1. So who is the 14-year-old — he’ll turn 15 on June 19 — who already has committed to the U of Minnesota-Duluth? F Joey Anderson, a ninth-round selection by the Brandon Wheat Kings in the 2013 bantam draft, says: “I was ready for this and now I can just go out and play.” . . . Kevin Pates of the Duluth News Tribune has more right here.

2. Team officials from the Medicine Hat Tigers have seen the plans for a new arena for that city and they like what they saw. A design for a new arena is scheduled to be made public on June 11. Collin Gallant of the Medicine Hat News has more right here.

3. That didn’t take long. Less than a week after negotiations fell apart with their radio home for 19 years, 99.3 The Drive, the Prince George Cougars have a five-year deal with 94X Radio. All games will be carried at 94.3 FM and online at 94xfm.com. Dan O’Connor returns for a third season as the play-by-play voice with Hartley Miller, 94X’s sports director, also in the booth. . . . 94X is owned by Vista Radio; 99.3 The Drive is owned by The Jim Pattison Broadcast Group. . . . Peter James of the Prince George Citizen has more right here.

4. The Vancouver Giants have signed G Ryan Kubic, who was a second-round selection in the 2013 bantam draft. Kubic, from Winnipeg, played with the bantam AAA Winnipeg Hawks, putting up a 1.31 GAA and .941 save percentage in 24 games.

5. Darrell Romuld of CTV in Lethbridge tweeted Tuesday that “reliable sources tell me that Drake Berehowsky will be the next head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. We’ll find out next Thursday.” . . . Berehowsky just finished his first season as head coach of the ECHL’s Orlando SolarBears. Prior to that, he spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen. He also spent two seasons (2007-09) as an assistant with the OHL’s Barrie Colts. A defenceman, Berehowsky was the 10th overall selection by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL’s 1990 draft and went on to play 549 NHL games with Toronto, the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, Nashville Predators, Vancouver Canucks and Phoenix Coyotes.

6. ESPN broke the story yesterday that Major League Baseball may suspend a whack of players for up to 100 games for using whatever it was they were getting from the Biogenesis clinic in South Florida. Michael Rosenberg of SI.com has a good piece right here on the sample collector who got singed by Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers.

7. An assistant coach who also is the team president? Hey, why not? That’s what’s going on in Surrey where the BCHL’s Eagles have named Peter Schaefer (Brandon, 1994-97) as the team president. Schaefer just completed his first season as an assistant coach with the Eagles. "As an ownership group, we were excited to have Peter as a part of the coaching staff last season," said Eagles majority owner Chuck Westgard in a news release. "He showed an interest in having an increased role, and we're extremely pleased that Peter will be taking over the daily operations of the team.”

8. Of course Chicago Blackhawks D Duncan Keith should be suspended for at least one game for reckless use of his stick. Why is this even open for debate? . . . In fact, give him one game for that and another because the stick made contact with an opponent’s head.
———
THE COACHING GAME:
Jason Becker will be back for another go-round as an assistant coach with the Prince George Cougars. Becker, who has been with the Cougars since December 2009, and the Cougars have agreed on a one-year contract extension, taking him through 2013-14. . . . Becker is a former WHL player (Saskatoon, Red Deer, Kamloops, Swift Current, 1990-95), who went on to spent three seasons with the U of Saskatchewan Huskies before playing nine seasons in Europe.

Steve Turcotte of lapresse.ca reports that Bernard Martin will be the next head coach of the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes. . . . He will replace Denis Chalifoux., who left at season’s end despite having two years left on his contract. Chalifoux cited a desire to spend more time with his family. . . . Martin was the head coach of the QMJHL’s Victoriaville Tigres (2006-08).


The ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets have named Gary Graham as their new head coach. Graham spent this season guiding the Pensacola Ice Flyers to the Southern Professional Hockey League title. Before that, he worked as an assistant coach for four seasons under Al Sims, who retired following the end of the season. Graham is a native of Fort Wayne.


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.

News and notes . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Justin Mapletoft (Red Deer, 1996-2001) signed a one-year contract with the Schwenninger Wild WIngs (Germany, 2.Bundesliga). He had 16 goals and 19 assists in 52 games with the Straubing Tigers (Germany, DEL) last season. . . .
D Stepan Novotny (Kelowna, Swift Current, 2008-11) signed a two-year contract with Lev Poprad (Slovakia, KHL) after a successful tryout. He had 22 goals and 18 assists in 58 games with the Broncos last season.
———
JUST NOTES: Dan O’Connor is the new radio voice of the Prince George Cougars. A 26-year-old from Tsawwassen, O’Connor takes over from Andy Neal as director of broadcasting and corporate sales. He spent the last four seasons with the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars. Neal and his family are relocating to Victoria. . . . The Calgary Hitmen have claimed F Kenton Miller, 20, off waivers from the Spokane Chiefs. Miller, from Redvers, Sask., had 28 points, including 10 goals, in 55 games last season. His departure leaves the Chiefs with four 20-year-olds on their roster — D Corbin Baldwin, F Darren Kramer, F Steven Kuhn and F Matt Marantz. The Hitmen also show four 20s on their roster — Miller, along with F Jimmy Bubnick, D Ben Wilson and G Mike Snider. . . .
Former Brandon Wheat Kings G Rick Knickle (1977-80) is the Phoenix Coyotes’ new director of amateur scouting. He replaces Keith Gretzky, who reportedly is to join the scouting staff of the Boston Bruins. The Coyotes also named veteran scout Glen Zacharias as their western amateur scout. . . . The Colorado Avalanche has signed Saskatoon Blades D Duncan Siemens to a three-year contract. The Avs selected Siemens with the 11th pick of the 2011 NHL draft. . . .
The 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game will be held at Prospera Place in Kelowna on Feb. 1, with the skills competition and 3-on-3 challenge on Jan. 31. . . . The Swift Current Broncos have signed F Cavin Leth to a WHL contract. Leth was the 39th overall selection in the 2011 bantam draft. He had 45 points, including 28 goals, and 120 penalty minutes in 32 games with the bantam AAA Lethbridge Val Matteoti Golden Hawks last season. That selection had been acquired by the Broncos from Kootenay in the blockbuster January deal that had F Cody Eakin move to the Ice. . . .
———
The Canucks won Game 3, 4-3, on Wednesday, to sweep the three-game Ted Hargraves Cup series with the Bruins at the BC Hockey under-17 camp in Salmon Arm.
F Nick Hermary, with two, F Dexter Dancs and F Nick Petan, with his third goal in three games, scored for the winners. F Austin Ferguson, F Matt Needham and F Brandon Potomak replied for the Bruins.
After the victory, Bruins coach Brandon West, who will work as an assistant with the BCHL’s Westside Warriors this season, was heard to tell his guys: “Congrats boys. You are the only Canucks team to win a trophy.”
The BC Hockey evaluation staff will short-list about 20 players over the next two weeks. Those players will be closely watched and 11 of them will be selected, along with 11 players from Alberta, to play for Team Pacific at the U-17 World Hockey Challenge in Windsor, Ont.
Hockey Canada announced Wednesday that is has moved the 2012 WHC from Winnipeg to the Windsor region. The 10-team event, which features 27 games, is scheduled to run Dec. 29 through Jan. 4. The tournament will be centred in the WFCU Centre, the home of the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires, but games will played throughout the region. With the shifting of the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg, Hockey Canada and True North Sports and Entertainment, the owner of the Jets, felt it best to move the tournament.
———
ON THE MOVE: G John Gibson has decided not to attend Michigan and play for the Wolverines, Instead, he is expected to join the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers. Gibson, from Pittsburgh, was selected by the Anaheim Ducks with the 39th pick of the NHL’s 2011 draft. . . . D Connor Murphy, who went 20th overall to the Phoenix Coyotes in that draft, was headed to Miami of Ohio where he would play for the RedHawks. But Murphy, who is from Dublin, Ohio, has changed his mind and now apparently is headed to the OHL’s Sarnia Sting. . . . Earlier in the week, the Saginaw Spirit landed D Jamieson Oleksiak, who was taken 14th overall by the Dallas Stars in 2011, as he left Northeastern University after one year there. . . . There also are reports that Sarnia will be getting F Reid Boucher, a New Jersey Devils’ draft pick (99th overall, 2010). Boucher, from Grand Ledge, Mich., had said he would attend Michigan State in 2012-13. . . . The New York Rangers have signed F J.T. Miller, the 15th pick in the 2011 NHL draft. And, rather than attend the U of North Dakota and play for the Fighting Sioux, he is expected to end up with the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers. Miller was drafted after playing last season with USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, so could be assigned by the Rangers to the AHL. It is more likely, however, that he will play for Plymouth.
———
The Dallas Stars are one of eight NHL teams who will take part in the annual prospects tournament in Traverse City, Mich. This year’s edition runs from Sept. 10-14.
Included on the Stars roster are a number of players who were in the WHL last season — F Matt Fraser (Kootenay), F Scott Glennie (Brandon), F Cole Grbavac (Medicine Hat), F Matej Stransky (Saskatoon), D Jace Coyle (Medicine Hat), D Brenden Dillon (Seattle) and D Alex Theriau (Medicine Hat). Of that group, Fraser, Coyle and Dillon have used up their junior eligibility.
———
John Sharp of the Peoria, Ill., Journal Star reports that Gov. Pat Quinn signed a law Thursday that “helps educate people about concussions while making it harder for student-athletes to slip by and return to the playing field before they are ready.”
Sharp continues: “Quinn signed HB200 during a ceremony at Soldier Field in Chicago. The new law requires athletes to receive written clearance from a licensed health professional before returning from a concussion. It also ensures that student-athletes, parents and coaches are able to identify signs of a concussion through increased education. . . .
“The new law makes a set of guidelines, adopted by the Illinois High School Association in April, mandatory for all elementary, middle, junior high and high schools. Those guidelines specify when a student-athlete can return from a post-concussion injury.”
Sharp’s story is right here.

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