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F David Turoň (Portland, 2002-03) has signed a contract for the rest of this season with Polonia Bytom (Poland, PHL). He had been released by the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite) on Monday. He had three goals and five assists in 30 games with the Flyers. . . . Turoň told hokej.net: “I wanted to be closer to home because of health problems with my in-laws.” He is from Havirov, Czech Republic. . . .
F Radek Meidl (Seattle, Tri-City, 2006-08) has signed a contract for the rest of this season with Orlik Opole (Poland, PHL). He had a goal and three assists in 27 games this season with Frydek-Mistek (Czech Republic, 1. Liga). He had signed with Dukla Trenčín (Slovakia, Extraliga) on Dec. 19 but didn’t appear in a game with them.
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D Alex Alexeyev of the Red Deer Rebels won’t play again this season and Brent Sutter, the team’s owner, general manager and head coach, now is taking an up-close look at everything from what players do in the off-season to how it practises.
“We’ve had some pretty significant injuries to some very important players the last year and a half,” Sutter
told Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com.
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| ALEX ALEXEYEV |
“From a general manager’s perspective, I have to look at certain things. We have to look at the demands we put on these players nowadays, with the off-ice conditioning and the way we practise.These kids are still growing into their bodies. They’re still young players whose bodies are filling out.
“It bothers me, it’s something that I’ve been thinking about for quite some time. Some injuries are fluke things. That being said, it still happens, and it’s been happening here more often than it needs to be and you’d like it to be, especially in the last couple of years.”
Sutter was referring to recent injuries to F Grayson Pawlenchuk, F Reese Johnson, F Conner Bleackley, D Josh Mahura, F Adam Musil and G Rylan Toth.
Sutter has long been an outspoken advocate of having teenagers play other sports in the summer, allowing them to use other muscle groups and to get away from the pressures of hockey.
He also has been cognizant of how much rest his players get but now is wondering if there is more that can be done in that area.
“I’d like to think we’ve done a good job with the rest part, but maybe it’s still not enough,” Sutter said. “There are certain things we need to do differently as a coaching staff. I have to take a serious look at it. You can’t just stick your head in the sand and ignore this.”
Alexeyev was injured when he slid into the boards during the third period of a 4-1 loss to the visiting Regina Pats on Saturday. He underwent surgery Tuesday for an undisclosed “lower-body” injury and, according to Meachem, “will need three to five months to recover.”
Alexeyev, who turned 17 on Nov. 15, is from St. Petersburg, Russia. He had four goals and 17 assists in 21 games.
Meachem’s complete story is right here.
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There is some news on the Brevin Gervais front.
You will recall that Gervais, 17, underwent surgery for a brain aneurysm in Kamloops on Friday. A native of Prince George, he had been playing for the junior B 100 Mile House Wranglers of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.
Mateo Albinati set up a gofundme page with a goal of $16,000, then shut it down when it raised more than $20,000. On Tuesday, Albinati reopened the page.
“Due to overwhelming support,” he explained, “I have been asked to reopen the go fund me account. Everyone's generosity has already been amazing but every penny still helps. So please continue to spread the word and help the Gervais family.”
That page is right here.
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The Swift Current Broncos have brought back F Brandan Arnold, 19. The Broncos dropped Arnold from their roster on Jan. 11 — he had six points, two of them goals, in 27 games — and he joined the SJHL’s Nipawin Hawks. He had 12 points, including five goals, in six games with Nipawin. . . . From Dodsland, Sask., he was a seventh-round pick by the Broncos in the 2012 bantam draft.
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The Kamloops Blazers have signed F Kyrell Sopotyk, 15, who was a fifth-round selection in the 2016
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If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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JUST NOTES:
G Liam Hughes won’t play again this season for the Edmonton Oil Kings. Hughes, who last played on Oct. 29, is shown as having a “season-ending” injury on the WHL’s weekly roster report that was issued Tuesday. A 17-year-old freshman from Kelowna, he got into seven games this season, going 1-4-2, 3.26, .895 before being injured. . . . The Oil Kings have been going with veteran Patrick Dea, 19, and freshman Josh Dechaine, 18, as their goaltenders. . . .
The Vancouver Giants will be without F Taden Rattie for four games. That’s the length of the suspension he drew for becoming involved in a one-man fight during a game against the host Victoria Royals on Sunday. The incident occurred at 15:32 of the second period in a game won by the Royals, 6-3. . . . The Royals had beaten the Giants 3-1 in Langley, B.C., on Friday, and 7-1 in Victoria on Saturday.
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Gordie Dwyer stepped down as head coach of Medvescak Zagreb of the KHL after a Tuesday game and now is head coach of Ambri-Piotta of the Swiss League. Dwyer, 39, was in his second season with Medverscak Zagreg. With Ambri-Piotta, he replaces Hans Kossmann. . . . Dwyer was an assistant coach with Team Canada at the Spengler Cup in December. . . . Medvescak Zagreb hasn’t named a replacement for Dwyer.
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The QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques have added Denny Lambert to their coaching staff. He will work alongside Eric Landry, who took over as head coach on Jan. 23 when Mario Duhamel was fired. Most recently, Lambert, a former NHL player, was an assistant coach with the ECHL’s Allen Americans. Lambert, 47, spent seven seasons (2004-11) with the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, the last four as head coach.
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TUESDAY’S GAMES:
At Portland, F Joachim Blichfeld scored at 3:58 of OT to give the Winterhawks a 4-3 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The Winterhawks jumped out front when F Evan Weinger scored his 15th goal at
5:24 of the first period. . . . Everett scored two early second-period goals for a 2-1 lead. D Aaron Irvin got his 15th goal, at 3:17, and F Devon Skoleski scored No. 9 just 28 seconds later. . . . F Connor Dewar assisted on both goals. . . . Portland tied it on F Colton Veloso’s 13th goal, on a PP, at 6:02 and took the lead 42 seconds into the third period when F Alex Overhardt got his 10th goal. . . . The Silvertips tied the game, forcing OT, when F Brian King got his second goal of the season at 9:24 of the third period. . . . Blichfeld won it with his 17th goal of the season. . . . On Saturday, Blichfeld scored at 19:56 of the third period as Portland beat the Rockets 5-4 in Kelowna. . . . D Caleb Jones had two assists for Portland, while Blichfeld added one. . . . G Cole Kehler stopped 31 shots for the Winterhawks. At the other end, Carter Hart made 42 saves. . . . Portland was 1-3 on the PP; Everett was 0-3. . . . The Silvertips continue to play without D Noah Juulsen, who is out week-to-week with an undisclosed injury. . . . The Winterhawks (26-21-3) have won four in a row. They hold down the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, three points behind Kelowna and seven ahead of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Silvertips (30-9-10) have lost five in a row (0-3-2), but they still lead the U.S. Division by six points over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . This game was rescheduled from Jan. 7, when it was postponed due to inclement weather. . . . Announced attendance: 3,406.
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| JOACHIM BLICHFELD |
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.@WHLHurricanes celebrating a 4-3 shootout win over @bdnwheatkings in #yql pic.twitter.com/u5MT6JC2cD— Ian Martens (@IMartensHerald) February 1, 2017
At Lethbridge, G Giorgio Estephan scored the only goal of a shootout to give the Hurricanes a 4-3 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Lethbridge now is 1-3 in shootouts; Brandon is 5-2. . . . The visitors
held 2-0 and 3-2 leads but couldn’t hang on. . . . F Tanner Kaspick scored his 17th goal, on a PP, at 14:05 of the first period and F Nolan Patrick got his ninth at 17:01 for that 2-0 lead. . . . The Hurricanes tied it on second-period goals from F Egor Babenko (16) and F Matt Alfaro (14), on a PP, at 13:58. . . . F Reid Duke’s 31st goal put Brandon back out front at 16:33. . . . Lethbridge F Tyler Wong’s 36th goal, at 6:25 of the third period, forced OT. . . . F Zak Zborosky had two assists for Lethbridge. . . . D Kade Jensen drew two helpers for Brandon. . . . G Ryan Gilchrist stopped 31 shots from the Hurricanes, while Logan Thompson blocked 30 shots for Brandon. . . . Brandon was 1-3 on the PP; Lethbridge was 1-7. . . . Brandon was without D Kale Clague, who sat out a one-game suspension for a charging major and game misconduct he incurred Sunday in Calgary. . . . The Hurricanes (29-15-7) have points in 11 straight games (9-0-2). They are second in the Central Division, six points behind the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . The Wheat Kings (24-19-6) are 1-0-1 in their last two. They are fourth in the East Division, four points behind the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Announced attendance: 3,410.
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| GIORGIO ESTEPHAN |
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At Medicine Hat, the Tigers scored the game’s last three goals to beat the Kootenay Ice, 4-3. . . . F Brett Davis gave the visitors a 1-0 lead at 4:43 of the first period. . . . F Mason Shaw, playing with a full visor
because of a facial laceration from a skate, tied it with his 19th goal, on a PP, at 16:49. . . . Kootenay took the lead with two second-period PP goals. . . . F Jake Elmer (5) scored at 3:57 and Davis added his 14th goal at 5:13 for a 3-1 lead. . . . Medicine Hat D Clayton Kirichenko’s eighth goal, at 6:58, got the Tigers back to within a goal. . . . F Mark Rassell’s 22nd goal, on a PP, tied it at 11:25. . . . F John Dahlstrom broke that tie with his 23rd goal, at 1:42 of the third period. . . . Shaw also had an assist. . . . F Vince Loschiavo had two assists for Kootenay. . . . Medicine Hat started G Nick Schneider, who was beaten three times on 20 shots in 25:13. Michael Bullion came on to finish up and get the victory, stopping all nine shots he faced in 34:46. . . . G Payton Lee blocked 42 shots for the Ice. . . . Kootenay was 2-3 on the PP; Medicine Hat was 2-4. . . . The Tigers (35-15-1) have won four in a row. They are third in the overall standings, four points behind the Regina Pats and Prince George Cougars, who are tied for top spot. . . . The Ice (12-32-8) has lost two straight. . . . These teams will play again tonight, this time in Cranbrook, B.C. . . . Announced attendance: 2,904, the smallest crowd in the history of the Canalta Centre, which is in its second season.
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| JOHN DAHLSTROM |
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At Kent, Wash., F Keegan Kolesar scored on a breakaway at 1:07 of OT to give the Seattle Thunderbirds a 4-3 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . The teams combined for three goals in the final 4:09 of the third period in what was a frantic finish. . . . F Deven Sideroff had given the visitors a 1-0 lead at 11:10 of the first period. . . . Seattle tied it on D Ethan Bear’s 18th goal, at 3:43 of the third period. Originally, the goal was disallowed on the ice, but that call was overturned after video review. . . . Seattle’s first goal came on its 44th shot of the game. . . . F Lane Bauer gave the Blazers a 2-1 lead, on a PP, at 8:42. . . . Kolesar pulled Seattle even at 15:51 and F Sami Moilanen (15) sent the home team out front at 17:05. . . . However, Bauer’s 31st goal of the season tied it at 18:23. . . . Kolesar won it with his 12th goal. . . . Seattle got three assists from D Turner Ottenbreit, with Bear adding one. . . . Sideroff added two assist to his goal. . . . G Rylan Toth earned the victory with 22 saves. . . . The Blazers got a 57-save effort from G Connor Ingram, who was named the game’s first star. . . . Seattle held a 16-0 edge in shots with 9:37 left in the first period. . . . Kamloops was 1-3 on the PP; Seattle was 0-4. . . . The Thunderbirds (30-15-4) have won six straight and moved into second in the U.S. Division, six points behind the Everett Silvertips. . . . Kamloops (31-17-4) is 2-0-1 in its past three outings. It is second in the B.C. Division, three points ahead of the Victoria Royals. . . . The Blazers and Thunderbirds will meet again in Kent on Friday, after Kamloops plays the Winterhawks in Portland on Wednesday. . . . Announced attendance: 4,407.
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| KEEGAN KOLESAR |
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):
Calgary at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Medicine Hat vs. Kootenay, at Cranbrook, B.C., 7 p.m.
Kamloops at Portland, 7 p.m.
Lethbridge at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Moose Jaw at Regina, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Swift Current, 7 p.m.
Everett vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
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Dillon, 17, and a conditional fourth-round selection in the 2015 bantam draft. . . . According to Edmonton’s news release: “If Dillon plays in the WHL, a fourth-round pick is returned to the Broncos.” . . . Shmoorkoff is pointless in 16 games with the Oil Kings this season. . . . The Edmonton native had four points, one of them a goal, in 34 games last season. . . . “(Shmoorkoff) is a veteran defenceman with experience in a winning organization,” Mark Lamb, the Broncos’ general manager and head coach, said in a 
news release. “He is a very physical player and will bring his physicality and wealth of experience to our young defensive group moving forward.” . . . Dillon, from Victoria, is a 6-foot-5, 170-pounder who was a fifth-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft. He is with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies, going 2.49, .917 in 13 games. . . . At the same time, the Broncos sent F Brandan Arnold, 16, to the midget AAA Tisdale, Sask., Trojans. Arnold, from Dodsland, Sask., was pointless in one game. He was a seventh-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft.
Former Moose Jaw Warriors F Brooks Laich, now with the NHL’s Washington Capitals, is obsessed with hockey. In fact, it’s gotten to the point where Washington head coach Adam Oates wants Laich to perhaps rethink things a bit. . . . Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post has a terrific read 
Former Saskatoon Blades F Bob Bourne, who was a terrific player with the New York Islanders as they won four straight Stanley Cups, is part of the concussion-related lawsuit against the NHL. “Life after hockey hasn’t been fun for me. It’s been a struggle,” Bourne told Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star. “I’m articulate. I consider myself a smart guy. But there’s a reason why things haven’t gone as well as they should have.” . . . Feschuk’s piece is 
F Anthony Ast of the Vancouver Giants has been honoured with the Canadian Diabetes Association’s National Young Volunteers of the Year Award. . . . Ast, 18, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in January 2002. . . . The Giants’ news release is 
Old friend Ben Laursen will be in the spotlight in the first intermission Friday as the Brandon Wheat Kings play host to the Prince Albert Raiders. Laursen, who has been a volunteer with the Wheat Kings since before Rudy Pilous was the head coach, will be saluted by the Wheat Kings and Atom-Jet Group as the Innovator of the Month. . . . These days, Laursen is the director of off-ice officials.
The board will meet in Calgary on Sept. 4 to review the application. . . . Priestner, who attempted to purchase the Kamloops Blazers over the summer of 2007, is the owner of Go Auto, an Edmonton-based company that owns more than 30 automobile dealerships. . . . According to a WHL news release: “A special resolution vote of two-thirds majority from the Board of Governors is required in order to grant approval for the sale. If approval is granted at the Sept. 4 meeting, Mr. Priestner will assume control of the Saskatoon Blades franchise prior to the start of the 2013-14 WHL season.”
The Victoria Royals have signed F Matthew Phillips and D Ralph Jarratt to WHL contracts. . . . Phillips was the 33rd overall selection in the 2013 bantam draft. He had 77 points, 40 of them goals, in 37 games with the Calgary Bisons of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League last season. . . . Jarratt, from Fort St. John, B.C., was taken selecctions after Phillips. Jarratt played last season in the Pursuit of Excellence’s bantam AAA program, putting up 29 points in 28 games. . . . F Dante Hannoun, Victoria’s first selection in the 2013 bantam draft, has left the Royals’ camp. Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist reports that Hannoun “took ill” and he and the team decided it would be best for him to return home to Delta, B.C., so that he could get proper rest and get better. 
The Tri-City Americans have signed F Maxwell James to a WHL contract. James, from Kamloops, was a sixth-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft. Last season, he put up 12 points in 40 games with the major midget Thompson Blazers. . . . The Americans now have signed their first six selections from the 2012 bantam draft.
The Kootenay Ice has added Mike Dyck to its coaching staff. Dyck, a former head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, will attend training camp and will return to the team to help first-year assistant Jay Henderson on the bench when head coach Ryan McGill serves as an assistant coach with Canada’s national junior team in December. . . . “With Ryan going to the World Juniors and this being Jay's first year coaching in the WHL,” Chynoweth said in a news release, “we felt another coach was needed during this time frame. We feel very fortunate to be able to add a coach with the experience that Mike has in the WHL." . . . Dyck spent five seasons as Lethbridge’s head coach, going 132-120-16 and reaching the WHL’s championship final in 2008. He also worked as an assistant coach with Lethbridge and the Vancouver Giants.
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