Blazers' top pick back with Vees . . . Howe ashes to be interred by statue of Mr. Hockey

F Jens Meilleur (Brandon, 2010-14) has been assigned on loan by the Nuremburg Ice Tigers (Germany, DEL) to Beyreuth (Germany, DEL2). Meilleur signed a two-year contract with Nuremburg in April. Last season, with the Kassel Huskies (Germany, DEL2), he had 11 goals and 14 assists in 50 games.

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One day after recording two assists in the Kamloops Blazers’ intrasquad game, F Massimo Rizzo was back in the Penticton Vees’ lineup for a BCHL exhibition game against the host West Kelowna Warriors on Wednesday night.

Rizzo, from Burnaby, B.C., was selected by the Blazers with the 15th overall pick in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. He put up 137 points, including 60 goals, in 61 games with the bantam AAA Burnaby Winter Club Bruins last season.

Rizzo, who hasn’t signed with the Blazers, played in one game with the Vees last week, before joining the Blazers in time for their rookie camp. He was held over and took part in main camp, before rejoining the Vees on Wednesday.

It is quite evident that Rizzo and his family plan on keeping his NCAA option open, at least for the short term.

As for the Vees, general manager/head coach Fred Harbinson likes what he has seen.

“He’s an elite player, a player we are excited about,” Harbinson told Fraser Rodgers, the Vees’ radio voice, prior to Wednesday’s game. “I think he’s excited about us. Obviously, he has some decisions down the road but right now it looks like he’s going to be an affiliate player with us for this (season). We’ll see how many games he can get into.

“It’s more about building a relationship with him and his family and kind of seeing how it goes from there.”

If you’re wondering, the Vees and Warriors played to a 2-2 draw.

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The Victoria Royals have signed three players — D Jeremy Masella, D Matthew Smith and F Tarun Fizer. . . . Masella, 17, is from Phoenix. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder had a goal and 10 assists in 25 games with the U-16 Arizona Bobcats last season. . . . The 5-foot-10, 140-pound Smith, 16, was a seventh-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft. From Saskatoon, he had seven assists in 41 games with the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers last season. . . . Fizer, 15, was a fourth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. From Chestermere, Alta., he had 57 points, including 33 goals, with the Rocky Mountain Raiders of the Alberta Major Bantam League last season. . . . F Blake Bargar scored three goals in the Royals’ intrasquad game on Wednesday, helping Team White to a 6-3 victory over Team Blue. Bargar, 18, was acquired in May from the Moose Jaw Warriors for a conditional eighth-round pick in the 2018 bantam draft. From Torrance, Calif., he had one goal and five assists in 59 games as a freshman, and one goal and one assist in 60 games last season.

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The Saskatchewan government has given the OK to a request by the City of Saskatoon to declare the area around a Gordie Howe statue a cemetery. The statue is located near the Sasktel Centre, the home of the Saskatoon Blades. . . . This all but clears the way for the Blades to honour Howe prior to their home-opener on Sept. 25. 

From a Blades’ news release:

“The Blades can now move forward in the planning to have the ashes of Gordie Howe and his wife Colleen interred in front of his statue on Sept. 25 at Sasktel Centre. This will happen in a private ceremony for Howe’s immediate family. Following the ceremony, the Blades will take the Howe family to the newly christened Gordie Howe Bridge for the official naming of the bridge.

“The celebration of Mr. Hockey’s life and legacy will then shift back to Sasktel Centre where a tailgate party is planned prior to the Blades home opener against the Swift Current Broncos. The Blades also have a spectacular pre-game ceremony planned to thank Gordie for everything he has done for the game of hockey, our city, and most importantly our people.”

The Blades will announce more details on Sept. 6.

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The Regina Pats have signed F Logan Nijhoff and F Duncan Pierce to WHL contracts. . . . Nijhoff, 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds, is from Comox, B.C. Last season, with the Okanagan Hockey Academy’s bantam prep team, he had 27 points, including 11 goals. He was an eighth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . The 6-foot-1, 186-pound Pierce is from Winnipeg. Pierce, 16, had seven goals and six assists in 39 games with the midget AAA Winnipeg Thrashers last season.

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The Saskatoon Blades got their roster down to 30 players on Wednesday. Among the players released was D Chance Patterson, 19, of Foam Lake, Sask. The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder had one assist in 57 games over the past two seasons with the Edmonton Oil Kings.

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The Medicine Hat Tigers have signed D Dalton Gally, a 6-foot-5, 230-pounder from Eagle River, Alaska, who played last season with the NAHL’s Austin Bruins. Gally, 18, had three goals and four assists in 50 games. In 2014-15, he played four games with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers and 15 with the U-16 Omaha Lancers. . . . He was a sixth-round pick by the Calgary Hitmen in the 2013 bantam draft.

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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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Riley Armstrong has joined the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers as an assistant coach. Armstrong, 31, played two seasons (2002-04) in the WHL, with the Kootenay Ice and Everett Silvertips before going on to a pro career that ended following last season with the ECHL’s Reading Royals. A native of Saskatoon, Armstrong will work alongside Jeff Christian, who is preparing for his first full season as head coach.

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Whatever happened to Kimbi Daniels? . . . McCrimmon in the NHL? Why not? . . . Oil Kings sign forward

The fun starts in Quebec City today as the Memorial Cup opens with the WHL-champion Kelowna Rockets meeting the host Quebec Remparts.
With that in mind, Ed Willes of the Vancouver Province revisits the 1989 tournament with a focus on Kimbi Daniels, who played in that event and had a seemingly bright hockey future. Daniels and the Swift Current Broncos won that tournament in Saskatoon.
Now the Rockets are hoping to win it. Lorne Frey, their assistant GM, was an assistant coach with the Broncos; Dan Lambert, the Rockets’ head coach, was an offensive force as a defenceman.
That piece is right here.
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Here is the Memorial Cup schedule (all games on Sportsnet; all times Eastern):
Friday: Kelowna vs. Quebec, 7:30 p.m.
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, May 29: Semifinal, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 31: Championship game, TBA
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The Toronto Maple Leafs — yes, they introduced Mike Babcock as their latest head coach on Thursday — have added Jim Paliafito as their director of player evaluation. He had been the general manager of the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit.
The Leafs’ front office also includes Mark Hunter, who had been the general manager of the London Knights, and Kyle Dubas, the former GM of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
All of this prompted Gary Lawless of the Winnipeg Free Press to write:
“The Leafs have Mark Hunter and Kyle Dubas just below president Brendan Shanahan on the hockey management side. If they add a third in a vice-president or assistant GM role, Kelly McCrimmon and his unparalleled knowledge of the Western Hockey League is a first and last call kind of guy.
“McCrimmon is owner, GM and head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings and is as sharp a hockey mind as one will come across. McCrimmon has an MBA and has successfully operated the Wheat Kings since 1992. He knows players, he knows business and he knows hockey. He’s a first-rate person. The Leafs, or any NHL club for that matter, would be lucky to have him.”
Lawless is correct, of course, and you might wonder why no NHL team has yet made such a call. Perhaps it’s because the GM making that call would have to have supreme confidence in his own abilities and be capable of continuing his life without feeling McCrimmon was after his job.
Sometimes that just doesn’t happen. Or have you never wondered how it is that the late Ed Chynoweth never was given the opportunity to run an NHL team?
The complete Lawless piece is right here. He also makes a good point about NHL coaches and salary disclosure.
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The BCHL’s Penticton Vees have done a lot of winning under Fred Harbinson, their GM and head coach. Don’t think for a moment that no one has noticed. As Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province writes right here, Harbinson appears to be on the radar of the U of Wisconsin Badgers and the Vancouver Giants.
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THE COACHING GAME:

The QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes have extended the contract of head coach Martin Bernard through the 2016-17 season. His contract was to expire after next season.
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Dan Muse is the new head coach of the USHL’s Chicago Steel. Muse had been an assistant coach at Yale U for six seasons. . . . The Steel also announced that Larry Robbins has purchased majority interest in the franchise. According to a news release, Robbins is“a Chicagoland native, professional investor and hockey enthusiast.”
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The MJHL’s Neepawa Natives have signed Jim Fuyarchuk as their new head coach. Most recently he worked as head coach of the U-18 Miskolci Jegesmedvek club in Hungary. . . . Prior to that, he worked four seasons with the MJHL’s Waywayseecappo Wolverines. He also has been head coach of the now-defunct Brandon U Bobcats and spent five seasons in the Super League in Great Britain. . . . Fuyarchuk replaces Dwight Kirkup, who had been head coach for the previous two seasons.
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The fourth annual Bauer BCHL Showcase is scheduled for Sept. 24-27 at Prospera Centre in Chilliwack. According to a news release, “An extra day has been added to this year's Showcase in order to allow all games to be played on Prospera Centre's main ice surface.” . . . Matchups will be announced after the BCHL’s annual general meeting, June 4-6. . . .
The Edmonton Oil Kings have signed F Colton Kehler, who was a seventh-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft. Kehler, from Port Coquitlam, B.C., will turn 18 on June 27. . . . This season, the 5-foot-11, 165-pounder had two goals in nine games with the BCHL’s Cowichan Valley Capitals and nine goals and seven assists in 41 games with the Langley Rivermen. . . . He was a prolific scorer in major midget, scoring 41 times in 40 games for the Vancouver-North East Chiefs in 2012-13. . . . Kehler had committed to Clarkson before changing his mind and signing with the Oil Kings. . . .
If you have been wondering, the annual Young Guns preseason NHL tournament will be held in Penticton, Sept. 11-14. The Vancouver Canucks will again play host to the tournament that also will feature prospects from the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers and Winnipeg Jets. . . . The Oilers’ lineup is likely to include F Connor McDavid. . . . Tickets go on sale July 10. . . . There’s more right here, including a schedule.
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OMG :) Found this in a box. Hilarious! #TheGoonSquad #NewWestBruins pic.twitter.com/VKDnEVzjuF

— Dusty Imoo (@Dusty70) May 22, 2015

I see word is out I'm hanging 'em up after 40 yrs in newspapers. Last official day May 29 but on holidays until 28th. So almost done. 😉😀😎

— Elliott Pap (@ElliottPap) May 21, 2015

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Dylan Stanley (Tri-City, 2000-05) signed a one-year contract with EV Bozen 84 Bolzano (Italy, Serie A2). He had 18 goals and 34 assists in 21 games with Bad Nauheim (Germany, Oberliga) last season. . . .
D Benn Olson (Kamloops, Seattle, 2004-08) signed a one-year contract with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite). Olson played with four teams last season, getting one goal in 17 games with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL), one goal in nine games with the Ontario Reign (ECHL), and going pointless in one game with the Houston Aeros (AHL) and 11 games with the Alaska Aces (ECHL). . . .
F Wacey Rabbit (Saskatoon, Vancouver, 2001-07) signed a one-year contract with Lørenskog (Norway, GET-Ligaen). He had two goals and 12 assists in 71 games with the San Antonio Rampage (AHL) and four assists in three games with the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) last season. . . .
F Vitali Karamnov (Everett, 2007-08) signed a one-year contract with Lev Prague (Czech Republic, KHL). He had 17 goals and 10 assists in 53 games with VMF St. Petersburg (Russia, Vysshaya Liga) last season. . . .
F Igor Valeyev (Lethbridge, Saskatoon, Swift Current, 1998-2000) signed a one-year contract with Buran Voronezh (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). He had seven goals and seven assists in 30 games for Kazzinc-Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk (Kazakhstan, Russia Vysshaya Liga) and one assist in one game with Kazzinc-Torpedo-2 Ust-Kamenogorsk (Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Vysshaya Liga) last season.
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Cascadia Sports Systems of Port Moody, B.C., has finished installing new acrylic glass in Credit Union Centre, the home of the Saskatoon Blades and the host building for the 2013 Memorial Cup.
Mal Paterson, co-owner of Cascadia Sports Systems, tells Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix that the key to his company's design is that each pane of glass is eight feet wide, doubling the conventional width. Paterson said the posts that divide the glass can bend up to five feet.
The buildings in Calgary, Edmonton, Portland and Vancouver also feature acrylic glass.
Nugent-Bowman’s story is right here.
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F Scott MacDonald, who played one season with the Chilliwack Bruins (2008-09) and two with the Everett Silvertips (2009-11), will play next season with the UBC Thunderbirds under head coach Milan Dragicevic. MacDonald had 66 points in 192 regular-season WHL games before playing last season with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks, who lost the championship final to the Green Bay Gamblers. He had 31 points in 49 regular-season games with Waterloo.
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THE COACHING GAME:
The ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads are poised to introduce Brad Ralph as their new head coach on Saturday. He will replace Hardy Sauter who was let go after the season. Ralph has spent the last two seasons as head coach of the Southern Professional league’s Augusta RiverHawks. . . .
Fred Harbinson, the general manager and head coach of the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, has agreed to a five-year contract extension that takes him through 2018-19. Harbinson led the Vees to a BCHL-record 54 victories and the RBC Cup last season. . . . Harbinson has completed five seasons with the Vees. . . . Last season, the club set BCHL records for victories (54) and points (110). . . . Harbinson told Fraser Rodgers, the team’s radio voice, that assistant coaches Steve Cawley, Mike Hengen and Matt Sells will be back for 2012-13. . . .
Bill Bestwick, who was out of hockey last season and calls it the worst winter of his life, is back, this time as head coach of the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. The team also has a new majority owner, meaning that Len Barrie is out.
Mario Annicchiarico of the Victoria Times Colonist has more right here.
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This is just too good to pass up. The crazy bunch at MAD magazine has prepared a plaque just in case Roger Clemens gets elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. It is right here.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From former Edmonton Oil Kings F Tyler Maxwell (@KingMaxymus23): “Goodbye California. I am leaving you for Austria. Maybe when I get back I will run for Governor.”
Maxwell, who played out his junior eligibility last season with the WHL-champion Oil Kings, has signed with Red Bull Salzburg, the Austrian league team that is coached by Pierre Pagé.

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