Generals or Rockets? Who wins? . . . No news on Matthews . . . Dillon jumps to Oil Kings

F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2009-11) signed a one-year contract with Storhamar Hamar (Norway, GET-Ligaen). This season, he was pointless in three games with Pantern Malmö (Sweden, Division 1) and had seven goals and 10 assists in 19 games with Grenoble (France, Ligue Magnus).
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The Oshawa Generals haven’t won the Memorial Cup since 1990. The Kelowna Rockets have been in the tournament five times since 2002, but won it just once, as the host team in 2004. . . . One of them will be crowned major junior hockey’s champion today in what will be the historic final game to be played in the Pepsi Colisee. . . . The way Bill Beacon of The Canadian Press sees it, the Generals go into the game as the slight favourites. His story is right here.

At first glance, this game would seem to match Kelowna’s offence against the defence of the Generals,
who are easily the bigger of the two teams. However, the Generals averaged 38.67 shots on goal in their three games, while the Rockets were at 32.5 in four games. . . . Of course, the Generals went 3-0, with three one-goal victories, to earn a bye to the final. The Rockets are 2-2, including a 9-3 thrashing of the host Quebec Remparts in Friday’s semifinal game. . . . The Rockets scored 20 goals in four games; the Generals counted 11 in three outings. . . . From where I sit, the outcome of this game, from a Kelowna perspective, rests on the Rockets’ ability to play a run-and-gun with lots of pressure on the puck. If they are able to mount that kind of game, they will win, but they might need to score five goals to do it. . . . If Kelowna ends up trying to play a defence-first game, that will be to Oshawa’s benefit and the Generals could win a low-scoring affair. . . . The big question, however, is this: Will the fact that Rockets head coach Dan Lambert is bilingual and a former player with the NHL’s Quebec Nordiques be enough to put the crowd’s support behind his club?
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Here is the Memorial Cup schedule (all games on Sportsnet; all times Eastern):
Friday, May 22: Kelowna 3 vs. Quebec 4 (9,497)
Saturday, May 23: Rimouski 3 vs. Oshawa 4 (8,409)
Sunday, May 24: Quebec 4 vs. Oshawa 5 (OT) (10,970)
Monday, May 25: Rimouski 3 vs. Kelowna 7 (6,981)
Tuesday, May 26: Oshawa 2 vs. Kelowna 1 (7,002)
Wednesday, May 27: Quebec 0 vs. Rimouski 4 (10,277)
Thursday, May 28 (tiebreaker): Quebec 5 vs. Rimouski 2 (6,533)
Friday, May 29 (semifinal): Kelowna 9 vs. Quebec 3 (9,870)
Sunday (championship): Oshawa vs. Kelowna, 7 p.m.
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The camp of USNTDP star F Auston Matthews has yet to reveal where he will play next season. Perhaps Matthews, who already is being projected as the No. 1 selection in the NHL’s 2016 draft, hasn’t yet decided. Or perhaps he and his advisors (wink! wink!) simply are enjoying the speculation. . . . His options were believed to be the NCAA — he has numerous schools interested and at one point was said to have whittled his list to five — or the WHL, where the Everett Silvertips hold his rights. . . . But then came word that Matthews was listening most intently to an offer from Switzerland, perhaps from the Zurich-based ZSC Lions, who are coached by Marc Crawford. . . . And then, just to thicken the stew, Sportsnet’s Damien Cox (@DamoSpin) tweeted earlier in the week: “Almost 100% Auston Matthews is headed to Europe, not WHL or NCAA. News is teams from Sweden, Finland may have joined Zurich in the bidding.” . . . At this point, however, it would seem that if it is to be a team in Finland or Sweden, there hasn’t been much light shed on it over there. I heard from a source who is most familiar with hockey in the Scandinavian countries. “I have looked into all the sites and papers I know of in Sweden and Finland and if there is any mention of it, it is quoting Cox's tweets,” the source told Taking Note. “However, (the Finnish newspaper) Ilta-Sanomat reports that Zurich's offer to Matthews is 450,000 Euros, about US$500,000, for next season.” . . . Aside from the money, the prime advantage to Matthews of playing in Europe is that the NHL team that drafts him would, according to the NHL-NHLPA agreement, be able to send him to its AHL affiliate for the 2016-17 season should it choose to do so. . . . While all of this is going on, a voice deep inside keeps asking me if Avenir Sports and Entertainment might yet surface in all of this. ASE has majority ownership in the Kloten Flyers, who play in Switzerland’s National League A, as do the ZSC Lions. Bill Gallacher, who owns ASE, also owns the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors have signed their first two selections from the 2015 WHL bantam draft. . . . D Jeff Woo was the fourth overall selection and they took Luka Burzan two picks later. . . . Woo played for the bantam AAA Winnipeg Warriors, while Burzan was with the North Shore Winter Club. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has more right here.
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G Alec Dillon, who had committed to attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and play hockey there, has changed his mind and will sign with the Edmonton Oil Kings. The 19-year-old is expected to be introduced at a Monday news conference. . . . Dillon, from Nanaimo, was a second-team all-star this season with the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. The previous season, he was with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. . . . The 6-foot-5, 175-pounder was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the fifth round of the NHL’s 2014 draft. . . . At the moment, Dillon would seem to slot in alongside sophomore Patrick Dea, an 18-year-old from St. Albert, Alta., on Edmonton’s depth chart. Playing behind Tristan Jarry, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Dea got into 21 games this season, going 11-5-1, 2.57, .904. . . . Jarry, 20, is expected to play in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization this season. The Penguins selected him in the second round of the NHL’s 2013 draft. . . . Dillon, who is good friends with Oil Kings D Dysin Mayo, was a fifth-round selection by the Swift Current Broncos in the 2011 bantam draft. On Nov. 28, 2013, they dealt his rights and what will be a fourth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft to Edmonton for D Stephen Shmoorkoff.
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F Jordan Kawaguchi, a fourth-round selection by the Spokane Chiefs in the 2012 bantam draft, has said he will attend Providence College. The 5-foot-8, 165-pound Kawaguchi, from Abbotsford, B.C., played this season with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, putting up 56 points, including 28 goals, in 53 games.
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#MyPlayoffsMoment in China repping @NHLBlackhawks even had Peking Duck - Go Hawks win Game 7! #CHIvsANA @NHL pic.twitter.com/Eete3rdCCD

— Ryan Ohashi (@Osmashi) May 30, 2015

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CHL facing class-action suit . . . Rebels, 'Tips cut a deal

F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2009-11) signed a one-year contract with Grenoble (France, Ligue Magnus) after a successful tryout. This season, he has three goals and an assist in two games with Grenoble. He started the season with Pantern Malmö (Sweden, Division 1) and was pointless in three games.
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THE COURT REPORT . . .

Student-athletes or employees or independent contractors . . . or something else altogether?
Just what are major junior hockey players?
That is at the crux of a class-action lawsuit that was filed Friday in Toronto.
The statement of claim is looking for $180 million from the Canadian Hockey League and its 60 teams. The lawsuit claims that the CHL pays its players less than the minimum wage in various jurisdictions and that these players should also be eligible for vacation and overtime pay.
Robert Cribb of the Toronto Star reported Monday that “an unprecedented class action lawsuit striking at the economic foundations of junior hockey in Canada alleges the Canadian Hockey League and its teams ‘conspired’ to force young players into signing contracts that breach minimum wage laws.”
Cribb adds that the lawsuit “seeks $180 million in outstanding wages, vacation, holiday and overtime pay and employer payroll contributions for thousands of young players given as little as $35 a week for practices, games, training and travelling that could add up to more than full-time hours.”
Cribb’s story is right here.
Later Monday, David Branch, Gilles Courteau and Ron Robison, the three men who head up the CHL’s three leagues -- the OHL, QMJHL and WHL, respectively -- issued a joint news release.
It reads, in part:
“In terms of the class action that was filed in Toronto late last week, the CHL, our member leagues and teams will vigorously defend ourselves against this action which will not only have a negative effect on hockey in Canada but through all sports in which amateur student athletes are involved.”
The news release also mentioned various areas of what the CHL refers to as “the player experience,” including the education program, “extensive health and safety, anti-doping and mentoring programs,” along with “a comprehensive mental health program in partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association,” and “out-of-pocket expense coverage, equipment, billeting and travel costs.”
(Earlier this month, the OHL announced a partnership with the CMHA on a program named Talk Today. To this point there is no such program involving the WHL in partnership with the CMHA.)
For the last few years, the CHL and its member leagues and teams have gone to great lengths to claim that their players are student-athletes, and you can bet that will be at the crux of their defence, should it come to that.
However, we’re a long, long way from that point.
Ted Charney, the Toronto lawyer who filed the lawsuit, told Ryan Pyette of the London Free Press:
“Right now, it’s a proposed class-action. You need one representative plaintiff, which we have, and then you need to get it approved by a court. A judge has to decide whether or not to certify it as a class-action and the next step is to circulate a notice to the class members and they have 90 days to opt out, or they’re in.”
This, then, is Step 1. The speed at which the Canadian legal system works dictates that this action could take years to reach a conclusion, assuming that it proceeds that far.
The chances of it getting that far are, of course, awfully slim. The last thing the CHL wants to do is have its teams’ books opened for public perusal.
Still, it is going to be interesting watching this play itself out.
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There was one humorous bit to the news release issued by Messrs. Branch, Courteau and Robison.
The last paragraph of the news release reads:
“In addition, despite all mentions to the contrary, recent communications and social media posts by Glenn Gumbley of the CHLPA lead us to believe that the Gumbleys are still actively involved on the fringes of junior hockey in Canada and with this action. The CHL will once again issue warnings to our players and their parents cautioning them about the Gumbleys.”
The Gumbleys, it seems, are bothering the CHL the way the mosquito in the cartoon raises havoc in the nudist colony. While the CHL tries to let on that the Gumbleys aren’t a bother, its arm are swatting furiously in an attempt to drive them away.
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As is always the case in these situations, the CHL has instructed its teams not to comment on the filing of the lawsuit.
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Brandon Archibald, a native of Port Huron, Mich., who played four-plus seasons in the OHL, has written an essay providing his perspective on what it’s like playing major junior hockey. He also addresses why he chose the OHL over the NCAA route. That piece is right here.
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Bruce Gordon played three seasons in the WHL (Medicine Hat, Saskatoon, 1979-82). Eventually, he spent 28 years in law enforcement, most of that with the Saskatoon Police Service. He retired two years ago. Now, at the age of 51, Gordon is a student in the U of Saskatchewan’s college of law. . . . Jason Warick of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here.
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John Chartrand, a former OHL and QMJHL goaltender, is suing the OHL’s Barrie Colts for $12 million, claiming that he was wrongly cleared to play shortly after being knock unconscious in a car accident. Rick Westhead of TSN reports on the lawsuit, that actually was filed on Dec. 12, 2012, right here.
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Jeremy Roenick says he experienced 13 concussions during his playing career. Now the former NHLer admits to having memory loss, some slurred speech and, at times, difficulty finding the right word. . . . Aaron Taube of businessinsider.com has more right here.
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The Red Deer Rebels have acquired F Tyler Sandhu, 18, from the Everett Silvertips in exchange for fourth-round selections in the 2015 and 2016 bantam drafts. . . . Sandhu was a second-round selection by the Portland Winterhawks in the 2011 bantam draft. Everett acquired him as part of the deal in which D Seth Jones went to the Winterhawks. . . . Sandhu, from Richmond, B.C., had 33 points, including 19 goals, in 62 games as a freshman (2012-13) with Everett and added 30 points, 13 of them goals, in 49 games last season. . . . This season, he has one goal in nine games. . . . This will be the first of what no doubt will be a number of moves by Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner, general manager and head coach, aimed at strengthening his roster with the ultimate goal being the 2016 Memorial Cup, which will be held in Red Deer.
Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald wrote: “There was a discrepancy on why the trade took place. Everett general manager Garry Davidson said Sandhu was dissatisfied with his role on the team and requested a trade, while Sandhu said he didn’t request a trade and that it came as a surprise.”
Patterson’s story is right here.
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Great visit at the royal university hospital in Saskatoon today! Good to see everyone again thanks a lot pic.twitter.com/mDE23551hC
— Tim Bozon (@timbozon94) October 20, 2014

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2009-11) signed a one-year contract with Tingsryd (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He had 11 goals and 14 goals in 30 games for Stjernen Fredrikstad (Norway, GET Ligaen) this season. . . .
D Bohdan Visnak (Saskatoon, 2006-07) signed a one-year contract extension with Montpellier (France, Division 1). He had two goals and three assists in 21 games for Montpellier this season. . . .
F Jiri Cetkovsky (Calgary, 2002-03) signed a one-year contract extension and F Martin Sagat (Kootenay, 2003-05) signed a one-year contract with Pardubice (Czech Repubic, Extraliga). Cetkovsky had no points in seven games with Pardubice and three goals and seven assists in 28 games on loan to Mlada Boleslav (Czech Republic, Extraliga) this season. Sagat had 13 goals and 35 assists in 46 games with Slovan Ustecti Lvi (Czech Republic, 1.Liga) and one goal and one assist in eight games on loan to Pardubice this season.
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Sheesh, the baseball game between the New York Yankees and host Boston Red Sox on Saturday was more predictable than what the NHL has become.
I mean, does anyone, the NHL included, know what’s going on?
The news yesterday that Raffi Torres of the NHL-owned Phoenix Coyotes had drawn a 25-game suspension was good for a double-take. What? Did I hear/read that correctly?
Prior to yesterday, the longest suspension in these playoffs had been a four-gamer.
Twenty-five games? That’s kind of like a parent running out of patience and telling a child: “That’s it. I’ve had enough. You’re grounded for the rest of your life.”
Yes, Torres is a serial offender. Yes, that was a terrible hit on forward Marian Hossa of the Chicago Blackhawks. Yes, there had been previous suspensions. But none of those suspensions even approached 25 games.
So . . . Shea Weber gets fined pocket change. Brett Burns walks. Chicago head coach Joel Quenneville gets fined 10 grand for telling the truth. And on and on it goes. . . .
Now we all await the next case.
That baseball game? If you missed it, the Red Sox blew a 9-0 lead and dropped a 15-9 decision to the Yanks.
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The time has come for coaches to stop teaching players to finish their checks.
These days, when a player says all he was doing was “finishing his check,” what he really means is “I was hitting to hurt.”
Following the game in which Torres hit Hossa, Torres said he was finishing his check.
During the WHL series between Kamloops and Portland, Blazers F J.C. Lipon provided a turning point in Game 4 when he drilled Winterhawks F Ty Rattie from behind, a hit that went unpenalized but later drew a one-game suspension.
After that game, in which Kamloops erased a 4-0 deficit en route to a 5-4 victory, Lipon said he had been finishing his check.
Hockey always will be a contact sport, so there always will be body contact, some of the hits harder than others. But the game should be about the puck and separating an opposing player from it. It shouldn’t be about hurting the opposing player and to hell with the puck.
Unfortunately, there are players in the game today who target opposing players with the intent of hurting them. Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe has called it “human skeeting shooting.”
He’s not far wrong.
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If you haven’t yet heard about Vancouver Canucks defenceman Kevin Bieksa’s decision to take a turn as teammate Ryan Kesler, you should check this out right here.
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Terry Yake, who played for the Brandon Wheat Kings back in the day, scored the game-winner as the Southeast Prairie Thunder, which plays out of Steinbach, Man., won the Allan Cup on Saturday in Lloydminster, Sask.
There’s more right here.
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In the AHL, the Norfolk Admirals had their winning streak halted at 29 games last night as they dropped a 5-2 decision to the Manchester Monarchs in Game 2 of a first-round series. . . . F Linden Vey, who played with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, had two goals for the Monarchs. . . . Norfolk had opened the best-of-five series with a 3-2 victory over visiting Manchester on Friday.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors and Edmonton Oil Kings resume hostilities in the Alberta capital today. The Oil Kings, of course, lead the Eastern Conference final, 1-0. . . . Terry Jones of the Edmonton Sun reports right here that the eyes of the scouting world are on this series.
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SATURDAY’S GAME:
In Kennewick, Wash., F Ty Rattie scored his third goal of the game in OT to give the Portland Winterhawks a 5-4 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Rattie finished off a shorthanded 2-on-1 break at 7:58 of the first OT period to give Portland a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference final. . . . The Winterhawks won 4-3 in extra time on Friday night. . . . Rattie leads the WHL with 16 playoff goals in 13 games. He has one four-goal game and two three-goal efforts. As they say in Portland, he has three playoff rat-tricks. . . . He also leads the WHL with 27 points. . . . Rattie is the first Portland player ever to score three goals in a playoff game against the Americans. . . . Rattie also has three career OT winners — one this season and one in each of the two previous seasons. . . . The Americans held a 4-2 lead with less than 11 minutes left in the third period. . . . Portland F Joey Baker scored his first career playoff goal at 9:55 of the third and Rattie tied it on the PP at 18:07. . . . Portland D Derrick Pouliot, who was in the penalty box when Rattie won it, had four assists. . . . This was the third game in four nights for both teams. . . . Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin ran his point streak to 36 games with an assist on the game’s first goal, a PP score by F Jordan Messier. . . . That was Messier’s first goal of these playoffs. . . . Winterhawks G Mac Carruth stopped 34 shots, nine fewer than Tri-City’s Ty Rimmer. . . . Carruth has stopped 15 OT shots in this series’ two games. . . . Portland was 2-4 on the PP; Tri-City was 2-7. . . . Herte’s a goofy stat: In these playoffs, the Americans are 7-0 in games decided in regulation time and 1-5 in overtime. . . . The series now moves to Portland for games Wednesday and Thursday in the Rose Garden. . . . You can blame Coldplay for the delay. . . . Coldplay is in the Rose Garden on Tuesday, thus the Americans and Winterhawks go Wednesday and Thursday. . . . Coldplay also is the reason for the delay in the NHL first-round series between the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings. Those two teams last played Wednesday in Los Angeles when the Canucks won Game 4, 3-1. With Coldplay in Rogers Arena on Friday and Saturday nights, the Kings and Canucks were forced to wait until Sunday to play Game 5. Game time today is 5 p.m. Pacific.

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Wednesday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2009-11) signed a one-year contract with Stjernen (Norway, Get Ligaen). He had 10 goals and 33 assists in 70 games with Regina and Brandon last season. . . .
F Derek Ryan (Spokane, 2003-07) signed a one-year contract with Szekesfehervar (Hungary, Austria Erste Bank Liga). Ryan had 17 goals and 30 assists in 28 games with the University of Alberta (CIS) last season. He was the Canada West Most Valuable Player and was named to the All-Canadian First Team. . . .
D Nathan Paetsch (Moose Jaw, 1998-2003) signed a one-year contract with Grizzly Adams Wolfsburg (Germany, DEL). He had nine goals and 11 assists in 43 games with the Rochester Americans and Syracuse Crunch (both AHL) last season.
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Fans of the Medicine Hat Tigers should relax. At least a bit.
It would seem that the Medicine Hat Arena isn’t the only one in the WHL that doesn’t meet league standards.
If you tuned in late, Medicine Hat city council has voted 6-3 against a funding proposal for a $94.5-million regional event centre.
This is the latest development in what has turned into a long-running story regarding a potential new facility to replace the 41-year-old Medicine Hat Arena.
It comes with the good folks of Moose Jaw preparing to open a new complex. The Moose Jaw Warriors have vacated the Civic Centre (aka Crushed Can) and will move into a new facility in time for the 2011-12 season.
So . . . after the latest development in Medicine Hat, here’s what WHL commissioner Ron Robison told Amanda Stephenson of the Medicine Hat News:
“I think we were very patient in the Moose Jaw process, and that eventually resulted in a new facility for that city. We understand the challenges associated with funding a project of this nature, but on the other hand, Medicine Hat is currently the only facility in the Western Hockey League that does not meet our standards. We do need it addressed, and we need it addressed immediately."
Right away, fans started to wonder if the Tigers were on borrowed time.
But . . . whoa! Wait a minute here!
It turns out that Robison was singing the same tune in another WHL city not that long ago.
The March 1, 2010, edition of The Oregonian contains a story on the Winterhawks by freelancer Scott Sepich. The crux of the story was how far the Winterhawks had come since being purchased by Bill Gallacher in the fall of 2008, 
In the story, Sepich mentioned that the Winterhawks were working with the city and the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers in the hopes of renovating their home arena, Memorial Coliesum, so that they would be able to use it on an every-game basis.
Sepich wrote:
“Robison has long contended that the Coliseum is not an appropriate venue for the WHL in its current form, citing shorcomings such as the smaller-than-regulation ice surface to the lack of amenities for fans.”
At that point, Sepich quoted Robison as saying:
"It doesn't meet our current standards, but it's adequate for the time being. We're excited about the plans for renovation."
Well, those “plans for renovation” are still just that . . . plans. In fact, any renovations to Memorial Coliseum won’t get started until the middle of 2012. Which must mean that the Portland rink still doesn’t meet WHL standards.
So, Medicine Hat hockey fans, you can breathe easier. Your rink may not meet those standards, but you are not alone.
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By the way, Amanda Stephenson’s story is right here.
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In that story, Robison is quoted as saying:
"I certainly hope council will revisit the matter soon to determine if there's a funding formula or new plan that will work. We had made an assumption that the project would be moving forward in a timely fashion.
"Obviously, that's not the case. We will now have to meet with the city, along with the Tigers, to determine what the alternative will be."
Alternative?
There would appear to be none.
With the NHL going back to Winnipeg, you would have to think that market is dead, at least for now, in terms of being home to a WHL franchise.
Of course, there is a building in Chilliwack that meets WHL standards but the league torched every bridge into it when it allowed the Bruins to be sold and moved to Victoria where the franchise now does business as the Royals.
The WHL would love to get a franchise into Nanaimo, which would give it two teams on Vancouver Island, but there isn’t a major junior-calibre arena there and the city doesn’t have any plans to build one.
John Ruttan, the mayor of Nanaimo, told Walter Cordery of the Nanaimo Daily News in April that he would like to see the WHL in his city but "not if they expect city taxpayers to underwrite the cost of a new arena."
Alternative? Not unless we are headed back to the days when the WHL was looking at places like Fresno and Butte and Anchorage.
Hey, what about Wenatchee, Wash.?
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Dave Barr still is shown on the Minnesota Wild’s website as an assistant coach with the NHL team.
It seems, however, that he might end up as the next head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors.
I’m told that Barr has been offered the Warriors’ head-coaching job, and that he has been told the team needs an answer from him right after this weekend’s NHL draft.
Should Barr accept, meaning he isn’t able to land an NHL job over draft weekend, he would be introduced to the Moose Jaw fandom next week.
The Warriors are looking for head coach after they fired Dave Hunchak following the end of last season. He has since signed on as an associate coach with the Kamloops Blazers.
Barr just completed his second season on the Wild staff, after one season with the Colorado Avalanche.
The Wild, however, fired head coach Todd Richards after the season and has since named Mike Yeo as head coach. Yeo spent last season as head coach of the AHL’s Houston Aeros and is expected to bring Darryl Sydor along as one assistant coach.
Rick Wilson, the former Prince Albert Raiders head coach, will be staying on the Wild staff. Homebrew Darby Hendrickson is the other assistant coach, at least at present.
Barr also has major junior coaching experience, having guided the OHL’s Guelph Storm (2004-08).
Alan Millar, who is heading into his second season as Moose Jaw’s director of hockey operations. He was the GM of the OHL’s Sarnia Sting (2004-09), after being GM of the Storm (1997-2003).
Barr also played 614 games over 13 NHL seasons.
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The Kootenay Ice, who won the WHL’s 2010-11 championship, have sold 2,029 season tickets, and that’s a franchise record. They sold 1,829 of them for the 2010-11 season.
“We’re very happy with that number. Not satisfied, but very happy,” Ice president and general manager Jeff Chynoweth told Matt Coxford of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman.
That story is right here.
The Ice, as you will be aware, won the WHL title with a roster comprised entirely of Canadian players after Chynoweth chose not take part in the CHL’s 2010 import draft.
Will the Ice be involved in this year’s import draft?
“At this time,” he told Coxford, “we haven’t decided if we’re going to participate in that.”

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
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