He spent the previous two seasons
as an assistant coach with the Prince George Cougars. . . . Vopat played two seasons in the WHL, with the Moose Jaw Warriors and Prince Albert Raiders, before going on to a 16-year professional career that included 133 NHL games. A native of Litvinov, Czech Republic, Vopat and his family reside in Cranbrook. . . . With the Ice, he’ll join head coach Luke Pierce and fellow assistant Gordon Burnett behind the bench.——
With WHL training camps about to open, or in some cases having already started, Alan Caldwell has come through again. His annual numbers-filled look at WHL teams and their prospects is right here.
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Vaughn Karpan, a native of The Pas, Man., has joined the NHL’s Las Vegas franchise as its director of player personnel. He had been with the Montreal Canadiens since 2005, most recently as director of pro scouting. He also worked with the Winnipeg Jets/Phoenix Coyotes for 13 years, five as director of amateur scouting. . . . Karpan played for Canada’s national men’s team (1983-88), playing in two Olympic Winter Games. He captained the U of Manitoba Bisons while playing there and also played one season (1979-80) with the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Las Vegas also confirmed something that was reported here yesterday — former Prince Albert Raiders general manager Bruno Campese has been hired as an amateur scout.
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Bruce Franklin, a longtime scout with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks, has moved to the Anaheim Ducks to fill the new position of director of player evaluation. Franklin spent 23 years with Chicago, the last six as chief amateur scout. . . . He cut his scouting teeth in the WHL, where he was part of two Memorial Cup champions. He was a scout with the 1984-85 Prince Albert Raiders and the director of player personnel with the 1988-89 Swift Current Broncos.
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Scott Galbraith, a fan of the OHL’s London Knights, has filed a civil statement of claim asking for $100,000, including $80,000 for aggravated and punitive damages, after he says he purchased a game-used sweater but wasn’t given the one that he had bought. The suit also names the Canadian Hockey League and the Hockey Hall of Fame. . . . Robert Cribb of the Toronto Star has more right here.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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Billy Keane is the new head coach of the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues. He had been their assistant coach, so steps up to fill the spot created when Don MacGillivray joined the Brandon Wheat Kings as an assistant coach. . . . McGillivray had been the GM/head coach of the Blues for seven seasons. . . . Keane had been an assistant coach with the Blues for three seasons. He played for them for two seasons (1982-84). . . . Tim Schick will be the Blues’ director of hockey operations and head scout, with Wayne Bartley on board as assistant coach. . . . Keane is the brother of former NHL/WHL F Mike Keane.
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Often when I look at the list of trending topics on Twitter I am overwhelmed by a sense of dread for our species.— Guy Flaming (@TPS_Guy) August 24, 2016
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won in four, five and six games, which, if you are into omens, might indicate the Rockets will win the final in seven. . . . The Wheat Kings have scored 65 goals in their 15 games; the Rockets have scored 65. . . . Brandon has surrendered 34 goals; Kelowna 39. . . . Kelowna fell behind in five of the six games in its 4-2 Western Conference final victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . As for injuries, Brandon F Reid Duke, F Tanner Kaspick and D Kale Clague have been practising this week. Duke was injured in Game 5 of a second-round series. Kaspick and Clague went down in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. . . . The Rockets will be without F Tyrell Goulbourne, who underwent surgery last week to repair a skate cut to his left calf. F Rourke Chartier, a 48-goal scorer in the regular season, is day-to-day after missing the last three games against Portland. . . . Here’s an interesting tidbit from Brandon Sun sports editor Rob Henderson: “The combined 226 points that Brandon and Kelowna racked up this season are more than any other pair of finalists except 1979 when the Wheat Kings (with a league-record 125 points) topped the Portland Winterhawks (111) for the WHL title.” 
also owns the Portland Winterhawks. Perhaps you are wondering that the move might mean to the Winterhawks. If so, here’s what Winterhawks president Doug Piper told Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune:
Robison, on the Raiders: “There's no question that in order for the Prince Albert Raiders to be viable long term, a new facility is required. I think the city acknowledges that. The Raiders certainly understand that moving forward and I think it would be a major asset to the community. They want to preserve their franchise and, certainly, discussions are underway in that regard.”
Ryan Donald has signed on as assistant GM and assistant coach with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He had been the head coach and assistant GM of the Woodstock Slammers of the junior A Maritime Hockey League. He is a graduate of Yale who captain the Bulldogs. He also played in the AJHL with the Fort Saskatchewan Traders and Camrose Kodiaks. In Trail, he will be working with GM/head coach Nick Deschenes and assistant coaches Craig Clare and Barry Zanier.
a January 2013 deal that had F Collin Valcourt join the Blades. . . . This will be the second time in franchise history that the Chiefs have held the first selection. They took D Jared Cowen first overall in 2006. . . . Interestingly, the Blades also won the draft lottery a year ago, but had traded the first pick to the Brandon Wheat Kings, who used it to select F Stelio Mattheos of Winnipeg. . . . Still, the Blades do hold two first-round selections in the 2015 draft. The Blades will pick 12th and 18th, the former having been acquired from the Kamloops Blazers and the latter from the Everett Silvertips. The 12th pick originally belonged to the Kootenay Ice, but went to Kamloops as part of the deal in which F Tim Bozon went to the Ice. The Blades then used it in acquiring F Matt Revel from the Blades. The Everett pick went to Saskatoon in the deal for F Nikita Scherbak.
In Medicine Hat, F Markus Eisenschmid, F Curtis Sanford and F Dryden Hunt each scored twice as the Tigers doubled the Vancouver Giants, 8-4. . . . Eisenschmid broke a 1-1 tie with his first goal, on a PP, at 9:46 of the first period. . . . The Giants were chasing the game from that point on and never were able to equalize. . . . Eisenschmid has 12 goals, Sanford 37 and Hunt 20. . . . Hunt ran his point streak to 17 games, which is tied for the longest in the WHL this season. . . . F Matt Bradley and F Chad Butcher each had three assists for the Tigers, while F Trevor Cox, who leads the WHL points race, scored his 18th goal, shorthanded, and added an assist as he got to 75 points. . . . Cox leads the WHL in assists (57) and loins (75), all in 45 games. . . . He’s got an eight-point lead over Sanford, whose 37 goals are one behind F Nick Merkley of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Medicine Hat D Kyle Burroughs had two assisgts. . . . Vancouver F Jackson Houck scored his 15th goal and added an assist. . . . The Tigers were 3-for-6 on the PP; the Giants were 2-for-4. . . . D Ty Stanton was back in the Tigers’ lineup after not playing since Jan. 3 because of an undisclosed injury. . . . Vancouver F Thomas Foster sat out as he completed a three-game WHL suspension. . . . The Tigers (31-12-2), who are home to Prince George on Friday, have won two in a row. . . . The Giants (19-25-2), who are two games into a six-game Central Division trip, have lost five straight. Their trek continues Friday in Lethbridge. . . . 
In Prince George, F Kohl Bauml scored two goals for the second straight night as the Everett Silvertips beat the Cougars, 4-2. . . . Bauml, who has 23 goals, scored twice on Tuesday as the Silvertips dumped the Cougars, 6-1. . . . Last night, his two third-period goals stretched a 2-1 Everett lead. . . . Bauml also had an assist. . . . Everett F Carson Stadnyk scored his 18th goal, on a PP, and added two assists, while D Ben Betker had two assists. . . . F Nikita Scherbak scored his 21st goal for the Silvertips. . . . F Aaron Macklin scored the Cougars’ lone goal, on a PP, at 8:06 of the second to cut into a 2-0 deficit. . . . The Cougars were 1-for-7 on the PP; the Silvertips were 1-for-2. . . . The Cougars were without D Sam Ruopp, who took a kneeing major and game misconduct in Tuesday’s game. Everett D Jordan Wharrie, who was on the other end of that hit, is expected to be out at least through the weekend. . . . Everett D Noah Juulsen and Prince George F Jansen Harkins are at the Top Prospects Game in St. Catharines, Ont. . . . The Silvertips (30-12-4) have won six in a row. . . . The Cougars (20-26-2) have lost seven straight (0-5-2) as they head to Medicine Hat and a Friday night game with the Tigers. . . . Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald points out that the Silvertips in 2015 “are 9-1 and have outscored their opponents 44-13. Eight of those 10 games have been on the road.” . . . The Silvertips will stop off in Kelowna and play the Rockets on Friday and Saturday nights. . . . 
In Kamloops, the Blazers scored three times before the game was 11 minutes old and went on to a 3-1 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Kamloops G Connor Ingram stopped 26 shots, and was especially sharp in the second period when the Americans held a 14-1 edge in shots. . . . Ingram, a 17-year-old freshman from Imperial, Sask., was selected as the game’s first star for a fifth straight home game. . . . Tri-City G Evan Sarthou, who was making his 17th straight start, was coming off back-to-back shutouts. . . . Kamloops D Patrik Maier scored the game’s first goal 46 seconds into the first period. He has four goals this season, two of them against the Americans. . . . F Matt Needham had two assists for Kamloops. One of them came on F Cole Ully’s 21st goal. Ully also had an assist. . . . Tri-City F Ty Comrie scored the game’s last goal, his fifth, at 15:35 of the first. . . . The Americans came in with the 11th-best PP in the WHL, but went 0-for-6 with the man advantage against a penalty-killing unit that was No. 20. . . . D Brandon Carlo was among the Americans’ scratches. He is at the Top Prospects Game in St. Catharines, Ont. . . . The Americans also scratched D Riley Hillis, F Braden Purtill, F Vladislav Lukin, G Eric Comrie and F Brian Williams, all of whom are injured. . . . With Comrie injured, Beck Warm, a 15-year-old from the major midget Vancouver-North West Giants, backed up Sarthou. . . . F Michael Rasmussen, 15, made his WHL debut with the Americans. From Surrey, B.C., he was the seventh overall selection in the 2014 bantam draft. This season, in 36 games with OHA Prep White in Penticton, he has 45 points, including 24 goals. That team is coached by former Regina Pats head coach Malcolm Cameron. . . . The Blazers (17-24-6) have won three straight for the first time this season. They now are tied with Vancouver for fourth place in the five-team B.C. Division, just two points behind Prince George. . . . The Americans (22-22-2) had won their previous two games. . . . The Blazers will play in Victoria on Friday and Saturday. . . . The Americans return home to face Seattle on Friday.
In Calgary, the Brandon Wheat Kings erased a 2-0 second-period deficit and went on to beat the Hitmen, 5-4. . . . F Peter Quenneville pulled Brandon into a 2-2 tie at 16:14 of the second with his 10th goal. . . . Wheat Kings D Ivan Provorov gave his guys the lead with his 11th goal, on a PP, at 5:57 of the third. . . . Calgary F Connor Rankin tied it with his 21st goal at 7:02 of the third. . . . Brandon then took a 5-3 lead on goals from F John Quenneville, his 14th, at 8:11 and F Rihards Bukarts, his 15th, at 15:12 on a PP. . . . Provorov also had two assists, as did Patrick. . . . Rankin also had two assists for the Hitmen. . . . Brandon was 2-for-4 on the PP; Calgary was 1-for-2. . . . The Wheat Kings (30-9-4) had lost their previous two games. . . . The Hitmen (23-16-4) had points in each of their previous four games (3-0-1). . . . 
In Swift Current, the Edmonton Oil Kings scored the game’s first four goals en route to a 4-1 victory over the Broncos. . . . F Tyson Gruninger got Edmonton the board with his second goal at 3:19 of the first period. . . . It was the ninth straight game in which the Broncos surrendered the first goal. . . . Shawn Mullin, the Broncos’ radio voice, points out that they are 3-5-1 in those games. . . . Edmonton F Lane Bauer’s 13th goal, at 15:33 of the first, proved to be the winner. . . . D Ashton Sautner had two assists for the Oil Kings, giving him 101 career points, including 22 goals, in 236 regular-season games. . . . F Brett Pollock also had two assists for the Oil Kings. . . . Edmonton G Tristan Jarry stopped 31 shots, losing his shutout when D Max Lajoie scored his sixth goal, on a PP, at 15:30 of the third period. . . . Broncos F Jake DeBrusk was unsuccessful on a second-period penalty shot. . . . The Oil Kings improved to 21-17-5. . . . The Broncos (20-19-5) have lost three in a row (0-2-1). . . .
In Kent, Wash., the Seattle Thunderbirds took a 4-0 lead into the third period and went on to beat the Tri-City Americans, 4-2. . . . Originally, this game was to have been played on Saturday night. It was rescheduled to avoid a conflict with the Seattle Seahawks’ playoff game. . . . D Shea Theodore scored his fifth goal and added an assist for Seattle, which was 2-for-6 on the PP. . . . Tri-City was 0-for-1 on the PP. . . . F Cory Millette scored his ninth goal and added an assist for Seattle. He was playing his first game since being acquired from Prince Albert prior to the trade deadline. . . . Seattle G Taran Kozun stopped 31 shots, 11 fewer than Tri-City’s Evan Sarthou. . . . F Justin Gutierrez had two assists for the Americans. . . . A tweet from Thom Beuning, the radio voice of the Thunderbirds: In their last 9 games, the Thunderbirds have scored the first goal eight times, going 7-0-0-1. The one game they didn't score first, they lost. . . . The Thunderbirds (20-16-5) had lost their previous two games (0-1-1). . . . The Americans (20-20-2) had won their previous two games.
bantam draft, he was a second-round pick of the Dallas Stars in the 2012 NHL draft, but was never signed. . . . Hamilton, from Cochrane, Alta., has 27 points, 10 of them goals, in 40 games with the Giants this season. He played two seasons with the Red Deer Rebels, before moving to the Giants, where he played last season for Don Hay, now the head coach in Kamloops. In 224 career games, he has 130 points, 37 of them goals. Vancouver gave up a third-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft to get Hamilton from Red Deer. Hamilton was a fourth-round pick by Red Deer in the 2009 bantam draft.
The Kelowna Rockets added a third 20-year-old to their roster with the acquisition of F Chance Braid from the Prince George Cougars. In exchange, the Rockets gave up F Brogan O’Brien, 17, who is from Prince George. . . . The Cougars had gotten Braid from the Prince Albert Raiders over the summer. He had 13 points, including eight goals, in 35 games with the Cougars. A power forward-type, he’ll add some sandpaper to the Rockets’ roster. . . . O’Brien was a 10th-round pick by the Rockets in the 2010 bantam draft. He is playing with the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings and had 15 points, including six goals, in 48 games going into weekend games.
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