“The Regina Pats have announced that their pricing structure for home games will be overhauled, effective with the 2015-16 WHL season. On the surface, the restructuring makes sense, and is perhaps overdue. As per the current pricing format, which allows for discounted senior and youth rates, the
highest revenue isn't always derived from the prime seats. But here is a cautionary note: Leading up to the 1985-86 season, the Regina Exhibition Association imposed a $1 parking fee. It was a nominal cost, but customers nonetheless balked and sub-2,000 crowds quickly became the norm. The owner, Saskatoon-based Herb Pinder Jr., quickly became fed up and sold the team — which was perilously close to moving to Swift Current. And it was all over a dollar.“This is not to suggest that the Pats are in any danger of facing instability.
“An Anthony Marquart-led ownership group is committed to the franchise, and the city of Regina, for the long haul. But it has been demonstrated, albeit nearly 30 years ago, that Regina hockey fans can be resistant to a fundamental change in the cost of attending a game. The customers will ultimately decide whether the division of the Brandt Centre into ‘gold’ and ‘silver’ sections is a sound idea or a reason to spend more time watching hockey on television.”
Ahh, yes, the memories from early in 1985-86 and the $1 parking charge at the arena, then the Agridome, in Regina.
How close were the Pats to moving to Swift Current? Close enough that they moved towards cancelling two games and rescheduling them for Swift Current. Close enough that the marquee above the Agridome’s main entrance indicated that the team’s next game was to be played in Swift Current.
Of course, the deal fell apart when the WHL, not wanting to lose one of its flagship franchises, stepped in and bought the Pats. The league later sold the Pats to a group of Regina businessmen.
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F Connor McDavid of the OHL’s Erie Otters had his 27-game point streak come to an end last night. The Otters beat the visiting Niagara IceDogs 3-0 but McDavid was blanked. He had 67 points, including 26 goals, in the streak. The last time he was held without a point was on Nov. 6, also against the IceDogs. . . . F Tim McGauley of the Brandon Wheat Kings now is riding the CHL’s longest point streak, at 23 games. The Wheat Kings are at home to the Saskatoon Blades on Friday.
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F Liam Stewart of the Spokane Chiefs is on the 31-man national team roster named Tuesday by Great Britain head coach Pete Russell. The roster will be trimmed to 23 in about two weeks. . . . Great Britain will play two exhibition games against Poland in Nottingham on April 9 and in Coventry on April 10. It then will play in the IIHF Division 1B World Championship in Eindhoven, Netherlands, from April 13-19. Also there will be Croatia, Estonia, Lithuania, Netherlands and Korea. . . . There is more right here, including some great photos of Liam and his father. . . .
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The Everett Silvertips have signed D Alex Astasiewicz, who is from Salmon Arm, B.C. Astasiewicz, 16, was a third-round selection in the 2013 bantam draft. He played this season with the junior B Golden Rockets of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. Ty Davidson was the Rockets’ general manager and head coach; he is the son of Everett GM Garry Davidson. . . . Astasiewicz had 25 points, five of them goals, in 46 games with the Rockets. He has been added to the Silvertips’ roster.
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If you are wondering what is happening regarding the NHL and the nine concussion-related lawsuits it is facing, John DeWispelaere of Sport In Law has a solid piece right here. . . . It’s solid because the layman is able to read it and understand it.
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THE WHL PLAYOFF PICTURE:
EAST DIVISION:1. Brandon (5 games remaining) — Will finish atop the Eastern Conference for the first time since 1995-96. They will play the conference’s second wild-card team in first round. . . . Tied with Kelowna (5) for first place overall. . . . At home to Saskatoon on Friday.
2. Regina (5) clinched second in division. Will meet third-place team in first round. . . . Won on the road last night but was missing freshman F Sam Steel. He suffered a leg injury on Tuesday. . . . In Moose Jaw on Friday.
3. Swift Current (5) has lost seven in a row. Leads Moose Jaw by two points. . . . Coaches held soul-searching session after last night’s loss to visiting Regina. . . . In Prince Albert on Friday.
4. Moose Jaw (5) remains two points behind Swift Current. . . . At home to Regina on Friday.
5. Prince Albert (6) has won four in a row and is four points behind Moose Jaw. . . . Entertains Swift Current on Friday.
6. Saskatoon (4) is in Brandon on Friday.
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CENTRAL DIVISION:
1. Medicine Hat (6) is tied with Calgary atop the division. Medicine Hat has more victories (41-40) at the moment. . . . Tigers play in Cranbrook on Friday.
2. Calgary (6) has two games left in a franchise-record 11-game road trip. . . . Plays in Red Deer on Friday.
3. Red Deer (5) won at home last night and is three points off the pace. . . . At home to Calgary on Friday.
4. Kootenay (5) holds down the conference’s first wild-card spot, one point ahead of Edmonton. . . . At home to Medicine Hat on Friday.
5. Edmonton (4) is in the second wild-card spot, one point behind Kootenay. . . . In Lethbridge on Friday.
6. Lethbridge (6) is at home to Edmonton on Friday.
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B.C. DIVISION:
1. Kelowna (5) has clinched first place in the Western Conference and will play the second wild-card team in the first round. . . . Is tied with Brandon for first place in the overall standings. . . . In Kamloops on Friday.
2. Victoria (5) will finish second and meet the division’s third-place team in the first round. . . . Won in Kelowna last night. . . . In Vancouver on Friday.
3. Prince George (5) is third, but lost in Kamloops last night and now is just two points ahead of the Blazers. . . . Will visit Tri-City on Friday.
4. Kamloops (5) beat visiting Prince George last night and now trails Cougars by two points. . . . Will meet Prince George three times in the next while — March 18 and 20 in Prince George, and March 21 in Kamloops. . . . The Blazers are tied with Tri-City (6) for the conference’s second wild-card berth. . . . At home to Kelowna on Friday.
5. Vancouver (5) has lost seven straight and is four points behind Kamloops and Tri-City. . . . Plays host to Victoria on Friday.
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U.S. DIVISION:
1. Everett (5) leads the division by two points over Portland (7) but Portland has a higher winning percentage — .654-.649. . . . Portland won big in Everett last night. . . . On the road to play Seattle on Friday.
2. Portland (7) is on a 9-0-2 roll and just two points out of first place. It has seven games left, three with Spokane. The first of those is in Spokane on Friday.
3. Seattle (6) trails Portland by 10 points. . . . At home to Everett on Friday.
4. Spokane (7) is in the first wild-card spot, seven points behind Seattle and nine ahead of Tri-City (6). . . . At home to Portland on Friday.
5. Tri-City (6) is tied with Kamloops for the second wild-card spot, four points ahead of Vancouver. . . . Entertains Prince George on Friday.
(NOTE: If two teams were to tie for a conference’s last playoff spot, those teams will have a play-in game at the home of the team with the most victories. So . . . if Kamloops and Tri-City were to end up tied for the second wild-card spot, a play-in game would be held. At the moment, Tri-City has more victories — 28-26.)
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IF THE WHL PLAYOFFS BEGAN TODAY:
Eastern ConferenceBrandon vs. Edmonton
Medicine Hat vs. Kootenay
Regina vs. Swift Current
Calgary vs. Red Deer
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Western Conference
Kelowna vs. Tri-City/Kamloops
Everett vs. Spokane
Victoria vs. Prince George
Portland vs. Seattle
(NOTE: Team with home-ice advantage shown first.)
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Swift Current, the Regina Pats scored three times in the third period and beat the Broncos, 4-1. . . . Regina F Jake Leschyshyn scored his second WHL goal at 17:22 of the first period. . . . Broncos F Jay Merkley got his 16th goal of the season at 18:49 of the first. . . . Regina F Pavel Padakin broke the tie with his 25th goal at 6:40 of the third. . . . The Pats then got insurance when F Jesse Gabrielle scored twice, at 6:50 and 12:16, the latter via the PP. . . . Gabrielle has 23 goals. . . . Regina D Connor Hobbs had two assists. . . . Regina G Daniel Wapple stopped 29 shots, six more than the Broncos’ Landon Bow. . . . Regina was 1-for-1 on the PP; Swift Current was 0-for-5. . . . The Broncos had GM/head coach Mark Lamb back on the bench after a two-game absence. He spent Friday night in hospital in Swift Current and missed a game in Moose Jaw. He was released from hospital on Saturday, but didn’t go to Brandon for a game that night against the Wheat Kings. . . . Regina F Braden Christoffer took a major and game misconduct for a hit from behind on F Carter Rigby at 8:01 of the first period. . . . The Pats were without freshman F Sam Steel, who suffered a leg injury in their previous game. . . . Regina (36-22-9) had lost its previous two games. . . . The Broncos (30-32-5) have lost seven straight. . . . 
In Red Deer, F Brooks Maxwell scored four times to lead the Rebels to a 6-4 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Rebels scored the game’s first two goals and the Blades were chasing all night. . . . F Scott Feser scored his 14th, via the PP, at 4:26 and Maxwell made it 2-0 with a shorthanded goal at 12:21. . . . Maxwell added his second goal at 17:51 on a PP, then got No. 3 at 4:10 of the third. He added his fourth goal, and 25th of the season, at 10:16. . . . Maxwell had never had a three-goal night in the WHL. . . . Feser finished with two goals, the second one shorthanded. . . . Red Deer F Riley Sheen had three assists, with D Nelson Nogier and F Wyatt Johnson each earning two. . . . The Blades made it close with two goals by F Cameron Hebig, who has 18, in the latter half of the third period. . . . F Ryan Graham had two assists for Saskatoon. . . . Red Deer was 2-for-3 on the PP; Saskatoon was 1-for-2 with two shorties against. . . . Red Deer G Rylan Toth stopped 26 shots, seven fewer than Saskatoon’s Nik Amundrud. . . . Red Deer had F Evan Polei back in the lineup. He last played on Jan. 24. . . . The Rebels (36-21-10) have won four in a row. . . . The Blades (19-45-4) have lost five straight. . . . 
In Kamloops, the Blazers broke a 3-3 tie with two goals late in the second period and went on to beat the Prince George Cougars, 7-4. . . . Former Cougars D Marc (Jimmy) McNulty snapped the 3-3 tie with his eighth goal at 18:52 of the second, and F Nick Chyzowski made it 5-3 with his fifth goal with 37.1 seconds left in the period. McNulty drew an assist on Chyzowski’s goal. . . . Cougars F Brad Morrison had scored his 22nd goal at 17:19 to get the visitors even. . . . Cougars F Chase Witala got his guys to within one with his 34th goal just 45 seconds into the third. . . . Kamloops F Jesse Zaharichuk restored the two-goal lead with his third goal at 15:15 and F Matt Revel hit the empty net at 18:04. . . . Kamloops F Cole Ully continued his terrific season with his 33rd goal and two assists. He’s got 87 points in 63 games. . . . Blazers F Matt Needham had two assists and was plus-4. . . . After a four-game absence, Kamloops F Deven Sideroff was back on the right wing alongside Needham and Ully. . . . Cougars D Tomas Andrlik scored his fourth goal and added two assists. . . . Kamloops was 1-for-2 on the PP; the Cougars were 0-for-6. . . . The Blazers (26-34-7) had lost their previous game. . . .The Cougars (28-34-5) had points in six straight (5-0-1). . . . 
In Everett, the Portland Winterhawks erased an early 1-0 deficit with six straight goals as they beat the Silvertips, 6-1. . . . Everett F Dawson Leedahl scored his 14th goal at 3:18 of the first period. . . . D Keoni Texeira tied it with his seventh at 8:29 and it was all Portland from there. . . . F Oliver Bjorkstrand broke the tie with his WHL-leading 53rd goal at 11:39. . . . D Adam Henry scored twice in the second period, giving him eight this season. . . . F Nic Petan added his 12th at 127:46 of the second. Petan’s previous 21 points all had been assists. He also had two assists in this one, giving him 68 helpers in 47 games. . . . Bjorkstrand later scored No. 54. He was playing in his 52nd game. . . . He also has 99 points, one off the lead in the scoring race. . . . Portland F Keegan Iverson and F Evan Weinger each had two assists. . . . When the season began, you may not have predicted that a game of this magnitude would feature two freshman goaltenders — Carter Hart for the Silvertips and Adin Hill for the Winterhawks. . . . Hill stopped 27 shots. Hart surrendered four goals on 23 shots before being replaced by Austin Lotz with Portland ahead 4-1 at 12:04 of the second. . . . Portland was 1-for-5 on the PP; Everett was 0-for-3. . . . Portland (40-20-5) is 9-0-2 in its last 11 outings. . . . Everett (40-20-7) had won its previous three games. . . . Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald has a game story right here. . . . 
In Kelowna, F Tyler Soy score three times to lead the Victoria Royals to a 6-3 victory over the Rockets. . . . It was the first time this season that the Rockets had given up as many as six goals in one game. . . . Soy, who has 27 goals, broke a 2-2 tie at 14:29 of the second period. He scored again at 1:36 of the third, on a PP, for a 4-2 lead and completed his second hat trick of the season at 16:29 of the third period with the game’s final goal. . . . D Joe Hicketts, F Jack Walker and F Greg Chase each had two assists for Victoria. . . . F Nick Merkley scored twice for the Rockets, giving him 20 this season. . . . Victoria was 2-for-2 on the PP; the Rockets were 0-for-3. . . . Victoria G Coleman Vollrath stopped 44 shots, 24 more than Kelowna’s Jackson Whistle. . . . The Rockets again were without F Rourke Chartier and D Josh Morrissey. Also missing were F Justin Kirkland and F Gage Quinney. . . . Former Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma was on the ice with the Rockets on Tuesday. He and Rockets head coach Dan Lambert are friends. They both were selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the NHL’s 1989 draft and later played together with the IHL’s Long Beach Ice Dogs. . . . The Royals (36-27-4) have won two straight. . . . The Rockets (50-12-5) were 2-0-1 in their last three games.———
THURSDAY’S GAMES
No Games Scheduled———
FRIDAY’S GAMES
(all times local)Saskatoon at Brandon, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Regina at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Medicine Hat vs. Kootenay, at Cranbrook, 7 p.m.
Swift Current at Prince Albert, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Kelowna at Kamloops, 7 p.m.
Prince George vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Portland at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Victoria at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
Everett vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.
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Guessing Oliver Bjorkstrand's play is making Bruce Hamilton/Ron Robison wishing they took our import picks instead of 1st rd draft picks.
— Fake Mike Johnston (@FakeMikeJ) March 12, 2015
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In Prince Albert, F Austin Glover scored two goals to lead the Raiders to a 5-2 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . On Feb. 20, the Raiders beat the Wheat Kings, 6-4. These are Brandon’s only two regulation-time losses in its last 23 games. . . . The Raiders took control with three goals in the first period, with F Sean Montgomery getting his sixth goal at 6:34 and Glover, who has 15 goals, scoring at 11:13 and 14:39. . . . F Reid Gardner and F Simon Stransky each had two assists for the Raiders, who got a goal and an assist from each of F Craig Leverton and F Jordan Tkatch. Leverton has 18 goals; Tkatch has nine. . . . Brandon F Tim McGauley scored his 39th goal and added an assist as he ran his point streak to 21 games. He’s got 44 points, including 14 goals, during that run, the longest in the WHL this season. . . . With 94 points, McGauley is five off the pace being set by Medicine Hat Tigers F Trevor Cox. . . . F Morgan Klimchuk had two assists for Brandon, with F Peter Quenneville scoring his 24th goal and adding an assist. . . . Raiders G Nick McBride stopped 22 shots, six fewer than Brandon’s Jordan Papirny, who was looking for his 40th victory. . . . The Raiders (26-35-3) have won two in a row. . . . Brandon (47-11-7) had points in its previous five games (4-0-1). . . .
In Moose Jaw, the Warriors scored the game’s first three goals and went on to beat the Swift Current Broncos, 3-2. . . . The Broncos were without GM/head coach Mark Lamb, who spent the night in hospital in Swift Current. In his absence, associate coach Josh Dixon ran things. . . . F Brayden Point got the home side on the scoreboard with his 31st goal at 10:15 of the first period. . . . F Blake Bargar made it 2-0 with his first career WHL goal at 2:21 of the second. . . . F Brett Howden stretched it to 3-0 with No. 17 at 9:00 of the second, on a PP. . . . The Broncos got back in it on goals by F Carter Rigby, his 17th, at 14:59 of the second and F Colby Cave, his 29th, at 18:51 of the third. . . . Point also had an assist, while F Jack Rodewald had two. . . . Rigby added an assist, too. . . . Warriors G Zach Sawchenko turned aside 37 shots, while Swift Current’s Landon Bow stopped 25. . . . The Warriors were 1-for-3 on the PP; the Broncos were 0-for-2. . . . Moose Jaw D Tyler Brown was back after sitting out three games with an undisclosed injury. . . . The Warriors (28-32-5) have won two straight. . . . The Broncos (30-30-5) have lost five in a row. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has a game story 
In Prince George, the Cougars erased a 2-1 deficit with three third-period goals and beat the Victoria Royals, 4-3. . . . F Jari Erricson of the Cougars tied the score 2-2 at 5:08 of the third with his 22nd goal. . . . F Brad Morrison put the home side ahead with his 21st goal at 8:35 and F Kody McDonald added insurance with his seventh goal at 15:22. . . . Victoria F Greg Chase scored his 20th goal, on a PP, at 16:03. . . . Erricson also had one assist. . . . D Jack Walker drew two assists for the Royals, while Chase had an assist. F Alex Forsberg scored No. 25 and also had an assist. . . . Cougars G Ty Edmonds stopped 34 shots, one more than Justin Paulic of the Royals. . . . Victoria was 3-for-6 on the PP; Prince George was 1-for-4. . . . The Cougars (28-33-4) have won five in a row. . . . The Royals (34-27-4) have lost two straight. . . . 
In Kennewick, Wash., G Carter Hart stopped 21 shots as the Everett Silvertips beat the Tri-City Americans, 1-0. . . . It was Hart’s fourth shutout in his freshman season. . . . F Remi Laurencelle scored the game’s only goal, his 19th, at 15:02 of the first period. . . . Tri-City G Eric Comrie returned from the injury list to make 30 saves. It was his first appearance since Feb. 20 when the Americans beat Everett 2-1 in a shootout. . . . Everett had a 17-5 edge in second-period shots. . . . The Silvertips were 0-for-3 on the PP; the Americans were 0-for-1. . . . Everett F Carson Stadnyk went to the dressing room with an apparent injury to his right shoulder. . . . The Silvertips (39-19-7) have won two in a row. . . . The Americans are 28-34-3. . . . 
In Vancouver, F Tyrell Goulborne scored three times and added an assist as the Kelowna Rockets beat the Giants, 5-2. . . . All of the goals were scored in the third period. . . . Goulbourne, who has 20 goals, signed a three-year deal with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers earlier in the week. . . . He opened the scoring at 2:57 of the first, got his second, shorthanded, at 9:056 of the third and closed the scoring with an empty-netter at 19:50. . . . It was Goulbourne’s second third-goal game this season. . . . Vancouver F Thomas Foster tied it with his 11th goal, shorthanded, at 4:36. . . . Vancouver F Zane Jones was given a boarding major and game misconduct at 4:01 of the third period for a hit on Kelowna D Devante Stephens. Stephens needed help getting back to the Kelowna bench. He did return to action. . . . The game was 1-1 at that point. The Rockets then took control with two PP goals. . . . D Riley Stadel broke the tie with his 10th goal, via a PP, at 6:05. . . . F Leon Draisaitl made it 3-1 as he ran his goal streak to seven games — and his point streak to 10 games — with his 16th goal at 8:40. . . . F Jackson Houck scored his 21st goal and added an assist for the Giants. . . . Kelowna G Michael Herringer stopped 25 shots. . . . Vancouver F Jakob Stukel failed on a first-period penalty shot. . . . Kelowna F Rourke Chartier was expected back in the lineup — his name appears on the online scoresheet — but he was a late scratch. He hasn’t played since Feb. 21. . . . Kelowna F Gage Quinney left in the first period after absorbing a hit from Vancouver D Dmitry Osipov. Quinney didn’t return. . . . The Rockets (49-11-5) are 1-1-1 in their last three. . . . The Giants (26-36-3), who had been blanked in each of their last two games, have lost five in a row. . . . Larry Fisher of the Kelowna Daily Courier has a game story 
In Brandon, F Peter Quenneville broke a 1-1 tie with goals 1:25 apart and the Wheat Kings went on to a 7-3 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Quenneville finished with three goals, giving him 23, and an assist. He scored at 3:13 and 4:38, the latter on a PP, of the second period as the Wheat Kings broke the 1-1 tie and took control. . . . Brandon scored six times in the second period when it had a 26-5 edge in shots. . . . Wheat Kings F Tim McGauley ran his points streak to 20 games with his 38th goal and two assists. McGauley has 42 points, including 13 goals, in the 20 games. It’s the longest point streak in the WHL this season. . . . Brandon D Eric Roy had three assists, while F Morgan Klimchuk had two. Brandon forwards Tyler Coulter, Braylon Shmyr and Duncan Campbell each had a goal and an assist. Coulter has 15 goals, Shmyr has 16 and Campbell has 11. . . . F Brayden Burke scored twice and added an assist for Lethbridge, giving him eight goals, while F Tyler Wong got his 24th goal and also had an assist. . . . Brandon G Alex Moodie made his first start since Jan. 30 and stopped 24 shots. While he recovered from a suspected concussion, G Jordan Papirny made 13 straight starts. . . . Brandon F Quintin Lisoway left in the first period with an apparent leg injury. According to Bruce Luebke, the Wheat Kings’ radio voice: “Early indications are a knee injury that could sideline Lisoway for a while.” . . . The Wheat Kings (47-10-7) are 4-0-1 in their last five games. They also have gone over 100 points. . . . The Hurricanes (19-36-8) are 1-1-1 in their last three outings. . . .
In Moose Jaw, G Zach Sawchenko turned aside 33 shots to lead the Warriors to a 3-0 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Sawchenko, 17, has four career shutouts, all of them this season. . . . F Jayden Halbgewachs’ third goal of the season, at 2:53 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . F Brayden Point scored his 30th goal at 19:28 of the first period and added an assist. . . . The Warriors welcomed back F Axel Blomqvist (groin) from a three-game absence and he scored his 23rd goal. . . . Moose again was without D Tyler Brown, F Jaimen Yakubowski and F Tanner Eberle. . . . The Warriors improved to (27-32-5). . . . The Tigers (40-22-3) had won their previous three games. . . . 
In Saskatoon, the Edmonton Oil Kings scored the game’s first two goals en route to a 5-2 victory over the Blades. . . . Edmonton F Brandon Baddock scored his 16th goal, on a PP, at 5:56 of the first period and F Mads Eller got No. 6 at 11:08. . . . The Blades got into it in the second period and trailed 3-2 going to the third. . . . F Mason McCarty, with his sixth, and D Kolton Dixon, with his third, sandwiched Edmonton F Brayden Brown’s fourth goal. . . . Oil Kings F Lane Bauer scored his 22nd goal at 9:24 of the third and D Ben Carroll got an empty-netter at 18:50. He’s got seven goals. . . . Edmonton G Patrick Dea stopped 21 shots, 10 fewer than Saskatoon’s Nik Amundrud. . . . F Andrew Koep had two assists for Edmonton. . . . The Oil Kings (30-28-7) have points in four straight (4-0-1). . . . The Blades are 19-41-4. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has a game story 
In Kennewick, Wash., G Evan Sarthou came off the injury list to stop 33 shots and lead the Americans to a 3-0 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . Sarthou hadn’t played since Jan. 25 and was shown as being out week-to-week on Tuesday’s WHL injury report. He now has seven shutouts this season, with five of them coming in his last seven starts. . . . He is tied for the WHL lead in shutouts, with Landon Bow of the Swift Current Broncos. . . . F Lucas Nickles’ 22nd goal, coming at 2:02 of the third period on a PP, was the winner. . . . F Tyler Sandhu got his 14th goal and added an assist, and F Richard Nejezchleb scored No. 17 in to an empty net. . . . G Beck Warm, 15, who had started Tri-City’s previous game was on the bench in support of Sarthou. . . . Giants G Payton Lee stopped 27 shots. . . . Tri-City was 1-for-5 on the PP; Vancouver was 0-for-5. . . . Vancouver D Shaun Dosanjh, who had been out since Dec. 30, played in his second game in as many nights. . . . The Giants have been blanked in two straight games. . . . On Wednesday morning, after the Giants were beaten 7-0 by the Chiefs in Spokane the previous night, Vancouver GM Scott Bonner told News 1130 Sports: “We were out-worked, out-classed, out-everything . . . no push back, it’s unacceptable.” . . . The Americans (28-33-3) snapped a four-game losing skid. . . . The Giants (26-35-3) have lost four straight.
In Regina, D Ty Stanton scored two second-period goals and the Medicine Hat Tigers went on to a 2-1 victory over the Pats. . . . Stanton, who has nine goals, scored at 2:13 and 8:31. . . . Regina F Ty Cooper got his 24th goal at 18:31 of the third period. . . . Medicine Hat G Marek Langhamer stopped 27 shots, 11 fewer than Regina’s Daniel Wapple. . . . Medicine Hat was 0-for-7 on the PP; the Pats were 0-for-4. . . . The Tigers (38-21-3) had lost their previous three games. They are second in the Central Division, two points behind Calgary. . . . The Pats (33-20-8) had been 3-0-1 in their last four. They will finish second in the East Division. . . . 
In Brandon, the Kootenay Ice outscored the Wheat Kings 2-1 in the shootout to post a 3-2 victory. . . . It was the Ice’s third straight shootout game. It has won two of those games. . . . F Rihards Bukarts gave Brandon a 1-0 lead in the second round of the shootout. Ice F Matt Alfaro tied it in the third round and F Jaedon Descheneau won it in the fourth round. . . . The loser point, combined with a Regina loss at home, allowed Brandon to clinch first place in the East Division. . . . Ice F Sam Reinhart opened the scoring with his 17th goal, on a PP, at 8:14 of the second period. . . . Brandon F Morgan Klimchuk tied it with his 22nd at 19:22. . . . Alfaro got his 10th at 10:42 of the third for a 2-1 Ice lead. . . . Bukharts forced OT with his 28th goal at 16:33. . . . Brandon F Tim McGauley picked up an assist on Bukarts’ goal to run his point streak to 18 games. He’s got 37 points, 25 of them assists, over that stretch. . . . The Ice was 1-for-4 on the PP; Brandon was 0-for-1. . . . Brandon G Jordan Papirny, making his 12th straight start, stopped 35 shots. . . . Ice G Wyatt Hoflin turned aside 32. . . . The Wheat Kings had G Alex Moodie back on the bench. He missed 11 games with a concussion. . . . Brandon still is without F Nolan Patrick, F Reid Duke and D Kale Clague with undisclosed injuries. . . . The Ice (33-27-3) has points in seven straight (5-0-2). It holds the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot, seven points ahead of Edmonton. At the same time, the Ice is fourth in the Central Division, four points behind Red Deer. . . . Brandon (45-10-7) had won its previous two games. It is three points behind Kelowna, which leads the overall standings. . . . 
In Kennewick, Wash., G Garret Hughson stopped 28 saves for his first shutout of the season as the Spokane Chiefs beat the Tri-City Americans, 4-0. . . . Hughson has three career shutouts. . . . D Jason Fram had three assists. . . . F Jackson Playfair’s 10th goal, at 13:11 of the first period, on a PP, stood up as the winner. . . . F Adam Helewka scored his 33rd goal in the second period; he also had an assist. . . . Tri-City F Austyn Playfair wasn’t able to beat Hughson on a third-period penalty shot. . . . Spokane was 2-for-5 on the PP; Tri-City was 0-for-5. . . . Americans G Nick Sanders stopped 21 shots. . . . Tri-City had D Brandon Carlo back in the lineup. He sat out a few games after taking a puck to the head. . . . The Chiefs (29-27-4) have won two straight. They hold the Western Conference’s first wild-card spot, five points up on the Americans. . . . The Americans (27-32-3) have lost three in a row. . . . 
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