Rockets drop opener to Remparts . . . Lowry on Sharks' radar . . . Hiller on move

F Chet Pickard (Tri-City, 2005-09) signed  one-year-plus-option contract with RHW Iserlohn Roosters (Germany, DEL). This season, with Odense (Denmark, Metal Ligaen), he was 2.65 and .909 in 36 games. . . .
F Martin Cibák (Medicine Hat, 1998-2000) signed a one-year contract with Zlín (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Olomouc (Czech Republic, Extraliga), he had 11 goals and nine assists in 48 games. . . .
F Tyler Mosienko (Kelowna, 2000-05) signed a one-year extension with the Sheffield Steelers (England, UK Elite). This season, he had 26 goals and 37 assists in 60 games.
———

As you no doubt are aware, the games began at the Memorial Cup in Quebec City last night. . . . The host Quebec Remparts dumped the WHL-champion Kelowna Rockets, 4-3, before 9,497 fans. . . . In each of the last six tournaments, the host team had lost its opener. . . . The Remparts outchanced the Rockets and, at one point, held a 2-0 lead that could just as easily have been 5-0, but not for some solid play by Kelowna G Jackson Whistle. . . . A key part in this game occurred as the buzzer sounded to end the second period. The Remparts held a 2-1 lead at the time, with Kelowna F Nick Merkley having scored a shorthanded goal at 17:56 of the second period to get the Rockets to within a goal. . . . There was some milling around, some pushing and shoving, at the buzzer and the referees chose to slap misconducts on Kelowna F Leon Draisaitl and Quebec F Marc-Olivier Roy, both of whom are NHL draft picks of the Edmonton Oilers. That took Draisaitl, the WHL’s playoff MVP and Kelowna’s most-dangerous player, off the ice for the first half of the third period. . . . The Rockets didn’t do much offensively with Draisaitl off and, in fact, gave up a shorthanded goal to Quebec F Ryan Graves at 2:08 for a 3-1 Remparts lead. . . . Draisaitl came back and later scored the game’s last goal, on a PP, at 19:24. . . . The Rockets took 44 of the game’s 70 penalty minutes. If they are to win this tournament, they are going to have to stop giving the referees the option to make some of those calls. . . . The Rockets were 2-for-6 on the PP, but gave up that shorthanded goal. . . . Quebec was 0-for-5 on the PP. . . . Quebec G Zach Fucale stopped 26 shots, one fewer than Whistle. . . . Kelowna was 30-for-58 on faceoffs, and that was with Draisaitl struggling — he was 13-for-29. . . . Rockets D Madison Bowey had a game-high six shots, but he can play a lot better than he did. He fought the puck for a good part of this one. . . . The Rockets don’t play again until Monday, so will have some time to think about the loss.
——
Here is the Memorial Cup schedule (all games on Sportsnet; all times Eastern):
Friday: Kelowna 3 vs. Quebec 4 (9,497)
Saturday: Rimouski vs. Oshawa, 4:30 p.m.
Sunday: Quebec vs. Oshawa, 4:30 p.m.
Monday: Rimouski vs. Kelowna, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday: Oshawa vs. Kelowna, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday: Quebec vs. Rimouski, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday: Tiebreaker, if necessary, 7:30 p.m.
Friday: Semifinal, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 31: Championship game, 7 p.m.
——
An interesting note from Doyle Potenteau of the Kelowna Daily Courier, who is in Quebec City:
“The Colisée Pepsi is a wonderful, albeit aging, rink, one filled with
history. Located steps away is the city’s newest construction site, the home of Videotron Centre, an 18,482-seat arena that fans in this hockey-mad market hope will soon be home to an NHL team. And steps away from the Videotron Centre is Pavillon de la Jeunesse, a small but outstanding rink of which some WHL teams would be envious. The rink seats 5,000, has a low roof and an ice surface that, with the touch of a button, can be expanded from NHL to Olympic size in only eight minutes. If that sounds crazy, here’s something really crazy: The rink doesn’t have a main tenant, and, according to staff, is mostly used for cultural events.”
———


Those of us on the outside really have no idea how serious a contender Dave Lowry is for the head-coaching position with the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. But if you believe that where there’s smoke, there’s fire, the Victoria Royals head coach very well may be in the hunt. . . . It could be that someone like Randy Carlyle or Peter DeBoer will replace Todd McLellan. But, hey, it could be Lowry, who played 143 games with the Sharks back in the day. . . . David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News has more right here. . . . “I tried reaching Lowry through the Royals’ media relations director,” Pollak writes, “only to be told Lowry and Royals general manager Cam Hope — who indicated he thought the moment his coach would get a shot at an NHL job was getting closer — weren’t interested in talking any more about the subject. That, of course, only adds to Lowry’s viability as a serious candidate.”
——
The Spokane Chiefs have signed F Koby Morrisseau, who was the ninth overall selection in the WHL’s 2015 bantam draft. Morrisseau, 6-foot-1 and 170 pounds, is from Grandview, Man. He had 61 points, including 39 goals, with the Parkland Rangers, who play in the West Division of the Winnipeg bantam AAA league. . . . The Chiefs had two first-round selections in the 2015 draft. Earlier, they signed D Ty Smith, who was the draft’s first overall selection.
———

THE COACHING GAME:

The QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs have signed Danny Flynn to a three-year contract as head coach. Flynn, 57, spent this season as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. . . . Flynn, a veteran of the coaching wars, spent six seasons (2007-13) as head coach of the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats, guiding them to the 2010 championship. Flynn replaces Ross Yates, the head coach for the past two seasons.
——
Ansar Khan, who covers the Detroit Red Wings for MLive.com, reported Friday afternoon that former WHL coach Jim Hiller will be joining the Toronto Maple Leafs coaching staff. . . . Hiller, 46, coached in the WHL with the Chilliwack Bruins (remember them?) and Tri-City Americans. This season, he was an assistant coach under Mike Babcock with the Red Wings. . . . In Detroit, Hiller was responsible for the PP, which was the second most-prolific in the NHL.
———

Happy 63rd b'day to former 2-way winger Rich Preston who notched 31 goals in 79-80, his 1st NHL season following WHA. pic.twitter.com/a51aJ6LEme

— O-Pee-Chee Stars (@opeecheestars) May 22, 2015

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Looking back at WHL final . . . Hurricanes sign head scout . . . WHL involved in Tigers' lease talks

Eyes on the prize! @Kelowna_Rockets coaches already busy looking at game tape to prep for #MemorialCup #GoRockets! pic.twitter.com/CrFyveM7qY

— Lauren Pullen (@Lauren_Global) May 15, 2015

WHL PLAYOFF LEFTOVERS, AS OPPOSED TO TURNOVERS:

Depending on whether you are a fan of the Kelowna Rockets or Brandon Wheat Kings, you will say the WHL final was decided by timely, or untimely, goals. . . . The Rockets won Game 1, 4-3, in Brandon, erasing a 1-0 deficit with goals at 17:41 of the first period and at 0:52 and 1:19 of the second. . . . Kelowna won Game 2, 5-3, also in Brandon, scoring at 19:57 of the first period to a take a 2-1 lead and adding another goal just 27 seconds into the second. F Nick Merkley’s shorthanded goal at 10:16 of the third ended up as the winner. . . . In Game 3, the host Rockets won, 5-3. Kelowna F Leon Draisaitl scored shorthanded at 6:35 of the first period. Brandon tied it, but the Rockets scored just 59 seconds later. . . . In Game 4, on Wednesday night, the Rockets broke a scoreless tie with two shorthanded goals 19 seconds apart early in the third. . . . From Kelowna’s perspective, you will win a lot of games by scoring timely goals in that fashion. . . . From Brandon’s perspective, you can’t give up all those goals in those situations and hope to win, certainly not in a championship final. . . .
The Rockets, who won the WHL title on Wednesday night, played 19 playoff games, going 16-3. . . . They will ride a seven-game winning streak into the Memorial Cup in Quebec City next week. . . . The Rockets will open against the host Quebec Remparts one week from tonight (Friday, May 22). . . . The Rockets have played in a Memorial Cup in Quebec City on one previous occasion. They lost a semifinal game, 2-1, to the Hull Olympiques, who had won the QMJHL championship. The OHL-champion Kitchener Rangers beat the Olympiques, 6-3, in the final. . . . The Rockets also played in the 2009 Memorial Cup, which also was played in the province of Quebec. The Rockets lost the final of that one, 4-1, to the OHL-champion Windsor Spitfires. That was in Rimouski, Que. . . . Brett Iverson, one of the referees for Wednesday’s game in Kelowna, will be working his second straight Memorial Cup. . . .
Attendance in Kelowna on Wednesday was 6,428, the largest hockey crowd in Prospera Place since the final game of the 2004 Memorial Cup. . . . The Rockets beat the Gatineau Olympiques 2-1 on that occasion, before 6,636 fans. . . . Kelowna G Jackson Whistle’s father, Dave, played hockey for the Brandon U Bobcats. In fact, he was a team captain before going on to play in Europe. . . . “It’s awesome. I actually moved here from Europe the year they won the (Memorial Cup in 2004), and I’ve been coming to Rockets games every single year,” Jackson, who is from West Kelowna, told reporters after Wednesday’s game. “I wouldn’t want to do it anywhere else, it’s a great feeling and I’ve never been more excited in my life. Everybody wanted it so bad and it was just a great game.” . . .
Kelowna scored four shorthanded goals in the final series, and finished with nine in 19 playoff games. . . . The Rockets, however, are going to have to get their PP going if they are to have success in Quebec City. Kelowna had the WHL’s best regular-season PP, at 26.2 per cent, but it was only 1-for-13 in the final and 16-for-79 (20.3 per cent) overall. . . .
Rob Henderson, the Brandon Sun’s sports editor, has a final game story right here. . . .
Larry Fisher of the Kelowna Daily Courier has a final game story right here.
Thanks to Fisher, Henderson, Perry Bergson of the Brandon Sun and Doyle Potenteau of the Kelowna Daily Courier for all of their playoff coverage.
———


I made an error here yesterday when I was recounting the players on the Kelowna Rockets’ roster and how they were acquired. . . . I referred to four players having been acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders. Actually, it was only three. . . . F Chance Braid was acquired from the Prince George Cougars. Braid, 20, played three seasons with the Raiders before being dealt to the Cougars prior to this season. He played 35 regular-season games with the Cougars and 30 with the Rockets.
——
Rob MacLachlan has signed on as the Lethbridge Hurricanes’ head scout. The team didn’t reveal contract details, other than announcing that he had signed “a multi-year deal.” . . . At the same time, the Hurricanes named Todd Hassen assistant head scout. . . . MacLachlan, who is from Moose Jaw, worked for the Moose Jaw Warriors for the 14 years, the last 10 as head scout. MacLachlan, 57, was fired as Moose Jaw’s assistant GM and head scout on Jan. 23. . . . Hassen has been on the Hurricanes’ scouting staff. . . . MacLachlan replaces Blake Robson, who had been the head scout under his father, Brad, who was fired as the Hurricanes’ GM on Dec. 10. The Hurricanes didn’t announce it but Brad apparently quit shortly after his father was fired.
——
Another day . . . another day without a lease for the Medicine Hat Tigers, who are expected to play out of the brand new Regional Event Centre (aka The House That Bob Ridley Built) in 2015-16. However, the Tigers have yet to complete lease negotiations with SMG, the management company that has been contracted by the City of Medicine Hat to operate the facility. . . . Jordan Kanygin of CHAT-TV reports that the WHL has been involved in the lease negotiations for the past month. . . . That story is right here.
——
Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle spent part of this week in Memphis, watching, or trying to watch, the Golden State Warriors and the Grizzlies in an NBA playoff series. On Wednesday, Ostler went looking a place to watch the game. . . . “I drop into Club 521,” he writes. “A blues band is playing at Beale Street volume, which is 15 on a 1-to-10 loudness scale. Love to be an ear doctor in Memphis. A couple of TVs have the game on. Also: hockey and MMA. Based on about four joints I’ve dropped into, high-def TV is still in Tennessee’s future.” . . . The complete column is right here.
——
Are there cheaters on your favourite professional team, or teams? If so, how do you deal with it as a fan? Howard Cole has written a piece for Rolling Stone that deals with that question, and it’s a terrific read. It’s right here.
———

THE COACHING GAME:

Danny Flynn will be the next head coach of the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs, according to Stéphane Leroux of RDS. . . . The 57-year-old Flynn will replace Ross Yates, who resigned following the season. Flynn spent this season as an assistant coach under Ted Nolan with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. . . . Before that, he spent 2007-13 as GM/head coach of the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats. He also has been a head coach in the OHL, with the Belleville Bulls and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
———



The BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies don’t have a lease at The Q Centre, their home in Colwood, and, according to Mario Annicchiarico of the Victoria Times Colonist, “vice-president of business operations Sonya Saujani made it clear that the team has one foot practically out the door.” . . . . Annicchiarico’s story is right here.
———

Only been here a short time, but @Drat_29 has a street named after him. And the red light is on. #Draisaitl #MVP pic.twitter.com/u8t6nZfKpq

— Gord McGarva (@GordMcGarva) May 14, 2015

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Stanislav Gron (Seattle, Kootenay, 1997-99) signed a one-year contract extension with Cortina (Italy, Serie A). He had 34 goals and 30 assists in 39 games with Cortina this season, good enough to finish first in goals and second in scoring in Serie A. . . .


F Jeremy Yablonski (Edmonton/Kootenay, 1997-2000) was released by mutual agreement from his contract with Vityaz Chekhov (Russia, KHL). He had no points in eight games with Vityaz this season. . . .


D Shaone Morrisonn (Kamloops, 1999-2002) signed a one-year contract with TPS Turku (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had one goal and three assists in 46 games with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL) before being traded to CSKA Moscow (Russia, KHL) at the KHL trading deadline of Jan. 31, two games before the end of the regular season. With CSKA, he had one goal and one assist in those two games. . . .



F Oleg Saprykin (Seattle, 1998-2000) signed a one-year contract with CSKA Moscow (Russia, KHL). He had five goals and eight assists in 32 games with Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL) this season.
———


1. We’ve all seen Gregg Popovich, the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, use his eyes and tone of voice to barbecue an interviewer during one of those NBA in-game pieces. Marc Stein of ESPN.com writes right here about Popovich and his relationship with the people doing the interviewing. This, folks, is an entertaining read.
2. F Brenden Walker, who captained the Saskatoon Blades this season, has been invited to the Phoenix Coyotes’ development camp, July 8-12. Walker, an undrafted free agent, played out his eligibility with the Blades this season. He had 76 points, including 33 goals, with the Blades. . . . Darren Zary of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here.
3. According to the Moncton Times & Transcript, the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats have signed Danny Flynn, the director, hockey operations, to a three-year contract extension. Before the end of this season, Flynn also was the club’s head coach. However, ownership chose to split the jobs, with Flynn not to focus on hockey operations.
4. The Swift Current Broncos have signed F Tyler Steenbergen, who is from Sylvan Lake,
Alta., to a contract. He was the 12th overall selection in the WHL’s 2013 bantam draft after putting up 67 points with the Red Deer Rebels White last season.
5. When Jerome Bechard played with the Moose Jaw Warriors (1986-90), he always displayed a lot of heart. That heart got tuned up this week when Bechard, now the general manager and head coach of the SPHL’s Columbus, Ga., Cottonmouths, underwent open heart surgery. Kathy Gierer has more on Bechard’s story right here.
6. The Coaches Site is getting geared up for its 2013 Hockey Coaches Conference. The third annual conference, which runs Aug. 9-11, will feature at least three WHL head coaches in key roles. . . . Don Hay of the Vancouver Giants, Mike Johnston of the Portland Winterhawks, Mike Williamson of the Calgary Hitmen and Ben Cooper of the Victoria Royals. . . . The news release is right here. There also is a link to the website over there on the right and, if you're a coach, there are a lot of resources on it.
7. If you’re looking for more hockey, the AHL final opens Saturday with the Grand Rapids Griffins in Syracuse to play the Crunch. . . . The AHL announced Thursday that it and NeuLion, Inc., will stream the final at no charge. From the news release: “Using promo code CALDER2013, fans can register and log in at www.ahllive.com and watch all of the action.” . . . Game time Saturday is 7 p.m. ET.
8. If you watched the NHL game last night between the visiting Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings, and if you watched the game the night before when a non-call on Boston F Jaromir Jagr led to the host Bruins’ winning goal in double OT against the Pittsburgh Penguins, you may be asking yourself this: Just what is a penalty in the NHL? . . . Sorry, can’t help you because I don’t know either.
9. So what’s going on in the NBA, where the Denver Nuggets dumped head coach George Karl yesterday? Sean Deveney of sportingnews.com writes right here that it’s all about younger and cheaper.
10. F Andy McDonald of the St. Louis Blues announced his retirement yesterday. McDonald, 35, says he feels that he could play another two or three seasons, but post-concussion syndrome has taken its toll. Five brain injures, two of them in a 10-month span, proved too much to allow him to continue.
———
THE COACHING GAME:

The OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads extended the contract of general manager/head coach James Boyd through 2015-16 on Thursday. Boyd is preparing for his third season as the club’s GM/head coach, after spending four seasons as assistant GM/assistant coach under Dave Cameron.


The ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears announced Thursday that head coach Drake Berehowsky won’t be returning for a second season. The Solar Bears were 28-37-7 under Berehowsky  this season. . . . Darrell Romuld of CTV Lethbridge reported earlier this week that sources told him that Berehowsky will be named head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday. . . . “I do not have a contract with anybody right now,” Berehowsky told Brendan Sonnone of the Orlando Sentinel. “That’s about all I can say.”

Former NHLer Todd Krygier is the new head coach of the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks. Krygier, 47, who retired as a player in 2000, has been coaching at various levels in Michigan. He played 543 NHL games (1989-98_ with the Hartford Whalers, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, and Washington Capitals. . . . Krygier replaces Jim McKenzie, who was dismissed on May 24.
———



From former Portland Winterhawks F Brad Ross (@bross1818), who was watching Game 1 in the NBA final: “What a joke, brutal ref job in the heat game reminds me of the whl refs” #takeyourblindersoff”


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
G Ian Gordon (Swift Current, Saskatoon, 1992-95) announced his retirement through the Ingolstadt (Germany, DEL) website. Gordon had a 2.49 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 33 games for Ingolstadt this season. After five seasons in the AHL and IHL, Gordon headed for Germany, where he played 13 seasons in the DEL with Schwenningen and Frankfurt, and the past three seasons with Ingolstadt. He won a DEL championship with Frankfurt in 2003-04 and played in the DEL All-Star game in 2007-08 and 2008-09. . . .

F Roman Psurny (Medicine Hat, 2004-06) signed a one-year plus option contract extension with Litvinov (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had five goals and nine assists in 42 games with Litvinov and had one goal and one assist during a three-game loan assignment to Slovan Ustecti Lvi (Czech Republic, 1. Liga) this season. . . .

F Mike Egener (Calgary, 2000-04) signed a one-year contract extension with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite). He had three goals and 12 assists in 56 games with the Blaze this season.



———






Here’s an ad that was posted on alberta.kijiji.ca on April 1:

Slightly worn out WHL franchise for sale. NO LEASING!!! Treated with care and appreciation in it’s first few years and left to crumble more recently.

Includes:
A fantastic place to practice and perform.
Minimal backseat driving.
A healthy schedule of roadtrips.

Requirements:
WHL/NHL regulations dictate a brand new paint job before it hits the ice again.
A caring/knowledgeable owner to get under the hood and find out why it’s been stuck in neutral the past few years(occasionally locks into reverse).
A driver without vision problems.
Just a few more parts to beef up horsepower, speed and a fresh set of tires for MORE TRACTION and dependability.
NO KEY JINGLERS!

If interested please contact current board of directors directly.
Sincerely,
Fans of the Lethbridge Hurricanes
———
A few Memorial Cup-related thoughts from Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post:
“There is not a classier owner in junior hockey than Jack Brodsky, whose family has operated the Blades since 1976. If anyone deserves a Memorial Cup ring, it is Brodsky. But if the Blades capture major-junior hockey's greatest prize despite failing to register a single WHL playoff victory, it will not be the finest moment in CHL history. There has to be a better way.
“Here is one suggestion: Continue to rotate the host leagues. The champion of the host league earns a Memorial Cup berth, and some time off while a playoff is held to determine the other finalist. If the WHL is hosting, for example, the OHL and QMJHL champions would meet to determine the other Memorial Cup participant. A best-of-seven, Stanley Cup-style Memorial Cup championship series would ensue, with games being played in the home rinks of the two finalists. Such a format would ashcan the flawed host-team exemption and reward the fans of each league champion.
“Are there glitches in this proposal? Of course. The travel would be gruelling, although the NHL has overcome such obstacles when the New Jersey Devils have met the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks for Lord Stanley's grail. There is also the question of whether a Memorial Cup final could feasibly be held in a small centre such as Swift Current, where the Credit Union i-Plex seats 2,879. But, honestly, could this proposed format be any worse than the current blueprint?”
No, it couldn’t be worse.
Yes, it is time to go to a format that features two teams in a best-of-seven final for the Memorial Cup.
That is all.
———
JUST NOTES:
The Seattle Thunderbirds will be without F Connor Honey for their next two games, including tonight’s Game 6 of a first-round series with the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Honey has been suspended for three games for a hit from behind on Kelowna D MacKenzie Johnston in Game 4 of that series. . . . Honey sat out Game 5, so has two games left to serve. . . . Johnston will be out for up to two months with a shoulder injury. . . .

The Chicago Blackhawks have assigned F Mark McNeill of the Prince Albert Raiders to the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. McNeill had 67 points, including 25 goals, in 65 games this season. . . . He was the 18th overall selection in the NHL’s 2011 draft. . . .



F Nick Buonassisi, who finished his junior eligibility with the Brandon Wheat Kings last month, has joined the Central league’s Quad City Mallards. Buonassisi had 34 points in 69 games this season. . . . The Mallards are trailing the Fort Worth Brahmas 2-0 in a first-round best-of-seven series and have suffered two serious injuries. . . . The series resumes Wednesday in the Quad Cities.

THE COACHING GAME:
Danny Flynn is out as head coach of the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats, although he will stay on as the director of hockey operations. . . . The Wildcats were 42-33-3 this season, then were eliminated in five games by the Victoriaville Tigres in a first-round series. . . .


The U of Denver has fired George Gwozdecky, the long-time coach of the WCHA’s Pioneers. In his 19 years at Denver, he won two NCAA titles. Gwozdecky had one season left on a 12-year contract. . . . According to Mike Chambers of the Denver Post: “DU is the only Division I hockey team to have won 20 games in each of the past 12 seasons. However, the Pioneers recently lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the past six years, part of the reason the sources said Gwozdecky was fired. An inability for the school and Gwozdecky to reach a contract extension also figured into the decision.” . . . Chambers’ complete story is right here. . . .

Keith Cassidy won’t be back as the general manager and head coach of the SJHL’s Estevan Bruins. Cassidy, 38, completed two seasons with the club and the board of directors chose not to exercise an option for a third season. . . . This season, the Bruins finished fifth in the Sherwood Division, sidelined the Kindersley Klippers in a survivor series and then lost a best-of-seven series to the Yorkton Terriers in five games. . . . Josh Lewis of the Estevan Mercury has more right here.
———

The WHL’s first-round situation:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
FIRST ROUND
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
(Edmonton wins 4-1)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
(Medicine Hat wins 4-0)
Calgary (3) vs. Swift Current (6)
(Calgary wins 4-1)
Red Deer (4) vs Prince Albert (5)
(Red Deer wins 4-0)
———
SECOND ROUND
Edmonton (1) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Red Deer (4)
———
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Everett (8)
(Portland wins 4-2)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
(Seattle leads 3-2; Game 6 tonight in Kent, Wash.)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
(Kamloops wins 4-2)
Spokane (4) vs. Tri-City (5)
(Spokane wins 4-1)
———
Two more Western Conference series ended last night, leaving only the Kelowna Rockets and Seattle Thunderbirds left to settle the issue.
The No. 7 Thunderbirds take a 3-2 edge into tonight’s home game against the No. 2 Rockets.
Should Seattle win, the second round will feature the No. 1 Portland Winterhawks against Seattle and the No. 3 Kamloops Blazers versus the No. 4 Spokane Chiefs.
Should Kelowna win tonight, Game 7 of that series will be played in the Little Apple on Wednesday.
Should Kelowna win that series, the Rockets would face Kamloops in the second round, with Portland meeting Spokane.
No matter which team the Winterhawks play, they’ll be in Portland on Friday and Saturday.
———
MONDAY’S GAMES:
In Everett, F Oliver Bjorkstrand had two goals and two assists as the Portland Winterhawks dumped the Silvertips, 5-1. . . . Portland held a 52-13 edge in shots, including 20-4 in the second period and 15-1 in the third. . . . D Seth Jones had two Portland goals, his first of the series. . . . F Reid Petryk gave the Silvertips a 1-0 lead with a shorthanded goal at 2:14 of the first period. . . . Everett G Austin Lotz stopped 47 shots. . . .

In Victoria, F Kale Kessy scored three times to help the Kamloops Blazers to a 6-2 victory over the Royals. . . . Kessy leads the WHL with seven playoff goals. He also scored three times in Game 4, a 5-4 OT victory by the visiting Blazers. . . . Kessy played his first 284 regular-season and playoff games without a hat trick. He now has two in three game. . . . F Cole Ully and Kessy scored the game’s first two goals and the Blazers were never caught. . . . Kamloops F JC Lipon had a goal and two assists; he leads the playoff scoring race with 14 points. He was in on 14 of the Blazers’ 23 goals against the Royals. . . . D Joel Edmundson and F Brendan Ranford each had three assists for the Blazers. . . . D Keegan Kanzig scored one of Victoria’s goals. It was his first WHL goal, and came in his 143rd game, 133 of which are regular-season tilts.
———
CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT (11):
D Jordan Fransoo, Victoria

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT (4):
None
———


From Edmonton Oil Kings F Trevor Cheek (@trevorcheekAZDK): “Agreed to terms with the Avalanche. Could not be more excited! Still a lot of unfinished business to take care of this year!”

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