THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Gasper Kopitar (Portland, 2009-11) has been released at his own request by Mora (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He was pointless in 13 games.
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1. In his weekly Slap Shots column, Larry Brooks of the New York Post touches on the return of Rick DiPietro and then delves into NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's ruling on the appeal filed by Patrick Kaleta of the Buffalo Sabres over his 10-game suspension for a shot to the head of Jack Johnson of the Columbus Blue Jackets. It is the Bettman part that makes for intriguing reading. That column is right here. . . . The DiPietro signing with the AHL's Charlotte Checkers is interesting because the parent club, the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes, has lost starting goaltender Cam Ward to injury.

2. A terrific piece by Dan Barry of The New York Times begins: "The Protestant minister and the Roman Catholic priest had a $10 bet riding on the 1946 World Series. The minister, a Lutheran from Missouri, went with the St. Louis Cardinals, naturally. The priest, a Franciscan from upstate New York, was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan, but he went with the Boston Red Sox to make things interesting." . . . Both men were involved in the Nuremberg trials at the time. . . . This is amazing stuff and it's right here.

3. One of the biggest stories of the week didn't receive a whole lot of play in some places, including here. And you know that the Sunday's NFL pregame shows didn't touch on it. Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre, who has admitted to having suffered "a lot" of concussions during his career, has said that he has some memory loss. In fact, he can't remember whether one daughter played soccer one season. . . . There's more on that right here.

4. This brain injury thing isn't going away. I know that a lot of people are tired of hearing and reading about it -- or maybe they can't be bothered to listen or read. But it is only going to get bigger and bigger. If you don't believe it, check out the Monday Morning Quarterback website and see some of the work they did in recent days. There are some horrific stories there.

5. Mike Fraser, who scouts out of Edmonton for the Brandon Wheat Kings and is a veteran of the scouting circuit, offered up this gem after Saturday's sporting action (I was still laughing as I went to bed):
"Rider fans, I introduce you to Red Sox fans. You both whine and complain more than any other fans on the planet, you both believe there are ridiculous conspiracy theories against your teams and you both feel you are better than everyone else because you are Rider/Red Sox fans. You are perfect for each other. A match made in heaven. You're welcome. And to think...people call me a poor match-maker...."

6. It is World Series time, which means baseball is under the microscope. That includes the uniforms, especially the baggy pants. "What was once a stylish game has gotten depressingly schlubby,” Tyler Thoreson, the vice president for men’s editorial and creative at Gilt, the flash-sale site, tells Alex Williams of The New York Times. “Those baggy, ill-fitting pants are a sign of just how out of touch the M.L.B. is from the average American male, who has spent the last five years rediscovering the power of clothes that actually fit.” . . . There's more right here.

7. There were some police officials waiting for Miami Dolphins centre Mike Pouncey shortly after his side lost 27-17 to the host New England Patriots on Sunday afternoon. He was served with a grand jury subpoena, and it's all tied up with the Aaron Hernandez case. There's more from si.com right here.

8. The Red Deer Rebels, have lost four in a row and eight of 11, had one of those stickless practices on Sunday. “We had a tough practice today, but we have to get our work ethic back to where it needs to be,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels' general manager and head coach, told sports editor Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate. “If we want to get back into the win column, we have to earn wins. You have to earn what you get and right now we’re not earning anything.” . . . The Rebels wrap up a seven-game homestand against the Kootenay Ice on Wednesday. . . . Meachem also reports that Rebels G Patrick Bartosak didn't suffer a brain injury when he took a hit from F Collin Valcourt of the Saskatoon Blades on Friday. Still, Barosak is questionable for Wednesday, so Rylan Toth of the midget AAA team from North Battleford, Sask., will back up Taz Burman.

9. The last two World Series games have ended on an obstruction call and a pickoff play at first base. Too bad that Fox-TV was showing us a fan as Sunday's game-ending play began. Check it out right here.

SUNDAY:
In Kamloops, the Blazers scored six seconds after the opening faceoff but didn't score again as they dropped a 4-1 decision to the Vancouver Giants. . . . Kamloops F Aspen Sterzer opened the scoring six seconds into the game, which is one second off the WHL record for fastest goal to start a game. F Dean Sexsmith of the host Seattle Thunderbirds scored five seconds into a 7-6 victory over the Victoria Cougars on Jan. 31, 1987. . . . Sterzer is the seventh player to score six seconds into a game, and the first since F Darren Kwiatkowski did it for the host Regina Pats in a 9-2 victory over, yes, the Victoria Cougars on Nov. 2, 1987. . . . The Cougars also gave up goals six seconds into games on two other occasions, on Jan. 29, 1983 (F Harry Mahood of the Nanaimo Islanders) and Nov. 5, 1977 (F Bll Derlago of the Brandon Wheat Kings). . . . Vancouver F Carter Popoff scored once, giving him three goals in his last two games. . . . The Giants were playing their third game in three nights, having lost the previous two. . . . The Blazers have lost three straight. . . . The Giants (4-9-2) vacated the Western Conference; they lead the Blazers (4-10-1) by one point.
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From Thom Beuning (@ThomBeuning), the radio voice of the Seattle Thunderbirds: "Last season @SeattleTbirds finished with 24 wins in 72 games, this season @SeattleTbirds already with 10 wins in 15 games."



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Is everyone going across the pond?

THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Daryl Boyle (Brandon, 2004-08) signed a one-year contract with the Augsburger Panther (Germany, DEL). He had one goal and four assists in five games with the Alaska Aces (ECHL) and one goal and four assists in 26 games with the Peoria Rivermen (AHL) last season. . . .
F Gasper Kopitar (Portland, 2009-11) signed a tryout contract with Södertälje J20 (Sweden, J20 SuperElit). He had one goal in two games with the Winterhawks and 12 goals and 12 assists in 55 games with Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) last season. . . .
F Casper Carning (Vancouver, 2010-11) signed a one-year contract with Kungälv (Sweden, Division 1). He had two assists in six games with the GIants, 14 goals and 29 assists in 31 games with Frölunda J20 Gothenburg (Sweden, J20 SuperElit), no points in eight games with Frölunda Gothenburg (Sweden, Elitserien), and one goal and one assist in two games on loan with Kungälv last season. . . .
D Brent Sopel (Saskatoon, Swift Current, 1993-97) signed a two-year contract with Metallurg Novokuznetsk (Russia, KHL). He had two goals and five assists in 71 games with the Atlanta Thrashers and Montreal Canadiens last season. . . .
D Harlan Pratt (Seattle, Red Deer, Prince Albert, Regina, Portland, 1994-99) signed a one-year contract with Szekesfehervar (Hungary, Austria Erste Bank Liga). He had five assists in 40 games for Tingsryd (Sweden, Allsvenskan) last season. . . .
G Todd Ford (Swift Current, Prince George, Vancouver, 2000-04) signed a one-year contract with Heilbronner Falken (Germany, 2.Bundesliga). He had a 2.94 GAA and a .886 save percentage in 13 games with the Hershey Bears (AHL) and a 2.74 GAA and a .901 save percentage in 22 games with the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL) last season.
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Former WHL scoring champion Brian Varga is the new GM of the Medicine Hat Minor Hockey Association. Varga, 50, played four WHL seasons (1978-82), the first three with the Regina Pats and the last one with the Medicine Hat Tigers. He won the 1981-82 scoring title, with 187 points. And, although his name is missing from the WHL Guide recap on 1981-82, he actually finished sixth that season, with 156 points. . . . Varga is a long-time Medicine Hat minor hockey coach and volunteer. "When they decided a long time ago to have a GM within minor hockey,” Varga told Darren Steinke of the Medicine Hat News, “I thought that maybe some day I could do that job. It has been on my mind for quite a while. . . . It is something where maybe I can give back to the community again too by being in that role."
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Chris Peters over at the United States of Hockey has taken a good look at the beating that NCAA hockey has taken over the last little while. If you missed it, a number of high-profile players who had committed to one school or another have de-committed and now are headed to OHL teams. What does it all mean? Check out Peters’ piece right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:
From the department of horrible timing comes news that the Mississippi RiverKings, who moved from the Central League to the Southern Professional league over the summer, fired head coach Paul Gardner on Thursday. He had taken over from Kevin Kaminski early in the 2010-11 season. "I was told that because of moving to the SPHL, they were going in a different direction," Gardner told Chris Van Tuyl of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. "Very shocked. The hardest thing about it is having to tell the kids, and the kids haven't stopped crying. That's the difficult part of the whole thing." . . . As for finding work in the coaching game at this late date, Gardner said: "I think that would be difficult. The majority of the coaches are hired now. I emailed my agent and that's exactly what he said, 'Why did they wait until now?' " . . .
Steve Chapman, the president of the ECHL’s Gwinnett Gladiators, has revealed that his search for a head coach is down to a shortlist that contains three names -- Leigh Mendelson, Steve Weeks and John Wroblewski. . . . Mendelson is a former Spokane Chiefs assistant coach. Last season, he was on staff with the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies. . . . The Gladiators need a head coach to replace Jeff Pyle, now head coach of the AHL’s Texas Stars.
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Various reports — and I think TSN’s Farhan Lalji was first with it — have former NHLer Ryan Walter to be named president of the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat on Tuesday.
This is a rather interesting move.
Walter, you may recall, was dismissed as an assistant coach by the Vancouver Canucks after the 2009-10 season. He spent two seasons on the coaching staff. The Heat, which plays in Canucks’ territory in what is generically known as the Lower Mainland, is the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Calgary Flames.
The Flames have signed F Ben Walter, Ryan’s son, to a two-year contract and chances are he will start the season with the Heat.
Cam Tucker of the Abbotsford Times has more right here on the Heat, including a bit of news on the deficit the team ran last season, which the city and taxpayers have to cover.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Russ Parker (left) and the Regina Pats saluted Mike Sillinger
prior to a Friday night WHL game in Regina. (Regina Pats photo)

As you perhaps are aware, two OHL players have drawn eight-game suspensions for testing positive for a banned drug. Neate Sager of Yahoo! Sports wonders if it isn’t an over-reaction and I, for one, am inclined to agree with him. Sager’s piece is right here.
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F Gasper Kopitar began this season with the Portland Winterhawks and now is with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers. Mark Emmert of the Des Moines Register checks in with Kopitar right here.
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SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM SATURDAY GAMES:
In Spokane, the Chiefs exploded for six second-period goals and beat the Kootenay Ice 11-2 in the first outdoor game in WHL history. . . . The game, played at Avista Stadium, which is home to a minor pro baseball team, drew 7,075 fans. . . . D Tyler Vanscourt and F Blake Gal each scored twice for the Chiefs. . . . Spokane F Tyler Johnson scored his WHL-leading 33rd goal and added an assist. Strangely, Johnson, who is recognized as one of the WHL’s top defensive centres, finished minus-1. . . . F Matt Marantz added a goal and three assists for the Chiefs, with F Brady Brassart and F Anthony Bardaro each setting up three goals. . . . The Chiefs were 3-for-5 on the PP. . . . The Ice had beaten the Chiefs 6-2 in Cranbrook on Friday night, ending Spokane’s seven-game winning streak. . . . F Cody Eakin (hand) didn’t play for the Ice. . . .
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In Prince Albert, F Brett Lyon scored his first two goals of the season to help the Warriors to a 7-2 victory over the Raiders, who had won three in a row. . . . Lyon, who was acquired from the Vancouver Giants on Jan. 4, went into the game with three goals in 132 regular-season games. He began his career with the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Lyon, 19, scored at 3:36 of the first period and added a second goal at 5:50. . . . F Quinton Howden also scored twice for the Warriors. he has 25. . . . Moose Jaw D Dallas Ehrhardt, 18, scored his first WHL goal. It was his 29th game this season and the 54th of his career. . . . Warriors F Dylan Hood scored the game’s first goal, his 20th of the season. . . . Attendance was 2,357. . . . The Raiders had beaten the Warriors 4-2 in Moose Jaw on Friday night. . . .
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In Regina, G Darcy Kuemper earned his WHL-leading eighth shutout of the season as the Red Deer Rebels beat the Pats, 6-0. . . . Kuemper stopped 24 shots in posting his 14th career shutout. He set franchise records for shutouts in a season and a career earlier in the season. . . . F Byron Froese scored twice for Red Deer and has 19 goals this season. . . . F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had his 12th goal and two assists. . . . Attendance was 3,303. . . . Red Deer F Andrej Kudrna had a goal and an assist, and was plus-4. . . .
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In Saskatoon, F Taylor Vause’s late second-period goal stood up as the winner as the Swift Current Broncos beat the Blades, 3-2. . . . Vause got his 13^th goal on a PP at 19:55 of the second to give his side a 3-1 lead. . . . The Blades had won 11 in a row at home. At 18-2-1, they boast the WHL’s best home record. . . . F Brayden Schenn (shoulder) didn’t play for Saskatoon. It is anticipated that he will make his debut with the Blades on Saturday against the visiting Calgary Hitmen. . . . Saskatoon D Dalton Thrower (concussion) also may return Saturday. . . . Attendance was 8,487. . . . Swift Current G Mark Friesen stopped 29 shots. . . .
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In Brandon, G Laurent Brossoit stopped 25 shots to help the Edmonton Oil Kings to a 9-0 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . No, that isn’t a typo. . . . Brossoit has two shutouts this season and in his career. . . . F Dylan Wruck and F T.J. Foster each had two goals and two assists for the Oil Kings, who got two assists from each of F Jordan Hickmott and F Travis Ewanyk. . . . The first period was scoreless. . . . With a 1-0 lead, the Oil Kings exploded for five goals in a span of one minute 55 seconds. They scored at 11:24, 11:38, 12:14, 12:25 and 13:19. . . . The WHL record for fastest five goals is 76 seconds and was set by the Saskatoon Blades on Nov. 9, 1982. . . . Edmonton was 2-for-2 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 3,751. . . . From Wheat Kings play-by-play man Bruce Luebke: “The last time Brandon gave up nine goals on home ice in a regular-season game was Feb. 5, 1999 in a 9-4 loss to Moose Jaw. . . . Brandon captain Shayne Wiebe left the game after the second period with a suspected shoulder injury, while Wheat Kings' F Brenden Walker left in the third with what appeared to be a hand injury.” . . . Edmonton head coach Derek Laxdal played three seasons with the Wheat Kings in the 1980s. . . .
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In Kamloops, the Portland Winterhawks erased a 1-0 deficit with three second-period goals and went on to beat the Blazers, 5-2. . . . Portland F Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist, and was plus-3. . . . Portland F Oliver Gabriel drew two assists. . . . Kamloops was with F Chase Schaber (groin), F Jordan DePape (leg) and F Bernhard Keil (shoulder), and lost two more forwards in the game’s first five minutes. Logan McVeigh left with a leg injury, while Thomas Frazee departed with a knee problem. . . . Kamloops F Ryan Hanes was assessed a slashing major for a hack at Portland G Mac Carruth as time ran out in the third period. The resulting skirmish resulted in 107 penalty minutes. . . . Attendance was 4,344. . . . D William Wrenn picked up his first WHL point, an assist, in his fifth game since leaving the Denver Pioneers over the Christmas break. . . .
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In Prince George, the Chilliwack Bruins scored two shorthanded goals en route to a 3-1 victory over the Cougars. . . . F Ryan Howse, who is from Prince George, opened t he scoring with a shorthanded goal at 4:52 of the first period. It was his 29^th goal this season. . . . F Roman Horak finished the scoring, shorthanded, at 9:38 of the third. . . . Chilliwack G Lucas Gore stopped 46 shots. . . . Attendance was 2,176. . . . The Cougars had beaten the Bruins 7-3 on Friday night. . . .
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In Everett, the Silvertips took a 3-0 first-period lead and never trailed as they edged the Seattle Thunderbirds, 6-5. . . . Everett F Tyler Maxwell scored four times and set up another. His fourth goal, at 8:21 of the third, was his 29^th and gave his mates a 6-4 lead. . . . The four goals in one game tied the Everett franchise record (Moises Gutierrez, Jan. 24, 2007). . . . F Ryan Harrison, acquired Monday from the Medicine Hat Tigers, had two goals and two assists for Everett, while F Landon Ferraro had three assists. . . . Seattle got two goals from F Travis Toomey and a goal and two helpers from F Burke Galliimore. . . . Attendance was 8,344. . . .
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In Kelowna, F Linden Vey had two goals and two assists to lead the Medicine Hat Tigers to a 5-2 victory over the Rockets. . . . Vey now leads the WHL with 72 points, four more than Kamloops F Brendan Ranford and five more than F Tyler Johnson of Spokane. . . . F Kellan Tochkin, who came over from Everett on Monday, had two assists, as did D Thomas Carr. . . . Tigers G Tyler Bunz stopped 25 shots. . . . Medicine Hat was 3-for-7 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 6,103. . . .
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In Kennewick, Wash., the host Tri-City Americans scored the game’s first five goals as they beat the Vancouver Giants, 5-2, to win their 11^th straight home game. . . . F Brendan Shinnimin had two goals and an assist for the winners, while D Matt MacKenzie and F Carter Ashton each had two assists. . . . Shinnimin has 19 goals now, while linemate Adam Hughesman netted his 27^th and added an assist. Ashton is the third member of that line. . . . F Spencer Bennett got his 19^th goal of the season for Vancouver. . . . Attendance was 5,239. . . . The Giants had won five of their last six games.
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SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Three minors:
Red Deer F Turner Elson
Seattle D Ryan Button
Vancouver F Dalton Sward

Friday . . . early

A note to all the U.S. Division teams in the WHL. This really is Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. We don’t do it the American way and start partying on Thursday. We got Saturday through Monday. So if one of your employees needs the weekend off, give it to him or her. As an employee of one U.S. team told me Friday: In the decade I’ve lived in the U.S. I’ve always tried to scam, err, get Canadian Thanksgiving off, but I’ve been denied every time. My pleas about watching the CFL all day fall on deaf ears.”
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Todd Voshell (Kelowna, Portland, Spokane, 1983-87) now is an architect who works out of Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. The local newspaper, the Record, has news of an award that has come his way. That story is right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks have reassigned F Gasper Kopitar, 18, to the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers. Kopitar is the brother of F Anze Kopitar, 23, of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings. . . . Gasper, who is listed as 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds by the Winterhawks, was pointless in 10 games last season and had one goal in two games this season. . . . Despite being from Jesenice, Slovenia, he isn’t considered an import player under CHL rules. He moved to the Los Angeles area -- Manhattan Beach, I think -- a few years ago where he lived with his brother. That is where Gasper was when then-Portland general manager Ken Hodge listed him. And because Gasper played minor hockey in Manhattan Beach, he is classified as a non-import.
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The Regina Pats have traded F Killian Hutt, 19, to the Swift Current Broncos for a 2013 sixth-round bantam draft pick. Hutt, who was selected by the Medicine Hat Tigers in the sixth round of the 2006 bantam draft, had three points in five games with Regina. The Pats acquired his rights from the Portland Winterhawks last season. . . . Meanwhile, the Broncos have returned D Matt Franczyk, 17, to the midget AAA Winnipeg Wild. He was acquired from the Moose Jaw Warriors, who selected him in the fifth round of the 2008 bantam draft.
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The Spokane Chiefs have released D Bruin McDonald, an 18-year-old who was acquired from the Prince George Cougars for a conditional sixth-round 2011 bantam draft pick in August. McDonald, a seventh-round pick by the Cougars in 2007, had one assist in three games with Spokane. He was a healthy scratch when the Chiefs played Wednesday in Kamloops. . . . The Chiefs now are carrying 25 players on their roster, including two goaltenders and eight defencemen.
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Chris Jaster of the Prairie Post has a couple of intereting stories detailing the finances of the Swift Current Broncos. In this one right here, he writes about what the Broncos are doing to deal with concession profits that fell from $44,240 in 2008-09 to $10,805 last season. . . . The second story, which is right here, is an overall look at the club’s finances.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter