Showing posts with label Andy Clovechok. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Andy Clovechok. Show all posts

Saturday, December 10, 2016

Kamloops mourns loss of legend . . . Blades hold off Pats . . . Halbgewachs continues tear

ANDY CLOVECHOK
Andy Clovechok, who was Mr. Hockey in Kamloops, died on Saturday night at the age of 93.
In his latter years, Clovechok was part of induction ceremonies held by the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in Red Deer, the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in Vancouver, the Kamloops Sports Hall of Fame and the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame in Red Deer. Back in the day, he was a dynamite player with the Edmonton Flyers, who won the 1948 Allan Cup, and the Vancouver Canucks when they won the 1945-46 Pacific Coast Hockey League championship.
Clovechok won the PCHL scoring title that season, with 103 points, including 56 goals.
His name also is on a Blazers Legend banner that hangs from the rafters in the Sandman Centre in Kamloops. He served for 24 years on the Blazers’ board of directors when the franchise was owned and operated by the non-profit Kamloops Blazers Sports Society.
Clovechok and his lovely wife, Molly, were married for more than 69 years.
If you click right here you will find a story I wrote on Clovechok as he was about to be inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame with the Canucks.
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D Jason Fram, who played five seasons (2011-16) with the Spokane Chiefs, has chosen to end his professional career and return to school. From Delta, B.C., Fram, 21, will attend the U of Alberta and play for the Golden Bears when the Christmas break is over. . . . In 308 regular-season games with Spokane, he had 187 points, including 155 assists. He was an eighth-round pick by the Chiefs in the 2010 bantam draft. . . . This season, he was pointless in two games with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda and had two goals in six games with the ECHL’s Allen Americans.
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Ed Willes of the Vancouver Province has a column right here that explains how consumers are getting hosed in the world of new media. The sad thing is that he is hammering the nail right on the head, but it won’t matter. . . . How else to explain the fact that the folks at Rogers, who are mentioned here by Willes, assign Cassie Campbell-Pascall to provide analysis on a Saturday night NHL game involving Calgary when she is married to one of the Flames’ assistant general managers? It seems that neither optics nor perception matter to the pooh-bahs these days.  
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If you’ve got a comment, some information you would like to pass along, or if you just want to say hello, feel free to contact me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If you would like to donate to the cause, please visit the bottom of this post and go right ahead.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:


At Edmonton, the Kamloops Blazers opened a six-game tour of the Central Division with a 3-2 victory
DYLAN FERGUSON
over the Oil Kings. . . . F Collin Shirley, the team captain, led Kamloops with two goals, giving him 13 this season. . . . F Erik Miller, who is from Sherwood Park, Alta., gave Kamloops a 1-0 lead at 3:24 of the first period. . . . Shirley upped the lead to 2-0 at 1:56 of the second period, on a PP. . . . Edmonton F Nick Bowman scored his first goal, at 13:38, and it was the Teddy Bear Goal. . . . Shirley added insurance at 18:41 of the second. . . . F Colton Kehler (8) scored 56 seconds into the third period to get the Oil Kings to within a goal. . . . Kamloops F Garrett Pilon drew three assists. . . . With G Connor Ingram in the Canadian junior team’s selection camp, the Blazers have turned to Dylan Ferguson. He made 36 saves to record the victory. . . . The Oil Kings got 34 stops from Patrick Dea. . . . Edmonton was 1-4 on the PP; Kamloops was 1-5. . . . The Blazers (18-12-1) have won four in a row. They are third in the B.C. Division, two points behind the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Oil Kings (14-15-2) have lost two straight. They hold down one of the Eastern Conference’s two wild-card playoff spots. . . . Kamloops lost F Matt Revel with an undisclosed injury in this one. . . . Announced attendance: 18,102.
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At Cranbrook, B.C., F Jake Kryski and F Calvin Thurkauf each had two goals and two assists to help the
CALVIN THURKAUF
Kelowna Rockets to a 7-3 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . Thurkauf, who has 15 goals, scored twice in the first period as the visitors took a 3-0 lead. . . . Kelowna F Rod Southam (8) scored a shorthanded goal between Thurkauf’s goals. . . . Ice D Troy Murray scored the Teddy Bear Goal at 1:51 of the second period. . . . Kelowna F Leif Mattson (2) got that one back at 3:37 for a 4-1 lead. . . . Ice F Vince Loschiavo (10) made it 4-2 at 4:15, but Kelowna scored the next three goals, with F Kole Lind getting No. 17 and Kryski scoring twice. He’s got nine. . . . F Max Patterson, the son of former NHLer Ed Patterson, completed the scoring with his third goal, on a PP, at 10:37 of the third. . . . Kelowna G Brodan Salmond stopped 15 shots. . . . Kootenay starter Payton Lee allowed five goals on 17 shots through two periods. Jakob Walter came on in relief and stopped six of eight shots in the third period. . . . The Rockets got two assists from F Tomas Soustal, while Southam added one to his goal. . . . Ice F Zak Zborosky had two assists. . . . Kootenay was 2-5 on the PP; Kelowna was 0-5. . . . The Rockets (19-11-1) are 6-0-1 in their last seven games. They are second in the B.C. Division, seven points behind the Prince George Cougars. . . . The Ice (6-19-8) has lost three in a row (0-2-1). . . . Announced attendance: 1,739.
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At Medicine Hat, F Chad Butcher and F Mason Shaw each had two goals and an assist as the Tigers dumped the Calgary Hitmen, 7-4. . . . Medicine Hat took control of this one with four first-period goals. . . . F Max Gerlach (20) scored the Teddy Bear Goal, on a PP, at 5:26. Butcher got No. 13 at 6:21. F Ryan Chyzowski (4) followed at 9:58. Shaw got his seventh at 16:09. . . . Calgary F Andrew Fyten (3) cut into the lead at 1:22 of the second period, but the Tigers scored twice before the period ended. F John Dahlstrom (16) struck at 3:57 and Butcher got his 14th at 18:30. . . . The Hitmen made things interesting with three third-period goals, to get to within 6-4. F Justyn Gurney (1) scored at 2:33, followed by F Jakob Stukel (8) at 9:37 and F Matteo Gennaro (10) at 12:05. . . . Shaw finished it with an empty-netter at 19:50. . . . D Clayton Kirichenko, F Ryan Jevne and D David Quenneville each had two assists for the Tigers. . . . Medicine Hat G Nick Schneider stopped 34 shots in earning his WHL-leading 20th victory. . . . The Hitmen got 33 stops from Cody Porter. . . . The Tigers were 1-6 on the PP; the Hitmen were 0-2. . . . Medicine Hat (22-10-1) snapped a five-game losing streak. The lead the Central Division by seven points over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Calgary (11-15-2) had won its previous three games and is six points out of a playoff spot. . . . Announced attendance: 3,629.
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At Moose Jaw, F Jayden Halbgewachs, the WHL’s leading sniper, scored the only goal of a shootout to give the Warriors a 5-4 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . Halbgewachs scored his 25th goal and
JAYDEN HALBGEWACHS
added two assists in regulation time. . . . F Carson Miller’s first goal put the Raiders out front at 7:46 of the first period. . . . The Warriors then scored three in a row. . . . D Josh Thrower got the Teddy Bear Goal, his second, at 12:13. . . . F Noah Gregor (16) put the Warriors out front 42 seconds into the second period. . . . F Tanner Jeannot’s ninth goal put Moose Jaw ahead 3-1 at 1:13. . . . The Raiders tied it on second-period goals from F Spencer Moe (2), at 7:22, and F Cavin Leth (7), at 16:24. . . . Halbgewachs gave the Warriors a 4-3 lead with his 25th goal, at 1:11 of the third period. He’s got goals in eight straight games. . . . Moe forced OT with his second goal of the game at 12:03. . . . Jeannot also had an assist. . . . Moe added an assist to his brace of goals, while D Zack Hayes drew two helpers for the Raiders. . . . G Zach Sawchenko stopped 37 shots for the victory, five more than Prince Albert’s Nic Sanders. . . . The Raiders were 0-2 on the PP; the Warriors were 0-4. . . . The Warriors (18-6-5) have points in four straight (3-0-1). They are second in the East Division, seven points behind the Regina Pats . . . The Raiders (6-23-2) have lost four in a row (0-3-1) and are 16 points out of a playoff spot. . . . The Warriors dressed only 16 skaters. D Matt Sozanski (shoulder) and F Brett Howden (Team Canada selection camp) were among the scratches. . . . Announced attendance: 3,305.
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At Portland, F Skyler McKenzie scored three goals, including the Teddy Bear Goal, as the Winterhawks
SKYLER McKENZIE
beat the Everett Silvertips, 5-2. . . . McKenzie, who has 20 goals, opened the scoring with the Teddy Bear Goal at 2:31 of the first period. . . . The Silvertips then took a 2-1 lead on goals from F Patrick Bajkov (16), at 5:35 of the first period, and F Matt Fonteyne (7), on a PP, 30 seconds into the second period. . . . F Dominic Zwerger had two assists for Everett. . . . Portland F Keegan Iverson (13) tied the score at 6:20 of the second period and F Joachim Blichfeld (11) broke the deadlock at 8:17. . . . McKenzie, who also had an assist, completed his hat trick with a shorthanded goal, at 16:54 of the second, and a PP goal 50 seconds into the third. . . . According to Todd Vrooman, the Winterhawks’ radio voice, the last Portland player to score three times, including the Teddy Bear Goal, in the same game was F Joe Balej. He did it on Dec. 11, 1999, in a 5-4 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . McKenzie has 20 goals and 20 assists in 32 games this season. He went into this season with 12 goals and 29 assists in 138 regular-season games. . . . Iverson added three assists to his goal, while Blichfeld had one. . . . Portland G Cole Kehler made 39 saves, while Everett’s Mario Petit blocked 33. . . . Everett was without G Carter Hart and D Noah Juulsen, both of whom are at the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. . . . The Silvertips were 1-3 on the PP; the Winterhawks were 1-6. . . . The Winterhawks had lost nine straight games to Everett. . . . Portland (18-13-1) has won three in a row; it is 10-1-1 in its last 12 games. It is third in the U.S. Division, four points out of second. . . . Everett (21-4-5) had been 6-0-1 in its previous seven games. It leads the U.S. Division by six points over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Announced attendance: 10,095.
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At Prince George, D Brendan Guhle broke a 4-4 tie at 19:48 of the third period and the Cougars went on
BRENDAN GUHLE
to beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 6-4. . . . Guhle, in his first game since returning from playing three games with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, had two goals. He has seven goals this season, five of them in five games with the Cougars since he was acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . F Josh Curtis (4) and F Josh Maser (1) gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead with goals at 11:27 and 11:39 of the second period. . . . Seattle F Sami Moilanen got one of those back at 11:39, but Guhle scored his first goal at 14:15 for a 3-1 edge. . . . Moilanen, who has 10 goals, came right back, at 14:42. . . . Prince George F Brad Morrison’s 13th goal gave the Cougars a 4-2 lead at 15:18. . . . The visitors tied it on goals from F Scott Eansor 915), at 7:49 of the third period, and F Keegan Kolesar (3), at 18:36. . . . Curtis, who also had an assist, added an empty-netter at 19:56. . . . F Jansen Harkins had two assists for Prince George. . . . Eansor had two assists for Seattle and Moilanen had one. . . . The Cougars got 37 saves from G Nick McBride, while Rylan Toth stopped 24 for Seattle. . . . Prince George was 0-4 on the PP; Seattle was 0-6. . . . The Cougars (22-8-2) had lost 3-2 to Seattle on Friday night. Prince George is two points out of top spot in the overall standings. . . . The Thunderbirds now are 16-11-3. They are in possession of a wild-card playoff spot and are just two points out of third place in the U.S. Division. . . . Announced attendance: 5,775.
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At Red Deer, F Brandon Hagel scored twice and F Michael Spacek had a goal and two assists to help the
BRANDON HAGEL
Rebels to a 6-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The Rebels scored the game’s first three and last three goals. . . . Hagel now has 16 goals, as does Spacek. . . . The Rebels grabbed a 3-0 first-period lead on goals from F Evan Polei (13), Hagel and Spacek. . . . Brandon F Caiden Daley scored his first goal, on a PP, at 17:10 of the first period, but Red Deer D Jared Freadrich scored his third goal just 1:23 later. . . . Hagel scored his second goal, on a PP, in the second period. . . . Red Deer F Brandon Cutler scored his first goal at 15:07 of the third period. . . . The Rebels got two assists from each of D Colton Bobyk, F Austin Pratt and F Adam Musil, while Freadrich added one to his goal. . . . G Lasse Petersen stopped 22 shots for Red Deer, four fewer than Brandon’s Jordan Papirny. . . . The Rebels were 2-8 on the PP; the Wheat Kings were 1-8. . . . Red Deer (16-12-5) is 3-0-1 in its last four games. The Rebels are third in the Central Division, one point behind the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . The Wheat Kings (13-14-4) are 0-5-1 in their last six games. They went 1-6-1 on the road trip that ended last night, but remain in possession of a wild-card playoff spot. . . . Announced attendance: 4,471.
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At Regina, F Jesse Shynkaruk scored 35 seconds into OT to give the Saskatoon Blades a 2-1 victory
LOGAN FLODELL
over the Pats. . . . It was the first time this season that the Pats were held to fewer than two goals. . . . Shynkaruk has 10 goals this season. . . . F Robbie Holmes scored his first goal of the season to give Regina a 1-0 lead at 1:32 of the first period. . . . Saskatoon tied it on F Gage Ramsay’s fourth goal, at 17:44 of the second period. . . . Regina F Adam Brooks had his point streak snapped at 22 games. He put up 48 points, including 34 assists, in those 22 games. . . . Holmes has three career WHL goals, all against the Blades. . . . Saskatoon G Logan Flodell, who is from Regina, was sharp in making 39 saves. . . . G Tyler Brown stopped 29 shots for the Pats. . . . The Pats were 0-2 on the PP; the Blades were 0-4. . . . D Chase Harrison (concussion), F Sam Steel and F Austin Wagner were among Regina’s scratches. The latter two are in the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. . . . The Blades improved to 12-18-2. They now are four points away from a playoff spot. . . . Regina (21-2-6) has points in eight straight (5-0-3). The loser point allowed the Pats to stay atop the overall standings, one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484.
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At Swift Current, D Brennan Menell scored 43 seconds into OT to give the Lethbridge Hurricanes a 5-4
BRENNAN MENELL
victory over the Broncos. . . . Menell has five goals this season. . . . The Hurricanes led the one 4-1 early in the third period, only to have the Broncos force extra time. . . . F Jordy Bellerive (12), who also had an assist, gave the Hurricanes a 1-1 lead at 1:32 of the first period. His 12 goals came in 30 games. Last season, he finished with 11 in 65 games. . . . The Broncos tied it on F Ryan Graham’s ninth goal, just 26 seconds later. . . . The Hurricanes scored the next three goals, with F Tanner Nagel getting No. 5 at 10:57, F Colton Kroeker notching his fourth at 17:38 and F Brett Davis getting his first at 7:43 of the second. . . . F Aleksi Heponiemi (7) got the comeback started 30 seconds into the third period. . . . D Colby Sissons cut the deficit to one with his fourth goal, at 11:10. . . . F Lane Pederson (14) tied it at 13:42. . . . The Broncos got two assists from D Max Lajoie, with Graham and Heponiemi each getting one. . . . G Ryan Gilchrist earned the victory with 38 saves, 12 more than Taz Burman of the Broncos. . . . Swift Current was 1-4 on the PP; Lethbridge was 0-3. . . . The Hurricanes (17-11-4) have points in 11 straight (10-0-1) and are second in the Central Division. . . . The Broncos (15-10-7) have lost three in a row (0-2-1). They are third in the East Division, four points behind the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Announced attendance: 1,828.
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At Kennewick, Wash., F Tyler Sandhu scored the game’s first and last goals and added two assists to l
TYLER SANDHU
ead the Tri-City Americans to a 4-3 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . Sandhu, who has eight goals, scored the Teddy Bear Goal just 36 seconds into the first period. . . . F Morgan Geekie upped the lead to 2-0 at 6:34. . . . The Royals tied it as F Matt Phillips scored his 23rd goal, on a penalty shot, at 16:50 of the first, and F Regan Nagy got his 10th, at 2:57 of the second period. . . . Geekie broke the tie with his 16th goal, on a PP, at 8:05. . . . Royals F Jack Walker (14), who also had an assist, tied it 3-3 just 21 seconds into the third period. . . . Sandhu scored the game-winner on a PP at 2:24 of the third. . . . The Americans got two assists from each of F Vladislav Lukin and D Juuso Valimaki. . . . The Americans got 29 stops from G Rylan Parenteau. . . . At the other end, Griffen Outhouse stopped 30 shots. . . . Tri-City was 3-5 on the PP; the Royals were 0-4. . . . The Americans (19-11-3) are 3-0-1 in their last four games. They are second in the U.S. Division, six points behind the Everett Silvertips. . . . The Royals (16-14-3) were 2-0-1 in their previous three games. They hold down a wild-card spot, but are just two points behind third-place Kamloops in the B.C. Division. . . . Announced attendance: 5,096.
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At Langley, B.C., F Hudson Elynuik broke a 2-2 tie at 18:54 of the second period and the Spokane Chiefs
HUDSON ELYNUIK
sent on to a 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . F Taylor Ross (4) and D Tysen Helgesen (3) gave Spokane a 2-0 lead with goals at 15:24 of the first period and 4:09 of the second. . . . The Giants tied the score with two second-period PP goals, as F Johnny Wesley (6) scored at 8:50 and D Dylan Plouffe (3) counted at 17:14. . . . Elynuik got his 12th goal on a PP. . . . F Eli Zummack (2) added insurance at 9:26 and F Kailer Yamamoto, who also had an assist, got his 19th goal at 15:21. . . . Helgesen’s third goal came in his 30th game this season. He started the season with four goals in 119 regular-season games. . . . Spokane F Keanu Yamamoto drew an assist on Elynuik’s goal and now has the WHL’s longest active point streak — 11 games. . . . F Tyler Benson had two assists for the Giants. . . . F Ondrej Najman had two assists for Spokane, while Ross added one. . . . G Jayden Sittler stopped 31 shots for the Chiefs. . . . G Ryan Kubic turned aside 21 shots at the other end. . . . Vancouver was 2-7 on the PP; Spokane was 1-3. . . . The Chiefs (13-11-6) are 2-0-1 in their last three games and now are just three points out of a playoff spot. . . . The Giants (11-18-3) have lost three in a row (0-2-1) and are 10 points off the playoff pace. . . . Announced attendance: 2,972.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Kamloops at Calgary, 4 p.m.
Spokane at Everett, 4 p.m.
Kelowna at Lethbridge, 6 p.m.
Moose Jaw at Saskatoon, 4:05 p.m.
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TEDDY BEAR, TOQUE AND MITTEN TOSS GAMES:

Dec. 10: D Josh Thrower, 12:13 1st period, Prince Albert 4 at Moose Jaw 5 (SO).
Dec. 10: F Nick Bowman, 13:38 2nd period, Kamloops 3 at Edmonton 2.
Dec. 10: D Troy Murray, 1:51 2nd, Kelowna 7 at Kootenay 3.
Dec. 10: F Max Gerlach, 5:26 1st period, Calgary 4 at Medicine Hat 7.
Dec. 10: F Skyler McKenzie 2:21 1st, Everett 2 at Portland 5.
Dec. 10: F Josh Curtis, 6:02 2nd period, Seattle 4 at Prince George 6.
Dec. 10: F Tyler Sandhu, 0:36 1st period, Victoria 3 at Tri-City 4.
Friday, Dec. 16: Saskatoon at Brandon, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 16: Portland vs. Vancouver, at Langley, B.C., 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 17: Brandon at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 17: Portland at Everett, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 17: Vancouver at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 21: Vancouver vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Nov. 26: D Micheal Zipp, 19:47 1st period, Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 2.
Dec. 2: D Artyom Minulin, 13:24 1st period, Calgary 1 at Swift Current 5.
Dec. 2: F Jordy Bellerive, 14:00 1st period, Red Deer 3 at Lethbridge 5.
Dec. 3: F Adam Musil, 14:27 1st period, Lethbridge 2 at Red Deer 3 (OT).
Dec. 3: D Ondrej Vala, 10:38 1st period, Vancouver 2 at Kamloops 5.
Dec. 3: F Nick Merkley, 6:54 2nd period, Brandon 1 at Kelowna 3.
Dec. 9: F Austin Glover, 0:32 2nd period, Moose Jaw 7 at Prince Albert 3. 
Dec. 9: F Riley Woods, 11:45 1st period, Swift Current 1 at Regina 8.
Dec. 9: F Keanu Yamamoto, 4:01 1st period, Kootenay 3 at Spokane 4.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:04 PM
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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Alberta hockey hall opens to Clovechok, Flyers

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
Another hall of fame is soon to open its doors and welcome Andy Clovechok.
In the last few years, Clovechok, who is Mr. Hockey in these parts, has been part of induction ceremonies held by the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in Red Deer and the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in Vancouver. He also is a member of the Kamloops Sports Hall of Fame and is a Blazer Legend.
Next month, the 1947-48 Edmonton Flyers, including Clovechok, will be inducted into the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame in Red Deer.
“Oh yes, I do (appreciate it),” said Clovechok on Tuesday night, as he took a break from watching an NHL playoff game. “The first one we got into was here, and I appreciated that.
“And then into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame . . . we appreciated that.”
Clovechok, 90, and his wife, Molly, who is 88, aren’t planning on attending the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame ceremony in Red Deer on June 15. They were in Red Deer for the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame ceremony in 2005.
“There were about eight or nine of us at that one,” Clovechok said. “There will be a couple there for this one.”
The Flyers won the Allan Cup in 1948. At the time, the Allan Cup, emblematic of senior hockey supremacy, was one of Canada’s most coveted hockey trophies.
Along the playoff trail, the Flyers took care of the Trail Smoke Eaters, Winnipeg Reo Flyers and the Ottawa Senators. Edmonton beat the Senators 4-1 in the best-of-seven Allan Cup final, winning the last three games 7-0, 5-3 and 5-3. Ottawa held a 3-0 lead at one point in Game 5.
It has been estimated that 60,000 people, half of Edmonton’s population at that time, showed up for a parade that was held to salute the Flyers.
Clovechok tied for the team lead in goals (35), with Maurice Rimstad, and his 63 points — Bill Mahar also had 63 — were second only to Rimstad’s 80.
The Clovechoks, who will celebrate their 66th anniversary this summer, went to Vancouver in September for the induction of the 1945-46 Vancouver Canucks into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame. The Canucks won the Pacific Coast Hockey League championship.
Clovechok quite enjoyed the hoopla, but admits now that it was awfully tiring.
“Everybody was after me for interviews and stuff like that,” Clovechok said, before laughing and adding: “If they had of been interviewing my wife that would have been different because she can talk.”

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 1:42 AM
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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Lipon sparks Blazers' victory

Forward Connor Chartier of the Spokane Chiefs has Kamloops Blazers
forward JC Lipon under control here. But Lipon scored three first-period
goals in a 5-1 Kamloops victory on Friday night.
(Murray Mitchell/Kamloops Daily News)
By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
In his first WHL season with the Kamloops Blazers, right-winger JC Lipon scored three goals in 53 games.
In his second season, Lipon scored three times in 65 games.
On Friday night, Lipon, who is into his fourth season here, scored three times in 5 minutes 39 seconds to spark the Blazers to a 5-1 victory over the Spokane Chiefs at Interior Savings Centre.
Hot? Lipon is as hot as A-Rod is cold.
Lipon is one of the reasons the Blazers take a 7-0-1 record into a Central Division swing in which they will play five games in seven days. They headed east after last night’s game and will headquarter in Red Deer. They open the trip Sunday afternoon against the Hitmen (5-0-2) in Calgary. These are the only teams left in the 22-team league who haven’t been beaten in regulation time.
Lipon enjoyed the first three-goal game of his career — when he scored No. 3 seven hats rained down from the ISC stands. He later added an assist, all of which left him atop the WHL points table, with 18.
“When you score the way he is,” Kamloops head coach Guy Charron said, “there comes a time when you have the confidence that you’re going to score every time you have the puck.”
Lipon, a 19-year-old Reginan, couldn’t disagree.
“Yeah . . . a little bit,” he said.
Lipon didn’t play a whole lot over his first two seasons as he spent most of his time grinding and scrapping for playing time.
“I learned a lot in my 16- and 17-year-old seasons” he said. “There were lots of frustrating days . . . not being in the lineup or just not playing lots. But once it starts going, it starts to be fun. I’m having a lot of fun right now and I just want to keep going.”
Lipon, who banged in 19 goals last season, has seven already this season.
Last night, he opened the scoring at 2:51, banging his own rebound past goaltender Eric Williams.
“The pass (from Colin Smith) came in front,” Lipon said, “and I was all alone. The goalie was down. I actually shot it right into his chest. I saw it come loose and just put it in.”
Lipon made it 2-0 at 4:37 when he accepted a drop pass from Brendan Ranford and slapped the puck past Williams.
“I came off the bench and my eyes kind of lit up,” Lipon recalled. “Ranford saw me and hit me on the right side.”
It was 3-0 at 8:31 as Ranford, while on the power play, slid a pass to a wide-open Lipon on the left side.
“It was kind of tic-tac-toe,” Lipon said. “I think Ranford could have shot but he gave it to me back door and it worked out.”
This being head coach Don Nachbaur’s Chiefs, however, it wasn’t that easy. The Chiefs pressed in the second period and outshot the Blazers 19-4, but only scored once.
“If you look at our second period,” Charron said, “we didn’t play well at all. Fortunately for us, we have a very good goaltender and he kept us in it.”
Yes, sophomore Cole Cheveldave was at his best. Again. He finished with 36 saves — he stopped freshman forward Connor Chartier on a second-period penalty shot, too — and very well may have won this game in the middle period when, according to Charron, the Blazers gave up 12 scoring chances.
“We had enough chances in the second to tie the game,” said Nachbaur, whose club also didn’t have much puck luck.
Late in the period, Spokane defenceman Reid Gow drilled the butt-end of Cheveldave’s stick. Earlier, winger Mitch Holmberg, who had scored in each of his first six games, beat Cheveldave only to have the puck hit a post.
“It could have been a different game going into the third,” Nachbaur said. “But we made too many mistakes. You can’t make the mistakes we made against a good team. The first period we’d like to have back.”
Centre Liam Stewart scored for the Chiefs, fighting off defenceman Sam Grist and putting a shot over Cheveldave at 18:01 of the second period.
Blazers winger Cole Ully, who had nine goals in 55 games as a freshman last season, scored his fifth of this season at 5:29 of the third and Ranford, who had a three-point night, added more insurance at 7:58.
There would be no more goals for Lipon, however. On this night, it seemed, three was enough.
“We had three,” he said with a smile, “and didn’t really need any more so I cooled down.”
JUST NOTES: Attendance was 4,846. . . . Smith had three assists and now is third in the WHL scoring race, with 15 points. . . . With Grist, who was acquired from the Tri-City Americans on Wednesday, and D Tyler Hansen, who returned from a concussion, in the lineup, D Jordan Thomson and D Ryan Rehill, two freshmen who have played really well of late, and sophomore Landon Cross, who is a bit banged up, were scratched. The Blazers also sat RW Jordan DePape, who is nursing a wonky right shoulder (he missed a lot of last season after undergoing surgery on his left shoulder on Nov. 4), and LW Chase Souto. . . . The Daily News Three Stars: 1. Cheveldave: In control; 2. Lipon: Hot start; 3. Gow: Under-rated. . . . The Blazers honoured Andy Clovechok, 89, in a pregame ceremony. Clovechok played for the 1945-46 Vancouver Canucks, who won the Pacific Coast Hockey League and North American championships. The Canucks were inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame last month. . . . Kamloops next plays at home on Oct. 26 against the Brandon Wheat Kings.


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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 1:40 AM
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Thursday, September 20, 2012

Big news: Clovechok to miss home game

Al Leader (left), the secretary of the Pacific Coast Hockey League,
presents Andy Clovechok with a trophy for leading the North Division
in scoring in 1945-46. Clovechok and the 1945-46 Vancouver Canucks
were inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame on Thursday.
(Photo courtesy Andy Clovechok and B.C. Sports Hall of Fame)
By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
Andy Clovechok is known as Mr. Hockey around here for a whole lot of reasons.
One of them is that he has never – and that’s never, as in ever – missed a home game involving his beloved Kamloops Blazers.
“When did we become the Blazers?” Clovechok said. “This will be the first home game I’ve missed. I kid you not.”
The Kamloops Junior Oilers morphed into the Blazers in time for the 1984-85 season. Since then, Clovechok has sat through 1,008 regular-season and 143 playoff games.
Before tonight, that is.
Not only will Clovechok, 88, miss the Blazers’ home-opener tonight at Interior Savings Centre, he will be at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver wearing – GULP! – the same jersey that the Vancouver Giants will be wearing as they start their WHL regular season.
But that’s OK. The citizens of Kamloops will forgive Clovechok. After all, he is in Vancouver where he was inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame on Thursday night during the 44th annual Banquet of Champions and to be saluted at tonight’s Giants game.
Clovechok, who is joined this weekend by Molly, his wife of 65 years, was a key member of the 1945-46 Vancouver Canucks, the only team in history to have won the Pacific Coast Hockey League and U.S. amateur championships. Clovechok, who played left wing on a line with right-winger Alex Pringle and centre Bernie Bathgate, won the PCHL scoring championship, putting up 103 points, including 56 goals, in 54 games.
The Giants will be wearing throwback uniforms in honour of the Canucks. Clovechok will pull on one of the jerseys for a pregame ceremony.
Clovechok said his Canucks were a “very good” team.
They beat the Hollywood Wolves 4-1 in a best-of-seven PCHL final and then challenged the Eastern league-champion Boston Olympics for the U.S. amateur championship.
That series was played in its entirety in the Vancouver Forum. The Olympics jumped out to a 3-1 lead, but the Canucks came back to win the next three games and claim the title.
“The next season,” Clovechok remembered, “eight of Boston’s 14 players were playing in the National Hockey League. That’s how good they were.
“We were fortunate. All the games were played here.”
There are only three surviving members of that Vancouver team – Clovechok, Ernie Dougherty and Marvin Storrow, who was the team’s stickboy.
Clovechok said that he “met our stickboy who was 11 years old” at a Wednesday reception. Storrow went on to become a well-known Vancouver lawyer and, in fact, was retained by the NHL during the criminal trial that occurred after Marty McSorley, then of the Boston Bruins, was charged with assault with assault with a weapon after Canucks forward Donald Brashear took a stick to the side of his head in February 2000.
“I didn’t recognize (Storrow),” Clovechok said with a chuckle. “He has grown a little older, like me.”
As the 1945-46 season got started, Canucks head coach Paul Thompson put Pringle and Bathgate together, but needed another winger.
“There was a spot open on the left side,” recalled Clovechok, a right-hand shot who was a natural centre. “The coach said to me, ‘Andy, have you ever played left wing before?’ I said, ‘Yes,’ but that wasn’t quite so.
“But we turned out to be one of the best lines in the league.”
At that time, the 6-foot-0 Clovechok was one of the PCHL’s taller players, but he weighed only 165 pounds.
“I reminded you of a matchstick with the wood shaved off,” a laughing Clovechok said.
No matter, because he could play the game.
Asked how many goals he would score in today’s game, he said: “The goals at that time were 4x6 and they’re still 4x6, but the goalkeepers are a lot bigger.
“I’d probably get 20.”
When it was pointed out that would be a lot of goals for an 89-year-old, he laughed.
In 1945-46, as he was winning the PCHL scoring title, Clovechok said he “got the huge sum of $60 a week. And I played with a borrowed pair of skates. But they did fit.”
The next season, as the reigning scoring champ, he got a new pair of skates.
“I think they were $40,” he said. “They fit real well. At that price in those days, they should have.”
They must have, because they helped get the Blazer Legend into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 6:48 PM
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