Brendan Ranford felt the draft on Friday afternoon.
Ranford, a veteran of four seasons with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, wasn’t able to get a deal done with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers by yesterday’s deadline. Therefore, he is once again eligible for the NHL draft.
The Flyers selected Ranford in the seventh round of the NHL’s 2010 draft; in fact, he was the second-last player taken. NHL teams had until yesterday at 5 p.m. ET to sign players taken in that draft. Those not signed are eligible for this year’s draft that is scheduled for Pittsburgh, June 22 and 23.
Should Ranford not be selected in next month’s draft, he will become a free agent, eligible to sign with any team.
“Nothing got done,” Ranford said late yesterday afternoon. “There’s nothing I can do. I just have got to work hard during the summer and move on.”
The Blazers selected Ranford, who is from Edmonton, with the 15th overall selection in the WHL’s 2007 bantam draft. He has 270 points, including 115 goals, in 278 regular-season games with the Blazers. He holds down 13th spot on the Blazers’ all-time points list and is 14th in goals and 17th in assists.
This season, he had career single-season highs in goals (40) and points (92).
The writing may have been on the wall for Ranford and his agent, Mark MacKay, about 10 days ago when the Flyers signed two other forwards – Derek Mathers, who had 17 points and 177 penalty minutes with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, and Andrew Johnston, an 81-point man with the SJHL’s Humboldt Broncos. Mathers, 18, was a seventh-round pick in the 2011 draft; Johnston, 20, was an undrafted free agent.
Asked if he was disappointed not to get signed, Ranford replied: “No, not really. I wouldn’t say disappointed. I’ve got to move on and just work harder.”
Should Ranford, who turned 20 on May 3, be selected in this month’s draft, he would be eligible to play anywhere in that team’s organization should he sign an NHL contract. He also is eligible to return for a fifth season with the Blazers.
Ranford was one of a handful of WHLers who will be going back into the draft.
The list includes defenceman Troy Rutkowski of the Portland Winterhawks, who was a fifth-round pick by the Colorado Avalanche in 2010, and winger Josh Nicholls of the Saskatoon Blades, a seventh-round pick, who wasn’t signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Meanwhile, three WHL forwards who were selected in the 2011 draft signed NHL deals yesterday.
Ty Rattie of the Portland Winterhawks, a second-round pick, signed with the St. Louis Blues, while Dominik Uher of the Spokane Chiefs, a fifth-round pick, got a deal done with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Brody Sutter, the captain of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, signed with the Carolina Hurricanes, who had taken him in the seventh round.
Rattie, 19, is eligible to return to Portland. Uher, who is from Czech Republic, wasn't likely to return to Spokane as a 20-year-old, while Sutter completed his major junior eligibility this season.
Rattie is coming off a season in which he scored 121 points, including 57 goals, in 69 regular-season games. He then added 33 points, 19 of them goals, in 21 playoff games.
Uher had 68 points, including 33 goals, in his final season with the Chiefs. He finished the season with the Penguins’ AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, but didn’t see playoff action.
Sutter had 60 points in 65 games as a 20-year-old in Lethbridge. Brody, the son of former NHLer Duane Sutter, is the third Sutter in the Carolina organization, following cousins Brandon and Brett.
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F Logan Proulx has agreed to join the Selkirk Saints of the B.C. Intercollegiate league. Proulx played this season with the BCHL’s Cowichan Valley Capitals after being acquired from his hometown Trail Smoke Eaters. He played 137 games over three seasons with the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . .
———
The OHL’s Owen Sound Attack has signed former NHL D Drew Bannister as its new assistant coach. He takes over from former associate coach Terry Virtue, a former WHL assistant coach, who has left after two seasons with the Attack. . . . Bannister spent this season as a player-coach with the Braehead Clan of the British Elite league. . . .
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The Medicine Hat Mavericks of the Western Major Baseball League opened their home schedule on Friday night and Bob Ridley, the veteran play-by-play voice of the Medicine Hat Tigers was there to throw out the first pitch. . . . Don’t know if he sang Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the seventh-inning stretch. . . . There was even more WHL flavour as Shaw TV carried the game, with Cam Moon, the voice of the Red Deer Rebels, and Peter Lourbardias, who should be doing hockey play-by-play, in the booth. . . . If you’re wondering, the Okotoks Dawgs beat the Mavericks, 6-5. . . .
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F Tyler Johnson (Spokane, 2007-2011) had a goal and an assist last night, helping the host Norfolk Admirals to a 3-1 victory over the Toronto Marlies in Game 1 of the AHL’s best-of-seven final for the Calder Cup. Game 2 is tonight. . . . F Cory Conacher also had a goal and an assist for the winners. . . . C Carter Ashton (Lethbridge, Regina, Tri-City, 2006-11) had Toronto’s goal. . . . Interestingly, earlier in the season Ashton played on a line with Johnson and Conacher in Norfolk, the AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning. . . . If you check, you may find it on TV somewhere. I stumbled on a replay of Game 1 on Leaf TV late last night. . . .
———
When F Locke Muller was with the Red Deer Rebels, Dale McMullin was on their scouting staff. McMullin now is Regina’s head scout, so when Muller recently was dropped by the Saskatoon Blades, well, the Pats were quick to add him to their protected list. . . . Muller, 19, had 10 points and 87 penalty minutes in 58 games last season. He started the season with Red Deer and finished with the Blades.
Greg Harder, in the Regina Leader-Post: “The 6-foot-2, 197-pounder was a healthy scratch on a few occasions due to discipline issues, apparently working his way into the doghouse of Blades head coach/GM Lorne Molleken . . .”
Regina GM Chad Lang told Harder that the past is just that, the past.
“There’s kids that are leaders, there’s kids that are followers,” Lang said. “It’s about putting kids in an environment where they know the rules and the limitations. You hope they abide by them and if they don’t there’s consequences. From our standpoint it’s about giving kids the opportunity.”

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Jakub Rumpel (Medicine Hat, 2006-07) signed a one-month tryout
contract with Frederikshavn (Denmark, AL-Bank Ligaen). He had 14 goals and eight assists in 49 games with Banska Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga) last season.
———
SOME TUESDAY HIGHLIGHTS:
In Saskatoon, F Darian Dziurzynski scored with 38.7 seconds left in OT to give the Blades a 4-3 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . F Brett Lyon forced OT when he scored a power-play goal for Moose Jaw with 11 seconds left in the third period. . . . The Warriors opened the third period by taking five straight minor penalties. However, the Blazers were able to score only once on the ensuing power plays. . . . Lyon leads the Warriors with five goals in eight games. Last season, he totalled five goals in 56 games split between the Vancouver Giants and Moose Jaw. . . . Warriors F Cody Beach completed his seven-game suspension and will be eligible to return Friday when the Warriors play host to the Swift Current Broncos. . . .
In Lethbridge, the Edmonton Oil Kings got a goal and two assists from F Rhett Rachinski as they defeated the Hurricanes, 5-1. . . . The teams combined for 124 penalty minutes, with Lethbridge taking 67 of those. . . . All told, there were 10 fighting majors. . . . The Oil Kings have won three of four on a five-game swing that wraps up tonight against the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook.
In Everett, F Mark McNeill had a goal and an assist to help the Prince Albert Raiders to a 3-2 victory over the Silvertips. . . . Prince Albert F Jonas Knutsen scored a third-period goal to give his side a 3-1 lead. . . . Everett D Ryan Murray cut that to one goal at 18:39 of the third period. . . . Everett F Tyler Maxwell scored his fourth goal of the season, giving him 100 regular-season career goals. He now shares the Everett franchise career record with Shane Harper (2005-10).
———
JUST NOTES: The Vancouver Giants have assigned D Dalton Olsen to the AJHL’s Canmore Eagles. Olsen, 18, had one goal and six penalty minutes in four games with the Giants, whose roster now is down to 26 players. . . . F Emerson Etem of the Medicine Hat Tigers is the WHL’s player of the week. He had seven points, six of them goals, in three games last week. . . . Andrey Makarov of the Saskatoon Blades is the WHL’s goaltender of the week. He was 2-0-0, 1.00, .967 last week. . . . The Brandon Wheat Kings open a seven-game, 11-day road swing against the Spokane Chiefs tonight. The trip will include a date with the Tigers in Medicine Hat on Oct. 21 that will feature the Clouston brothers, Cory of the Wheat Kings and Shaun of the Tigers, as the head coaches. . . . The Kamloops Blazers’ weekly report lists RW Jordan DePape as being out for at least a month with an “upper body” injury. DePape left Monday’s 5-4 loss to the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers with a banged up left shoulder following a scrap with RW Emerson Etem. DePape first injured the shoulder while playing for the Winnipeg Jets at the NHL Young Guns tournament in Penticton, B.C. . . .
According to the Kootenay Ice, F Brendan Hurley will be out six to eight weeks with a knee injury suffered Oct. 5 in Edmonton. Oil Kings D Griffin Reinhart is serving a five-game suspension for the hit — he was given a kneeing major and game misconduct — on which Hurley was injured. . . . The Prince George Cougars have added F Austin Daae, 18, to their roster. The 6-foot-0, 194-pounder is from Estevan and had six assists and 17 penalty minutes in five games with the SJHL’s Bruins this season. Last season, he had two assists and 11 penalty minutes in 12 games with the Saskatoon Blades. . . . He is not believed to be related to Christine Daae. . . .
F Carter Ashton, who played in the WHL with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, Regina Pats and Tri-City Americans, is the AHL’s player of the week. He had three goals and an assist in helping the Norfolk Admirals to two victories in as many games. . . . Spokane Chiefs F Darren Kramer is going to get some air time tonight on TSN as he sits down with Dave Naylor. According to a TSN news release: As part of TSN’s timely investigative series on violence in professional sports, TSN’s Dave Naylor profiles Darren Kramer, one of hockey’s most prolific fighters, on Thursday, Oct. 13 during the NHL ON TSN pre-game show at 8 p.m. ET on TSN. With twice as many fights as any other player in the WHL and more fights than any other player in the world, Naylor examines how Kramer, a 19-year old forward from Peace River, Alta., reinvented himself from scorer to enforcer to get noticed by NHL scouts.”
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The WHL website was back up and running sometime Tuesday morning after a night of server-related problems.
And the embellishment penalty that had been indicated as belonging to F Kellan Tochkin of the Medicine Hat Tigers was changed to roughing. I have been told that the mixup may have been the result of a communication error between the penalty box and the online scorekeeper.
On the play in question, D Josh Caron of the Kamloops Blazers felled Tochkin with a punch to a temple.
Earlier in the game between the Tigers and host Blazers, Kamloops D Austin Madaisky received a penalty for a check to the head when he rode F Curtis Valk into the boards and made accidental contact with his head.
Which raises this question: If accidental contact with an opponent’s head draws a check-to-the-head penalty, why doesn’t an intentional punch to the noggin?
———
Gary Pearson of the Prince Albert Daily Herald had a piece in Tuesday’s paper on the future of the Raiders and how it all depends on support from the community. And he is so, so right.
That column is right here.
———
For our good read today, we bring you one more piece on Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo. This one is from Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times and it explores Calvillo’s background and how it was he didn’t end up in a gang in East L.A.
This is an excellent piece and it’s right here.
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And as a bonus good read, here’s Bob Hohler of the Boston Globe with a look into the season that was for the Boston Red Sox. It is right here. If you are a Red Sox fan, you may want to have Kleenex handy.
———
TWEET OF THE DAY:
From old friend Brad Hornung:
“Sorry I missed the 2 Regina Pats games on the weekend, let's just say that I am day-to-day with a lower body injury. LOL”

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Thursday . . .

JIM MULLIN

It was the day after the Bruins left Chilliwack.
Both Chilliwack papers chimed in with some fine coverage and links are below.
But we also learned that a Vancouver radio personality got caught up in all of this Chilliwack-to-Victoria stuff.
Jim Mullin, who managed the sports department at CKNW in Vancouver, no longer is with the radio station.
If you’ve been following the Chilliwack-to-Victoria story, you will recall that Moray Keith, one of the Bruins’ minority owners, confirmed to Mullin that the sale had occurred.
Mullin also was on the receiving end of a letter from Brian Burke, who was one of the Bruins’ majority owners. And it was in that letter that Burke stated the WHL was working to place another existing franchise in Chilliwack.
That letter from Burke, which came via lawyers, also expressed concern with some commentary from Mullin on the Chilliwack-to-Victoria story.
Mullin told me Wednesday night that he no longer was with CKNW.
Someone on Twitter asked Mullin if it had “anything to do with what went on with Burke and the (Bruins) in the last few weeks?”
Mullin’s response was straight and to the point: “It had everything to (do) with it.”
———
Eric Welsh of the Chilliwack Progress spoke with Moray Keith, one of the Bruins’ two minority owners who had a finger or two pointed at him.
Part of what Keith said, in response to his being blamed for lease problems:
“The percentage used by the league is between 10 and 12 per cent of the gate revenues. The gate last year was $1.1 million. We were asking for $100,000 for the first three years and back to 12 per cent or a minimum $125,000. You can’t convince me a $2.5 million grossing business is going out of business over $125,000.”
That story is right here.
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Welsh also talked with WHL commissioner Ron Robison. In early March, Robison, when asked if the Bruins would be in Chilliwack for 2011-12, had told the Progress: “It is certainly our intent and we haven’t considered anything different at this point.”
Welsh asked Robison about that and some other things and that story is right here.
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Welsh also found time for a session with Darryl Porter, the Bruins’ governor and one of the franchise’s majority owners. Welsh starts with:
“Darryl Porter says the last two months have been the most difficult time in his life.”
The rest of that story is right here.
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Over at the Chilliwack Times, Tyler Olsen takes a crack at rounding up everything in chronological order by talking to the participants. That piece is right here.
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Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist spoke with Marc Habscheid, who spent the last two seasons as the GM and head coach of the Chilliwack Bruins. No one is talking about whether Habscheid will make the move to Victoria, but he talks here about what kind of team Victoria is getting.
That story is right here.
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The national media in Canada is starting to pay some attention to the Victoria Salmon Kings. Allan Maki of The Globe and Mail has written a piece after talking to Mark Morrison, the Salmon Kings’ general manager and head coach. With all the twists to this story, it’s somehow fitting that Morrison played in the WHL for the Victoria Cougars. Maki’s column is right here.
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Dylan Bumbarger, who blogs on all things Winterhawkish and more, writes that Darryl Porter and Brian Burke once looked into purchasing the WHL franchise in Portland.
Read all about it right here.
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It would seem rather apparent that Chilliwack won’t be home to a WHL franchise for the 2011-12 season. But what about 2012-13?
Bruce Luebke, the radio voice of the Brandon Wheat Kings, may have tossed the Wheaties into the mix at his blog, Luber’s Lounge, the link for which is over there on the right.
Here’s part of what he wrote:
“Haven't heard the Wheat Kings mentioned yet, but it's worthwhile to note Brandon's lease with the Keystone Centre runs out at the end of (2011-2012), and the general feeling is the Wheat Kings won't be getting quite as favourable a lease as they did when the last one was signed in February of 1997.”
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The Victoria WHL franchise is asking fans to vote on their preference as the team’s new nickname. Neate Sager, over at Yahoo! Sports, wonders if it isn’t going to be Tide. This is an interesting piece, involving the registering of names and domain names, and is worth a look. It’s right here.
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There was an interesting twist to the Victoria Salmon Kings’ 3-2 overtime victory over the visiting Utah Grizzlies on Wednesday night. That gave the Salmon Kings a 3-0 lead in the ECHL second-round playoff series. . . . The winner, 11 seconds into OT, came from F Josh Aspenlind, who, a Bruins fan informed me today via email, was Chilliwack’s first captain and also the “first inductee to our wall of honour.” . . . Game 4 in that series goes tonight in Victoria.
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MEANWHILE . . .
 The Portland Winterhawks have signed G Brendan Burke, the 49th overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft. He is the son of former NHL G Sean Burke. Brendan played this season with the Phoenix Junior Coyotes of the Midwest Elite Hockey League, going 9-10-3, 3.39, .862. He helped his team to the championship game in the Rocky Mountain District tournament, featuring some of the top midget AAA teams from the western United States. In the tournament, he was 2-1, 1.97, .930, with one shutout. Burke attended a tryout camp for the Under-17 U.S. National Development Team, but chose to sign with the Winterhawks. . . .
---
F Carter Ashton of the Tri-City Americans has joined the Norfolk Admirals, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning. Ashton, who turned 20 on April 1, was the 29th overall selection in the NHL’s 2009 draft and has signed with Tampa Bay. He had 71 points and 106 penalty minutes in 62 games this season, split between the Regina Pats and the Americans. He also played for Canada at the World Junior Championship. Ashton played 11 games with the Admirals last season, scoring one goal. The Admirals are 2-2 with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in an East Division semifinal that resumes tonight. . . .

The gang at capgeek.com reports that F Curtis Hamilton of the Saskatoon Blades, who has signed with the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, has a deal that calls for the same AHL salary (US$67,500) in each of three seasons, NHL salaries of $715,000, $790,000 and $900,000. He got a $270,000 signing bonus, payable over three years. . . . Capgeek.com also reports that Regina Pats F Jordan Weal, who signed with the Los Angeles Kings, is down for AHL salaries of $67,500, $65,000 and $62,500, with NHL salaries of $615,000, $640,000 and $665,000. He also got the $270,000 signing bonus payable over three yers. . . . Hamilton was a second-round pick of the Oilers in the NHL’s 2010 draft, while the Kings took Weal in the third round of the 2010 draft. . . . The Oilers also signed F Cameron Abney, 19, to a three-year deal. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound Abney, who turns 20 on May 23, was a third-round selection in the 2009 NHL draft. He had 20 points and 72 penalty minutes in 60 games with the Edmonton Oil Kings this season. . . . The Minnesota Wild has signed F Brett Bulmer of the Kelowna Rockets to a three-year deal. Bulmer had 49 points, including 18 goals, and 109 penalty minutes in 57 games with the Rockets this season. He was a second-round pick in the 2010 NHL draft. . . .

F Bernhard Keil, who played this season with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, has returned to the Straubing Tigers. The Tigers, who play in the DEL, announced Thursday morning that they have signed Keil, 19, to a one-year deal with a club option for a second season. Keil played two seasons ago for a junior team in Mannheim and was expected to join the Tigers. However, the Blazers selected him in the CHL import draft and he spent the season in Kamloops. He had eight points, including five goals, in 46 games with the Blazers, who had told him he wouldn’t be coming back for a second season. . . . Keith Cassidy if the new GM/head coach of the SJHL’s Estevan Bruins. He coached five seasons in the MJHL and was at the helm of the U of Manitoba Bisons for one season. Cassidy wasn’t involved in coaching last season. . . . The Moose Jaw Warriors were honoured as that city’s business of the year at the Moose Jaw and District Chamber of Commerce’s annual Business Excellence Awrds gala on Wednesday. The Warriors also walked off with the Marketing award. The legendary Rob Carnie of CHAB Radio was the host for the evening. . . .

There is some U of Alberta news as two WHL coaches who played for the Golden Bears prepare to meet up tonight in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. Shaun Clouston, the head coach of the Medicine Hat Tigers, played under the legendary Clare Drake in the mid-1980s before going on to spend three seasons with the Portlad Winterhawks. . . . Kris Knoblauch, the head coach of the Kootenay Ice, played five seasons with the Golden Bears ater completing his WHL career. Knoblauch played under head coach Rob Daum while at the U of A. . . . The Tigers and Ice open the conference final tonight in Medicine Hat. . . . Interestingly, both Clouston and Knoblauch are in their first seasons as head coach. Clouston, of course, spent six seasons as assistant or associate coach under Willie Desjardins, who joined the staff of the NHL’s Dallas Stars last summer. Knoblauch, 32, was an assistant coach for one season with the Prince Albert Raiders and two with the Ice before taking over from Mark Holick, who left for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch. . . . The Golden Bears, meanwhile, may be in the market for a new head coach after Eric Thurston told his players a week ago that he was resigning and then was placed on leave by the university yesterday. Assistant coach Stan Marple has been named acting head coach. There are some unanswered questions here, for sure. Evan Daum, who covers the U of A scene like a blanket, has more right here. Thurston was on the Kamloops Blazers’ shortlist in the summer of 2008, but he withdrew his name before a hire was made. In the end, the job went to Barry Smith.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Friday . . .

It's over! Kruise Reddick (11) and the Tri-City Americans' fans start celebrating after scoring in OT to beat the visiting Vancouver Giants 2-1 in overtime on Friday night.
(Photo by Doug Love / Tri-City Americans)

Dave Trimmer, who covers the Spokane Chiefs for the Spokane Spokesman-Review, blogged about fighting in hockey after reading the column I posted here yesterday.
Here’s part of what he wrote:
“But in the end, it's all fighting and I wouldn't miss it. The health of all hockey players is more important than short, entertaining mid- ice fisticuffs, no matter what the reason.
“I'm willing to bet that almost every team would take a hit in attendance if there was no fighting, which means it isn't going to be stamped out. The only thing that could hurt worse is if they quit selling beer, although that could lead to smarter fans who understand there is no need for fighting in hockey.”
Trimmer’s blog is right here.
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FROM FRIDAY’S GAMES (all were openers, with Game 2 in same place tonight):
In Cranbrook, G Thomas Heemskerk stopped 30 shots to help the Moose Jaw Warriors to a 4-0 victory over the host Kootenay Ice. . . . The Warriors led 3-0 after one; in fact, they led 3-0 at 8:01 of the first period. F Quinton Howden scored twice, including once while shorthanded. . . . Attendance was 2,486. . . . Moose Jaw was 0-for-9 on the PP; the Ice was 0-for-4. . . . Moose Jaw scratched F Cody Beach (knee), F Jordan Wyton (undisclosed), F Tanner Eberle (upper body) and F Brayden Cuthbert (concussion). . . . Moose Jaw D Dylan McIlrath, who sat out a day or two of practice during the week, played and was the game’s first star. . . . Moose Jaw F Brett Lyon sat out the third game of a four-game WHL suspension. . . . With the scratches, the Warriors dressed F Torrin White, their first pick in the 2010 draft, and D Brandon Potomak, a second-pick in the same draft. . . . The Ice was without D Luke Paulsen (shoulder). . . .
In Medicine Hat, D Ryan Pulock had two goals and two assists to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 7-2 victory over the Tigers. . . . Pulock is a late 1994-born player; he doesn’t turn 17 until Oct. 6. From Grandview, Man., he put up 42 points in 63 games during the regular season. . . . Attendance was 3,866. The Tigers had sold out all 36 regular-season home games, at 4,006. . . . Brandon was 3-for-8 on the PP; the Tigers were 2-for-6. . . .
In Red Deer, F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had two goals and two assists to lead the Rebels to a 5-3 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Nugent-Hopkins broke a 3-3 tie with two third-period goals, at 14:25 and 15:31. . . . Kevin Lowe, the president of the NHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings, who will have an early pick in June’s draft, was in the house. . . . F Josh Cowen (broken hand) returned to the Rebels’ lineup. He had been out since Feb. 19 when he was injured in a game against the visiting Kamloops Blazers. D Josh Caron, who was penalized for checking from behind on the play, served a three-game suspension. . . . Attendance was 5,568. . . .
In Kelowna, F Geordie Wudrick broke a 1-1 tie at 7:24 of the third period and the Rockets went on to a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . F Mitchell (Dirty Harry) Callahan had two goals for the Rockets, the last one into an empty net. . . . The Rockets were 2-for-7 on the PP; the Cougars were 0-for-2. . . . Prince George F Brett Connolly left early in the first period with an apparent arm injury and didn’t return. . . . The Cougars were penalized for delay of game on three occasions, each time for shooting the puck out of play from the defensive zone. . . . Attendance was 6,059. . . .
In Chilliwack, F Darren Kramer scored twice, including the winner at 10:00 of OT, as the Spokane Chiefs beat the Bruins, 3-2. . . . Kramer, who had seven goals and 306 penalty minutes in 68 regular-seaosn games, is a 19-year-old from Peace River, Alta. . . . He also drew an assist on F Tyler Johnson’s goal that tied the game 2-2 at 3:45 of the third. . . . . This was Kramer’s first multi-point WHL game. . . . Chilliwack G Lucas Gore stopped 60 shots, while James Reid of the Chiefs turned aside 22. . . . Attendance was 2,962. . . . The start of the overtime period was delayed almost 15 minutes due to technical problems in the video review booth. . . . The Chiefs go in as the Western Conference’s No. 3 seed and with home-ice advantage in the first round. But they had to open on the road because there is an NCAA women’s basketball regional tournament being played in their home arena this weekend. . . . The series will follow a 2-3-1-1 format. . . .
In Kennewick, Wash., F Carter Ashton scored with 2.2 seconds left in the first OT period to give the Tri-City Americans a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . Ashton, on the power play, directed the puck toward the Vancouver net out of a corner and it had glance off G Mark Segal and into the net. . . . Vancouver F Andrej Stastny was off for tripping at the time. . . . F Brendan Rowinski gave the Giants a 1-0 lead with a PP goal at 17:39 of the first period. . . . F David Conrad tied it at 7:55 of the third. . . . Attendance was 3,406. . . . Segal stopped 44 shots, 19 more than Tri-City’s Drew Owsley. . . . The Giants were without F James Henry (knee) and he isn’t expected to play in Game 2. F Michael Burns (concussion) and D Tyler Hart (shoulder) were back in Vancouver’s lineup. . . . The Americans remain without F Adam Hughesman (knee), who had 39 goals.
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D Tyson Barrie of the Kelowna Rockets has signed a three-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche, which selected him in the third round of the 2009 NHL draft. According to capgeek.com, Barrie’s AHL salary would be US$67,500 for each of three seasons, with NHL salaries of $615,000, $690,000 and $840,000. He got a $270,000 signing bonus, payable over three years.
———
JUST NOTES: The Kamloops Blazers have extended the contracts of Matt Recchi, their director of player personnel, and head scout Ken Fox. Lengths of the extensions weren’t announced. Both men have been with the Blazers since July 2008. Recchi works out of Kamloops, while Fox lives in Holdfast, Sask. . . Former WHL G Jacob DeSerres (Seattle, Brandon, 2005-10) stopped 19 shots as his Saint John Sea Dogs opened the QMJHL playoffs with a 10-0 victory over the visiting Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Friday night. . . . Laury Ryan has announced his resignation after eight seasons as president of the Saskatchewan junior league. The league now is accepting applications as it searches for a replacement. . . .
———
Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun went to an OHL playoff game in Mississauga on Thursday night. He wasn’t impressed, which makes one wonder what is in store for the Memorial Cup that is to be played there in May. In fact, after reading this one wonders if Buffery’s ex-wife will get the Memorial Cup tickets. Buffery’s piece is right here.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca

     

gdrinnan.blogspot.com

     

Taking Note on Twitter

Sunday stuff . . .

Brendan Shinnimin (left) and Carter Ashton of the Tri-City Americans
work to defend against Troy Bourke of the Prince George Cougars
in a WHL game in Kennewick, Wash., on Sunday night.
(Photo by John Allen/AridAcres.com)

In Calgary, the Red Deer Rebels scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Hitmen, 4-2. . . . D Matt Dumba broke a 2-2 tie with his 15th goal at 11:16 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored Red Deer’s first goal, his 28th, at 15:33 of the second period. He now has 102 points, good for third place in the scoring race. . . . Red Deer has won two in a row and four of five. . . . Calgary has lost two in a row and nine of 10. . . . Red Deer G Darcy Kuemper earned his 43rd victory of the season. . . . The Rebels, with two games left, are atop the Central Division, four points ahead of the Medicine Hat Tigers, who have three games remaining. . . . The Tigers will use up the game in hand on Tuesday against the visiting Kootenay Ice. . . . The Rebels are in Edmonton on Friday. . . .
In Kennewick, Wash., F Carter Ashton and F Brendan Shinnimin each scored twice to lead the Tri-City Americans to a 6-3 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . Shinnimin has 32 goals, while Ashton has 31. . . . The Americans, who have four games left, will finish fourth in the Western Conference. . . . Tri-City is 25-7-1 at home, the fifth straight season in which it has won at least 25 games in the Toyota Center. . . . Tri-City G Drew Owsley won his career-best 34th game. . . . Tri-City remains without F Adam Hughesman (knee), who has 39 goals in 60 games. . . . The Cougars, who have two games left, are seventh, one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips. . . . Everett, with four games remaining, plays Wednesday in Kennewick, Wash., against the Americans. . . . The Cougars will go home-and-home with the Kamloops Blazers on the weekend. They’re in Kamloops on Friday and in Prince George on Saturday. . . . The Blazers are ninth, two points behind Everett. . . .
In Chilliwack, F Zach Franko’s 20th goal, at 4:52 of OT, gave the Kelowna Rockets a 3-2 victory over the Bruins. . . . The Rockets, who will finish atop the B.C. Division and be the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed for the first round of playoffs, won for the third time in as many nights. . . . Kelowna has won five in a row and nine of 10. . . . The loser point lifted the Bruins into a tie with the Vancouver Giants for fifth in the conference. . . . Attendance in Chilliwack was 4,022, the second straight night in which the Bruins drew more than 4,000 fans. . . . The Bruins, who have three games left, are in Spokane on Wednesday, the same night that the Giants, with four games to play, are in Portland.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

The Vancouver Giants, wearing black Kamloops Blazers training
camp jerseys, and the Blazers, wearing their whites, prepare to start the
third period on Saturday night. The Giants' jerseys didn't get on the
bus to Kamloops for Saturday's game.

A post-game scoring change on Friday night ended F Spencer Bennett’s scoring streak at nine games. Originally, he was credited with an assist on the game’s first goal in the Vancouver Giants’ 3-0 victory over the Prince George Cougars. However, after the game, he lost that assist and the point streak went with it. . . . The winning goal, originally credited to D Darren Bestland, now belongs to F Brendan Rowinski. . . . Bennett may have started a new streak Saturday when he had a goal and two assists in a 6-1 victory over the Blazers in Kamloops.
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JUST NOTES: F Bretton Cameron, who completed his WHL career with the Medicine Hat Tigers last season, has moved from the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder to the AHL’s Connecticut Whale on a PTO (pro tryout agreement). Cameron, who is into the AHL for the first time, had a team-high 13 goals with Stockton. He has 23 points in 29 games. . . .
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SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM SATURDAY’S GAMES:
In Portland, F Craig Cunningham scored twice to help the Winterhawks to a 5-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds in an afternoon game that drew 7,395 fans. . . . Cunningham has 16 goals, including six in 11 games with Portland. He was acquired from the Vancouver Giants on Dec. 29 and has 12 points in 11 games with the Winterhawks. . . . The Winterhawks, who are at home to the hard-charging Spokane Chiefs tonight at 5, have won four in a row. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie had a goal and two assists, and was plus-3. . . . Seattle G Calvin Pickard stopped 44 shots. . . . Portland G Keith Hamilton turned aside 33 shots. He lost his shutout at 16:33 of the third period when F Marcel Noebels scored a shorthanded goal. Noebels, from Germany, has 17 goals. . . . Portland visits the Thunderbirds on Saturday for Seattle’s annual Fred Meyer Teddy Bear Toss. . . .
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In Regina, F Cam Braes scored the game’s last two goals, the last one in overtime, to give the Lethbridge Hurricanes a 3-2 victory over the Pats. . . . D Brandon Davidson’s sixth goal at 15:25 of the second period gave Regina a 2-1 lead. . . . Braes tied it at 16:18 of the second and won it at 4:15 of OT on the PP. . . . He has 24 goals. . . . D Landon Oslanski had a goal and two assists for Lethbridge. . . . The Hurricanes were 2-for-4 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 3,909. . . .
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In Saskatoon, F Chris Collins and F Marek Viedensky each had two goals as the Blades beat the Calgary Hitmen, 5-1. . . . F Brayden Schenn, who is from Saskatoon, had one assist in his debut with the Blades. He was acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings on Jan. 10 but a shoulder injury had kept him on the sideline. . . . Schenn drew an assist on F Jake Trask’s 11th goal of the season at 15:15 of the second period. That gave the Blades a 3-1 lead. . . . F Brooks Macek gave Calgary a 1-0 lead at 12:16 of the first period. . . . F Josh Nicholls earned three assists for the Blades. . . . Viedensky, Nicholls and Collins each finished plus-3. . . . Viedensky, with 21 goals, is the fourth Blades skater with more than 20 snipes. . . . Collins has 12 goals. . . . Saskatoon G Steven Stanford stopped 27 shots to run his record to 22-3-0. . . . Attendance was 7,646. . . .
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In Brandon, F Shayne Wiebe had two goals and an assist to lead the Wheat Kings to a 6-2 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . F Mark Stone added a goal and two assists for Brandon, which got two assists from each of D Ryan Pulock and F Matt MacKay. . . . MacKay has six points over his last two games. . . . F Trevor Cameron pulled the Broncos into a 1-1 tie at 12:43 of the first but the Wheat Kings then scored five straight goals. . . . Wiebe has 24 goals. . . . Brandon F Scott Glennie notched his 20th score of the season. . . . Brandon was 4-for-7 on the PP; the Broncos were 1-for-2. . . . The Wheat Kings now are three points out of the Eastern Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot. . . . Attendance was 4,430. . . .
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In Edmonton, F Kellan Tochkin’s shootout goal gave the Medicine Hat Tigers a 5-4 victory over Oil Kings in a wild one. . . . The Oil Kings watched a 3-0 first-period lead disappear but came back to hold a late 5-4 edge. . . . Edmonton F Dylan Wruck — they’re calling him the Wrucking Ball — broke a 4-4 tie with his 26th goal of the season at 16:01 of the third period. . . . Tochkin got the Tigers back into a tie, at 5-5, at 18:16. . . . F Cole Grbavac had pulled the Tigers into a 4-4 tie with his ninth goal at 1:32 of the third. . . . F Mark Reners scored twice for Edmonton. Reners opened this season with Lethbridge, putting up 11 points in 20 games. He was dealt to Vancouver and had three points in 11 games with the Giants. With Edmonton, he has seven points, including four goals, in seven games. . . . The Tigers actually won the 10-player shootout, 3-2. They got goals from F Hunter Shinkaruk, F Tyler Pitlick and Tochkin, with F Kristians Pelss and F Jordan Hickmott scoring for the Oil Kings. . . . Medicine Hat F Linden Vey had a goal, his 31st and two assists. He leads the WHL with 79 points, three more than Spokane F Tyler Johnson. . . . Attendance was 5,884. . . .
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In Red Deer, G Darcy Kuemper record his CHL-leading ninth shutout of the season as the Rebels beat the Moose Jaw Warriors, 3-0. . . . The Rebels, who have won seven straight, now have put up three straight blank jobs. . . . Kuemper stopped 35 shots in earning his 15th career shutouts. . . . Kuemper has blanked the Warriors three times this season and those are the only times Moose Jaw has been shut out. . . . Attendance was 5,993. . . . F Andrej Kudrna’s 19th goal at 14:18 of the second period stood up as the winner. . . . F Byron Froese scored his 22nd goal in to an empty net and also had an assist. . . . Kudrna drew an assist on Froese’s goal. . . .
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In Kamloops, F Andrej Stastny scored his first three WHL goals and set up another as the Vancouver Giants dumped the Blazers, 6-1. . . . Stastny was selected by the Saskatoon Blades in the CHL’s 2010 import draft, but they weren’t able to land him. After the Blades dropped him from their list, the Giants claimed him. He played for Slovakia at the 2011 World Junior Championship in Buffalo and joined the Giants after the tournament. . . . Statsny, who finished plus-4, now has seven points in eight games with Vancouver. . . . Vancouver G Mark Segal stopped 20 shots in winning his eighth straight decision. He is 17-8-4. . . . The teams were tied 1-1 after one but Vancouver took a 2-1 lead in the second on Stastny’s first goal and outshot the hosts, 22-7. . . . The Giants scored four third-period goals, including F Brendan Gallagher’s shorthanded tally. He has 29 goals this season. . . . The Giants wore the Blazers’ training camp black jerseys after their road whites somehow missed the bus to Kamloops. . . . Attendance was 4,223. . . . Kamloops scratched D Josh Caron. He had played seven games since sitting out 41 with a broken collabone. But he reinjured the collarbone on Friday and, while X-rays were negative, will be further checked out before returning to the lineup again. . . .
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In Spokane, the Kelowna Rockets scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Chiefs, 5-3. . . . Spokane, which had won four straight, last lost in regulation at home on Oct. 23, going 14-0-2 since that 4-2 loss to the Red Deer Rebels. . . . F Mitch Holmberg’s 10^th goal, 18 seconds into the second period, gave the Chiefs a 3-1 lead. . . . F Colton Heffley’s second goal of the season, at 5:03, got the Rockets to within one and F Shane McColgan’s 17^th tied it at 18:40. . . . F Brett Bulmer’s second of the game and 17^th of the season broke the tie at 16:28. . . . Kelowna F Geordie Wudrick got his 25^th into an empty net. . . . Kelowna F Zach Franko had two assists, running his points streak to 10 games. He has 13 points over that stretch. . . . F Tyler Johnson scored his WHL-leading 36^th goal and ran his points streak to 13 games. . . . Spokane F Levko Koper got his fourth shorthanded goal of the season. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 35 shots, 23 more than Spokane’s Mac Engel. . . . Attendance was 6,834. . . .
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In Kennewick, Wash., F Adam Hughesman scored three times to help the host Tri-City Americans to a 7-4 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . The teams combined for six goals in the first period and five in the second, then played a scoreless third. . . . Hughesman has 31 goals this season. He scored 17, 16 and 18 goals each of the last three seasons. . . . Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin had a goal, his 21^st, and three assists, while F Carter Ashton got his 20^th and drew three assists. . . . D Rasmus Rissanen had three assists for Everett, while F Parker Stanfield had two goals and an assist. . . . Attendance was 5,181. . . . The Americans, who are 6-0-1 in their last seven games, have won 13 straight home games, one shy of the franchise record. The Ams can tie that mark today when they meet the Kelowna Rockets, who have won three in a row and five of six. But the Rockets haven’t won in their last nine visits to Kennewick.
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In Chilliwack, F Nick Buonassisi’s shootout goal gave the Prince George Cougars a 4-3 victory over the Bruins. . . . D Sena Acolatse also scored for the Cougars in the shootout, while F Kevin Sundher counted for the Bruins. The shootout ended in the fifth round. . . . Chilliwack F Robin Soudek tied the game 3-3 with his 12^th goal, on the PP, at 5:39 of the third period. . . . Attendance was 4,123. . . . The Bruins were 2-for-6 on the PP; the Cougars were 0-for-4. . . . Chilliwack G Lucas Gore stopped 34 shots, two more than Prince George’s James Priestner. . . . F Taylor Stefishen scored twice for the Cougars, the first one shorthanded. He has 14 goals. . . . F Ryan Howse scored a goal, his 32^nd, and added a helper for the Bruins.

The drive to the WHL’s trade deadline has started.
It didn’t begin earlier in the week when the Tri-City Americans cut deals with the Everett Silvertips and Kelowna Rockets, because those were driven by Tri-City’s need to trim a 20-year-old from its roster.
No, the drive to the Jan. 10 deadline began late Friday morning with a deal between the Americans and Regina Pats.
For the second straight season, RW Carter Ashton, a first-round selection by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the NHL’s 2009 draft, is on the move.

CARTER ASHTON

Ashton was dealt Friday by the Pats to the Americans, along with a 2012 third-round bantam draft pick, for F Tanner Olstad, F Nils Moser, a 2011 first-round bantam draft pick and second- and fifth-round picks in the 2012 bantam draft.
It was a year and a day ago, on Dec. 9, 2009, that the Lethbridge Hurricanes dealt Ashton and F Craig Orfino to the Pats for F Graham Hood, F Tayler Balog, a 2010 second-round bantam draft pick and a 2011 first-round bantam pick.
Moser, a 17-year-old from Canmore, Alta., was a second-round pick in the 2008 bantam draft. He has one goal in 20 games this season, after earning three points in 38 games last season.
Olstad, an18-year-old from Calgary, had three points in 20 games with the Americans.
Ashton, a 6-foot-3, 200-pounder, is the son of Brent Ashton (Saskatoon, 1975-79). Carter is in Toronto in the selection camp of the Canadian national junior team. In 29 games this season, he has 27 points and 44 penalty minutes.
In 206 regular-season WHL games, he has 137 points and 267 penalty minutes. He was the sixth overall pick in the 2006 bantam draft.
The bottom line is this: The Americans get bigger up front; the Pats, who aren’t likely to make the playoffs and have begun the rebuilding process, get badly needed draft picks.
For more on the deal, check out Greg Harder’s coverage right here at the Regina Leader-Post’s website.
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D Jared Spurgeon, a product of the Spokane Chiefs, is making quite an impression with the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. Check out this story by Kent Youngblood of the Minneapolis Star Tribune right here.
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Some highlights from Friday’s WHL games . . .
In Moose Jaw, F Dylan Hood had a goal and three assists to lead the Warriors to a 6-4 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . F Quinton Howden scored twice and added an assist for Moose Jaw, while F Spencer Edwards had a goal and two helpers. . . . Howden has 21 goals now. . . . F Elgin Pearce counted three times for the Ice, giving him five this season. . . . Pearce, an 18-year-old from Port Coquitlam, B.C., had three goals in 45 last season as a freshman. . . . F Magnus Christian had three assists for the Ice, with F Joe Antilla scoring once, setting up two others and finishing plus-4. . . . Attendance was 2,650. . . . The Ice was without F Kevin King, its leading scorer, thanks to an infected elbow. . . .
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In Saskatoon, F Jake Trask scored his second goal of the game at 1:44 of OT as the Blades came from behind to beat the Everett Silvertips, 5-4. . . . Trask, who is from Saskatoon, was acquired earlier from the Kamloops Blazers. This was his sixth goal of the season. . . . Blades F Matej Stransky forced OT with a PP goal at 19:50 of the third period. . . . F Parker Stanfield had given Everett a 4-3 lead with his second goal of the game on the PP, at 16:31 of the third. . . . This was the Blades’ first home game after a 4-1-0 jaunt through the B.C. Division. . . . Everett led 2-0, 2-1, 3-1, 3-2 and 4-3. . . . Everett F Tyler Maxwell had a goal and three assists. . . . F Curtis Hamilton had two assists for Saskatoon in his last game before leaving for the Canadian junior team’s selection camp. . . . Ev erett G Kent Simpson stopped 40 shots. . . . Attendance was 6,112.
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In Calgary, F Kris Foucault scored 25 seconds into OT as the Hitmen beat the Regina Pats, 4-3. . . . Regina is 0-5 in OT this season. . . . Calgary trailed this one 3-0 at 9:36 of the second period as the Pats got shorthanded goals from F Thomas Frazee and Garrett Mitchell, and an score from Dyson Stevenson at 9:36. . . . F Jimmy Bubnick got a PP goal for Calgary before the second period ended, and F Justin Kirsch got another at 2:08 of the third. . . . D Matt MacKenzie tied it with his second of the season at 7:53. . . . MacKenzie also had two assists, as did Regina F Lane Scheidl. . . . The Eastern Conference’s two poorest teams combined for 29 shots, 16 by the Hitmen. . . . These teams will play an outdoors game at Calgary’s McMahon Stadium on Feb. 21. . . . Attendance was 7,680. . . . F Morgan Klimchuk, the fifth overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft, drew an assist for Regina. He isn’t eligible to play full time, but took F Carter Ashton’s spot on the Pats’ foster for this one. Klimchuk is from Calgary. . . . Neither of the forwards Regina acquired from the Tri-City Americans in the Ashton deal — Nils Moser or Tanner Olstad — was in Regina’s lineup. They likely will play tonight against the Rebels in Red Deer. . . .
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In Lethbridge, F Ryan Howse had two goals to help the Chilliwack Bruins to a 4-3 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . Howse has 22 goals. . . . He scored two PP goals as five of the game’s seven goals came with the man advantage. . . . Lethbridge F Mitch Maxwell got his 10th goal on a penalty shot at 19:48 of the third period. . . . Chilliwack F Roman Horak had three assists, while F Robin Soudek had a goal and two helpes. . . . Howse gave the Bruins a 2-0 first-period lead. The Hurricanes tied it with two PP goals — from F Cam Braes and F Austin Fyten. The Bruins then got third-period goals from Soudek, at 13:41, and F Jamie Crooks, at 15:41, to win it. . . . Chilliwack G Lucas Gore stopped 35 shots. . . . Attendance was 2,826. . . .
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In Red Deer, F Evan Bloodoff and F Geordie Wudrick each scored twice to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 5-1 victory over the Rebels. . . . The Rockets were without head coach Ryan Huska, who is serving as an assistant coach with Canada’s national junior team. Assistant coach Ryan Cuthbert, a former Rockets captain, will serve as head coach, with help from assistant Dan Lambert, in Huska’s absence. . . . The Rockets scored the game’s first four goals and took a 4-0 lead into the third period. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 37 shots. That included a penalty shot by F Colten Mayor at 7:57 of the third period. . . . Bloodoff has six goals; Wudrick has 15. . . . Attendance was 4,057. . . .
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In Kamloops, F Brendan Ranford scored his WHL-leading 26th goal of the season as the Blazers edged the Swift Current Broncos, 3-2. . . . Ranford’s goal, which broke a scoreless tie 49 seconds into the second period, was the Teddy Bear goal. . . . Ranford also had an assist and now is tied with Medicine Hat Tigers F Linden Vey for the WHL points lead, with 49. . . . F Cody Eakin scored both Swift Current goals and now has 18 on the season. He leaves from Vancouver today for the Canadian junior team’s selection camp. . . . The game was delayed for about 15 minutes in the third period after Swift Current F Killian Hutt, 19, went into convulsions following a hit by F Jordan DePape. Hutt was conscious and have movement in his limbs as he left the ice on a stretcher and was taken to hospital. . . . DePape was given a charging major and game misconduct. . . . The Broncos were 0-for-7 on the PP; the Blazers were 0-for-1. . . . Attendance was 4,332. . . . 
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In Portland, the Winterhawks broke open a scoreless game with three second-period goals and went on to a 4-1 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi, the WHL’s top scorer among freshmen, got his 20th goal at 3:30 of the second, on a PP, to get it started. . . . F Brad Ross added his 14th at 7:46 and F Spencer Bennett made it 3-0 with his 10th at 14:25. . . . It was Portland’s second victory in eight games. . . . F Spencer Asuchak, with his 10th, scored for Prince George at 18:44 of the second. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 22 shots. . . . Prince George G Ty Rimmer turned aside 26 shots, including Ross on a third-period penalty shot. . . . Attendance was 5,441. . . .
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In Kennewick, Wash., F Brendan Shinnimin scored once and added two assists as the host Tri-City Americans beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . Shinnimin scored at 1:10 of the first period and it was Tri-City’s Teddy Bear goal. . . . F Mason Wilgosh and F Justin Feser each added two assists. . . . F Adam Hughesman helped out with his 16th goal and an assist. . . . Tri-City G Drew Owsley stopped 22 shots, losing his shutout bid to F Charles Wells at 11:39 of the second. Wells has eight goals this season. . . . F Carter Ashton, acquired by Tri-City from the Regina Pats on Friday, wasn’t in the Americans’ lineup. He is in Toronto preparing for the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. . . . The Americans were 2-for-10 on the PP; the Thunderbirds were 0-for-3. . . . Attendance was 4,776. . . . The teams meet  again tonight in Kent, Wash. The Thunderbirds will be without G Calvin Pickard (13-9-7), who is off to the Canadian junior team selection camp. . . .
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In Vancouver, F Blake Gal scored the lone goal of the shootout as the Spokane Chiefs got past the Giants, 3-2. . . . Gal was the only one of the six shooters to find the range. . . . The goal was allowed after video review; it seems that G Mark Segal kicked the puck into his own net in the process of trying to make the save. . . . The Giants held a 2-0 lead halfway through the first period on goals by F Michael Burns — it was the Teddy Bear goal — and F Brendan Gallagher, his 25th. . . . F Tyler Johnson got his 20th, at 19:52 of the first, on a PP, to get the Chiefs on the board. . . . D Jared Cowen, who leaves today for the selection camp of Canada’s national junior team, tied it at 18:59 of the second, on a PP. . . . The Chiefs were 2-for-5 on the PP; the Giants were 0-for-2. . . . Segal stopped 43 shots, 23 more than Spokane’s James Reid. . . . Attendance was 12,263. . . . Giants D Luke Fenske (shoulder) returned after a seven-game absence, but they were without D David Musil, who suffered a hairline fracture in his right leg last week.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Two minors:
Kootenay D Joey Leach
Kelowna F Max Adolph

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.comTaking Note on Twitter