1. The Brandon Wheat Kings were being built for the 2015-16 season, weren’t they? A trade here and a tweak there, and the Wheat Kings finished first overall this season. Which means Kelly McCrimmon should be the WHL’s executive of the year and the coach of the year. Right?
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2. McCrimmon was the WHL’s exec of the year for 1994-95 and 2009-10. He won CHL honours in 2009-10. He has never been the WHL’s coach of the year.
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3. Whoops! McCrimmon wasn’t even nominated as the Eastern Conference’s coach of the year. That honour went to John Paddock of the Regina Pats.
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4. Of course, Mike Johnston was never honoured as the coach of the year, despite his accomplishments with the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Of course, Johnston never won the executive-of-the-year award either. . . . And look where not winning either award got him.
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5. F Oliver Bjorkstrand of the Winterhawks is the most exciting talent this league has seen since . . . F Nino Niedereitter, who also played for Portland.
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6. Bjorkstrand led the WHL in goals (63) and points (118), all in 59 games. Wouldn’t it have been great if the WHL had decided prior to this season to track individual shot attempts and shots on goal? Had that happened, we would know just how much shooting Bjorkstrand did in what has been a truly remarkable season.
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7. How many WHL teams and observers are hoping that the Kelowna Rockets don’t go all the way? Why? Because those people are of the opinion that the deal in which the Rockets landed F Leon Draisaitl from the Prince Albert Raiders, by order of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, stunk to high heaven.
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8. Bruce Hamilton of the Rockets is the Western Conference’s nominee as executive of the year. Some people thought the honour might go to Craig MacTavish of the Edmonton Oilers.
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9. In hindsight, one of the best trades, in terms of helping both teams, at the WHL deadline involved Portland and Calgary Hitmen. The Winterhawks sent G Brendan Burke to Calgary, a move that freed up their starting job for Adin Hill, an 18-year-old freshman from Calgary. . . . With Calgary, Burke went 13-3-1, 2.38, .918. . . . Hill finished up 31-11-1, 2.81, .921.
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10. I have yet to figure out what the WHL gets out of having its games on TV, but what I really don’t understand is how the league ends up with games on Shaw TV and Sportsnet at the same time. For example, on Friday, March 20, Shaw was showing Everett at Victoria, while Sportsnet gave us Kelowna at Vancouver.
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Another Sutter has made his way into the WHL. F Riley Sutter is skating with the Everett Silvertips, who selected him in the sixth round of the WHL’s 2014 bantam draft. . . . Riley’s father, Ron, is one of the six Sutter brothers to have played in the NHL. Ron and his twin brother, Rich, both had NHL careers. . . . Riley, who won’t turn 16 until Oct. 25, played this season with the midget AAA Calgary Rangers, putting up 50 points, including 22 goals, in 36 games. . . . Should Riley play in a WHL game at some point, he will become at least the 11th member of the Sutter family to do so.
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Shaw’s coverage will begin with Games 1 and 2 between the Calgary Hitmen and the Kootenay Ice. Those games are to be played in Calgary on Friday and Sunday.
Then it will be over to the series between the Regina Pats and Swift Current Broncos. Shaw will televise Games 3 and 4 from Swift Current on March 31 and April 1.
Shaw will return to the Calgary-Kootenay series for Game 5, if necessary, which is scheduled for Cranbrook on April 3.
If the series between the Red Deer Rebels and Medicine Hat Tigers goes six games, Shaw will show Game 6 from Red Deer on April 5.
And, finally, if the Hitmen and Ice need seven games to decide their series, Game 7 from Calgary on April 6 will be shown.
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Two games in the first-round series between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Edmonton Oil Kings have had their starting times changed. Games 4 and 5, the latter if necessary, are scheduled for Edmonton on March 31 and April 1. They now will begin at 8 p.m. Mountain, rather than 7 o’clock, as originally was scheduled. . . . That series opens tonight in Brandon.
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The Prince Albert Raiders have signed G Curtis Meger and D Ty Prefontaine. . . . Meger, a list player, is with the Regina Pat Canadians who are playing in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA League final. In 23 regular-season appearances, he was 16-5-0, 1.91, .934. . . . Prefontaine, from Saskatoon, was a fifth-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft. He had 36 points, including seven goals, in 36 games with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts.———
They’re working hard to raise money for a new arena in Assiniboia, Sask. With that in mind, they are holding their Sports Celebrity Supper and Auction on April 11, at 5:30 p.m. . . . Former New York Islanders star Clark Gillies, who is Moose Jaw’s favourite son, will be in attendance, as will Bob Bourne, who also is a former Islanders skater. Amber Holland, a world curling silver medallist, also is to be there. . . . Among the items available via silent auction: autographed Olympic Team Canada sweaters from the likes of Patrice Bergeron, Shea Weber and Ryan Getzlaf; a diamond ring; a northern Saskatchewan fishing trip; a trailer for a golf cart or ATV; a whole lot of autographed memorabilia and a trip for two to New York to watch the Islanders play. The latter trek includes seats in the Islanders’ Alumni box alongside Gillies. . . . Tickets? Email springfever@sasktel.net.
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THE COACHING GAME:
The Vancouver Giants are looking for their fourth head coach in three seasons. The Giants announced
yesterday that Claude Noel, who joined the team on Nov. 30, won’t return.According to the team, the decision was mutual.
The Giants were one of 10 WHL teams to make a coaching change during the last offseason. They also were the last of the 10 to fill the vacancy when they hired Troy Ward.
However, management chose to dump Ward when the team was 9-16-0 and on a road trip into the Central Division. Assistant coach Matt Erhart stepped in and went 1-2-0 before Noel was hired.
Under Noel, the Giants went 17-23-4.
Overall, they finished 27-41-4 and missed the playoffs.
In a revealing conversation with Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province earlier in the week, Noel talked about the future of the Giants organization:
”They have some work to do. They need to decide where they’re going to go and how they’re going to get there. There are some things that the organization is probably going to reassess. You always wonder: you were here, how did you get there? There are reasons you get from one to the other, and how do you get back? They have some young players. Their young players all look bright, but they’re just part of it. That’s just part of the equation. Who are your overages? Where’s your goaltending? Where’s your defence? Who are your forwards? Who’s going to score?”
Ewen’s blog piece is right here.
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“Chalk up a win for former players in their battle with the NHL over hockey-related head trauma,” writes Allan Muir of Sports Illustrated. “A motion filed by the league to dismiss the master complaint brought by the players was dismissed today in United States District Court in Minnesota.” . . . Muir’s piece is right here.
The order denying the motion is right here.
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Adam Proteau of The Hockey News takes a look right here at the above-mentioned lawsuit, the decision and the direction in which this whole thing appears headed.
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Centre Jack Miller, the Michigan Wolverines’ best offensive lineman in 2015, won’t play his senior season and he tells ESPN.com it’s because of the risk of brain injuries.
“I know I've had a few, and it's nice walking away before things could've gotten worse,” Miller told ESPN.com. “And yes, multiple schools have reached out. But I'm ready to walk away from it. My health and happiness is more important than a game.
“I know it's pretty unorthodox for a 21-year-old to see past his own nose. This game requires such a passion to excel, and my flame is burned out. However, I'd be lying if I said that the concussion thing doesn't scare me a little.”
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Oh man this made me very sad. Me too, Chuck. Me too. RT @AaronG80: Hey @ArielHelwani....... pic.twitter.com/1xKb956ZK0
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 25, 2015
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The Medicine Hat Tigers are having a tough time getting to Victoria, so tonight’s game against the Royals has been postponed until Thursday, 7 p.m. . . . It will be televised by Shaw-TV. . . . The Interior of B.C. was hit hard by snow from Sunday morning through early Tuesday morning. Kamloops, for example, experienced the largest single-event snowfall since 1927. As a result, a number of highways have been closed, mostly for avalanche control. . . . The Tigers arrived in Revelstoke on Tuesday at 1 a.m., only to find the highway ahead of them closed for avalanche control. In late afternoon, they decided to spend the night in Revelstoke. . . . Shortly after that decision was made, it was revealed that the highway may not open until at least noon today, which wouldn’t leave the Tigers nearly enough time to get over the Coquihalla Highway to the ferry. . . . Instead of playing three games in four nights in the B.C. Division, the Tigers now will play three-in-three as they are scheduled to meet the Giants in Vancouver on Friday and the Rockets in Kelowna on Saturday. . . . BTW, on Tuesday, there was a lot of freezing rain in the Interior.
In lieu of the postponed game tonight, the Royals have invited fans to the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre for a meet-and-greet with head coach Dave Lowry and D Joe Hicketts, both of whom were part of Canada’s victory at the WJC in Toronto on Monday night. . . . The rest of the Royals also will be on hand. . . . It all starts at Gate 1, 6 p.m., with a 90-minute free skate to start at 6:30 p.m.
With Tanner Faith’s season over thanks to a shoulder injury, the Kootenay Ice are in the market for a veteran defenceman, but general manager Jeff Chynoweth isn’t about to trade away any of his aces. . . . Taylor Rocca of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman has more 
In Brandon, the Everett Silvertips struck for three second-period goals and went on to beat the Wheat Kings, 5-0. . . . Everett G Austin Lotz, a native of St. Adolphe, Man., had family and friends on hand as he made his first career start in his home province a great one. He made 39 saves, including 21 in the first period. . . . He has three shutouts this season and nine in his career. . . . Everett was 3-for-7 on the PP, gettings its first two goals with the man advantage. . . . F Carson Stadnyk scored twice, giving him 15, while F Ivan Nikolishin had two assists. . . . F Remi Laurencelle added his eighth goal and an assist, while F Patrick Bajkov got his 13th goal and also had an assist. . . . D Reid Gow, who left the U of Manitoba Bisons to join the Wheat Kings, made his Brandon debut. . . . The Wheat Kings scratched F Rihards Bukarts with an undisclosed injury and D Ivan Provorov, who played for Russia at the WJC. . . . The Silvertips remain without D Kevin Davis, who has an undisclosed injury. . . . Everett (24-11-4) is 3-0-0 on a six-game East Division swing that continues tonight in Regina. . . . The Wheat Kings (29-8-4) had won five straight and had points in each of their previous 10 games (8-0-2). . . . 
In Moose Jaw, the Calgary Hitmen scored three first-period goals and went on to a 6-1 victory over the Warriors. . . . F Connor Rankin scored his 19th goal, on a PP, at 3:07 of the first and F Carsen Twarynski got his third 1:14 later as the Hitmen got off to a hot start. . . . F Adam Tambellini upped the lead to 3-0, with his 23rd, at 16:29. . . . Tambellini finished with two goals and an assist, while F Chase Lang got his 17th goal and added an assist. . . . Calgary D Jake Bean, 16, had three assists. He’s got 18 points, all assists, in 29 games. . . . G Brendan Burke, acquired from Portland on Tuesday, hadn’t yet joined the Hitmen, so they had Thomas Spence of Moose Jaw backing up Mack Shields. It was the fourth time that Spence, 18, has served as an emergency backup in a WHL game. . . . D Reid Zalitach, 18, who left the Warriors for personal reasons early in November, has returned to the team. He was a scratch from this one and likely won’t play for a week as he works on his conditioning. . . . D Connor Clouston, acquired by the Warriors from the Kamloops Blazers earlier in the day, wasn’t in Moose Jaw in time to play. . . . Moose Jaw F Brayden Point, part of the golden Canadian team at the WJC, was to have played, but his equipment didn’t arrive in time. . . . Calgary F Jake Virtanen, who also played for Canada, wasn’t scheduled to play. . . . The Hitmen lost F Taylor Sanheim to a headshot major and game misconduct at 15:02 of the second period. . . . The Hitmen (22-15-3) have won two in a row. . . . The Warriors slipped to 16-21-4. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has a game story 
In Prince George, the Cougars scored five times in the third period and beat the Tri-City Americans, 8-4. . . . The Americans took a 4-3 lead into the third period. . . . Cougars F Zach Pochiro tied it with his eighth goal at 2:57 of the third period and F Colby McAuley gave his guys the lead with his third of the season at 6:56. . . . F Brad Morrison had two goals, giving him 14, and two assists for the Cougars. He also was plus-5. . . . F Chase Witala, playing his 200th regular-season game with Prince George, got his 22nd goal. . . . Cougars F Jansens Harkins had three assists. . . . The Americans got two goals from F Beau McCue, giving him 16. . . . The Americans had D Mark Drohan in their lineup. A 16-year-old from Calgary, he plays for the AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons. He is expected to return to Fort McMurray after the Americans and Cougars play in Prince George again tonight. The Cougars (20-21-0) had lost their previous two games. . . . The Americans (18-19-2) have lost four in a row (0-3-1).
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