F Steven Goertzen (Seattle, 2001-04) has announced his retirement. Last season, with the league-champion Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite), he had 15 goals and 28 assists in 55 games.
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The Everett Silvertips may be back in the running as they attempt to get F Auston Matthews on to their
roster. Matthews, who is projected as a potential No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2016 draft, has signed a contract with the Zurich-based ZSC Lions, who play in Switzerland’s top pro league. . . . That signed contract would seem to take care of his NCAA eligibility. . . . However, he has been unable to get a work permit. In order to get a work permit in Switzerland, hockey and soccer players need to have played professionally for one year. Matthews played last season in the U.S. National Team Development Program. . . . Edgar Salis of the Lions has told Klaus Zaugg of the Limmattaler Zeitung, a Swiss German-language newspaper, “I think it is difficult.” Salis added that if the work permit doesn’t come through, the Lions will move on. He said that there won’t be a lawsuit in an attempt to get the permit. . . . The Silvertips selected Matthews, who is from Scottsdale, Ariz., in the third round of the 2012 bantam draft. . . . Last season, he had 116 points, 55 of them goals, in 60 games with the U.S. national U-18 team and 48 points, including 20 goals, with the national U-20 team.——
The CHL’s import/goaltenders-not-welcome draft is scheduled for Tuesday. . . . In advance of that, the
Red Deer Rebels have released Slovakian D F Mario Grman, 18. That will allow the Rebels to select one player on Tuesday. Their other import is Russian F Ivan Nikolishin, 19, who was acquired from the Everett Silvertips in May. . . . The Rebels hold the 48th pick in the first round on Tuesday and Brent Sutter, the team’s owner, general manager and head coach, hasn’t ruled out selecting Grman again. . . . Sutter spoke with Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate on the crapshoot that is this particular draft, which has long been dominated by player agents. “I’ve said this from the get-go,” Sutter told Meachem. “Unless you can get a player who can play in your top six forwards, why are you drafting him?” . . . A year ago, the Rebels selected Latvian D Hugo Jansons with their first pick, taking Grman later. Jansons was injured in the season and later released. “We were told by his (Jansons’) agent, Igor Larionov, that he (Jansons) could come in and play in our top four,” Sutter told Meachem. “As it turns out, he comes in and can’t even play on our hockey team. That kind of stuff goes on, so you have to be really careful. Once all the A-list players are gone, you’re down to the B list and you’re just counting on agents at that point.” . . . Meachem's story is right here.——Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada looks at the Kevin Bieksa situation and lots of NHL draft odds and ends in his weekly 30 Thoughts. It’s right here.
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More undrafted WHL players have accepted invitations to NHL team development camps. . . . F Ty Comrie of the Tri-City Americans will skate with the New York Rangers. He will turn 18 on Aug. 8. . . . The Florida Panthers’ camp will include D Evan Fiala, 18, of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . D Tristen Pfeifer, 19, of the Everett Silvertips will be in camp with the Arizona Coyotes. He is from Scottsdale, Ariz. . . . The New York Rangers’ camp will include D Arvin Atwal of the Vancouver Giants, who turns 20 on Nov. 26, and D Jerret Smith, 20, of the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . F Evan Polei, 18, of the Red Deer Rebels is going to the Detroit Red Wings’ camp.
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If you’re looking for a good NHL draft notebook, give this right here a look. It’s by Ken McKenna of hockeyfutures.com and there is a lot of info in it.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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The Red Deer Rebels have added Erik Lodge, a 35-year-old native of Innisfail, Alta., to their coaching staff as the skills development coach. He replaces Clayton Beddoes, who has signed to coach in Italy with the Vipiteno Broncos. . . . Lodge played three games with the Lethbridge Hurricanes (1996-97) and later played five seasons at Lakehead University. . . . Lodge is a teacher and runs a hockey academy. . . . Lodge announced his signing via Twitter on Sunday afternoon: “Very excited to join the Red Deer Rebels coaching staff for the upcoming Memorial Cup season.”
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79 of 211 players taken in 2015 NHL draft are Canadian. That's more than next top 2 nations combined. Spare us angst over our hockey future.
— Adam Proteau (@Proteautype) June 29, 2015
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In Lethbridge, the Brandon Wheat Kings moved into first place in the overall standings with a 7-2 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . The Wheat Kings are one point ahead of the idle Kelowna Rockets, who hold two games in hand and are at home to Prince George this afternoon. . . . The Wheat Kings scored four times in the game’s first 11 minutes to take control of this one. . . . F Rihards Bukarts scored twice, giving him 23, as Brandon completed a road trip with its fourth victory in five days. Brandon outscored its opponents 22-9 in the four games. . . . Brandon F Peter Quenneville scored his 15th goal and added an assist, while D Macoy Erkamps and F Reid Duke each had two assists against their former team. . . . Brandon F Tyler Coulter scored his 10th goal after going 22 games without a score. . . . Brandon F Tim McGauley had an assist to run his point streak to 11 games. He’s got 22 points, including eight goals, in that stretch. . . . Wheaties D Mark Taraschuk was pointless but finished plus-4. . . . Lethbridge F Giorgio Estephan scored his 14th goal on a third-period PP and also had an assist. . . . The Wheat Kings held a 55-25 edge in shots. . . . Brandon was without D Ivan Provorov, who suffered an undisclosed injury early in the third period on Saturday night in Cranbrook. . . . The Wheat Kings already were without F John Quenneville (suspected concussion) and F Jayce Hawryluk (undisclosed injury). . . . The Wheat Kings (41-9-5) are 17-2-1 since coming back from the Christmas break. . . . The Hurricanes (15-32-6) had a three-game winning streak end. . . . 
In Saskatoon, the Calgary Hitmen ran their winning streak to eight games with a 5-2 victory over the Blades. . . . F Brett Stovin got the Blades on the board with his 22nd goal, on the PP, at 3:57 of the first period. . . . Calgary answered with three goals and took a 3-1 lead into the third period. . . . F Kenton Helgesen tied it with his 17th goal at 6:27 of the first. F Adam Tambellini scored his 38th, shorthanded, to give the Hitmen the lead at 8:06 of the second. D Michael Zipp upped the lead to 3-1 with his eighth goal at 18:25. . . . Zipp and D Keegan Kanzig, who scored his second goal and added an assist, each was plus-4. . . . Helgesen also had an assist, as did Stovin. . . . Calgary D Jake Bean drew an assist on his club’s fourth goal to set a franchise record for single-season points by a rookie defenceman (33). He was sharing the record with Matt Kinch (1996-97). . . . The Hitmen (31-17-5) are second in the Central Division, six points behind Medicine Hat and three ahead of Red Deer. . . . The Blades (15-34-3) have lost three in a row. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has a game story 
Tim Speltz, the Chiefs' general manager, appeared on CBS Sports 1510 KGA, which carries the WHL team's games, on Tuesday night to apologize to fans for the actions of some players during the anthem prior to Friday's game against the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds. 
The Seattle Thunderbirds will be without D Evan Wardley for seven games after he was suspended by the WHL on Tuesday. Wardley was disciplined for a headshot major and game misconduct he took for a hit on F Nic Petan of the Portland Winterhawks on Saturday night. . . . According to the WHL's reasoning, "The hit resulted in an injury to opponent. . . . The player is a repeat offender." . . . Wardley will be eligible to return on Nov. 1 against the visiting Vancouver Giants. He sat out his first game last night against the visiting Spokane Chiefs and won't play tonight in Spokane. He also will miss a three-game homestand (Prince George, Kamloops, Spokane), a game in Everett and a visit by the Edmonton Oil Kings). . . . Interestingly, Wardley won't miss any games against Portland. . . . Petan was on Portland's bus on Tuesday when it left the Oregon city and headed for Moose Jaw where the Winterhawks open an East Division tour against the Warriors on Friday. 
The Swift Current Broncos have claimed F Kristian Ferletak, 18, off waivers from the Victoria Royals. Ferletak, a freshman from Slovakia, was dropped by the Royals after they claimed D Marsel Ibragimov, a 17-year-old Russian freshman who had been placed on waivers by the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Edmonton released Ibragimov in order to keep veteran forwards Mads Eller and Edgars Kulda. . . . The Broncos were carrying just one import player, that being Swedish F Andreas Schumacher, 18. . . . Swift Current had been hoping to get D Julius Honka, 18, back from the NHL's Dallas Stars. However, Honka, who was selected by the Stars in the first round of the NHL's 2014 draft, was assigned to the AHL's Texas Stars. Honka was eligible for the AHL because his rights had been loaned to the Broncos by his Finnish club team; most import players are released to junior teams. . . . Ferletak may get into action with the Broncos as soon as tonight. They are at home to the Saskatoon Blades and have two forwards on the shelf -- Jay Merkley (ill) and Cole Johnson (undisclosed injury). 
The Regina Pats got down to three 20-year-olds on Tuesday by waiving F Logan McVeigh. That leaves Regina with F Braden Christoffer, F Patrick D'Amico and F Pavel Padakin as its three 1994-born players. . . . McVeigh was pointless in two games with the Pats, although a knee injury kept him from playing since the season's second game. . . . The Pats had acquired McVeigh,who is from Kenaston, Sask., last season from the Medicine Hat Tigers. He had four goals and five assists in 26 games with the Pats. In 267 career regular-season games, McVeigh has 116 points, including 45 goals. McVeigh was a second-round pick by the Kamloops Blazes in the 2009 bantam draft. He also played with the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . Regina now is carrying 24 players, including three goaltenders and 15 forwards. 
F Brandon Vuic of the QMJHL's Halifax Mooseheads is facing an impaired driving charge from an incident that occurred on Oct. 7. As well, the Halifax Chronicle Herald is reporting that Vuic, 19, is beig "investigated for alleged drug possession in connection with the same incident." That story is 
The Tri-City Americans have signed F Fraser Bulbuc, 17, and he will spend the next week with the club. Bulbuc, 6-foot-0 and 180 pounds, is from Sherwood Park, Alta., and plays for the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders. He has seven points and 127 penalty minutes in 43 games this season. Last season, with the midget AAA Sherwood Park Kings, he had 14 points and 16 penalty minutes in 25 games.
The Vancouver Giants have signed Alec Baer, a forward who, according to a Giants’ news release, is “the No. 1-rated player” from Minnesota. Baer, 15, had been playing high school hockey with Benilde-St. Margaret's. According to the news release, “Baer was rated as the #1 Freshman in Minnesota by Western College Hockey SB Nation.” . . . He had 16 points in 19 games as a freshman with Benilde-St. Margaret's. . . . More from the Giants’ news release: “Baer participated in the Giants' Rookie Training Camp last August and finished camp as the leading scorer. The numbers Baer put up at camp haven't been seen at a Giants' camp since Gilbert Brule.”
In Moose Jaw, the Saskatoon Blades scored the game’s first three goals and beat the Warriors, 3-1. . . . The Blades now have won 10 in a row. . . . Saskatoon G Andrey Makarov stopped 37 shots. . . . The Blades were 2-for-3 on the PP. . . . Saskatoon F Matej Stransky had a goal, his 31st, and an assist as he ran his point streak to 10 games. . . . Warriors F Bryson Gore was tossed in the first period with a checking-from-behind major for a hit on Saskatoon F Josh Nicholls, who wasn’t injured. . . . The Blades are back in a tie with the Prince Albert Raiders atop the East Division standings. . . . 
In Regina, G Eetu Laurikainen stopped 28 shots to lead the Swift Current Broncos to a 2-1 victory over the Pats. . . . F Adam Lowry scored his 37th goal, at 19:53 of the first period, for the Broncos, while F Levi Bews got his 17th at 9:04 of the second. . . . F Colton Stephenson scored his 12th for Regina, at 19:44 of the second on the PP. . . . The Broncos remain seenth in the Eastern Conference, one point behind the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . 
In Brandon, F Jayce Hawryluk broke a 2-2 tie at 15:56 of the third period, on the PP, and the Wheat Kings beat the Kootenay Ice, 3-2. . . . Hawryluk, who has points in each of his last seven games, had sat out Brandon’s last game for school-related issues. . . . He has 16 goals. . . . F Tim McGauley had two assists for Brandon. . . . D Ryan Pulock scored his 13th goal and added an assist for Brandon. . . . Brandon G Jordan Papirny stopped 27 shots for his first WHL victory. . . . The Ice is three points behind the Lethbridge Hurricanes, who hold down the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Medicine Hat, the Tigers ran their winning streak to five games with a 5-3 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . Prince George has lost five of six. . . . F Curtis Valk had a goal and two assists for the winners, who erased a 3-2 second-period deficit. . . . Valk broke a 3-3 tie with his 36th goal 28 seconds into the third period. . . . F Colin Jacobs scored three times for the Cougars, giving him 21. . . . With G Brett Zarowny (concussion) still out of action, the Cougars had Matt Kustra, a 15-year-old from Yorkton, Sask., on the bench in support of starter Mac Engel. Kustra, a 2012 draft pick of the Cougars, plays for the midget AAA Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask. . . . Medicine Hat G Marek Langhamer stopped 37 shots. . . . 
In Red Deer, F Rhyse Dieno scored the only goal of the circus as the Rebels got past the Victoria Royals, 2-1. . . . F Tim Traber, with his fourth, scored for the Royals at 4:28 of the third. . . . Red Deer D Mathew Dumba tied it, with his 13th goal, on a PP at 17:29. . . . In an intriguing battle of Czech goaltenders, Red Deer’s Patrik Bartosak stopped 44 shots through OT, seven more than Victoria’s Patrik Polivka. . . . The victory pulled the Rebels to within a point of fourth place in the Eastern Conference. . . . Earlier Friday, the Rebels were among hundreds of people to attend the funeral of Kale Williams, the 17-year-old son of Dean Williams, the club’s vice-president of marketing and sales. Kale, who died last weeked, was a close friend with Rebels players. “Obviously, it’s been an emotional few days for a lot of people in the community, for our hockey team and our staff,” Brent Sutter, the Rebe’s owner, general manager and head coach, told Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate. “But full marks to the kids. They stayed with it and showed a lot of resiliency tonight. They just kept working and found a way to tie it, and to win the game in a shootout just puts an exclamation mark on it. I’m proud of these kids. Really, I don’t have any words for it.” . . .
In Kamloops, F Brendan Ranford had a goal and two assists as the Blazers won their sixth in a row, beating the Kelowna Rockets, 4-2. . . . F Colin Smith had two assists for the Blazers. . . . F Dylen McKinlay scored his 20th goal of the season for Kelowna. . . . Kamloops closed to within five points of B.C. Division-leading Kelowna. . . . They’ll meet again tonight, this time in Kelowna. . . .
In Portland, G Troy Trombley stopped 41 shots to lead the Tri-City Americans to a 6-2 victory over the Winterhawks. . . . Trombley, 18, was making his first start this season with the Americans after two relief appearances. He joined the Americans last month from the SJHL’s Melville Millionaires after starter Eric Comrie (hip) was lost for the season. For the most part the 6-foot-6 Trombley has been backing up Luke Lee-Knight. . . . The Americans fell behind 1-0 and then scored six straight goals. . . . Trombley stopped 22 shots in the first period, which ended 1-1. . . . F Justin Feser and D Zach Yuen each had a goal and two assists for the Americans. Feser’s 32nd goal was a shorthanded effort. . . . F Connor Rankin got his 20th goal for the Americans. . . . Tri-City is sixth in the Western Conference, two points behind the Victoria Royals. . . .
In Everett, F Alessio Bertaggia returned from injury to score twice and help the Spokane Chiefs to a 6-3 victory over the Silvertips. . . . He had played in only two games for Spokane since being acquired from Brandon on Jan. 10. . . . Bertaggia’s first goal gave the Chiefs a 2-0 lead at 10:57 of the first period. His second goal, into an empty net, was his 20th of the season. . . . F Kohl Bauml scored twice for Everett, giving him 19. . . . Spokane F Mitch Holmberg scored his 34th goal. . . . Spokane has three defencemen injured, so moved F Blake Gal back to the blue-line. . . . The Chiefs moved past Victoria and into fourth in the Western Conference. . . . Everett, which has lost nine in a row, is seventh, two points ahead of Seattle, which has lost seven in a row. The Thunderbirds are in Everett tonight.
In Edmonton, the Oil Kings scored the game’s first four goals and went on to beat the Kootenay Ice, 4-2. . . . The fourth annual Hockey Hooky game -- it began at 11:30 a.m. -- drew 9,975 fans. . . . Edmonton F Luke Bertolucci scored his second goal and added an assist. A 17-year-old from Montrose, B.C., he has five points in 32 games. . . . F Sam Reinhart scored his 26th goal for the Ice. . . . Kootenay G Wyatt Hoflin, who turns 18 today, stopped 39 shots. . . .
In Brandon, the Saskatoon Blades scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Wheat Kings, 5-1. . . . Saskatoon F Michael Ferland, who was acquired from Brandon at the trade deadline, broke a 1-1 tie at 2:10 of the second period. It was Ferland’s third goal of the season. . . .
In Regina, F Jordan Messier was the only one of eight circus shooters to score as the Moose Jaw Warriors beat the Pats, 3-2. . . . The Warriors scored twice in the first period; the Pats got two in the second. . . . Regina D Stephen Hak tied it with his second goal in 36 games at 18:43 of the second. . . . The Pats now have lost eight in a row. . . .
In Swift Current, F Ryon Moser scored at 19:59 of the third period – there was 0.8 left on the clock – to gave the Broncos a 5-4 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . F Adam Lowry led the Broncos with his 33rd goal and three assists. . . . Moser has 15 goals this season. . . . Broncos F Levi Bews, who hadn’t played since Dec. 30 because of a leg injury, scored his 15th goal in 39 games. . . . Calgary F Brady Brassart scored his 20th and 21st goals to give the Hitmen a 3-2 lead early in the second. . . . Lowry tied it at 12:30 of the second and D Richard Nedomlel gave the home side a 4-3 lead at 2:33 of the third. . . . Calgary D Alex Roach, with his second of the night and 13th of the season, put his side out front at 4:23. . . .
In Portland, the Winterhawks gave up the game’s first two goals then roared back to beat the Kamloops Blazers, 5-2. . . . Earlier in the day, the Winterhawks appeared at No. 1 in the CHL’s weekly rankings, having unseated the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads by putting up three straight shutouts. . . . Portland F Nic Petan, the WHL’s leading scorer, broke a 2-2 tie at 5:20 of the third period. . . . Portland F Taylor Peters, in his 300th game, added insurance with a shorthanded goal at 15:20. . . . Petan had a goal, his 35th, and an assist, and was plus-3. He leads the WHL in assists (55) and points (90), and is tied for the goal lead with F Todd Fiddler of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic is second in points (85), with Kamloops F Colin Smith third, at 80. . . . Leipsic had a goal, his 33rd, and two assists. . . . Smith scored his 34th goal to give Kamloops a 2-0 lead at 16:24 of the first. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie scored once, running his points streak to 15 games. . . . The Blazers lost D Joel Edmundson to a headshot major and game misconduct in the first period. Portland F Adam (Samuel) De Champlain, who was the victim, didn't return to the game and was watching in street clothes in the second period.
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