Thursday . . .

Jim Thomson, a former NHL enforcer, tells Sean Fitz-Gerald of the National Post that it’s time for fighting in hockey to come to an end. Thomson, with five children, is a recovering alcoholic who is afraid for his future and wonders how much blows to the head have had to do with all that he has gone through since his career ended. That story is right here.
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Eric Welsh of the Chilliwack Progress has the latest on that city and the situation involving a possible hockey team for the 2011-12 season. It may or may not be the Quesnel Millionaires. That story is right here.
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In the QMJHL, the host Saint John Sea Dogs got the winning goal at 12:17 of the third period as they opened the championship final with a 2-1 victory over the Gatineau Olympiques. . . . Former WHL G Jacob DeSerres made 22 saves for the winners. . . . .Game 2 is Saturday in Saint John.
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In the OHL, the visiting Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors beat the Owen Sound Attack 6-2 to take a 2-0 lead in that best-of-seven final. . . . .Game 3 is tonight in Mississauga. . . . St. Mike’s is the host team for the Memorial Cup so both teams will play in the tournament.
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JUST NOTES: You have to wonder how thrilled the head coaches of the Kootenay Ice and Portland Winterhawks are to have to attend a news conference today. Kris Knoblauch of the Ice and Mike Johnston of the Winterhawks, along with two players from each team, will attend the WHL’s news conference in advance of Game 1 of the championship final. . . . Can’t believe either coach is very happy about having to put players through this on a game day. . . . D Ryan Button, who went from the Prince Albert Raiders to the Seattle Thunderbirds on Jan. 10, signed a three-year deal with the NHL’s Boston Bruins. According to capgeek.com, the deal calls for an AHL salary of US$60,000 in each season, with NHL salaries of $585,000, $610,000 and $660,000. His signing bonus if $180,000 over three years. . . .
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THE COACHING GAME: Willy Palov of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald reports that “the Halifax Mooseheads will introduce Dominique Ducharme as their new head coach at a news conference Friday. Majority owner Bobby Smith was flying from Phoenix to Halifax on Thursday to get here in time for the introduction and didn’t want to tip his hand about who is getting the job. But other informed sources confirmed Ducharme is the guy.” Ducharme has been an assistant coach with the Montreal Juniors for the last three seasons. . . . The OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds made it official Thursday when they introduced Mike Stapleton as their new head coach. A former Soo assistant, he spent this season as an assistant with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch.
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The more of these stories that surface, the scarier it gets. Richard Scott had what The Globe and Mail’s James Mirtle refers to as a “short, brutal and fight-filled career with the New York Rangers.” Concussions forced Scott out of the game at the age of 25. He suffered head injuries in December 2003 that prevent him from doing manual labour today. Now he wants to help researchers learn more about these head injuries. . . . Mirtle’s story is right here, and it’s worth noting that Johnny Bower, Bobby Baun and Gordie Howe are involved, too.
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And, finally, if you haven’t seen this it lasts less than a minute and is worth a look.
A team of BCHL players recently returned from Russia, where they played a handful of games. During one of the games, a fan somehow made his way onto the ice. No, he didn’t get a cheery welcome. Check it out right here.

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.
———
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.
———
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.
———
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.
———
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.
———
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.
———
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

Tuesday . . .

Defenceman Jared Cowen (2) and his Spokane Chiefs had it
all over forward Mason Wilgosh and the Tri-City Americans
on Tuesday night in Kennewick, Wash.
(Photo by John Allen/AridAcres.com)

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Sami Sandell (Brandon, 2004-06) signed a two-year contract with Luleå (Sweden Elitserien). He had 18 goals and 29 assists in 47 games for Troja-Ljungby (Sweden Allsvenskan) this season.
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THE CHILLIWACK-TO-VICTORIA SAGA, Chapter 33:
So . . . let’s recap.
In a deal that seems to have been in the works for a while, the Chilliwack Bruins have been sold. Presumably to Vancouver-based RG Properties who, presumably, will move the WHL franchise to Victoria.
Except that the ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings, who also are owned by RG Properties,  continue to occupy the Save-On Foods Memorial Centre and will do so until at least April 22, which is the date for Game 4 of their second-round best-of-seven playoff series with the Utah Grizzlies.
Presumably the Salmon Kings will be on the move as soon as their season has ended. Perhaps RG Properties has found a buyer for the ECHL franchise, or perhaps the franchise simply will suspend operations.
But what of the arena in Chilliwack that has been home to the Bruins for the last five seasons?
The latest rumour has Lower Mainland people, perhaps a group involving long-time BCHLer Harvey Smyl, purchasing the BCHL’s Quesnel Millionaires and moving that franchise to Chilliwack.
Is there any meat to that rumour?
Well, Autumn MacDonald of the Quesnel Cariboo Observer wonders why her newspaper hasn’t been able to speak with anyone involved with Millionaires’ ownership or with anyone from the BCHL office. MacDonald’s piece is right here.
What MacDonald’s piece would seem to indicate is that there now are a whole lot of people living under Maxwell Smart’s Cone of Silence. That includes the WHL office, the BCHL office, RG Properties, the Chilliwack Bruins’ majority owners, the Quesnel Millionaires’ owners . . . and let’s not forget that the entire WHL is under a gag order on this subject.
Based on that, you are allowed to jump to your own conclusions.
Not to say that all of the silence has allowed this whole mess to get completely out of control, but other rumours that have arisen over the last month involve, in no particular order . . .
1. The Prince George Cougars moving to Chilliwack.
2. The Saskatoon Blades moving to Winnipeg (if the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes returned to Winnipeg, the AHL’s Manitoba Moose would go to Saskatoon, with the Blades then shifting to Winnipeg, or so the theory goes).
3. The Manitoba Moose moving to Seattle. (Again, only if the Coyotes return to Winnipeg.)
4. The Regina Pats moving to Chilliwack. (The Pats are involved in lease negotiations with their landlord. These negotiations, in the past, have turned nasty. So . . .)
5. The Kootenay Ice moving to Chilliwack.
6. An expansion franchise being awarded to former WHL/NHL goaltender Kelly Hrudey, who now is an analyst on Hockey Night in Canada and owns a chunk of the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers. Even though there isn’t an arena in Nanaimo that is close to meeting WHL standards.
———
Has the WHL proven to be “morally bankrupt” in the way it has dealt with the sale of the Chilliwack Bruins? Tyler Olsen of the Chilliwack Times offers up some opinion right here.
———
Eric Welsh of the Chilliwack Progress has a piece right here on how the fans who billet players are taking the news that the Bruins have been sold.
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THE COACHING GAME:
It would seem that the annual running of The Coaching Game has started early, early this year.
There already are five openings for head coaches in the NHL, where the Dallas Stars fired Marc Crawford on Tuesday. Also looking are the Florida Panthers (Peter DeBoer), Minnesota Wild (Todd Richards), New Jersey Devils (Jacques Lemaire) and Ottawa Senators (Cory Clouston). Lemaire retired (again); the others were dumped.
(After Richards was dismissed, Bruce Brothers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press put together a list of possible candidates for the Wild job. That list includes the name of Craig Hartsburg, a former Minnesota North Stars defenceman who now coaches the Everett Silvertips.)
As well, there are four head-coaching vacancies in the QMJHL, two of which were created Tuesday when the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles fired GM/head coach Mario Durocher and Clement Jodoin resigned from the Rimouski Oceanic.
Also looking are the Halifax Mooseheads and P.E.I. Rocket,
As well, the Chicoutimi Sagueneens may end up looking, should Guy Carbonneau choose not to remain in the position he took over during the season following the firing of Real Paiement.
In the OHL, the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds are without a general manager and a head coach, while the Sarnia Sting appears to have an interim head coach but no GM.
And, in the WHL, the Moose Jaw Warriors (Dave Hunchak) and Seattle Thunderbirds (Rob Sumner) are in the market.
Momma, it’s like the old song says, don’t let your babies grow up to be hockey coaches.
———
The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame has announced its class of 2011, and it is full of people with WHL connections, including Bob Cornell, Glen Lawson, Don Dietrich, Jayson More, Theo Fleury and Mike Keane.
There’s more right here.
———
A note from Elliotte Friedman’s weekly 30 Thoughts:
Luke Schenn had a very interesting take on the Raffi Torres suspension: "I was taught on that play to fake reaching for the puck and then go for the hit. If that's going to be illegal, they are going to have to change the way young players are taught hockey."
Friedman’s blog is right here.
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ON THE ICE:
Wow! The Eastern Conference’s top two seeds, the Saskatoon Blades and Red Deer Rebels, are in danger of having their seasons come to an end tonight. Both teams lost on the road Tuesday night and could be swept by the Kootenay Ice and Medicine Hat Tigers, respectively, tonight. . . . And who saw that coming? . . . Meanwhile, the Western Conference semifinals are following the chalk, with the No. 1 Portland Winterhawks and No. 2 Spokane Chiefs having taken 2-1 leads. . . .
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In Cranbrook, G Nathan Lieuwen stopped 22 shots to lead the Kootenay Ice to a 3-0 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Ice takes a 3-0 series lead into Game 4 at home tonight. . . . F Jesse Ismond got his first playoff goal on the PP at 18:34 of the first period and Lieuwen took it home from there. . . . Saskatoon G Steven Stanford was sharp, making 33 saves. . . . Ice D Brayden McNabb, who came into these playoffs with a postseason goal, got his third of this spring and added two helpers. . . . Ice F Joe Antilla continued his hot postseason, notching his sixth goal. . . . Attendance was 3,065. . . . The Blades scratched D Tanner Sohn, who had played in Game 2, and inserted F Alex Elliott. . . . Ice F Drew Czerwonka, who had missed the first two games with an injury, was back in the lineup and drew an assist on the third goal. . . . 
———
In Medicine Hat, F Hunter Shinkaruk broke a 1-1 tie at 6:09 of the third period and the Tigers went on to a 3-1 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Tigers are up 3-0 — they have outscored the Rebels 17-2 — and can wrap it up at home tonight. . . . F Kellan Tochkin gave Medicine Hat a 1-0 lead at 14:27 of the first period, with D Justin Weller equalizing at 3:13 of the third. . . . Shinkaruk’s fourth playoff goal stood up as the winner. . . . Tigers F Cole Grbavac continued his outstanding playoff with his eighth at 16:34. . . . Attendance was 4,006. . . . . Tigers G Tyler Bunz stopped 26 shots, as did Red Deer’s Darcy Kuemper. . . . Earlier in the day, Medicine Hat F Linden Vey was named the CHL’s player of the week. He had nine points in three games last week but was pointless last night. . . .
———
In Kelowna, F Ryan Johansen drew three assists as the Portland Winterhawks scored a 5-4 victory over the Rockets. . . . Portland leads the series 2-1 with Game 4 in Kelowna tonight. . . . Johansen had three goals in Portland’s 6-3 victory in Game 2 and now has 13 points in seven playoff games this spring. . . . The big goal in this one came off the stick of PortlandD Tyler Wotherspoon. He broke a 3-3 tie with his first playoff goal at 18:18 of the second period, just 40 seconds after Kelowna F Brett Bulmer had pulled his side even. . . . Porltand F Nino Niederreiter scored twice, giving him six. . . . The Rockets got a goal and two assists from F Colton Sissons. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth was outstanding, with 38 saves. . . . Kelowna’s chances of winning took a hit at 8:32 of the third period. With the Rockets trailing 4-3, F Shane McColgan was penalized for hooking and then was hit with a misconduct. He is the Rockets’ leading scorer in these playoffs. . . . Portland was 3-for-10 on the PP; the Rockets were 1-for-7. . . . Attendance was 4,884 in an arena where regular-season crowds averaged better than 6,000. . . . Portland played without F Brad Ross, who served the second game of a three-game suspension for a charging major in Game 1. . . . Kelowna F Zach Franko, who was hit by Ross, didn’t play, either. . . .
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In Kennewick, Wash., G James Reid stopped 20 shots as the Spokane Chiefs dumped the host Tri-City Americans, 4-1. . . . The Chiefs hold a 2-1 lead in the series with Game 4 in Kennewick on Thursday. . . . The Chiefs jumped out to a 3-0 lead before F Neal Prokop go the Americans on the board at 12:08 of the second period. . . . F Darren Kramer, with his fourth, gave the Chiefs some insurance at 17:14 of the third. Kramer has four goals and four penalty minutes in eight playoff games; he had seven goals and 306 penalty minutes in 68 regular-season games. . . . The Americans were without veteran D Tyler Schmidt, who sat out a one-game suspension after taking a clipping major in Game 2. . . . The Chiefs held a 41-21 edge in shots. . . . Attendance was 3,667. . . . The Americans won their first five game in these playoffs, but now hae lost two in a row.
———
TUESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Four minors:
Kootenay D Joey Leach.
Kelowna F Spencer Main.
Kelowna F Jessey Astles (two minors).

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

Thursday . . .

 Jim Mullin of Vancouver radio station CKNW tweeted late Thursday afternoon:
“Minority owner Moray Keith confirms to #CKNW that the Chilliwack Bruins have been sold to Victoria's RG Properties.”
———
Earlier, Eric Welsh of the Chilliwack Progress posted a piece right here on the impending departure of the Bruins to Victoria. And there are some interesting comments here from Clint Hames, a former Chilliwack mayor.
———
Meanwhile, Tyler Olsen of the Chilliwack Times also talked with Hames.
Here is part of what Olsen wrote:
Hames, who was instrumental in bringing the club to the Fraser Valley five years ago, had contacted WHL commissioner Ron Robison and several of the Bruins' owners to try to get to the bottom of rumours about the team's exit.
"I was told by (Bruins co-owner) Brian Burke that (Keith and Bond's) offer would not be considered and that the only offer they are considering is an offer from Victoria," Hames told Postmedia News.
Porter, however, claims the owners were carefully wading through multiple offers to buy the club. Porter also had told fans that the owners were doing what they could to keep the club where it is.
Robison has also said that moving a team is the last resort and that the league preferred to keep the Bruins in Chilliwack. He has refused any further comment on the issue.
A league spokesperson said the WHL will only comment "when there is news to report."
———
Obviously, there is a whole lot more going on between the WHL, RG Properties and who knows who else involving franchises on Vancouver Island.
But it doesn’t make any sense at all to have just one team on the Island, so we have questions, questions . . . we have questions:
1. With one team on its way to Vancouver Island, how long before a second one — expansion or otherwise — lands in Nanaimo?
2. Kelly Hrudey, who has ties to the WHL office as president of the WHL Alumni Association, became part-owner of the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers earlier this year. Does Hrudey’s sudden involvement mean anything in terms of a WHL franchise landing there?
3. Mike Vandekamp left the AJHL’s Grande Prairie Storm in March to take over the Clippers’ coaching reins. Let’s assume that Vandekamp, who did a turn as a WHL head coach with the Prince George Cougars a while back, aspires to coach in the WHL or at an even higher level. That brings us to this question: Why does a junior A coach leave one job for a similar position at that particular time of year? Or does Vandekamp know something that we don’t know about the WHL and Nanaimo?
4. Darren Parker, who had been running an independent league baseball franchise in Victoria until it folded over the winter, signed on with the ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings on Wednesday. He is the club’s senior vice-president of sales and marketing. He also is the son of Russ Parker, who owns the WHL’s Regina Pats. Why does Darren Parker, whose baseball team folded a few months ago, suddenly surface in the front office of an ECHL team that is owned by RG Properties which is in the process of purchasing a WHL franchise?
Oh, what a tangled web is being weaved.
———
By the way, Philip Wolf of the Nanaimo Daily News chimes is on the goings-on with the Clippers right here. He says his “bovine excrement detector” has been going off.
———
THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Eric Johansson (Tri-City, 1998-2002) signed a one-year (plus option) contract extension with Szekesfehervar (Hungary, plays in Austria Erste Bank Liga). He had 20 goals and 27 assists in 38 games this season. . . .
F Owen Fussey (Calgary, Moose Jaw, 1999-2003) signed a one-year contract extension with the Coventry Blaze (UK Elite). He had 24 goals and 15 assists in 34 games. Fussey had his season cut short when he tore his ACL and MCL in December.
———
The ugly side of the Internet has reared its face once again.
It is amazing what big ones some people have as they sit in momma’s basement and do stupid things with the aid of a computer and in the cloak of anonymity that is provided by the Internet.
This time it has struck in Saskatoon where the Blades were doing damage control Thursday thanks to comments that were made by a Brayden Schenn impostor on a Facebook page. Police have launched an investigation. There’s more right here from the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.
Cory Wolfe, who covers the Blades for the StarPhoenix, blogged about the Schenn situation. Wolfe’s piece is right here.
———
Merle Haggard sings about White Line Fever. No one, at least not yet, is singing of 50/50 fever. However, Kevin Mitchell of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix takes a look at what went on at last weekend’s Saskatoon Blades’ home playoff games. That story is right here. And having witnessed 50/50 fever at the Memorial Cup in Brandon last spring, I can tell you it’s an amazing thing.
——— 
Ron Toigo, the majority owner of the Vancouver Giants, is in Buenos Aires this weekend. No, he’s not scouting. He’s there for the wedding of part-owner Michael Buble and Luisana Lopilato. . . . Toigo took time to chat with Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun about this season and what’s ahead for his WHL team. . . . That story is right here.
———
And if you’re into wedding photos, here you go. . . . Buble and Lopilato were married in a civil ceremony in Buenos Aires on Thursday and there are some photos right here.
———
JUST NOTES: Ryan Barrett is the new GM/head coach of the AJHL’s Calgary Canucks, having moved up from assistant coach to take over from Don Phelps, who, it seems, has been there since before ice was invented. Mark Astley and Craig Mohr will work as assistant coaches. . . . Adam Brown of the Kelowna Rockets is the WHL’s goaltender of the month for March. He was 6-2-0, 1.61, .944 for the month. . . . F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Red Deer Rebels is the player of the month, after putting up 19 points in eight games. . . . D Corey Fienhage of the Kamloops Blazers will be joining the AHL’s Portland Pirates. He was a third-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL’s 2008 draft. Fienhage, 20, joined the Blazers after playing 39 games over the previous two seasons with the U of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. . . . The BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings have signed Dave Dupas to a three-year contract as head coach. He took over in November after GM/head coach Ed Dempsey was fired. The Spruce Kings also promoted assistant GM Mike Hawes to GM, although he will work at it on a part-time basis.
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THURSDAY’S PLAYOFF GAMES:
In Winnipeg, centre Linden Vey scored at 19:35 of the third period to give the Medicine Hat Tigers a 5-4 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The series is tied 2-2 with Game 5 scheduled for Medicine Hat on Saturday. . . . The Wheat Kings led 3-0 at 12:47 of the first period after F Matt MacKay scored his third goal of the series, this one via the PP. . . . Brandon led 4-1 at 17:45 of the first after F Shayne Wiebe got his third goal, also on the PP. . . . Medicine Hat F Kale Kessy scored at 18:13 of the first period. . . . The Tigers then counted three times in the third. . . . Vey, who led the WHL in scoring in the regular season, finished with two goals and two assists, while F Emerson Etem had a goal and two helpers. . . . Brandon held a 17-7 edge in first-period shots, but the Tigers outshot the Wheaties 31-12 over the last 40 minutes. . . . Attendance was 6,003. . . . The Wheat Kings are playing first-round home games in the MTS Centre in Winnipeg because the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair is in Westman Place in Brandon. . . . Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun was at the game last night. His story is right here. . . .

In Prince Albert, the Raiders came up with a gritty effort for the second game in a row and beat the Saskatoon Blades, 5-2. . . . The series is tied 2-2 with Game 5 in Saskatoon on Saturday. . . . Saskatoon won the first two games at home, outscoring the Raiders 13-3 in the process. . . . The Blades finished with the WHL’s best record, their 115 points leaving them 48 ahead of the eighth-place Raiders in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Blades scored first, getting a PP goal from F Curtis Hamilton at 2:32 of the first period, but the Raiders got the next three, the first two from F Todd Fiddler. . . . F T.J. Constant gave the Raiders a 4-2 lead in the third period with his first WHL point. Constant was added to the Raiders’ roster from the MJHL’s OCN Blizzard. . . . Attendance was 3,111. . . . D Duncan Siemens left the Blades’ bench in the second period and didn’t return. He is believed to have a leg injury . . .
In Edmonton, F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and an assist as the Rebels beat the Oil Kings 5-1 to win the series, 4-0. . . . Nugent-Hopkins, who will be an early pick in June’s NHL draft, had nine points over the four games. . . . F Brett Ferguson scored twice for Red Deer, the second into an empty net. . . . Edmonton’s lone goal came from F Curtis Lazar, the second overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft. It was his first WHL score. . . . Attendance was 5,938. . . . Red Deer scratched F Adam Kambeitz and D Aaron Borejko, both for undisclosed reasons. . . .
In Spokane, the Chiefs scored the game’s first three goals and went on to beat the Chilliwack Bruins, 4-2. . . . The Bruins closed to within 3-2 on F Roman Horak’s goal at 3:06 of the third but weren’t able to equalize. . . . Chilliwack F Ryan Howse left the game after the first period and didn’t return. . . . The Chiefs were without F Tyler Johnson, the WHL’s second-leading scorer. . . . The Bruins were without D Tyler Stahl, who got tossed from Game 3 with an elbowing major that knocked Johnson out of the game. Stahl is serving one of those tbd suspensions. . . . The Chiefs also were without F Anthony Bardaro, who drew a tbd sentence under supplemental discipline for a hit in overtime in Game 3. Bardaro wasn’t penalized on the play, but the Bruins asked the WHL to review the play. . . .
In Everett, F Sven Bartschi had a goal and two assists as the Portland Winterhawks beat the Silvertips 6-2 to sweep the first-round series. . . . F Jari Erricson gave the Silvertips a 1-0 lead at 5:22 of the first period, but Portland answered with five straight goals. . . . Attendance was 2,420. . . . Everett F Landon Ferraro was tossed with a cross-checking major as the second period ended. . . . This was the first time Portland has swept a playoff opponent since 1998 when it ousted the Brandon Wheat Kings in the championship final. . . . The Winterhawks had played 13 rounds since then. . . .
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Three of the four Western Conference series ended in sweeps, leaving the Kelowna Rockets, Portland and the Tri-City Americans awaiting a winner in the Spokane-Chilliwack series. . . . Remember that teams are reseeded by regular-season points, so if Spokane wins, the second round will feature Portland vs. Kelowna and Spokane vs. Tri-City. . . . If the Bruins come back from a 3-1 deficit, it’ll be Portland against Chilliwack and Kelowna against Tri-City.
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THURSDAY’S CFB COUNT:
Two minors:
Prince Albert D Harrison Ruopp
Chilliwack F Curt Gogol
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It was Opening Day on Thursday. Yes, we’re talking baseball.
So . . . here’s your good read for the day. Yes, it’s a year old, but it’s by Peter Gammons and it involves baseball and the blues and it doesn’t get any better than that. So take a look right here.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca

     

gdrinnan.blogspot.com

     

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