Braes hot for UNB . . . Moving day in AHL, OHL . . . Hitchcock wins; Bechard snaps

At least four schools, some of them likely in California, are close to deciding whether to add NCAA Division 1 hockey to their athletic departments. A report in the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Thursday indicated that a number of schools would love to emulate the success of the Penn State Nittany Lions, a program in contention for the Big 10 title in only its third season of existence. As well, Arizona State is preparing to ice a Division 1 team. . . . Jason Gonzalez of the Star Tribune has more right here. . . . The WHL, of course, recruits heavily in California, and having Division 1 teams in the state would no doubt make things a bit more difficult. Keep in mind that there haven’t been any Division 1 teams west of the Rocky Mountains.
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The Guelph Gryphons and UNB Varsity Reds advanced on the first day of play at the CIS men’s hockey championship in Halifax. . . . F Cam Braes (Lethbridge, Moose Jaw, 2007-12) scored four times to lead the No. 2 Varsity Reds to a 6-2 victory over the No. 7 Windsor Lancers. Braes, from Shawnigan Lake, B.C., tied a CIS record for most goals in a national championship tournament game. “I pride myself on being a playoff performer when the chips are down. I always want to elevate my game,” Braes said. . . . In the day’s other game, the No. 3 Gryphons dumped the No. 6 Calgary Dinos, 3-1. F Teal Burns (Portland, Vancouver, Prince Albert, Everett, 2009-2012) and F Seth Swenson (Portland, Seattle, Lethbridge) had goals for Guelph. Calgary got its goal from F Chris Collins (Chilliwack, Saskatoon, 2007-2012). . . . Today, the host StFX X-Men, the eighth seed, meet the No. 1 Alberta Golden Bears, the defending champions, and the No. 4 UQTR Patriots meet the No. 5 Acadia Axemen.
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It was moving day on Thursday as three teams — two in the AHL and one in the OHL — announced that they will have new homes next season. . . . The NHL’s Winnipeg Jets made it official — they are moving the AHL’s St. John’s IceCaps from Newfoundland to the MTS Centre in Winnipeg where they likely will play as the Manitoba Moos. . . . The Montreal Canadiens then revealed that their AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, will be moving to St. John’s. They will play as the IceCaps. In another couple of years, the franchise is likely to end up in Laval, Que., where a new arena is being built. . . . In the OHL, the board of governors announced that it had approved the sale of the Belleville Bulls, who will be moving to Hamilton and will be renamed the Bullodgs. . . . Michael Andlauer sold the Bulldogs to the Canadiens, then purchased Belleville’s OHL franchise. . . . The OHL hasn’t been in Hamilton since the Dukes played there (1989-91).
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Ken Hitchcock, the head coach of the St. Louis Blues, became the fourth head coach in NHL history with 700 career victories last night. When the Blues beat the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 1-0 in a shootout, Hitchcock joined Scotty Bowman (1,244), Al Arbour (782) and Joel Quenneville (745) as members of the 700 club.
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Jerome Bechard, the head coach of the SPHL’s Columbus Cottonmouths, got a little excited in the first period of a game last night. How excited? Well, Bechard (Moose Jaw, 1986-89) actually ended up on the ice. . . . There’s video right here.
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Ch-ch-ching! Peter Anholt, the general manager and head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, has been fined $500 after he was hit with a game misconduct late in a 4-1 loss to the host Kootenay Ice on Tuesday night. . . .
The Brandon Wheat Kings, with 49 victories, are at home to the Saskatoon Blades tonight. They may get D Kale Clague back from an undisclosed injury. He played three games since Oct. 28. . . . F Nolan Patrick has missed 10 games and is skating, but hasn’t been cleared for contact. . . . F Reid Duke and F Quinton Lisoway remain week-to-week. . . .
The Kelowna Rockets continue to show that three of their top players aren’t about to come off the injury list in a day or two. The Rockets, who go home-and-home with the Kamloops Blazers this weekend, show F Rourke Chartier and F Justin Kirkland as being week-to-week, while D Josh Morrissey is out for two to three weeks. That would indicate that the Rockets are hoping to have them, along with F Gage Quinney and D Mitch Wheaton, ready for the start of playoffs. . . .
The Portland Winterhawks have won 40 games for a sixth straight season. That ties a franchise record set from 1978-83. . . .
F Dawson Holt has joined the Vancouver Giants and could play at some point this weekend. Holt, 16, was a first-round selection in the 2014 bantam draft. He was free to join the Giants once his team, the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts, had its season end. . . .
F Taylor Crunk of the Victoria Royals has been charged with assault causing bodily harm after an incident that occurred at a New Year’s Eve party. . . . The Victoria Times Colonist has more right here. . . .
Regina Pats F Sam Steel isn’t expected to play this weekend after suffering a leg injury on Tuesday during a game in Prince Albert. The Pats play in Moose Jaw tonight and then are at home to the Warriors on Saturday. . . . While Steel may not play until the playoffs, Regina F Austin Wagner (concussion) is likely to return this weekend after missing eight games. . . .
The Moose Jaw Warriors expect to have F Jaimen Yakubowski in the lineup when they play host to the Regina Pats tonight. He has missed six games with an undisclosed injury. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has more on the Warriors right here. . . .
F Cameron Hausinger, a 17-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, says the Saskatoon Blades are very much on his radar, especially after he wasn’t one of the 50 players invited to the U.S. National Team Development Camp. Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here. ———

THE COACHING GAME:

The junior B Princeton Posse of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League are looking for a general manager and head coach. The Posse announced earlier this month that they wouldn’t be extending the contract of GM/head coach Bill Rotheisler. . . . He had been in that position since June 27, 2013. . . . This season, the Posse went 22-24-3-2 and finished fourth in the Okanagan Division. It then lost a first-round best-of-seven series to the Osoyoos Coyotes in five games.
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THE WHL PLAYOFF PICTURE:

EAST DIVISION:
1. Brandon (5 games remaining) — Will finish atop the Eastern Conference for the first time since 1995-96. They will play the conference’s second wild-card team in first round. . . . Tied with Kelowna (5) for first place overall. . . . At home to Saskatoon tonight.
2. Regina (5) clinched second in division. Will meet third-place team in first round. . . . Goes home-and-home with Moose Jaw this weekend. They’re in Moose Jaw tonight and in Regina on Saturday.
3. Swift Current (5) has lost seven in a row. Leads Moose Jaw by two points and Prince Albert six. . . . In Prince Albert tonight then play host to the Raiders on Saturday.
4. Moose Jaw (5) remains two points behind Swift Current. . . . At home to Regina tonight and in Regina on Saturday.
5. Prince Albert (6) has won four in a row to get within four points of Moose Jaw and six of Swift Current. . . . Entertains Swift Current tonight and then visits Swift Current on Saturday. . . . Completes its first three-in-three of the season in Medicine Hat on Sunday.
6. Saskatoon (4) is in Brandon tonight.
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CENTRAL DIVISION:
1. Medicine Hat (6) is tied with Calgary atop the division. Medicine Hat has more victories (41-40) at the moment. . . . Tigers meet the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook tonight.
2. Calgary (6) has two games left in a franchise-record 11-game road trip. . . . Plays in Red Deer tonight and Lethbridge on Saturday.
3. Red Deer (5) is three points off the pace. . . . At home to Calgary tonight.
4. Kootenay (5) holds down the conference’s first wild-card spot, one point ahead of Edmonton. . . . At home to Medicine Hat tonight.
5. Edmonton (4) is in the second wild-card spot, one point behind Kootenay. . . . In Lethbridge tonight.
6. Lethbridge (6) is at home to Edmonton tonight.
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B.C. DIVISION:
1. Kelowna (5) has clinched first place in the Western Conference and will play the second wild-card team in the first round. . . . Tied with Brandon for first place in the overall standings. . . . In Kamloops tonight. The Blazers visit Kelowna on Saturday.
2. Victoria (5) will finish second and meet the division’s third-place team in the first round. . . . In Vancouver tonight then goes home to face the Giants Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. Seriously!
3. Prince George (5) is third, two points ahead of Kamloops. . . . Will visit Tri-City tonight and Portland on Saturday.
4. Kamloops (5) trails Prince George by two points. . . . Will meet Prince George three times in the next while — March 18 and 20 in Prince George, and March 21 in Kamloops. . . . The Blazers are tied with Tri-City (6) for the conference’s second wild-card berth. . . . At home to Kelowna tonight and in Kelowna on Saturday. The Blazers have lost 18 straight regular-season games to the Rockets.
5. Vancouver (5) has lost seven straight and is four points behind Kamloops and Tri-City. . . . Plays host to Victoria tonight, then it’s off to Victoria for games Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
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U.S. DIVISION:
1. Everett (5) leads the division by two points over Portland (7) but Portland has a higher winning percentage — .654-.649. . . . Into Kent, Wash., to meet Seattle tonight.
2. Portland (7) is on a 9-0-2 roll and just two points out of first place. It has seven games left, three with Spokane. The first of those is in Spokane tonight.
3. Seattle (6) trails Portland by 10 points. . . . At home to Everett tonight.
4. Spokane (7) is in the first wild-card spot, seven points behind Seattle and nine ahead of Tri-City (6). . . . At home to Portland tonight.
5. Tri-City (6) is tied with Kamloops for the second wild-card spot, four points ahead of Vancouver. . . . Entertains Prince George tonight.
(NOTE: If two teams tie for a conference’s last playoff spot, those teams will have a play-in game at the home of the team with the most victories. So . . . if Kamloops and Tri-City were to end up tied for the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, a play-in game would be held. At the moment, Tri-City has more victories — 28-26.)
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IF THE WHL PLAYOFFS BEGAN TODAY:

Eastern Conference
Brandon vs. Edmonton
Medicine Hat vs. Kootenay
Regina vs. Swift Current
Calgary vs. Red Deer
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Western Conference
Kelowna vs. Tri-City/Kamloops
Everett vs. Spokane
Victoria vs. Prince George
Portland vs. Seattle
(NOTE: Team with home-ice advantage shown first.)
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THURSDAY’S GAMES

No Games Scheduled
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FRIDAY’S GAMES

(all times local)
Saskatoon at Brandon, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Regina at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Medicine Hat vs. Kootenay, at Cranbrook, 7 p.m.
Swift Current at Prince Albert, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Kelowna at Kamloops, 7 p.m.
Prince George vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Portland at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Victoria at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
Everett vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES

(all times local)
Calgary at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Moose Jaw at Regina, 7 p.m.
Prince Albert at Swift Current, 7 p.m.
Kootenay at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Edmonton at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Prince George at Portland, 7 p.m.
Seattle at Everett, 7:05 p.m.
Tri-City at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Kamloops at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Vancouver at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
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“@funnyordie: Sorry, Cody. But there's no crying in baseball. #FerrellTakesTheField pic.twitter.com/gxgXKMb475” - 😢......
— Cody Decker (@Decker6) March 13, 2015

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Colby Armstrong off to Sweden

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Colby Armstrong (Red Deer, 1998-2002) signed a one-year contract with Växjö Lakers (Sweden, SHL). He had two goals and three assists in 37 games with the Montreal Canadiens (NHL) last season. . . .
F Martin Filo (Moose Jaw, 2007-09) signed a one-year contract with Königsborner JEC Unna (Germany, Oberliga). He had one goal and four assists in 26 games with Dukla Trencin (Slovakia, Extraliga) last season.
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Jerome Bechard was a fierce competitor through four seasons (1986-90) with the Moose Jaw Warriors. He put up 238 points in 284 regular-season games. He also piled up 880 penalty minutes. He has been in Columbus, Ga., since 1996, first as a player with the Cottonmouths and now as the general manager and head coach. On June 6, Bdchard underwent open-heart surgery. Things went well and he now is recuperating and preparing for another season. . . . Kathy Gierer of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer has more right here.
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Lou Gehrig was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 1939. Unfortunately, he was dying of ALS and too ill to be there. What might he have said in his acceptance speech? Jonathan Eig, the author of Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig, tries to answer that question right here.


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Stanislav Gron (Seattle, Kootenay, 1997-99) signed a one-year contract extension with Cortina (Italy, Serie A). He had 34 goals and 30 assists in 39 games with Cortina this season, good enough to finish first in goals and second in scoring in Serie A. . . .


F Jeremy Yablonski (Edmonton/Kootenay, 1997-2000) was released by mutual agreement from his contract with Vityaz Chekhov (Russia, KHL). He had no points in eight games with Vityaz this season. . . .


D Shaone Morrisonn (Kamloops, 1999-2002) signed a one-year contract with TPS Turku (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had one goal and three assists in 46 games with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL) before being traded to CSKA Moscow (Russia, KHL) at the KHL trading deadline of Jan. 31, two games before the end of the regular season. With CSKA, he had one goal and one assist in those two games. . . .



F Oleg Saprykin (Seattle, 1998-2000) signed a one-year contract with CSKA Moscow (Russia, KHL). He had five goals and eight assists in 32 games with Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL) this season.
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1. We’ve all seen Gregg Popovich, the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, use his eyes and tone of voice to barbecue an interviewer during one of those NBA in-game pieces. Marc Stein of ESPN.com writes right here about Popovich and his relationship with the people doing the interviewing. This, folks, is an entertaining read.
2. F Brenden Walker, who captained the Saskatoon Blades this season, has been invited to the Phoenix Coyotes’ development camp, July 8-12. Walker, an undrafted free agent, played out his eligibility with the Blades this season. He had 76 points, including 33 goals, with the Blades. . . . Darren Zary of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here.
3. According to the Moncton Times & Transcript, the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats have signed Danny Flynn, the director, hockey operations, to a three-year contract extension. Before the end of this season, Flynn also was the club’s head coach. However, ownership chose to split the jobs, with Flynn not to focus on hockey operations.
4. The Swift Current Broncos have signed F Tyler Steenbergen, who is from Sylvan Lake,
Alta., to a contract. He was the 12th overall selection in the WHL’s 2013 bantam draft after putting up 67 points with the Red Deer Rebels White last season.
5. When Jerome Bechard played with the Moose Jaw Warriors (1986-90), he always displayed a lot of heart. That heart got tuned up this week when Bechard, now the general manager and head coach of the SPHL’s Columbus, Ga., Cottonmouths, underwent open heart surgery. Kathy Gierer has more on Bechard’s story right here.
6. The Coaches Site is getting geared up for its 2013 Hockey Coaches Conference. The third annual conference, which runs Aug. 9-11, will feature at least three WHL head coaches in key roles. . . . Don Hay of the Vancouver Giants, Mike Johnston of the Portland Winterhawks, Mike Williamson of the Calgary Hitmen and Ben Cooper of the Victoria Royals. . . . The news release is right here. There also is a link to the website over there on the right and, if you're a coach, there are a lot of resources on it.
7. If you’re looking for more hockey, the AHL final opens Saturday with the Grand Rapids Griffins in Syracuse to play the Crunch. . . . The AHL announced Thursday that it and NeuLion, Inc., will stream the final at no charge. From the news release: “Using promo code CALDER2013, fans can register and log in at www.ahllive.com and watch all of the action.” . . . Game time Saturday is 7 p.m. ET.
8. If you watched the NHL game last night between the visiting Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings, and if you watched the game the night before when a non-call on Boston F Jaromir Jagr led to the host Bruins’ winning goal in double OT against the Pittsburgh Penguins, you may be asking yourself this: Just what is a penalty in the NHL? . . . Sorry, can’t help you because I don’t know either.
9. So what’s going on in the NBA, where the Denver Nuggets dumped head coach George Karl yesterday? Sean Deveney of sportingnews.com writes right here that it’s all about younger and cheaper.
10. F Andy McDonald of the St. Louis Blues announced his retirement yesterday. McDonald, 35, says he feels that he could play another two or three seasons, but post-concussion syndrome has taken its toll. Five brain injures, two of them in a 10-month span, proved too much to allow him to continue.
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THE COACHING GAME:

The OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads extended the contract of general manager/head coach James Boyd through 2015-16 on Thursday. Boyd is preparing for his third season as the club’s GM/head coach, after spending four seasons as assistant GM/assistant coach under Dave Cameron.


The ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears announced Thursday that head coach Drake Berehowsky won’t be returning for a second season. The Solar Bears were 28-37-7 under Berehowsky  this season. . . . Darrell Romuld of CTV Lethbridge reported earlier this week that sources told him that Berehowsky will be named head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday. . . . “I do not have a contract with anybody right now,” Berehowsky told Brendan Sonnone of the Orlando Sentinel. “That’s about all I can say.”

Former NHLer Todd Krygier is the new head coach of the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks. Krygier, 47, who retired as a player in 2000, has been coaching at various levels in Michigan. He played 543 NHL games (1989-98_ with the Hartford Whalers, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, and Washington Capitals. . . . Krygier replaces Jim McKenzie, who was dismissed on May 24.
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From former Portland Winterhawks F Brad Ross (@bross1818), who was watching Game 1 in the NBA final: “What a joke, brutal ref job in the heat game reminds me of the whl refs” #takeyourblindersoff”


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Stanislav Gron (Seattle, Kootenay, 1997-99) signed a one-year contract with Cortina (Italy, Serie A). He had 10 goals and 23 assists in 40 games with Kosice (Slovakia, Extraliga) and two goals in one game on loan to Bardejov (Slovakia, 1.Liga) last season. . . .
F Riley Armstrong (Kootenay, Everett, 2002-04) signed a try-out contract with Ambri-Piotta (Switzerland, NL A). He had one goal and two assists in five games with the Binghamton Senators (AHL), three goals and four assists in nine games with the Elmira Jackals (ECHL) and three goals and two assists in 12 games with SaiPa Lappeenranta (Finland, SM-Liiga) last season. The try-out is for one to two weeks. Ambri-Piotta is coached by former Everett head coach Kevin Constantine.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors inducted winger Jerome Bechard and goaltender Donovan Nunweiler into their Hall of Fame on Friday, along with Rose Mary Hartney, the club’s longtime education co-ordinator. . . . As Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald writes right here, Bechard and Nunweiler were kind of from opposite ends of the spectrum as players.
Gourlie has a piece right here on Hartney.
Gourlie also reported that the Warriors Hall of Fame will be housed in the city's new arena, Mosaic Place.
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From the beginning, my theory in regards to the NHL and NHLPA negotiations has revolved around the Winter Classic.
This time around, the Winter Classic involves the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, a pair of Original Six teams.
The NHL can’t afford to lose the exposure it gets in the United States from the Winter Classic. Donald Fehr and the NHLPA recognize that.
Jeff Z. Klein, at The New York Times blog SlapShot, expounds upon the Winter Classic theory right here.
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If you are even remotely interested in what it is like to have to negotiate with the NHL and its commissioner, Gary Bettman, you absolutely must give this right here a read. . . . It is an excerpt from a book by Richard Stursberg — The Tower of Babble: Sins, Secrets and Successes Inside the CBC — that details negotiations involved in keeping Hockey Night in Canada with the CBC. Stursberg was the head  of CBC English television. . . . As you are reading this, try to picture Donald Fehr, the head of the NHLPA, in negotiations with Bettman.  

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