Portland goaltender Mac Carruth had the answers as he blanked the Blazers
3-0 in Kamloops on Wednesday night.
(Murray Mitchell /Kamloops Daily News)

THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Patrick Baum (Swift Current, 1997-98) signed a one-year contract extension with Heilbronner Falken (Germany, 2. Bundesliga). He had one goal and seven assists in 30 games for the Falken this season. Heilbronn also announced that it won’t offer contracts for next season to 13 players, including G Kevin Nastiuk (Medicine Hat, 2001-05). Nastiuk had a 2.21 GAA in 26 games this season. . . .

F Wacey Rabbit (Saskatoon, Vancouver, 2001-07) signed a two-year contract extension with Lørenskog (Norway, GET-Ligaen). He had 19 goals and 34 assists in 44 games this season. . . .

G Justin Pogge (Prince George, Calgary, 2003-06) signed a one-year contract with Karlskoga (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He had a 2.37 GAA and .925 save percentage in 44 games with Ritten/Renon (Italy, Serie A) this season. . . .

F Zdenek Okal (Medicine Hat, 2008-10) and F Ondrej Vesely (Portland, Tri-City, 1996-98) signed one-year contract extensions with Zlin (Czech Republic, Extraliga). Okal had seven goals and four assists in 46 games with Zlin, one goal in a one-game loan to Hradec Kralove (Czech Republic, 1. Liga), and was named Extraliga rookie of the year. . . . Vesely had 10 goals and 31 assists in 52 games with Zlin.
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If you haven’t seen it by now, right here is what the hockey world will be talking about today. The QMJHL’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and the Baie-Comeau Drakkar had quite a brawl following a game last night. . . . They are to meet again on Friday, so the QMJHL is going to have to make some disciplinary decisions in a hurry.
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“Hockey parents are in shock after learning their kids are not covered for brain injury in a concussion-plagued sport.” . . . So begins a rather interesting piece written by Elaine O’Connor and Frank Luba of the Vancouver Province. . . . The complete story is right here.
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Former Kamloops Blazers F Chase Schaber played this season with the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns, but has since turned pro and is with the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads. Chris Langrill of the Idaho Statesman has Schaber’s story right here, including the injury in last season’s playoffs that almost cost him one leg.
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D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen, who played out his junior eligibility with the Vancouver Giants this season, has decided to attend UBC and play for the Thunderbirds next season. Vannieuwenhuizen, the Giants’ captain this season, played four seasons with Vancouver. . . . F Greg Fraser, who played four seasons with the Prince George Cougars (2008-12) before playing this season with the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers, also has committed to the Thunderbirds.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Steve Rohlik is the new head coach at Ohio State. He spent three years as the associate coach under Mark Osiecki, who was fired earlier this month. When Osiecki was dropped, Rohlik was named interim head coach. . . . Rohlik, who is a head coach for the first time, also spent 10 seasons as an assistant at Minnesota-Duluth and three at Nebraska-Omaha.
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 The WHL’s playoff situation:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
THIRD ROUND
Edmonton (1) vs. Calgary (3)
(Series tied 2-2; Game 5 on Friday night in Edmonton; all games on Shaw TV, with Dan Russell calling the play.)
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WESTERN CONFERENCE
THIRD ROUND
Portland (1) vs. Kamloops (3)
(Portland leads series, 3-1; Game 5 on Friday night at the Rose Garden in Portland.)
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Calgary, the Edmonton Oil Kings scored four times in the first 10:15 of the opening period and went on to beat the Hitmen, 7-3. . . . Edmonton F T.J. Foster scored the game’s first two goals, in the opening 2:10, giving him three in the playoffs. . . . Oil Kings F Michael St. Croix finished with a goal and three assists. . . . Edmonton D Martin Gernat had a goal and an assist, and was plus-5. . . . The Oil Kings, who took a 5-1 lead into the second period, have twice enjoyed five-goal periods in this series, while Calgary has done it once. . . . Calgary F Brooks Macek scored on a second-period penalty shot. . . . Calgary F Elliott Peterson, who had four goals in 38 regular-season games, got his fifth in his 14th playoff game. . . . The Oil Kings were without D Griffin Reinhart, who left in the third period of Game 3 with an undisclosed injury, and F Luke Bertolucci, who departed in the second period after absorbing a stiff check by Calgary D Jaynen Rissling. . . . Edmonton inserted F Cole Benson and D Stephen Shmoorkoff into the lineup. . . . Reinhart actually returned to Edmonton in order to be re-evaluated. . . .

In Kamloops, G Mac Carruth stopped 29 shots and F Nic Petan scored twice as the Portland Winterhawks dumped the Blazers, 3-0. . . . Carruth has two shutouts in this series, four in these playoffs and seven in his career. . . . Portland F Nic Petan scored twice, giving him eight this spring, and had an assist. . . . For the second straight game, the Winterhawks got an early 1-0 lead with a 5-on-3 PP goal. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie had three assists, upping his career playoff total to 88 points. He passed former Kamloops F Rob Brown (1983-87) and moved into third on the WHL’s all-time list. Former Kamloops D Greg Hawgood (1983-88) is next on the list, with 100 points. . . . Rattie leads the WHL playoff scoring derby, with 29 points in 14 games. . . . Portland F Keegan Iverson drew a charging major and game misconduct for a third-period hit that knocked Kamloops F Brendan Ranford out of the game. . . . Blazers head coach Guy Charron wasn’t able to provide an update on Ranford’s condition after the game. . . . There’s a video featuring that Iverson hit on Ranford right here.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT (20):
D Joel Edmundson, Kamloops

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT (6):
None
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From Cody Nickolet (@WHLFromAbove): “Shaw TV replay shows Griffin Reinhart's skate getting sliced in a collision last night. Ouch. He's not playing tonight in Game 4.”
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From Jesse Spector (@jessespector): “You hate to see a guy hurt his undisclosed at this time of year.”
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From Paul Buker (@Pnbuker) of The Oregonian: “Thanks to WHL Live for the video feed. Can my $7.95 go towards the 'FREE MIKE' fund? Is that OK? No?”

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Konstantin Pushkarev (Calgary, 2004-05) was released by Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL) by mutual agreement. He had signed a two-year contract with Spartak in June. Last season, Pushkarev had one goal and two assists in 20 games with Barys Astana (Kazakhstan, KHL) and five goals and two assists in six games on loan assignment to Barys-2 Astana (Kazakhstan, Premier League).
———
A players’ association in junior hockey? That has been in the works for 14 months? That no one involved in junior hockey — from players to agents to front-office types — seems to know anything about?
Sorry . . . but there aren’t any secrets in the hockey world, which often turns out to me smaller than most neighbourhoods. On to pof that, I’m from Missouri. Someone is going to have to show me something, especially when it comes to asking for a $1.50 surcharge on every ticket sold (yes, and pigs can fly) and getting 60 per cent of Canadian Hockey League players to sign on the dotted line (have you ever tried herding cats?).
Anyway . . . I am the first person to say that Hockey Canada and some major junior operators have made, and continue to make, a whack of cash in a business in which the labour costs are minimal.
(Hmm! Perhaps the CHLPA, if that’s what it’s called, can organize these players through the Screen Actors Guild. After all, the players are more entertainers than they are a labour force.)
But it’s got to be nigh impossible to organize an association that will include players who aren’t yet 15 years of age when a season begins and some who will be 21 when the season ends.
Anyway . . . some of the big boys are paying attention.
The Globe and Mail has a story right here.
The Toronto Star has a story right here.
And thanks to Yahoo! Sports for compiling a few comments off Twitter right here.
If you want more on this subject, this piece right here showed up on the Internet on Friday night, via The Junior Hockey News (www.thejuniorhockeynews.com).
Mike Davies of the Peterborough Examiner filed this story right here on Sunday night.
———
I have heard from someone with some knowledge of labor laws in Washington state, which is home to four WHL teams.
Let’s pretend for a moment that this CHLPA comes to fruition and that players are labelled as employees.
“In Washington state,” notes the source, “there are laws regulating the employment of minors. If you are 16 or 17, you can work no more than four hours in a day (eight on a Friday, Saturday, or
Sunday), no more than 20 hours in a week, and no more than six days a week during school weeks. You cannot start work before 7 a.m., and you cannot work after 10 p.m. (midnight on Friday or Saturday). If it's not a school week, then you can work eight hours a day, 48 hours in a week, start at 5 a.m. and end at midnight.
“I can see the State of Washington saying that travel time is work time. So now teams would have to travel the day before a game and the day after.”
And what about on game nights?
“Teams require players to arrive at the rink two hours before game time. So that means that in weeknight games, anyone under 18 would have to pack it in after the second period.
“Now try to schedule games. . . . If you are 15, then the restrictions are more severe: three hours a day, 16 hours a week, and you have to quit by 7 p.m. Every day.”
Oh, and the players would have to go by their actual ages, not hockey ages.
“A team would not be able to play a ‘late birthday’ 16 until after he actually turned 16. Plus there would be no callups of 15s until they actually turned 16.”
And what of paying the players?
“You would also become liable under state law to pay minimum wage ($9.04 an hour in Washington right now), provide a meal break, rest breaks — ‘They must be allowed a rest period no later than the end of the third hour of the shift.’ — AND you have to get a State Work Permit and the parents and school must sign off on the work permit, before the minor begins employment.”
The rules governing teen workers in the State of Washington are right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks have signed D Keoni Texeira, who was the 26th overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft. He was Portland’s first pick in that draft. A native of Fontana, Calif., Texeira had 82 points, including 35 goals, in 67 games with the L.A. Selects of the Tier 1 Elite Major Bantam AAA league. He is expected to play this season with the L.A. Jr. Kings U16 AAA team.
———
The BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers announced Monday that they have signed Greg Fraser, 20, who played the last four seasons with the Prince George Cougars, who gave him his release last week. Fraser, who is from Nanaimo, spent four seasons with the Cougars. He also played two games with the Clippers in 2007-08. . . . Fraser told the Cougars he wanted to get working on his education and Vancouver Island U has a campus in Nanaimo.
———
The ECHL’s Colorado Eagles need goaltending, after former WHLer Damien Ketlo chose to go to school (U of Lethbridge) and Andrew Penner retired. According to the Loveland, Colo., Reporter-Herald, the Eagles have signed two goaltenders, one of whom is Adam Brown, who played the last four seasons with the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets. They also signed Aaron Dell, who is a product of the U of North Dakota program. . . . Colorado head coach Chris Stewart once did a stint behind the bench with the Prince Albert Raiders.
———
Mike McBain, a defenceman who played four seasons (1993-97) with the Red Deer Rebels, is, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “accused of molesting his stepdaughter over a four-year period, beginning when the girl was 12 in 2008, and faces nine felony charges.” . . . The Review-Journal’s story is right here.
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Matt Crossman of Sporting News has a piece right here that details some of the problems being encountered by former NFL players.
Crossman writes: “(Greg) Koch is one of 125 former NFL players who took part in a Sporting News survey about the impact of concussions. The results suggest far more players suffered far more concussions than previously has been reported. The consequences are far-reaching for the players and their families.
“Of the 125 players, 115 reported suffering at least one concussion. Of those 115, 76 listed at least one mental-health symptom that could be related to their head injuries, though many said they could not definitively tie their problems to concussions.”
Be forewarned; this is not a pretty story.
 
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Mike Card (Kelowna, 2002-06) signed a one-year contract with Tingsryd (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He had four goals and 18 assists in 46 games with Alleghe (Italy, Serie A) last season. Card is scheduled to arrive in Tingsryd on Sunday and is expected to play in Tingsryd's exhibition game on Wednesday against Troja/Ljungby.
———
The Medicine Hat Tigers shuffled the deck a bit on Friday, with head coach Shaun Clouston also assuming the general manager’s duties and former GM Brad McEwen dropping down to assistant GM.
McEwen had been the Tigers’ GM since July 16, 2010. He took over from Willie Desjardins, who had been the GM and head coach before moving to the NHL’s Dallas Stars as associate coach. Desjardins now is head coach of the AHL’s Texas Stars.
Before moving up to GM, McEwen had been the Tigers’ director of scouting for three years.
McEwen, 51, and his family live at Round Lake, in Saskatchewan’s Qu’Appelle Valley. Their home suffered flood damage in the spring of 2011 and I am told that it bothered McEwen that he had to leave for training camp before everything was looked after. That, combined with having children in school, helped McEwen decide that he wasn’t going to relocate to Medicine Hat and that perhaps a change was needed.
He also loves scouting more than anything else.
“Honestly, that is what I enjoy doing,” McEwen told Darren Steinke of the Medicine Hat News. “For me, I knew what I had to do.
“Personally and family-wise, you go and streamline your job (and) you have a little more ability and a little more flexibility. It works much better for me personally and my family.
“I think it is going to be real good.”
Clouston, 44, is preparing for his 10th season with the Tigers. An assistant coach under Desjardins, Clouston took over as head coach upon Desjardins’ departure.
———
Well, that takes care of that!
The Michigan Daily has published a clarification involving its story of June 28 in which it claimed that D Jacob Trouba wouldn’t play for the U of Michigan Wolverines, choosing instead to join the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers. The OHL team, according to a Daily source, had offered Trouba $200,000 to change his mind.
The Rangers later filed a lawsuit against the paper and writer Matt Slovin.
With the clarification and the Daily’s having removed the original story from its website, the Rangers had dropped their lawsuit.
That clarification is right here.
Sunaya Sapurji of Yahoo! Sports has more on that story right here. Her story includes news that the Rangers continue to proceed with part of their lawsuit. That would be the part against the Daily’s source, named in the statement of claim as John Doe.
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If you haven’t already, visit Small Thoughts at Large over there on the right. Alan Caldwell has put up his annual mileage chart that shows how far each of the WHL teams will travel this season.
He also has a team-by-team look at the 20-year-old situations across the league.
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The Prince George Cougars have released F Greg Fraser, 20, who was a 15th-round pick in the 2007 bantam draft. From Nanaimo, B.C., Fraser played 252 regular-season games with the Cougars, picking up 73 points, including 46 goals. . . . Fraser has decided to get on with his education. . . . His departure leaves the Cougars with four 20s on their roster — D Dallas Ehrhardt, F Campbell Elynuik, D Dan Gibb and F Brock Hirsche. . . . Meanwhile, F Brad Morrison, the seventh overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft, has moved back to Prince George and is expected to play for the major midget Cariboo Cougars this season. Morrison played last season with the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton, putting up 141 points, including 83 goals.
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D Dylan Kuczek, 18, has told the Brandon Wheat Kings that he won’t be returning. Kuczek, from Winnipeg, was a second-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft. He had two points and 27 penalty minutes in 33 games before a shoulder injury ended his season . . . . What happened? . . . “He just wanted to move on and do other things,” Brandon owner/GM Kelly McCrimmon told Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun. “He had a tough time with injuries and just decided that he wanted to pursue other interests.”
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes are down to four 20-year-olds with the news that D Tyler Kizuik won’t be returning; instead, he is off to the U of Lethbridge where he will play for the Pronghorns. Kizuik was acquired by the Hurricanes early in 2010-11 from the Saskatoon Blades. He also played with the Prince George Cougars. Last season, he had four goals and 43 penalty minutes in 58 games with the Hurricanes. . . . Lethbridge’s roster now features F Nick Buonassisi, F Graham Hood, D Daniel Johnston and G Ty Rimmer as the 20s.
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Pour yourself a cup of coffee and make sure there’s more at hand. Because right here is today’s good read and it’s terrific.
Jane Leavy, who is a terrific writer, profiles Dr. Ann McKee, the woman who would save football. This piece is from grantland.com and it is amazing.
Leavy, by the way, is the author of two great baseball books — Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy and The Last Boy, Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood. If you haven’t already read them, you should.

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Graham James pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual abuse on Tuesday. One of the players whose charges weren’t part of that plea bargain has come forward and spoken with The Canadian Press. This is another devastating read in a week that has been full of them. And good on Greg Gilhooly . . . first of all for speaking out and secondly for saying this: “Let's not lose sight of the fact that the real hero here is Sheldon Kennedy, who came forward 15 years ago when none of us were coming forward. He had to take all of this on his own.”
Sheldon Kennedy . . . a true Canadian hero! That doesn’t mean he’s perfect; it just means he’s someone today’s children can look up to and admire because he is looking out for them.
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Well, that clears up that. . . .
Doug Soetaert, the general manager of the Everett Silvertips, told Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix that D Ryan Murray isn’t going to be traded.
"Ryan Murray will be drafted as an Everett Silvertip," Soetaert said. "Ryan Murray could have probably played in the National Hockey League this (season). He's that kind of player and has those types of qualities. We were fortunate to have him back a third year.
"If he's back next year, it's a bonus for our hockey club."
Murray has sat out 19 games with a high ankle sprain. He will report to the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp in Calgary on Saturday.
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THE COACHING GAME:

DREW SCHONECK

The USHL’s Tri-City Storm fired Drew Schoneck, its general manager and head coach, on Wednesday. Schoneck, a former WHL player and coach, was in his third season with the Storm. He was 29-25-0 in his first season and 19-30-11 last season when his roster was decimated by injuries. This season, the Storm has endured an eight-game losing streak and is 6-15-0, which is the poorest record in the USHL. . . . Schoneck, 38, is the second USHL coach to lose his job in recent days. The Omaha Lancers dumped Bliss Littler last week. Littler also announced his firing via Twitter. . . . Josh Hauge, Schoneck’s assistant coach, has been named the Storm’s interim GM/head coach. Hauge, 32, is in his first season with the Storm after six seasons with the NAHL’s Fairbanks Ice Dogs. . . .
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Schoneck tweeted twice on Wednesday:
“Thanks to all the guys.. We battled and never quit.. Good Luck to you all!!”
Later came this one:
“Thanks to all the billet families, volunteers, office people, players and my staff. It was a blast.. Good luck”
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JUST NOTES: F Kristians Pelss of the Edmonton Oil Kings is on Latvia’s 31-player preliminary roster for the World Junior Championship that opens Dec. 26 in Calgary and Edmonton. The players will gather in Brooks, Alta., for camp that is scheduled to being Dec. 18. The 22-man roster is to be declared Dec. 23. . . .
The Saskatoon Blades have recalled F Drake Bodie from the midget AAA Norman Northstars and F Ryan Graham from the midget AAA Calgary Royals Gold. Bodie has 23 points in 21 games with the Thompson, Man.-based Northstars, while Graham had 25 points in 14 games with the Royals. The Blades are trying to cope with some injuries and a two-game suspension to F Jake Trask. . . .
The Regina Pats have assigned F Nils Moser, 18, to the AJHL’s Canmore Eagles. Moser was acquired last season from the Tri-City Americans. He had six points in 41 games last season. He has two assists in 12 games this season as he fights to come back from offseason knee surgery. . . .
D Jace Coyle, who played out his eligibility last season with the Medicine Hat Tigers, has been assigned by the AHL’s Texas Stars to the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads. Coyle was pointless in 11 games with Texas. Coyle played 52 games with Spokane in 2007-08 when Hardy Sauter was an assistant coach with the Chiefs. Sauter now is Idaho’s director of hockey operations and head coach. . . .
F Robin Soudek of the Victoria Cougars drew a ‘tbd’ suspension under supplemental discipline out of Tuesday’s game against the visiting Tri-City Americans. He didn’t play in Wednesday’s rematch. . . .
Head coach Don Hay leaves the Vancouver Giants on Friday to join the Canadian national junior team. He will serve as Canada’s head coach in the World Junior Championship and the selection camp opens Saturday in Calgary. . . . In his absence, Glen Hanlon will run the Giants. He gets his initiation Friday against the visiting Portland Winterhawks. It should be an interesting night — it’s the Teddy Bear game and it’s on Sportsnet. . . . The Giants are 10-2-1 of late. . . .
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In Swift Current, F Brad Hoban broke a 1-1 tie 13 seconds into the third period as the Broncos beat the Red Deer Rebels, 2-1. . . . The Rebels have lost 11 in a row. . . . The Broncos won their second straight. . . . Red Deer F Turner Elson returned from a six-game suspension to score the game’s first goal at 8:05 of the first. . . . Swift Current D Graeme Craig, who is from Red Deer, tied it at 11:05 of the first. . . . The Rebels lost G Patrik Bartosak at 17:14 of the second period with an apparent rib or chest injury. He is to be examined today. . . . He had stopped 24 of 26 shots. Bolton Pouliot came on to stop all six shots he faced. . . . Swift Current G Jon Groenheyde made 27 saves in a superb outing. . . .

In Prince George, F Greg Fraser scored at 2:55 of OT to give the Cougars a 4-3 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie scored his WHL-leading 32nd goal, shorthanded, at 19:48 of the second to get his side to within one, at 3-2. . . . F Nic Petan’s seventh goal, at 4:13 of the third, tied it at 3-3. . . . Fraser finished with two goals and an assist, and he was plus-4. . . . Prince George D Jesse Forsberg took the warmup but left early and didn’t play. He had blocked a shot Tuesday night in a 5-3 loss to Portland. . . . Cougars F Chase Witala had a goal and two assists. . . . Prince George G Drew Owsley stopped 39 shots. . . .

In Kamloops, D Austin Madaisky had a goal and three assists, all on the PP, as the Blazers bounced the Everett Silvertips, 6-1. . . . The Blazers were 5-for-8 on the PP, scoring twice after Everett F Josh Birkholz was given a checking-to-the-head major and game misconduct at 2:30 of the first. . . . Kamloops F Dylan Willick had two goals and, with 17 goals and five assists, is a Cy Young candidate. . . . F Brendan Ranford also scored twice for the Blazers, who have won seven in a row. . . . Everett has lost seven straight. . . . The Blazers start an East Division swing Saturday against the Swift Current Broncos. . . .

In Kelowna, F Brett Bulmer had a goal and two assists as the Rockets dumped the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 5-2. . . . F Nick Buonassisi had a goal and an assist for Lethbridge. He has 12 points over his last 11 games. . . . Lethbridge D Landon Oslanski will be hearing from the WHL office after taking a checking-from-behind major at 17:32 of the third period. . . . The Rockets left after the game on their East Division swing. They open Friday against the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Kelowna head coach Ryan Huska won’t be there as he heads for Calgary and the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. He is an assistant coach with the Canadian team. Assistant coaches Ryan Cuthbert and Dan Lambert will run the Rockets in Huska’s absence. . . .

In Victoria, F Connor Rankin scored twice as the Tri-City Americans got past the Royals, 6-2. . . . The Americans, with the WHL’s best record (23-7-0), won 6-2 in Victoria on Tuesday. . . . F Mason Wilgosh added three assists for the Americans. . . . Tri-City G Eric Comrie, 16, stopped 15 shots in improving to 10-3. . . . The Americans have won four in a row, three of those on the road. . . . Victoria has lost three straight and is winless in five in a row at home. . . . Tri-City F Adam Hughesman had a goal and an assist, giving him 286 career regular-season points. That move him past F Stu Barnes, one of the team’s owners, and into fifth place on the franchise’s all-time list. Hughesman has played 296 games.
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WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Jaimen Yakubowski, Lethbridge.
D Landon Oslanski, Lethbridge (major)
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To fight, or not to fight? That is the question in Finland and Sweden, where it seems the debate is raging. Risto Pakarinen has the story right here.
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The Minneapolis Star Tribune offers up an editorial on the NHL and fighting, and it is right here.
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Today’s good read comes from Grantland, although it actually is a piece that appeared in the late, great National on Feb. 18, 1990. Written by Johnette Howard, it is a look at Joey Kocur, then the toughest fighter in the NHL.
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