THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Ben Clymer (Seattle, 1998-99) signed a one-year contract with Ingolstadt (Germany, DEL). Clymer missed all of this season with a knee injury while under contract with Lugano (Switzerland NL A). In 2009-2010, Clymer had eight goals and 24 assists with Ingolstadt. . . . Ingolstadt GM Jim Boni: "We are very happy to welcome Ben back in Ingolstadt. His knee injury creates some risk, of course. With him, it's a risk that we will be happy with because he is worth it. He is currently on the ice three times a week and the knee feels good and is holding up."
———
There is concern in the household from which The MacBeth Report eminates. The man’s wife is from Finland; her parents are visiting.
He writes: “Big game (Sunday) — Finland v. Sweden for the World Championship. With my wife's parents here from Finland, we were all excited to watch the game. Versus has been carrying every game . . . EXCEPT THE FINAL! The final is nowhere to be found on any U.S. network. Go figure that one out . . .”
———
Kris Knoblauch of the Kootenay Ice isn’t the first head coach to win a WHL championship in his first season at the controls.
I don’t know how many times it has been done, but the Medicine Hat Tigers won the 1986-87 WHL title with Bryan Maxwell in his first season as head coach.
While Knoblauch spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the Ice (preceded by one season with the Prince Albert Raiders), Maxwell worked for one season as a Tigers’ assistant before taking over from Doug Sauter.
In 1986-87, the Tigers went 48-19-5 in the regular season, before going on a 12-8 run to the championship. They then went on to win the Memorial Cup.
The Ice, under Knoblauch, went 46-21-5 in the regular season and 16-3 in the playoffs.
The Medicine Hat lineup in 1986-87 included a second-year defenceman named Dean Chynoweth, whose brother, Jeff, is the president and general manager of the Ice.
———
The BCHL announced some rather startling changes the other day, changes that didn’t get nearly their due.
In fact, in a sports world that is bloated with too many teams playing too many games that featured a product that is too watered down, what the BCHL did was beyond startling. It was shocking!
For starters, it has moved the start and finish lines for its regular season.
The 2011-12 regular season will open on Sept. 23; the 2010-11 season began on Sept. 10. It will end on March 11; the most-recent regular season ended on Feb. 20.
Among other things, this will allow the league to have more of its games played after Christmas, when teams traditionally have drawn more fans.
The BCHL also says it will work harder to take advantage of geographical rivalries where possible and that visiting teams will, on occasion, stay over and play doubleheaders in some cities.
More telling, however, is a move to cut the number of teams qualifying for the playoffs from 14 to eight.
In an age where some leagues, including Major League Baseball, are working to get more teams into the postseason, the BCHL has gone the other way.
By cutting the number of qualifiers, the BCHL will lose one complete round of games, thus giving itself more time to complete its playoffs. That should mean no incidents of playoff teams having to play four games in five nights.
Making the playoffs less of a grind should allow teams to stay healthier and be better rested, which should result in better competition on the ice.
All of this should mean the entertainment value is raised, thus providing the fans with a better product.
And, at the end of the day, isn’t that the name of the game.
———
If the Boston Bruins are going to play from behind against the Tampa Bay Lightning, it would seem that Guy Boucher’s bunch will end up in the Stanley Cup final.
Giving the Lightning the lead, as the Bruins did in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final on Saturday night, allows Tampa Bay to play that 1-3-1 defensive formation that looks as though it could have stopped Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during their heyday.
While you are watching it from the comfort of your living room — YAWN! — just be thankful that you’re not paying $200 a ticket to see it in person.
But, as then-New York Jets head coach Herman Edwards, once famously ranted:
"This is what's great about sports. This is what the greatest thing about sports is. You play to win the game. Hello? You play to win the game. You don't play it to just play it. That's the great thing about sports: you play to win, and I don't care if you don't have any wins. You go play to win. When you start tellin' me it doesn't matter, then retire. Get out! 'Cause it matters."
———
John Branch of The New York Times has today’s good read, and it’s right here. It has to do with nicknames, or lack of same, in the sporting world. Give it a read and it’ll leave you longing for the days of the Chicoutimi Cucumber, the Golden Jet, the Rocket, the Pocket Rocket et al.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter
Showing posts with label BCHL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BCHL. Show all posts
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
Victoria Bruins?
One day last week a Chilliwack Bruins’ season-ticket holder -- yes, there are some! -- asked in an email if I might have any idea why the team hadn’t yet sent out season-ticket renewal notices.
Alarm bells went off immediately, although my response was somewhat more tepid. At the time, I was prepared to cut the Bruins some slack and wrote back that perhaps they were waiting to tie them into playoff ticket sales. Then, when I thought about it, I wondered why the playoff vouchers hadn’t already gone out and, if they had, why weren't season-ticket forms with them?
Perhaps we now know the answer.
Because now it would seem that, while they may not have the moving van backed up to the door, the Bruins have at least looked up the phone number.
Tyler Olsen of the Chilliwack Times has spoken with Darryl Porter, one of the franchise’s owners, and there isn’t one speck of hope there if you’re a Bruins’ fan.
Olsen’s story is right here.
At the end of the story, Porter does say that season-ticket renewals are in the works. Although it would seem the horse has left the barn and the Bruins just may want to save on the postage.
You can bet that the denials are soon to start flying from all directions, and we're going to hear words like "due diligence" a lot, too. But there is far too much smoke here to ignore the fact that Victoria is closer to getting a WHL franchise than it has been since the Cougars left for Prince George after the 1993-94 season.
When you combine Porter’s comments with the story that is in Friday’s Victoria Times Colonist, well, how does Victoria Bruins sound?
According to the Times Colonist, the city of Victoria has told RG Properties that it “will extend RG Properties' lease at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre to 2046 if the company can secure a Western Hockey League franchise.”
So, when you put two and two together, along with the fact that RG boss Graham Lee apparently was spotted at a recent Bruins' game, well, it would seem things are moving right along.
The problem, of course, is that the WHL has long said it doesn’t want to go back to Vancouver Island unless there are two teams located there. And, at the moment, Victoria is the home of the only arena that meets WHL standards.
However, there now are two people with WHL ties who are involved at the ownership level with the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers. Bill Gallacher, who owns the Portland Winterhawks, and former WHL goaltender Kelly Hrudey, who also is involved with the WHL alumni, are among the Clippers’ owners, so perhaps a plan is afoot to build a new arena in that city.
And, for what it’s worth, I heard from one WHL insider today who said he had heard that RG Properties has had a deal in place with a WHL franchise since some time in October.
We may never find out whether that is true. We also will never know whether the arrival of the AHL's Abbotsford Heat had anything to do with the predicament in which the Bruins find themselves. If it did, though, Bruins ownership must be just livid with the NHL's Calgary Flames. They, of course, own the WHL's Calgary Hitmen and the Heat is the Flames's top minor league affiliate.
---
’Tis the time of the season when NHL teams are trolling the waters in search of signable free agents.
In the last week, we’ve seen the Dallas Stars sign D Brenden Dillon, 20, of the Seattle Thunderbirds. And, on Friday, the San Jose Sharks signed D Sena Acolatse, 20, of the Prince George Cougars.
Next up?
Perhaps it will be C Tyler Johnson, 20, of the Spokane Chiefs. He is said to have at least two offers on the table in front of him, with more than a couple of other teams also circling and checking out the situation.
Johnson’s numbers, his defensive play and his prowess in the faceoff circle make you wonder what’s taken so long?
Alarm bells went off immediately, although my response was somewhat more tepid. At the time, I was prepared to cut the Bruins some slack and wrote back that perhaps they were waiting to tie them into playoff ticket sales. Then, when I thought about it, I wondered why the playoff vouchers hadn’t already gone out and, if they had, why weren't season-ticket forms with them?
Perhaps we now know the answer.
Because now it would seem that, while they may not have the moving van backed up to the door, the Bruins have at least looked up the phone number.
Tyler Olsen of the Chilliwack Times has spoken with Darryl Porter, one of the franchise’s owners, and there isn’t one speck of hope there if you’re a Bruins’ fan.
Olsen’s story is right here.
At the end of the story, Porter does say that season-ticket renewals are in the works. Although it would seem the horse has left the barn and the Bruins just may want to save on the postage.
You can bet that the denials are soon to start flying from all directions, and we're going to hear words like "due diligence" a lot, too. But there is far too much smoke here to ignore the fact that Victoria is closer to getting a WHL franchise than it has been since the Cougars left for Prince George after the 1993-94 season.
When you combine Porter’s comments with the story that is in Friday’s Victoria Times Colonist, well, how does Victoria Bruins sound?
According to the Times Colonist, the city of Victoria has told RG Properties that it “will extend RG Properties' lease at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre to 2046 if the company can secure a Western Hockey League franchise.”
So, when you put two and two together, along with the fact that RG boss Graham Lee apparently was spotted at a recent Bruins' game, well, it would seem things are moving right along.
The problem, of course, is that the WHL has long said it doesn’t want to go back to Vancouver Island unless there are two teams located there. And, at the moment, Victoria is the home of the only arena that meets WHL standards.
However, there now are two people with WHL ties who are involved at the ownership level with the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers. Bill Gallacher, who owns the Portland Winterhawks, and former WHL goaltender Kelly Hrudey, who also is involved with the WHL alumni, are among the Clippers’ owners, so perhaps a plan is afoot to build a new arena in that city.
And, for what it’s worth, I heard from one WHL insider today who said he had heard that RG Properties has had a deal in place with a WHL franchise since some time in October.
We may never find out whether that is true. We also will never know whether the arrival of the AHL's Abbotsford Heat had anything to do with the predicament in which the Bruins find themselves. If it did, though, Bruins ownership must be just livid with the NHL's Calgary Flames. They, of course, own the WHL's Calgary Hitmen and the Heat is the Flames's top minor league affiliate.
---
’Tis the time of the season when NHL teams are trolling the waters in search of signable free agents.
In the last week, we’ve seen the Dallas Stars sign D Brenden Dillon, 20, of the Seattle Thunderbirds. And, on Friday, the San Jose Sharks signed D Sena Acolatse, 20, of the Prince George Cougars.
Next up?
Perhaps it will be C Tyler Johnson, 20, of the Spokane Chiefs. He is said to have at least two offers on the table in front of him, with more than a couple of other teams also circling and checking out the situation.
Johnson’s numbers, his defensive play and his prowess in the faceoff circle make you wonder what’s taken so long?
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Coaching change
The Prince George Citizen reported on its website Wednesday morning that Ed Dempsey was fired Tuesday night as general manager and head coach of the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. Dempsey is a former WHL coach, having been with the Kamloops Blazers and Prince George Cougars. He had been with the Spruce Kings since Jan. 1, 2004.
The Spruce Kings announced on their website that Dave Dupas is the clukb's new head coach.
Dupas, according to the Spruce Kings, "has more than 10 years of coaching experience at the Major Midget, Junior B and Junior A levels. Dupas also has four years of experience as a player in the British Columbia Junior Hockey League, another three years of NCAA Div I experience and four years playing semi-pro."
The Spruce Kings are 6-22-0 and in last place in the BCHL's Interior Conference.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca gdrinnan.blogspot.com Taking Note on Twitter
The Spruce Kings announced on their website that Dave Dupas is the clukb's new head coach.
Dupas, according to the Spruce Kings, "has more than 10 years of coaching experience at the Major Midget, Junior B and Junior A levels. Dupas also has four years of experience as a player in the British Columbia Junior Hockey League, another three years of NCAA Div I experience and four years playing semi-pro."
The Spruce Kings are 6-22-0 and in last place in the BCHL's Interior Conference.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca gdrinnan.blogspot.com Taking Note on Twitter
Friday, November 19, 2010
Russians take home the trophy
How many coaches would yank a goaltender less than four minutes into one game and start him again the very next night? That’s what Team Russia head coach Valery Bragin, the tie-less one, did with goaltender Dmitry Shikin in the two Subway Super Series games that were played in Kamloops and Prince George on Wednesday and Thursday nights.
Shikin gave up two goals on three shots and left Wednesday’s game with his side down 2-0 just 3:36 into the game. Emil Garipov came on and was excellent in backstopping the Russians to a 7-6 shootout victory.
Last night, the Russians stoned Team WHL 5-2 in Prince George to win the Super Series for the first time in its eight years and perhaps save what, prior to this month, had been a mediocre series, at least out west.
Going into this year, the WHL had won 13 of the 14 games it had played against the Russians in this series.
The Russians had always, for whatever reason, brought over a markedly weaker team than was needed to compete with CHL teams. Four years ago, the last time the series stopped in Kamloops, the WHL posted an 8-1 victory in what was a simply awful hockey game.
This year, however, the Russians brought over an older team that was stronger and more mature than what we have seen in past years. Every player on the 22-man roster for the game in Kamloops was born in 1991. Of those 22 players, 16 had played for Bragin at the U-20 Fourth Nations tournament in Sweden in September.
This bunch of Russians took every bump and then some. They were quick on transition, strong on the puck and they gave the WHL’s defence fits, especially in deep on the forecheck. The WHL defencemen really had have a tough time dealing with that pressure.
The WHL, which actually held a 6-3 lead in the third period of the game in Kamloops, carried over only six players to the game in the Prince George. And it took until six or seven minutes into the third period before the WHL team looked comfortable. By then, the Russians held a 4-0 lead and were on their way to winning the series for the first time.
This reminded me a bit of 1972 when the Canadians (NHL) and the then-Soviet Union met in the first Super Series. The NHL stars that year were caught off guard by just how good the Soviet players were. I would suggest that the WHL players were expecting less than what they got in these two games.
------
Through this series the Russian players are mostly nameless teenagers to most observers.
Which is why it was so wonderful to watch these players celebrate at the end of the game in Prince George. Watching them go to centre ice, shed gloves and sticks, and pose for one of those championship team photos with the trophy, well, it was just like watching a North American team celebrate a title.
If you don't think this thing meant something to them, you weren't paying attention.
------
So . . . what’s next?
Well, Hockey Canada will release the list of players invited to its selection camp on Nov. 29. From there it’s on to the camp in Toronto, Dec. 11-15.
The 2011 World Junior Championship will be contested in Buffalo, Dec. 26 through Jan. 5.
------
2010 SUPER SERIES:
Nov. 8, at Saint John, N.B.: Russia 5, QMJHL 4
Nov. 10, at Drummondville: Russia 4, QMJHL 3
Nov. 11, at London: OHL 4, Russia 0
Nov. 15, at Sudbury: OHL 2, Russia 1 (SO)
Nov. 17: at Kamloops: Russia 7, WHL 6 (SO)
Nov. 18: at Prince George: Russia 5, WHL 2
Russia 4-1-1-22-21-12
CHL 2-3-1-21-22-6
OHL 2-0-0-6-1-5
QMJHL 0-2-0-7-9-0
WHL 0-1-1-8-12-1
(Note: Three points for regulation victory; two points for shootout victory; one point for shootout loss.)
------
With the Subway Super Series having wrapped up, it’s time to start thinking about the various World Junior Championships that will be held over the next six weeks.
F Kristians Pelss of the Edmonton Oil Kings will play for Latvia in the
2011 World Junior Championship, Division 1A, that runs Dec. 13-19 in Bobruisk, Belarus. Pelss, 18, was the 19th pick in the CHL’s 2010 import draft. He also was a seventh-round pick by the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL’s 2010 draft. Pelss has a goal and three assists in 20 games with the Oil Kings. . . . Latvia will compete against Belarus, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and Ukraine.
Meanwhile, two WHL players are on Germany’s preliminary roster for the 2011 World Junior Championship that will be held in Buffalo, Dec. 26 through Jan. 5. F Marcel Noebels of the Seattle Thunderbirds and F Bernhard Keil of the Kamloops Blazers are on the German roster that right now features four goaltenders, 15 forwards and nine defencemen. Noebels has 14 points in 19 games with Seattle, while Keil, who has struggled to adapt to the grind of the WHL, has one goal in 15 games with the Blazers. He has been a healthy scratch four times in the last eight games.
--------
I was told late Thursday night that F Kyle St. Denis, 20, has been released off the injured list by the Kelowna Rockets. St. Denis has had multiple
concussions and didn’t get medical clearance to start this season with the Rockets. From Trail, B.C., he had 22 points in 22 games in 2008-09 and 22 points in 26 games last season. Of course, the games played is the key statistic. Obviously, he has the skill to play in the WHL but the concussions just wouldn’t let him. . . . I also am told that his junior A rights belonged to the BCHL's Vernon Vipers, who have dealt them to the Victoria Grizzlies. St. Denis, however, wants to play with the Smoke Eaters, whose roster includes his brother Travis, who has 39 points in 22 games.
------
The Kelowna Rockets dealt D Antoine Corbin, 18, to the Prince Albert
Raiders on Thursday. The Rockets got back a 2012 third-round bantam draft pick. Corbin, who is in his second WHL season, was a fifth-round pick in the 2007 bantam draft. . . . He had four points and 25 penalty minutes in 11 games this season with the Rockets. . . . Corbin, who is from Kelowna, is expected to play for the Raiders tonight against the Hurricanes in Lethbridge.
------
If you were wondering, it took the Pats 22 hours 30 minutes to get from Regina to Vancouver, where they open B.C. Division tour tonight against the 
Giants. . . . The Pats have three prospects with them for the next few days. D Kyle Burroughs, a third-round pick from Langley, B.C., D Nolan De Jong, a seventh-round selection from Saanich, B.C., and F Demico Hannoun, a product of North Delta., B.C., who was taken in the ninth round, have practised with the club the last couple of days. . . . The Prince Albert Raiders have added F Tyler Paslawski, 18, to their roster for their three-game weekend. Paslawski, was assigned to the SJHL’s Nipawin Hawks almost a month ago and had two assists in eight games. . . . BC Hockey has selected Kamloops as the host site for the 2011 U-16 B.C. Cup. The tournament will be held April 27 through May 1 at Interior Savings Centre. . . . Marc Weber of the Vancouver Province reports on the Dub Hub that the Vancouver Giants are 
down to five defencemen Luke Fenske (shoulder) the latest of their players to be injured. The Giants are at home to the Regina Pats tonight but then don’t play for a week. F Brendan Rowisnki, who was acquired last week from the Moose Jaw Warriors, won’t play, either. He had major offseason knee surgery and played two games with the Warriors before being traded. But he hasn’t received medical clearance from the Giants’ staff. Fenske and Rowinski both may be back for that Nov. 26 game when the Giants meet the Oil Kings in Edmonton. . . .
---
More than a handful of former WHL players have been shuffled around over the last couple of days. . . . F James Wright (Vancouver, 2005-10) went
from the AHL’s Norfolk Road Admirals to the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. . . . The NHL’s Vancouver Canucks returned F Mario Bliznak (Vancouver, 2005-08) to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. . . . The NHL’s Florida Panthers sent D Keaton Ellerby (Kamloops, Moose Jaw, 2004-08) to the AHL’s Rochester Americans and recalled F Michal Repik (Vancouver, 2005-08). . . . Repik was the Americans’ leading scorer, with 22 points, including 18 assists, in 17 games. . . . The NHL’s Minnesota Wild assigned D Justin Falk (Calgary, Spokane, 2004-08) to the AHL’s Houston Aeros. . . . The NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes recalled D Brett Carson (Moose Jaw, Calgary 2001-06) from the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday and returned him on Thursday.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter
Shikin gave up two goals on three shots and left Wednesday’s game with his side down 2-0 just 3:36 into the game. Emil Garipov came on and was excellent in backstopping the Russians to a 7-6 shootout victory.
Last night, the Russians stoned Team WHL 5-2 in Prince George to win the Super Series for the first time in its eight years and perhaps save what, prior to this month, had been a mediocre series, at least out west.
Going into this year, the WHL had won 13 of the 14 games it had played against the Russians in this series.
The Russians had always, for whatever reason, brought over a markedly weaker team than was needed to compete with CHL teams. Four years ago, the last time the series stopped in Kamloops, the WHL posted an 8-1 victory in what was a simply awful hockey game.
This year, however, the Russians brought over an older team that was stronger and more mature than what we have seen in past years. Every player on the 22-man roster for the game in Kamloops was born in 1991. Of those 22 players, 16 had played for Bragin at the U-20 Fourth Nations tournament in Sweden in September.
This bunch of Russians took every bump and then some. They were quick on transition, strong on the puck and they gave the WHL’s defence fits, especially in deep on the forecheck. The WHL defencemen really had have a tough time dealing with that pressure.
The WHL, which actually held a 6-3 lead in the third period of the game in Kamloops, carried over only six players to the game in the Prince George. And it took until six or seven minutes into the third period before the WHL team looked comfortable. By then, the Russians held a 4-0 lead and were on their way to winning the series for the first time.
This reminded me a bit of 1972 when the Canadians (NHL) and the then-Soviet Union met in the first Super Series. The NHL stars that year were caught off guard by just how good the Soviet players were. I would suggest that the WHL players were expecting less than what they got in these two games.
------
Through this series the Russian players are mostly nameless teenagers to most observers.
Which is why it was so wonderful to watch these players celebrate at the end of the game in Prince George. Watching them go to centre ice, shed gloves and sticks, and pose for one of those championship team photos with the trophy, well, it was just like watching a North American team celebrate a title.
If you don't think this thing meant something to them, you weren't paying attention.
------
So . . . what’s next?
Well, Hockey Canada will release the list of players invited to its selection camp on Nov. 29. From there it’s on to the camp in Toronto, Dec. 11-15.
The 2011 World Junior Championship will be contested in Buffalo, Dec. 26 through Jan. 5.
------
2010 SUPER SERIES:
Nov. 8, at Saint John, N.B.: Russia 5, QMJHL 4
Nov. 10, at Drummondville: Russia 4, QMJHL 3
Nov. 11, at London: OHL 4, Russia 0
Nov. 15, at Sudbury: OHL 2, Russia 1 (SO)
Nov. 17: at Kamloops: Russia 7, WHL 6 (SO)
Nov. 18: at Prince George: Russia 5, WHL 2
Russia 4-1-1-22-21-12
CHL 2-3-1-21-22-6
OHL 2-0-0-6-1-5
QMJHL 0-2-0-7-9-0
WHL 0-1-1-8-12-1
(Note: Three points for regulation victory; two points for shootout victory; one point for shootout loss.)
------
With the Subway Super Series having wrapped up, it’s time to start thinking about the various World Junior Championships that will be held over the next six weeks.
F Kristians Pelss of the Edmonton Oil Kings will play for Latvia in the
2011 World Junior Championship, Division 1A, that runs Dec. 13-19 in Bobruisk, Belarus. Pelss, 18, was the 19th pick in the CHL’s 2010 import draft. He also was a seventh-round pick by the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL’s 2010 draft. Pelss has a goal and three assists in 20 games with the Oil Kings. . . . Latvia will compete against Belarus, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and Ukraine.Meanwhile, two WHL players are on Germany’s preliminary roster for the 2011 World Junior Championship that will be held in Buffalo, Dec. 26 through Jan. 5. F Marcel Noebels of the Seattle Thunderbirds and F Bernhard Keil of the Kamloops Blazers are on the German roster that right now features four goaltenders, 15 forwards and nine defencemen. Noebels has 14 points in 19 games with Seattle, while Keil, who has struggled to adapt to the grind of the WHL, has one goal in 15 games with the Blazers. He has been a healthy scratch four times in the last eight games.
--------
I was told late Thursday night that F Kyle St. Denis, 20, has been released off the injured list by the Kelowna Rockets. St. Denis has had multiple
concussions and didn’t get medical clearance to start this season with the Rockets. From Trail, B.C., he had 22 points in 22 games in 2008-09 and 22 points in 26 games last season. Of course, the games played is the key statistic. Obviously, he has the skill to play in the WHL but the concussions just wouldn’t let him. . . . I also am told that his junior A rights belonged to the BCHL's Vernon Vipers, who have dealt them to the Victoria Grizzlies. St. Denis, however, wants to play with the Smoke Eaters, whose roster includes his brother Travis, who has 39 points in 22 games.------
The Kelowna Rockets dealt D Antoine Corbin, 18, to the Prince Albert
Raiders on Thursday. The Rockets got back a 2012 third-round bantam draft pick. Corbin, who is in his second WHL season, was a fifth-round pick in the 2007 bantam draft. . . . He had four points and 25 penalty minutes in 11 games this season with the Rockets. . . . Corbin, who is from Kelowna, is expected to play for the Raiders tonight against the Hurricanes in Lethbridge.------
If you were wondering, it took the Pats 22 hours 30 minutes to get from Regina to Vancouver, where they open B.C. Division tour tonight against the Giants. . . . The Pats have three prospects with them for the next few days. D Kyle Burroughs, a third-round pick from Langley, B.C., D Nolan De Jong, a seventh-round selection from Saanich, B.C., and F Demico Hannoun, a product of North Delta., B.C., who was taken in the ninth round, have practised with the club the last couple of days. . . . The Prince Albert Raiders have added F Tyler Paslawski, 18, to their roster for their three-game weekend. Paslawski, was assigned to the SJHL’s Nipawin Hawks almost a month ago and had two assists in eight games. . . . BC Hockey has selected Kamloops as the host site for the 2011 U-16 B.C. Cup. The tournament will be held April 27 through May 1 at Interior Savings Centre. . . . Marc Weber of the Vancouver Province reports on the Dub Hub that the Vancouver Giants are down to five defencemen Luke Fenske (shoulder) the latest of their players to be injured. The Giants are at home to the Regina Pats tonight but then don’t play for a week. F Brendan Rowisnki, who was acquired last week from the Moose Jaw Warriors, won’t play, either. He had major offseason knee surgery and played two games with the Warriors before being traded. But he hasn’t received medical clearance from the Giants’ staff. Fenske and Rowinski both may be back for that Nov. 26 game when the Giants meet the Oil Kings in Edmonton. . . . ---
More than a handful of former WHL players have been shuffled around over the last couple of days. . . . F James Wright (Vancouver, 2005-10) went
from the AHL’s Norfolk Road Admirals to the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. . . . The NHL’s Vancouver Canucks returned F Mario Bliznak (Vancouver, 2005-08) to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. . . . The NHL’s Florida Panthers sent D Keaton Ellerby (Kamloops, Moose Jaw, 2004-08) to the AHL’s Rochester Americans and recalled F Michal Repik (Vancouver, 2005-08). . . . Repik was the Americans’ leading scorer, with 22 points, including 18 assists, in 17 games. . . . The NHL’s Minnesota Wild assigned D Justin Falk (Calgary, Spokane, 2004-08) to the AHL’s Houston Aeros. . . . The NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes recalled D Brett Carson (Moose Jaw, Calgary 2001-06) from the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday and returned him on Thursday.gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter
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