Another departure from Brandon as Klippenstein joins Colorado

These are the pipes that came out of our rink.  I think it was a little overdue #BetterIce#AmsHockey pic.twitter.com/kQtLu8zn5M

— Robert (Bob) Tory (@BTORY) August 5, 2016

F Tomáš Vincour (Edmonton, Vancouver, 2007-10) has signed a one-year contract with Brno (Czech Republic, Extraliga). Last season, with Sibir Novosibirsk (Russia, KHL), he had 10 goals and 17 assists in 45 games.

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Things got even more interesting with the Brandon Wheat Kings on Friday with the news that Wade Klippenstein, the team’s director of scouting, is off to the NHL.

Dean Millard (@DuckMillard) of The Pipeline Show tweeted: “Brandon Wheat Kings will also lose Head Scout Wade Klippenstein as he's taken an NHL job with a western conference team. #Vegas???”

It turns out that the Colorado Avalanche has hired Klippenstein, a veteran WHL scout, as a western scout. Klippenstein had been with Brandon for three years.

Prior to that, he spent six years with the Prince George Cougars. He also has worked with the Prince Albert Raiders, Saskatoon Blades and Moose Jaw Warriors.

The Wheat Kings, of course, lost general manager and head coach Kelly McCrimmon to the NHL

when he signed on as the assistant general manager with the Las Vegas franchise that is to begin play in 2017-18. McCrimmon will continue to own the Wheat Kings, though.

Brandon also is in need of an athletic therapist after Josh Guenther, who had been there for three years, left to join the Red Deer Rebels.

As well, Bruce Luebke, the radio voice of the Wheat Kings for the past 23 seasons, and radio station CKLQ decided to go their separate ways last month.

McCrimmon has a number of veteran scouts on staff, including senior scout Gary Michalik and head scout Mark Johnston. Garth Mitchell has been on the scouting staff since 1998, while Mike Fraser has been there for four years, after spending seven seasons working for the Swift Current Broncos. Derrick Kemp has scouted for Brandon for eight seasons.

Obviously, McCrimmon has options, as he does in the front office where Rick Dillabough and Lyn Shannon are long-time employees who are most capable of running the business side of things.

But he needs a head coach — have to wonder if he has spoken with Dean Chynoweth? — and someone to oversee the hockey side of things.

And time is of the essence. McCrimmon is expected to scout the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup that opens Monday in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Bratislava, Slovkia. The Wheat Kings, who are the WHL’s reigning champions, are scheduled to open training camp in Brandon on Aug. 30.

For now, all eyes are on Brandon.

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The BCHL’s Salmon Arm Silverbacks have acquired former WHL D Carter Cochrane from the Trail Smoke Eaters in exchange for F Josh Laframbroise. . . . Cochrane, who will turn 20 on Oct. 18, is from Kamloops, 

Last season, Cochrane played one game with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants, five with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs and 14 with the BCHL’s Cowichan Valley Capitals. . . . He also has played in the WHL with the Everett Silvertips and Tri-City Americans. In 2013-14, he had 47 points, including 16 goals, in 55 games with Chilliwack and it is that form that the Silverbacks are wanting to see. . . . Laframboise, who also is heading into his 20-year-old season, is from Thunder Bay, Ont. The Silverbacks acquired him from the Penticton Vees in 2014-15. In 93 games with Salmon Arm over the past two seasons, he had 62 points, including 20 goals.

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If you’re in the mood for a good read, Bryan Curtis of The Ringer takes a look right here at Dan Shaughnessy, the long-time sports columnist from the Boston Globe. . . . Shaughnessy always has done things his way and that hasn’t changed although the times have.

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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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Mark Chase has joined the SJHL’s Melville Millionaires as an assistant coach. Chase, from Kamloops, has coached for more than 10 years in the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association, including at the bantam AAA and major midget levels. He also has been involved in the U-16 high performance program. . . . In Melville, he will work alongside head coach Devin Windle.

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These summer world junior games are completely unnecessary. Inter-squad ok sure, but coaches screaming "compete" in August no thanks.

— Patrick O'Sullivan (@realPOSULLIVAN) August 5, 2016

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Everett GM gets extension . . . Hitmen hire assistant coach . . . Americans add goalie coach

D Matt Delahey (Regina, Chilliwack, 2004-10) signed a one-year contract with the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite). Last season, with the University of Saskatchewan (CIS), he had a goal and seven assists in 22 games. He was a CIS West second-team all-star. Delahey also was an alternate captain for Canada at the World University Games as Canada won a bronze medal in Granada, Spain, in February.
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The Everett Silvertips have signed general manager Garry Davidson to a contract extension that runs through 2019-20.

GARRY DAVIDSON

Davidson, 64, will begin his fourth full season as GM this fall. He has been the GM since Feb. 15, 2012, when he replaced Doug Soetaert.
Prior to joining the Silvertips, Davidson spent four seasons as the director of player personnel with the Portland Winterhawks.
Before joining the Winterhawks, he had been in the BCHL, working in Salmon Arm, Penticton, Nanaimo, Victoria and Trail.
His last BCHL stop was Salmon Arm where he spent seven years (2001-08) as owner, GM and head coach.
It’s interesting that during his time in the BCHL he became Enemy No. 1 in WHL circles. No one recruited harder than did Davidson and there were many people inside the WHL who detested him because of it.
Now he is in the process of putting together an impressive run in Everett.
In 2012-13, his first full season, the Silvertips were 25-40-7, finishing fifth (and last) in the U.S. Division and eighth in the 10-team Western Conference.
In 2013-14, they wound up 39-23-10, tying for second in the division and fourth in the conference.
Last season, Everett’s 43-20-9 record left it atop its division and second in the conference with what was the WHL’s third-best record.
Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald has more on Davidson’s signing right here.
Patterson’s story also includes an update on the seemingly never-ending saga of F Auston Matthews, an 18-year-old who continues to explore his options.
“I know there's been a lot of speculation about Auston Matthews,” Gary Gelinas, the Silvertips’ president, said. “I can tell you that from talking to his agent, he was going to come to Everett until the U-18 (World Championship in April, when Matthews was named MVP) when some pro teams saw him. Auston has no issue playing in Everett. We were the first choice until the pro thing occurred, and we're still in the mix. A lot of the credit for that goes to Garry Davidson.
“Obviously, we're disappointed, but we respect that he's looking at all his options, and we're not giving up hope.”
Everett selected Matthews in the third round of the 2012 bantam draft, Davidson’s first as the Silvertips’ GM. Matthews now is seen as a possible first overall selection in the NHL’s 2016 draft.
He is believed to have signed a contract with the ZSC Lions, who play in Switzerland’s top pro league, but is having problems getting a work permit.
Were he to end up in Everett, his presence would immediately make the Silvertips a championship contender.
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Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe dipped into the sports department’s old Rolodex — actually, the cards all are in a drawer now — and came up with a neat column. It’s right here.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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Trent Whitfield is joining the Calgary Hitmen as an assistant coach, filling the opening created when Brent Kisio signed as head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Whitfield, 38, will work alongside head coach Mark French, assistant Joel Otto and goaltending coach Darcy Wakaluk. . . . Whitfield, from Alameda, Sask., retired as a player following 2013-14 and spent last season as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Portland Pirates. He played 16 seasons as a pro. . . . Whitfield played four seasons (1994-98) in the WHL, all with the Spokane Chiefs.
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The Tri-City Americans have named Rejean Beauchemin as the team’s goaltending coach, while adding Jerry Price as goaltending consultant. . . . Beauchemin, 30, replaces Lyle Mast, who is exploring pro options after three years with the Americans. . . . Beauchemin, from Winnipeg, played three seasons (2002-05) with the Prince Albert Raiders before going on to a pro career that ended after 2011-12. He has been working as a strength and conditioning coach and a goaltending instructor. . . . Price is a former WHL and pro goaltender who also is the father of Montreal Canadiens G Carey Price, who played for the Americans.
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Ken Hodge won the 1980-81 coach of the year but I can't get past Patty Ginnell wore a cowboy hat while coaching. #WHL pic.twitter.com/MOROhK805z

— Victoria Cougars (@victoriacougars) July 14, 2015

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Prior to the start of the World Series, federal agents confiscated some counterfeit tickets. According to comedy writer Jim Barach, they were tipped off “when they saw the tickets were for the Cubs vs. the Astros.” . . . Major League Baseball is wanting, again, to speed up its game, so commissioner Bud Selig has struck yet another committee. “In a related story,” reports Brad Dickson of the Omaha World-Herald, “NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell formed a committee to speed up this season and get it over with.” . . .

You have watched the San Francisco 49ers on TV and you know that their head coach, the tightly wound Jim Harbaugh, doesn’t have a sense of humour. Au contraire. On a recent conference call with St. Louis media, Harbaugh was asked about veteran defensive tackle Justin Smith. First, Harbaugh pointed out how well-respected Smith is, then he added: “Chuck Norris calls Justin Smith ‘sir.’ ” . . . The Erie Otters and Niagara IceDogs drew 10,000 fans to a game in Buffalo the other night. As Vancouver comedian Torben Rolfsen noted: “They may become the first city to upgrade from the NHL to the OHL.” . . .

Judging from a Sportsnet commercial that is getting lots of play, Rogers isn’t too aware of the relationship between Vancouver hockey fans and Mark Messier. Here’s Rolfsen: “Mark Messier selling hockey to Vancouver Canucks fans is like Bono selling anti-spam ware to Mac users.” . . . Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe, offered up this following the death of Oscar de la Renta: “Most women are thinking, ‘Sad, it’s the end of an era.’ Most men are thinking, ‘What team did he play for?’ ” . . . Richmond, B.C., blogger TC Chong knows that de la Renta didn’t play on a team. “I remember clearly when he lost fights to Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao,” Chong writes. . . .

There is a report out there claiming that the U of Texas is to begin paying scholarship athletes $10,000 a year. “Why the pay cut?” wonders contributor Bill Littlejohn. . . . By now you have seen the Chevrolet commercial that features Little League baseball star Mo’Ne Davis. It seems that U.S. college footballers Jameis Winston and Todd Gurley messaged the NCAA after seeing that TV spot. The message, according to Littlejohn, was: “Show me the Mo'Ne.” . . .

Montreal Alouettes receiver Chad Johnson (@ochocinco) tweeted the other day: “Meryl Streep changed her phone number . . .” Obviously, the man still has his sense of humour. . . . “California firefighters staged a rooftop rescue to free a woman stuck in the chimney of a home owned by a man she’d just started dating,” reports RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com. “Where’d they meet? At a shingles bar?” . . .

Outfielder Jarrod Dyson and his Kansas City Royals were dominated by San Francisco left-hander Madison Bumgarner in Game 5 as the Giants took a 3-2 lead in the World Series. “One good thing for us,” Dyson said after the game, “we don’t have to worry about Bumgarner no more.” . . . It didn’t quite work out that way, did it? . . . According to Ian Hamilton of the Regina Leader-Post, Bumgarner’s World Series performance “was the most impressive display by a Giant since Andre in Wrestlemania 2.” . . .

“The Cleveland Cavaliers lost at home to the New York Knicks in a major upset on Thursday night,” reports the aforementioned Chong. “LeBron James could only muster 17 points in his much heralded return to the Cavs, and fans were chanting for Bumgarner to replace him during the second half.” . . . One more from Chong: “Consuming three glasses of milk a day has been associated with premature death. That’s especially true when the cow backs up while you’re drinking.” . . .

Things haven’t been going particularly well for the U of Florida Gators this football season. “In the face of mounting criticism,” writes Littlejohn, “Florida football coach Will Muschamp says he’s adopting a bunker mentality. Which one, Archie or Edith?” . . . John Garrett, the Sportsnet hockey analyst who sees the world through Vancouver Canucks-coloured glasses, all but blamed Montreal Canadiens defenceman Alexei Emelin for having a long chin when he got drilled by forward Alex Burrows on Thursday night. It was a predatory-type hit, the kind the NHL should be trying harder to get out of its game. The three-game suspension with which Burrows was hit wasn’t nearly enough, although Garrett likely thinks it was too much. . . .

“Hundreds of Seattle medical-marijuana dispensaries have received letters from the city warning that they might be shut down,” writes Ron Judd of the Seattle Times. “It raises the alarming possibility that city residents might have to resort to buying their pot at a far cheaper price and zero hassle from the same guy in Wallingford who has sold it to them since 1976.” . . . Here’s one from Jack Finarelli, the Sports Curmudgeon: “Rhetorical question of the week. Where else but in intercollegiate athletics could Idaho be in the Sun Belt Conference?” . . .

Over time, for one reason or another, the World Series has lost its mojo. No matter how exciting the series, no matter how much drama there is, it just isn’t what it used to be. “Today, the World Series is like The Ed Sullivan Show, the Miss America pageant, Timex watches, and sitting in your favorite chair surrounded by a stack of daily newspapers,” writes Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe. “It’s like Peanuts. It was once the biggest event in sports. Now it’s a relic of a simpler time before the Worldwide Leader and the World Wide Web. My fantasy baseball world of 1962 has been overthrown by the fantasy baseball (where you can win millions!) of 2014. In 2014, the World Series is your father’s Oldsmobile.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

MARTIN RICHARD

Who knows why things turn out like this, but Martin Richard is likely to become the face of the 2013 Boston Marathon.
Martin is the eight-year-old boy — and hockey fan — who was killed Monday in the explosions in Boston.
His father, Bill, released a statement that reads, in part:
“My dear son Martin has died from injuries sustained in the attack on Boston. My wife and daughter are both recovering from serious injuries. We thank our family and friends, those we know and those we have never met, for their thoughts and prayers. I ask that you continue to pray for my family as we remember Martin. We also ask for your patience and for privacy as we work to simultaneously grieve and recover.”
The Boston Globe has more on the Richard family right here.
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If you like good writing, you should check this out right here. There are links here to a few columns written after Monday’s tragedy in Boston.
The piece by Leigh Montville really provides a sense of what it’s like on the course and what the Marathon means to the people of Boston and area.
Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe writes about how the Boston Marathon will never be the same.
Again, it’s all good stuff. It’s just too bad it had to be written.
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The WHL and its officiating crew have taken some heat in a letter to the editor that was published in the Kelowna Capital News. The letter writers, who claim they are angry enough that they won’t be buying Rockets’ season-tickets, are upset over the disparity n penalties during Game 4 of the game between the Rockets and Blazers in Kamloops. . . . That letter is right here.
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The 1963 Memorial Cup-winners — the Edmonton Oil Kings — have an active alumni association and Murray Greig of the Edmonton Sun reports right here that Gregg Pilling, Bert Marshall and a few others will be active in the Edmonton area on the weekend.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Chad Mercier has resigned as general manager and head coach of the AJHL’s Bonnyville Pontiacs. Mercier had been in that position for the past seven seasons. He was the AJHL’s coach of the year for 2010-11. . . . The Pontiacs finished third in the North Division this season. . . . Mercier is a former WHL goaltender (Regina, 1992-97) who has coaching experience with the Pats and Saskatoon Blades. . . .

Willie Desjardins of the Texas Stars has been named winner of the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL’s coach of the year. The Stars are affiliated with the NHL’s Dallas Stars. . . . Desjardins, a veteran WHL coach (Medicine Hat, 2002-10) before moving on up, is in his first season as head coach of the AHL team. Under his leadership, the Stars are close to clinching their first division title. . . . Desjardins, 56, was the WHL’s coach of the year for the 2005-06 season. . . . The AHL award is voted on by other AHL coaches and members of the media who cover teams in the league.
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The WHL’s playoff situation:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
THIRD ROUND
Edmonton (1) vs. Calgary (3)
Series opens Thursday in Edmonton; all games on Shaw TV.
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WESTERN CONFERENCE
THIRD ROUND
Portland (1) vs. Kamloops (3)
Series opens Friday in Portland.
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TUESDAY’S GAMES:
No games scheduled.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT (16):
None

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT (5):
None
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From Portland Winterhawks F Brendan Leipsic (@leip28): “This whole playoff layover is getting ooooooold!! #legooo #conffinals #friday”
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From Dan Russell (@DanRussellCKNW), the hosts of Sportstalk and Shaw TV’s play-by-play man on WHL games: “Its clear no one at the NHL front office has ever heard the term ‘everything in moderation’. #6outdoorgames”
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Russell, again: “Just like the NHL spoiling ‘uniqueness’ of playoff OT by serving it up every night, they seem to be doing same with the outdoor concept. #$$$$”

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