Showing posts with label Cal Babych. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cal Babych. Show all posts

Monday, April 3, 2017

'Tips oust Royals after marathon game ... Rockets finish off Blazers ... 'Canes Rebels going 7

Scattershoot


The Everett Silvertips and host Victoria Royals played the longest game in CHL history on Sunday.
The game, which began at 2 p.m. PT, ended near 8 p.m., when F Cal Babych scored his second goal of the game at 11:36 of the fifth OT period, giving Everett a 3-2 victory.
As an aside, Mike Benton, Everett’s play-by-play man, reported that the Silvertips weren’t able to make the night’s last ferry sailing, so ended up spending the night in Victoria. Something tells me, they didn’t mind.
The teams played 151minutes 36 seconds in breaking records for the longest game in WHL history and then the longest game in CHL history.
The longest game in CHL history going into Sunday? On March 19, 1999, the Victoriaville Tigres and Hull Olympiques went 146:31. Hull F Brock Boucher won that one, 3-2.
Going into Sunday, the longest game in WHL history was played in Cranbrook, B.C., on March 25, 2003, with the Kootenay Ice getting past the Kamloops Blazers, 3-2, in 136:56. F Colin Sinclair scored the winning goal.
No. 3 on the list was on April 10, 2009, when the visiting Spokane Chiefs beat the Vancouver Giants, 3-2, in 126:05. F Blake Gal got the winner in that one.
The fourth-longest game was played in Regina on March 21, 1996, with the Pats beating the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 3-2, in 122:46. Regina F Josh Holden won that one.
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Also on Sunday night, the junior B Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League championship was decided in the fourth OT period of Game 7 as the visiting Campbell River Storm beat the Victoria Cougars, 4-3. F Christian Brandt scored the winner at 4:48 of the fourth OT period.
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The Sunday game in Kamloops was to have started at 7 p.m. However, earlier in the day the weather turned nasty on the Coquihalla Highway, the main connection between Kamloops and the Lower Mainland. There were ugly conditions, a couple of accidents, one involving a fatality, and the highway was closed. Three on-ice officials who were to have worked the game between the Blazers and Kelowna Rockets were trapped by the closure. In the end, game time was delayed by an hour as everyone awaited the arrival of backup officials. . . . Of the assigned officials, only referee Derek Zalaski made it. Mike Langin, who is from Kelowna, came in to fill for Jeff Ingram. Linesmen Riley Balson of Kamloops and Dustin Minty of Summerland, B.C., were called in to replace Ron Dietterle and Michael McGowan. . . . Ingram, Dietterle and McGowan all were caught on the Coquihalla when it was shut down. . . . In the end, the game began shortly after 8 p.m.
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The Red Deer Rebels went into Game 6 of their first-round series with the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Sunday having held the lead for a total of 10 minutes three seconds over the first five games. Still, the Rebels had won three of those games. That proves once again that it only matters who’s ahead at the final buzzer. . . . The Hurricanes forced Game 7 with a 4-1 victory in Red Deer. The winner of Tuesday’s game will advance to play the Medicine Hat Tigers, who swept the Brandon Wheat Kings.
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The Rebels may be missing one of their top forwards for Game 7. Evan Polei was ejected from Sunday’s game at 10:40 of the third period after taking a headshot major and game misconduct for a hit on F Tanner Nagel. Nagel needed help getting off the ice and went directly to the dressing room. . . . Polei has three goals and six assists in the series.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
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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If you watched the San Francisco Giants and host Arizona Diamondbacks on Opening Day, you know why baseball can be such a terrific game. . . . It’s 12:30 a.m., and I am watching the visiting Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals on the PVR. Somehow I don’t think I’ll see the end of this one, at least not until later in the day.
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Is there a sport/league available on TV today that doesn’t have issues with video review? . . . Both NCAA Final Four men’s basketball games on Saturday were impeded by lengthy reviews, which serve mostly to provide coaches with more timeouts. . . . The first video review of the MLB season came in the game between San Francisco and Arizona, and it surely looked as though New York got it wrong. . . . The video review that took a goal away from the Kamloops Blazers last night was interesting, because when the replay was shown on the big screen on the score clock a lot of people, like more than 4,000 fans, surely thought it was inconclusive.
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It is going to be interesting to watch things play out between the City of Calgary and the NHL’s Flames, who want a new arena but don’t want to pay for it. . . . Murray Edwards and Clayton Riddell, two of the Flames’ six owners, are billionaires, something of which the city’s taxpayers certainly are aware.
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 Even if you don’t have a dog in the hunt, you have to be pulling for F Reese Johnson of the Red Deer Rebels. He returned to the Rebels’ lineup in Game 5 of their series with the Lethbridge Hurricanes after
REESE JOHNSON
not having played since the exhibition season.
Johnson, 18, is a list player from Saskatoon. He played in 12 games with the Rebels in 2014-15, but then missed half of 2015-16 after having surgery on his left shoulder. He was all geared up for this season, until he injured his right should during an exhibition game and ended up having more surgery.
He has been skating since late January and finally got back into the lineup on Saturday night. On Sunday, he was on a top line with Michael Spacek and Brandon Hagel.
“He’s been fine. There’s nothing fancy in his game, nothing spectacular, but he’s been steady,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner, GM and head coach, told Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com. “When you really think about it, he’s been out of hockey for probably about 15 months, he hadn’t played a regular-season or playoff game in that time. It’s good to get him back in the lineup and put him in a situation where he can get going. When the bottom half of your lineup is not producing offensively you might as well change things up. He’s handled it well.”
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F Patrick D’Amico, who played three seasons (2012-15) with the Regina Pats, has committed to attend the U of Regina and play for the Cougars next season. D’Amico, a 22-year-old native of Winnipeg, played the past two seasons in the ECHL, seeing time with the Colorado Eagles, Atlanta Gladiators and Indy Fuel. . . . D’Amico had 75 points, including 27 goals, in 160 WHL games. In the ECHL, he put up 40 points, 21 of them goals, in 105 games.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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SUNDAY GAMES:


At Red Deer, the Lethbridge Hurricanes forced a Game 7 in their first-round series with a 4-1 victory over
STUART SKINNER
the Rebels. . . . They’ll play Game 7 in Lethbridge on Tuesday night. . . . F Michael Spacek (4) gave Red Deer a 1-0 lead at 19:04 of the first period. . . . The Hurricanes scored the game’s other four goals. . . . F Ryan Vandervlis (2) tied the score at 13:51 of the second period. . . . F Alec Baer (2) put the Hurricanes out front at 17:13. . . . F Tyler Wong (5) added insurance with a PP goal just 23 seconds into the third period. . . . Lethbridge F Jadon Joseph (1) got the empty-netter at 18:21. . . . F Egor Babenko had two assists for the winners. . . . The Hurricanes got 33 saves from G Stuart Skinner, while Riley Lamb stopped 31 for the Rebels. . . . Lethbridge was 1-5 on the PP; Red Deer was 0-2. . . . Red Deer F Evan Polei left at 10:40 of the third period with a headshot major and game misconduct for a hit on F Tanner Nagel. . . . Nagel needed help getting off the ice and went directly to the dressing room. . . . The Rebels had F Lane Zablocki back after he served a one-game WHL suspension. . . . Announced attendance: 4,070.
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At Kamloops, F Reid Gardner scored three times to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 4-2 victory over the Blazers. . . . The Rockets won the first-round series, 4-2, and will face the winner of the series between
REID GARDINER
the Prince George Cougars and Portland Winterhawks in the second round. . . . A year ago, the Rockets beat the Blazers in seven games in a first-round series. . . . Last night, F Dillon Dube (4) gave the Rockets a 1-0 lead at 11:57 of the first period, with Gardiner, on a PP, making it 2-0 at 5:36. . . . The Blazers thought they had moved to within a goal at 10:18 of the third period when F Deven Sideroff, parked in front of the Kelowna crease, got his stick on a point shot and the puck ended up behind G Michael Herringer. However, the goal was disallowed on video review, with the ruling being that Sideroff’s stick made contact with the puck above the cross-bar. . . . Sideroff has yet to score in 13 career playoff games, all against Kelowna. . . . The Rockets appeared headed for victory when the Blazers tied the score with two late third-period goals. . . . F Collin Shirley (2) cut the home team’s deficit in half at 16:49. Just 57 seconds later, F Brodi Stuart scored his first playoff goal on a rebound to tie the score. . . . However, Gardiner cruised in off the right wing, took a pass from F Nick Merkley and beat G Connor Ingram high to the glove side only 17 seconds later. . . . Gardiner completed his hat trick with an empty-netter, for his fifth goal of the series, at 19:37. . . . Merkley and D Cal Foote each had two assists, while Dube added one to his goal. . . . Herringer finished with 21 saves, 10 fewer than Ingram. . . . For the series, Herringer wound up 2.00, .928, while Ingram was 2.18, .946. . . . Kelowna went 1-2 on the PP, to finish the series 4-21. . . . When the Blazers are looking for reasons for the series setback, they need look no further than their PP. It was 0-4 on Sunday and finished 1-32 in the six games. . . . “Our power-play got outworked,” Kamloops head coach Don Hay said, adding that Kelowna’s penalty-killers “blocked a lot” of shots. . . . Announced attendance: 4,144.
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At Victoria, F Cal Babych scored on a breakaway in the fifth OT to give the Everett Silvertips a 3-2 victory over the Royals. . . . The Silvertips, who won Game 5, 3-2 in OT on Friday at home, won the series, 4-2,
CAL BABYCH
and will open the second round at home against the Seattle Thunderbirds on Friday. . . . The son of former WHL/NHL D Dave Babych, Cal, who turned 20 on Jan. 18, spent most of this season with the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express. In 12 regular-season games with Everett, he had two goals and two assists. He got into three early-season games with the Vancouver Giants. . . . Babych also scored the game’s first goal, his first of the playoffs, at 6:31 of the second period. . . . The Royals took a 2-1 lead on second-period goals from F Regan Nagy (2), at 7:42, and F Jared Dmytriw (2), on a PP, at 16:44. . . . D Noah Juulsen pulled the Silvertips into a 2-2 tie with his first goal at 1:36 of the third period. . . . Everett G Carter Hart stopped 64 shots, eight fewer than Victoria’s Griffen Outhouse. . . . Hart finished the season at 1.58 and .938, while Outhouse was 2.10 and .923. . . . Victoria was 1-4 on the PP; Everett was 0-4. . . . According to the Royals, two of their defencemen — Ryan Gagnon and Chaz Reddekopp — each played 74 minutes. . . . The Royals again were without F Jack Walker and D Scott Walford, while F Ethan Price missed his second straight game. . . . Everett remains without F Devon Skoleski. . . . Announced attendance: 4,613.
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MONDAY GAMES (all times local):

Prince George at Portland, 7 p.m. (Portland leads, 3-2)
Swift Current at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 3-3)
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TUESDAY GAMES (all times local):

Red Deer at Lethbridge, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 3-3)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 12:46 AM
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Thursday, February 2, 2017

Hmm, Las Vegas or Nanaimo? ... Chiefs sign coach to extension ... Former SJHL coach dies at 49

Scattershoot

 Scattershooting, after watching Patrick Marleau score No. 500. . . . 

The WHL pooh-bahs are flocking to Las Vegas this weekend for their semi-annual meeting, once again thumbing their noses at the cities that are inhabited by their franchises. Why not go to Prince Albert or Swift Current or Cranbrook or Brandon or . . . 
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Or, hey, why not take the semi-annual show into Nanaimo and give the fans there a taste of the league while throwing around some cash? After all, the WHL is hoping that taxpayers there will build them an $80-million arena that would be home to the transplanted Kootenay Ice. 
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On the subject of the Ice, F Adam Cracknell, who played with it from 2002-06, has written a letter to the Kootenay Advertiser, pleading with fans to support the team so that it doesn’t leave Cranbrook. “If we can keep the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook, we all win,” writes the Dallas Stars forward, who makes his offseason home in Cranbrook. “Without it, our town stands way more to lose than just the team. Supporting the Ice means supporting Cranbrook, and that’s good for everyone. Don’t just sit back and let them go. Get your friends and family together and get out to a game.” . . . The complete letter is right here.
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Last summer, Ken Hitchcock, the head coach of the St. Louis Blues and a sure-fire Hall of Famer, said this would be his final season as an NHL head coach. Hitchcock was fired on Wednesday, victimized by poor goaltending as much as anything. You have to think that Hitchcock isn’t going to want a firing to be his final chapter. Hello, Vegas Golden Knights. . . . 
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These are tough times for some Kamloops Blazers legends. Ken Hitchcock, who holds the franchise record for regular-season victories by a head coach, has been fired. Meanwhile, F Shane Doan (Arizona Coyotes) and F Jarome Iginla (Colorado Avalanche), both of whom own chunks of the Blazers, aren’t going to see the NHL playoffs unless they get traded. Both have let it be known that, yes, a change of scenery would be OK.
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Asked on Wednesday for his take on the temporary travel ban placed on some refugees by the U.S. government, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell bailed, saying: “As commissioner of the NFL, I’m singularly focused on the Super Bowl right now.” . . . Italian poet Dante Alighieri, who died in 1321, is credited with having said: “The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.”
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Bill Belichick, the head coach of the New England Patriots, will get the seat to Goodell’s right. When Belichick was asked about those refugee-related goings-on, he responded: “I’m focused on the Atlanta Falcons.” . . . He was asked a second time. The reply: “I’m focused on Atlanta.”
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Brent Sutter, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Red Deer Rebels, has said that he is doing to take a look at a lot of things as he ponders a number of serious, long-term injuries that have hit his club over the past two seasons. Will the WHL schedule be one of them? Yes, that same schedule that too many times has teams playing three games in fewer than 48 hours or four games in five nights.
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We are into February and the WHL’s 2016-17 Official Guide and Record Book still isn’t available for download. Wouldn’t it be nice if the WHL put an explanation up on its website, something that let its fan know what has gone wrong and when/if the Guide might be available?
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Howard Tsumura provided top-notch coverage of high school and university sports for the Vancouver Province until Postmedia let him walk earlier this week. A couple of days later, Tsumura announced a new sponsored website (varsityletters.ca) that will be a one-stop shop for all of his coverage. So now those interested in B.C.’s high school and university athletic scenes don’t have to bother with a newspaper or its website. 
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F Kevin Sundher (Chilliwack/Victoria, Brandon, 2007-12) has signed a contract with Olomouc (Czech Republic, Extraliga) for the rest of this season. He had five goals and 12 assists in 23 games with the Reading Royals (ECHL) this season before requesting his release.
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On Wednesday, Jesse Geleynse of the Everett Herald tweeted that Kevin Constantine, the Everett Silvertips’ head coach, had said that he doubted any team had been scheduled to play seven games in nine days “in the history of the league.”
The Silvertips, of course, are into one such stretch.
On Thursday, we learned otherwise.
The MacBeth Report flashed back about 30 years with this:
“Constantine's claim that no one has ever done seven games in nine nights is incorrect. When I was with the Victoria Cougars in the 1980s, we always did our eastern swing — back when you played every team in the other conference twice — as eight games in 10 nights in eight different cities. We played Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday.”
You knew that TBird Tidbits would do some research, too. That’s what happened and it resulted in this tweet: “I'm assuming some sarcasm but it has happened before. Most recently for TBirds was Feb 9-17, 2008.(Actually happened 2x that season.)”
The Silvertips finish the 7-in-9 stretch on Saturday when they entertain the Vancouver Giants.
Everett then heads out for its East Division tour when it will play six times in nine days.
When it meets the Broncos in Swift Current on Feb. 18, Everett will have played 13 games in 23 days.
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The Spokane Chiefs have signed assistant coach Scott Burt to a contract extension that runs through the end of next season. Burt, 39, is in his fourth season on the Chiefs’ coaching staff. He joined the Chiefs after spending two seasons as an assistant coach with the ECHL’s Alaska Aces. From Mackenzie, B.C., Burt played four seasons in the WHL, making stops with the Seattle Thunderbirds, Swift Current Broncos, Edmonton Ice and Red Deer Rebels.
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The Everett Silvertips made a couple of roster moves on Thursday. . . . They returned F Cal Babych, 20, to the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express, while F Dawson Butt, 16, has gone back to the U-16 Everett Jr. Silvertips. . . . Both players got into two games with the Silvertips and were pointless.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
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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Coaching

Lee Odelein, from Quill Lake, Sask., was a brother to Lyle and Selmar Odelein, both of whom played in the WHL. Lee was the head coach of the Yorkton Terriers from 1993-98. . . . He was the owner/manager of a bar named Rehab in Honduras. . . . Selmar played three seasons (1983-86) with the Regina Pats; Lyle spent three seasons (1985-88) with the Moose Jaw Warriors.
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THURSDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Edmonton at Brandon, 7:30 p.m.
Portland at Everett, 7:35 p.m.
Moose Jaw vs. Kootenay, at Cranbrook, B.C., 7 p.m.
Red Deer at Prince Albert, 7 p.m.
Kelowna at Prince George, 7 p.m.
Regina at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Medicine Hat at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Kamloops vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.
Calgary vs. Vancouver, at Langley, B.C., 7:30 p.m.

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:00 PM
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Sunday, January 29, 2017

Gervais shows improvement ... Milestones for Daum, Thibodeau ... Four-spots for Duke, Soy


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BREVIN GERVAIS
There was some good news on Sunday from the bedside of Brevin Gervais, the 17-year-old defenceman from the junior B 100 Mile House Wranglers, who underwent emergency surgery for a brain aneurysm in Kamloops on Friday.
Mateo Albinati, who started the gofundme site with proceeds to Brevin’s family, posted that “Brevin has slowly begun breathing on his own. Although it is minimal, it is a step in the right direction, and he now has opened his eyes on command and squeezed hands. His blood pressure has increased, which also is a very good sign.”
Friends and folks in the hockey community responded in such a fashion that Albinati shut down the gofundme site on Sunday evening, by which time donations had totalled $20,350. His original goal was $16,000.
Well done and thank you! Please keep Brevin and his family in your thoughts and prayers as this chapter of their lives has just begun.
A native of Prince George, Brevin was a fourth-round selection by the Calgary Hitmen in the 2015 bantam draft.
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The Everett Silvertips have added F Cal Babych, who turned 20 on Jan. 18, to their roster. While he was listed earlier this season by Everett, he had been with the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express. Everett will be Babych’s fifth WHL stop. He split 152 career games between the Calgary Hitmen, Prince George Cougars, Prince Albert Raiders and Vancouver Giants, putting up 35 points, including 15 goals. With the Express, he had seven goals and 21 assists in 33 games. . . . He made his Everett debut in Sunday’s 5-1 loss to the visiting Kamloops Blazers.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
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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Concussion Report

 When Mary Lois Nittmo went looking for the ex-husband who ran out on her and their four children 12 years ago, Tim Graham of the Buffalo News accompanied her. They found Bjorn Nittmo, a Swede who is a former NFL and CFL kicker, but what they discovered wasn’t pretty. . . . Graham’s story is right here.
Meanwhile, in Houston, the site of Sunday’s Super Bowl game, a news conference is to be held today by a support group that calls itself Faces of CTE. In attendance will be co-founders Cyndy Feaser and Kimberly Archie. Feaser, whose ex-husband Grant Feasel was an offensive lineman who was diagnosed with Stage 3 CTE after his death, has written the book After the Cheering Stops: An NFL Wife’s Story of Concussions, Loss and the Faith That Saw Her Through.
Archie’s son Paul was 24 when he died from the effects of CTE caused by playing football.
The brain bank at Boston University has confirmed CTE in the brains of 91 of 95 deceased NFLers. Dr. Ann McKee, who has been in the forefront of all of this, admits she has stopped watching NFL games despite having been an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers.
“I, for one, don’t watch football anymore because I can’t,” she told Jeff Caplan of the Kansas City Star. “I can no longer sort of reconcile what I’m seeing at my work and watching the game on television. It’s been a long road, and it’s depressing. It’s very depressing.” . . . Caplan’s complete story is right here. Yes, it’s depressing.
Meanwhile, in the world of hockey, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman continues to deny a link between repeated blows to the head and CTE.
And in the WHL the powers-that-be continue to allow teenagers to punch each other in the face with no apparent thought given to the consequences.
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JUST NOTES:

A note from a reader informs us that the Red Deer Rebels had some special moments on Saturday night as they honoured three people who have been with them for 25 years, or since Day 1.
Judy Seher, the Rebels’ billet co-ordinator, and off-ice officials Carl Purves and Jim Hollman were saluted at centre ice prior to the game. They were presented with 25-year watches . . . first-class people honoured by a solid organization.
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Coaching

 Rob Daum of EHC Linz has become the winningest head coach in Austria’s Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL). Daum put up victory No. 235 on Sunday, as the Black Wings beat the visiting Vienna Capitals, 5-3, allowing him to move out of a tie with Pierre Pagé. Daum, in his sixth season with EHC Linz, is a former WHL coach, having worked with the Prince Albert Raiders, Swift Current Broncos and Lethbridge Hurricanes (1989-95).
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Gord Thibodeau, the head coach of the Whitecourt Wolverines, has tied the AJHL record for most regular-season coaching victories. When the Wolverines beat the host Bonnyville Pontiacs, 4-3, on Sunday, it gave Thibodeau 832 victories, tying him with Don Phelps, the long-time (1979-2011) head coach of the Calgary Canucks. . . . Thibodeau has been an AJHL head coach since 1997 and also has worked with the Lloydminster Blazers, St. Albert Saints, Fort McMurray Oil Barons and Lloydminster Bobcats. He is in his first season with the Wolverines.
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The AJHL’s Drumheller Dragons fired general manager and head coach Brian Curran on Sunday. He was in the fifth year of a contract that was to expire after this season. A former AJHL coach of the year, Curran took the Dragons to the South Division championship in 2013-14. . . . Assistant coach Darryl Olsen has stepped in as interim head coach. . . . The Dragons (20-23-4) are sixth in the six-team South Division, 11 points out of fifth.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:

At Calgary, F Reid Duke scored four times to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 6-1 victory over the Hitmen. . . . Duke, a Calgarian who has 30 goals, scored the game’s first three goals, recording his fifth
REID DUKE
career hat trick and his second against the Hitmen this season. . . . He scored at 2:55 and 8:23 of the first period, 11:02 of the second and nine seconds into the third. Duke’s first goal came via the PP, while the third one was shorthanded. . . . F Tyler Coulter earned assists on three of Duke’s goals. . . . F Connor Gutenberg also had three assists. . . . F Beck Malenstyn scored for Calgary, his PP goal at 11:24 of the second period cutting the deficit to 3-1. He’s got 21 goals. . . . D James Shearer (6), who also had an assist, and D Dmitry Osipov (2) also scored for Brandon, which lost D Kale Clague to a charging major and game misconduct at 10:06 of the second period. That was for a hit on Malenstyn. . . . G Travis Child stopped 31 shots for Brandon. . . . Calgary starter Trevor Martin allowed four goals on 14 shots through two periods. Kyle Dumba played the third period, stopped six of eight shots. . . . Each team was 1-6 on the PP. . . . The Wheat Kings (24-19-5) had lost their previous two games. They hold down the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot but the defending champions are just five points behind the Swift Current Broncos in the East Division. . . . The Hitmen (18-22-9) had points in each of their previous four games (1-0-3). This was their third game in fewer than 48 hours; they went 1-1-1. Calgary is one point behind the Saskatoon Blades, who are in possession of the conference’s second wild-card spot. . . . Announced attendance: 6,913.
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At Edmonton, G Ty Edmonds turned aside 26 shots to help the Prince George Cougars to a 3-1 victory
TY EDMONDS
over the Oil Kings. . . . The Cougars had won, 11-3, in Edmonton on Saturday night. . . . Edmonds now has 95 career regular-season victories, tying the Prince George franchise record that was held by Scott Myers (1996-2000). . . . This was Edmonds’ 26th victory this season. . . . F Aaron Boyd (7) gave the visitors a 1-0 lead at 3:33 of the first period. . . . Edmonton tied it when F Davis Koch scored his 13th goal — it was his 100th career point — at 14:49. . . . Prince George F Jansen Harkins broke the tie with his 16th goal at 4:50 of the second period. . . . D Brendan Guhle added insurance with his 12th goal just 15 seconds later. . . . Guhle and Boyd each added an assist. . . . The Oil Kings got 34 saves from G Patrick Dea. . . . Each team was 0-4 on the PP. . . . The Cougars (36-14-3) have won two in a row. They are alone atop the overall standings, two points ahead of the Regina Pats, who hold six games in hand. . . . The Oil Kings (18-28-4) have lost 11 straight games and are six points out of a playoff spot. . . . Both teams were playing for the third time in fewer than 48 hours. The Cougars went 2-1-0; the Oil Kings went 0-3-0. . . . Announced attendance: 6,827.
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At Everett, G Dylan Ferguson stopped 37 shots and F Lane Bauer had two goals as the Kamloops
LANE BAUER
Blazers skated to a 5-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . Bauer, who has 29 shots. broke a 1-1 tie 25 seconds into the second period as the Blazers took control with three goals in a span of 4:27. . . . F Deven Sideroff (28) had given Kamloops a 1-0 lead at 10:34 of the first period. . . . Everett F Connor Dewar (10) tied it 11 seconds into the second period. . . . Bauer broke that tie just 14 seconds later. . . . F Nick Chyzowski’s 14th goal upped the Blazers’ lead to 3-1 at 3:54 and Bauer made it 4-1, while shorthanded, at 4:52. . . . Kamloops F Quinn Benjafield added more insurance with an empty-net goal at 11:37 of the third period. Yes, Everett head coach Kevin Constantine had his goaltender on the bench for the extra attacker with more than eight minutes to play. . . . F Garrett Pilon had two assists for the Blazers. . . . Bauer has 13 points, including four goals, in 10 games with Kamloops since coming over in a deal with the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Everett G Mario Petit was beaten three times on 17 shots in 23:54. Carter Hart came off the bench to stop 10 of 11 shots in 35:25. . . . Kamloops was 0-2 on the PP; Everett was 0-4. . . . Kamloops (31-17-3) has won two in a row. It is second in the B.C. Division, three points ahead of the Victoria Royals. . . . The Silvertips (30-9-9) have lost four in a row (0-3-1). They lead the U.S. Division by six points over the Tri-City Americans. Everett has five games in hand. . . . Announced attendance: 4,089.
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At Kent, Wash., F Ryan Gropp and F Keegan Kolesar each enjoyed four-point outings as the Seattle Thunderbirds dumped the Tri-City Americans, 5-1. . . . The hosts scored the game’s first four goals to
RYAN GROPP
lead 4-0 before the second period was six minutes old. . . . Gropp, who finished with two goals and two assists, got it started 29 seconds into the first period. . . . Kolesar, who had a goal and three assists, made it 2-0 with No. 10 at 5:12. . . . F Mathew Barzal got his seventh goal at 4:17 of the second period and F Alexander True made it 4-0, on a PP, at 5:39. He’s got 16 goals. . . . Tri-City F Tyler Sandhu scored his 14th goal, on a PP, at 10:16. . . . Gropp scored his 13th goal into an empty net at 16:52 of the third period. . . . Seattle got two assists from D Austin Strand, while Barzal had one helper. . . . Americans D Parker Wotherspoon recorded one assist, the 133rd of his career. That gave him the franchise’s career record for most assists by a defenceman, with one more than Tyler Schmidt (2006-11). . . . Seattle G Rylan Toth stopped 19 shots, 15 fewer than Tri-City’s Beck Warm. . . . Seattle was 1-3 on the PP; Tri-City was 1-4. . . . The Thunderbirds (29-15-4) have won five in a row. They are third in the U.S. Division, one point behind Tri-City and with five games in hand. . . . The Americans (30-20-3) are six points behind the Everett Silvertips. . . . Each team was playing for the third time in fewer than 48 hours. That included Seattle’s 4-3 victory over host Tri-City on Friday. Seattle went 3-0-0 in the triple header weekend; the Americans were 1-2-0. . . . Announced attendance: 4,098.
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At Swift Current, the Prince Albert Raiders scored three PP goals to beat the Broncos, 3-2. . . . The third
MAX MARTIN
of those goals, from D Max Martin, snapped a 2-2 tie with 6.7 seconds left in the third period. Martin has six goals. . . . F Cavin Leth gave the Raiders a 1-0 lead with his 16th goal at 3:13 of the first period. . . . Leth is a Cy Young candidate with 16 goals and three assists in 44 games with Prince Albert since moving over from the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . He has goals in four of his last five games, including four in his last three outings. . . . F Kaden Elder (10) scored on a PP at 11:53 to get the Broncos even, and F Arthur Miller (6) counted at 11:46 of the second period for a 2-1 lead. . . . The Raiders tied it on F Curtis Miske’s 11th goal at 9:07 of the third period. . . . Martin and Miske also had an assist each. . . . G Nic Sanders stopped 27 shots to earn the victory over Jordan Papirny, who made 29 saves. . . . The Raiders were 3-7 on the PP; the Broncos were 1-3. . . . F Logan Barlage, the fourth overall selection in the 2016 bantam draft, played his second game of the season with the Broncos. He turned 16 on Jan. 7. . . . While the Raiders were playing their third game in fewer than 48 hours — they went 2-1-0 — the Broncos hadn’t played since the previous Sunday when they dropped a 6-3 decision to the host Saskatoon Blades. . . . Prince Albert (13-35-5) has won two straight. The Raiders remain in the WHL cellar but now are just one point behind the Kootenay Ice. . . . The Broncos (25-17-8) have dropped four in a row and remain third in the East Division. . . . Announced attendance: 2,106.
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At Victoria, F Tyler Soy scored four times and added an assist to lead the Royals to a 6-3 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . The Royals swept the triple header weekend from the Giants, having won 3-1 in
TYLER SOY
Langley, B.C., on Friday and 7-1 in Victoria on Saturday. . . . F Jack Flaman’s 12th goal 49 seconds into the game gave the Giants a 1-0 lead on Sunday. . . . The Royals took a 2-1 lead on goals from D Scott Walford (5) at 6:07 and Soy at 14:01. . . . Walford has goals in four straight games. . . . Vancouver tied it at 3:50 of the second period as F James Malm scored. . . . Soy, who has 24 goals, then scored three straight goals as the Royals took control. All three came via the PP — at 6:03 and 17:12 of the second period and 16 seconds into the third. . . . Victoria F Carter Folk added his fifth goal, on a PP, at 7:32 of the third period. . . . Malm closed out the scoring with his 17th goal, on a PP, at 10:39. . . . Soy, a 19-year-old from Cloverdale, B.C., has 50 points in 37 games. In his past eight games, he has scored seven times and added 10 assists. He is the third player in Royals history with a four-goal game, joining F Kevin Sundher (Oct. 29, 2011) and F Brandon Magee (Jan. 25, 2013). . . . F Matt Phillips, F Dante Hannoun, D Chaz Reddekopp and F Vladimir Bobylev each had two assists for Victoria. . . . The Giants got two assists from F Calvin Spencer. . . . D Ryan Gagnon, the Royals’ captain, played in his 300th regular-season game. . . . The Royals got 22 saves from Dylan Myskiw, who picked up his first career victory. Myskiw, who was injured before Christmas, was making his first appearance since Dec. 17 and only his second since Nov. 30. . . . G Griffen Outhouse had started the Royals’ previous 23 games as he set a franchise record. . . . Vancouver G Ryan Kubic stopped 36 shots. . . . Victoria was 4-10 on the PP; Vancouver was 1-4. . . . The Royals (29-19-4) have won three straight games. They are third in the B.C. Division, four points ahead of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Giants (17-30-4) have lost five in a row (0-4-1). . . . Announced attendance: 5,866.
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MONDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina at Saskatoon, 11:30 a.m.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:54 PM
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Monday, October 24, 2016

Barzal's return imminent? . . . Ex-WHL ref makes NHL debut . . . Abols off to QMJHL

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F Colton Yellow Horn (Lethbridge, Tri-City, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with Orli Znojmo (Czech Republic, Erste Bank Liga). He was released by Plzeň (Czech Republic, Extraliga) on Saturday at his request. He had four goals in 11 games with Plzeň. . . .
F Roberts Lipsbergs (Seattle, 2012-15) has signed a one-year contract with Dinamo Riga (Latvia, KHL). Last season, he was pointless in two games with the Adirondack Thunder (ECHL), had nine goals and seven assists in 37 games with the Utah Grizzlies (ECHL), and put up two goals and four assists in nine games with the Tulsa Oilers (ECHL). . . .
F Brad Cole (Seattle, Kootenay, Saskatoon, 2003-07) has signed a contract through Nov. 20 with Ritten/Renon (Italy, Serie A). Last season, he had six goals and 22 assists in 39 games with Ritten/Renon. The new contract is just for the third round of the IIHF Continental Cup that is scheduled for Nov. 18-20 in Ritten.
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It is looking more and more as though F Mathew Barzal will be returning to the Seattle Thunderbirds from the NHL’s New York Islanders. The 16th overall selection in the NHL’s 2015 draft, Barzal, 19, has played in only one of the Islanders’ first five games. The Islanders seem convinced that Barzal is unable to play on either wing, while F Anthony Beauvillier, 19, who was the 28th pick in that 2015 draft, has moved from centre to left wing and has a goal and four assists in five games. . . . Beauvillier, from the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes, has played in the Islanders’ past four games, while Barzal has watched from on high. . . . On Monday, Arthur Staple of Newsday wrote: “Shane Prince is due to come off injured reserve soon, so that may prompt a decision on Barzal. But it seems that Beauvillier is here to stay and play, so long as he continues to do the work.”
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F Tyler Coulter of the Brandon Wheat Kings has been suspended for two games for a hit from behind on F Giorgio Estephan of the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes on Friday night. Coulter sat out Saturday’s game against the Spokane Chiefs and won’t play tonight (Tuesday) in Edmonton against the Oil Kings. . . . D Joe Gatenby of the Kamloops Blazers will miss tonight’s game against the visiting Victoria Royals as he serves a one-game suspension for a high hit on D Juuso Valimaki of the Tri-City Americans on Saturday night.
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JUST NOTES:

Chris Schlenker, a former WHL player and referee, made his NHL debut on Monday night as he worked the game in Montreal between the Canadiens and Philadelphia Flyers. . . . Schlenker, 32, was the WHL’s official of the year for last season. The Medicine Hat native played four seasons (2001-05) in the WHL, splitting time with the Regina Pats (187 games) and Prince Albert Raiders (97). . . .
F Rodrigo Abols, a 20-year-old Latvian who was waived through the WHL, will join the QMJHL’s Acadie-Bathurst Titan. He had 49 points, including 20 goals, in 62 games with the Winterhawks last season, but lost is roster spot this season when the team chose to go with two younger import players. . . .
F Cal Babych, who was released earlier this month by the Vancouver Giants, has joined the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express. Babych, 19, was pointless in three games with the Giants. He put up two goals and an assist in his first three games with Chilliwack.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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Coaching
Shawn Martin has been fired as the general manager and head coach of the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves. He had been there since June 4, 2013. . . . The Ice Wolves are 2-12-1 and in last place in the four-team Sherwood Division, seven points behind the Melfort Mustangs. . . . Assistant coaches Eric Bell and Rob Wilson will handle the team while a search for a replacement is conducted. . . . Martin, 39, is from Wainwright, Alta. . . . Before joining the Ice Wolves, Martin had worked with three AJHL teams — the Grande Prairie Storm, St. Albert Steel and Sherwood Park Crusaders. . . . After Martin was relieved of his duties, Mat Hehr, the assistant general manager and associate coach, announced his resignation. Hehr was in his second season with La Ronge.
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MONDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.
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TUESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Brandon at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
Victoria at Kamloops, 7 p.m.
Spokane at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.

Tri-City at Portland, 7 p.m.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:19 PM
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Friday, September 9, 2016

Seattle defenceman retires . . . Giants, Raiders deal . . . KC shows sense of humour!

F Matt Fraser (Red Deer, Kootenay, 2006-11) has signed a one-year contract with Rögle Ängelholm (Sweden, SHL). Last season, with the Manitoba Moose (AHL), he had five goals and nine assists in 44 games. He also played 21 games with the Rockford IceHogs (AHL), recording two goals and five assists.
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D Jared Pelechaty of the Seattle Thunderbirds has retired from hockey. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Pelechaty, 17, is from Winnipeg. He had yet to play in an exhibition game this training camp. News of his retirement got out Friday. Andy Eide, who covers the Thunderbirds for ESPN, tweeted that Pelechaty’s retirement wasn’t “due to a current injury; rather to congenital issue, playing further not recommended.” . . . Last season, Pelechaty had seven points, including two goals, in 39 games with the MJHL’s Neepawa Natives. In nine games with the Thunderbirds, he had one goal. . . . Seattle brought him in late in the season when it ran into injuries on its back end.
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The Vancouver Giants have acquired F Cal Babych, 19, from the Prince Albert Raiders for an undisclosed conditional selection in the 2018 bantam draft. He was dropped by the Raiders earlier in the week. . . . Babych, a fourth-round pick by the Calgary Hitmen in the 2012 bantam draft, also has played with the Prince George Cougars. . . . Last season, the North Vancouver native had five goals and nine assists in 56 games with the Raiders. In 149 regular-season games, he has 15 goals and 20 assists. . . . He is the son of former WHL/NHL D Dave Babych. . . . Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province reports that the Giants are without F Alec Baer, F Brendan Semchuk and F Dawson Holt, all with undisclosed injuries.
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The Brandon Wheat Kings have signed F Baron Thompson, 17, to a WHL contract. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound Thompson is from Lakeville, Minn. He and his brother, Tyler, were acquired last week from the Victoria Royals. They selected Baron in the third round of the 2014 bantam draft. . . . He had two goals and two assists in 26 games with the USHL’s Dubuque Fighting Saints last season.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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On Thursday, the Everett Silvertips came from behind for a 5-4 shootout victory over the Portland Winterhawks, all of which resulted in today's chuckle:

FRIDAY’S GAMES:

In Kennewick, Wash., the Portland Winterhawks scored the game’s last three goals and beat the Prince George Cougars, 3-1. The Cougars (2-3-0) were wrapping up a nine-game preseason road trip by playing their third game in less than 72 hours. F Colton Veloso had a goal and an assist for Portland (4-0-1). G Cole Kehler stopped 16 shots in going the distance for the winners. . . . F Nick Holowko scored the only goal of a shootout as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Kootenay Ice, 4-3. F Peyton Krebs gave the Ice a 3-2 lead with a shorthanded goal at 18:53 of the third period, only to have Seattle F Matthew Wedman force OT with a PP goal at 19:41. Wedman also had an assist, with F Nolan Volcan also getting a goal and an assist for Seattle. . . . F Brandon Hagel’s goal at 13:00 of the third period snapped a 3-3 tie as the Red Deer Rebels beat the Tri-City Americans, 4-3. Tri-City F Michael Rasmussen had tied the game at 11:49. F Michael Spacek had a goal and two assists for the winners, while D Josh Mahura and F Akash Bains each had two assists, and F Grayson Pawlenchuk had a goal and an assist. D Parker Wotherspoon drew three assists for Tri-City, with F Morgan Geekie getting two. . . . 

In Brandon, F Nikita Popugaev scored twice to help the Moose Jaw Warriors to a 3-2 victory over the Wheat Kings. Popugaev, coming off knee surgery, has three preseason goals. . . . This was Brandon’s first exhibition game; the Warriors are 2-1-1. . . . They’ll play again tonight, this time in Moose Jaw. . . .

In St. Albert, Alta., the Calgary Hitmen scored the game’s last two goals, both in the third period, to score a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . D Micheal Zipp pulled Calgary into a tie at 9:29 of the third period and F Aaron Hyman got the winner two minutes later. . . . Zipp and Hyman each added an assist, while D Vladislav Yeryomenko had a goal and an assist. . . . Edmonton got a goal and an assist from each of F Jesse Roach and F Tyler Robertson, with F Carter Souch drawing two assists. . . . Calgary G Kyle Dumba stopped 28 shots. . . . The teams play again tonight, this time in Calgary. . . .

In Kelowna, G Michael Herringer stopped 23 shots to earn the shutout as the Rockets beat the Kamloops Blazers, 1-0. . . . They’ll go at it again tonight in Kamloops. . . . F Dillon Dube scored the game’s only goal, taking a pass from former Blazers F Jake Kryski and putting the puck over G Dylan Ferguson, at 4:09 of the third period. . . . Kamloops G Dylan Ferguson stopped 39 shots. . . . 

In Lethbridge, F Aleksi Heponiemi had a goal and two assists to lead the Swift Current Broncos to a 4-3 victory over the Hurricanes. The WHL’s Finnish Flash, who is preparing for his first WHL season, continues to be perhaps the biggest story of the exhibition season, with 10 points, including five goals, in four games. . . . The Broncos (3-1-1) got a goal and an assist from each of F Glenn Gawdin and D Max Lajoie. . . . F Colton Kroeker scored twice for Lethbridge (2-1-0), with F Brayden Burke drawing two assists. F Egor Babenko had a goal and an assist. . . . G Travis Child stopped 23 shots for Swift Current, with Stuart Skinner turning aside 26 at the other end. . . . Lethbridge F Carter Folk left at 18:35 of the second period with a headshot major and game misconduct. . . . 

In Wainwright, Alta., the Medicine Hat Tigers scored a 5-2 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . F Mason Shaw, who is from Wainwright, scored his second preseason goal for the Tigers. . . . F Nick Henry scored his third goal for the Pats (2-2-0).
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:29 PM
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