Matthews destined for Everett? . . . WHLers off to development camps . . . Rebels add coach

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.
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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.
——
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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Matthews tied up in immigration issue? . . . McCrimmon still pondering offer . . . Ex-Giants coach back in game

F T.J. Galiardi (Calgary, 2007-08) signed a one-year contract with Malmö (Sweden, SHL). This season, he had one goal in 38 games with the Winnipeg Jets. . . .
F Brett Sonne (Calgary, 2004-09) signed a one-year contract with Banská Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga). This season, with Mora (Sweden, Allsvenskan), he had four goals and three assists in 35 games, and in 12 games with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen), he had five goals and eight assists. . . .
D Jeff May (Prince Albert, Lethbridge, 2002-08) signed a one-year contract with Angers (France, Ligue Magnus). This season, he was an alternate captain with the Ontario Reign (ECHL), and had four goals and 12 assists in 38 games. He played for Angers in 2012-13.
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There hasn’t been confirmation yet, but it appears that F Auston Matthews and the ZSC Zurich Lions of the Swiss National League A have agreed to terms on a contract.
According to a story at watson.ch, as written by Klaus Zaugg, the situation has run up against some immigration issues. (Thanks to the MacBeth Report for providing the information that follows.)
“The thing is tricky, we cannot say anything yet,” Lions manager Peter Zahner said.
ZSC Sports Chief Edgar Salis added: “I cannot say why there is a delay.”
Apparently, they are having problems getting him a visa because Matthews has not played professionally outside of Switzerland.
According to Swiss regulations regarding soccer and hockey, a non-European Union citizen must have played one year as a professional before being eligible for a Swiss work permit.
There is recent precedent with this situation, too. Swiss soccer club FC Basel ran into this issue last summer with a Serbian player it signed to a five-year contract. FC Basel wasn’t able to get a work permit for the player, so he was loaned to a Slovakian team for one year. That made him eligible for a Swiss work permit.
In light of that situation, Swiss soccer clubs have started an initiative to get this regulation overturned, and ZSC lawyers now have joined the movement. A decision is expected in the next two weeks.
Depending on what happens, ZSC could get a provisional work permit for Matthews but if the Federal Office for Migration rejects the application, Matthews would have to leave the country immediately.
After the 2012-13 season, D Ryan O’Connor went directly from the OHL’s Barrie Colts to the Swiss team Davos and he received a work permit without delay. However, O’Connor is Canadian and there is a special agreement between Canada and Switzerland that allows this for Canadian citizens. There is no such agreement between the United States and Switzerland.
The Everett Silvertips hold Matthews’ WHL rights.
——
Kelly McCrimmon, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings, has yet to speak publicly about the offer he is mulling over from the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Maple Leafs apparently interviewed McCrimmon sometime in the past two weeks and later made an offer to him. Bruce Luebke, the long-time radio voice of the Wheat Kings, has reported that the offer carried with it a June 11 deadline.
On Tuesday’s Insider Trading, Darren Dreger, one of TSN’s Hockey Insiders, offered: “My sense is that Kelly McCrimmon is leaning towards taking the job in the front office of the Toronto Maple Leafs.”
That’s it. No source or sources. No indication that Dreger spoke with McCrimmon. No indication of from where he got his “sense.”
I have no idea which way McCrimmon might be leaning, but I can guess that the last few days have torn him apart.
McCrimmon, 54, is the best hockey/business mind in the WHL. He should have been in the NHL long before this. So, you’re wondering, why hasn’t an NHL team come calling before now? Likely for the same reason that the late Ed Chynoweth never ended up with an NHL team. It would have taken an NHL executive with uncommon job security to have hired Chynoweth, who was his own man.
The same is true of McCrimmon.
In past conversations, he has said that he would have loved to have been given the opportunity to work in the NHL. The position of assistant general manager would have suited him perfectly. He could have started there and then seen what happened.
Complicating the issue now is that he has built a Wheat Kings team that has the chance to dominate over the next couple of seasons. Does he walk away from what he has constructed, leaving it in the hands of someone else?
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THE COACHING GAME:

Bryant Perrier is the new general manager and head coach of the junior B North Okanagan Knights of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. The Knights play out of Armstrong, B.C. . . . Perrier, 50, is a native of Penticton. . . . Former owner Chuck Gallacher was the GM last season, while Jim Armstrong was the head coach. . . . The team now is owned by Dean Keller. . . . Perrier spent the past three seasons coaching in France. . . . He has head-coaching experience in the region, having coached with the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials and Penticton Panthers. . . . Perrier last coached in North America in 2011-12. In his third season with the MJHL’s Neepawa Natives, he left the team after a hazing incident. He later was suspended by the MJHL for the remainder of the season. Perrier has been adamant that he had no idea what had happened; the MJHL said that Perrier, as the GM and head coach, should have known.
——

Andy Baggot of the Wisconsin State Journal tweeted Tuesday that the USHL’s Madison Capitols have hired Troy Ward as general manager and head coach. Ward, who began last season as head coach of the Vancouver Giants, will replace Luke Strand, who left to join the U of Wisconsin Badgers as an associate coach. . . . The Capitols are expected to announce Ward’s signing next week during their spring camp.
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In the ECHL, F Greger Hanson scored at 5:25 of OT to give the Allen Americans a 3-2 victory over the host South Carolina Stingrays in Game 5 of the Kelly Cup final. . . . The Americans lead the series 3-2 with Game 6 scheduled for tonight in North Charleston. . . . F Chris Crane gave the Americans a 2-1 lead at 3:01 of the third period. . . . F Wayne Simpson pulled the Stingrays into a tie at 16:05. . . . Attendance was 4,184.
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It is one of the most famous headlines in newspaper history — Headless Body in Topless Bar. It appeared on the front page of the New York Post in 1983. Vincent Musetto, the man who wrote that headline, has died. Jim Norman, who was there the night that headline was written, has more on that story right here.

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Raiders' hunt for GM ends . . . Leafs may have job for McCrimmon . . . Ex-Raider to coach Lakers

D Layne Viveiros (Portland, 2011-2015) signed a one-year contract with Red Bull Salzburg (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, he had eight goals and 35 assists in 71 games with the Winterhawks. Viveiros is a dual Canadian-Austrian citizen. . . . He is eligible for his 20-year-old season in the WHL, but obviously has decided to go a different route. . . .
F Jakub Rumpel (Medicine Hat, 2006-07) signed a one-year extension with Herne (Germany, Oberliga). This seaosn, he had 26 goals and 40 assists in 24 games.
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Multiple WHL sources tell me Curtis Hunt will be named the new General Manager of the Prince Albert Raiders, replacing Bruno Campese.

— Tyler King (@tyler_king) June 5, 2015

According to Tyler King, the Prince Albert Raiders have their general manager.
As noted above, King tweeted Friday morning that Curtis Hunt will be the Raiders’ next general manager.
Hunt resigned Friday as general manager and head coach of the AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons. King spent four seasons as the Oil Barons’ play-by-play man and also was their manager of communications. He left the club Monday and now is the manager of communications for the AJHL’s Brooks Bandits.
Having spent four seasons working with the Oil Barons, it’s safe to say that King has connections there.
Hunt just completed his first season with the Oil Barons, who were 35-28-6 under him, including all regular- and post-season play.
Hunt, 48, isn’t a stranger to Prince Albert or the WHL.
From North Battleford, Sask., he was a defenceman for three seasons (1984-87) with Raiders. He was a first-year defenceman on the Prince Albert team that won the 1985 Memorial Cup.
He also has been a WHL head coach for eight seasons — Moose Jaw Warriors (2002-04) and Regina Pats (2004-08, 2009-11).
The Raiders have been without a GM since Bruno Campese’s departure last month after eight years in the organization.
The new general manager joins a team that has its coaching staff in place, with head coach Marc Habscheid starting a four-year contract, associate coach Dave Manson starting a four-year extension and assistant coach Kelly Guard on a one-year deal.
The Raiders have a news conference scheduled for Monday morning at which there will be, according to a release, “a major announcement regarding” their hockey operations department.
——
A note from Damien Cox, who writes Saturdays in the Toronto Star:
“Internally, the (Toronto Maple) Leafs continue to add personnel, although not a general manager yet. On Friday, with the departure of Steve Staios to the new Hamilton OHL franchise, Scott Pellerin was promoted within the player development area. It appears Brandon Wheat Kings owner/GM Kelly McCrimmon has a front office job waiting for him with the Leafs if he’s willing to leave Manitoba. Ditto for Sault Ste. Marie (head) coach Sheldon Keefe in a yet undefined coaching role.”
McCrimmon, of course, also is the Wheat Kings’ head coach.
——
The Auston Matthews saga continues, with his agent, Pat Brisson, telling Mike G. Morreale of nhl.com that the projected No. 1 pick in the NHL’s 2016 draft will play with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland’s top pro league or the WHL’s Everett Silvertips. . . . Of course, there isn’t anything new in that, although perhaps this is the first time that Brisson has said the Matthews camp has ruled out the NCAA route. . . . Morreale’s story from Friday is right here.
——
Jeff Pearlman, a respected author with a number of solid sports-related books to his credit, took some time on Friday to write about “when guys like Stephen A. Smith and Michael Wilbon turned celebrity.” . . . It’s true. Guys like Smith and Wilbon used to be journalists . . . and highly credible journalists, at that. . . . Pearlman takes a look at that subject in a devastating piece that is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Jeff Tomlinson is the new head coach of the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, who play in Switzerland’s National League B. Tomlinson, 45, was an assistant coach with Germany at the IIHF World championship in Prague last month. He has coached in Germany for a number of years. . . . Tomlinson, from Winnipeg, played three seasons (1987-90) with the Prince Albert Raiders. He later played nine seasons in Europe.
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Tim Kehler, a former Swift Current Broncos assistant coach, has been added to the list of presenters at the fifth annual Hockey Coaches Conference that is scheduled for Vancouver, July 24-25. Kehler spent three seasons (2007-10) on the Broncos’ coaching staff. . . . He has spent the last four seasons in Europe, the past three as head coach of Löwen Frankfurt of DEL2. . . . Also on the list of presenters is Victoria Royals head coach Dave Lowry. . . . For more on the conference, click right here.
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The Medicine Hat Regional Event Centre is no more. Canalta Hotels has purchased naming rights for the new facility that is scheduled to open later this year. The arena now is known as the Canalta Centre. . . . Collin Gallant of the Medicine Hat News has more right here.
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THE CONCUSSION REPORT:

From a news release issued on Friday: “The Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) supports the education-driven recommendations made by the jury serving on the inquest into the death of Rowan Stringer highlighting the important role an educated coach plays in the prevention, identification, and management of sport-related concussions and return to play for participants.” . . . This is important stuff. The complete release is right here.
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Anthony Davis, the San Francisco 49ers starting right tackle, has retired after five NFL seasons. The 25-year-old Davis, who was the 11th overall selection in the NFL’s 2010 draft, said in a release: “This will be a time for me to allow my brain and body a chance to heal. I know many won’t understand my decision, that’s OK.” . . . Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle has more right here.
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“Two former players have filed a landmark $200-million lawsuit against the Canadian Football League, former CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon, a leading brain injury expert and a Toronto neurology clinic, alleging they knew and withheld information about how repeated brain trauma leads to long-term cognitive problems,” Rick Westhead, TSN’s senior correspondent, reported on Friday. “The lawsuit was filed May 29 in Ontario Superior Court by Korey Banks and Eric (The Flea) Allen.” . . . Westhead’s story is right here.
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Head of WADA-approved lab says she can't in good conscience keep testing CFL players samples. Lots of positive tests, no repercussions.

— Paul Friesen (@friesensunmedia) June 5, 2015

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Generals or Rockets? Who wins? . . . No news on Matthews . . . Dillon jumps to Oil Kings

F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2009-11) signed a one-year contract with Storhamar Hamar (Norway, GET-Ligaen). This season, he was pointless in three games with Pantern Malmö (Sweden, Division 1) and had seven goals and 10 assists in 19 games with Grenoble (France, Ligue Magnus).
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The Oshawa Generals haven’t won the Memorial Cup since 1990. The Kelowna Rockets have been in the tournament five times since 2002, but won it just once, as the host team in 2004. . . . One of them will be crowned major junior hockey’s champion today in what will be the historic final game to be played in the Pepsi Colisee. . . . The way Bill Beacon of The Canadian Press sees it, the Generals go into the game as the slight favourites. His story is right here.

At first glance, this game would seem to match Kelowna’s offence against the defence of the Generals,
who are easily the bigger of the two teams. However, the Generals averaged 38.67 shots on goal in their three games, while the Rockets were at 32.5 in four games. . . . Of course, the Generals went 3-0, with three one-goal victories, to earn a bye to the final. The Rockets are 2-2, including a 9-3 thrashing of the host Quebec Remparts in Friday’s semifinal game. . . . The Rockets scored 20 goals in four games; the Generals counted 11 in three outings. . . . From where I sit, the outcome of this game, from a Kelowna perspective, rests on the Rockets’ ability to play a run-and-gun with lots of pressure on the puck. If they are able to mount that kind of game, they will win, but they might need to score five goals to do it. . . . If Kelowna ends up trying to play a defence-first game, that will be to Oshawa’s benefit and the Generals could win a low-scoring affair. . . . The big question, however, is this: Will the fact that Rockets head coach Dan Lambert is bilingual and a former player with the NHL’s Quebec Nordiques be enough to put the crowd’s support behind his club?
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Here is the Memorial Cup schedule (all games on Sportsnet; all times Eastern):
Friday, May 22: Kelowna 3 vs. Quebec 4 (9,497)
Saturday, May 23: Rimouski 3 vs. Oshawa 4 (8,409)
Sunday, May 24: Quebec 4 vs. Oshawa 5 (OT) (10,970)
Monday, May 25: Rimouski 3 vs. Kelowna 7 (6,981)
Tuesday, May 26: Oshawa 2 vs. Kelowna 1 (7,002)
Wednesday, May 27: Quebec 0 vs. Rimouski 4 (10,277)
Thursday, May 28 (tiebreaker): Quebec 5 vs. Rimouski 2 (6,533)
Friday, May 29 (semifinal): Kelowna 9 vs. Quebec 3 (9,870)
Sunday (championship): Oshawa vs. Kelowna, 7 p.m.
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The camp of USNTDP star F Auston Matthews has yet to reveal where he will play next season. Perhaps Matthews, who already is being projected as the No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2016 draft, hasn’t yet decided. Or perhaps he and his advisors (wink! wink!) simply are enjoying the speculation. . . . His options were believed to be the NCAA — he has numerous schools interested and at one point was said to have whittled his list to five — or the WHL, where the Everett Silvertips hold his rights. . . . But then came word that Matthews was listening most intently to an offer from Switzerland, perhaps from the Zurich-based ZSC Lions, who are coached by Marc Crawford. . . . And then, just to thicken the stew, Sportsnet’s Damien Cox (@DamoSpin) tweeted earlier in the week: “Almost 100% Auston Matthews is headed to Europe, not WHL or NCAA. News is teams from Sweden, Finland may have joined Zurich in the bidding.” . . . At this point, however, it would seem that if it is to be a team in Finland or Sweden, there hasn’t been much light shed on it over there. I heard from a source who is most familiar with hockey in the Scandinavian countries. “I have looked into all the sites and papers I know of in Sweden and Finland and if there is any mention of it, it is quoting Cox's tweets,” the source told Taking Note. “However, (the Finnish newspaper) Ilta-Sanomat reports that Zurich's offer to Matthews is 450,000 Euros, about US$500,000, for next season.” . . . Aside from the money, the prime advantage to Matthews of playing in Europe is that the NHL team that drafts him would, according to the NHL-NHLPA agreement, be able to send him to its AHL affiliate for the 2016-17 season should it choose to do so. . . . While all of this is going on, a voice deep inside keeps asking me if Avenir Sports and Entertainment might yet surface in all of this. ASE has majority ownership in the Kloten Flyers, who play in Switzerland’s National League A, as do the ZSC Lions. Bill Gallacher, who owns ASE, also owns the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors have signed their first two selections from the 2015 WHL bantam draft. . . . D Jeff Woo was the fourth overall selection and they took Luka Burzan two picks later. . . . Woo played for the bantam AAA Winnipeg Warriors, while Burzan was with the North Shore Winter Club. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has more right here.
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G Alec Dillon, who had committed to attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and play hockey there, has changed his mind and will sign with the Edmonton Oil Kings. The 19-year-old is expected to be introduced at a Monday news conference. . . . Dillon, from Nanaimo, was a second-team all-star this season with the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. The previous season, he was with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. . . . The 6-foot-5, 175-pounder was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the fifth round of the NHL’s 2014 draft. . . . At the moment, Dillon would seem to slot in alongside sophomore Patrick Dea, an 18-year-old from St. Albert, Alta., on Edmonton’s depth chart. Playing behind Tristan Jarry, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Dea got into 21 games this season, going 11-5-1, 2.57, .904. . . . Jarry, 20, is expected to play in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization this season. The Penguins selected him in the second round of the NHL’s 2013 draft. . . . Dillon, who is good friends with Oil Kings D Dysin Mayo, was a fifth-round selection by the Swift Current Broncos in the 2011 bantam draft. On Nov. 28, 2013, they dealt his rights and what will be a fourth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft to Edmonton for D Stephen Shmoorkoff.
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F Jordan Kawaguchi, a fourth-round selection by the Spokane Chiefs in the 2012 bantam draft, has said he will attend Providence College. The 5-foot-8, 165-pound Kawaguchi, from Abbotsford, B.C., played this season with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, putting up 56 points, including 28 goals, in 53 games.
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#MyPlayoffsMoment in China repping @NHLBlackhawks even had Peking Duck - Go Hawks win Game 7! #CHIvsANA @NHL pic.twitter.com/Eete3rdCCD

— Ryan Ohashi (@Osmashi) May 30, 2015

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McLellan gold and new job . . . Former Chiefs star on fire . . . Rimouski wins QMJHL title

This is the first time a country has held the Olympic, World Junior and the World Championship gold at the same time👌 pic.twitter.com/BOWPTUFEeH

— Hockey Posts™ (@HockeyPosts) May 18, 2015

With apologies to Blackie Sherrod, we’re scattershooting on a Monday evening:

1. O Canada!

2. It was great to see head coach Todd McLellan guide Canada to a gold medal at the IIHF World championship in Czech Republic over the past few weeks. Hockey can be a cruel business but, even by those standards, he really got stiffed by the San Jose Sharks. He’ll get over it as the head coach of Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers (aka Young Guns).

3. It also was great to see Bill Peters win gold in Czech Republic too. Peters, always a straight shooter, is a former head coach of the Spokane Chiefs, who now is head coach of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes.

4. How do you feel if you’re a season-ticket holder with the Prince Albert Raiders? First, a couple of the WHL’s premier players moved from the Raiders to the Kelowna Rockets, with thanks to the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. The Rockets then went on to win the WHL championship, with one of those players named the playoff MVP. The Raiders, of course, didn’t make the playoffs and, on top of all that, the WHL commissioner has told the world that “in order for the Prince Albert Raiders to be viable long term, a new facility is required.” . . . Other than that, Raiders fans, how has your month been?

5. This WHL offseason just might be worth watching, what with the Medicine Hat Tigers not yet having a lease to play in that city’s new building, the Regina Pats’ owners scrapping with their landlord, the WHL hinting that Prince Albert needs a new arena or else, the WHL leaning on Lethbridge Hurricanes’ shareholders to sell to private interests, the WHL pretty much telling Kootenay Ice fans to show up in 2015-16 or else. . . .

6. If Canadian hockey fans ever wondered how much respect the NHL has for them, it was most evident when the Eastern Conference final opened with a Saturday day game. To the NHL, the tradition of Hockey Night in Canada is nothing more than chopped liver.

7. If you are watching an NHL playoff game, please don’t start whining about the number of penalties being called. Please don’t start begging the referees to “let them play.” Please plead with the referees to call the game by the rule book.

8. In Tyler Johnson’s last two seasons with the Spokane Chiefs, he was the best faceoff man and best penalty killer I had seen in a long while. But who knew the Tampa Bay Lightning star would be able to score like this at the NHL level? . . . If you missed it, he had the first playoff hat trick in Lightning history last night in a 6-2 victory over the Rangers in New York. He leads all playoff scorers in goals (11) and points (16). His 11 goals are four more than anyone else.

9. Chris Peters, the hockey writer at cbssports.com, has a good piece right here on Tyler Johnson and all that went on last night.

10. With the governor of Washington state having signed a bill designating WHL players as amateur athletes and non-employees, someone is going to have to explain to me how that works. After all, hasn’t the NCAA proclaimed WHL players as professionals? . . . Hey, perhaps things would be different if WHL players employed advisors and not agents.
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D Nolan Yonkman (Kelowna, Brandon, 1996-2001) signed a one-year contract with JYP Jyvaskyla (Finland, Liiga). This season, with the Adirondack Flames (AHL), he had two goals and 10 assists in 65 games. He was the team captain.
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It was a long weekend in Canada — thank you, Queen Victoria — and still no decision from F Auston Matthews. Matthews, who turns 18 on Sept. 17, is from Scottsdale, Ariz., and he is a game-changer. . . . His WHL rights belong to the Everett Silvertips, who selected him in the third round of the 2012 bantam draft. . . . Matthews is said to be deciding between Everett, the ZSC Lions, a Swiss pro team based in Zurich, and an NCAA school. I’m thinking the NCAA is out, so it’s between Everett and Lions. . . . One thing is for certain: Everett GM Garry Davidson says that, regardless of what you may have heard, the Matthews camp hasn’t asked the Silvertips to trade his WHL rights. . . . Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald has more right here.
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Jay Inslee, the governor of Washington state, signed Senate Bill 5893 on Monday. That bill designates players on the WHL’s four Washington teams as amateur athletes and non-employees. That exempts the players from laws requiring employees be paid at least the minimum wage.
Jim Camden of the Spokane Spokesman-Revew has more right here.
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The second-round AHL series between the Utica Comets and Oklahoma City Barons will be decided in Game 7 on Wednesday. The Barons won 2-1 at home last night, so Game 7 will be in Utica. . . . F Jake Virtanen of the Calgary Hitmen made his pro debut with the Comets in that game. The Vancouver Canucks selected him with the sixth overall pick in the NHL’s 2014 draft.
——
The host Rimouski Oceanic won the QMJHL championship on Monday, beating the Quebec Remparts 2-1 in double OT. . . . F Michael Joly’s 12th goal of the playoffs, via a PP, won the game, at 2:13 of the second OT period before 5,062 fans. . . . Rimouski G Philippe Desrosiers stopped 47 shots. . . . The Oceanic also won Game 6 in OT, that one by a 5-4 count. . . . With the Remparts as the host team for the Memorial Cup, both teams knew prior to the start of the series that both teams would play in the tournament.
——

Here is the Memorial Cup schedule (all games on Sportsnet; all times Eastern):
Friday, May 22: Kelowna vs. Quebec, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 23: Rimouski vs. Oshawa, 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 24: Quebec vs. Oshawa, 4:30 p.m.
Monday, May 25: Rimouski vs. Kelowna, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, May 26: Oshawa vs. Kelowna, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 27: Quebec vs. Rimouski, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, May 28: Tiebreaker, if necessary, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, May 29: Semifina, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 31: Championship game, TBA
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THE COACHING GAME:

The NHL’s Colorado Avalanche lost two assistant coaches on Monday with the resignations of Mario Duhamel and André Tourigny. . . . Duhamel, the video coach, completed two seasons under head coach Patrick Roy with the Avalanche. Prior to that, Duhamel was the head coach of the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs for four seasons. . . . Tourigny, who handled the defence, also spent two seasons with Colorado. Before that, he spent 10 seasons as head coach of the QMJHL’s Rouyn-Noranda Huskies.
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The U of North Dakota promoted assistant coach Brad Berry to head coach on Monday, just moments after the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers announced that Dave Hakstol would be their next head coach. Hakstol had been UND’s head coach for 11 seasons . . . Berry and Kamloops Blazers GM Craig Bonner are friends and it wasn’t that long ago when Berry was in the running to be the Blazers’ head coach. Before it got to that, however, Berry asked that his name be taken out of consideration.
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The NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes cleaned house in Portland, Me., on Monday, as they dumped a whole lot of people from hockey operations with their AHL affiliate, the Pirates. . . . Chris Roy of Maine Hockey Journal reported that Ray Edwards, the GM and head coach, has been fired, along with assistant coaches John Slaney and Trent Whitfield. . . . The Pirates, who lost out in the first round of the playoffs, also dumped athletic therapist Bike Booi, equipment manager John Krouse, video coach Alex Loh and assistant equipment manager Joe Morse. . . . The Pirates are to move to Springfield, Mass., before the start of next season.
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I believe Tyler Johnson is 5'8, he just scored his 3rd goal of the game, all G's a combined distance of 2 feet from the crease #gotothenet

— Chris Clark (@clarkyhockey) May 19, 2015

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