A look back at the series that was . . .

With the Kamloops Blazers and Portland Winterhawks set to meet in the WHL’s Western Conference final, here’s a look back at the seven-game second-round series between these teams that so captivated hockey fans last spring.
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Game 1: Kamloops 3 at Portland 5 — The Blazers led 2-0 after a period and 3-1 with 11 minutes to play in the third period. . . . Portland tied it with goals by F Sven Baertschi and F Ty Rattie just 1:07 apart. . . . F Brad Ross got the winner on a power play at 14:47. . . . The play everyone was talking about occurred at 18:36 of the third period when Kamloops G Cole Cheveldave ventured behind his net to play a puck and was hit by Portland F Oliver Gabriel, who was given a minor for goaltender interference. He later was suspended for four games. . . . Rattie had two goals and two assists; Baertschi finished one and three. . . . F Brendan Ranford had two assists for Kamloops.
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Game 2: Kamloops 1 at Portland 4 — Baertschi scored twice and G Mac Carruth stopped 39 shots for the Winterhawks. . . . Cheveldave had finished Game 1, but wasn’t feeling well by the morning of Game 2, so Cam Lanigan started and made 30 saves. . . . The Blazers had Taran Kozun on the bench in support of Lanigan. . . . Baertschi scored at 19:14 of the second period, F Taylor Leier made it 2-0 just 56 seconds into the third and F Cam Reid upped it to 3-0 just 19 seconds later. . . . Among the 22 penalties was a double minor to Kamloops F JC Lipon for butt-ending Rattie.
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Game 3: Portland 5 at Kamloops 2 — The Winterhawks scored three shorthanded goals, two of them by Ross. . . . Portland F Taylor Peters drew three shorthanded assists. . . . Leier broke a 1-1 tie with a shorthanded goal at 5:16 of the second, with Ross scoring 33 seconds later. . . . Kamloops was 1-for-9 on the PP; Portland was 1-for-4.
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Game 4: Portland 4 at Kamloops 5 — The Winterhawks, with a 3-0 lead in the series, led this game 4-0 at 10:58 of the first period and 4-1 going into the second. . . . Portland maintained that momentum shifted 12 minutes into the first period after an unpenalized Lipon hit that knocked Rattie out of the game and sent him to hospital with what turned out to be a neck injury. Lipon scored immediately after the hit to get Kamloops on the board. . . . Ranford tied the scored at 6:03 of the third period and F Dylan Willick got the winner at 7:37 on the power play. . . . Ranford also had two assists. . . . Portland also was unhappy about a third-period check to the head by Kamloops D Austin Madaisky on Leier. . . . Things definitely were beginning to heat up.
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Game 5: Kamloops 7 at Portland 2 — F Jordan DePape had two goals and two assists and Madaisky had three assists as the Blazers won going away. . . . The Blazers were without Lipon, who drew a one-game suspension under supplemental discipline for his Game 4 hit on Rattie, who played. . . . The visitors led 2-0 and 4-1 at the period breaks. . . . Kamloops F Tim Bozon beat Carruth on a penalty shot at 6:30 of the third and when F Chase Souto scored at 7:35, the Winterhawks changed goaltenders with Brendan Burke cleaning up. . . . Lanigan stopped 34 shots.
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Game 6: Portland 6 at Kamloops 7 — Portland F Brendan Leipsic’s power-play goal at 11:24 of the second period gave the Winter hawks a 5-2 lead. . . . It was still 5-2 with 15 minutes left in the third period. . . . And then the comeback began. . . . Kamloops D Marek Hrbas got it started at 5:55, on the PP. . . . DePape scored at 8:49 and F Aspen Sterzer beat Carruth 11 seconds later. . . . When F Colin Smith scored a PP goal at 15:21 the Blazers amazingly had the lead. . . . The joy was short-lived, however, as Reid pulled Portland into a 6-6 tie at 15:47. . . . Kamloops D Bronson Maschmeyer won it with his second goal of the game at 19:39. . . . Lanigan stopped 24 shots, while Carruth turned aside 36. . . . In something of a surreal moment, the Kamloops fans stood and cheered until the Blazers returned to the ice surface from their dressing room and took a curtain call.
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Game 7: Kamloops 0 at Portland 2 — F Marcel Noebels scored at 1:01 of the first period and Carruth made it stand up with 32 saves. . . . Leipsic added an insurance marker at 9:49 of the third. . . . According to The Oregonian’s Paul Buker, when it was all over Portland radio analyst Andy Kemper said: “This was a war, folks, an absolute war.”
— GREGG DRINNAN


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G Brandon Glover of the Seattle Thunderbirds got the WHL a whole lot of publicity, including some pub at SI.com. However, it seems the league doesn’t believe in the axiom that no publicity is bad publicity.
Glover has been suspended for two games after getting into a scrap with G Austin Lotz of the Everett Silvertips on Saturday night. According to the WHL website, the suspension actually is “for game misconduct versus Everett.”
From that same game, the Thunderbirds drew a $500 fine for the goaltenders’ fight, and Seattle D Evan Wardley was suspended for two games after picking up his fourth game misconduct of the season.
Meanwhile, F Jordan Messier of the Moose Jaw Warriors was hit was a three-game suspension for a game misconduct he incurred in a game against the visiting Swift Current Broncos on Friday. Messier came off the bench during a line change and got involved in a scrap. . . . That suspension ends Messier’s WHL career as he is 20 and the Warriors have only three games remaining.
The Warriors also were fined $250 “for actions of player” in that game.
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The Tri-City Americans have added D Brandon Carlo, 16, to their roster for the rest of this season. The 6-foot-4, 180-pound Carlo, from Colorado Springs, Colo, played this season with the U-16 Colorado Thunderbirds. He put up 47 points, including 10 goals, in 41 games. Carlo was a 10th-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. According to an Americans’ news release: “Under the USA Hockey/Hockey Canada/CHL agreement, Carlo will be limited to six games played for the remainder of the season, including the 2013 WHL playoffs.” . . .
The Americans also announced that they have added F Fraser Bulbuc, 18, to their roster. He had been with the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders. Bulbuc has played in four games with the Americans this season, scoring one goal.
The Kootenay Ice has added F Hudson Elynuik, 15, to its roster for the last four regular-season games. A third-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, Elynuik played for the midget AAA Calgary Flames. . . .
The WHL’s draft lottery will be held on March 20. . . .
The Prince Albert Raiders have added F Matteo Gennaro, 15, and D Brendan Guhle, 15, to their roster. Gennaro, a second-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, had 21 points in 30 games with the midget AAA St. Albert Raiders. He will stay with the Raiders through the weekend’s final regular-season games. Guhle, the third overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft, played with the midget AAA Sherwood Park Kings. He had five points in nine playoff games and will remain with the Raiders through the playoffs. . . .
F Henrik Samuelsson of the Edmonton Oil Kings has signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes. Samuelsson, the son of former NHL D Ulf Samuelsson, was a first-round selection, 27th ovearll, in the 2012 NHL draft. He has 79 points, including 32 goals, in 67 games this season. Last season, the native of Scottsdale, Ariz., had 23 points in 28 regular-season games after joining the Oil Kings following the Christmas break. He added 14 points in WHL playoff games then was named to the Memorial Cup all-star team.
According to capgeek.com, D Joel Edmundson of the Kamloops Blazers will get NHL salaries of $642,500, $717,500 and $867,500 under the terms of the three-year deal he signed with the St. Louis Blues last week. His AHL salary would be $70,000 in each of the three seasons. Edmundson, a second-round selection in the NHL’s 2011 draft while he was with the Moose Jaw Warriors, also got a signing bonus of $277,500, payable in three annual instalments. . . .
The Red Deer Rebels have added F Jordan DePape, 20, to their roster. DePape, who hasn’t played since Nov. 11, left the Kamloops Blazers in order to undergo shoulder surgery. The Rebels acquired him as a free agent on Jan. 10 in the hopes that he would help them in the playoffs. . . . Red Deer has two games remaining, both against the Edmonton Oil Kings.
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The matchups, if the WHL playoffs opened today:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Swift Current (6)
Red Deer (4) vs Prince Albert (5)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Everett (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Spokane (4) vs. Tri-City (5)
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MONDAY’S GAMES:
No Games Scheduled.
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I will let you guess what was on TV last night . . .
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From Portland Winterhawks F Chase De Leo (@Dels9): “Bachelor season finale tonight, mixed emotions. Excited, but sad it's going to be over. Think with your head Sean, not your hammer. #WifedUp”
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From Brandon Wheat Kings D Nick Walters (@nickwalters3): “Lindsay Illl love you and treat you right”
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From former Portland F Brad Ross (@bross1818): “Wow Sean your an idiot can't believe you didn't pick Lindsay. I'm #heartbroken #idmarryyou”
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And then there was Bachelor fan Mike Fraser (@MikeFraser29), who scouts for the Brandon Wheat Kings but seems to have missed the finale: “Congrats to my alma mater, @ICGaels, for winning the MAAC men's basketball championship tonight and advancing to the NCAA tournament.”
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From Shawneen Esson (@s_esson): “Seen 2 of the @SCBroncos packing bags at Safeway tonight! Pretty nice to see even if one was tweeting on the job! Lol”

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F Jordan DePape is hoping to return to game action in 10 days. DePape, who hasn’t played since Nov. 11, left the Kamloops Blazers in late November in order to undergo his second major shoulder operation in two years.
DePape, 20, subsequently was released by the Blazers and was added by the Red Deer Rebels on Jan. 10. He has been skating with the Rebels for a couple of weeks and took part in his first full-contact practice on Monday.
If all goes according to plan, he will dress for the Rebels on March 15 against the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings. The next night, the Rebels wrap up their regular season in Edmonton.
DePape had six points, including four goals, in 17 games with Kamloops this season.
The Rebels will be hoping DePape can recapture the magic he showed in last season’s playoffs. He rejoined the Blazers after having had surgery and proceeded to put up 13 points, seven of them goals, in 11 playoff games.
Meanwhile, the Rebels play host to the Kootenay Ice tonight. Red Deer should have F Dominik Volek back after he missed three games while ill.
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Since returning to the WHL after five seasons in the NHL, Brent Sutter says he has really noticed something.
Here’s part of what Sutter, the owner, GM and head coach of the Red Deer Rebels told Jason Gregor of the Edmonton Journal: “It is so noticeable on a hockey team that the kids who have played other sports and experienced different things are always the smarter players on your team, and they are able to handle adversity better. They deal with adversity better because they are thrown into different environments and they trust their skills that they may have learned elsewhere to get them through certain things.”
Perhaps the message will get through if parents hear it from someone with Sutter’s credibility.
Gregor’s piece is right here.
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Mike Moore has been named assistant general manager of the Calgary Hitmen. Moore, who has worked as general manager with the Kamloops Blazers and Medicine Hat Tigers, had been Calgary’s director of business operations. This is Moore‘s 16th season in the WHL, his fifth with the Hitmen. . . According to a news release, “His hockey operations duties will be in addition to his current responsibilities of operating the business side of the organization.” . . . Kelly Kisio is the team’s general manager, executive vice-president and alternate governor.
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Wearing No. 90, former WHL F Chris Schlenker made his debut as a WHL referee on Sunday in Medicine Hat when he worked alongside veteran Sean Raphael as the Tigers beat the Calgary Hitmen, 5-2. . . . Schlenker played with the Regina Pats and Prince Albert Raiders (2000-05), putting up 197, 188, 178 and 155 penalty minutes. A 29-year-old native of Medicine Hat, he totalled 92 points, including 25 goals, in 284 games. . . . “Haven’t been that nervous since 2001 #rookie,” he tweeted. . . . In his other life, Schlenker is a member of the Medicine Hat Police Service. He and Kato, a purebred German Shepherd, have worked together for almost two years now.
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The Dallas Stars have signed F Taylor Peters of the Portland Winterhawks to a three-year, entry-level NHL contract. Peters, who turned 21 on Jan. 24, has 111 points in 313 career regular-season games with the Winterhawks. This season, he has 37 points in 62 games. Peters is one of the WHL’s top penalty-killing forwards and a superb defensive player. He also is a terrific faceoff man.
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The New York Rangers have signed — or are close to signing — F Josh Nicholls of the Saskatoon Blades to a three-year, entry-level NHL contract. Nicholls was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the seventh round of the 2010 NHL draft but never signed. This season, he has 73 points, including 41 goals, in 65 games. . . . Bob McKenzie of TSN tweeted: “Nicholls contract with NYR is standard three-year entry level deal, listed with annual cap hit of $925K. Gets SB of $92.5K in each of 3 yrs.” . . . At the same time, Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reported that Gerry Johannson, who is Nicholls’ agent, wouldn’t confirm a deal, but said he hoped to have something done today.
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The matchups, if the WHL playoffs opened today:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Swift Current (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Medicine Hat (6)
Red Deer (4) vs Prince Albert (5)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Seattle (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Everett (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Tri-City (4) vs. Spokane (5)
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MONDAY’S GAME:
In Prince George, the Tri-City Americans erased a 1-0 deficit with three goals in 1:06 in the first period and went on to beat the Cougars, 6-3. . . . D Mark McNulty gave the Cougars a 1-0 lead with his eight goal, via the PP, at 4:37. . . . F Justin Feser tied it with his 41st at 11:06, on the PP. F Connor Rankin, with his 26th, gave the Americans the lead at 11:42, and D Mitch Topping added his 13th at 12:12. . . . Feser later added an assist, getting him to the 100-point plateau. . . . Rankin finished up with two goals. . . . The same teams will play again tonight in Prince George. . . . The Americans moved into fourth in the Western Conference, one point ahead of the Spokane Chiefs. Each team has seven games to play. . . . The Cougars, who have lost five in a row, are eight points out of a playoff spot with eight games left, six of them on the road.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
None

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
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From former TSN play-by-play voice Paul Romanuk (@paul_romanuk), who now lives in London, as in England: “Brit sports sections full of pre match Manu v Real Champions League coverage. Once again, nothing on Leafs.”


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Rebels add DePape as free agent

By GREGG DRINNAN 
Daily News Sports Editor
Jordan DePape may get to play in the WHL again, after all.
DePape, 20, left the Kamloops Blazers on Nov. 17 and underwent shoulder surgery in Winnipeg on Nov. 26. He isn’t likely to return to game action before mid-March, but he was picked up as a free agent by the Red Deer Rebels on Thursday.
It was quite a turn of events for DePape who, earlier in the day, thought he was

DePAPE

headed to the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings. They began the day by acquiring his junior A rights from the Virden Oil Capitals for future considerations. Marlon Murray, the Kings’ general manager and head coach, chatted with DePape yesterday morning.
DePape also said there was “interest in the USHL” and added that he had heard from Bob Green, the Edmonton Oil Kings’ general manager. DePape’s chances of joining Edmonton went by the wayside when Green acquired forward Trevor Cheek, 20, from the Vancouver Giants.
Last season, DePape had surgery on his left shoulder and was limited to 14 regular-season games. He returned in time for the playoffs and put up 14 points in 11 games. This season, he had six points in 17 games, but just one goal in his last eight outings when he was forced to stop playing.
When DePape left the Blazers, it was thought the surgery on his right shoulder would be season-ending. However, he has since learned that he should be able to return in mid-March.
Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner, general manager and head coach, obviously is willing to wait.
Before grabbing DePape, Sutter was working to get veteran forward Adam Kambeitz, 20, back in the fold. The Rebels had dealt Kambeitz, who was their captain, to the Saskatoon Blades in October. But the Blades acquired forward Michael Ferland, 20, from the Brandon Wheat Kings yesterday, giving up a 2013 first-round bantam draft pick, and had to move one of their other 20-year-olds. That player turned out to be Kambeitz.
“I knew that Saskatoon was going to move Kambeitz and he was certainly someone we were interested in getting and bringing him back,” Sutter told Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate. “Unfortunately Saskatoon didn’t want to move him to another team in this conference.”
Saskatoon traded Kambeitz to the Seattle Thunderbirds for a 2014 third-round bantam draft pick. When that happened, Sutter called DePape.
DePape said he expects to hear from Sutter today, at which time they will begin to chart the recovery process that will lead to his going to Red Deer. DePape will join forward Turner Elson and defenceman Brandon Underwood, a former teammate in Kamloops, as the Rebels’ 20-year-old players.
In the meantime, DePape is back doing some off-ice workouts and hopes to resume skating in two weeks.
The Rebels are scheduled to play in Kamloops on Feb. 9. DePape may not be with them then, but he may return later in February as part of a juvenile diabetes promotion, the details of which have yet to be released.

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Bozon, Ully finding the range

Left-winger Tim Bozon (15) of the Kamloops Blazers, here in action against
the host Everett Silvertips in a game last season, says he plans on shooting
the puck more in the second half of this season.
(Christopher Mast / mastimages.com)

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports EditorTim Bozon, who was born in St. Louis, has ties to France and calls Switzerland home, spent Christmas in Kamloops.
It wasn’t all eggnog and presents, though.
Bozon, an 18-year-old in his second WHL season with the Kamloops Blazers, did a lot of thinking about the season’s first 38 games.
“I had a tough month of November and a tough early December,” Bozon said after scoring three times as the Blazers defeated the visiting Vancouver Giants 9-5 on Saturday night. The teams play again tonight in Vancouver. “It feels good to score. I put my mind to shoot the puck more.
“I want to shoot the puck more.”
Bozon, who plays the left side on the WHL’s top offensive line, alongside centre Colin Smith and JC Lipon, came out of October with 14 goals in 17 games.
Bozon’s scoring touch went away in November, though, as he counted only two goals in 11 games. The early games in December weren’t kind, either, as he had just three goals in nine games when the Christmas break arrived.
“I stopped shooting the puck in November,” Bozon said. “I tried to make the cute play and pass to JC and Smitty. But the player I am, I have to shoot the puck.”
Bozon is the reigning Western Conference rookie of the year after a season in which he shot his way to 71 points, including 36 goals, in 71 games.
Getting back to that game plan has paid off for Bozon in the first two games after the Christmas break. He scored twice in a 7-3 loss to the Rockets in Kelowna on Thursday, then struck three times against the Giants.
Bozon, a third-round selection by the Montreal Canadiens in the NHL’s 2012 draft, now has 53 points, 24 of them goals, in 39 games.
While Bozon was thinking in Kamloops, Blazers right-winger Cole Ully was working hard in Calgary.
Ully, 17, had been diagnosed with mononucleosis late in November and really wanted to be ready when the schedule resumed after Christmas.
After going home, Ully rested for a week and then “started slowly in the gym.”
“The last two weeks I pushed it in the gym and skated almost twice a day,” Ully said after he, too, had scored three times in the victory over Vancouver. “I wanted to be ready for the second half . . . I knew we were missing guys and the team wanted me to be ready right when I got back.”
One of the symptoms of mononucleosis is a swollen spleen; Ully underwent an ultrasound examination and his spleen was found to be fine, after which he was cleared to play against the Rockets in Kelowna on Thursday.
“I felt I was playing pretty strong,” Ully said of the early portion of his season when he put up 11 points in his first 14 games. “But it’s tough to play when you’re feeling like that.”
Ully tried to play through a bout of tiredness and had just three points in 14 games before being diagnosed with mononucleosis.
“I had a pretty rough patch there when I was sick,” he said, “so it feels good to be 100 per cent and be able to contribute again.”
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The Blazers expect to have F Dylan Willick, 20, in the lineup tonight for the first time since he broke his right ankle on Nov. 2. He has missed 21 games during which time the Blazers went 9-9-1, including two four-game losing streaks.
Willick took the warmup on Saturday but didn’t play.
While he was injured, Willick was named team captain.
Meanwhile, Kamloops D Tyler Hansen, who was ill and left with a minute left in Saturday’s second period, didn’t practice on Tuesday. He will be re-evaluated today before a decision is made as to whether he will play.
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F Jordan DePape, who left the Blazers on Nov. 17 and underwent shoulder surgery on Nov. 26 in Winnipeg, has been told that he should be able to play by March 15.
“Healing is going well,” DePape told The Daily News last night. “There’s nothing from a medical standpoint that says it’s harmful for me to return.”
Dr. Peter MacDonald, an orthopedic surgeon, repaired interior and anterior labrum tears in DePape’s right shoulder. DePape said Dr. MacDonald told him he should be able to play “around” March 15 “if I decide.”
The Blazers have two 20-year-olds on their roster — Willick and F Brendan Ranford — so have room for one more.
The Blazers tried to fill that spot by acquiring F Charles Inglis from the Red Deer Rebels on Nov. 19, but they released him on Dec. 12.
With the WHL’s Jan. 10 trade deadline approaching, it remains to be seen whether the Blazers will make a move to acquire a 20-year-old or show patience and wait on DePape.
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JUST NOTES: The Blazers next play at home on Friday when they meet the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Vancouver ended a four-game losing skid with an 8-4 victory over the visiting Prince George Cougars on Sunday. . . . F Jakob Stukel, 15, is expected to make his WHL debut with the Giants tonight. Stukel, who has 24 points in 22 games with the major midget Valley West Hawks, was a second-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft. . . . The Vancouver Northwest Giants won the Mac’s midget tournament in Calgary last night, beating the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes, 2-1, in double OT. F Jesse Shynkaruk of the Saskatoon Contacts was named the tournament MVP. Shynkaruk, a seventh-round pick by the Blazers in the 2011 bantam draft, had 13 points, including five goals, in six games. He has signed with the Blazers.

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Surgery done, DePape ponders future

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
Jordan DePape is on the road to recovery.
DePape, 20, who left the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers on Nov. 17, had surgery on his right shoulder Monday in his hometown of Winnipeg.
The arthroscopic procedure was performed by Dr. Peter MacDonald, a renowned orthopedic surgeon who works with the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. A year ago, MacDonald performed similar surgery on DePape’s left shoulder.
“There wasn’t huge damage in the MRI,” DePape said Monday night. “(Dr. MacDonald) knew there was something wrong. He planned to go in with (an arthroscope) and if he found something wrong he would fix it.
“He found that I had an interior and anterior labrum tear. I had to get two anchors on both sides.
“It’s what I did last year, just not as bad of a tear.”
Dr. MacDonald was able to repair the damage arthroscopically, through four small incisions in the shoulder.
DePape injured his right shoulder early this season and missed six games as a result. He returned to action and re-injured the shoulder on Nov. 11 during a 3-1 loss to the Winterhawks in Portland.
On Nov. 17, following a 5-4 shootout victory over the visiting Prince George Cougars, DePape informed his teammates that he was calling it quits in order to return home and get the shoulder repaired.
He admitted yesterday that, while it’s a few months away, he is thinking of playing again this season.
“A possible return to junior . . . never say never,” he said.
According to DePape, he now is faced with “three to four months recovery.”
“It’s still close to the same recovery as last year,” he said, “but it could be three months. Last year was four.”
The Blazers have placed DePape on their long-term injury list, meaning he doesn’t count as one of their three 20-year-olds. Their roster includes 20-year-old forwards Brendan Ranford, Charles Inglis and Dylan Willick, although the latter is out, likely until after Christmas, with a broken ankle suffered on Nov. 2.
If DePape is to play with the Blazers again, he would have to be placed on their roster, as one of the three 20-year-olds, by the Jan. 10 deadline. In order to do that the Blazers would have to release one of the other 20-year-olds.
If DePape isn’t on the Blazers’ roster on Jan. 10, he wouldn’t be permitted to join the team later in the season.
If DePape is able to play again this season, he also could look at joining a junior A team. His MJHL rights belong to the Virden Oil Capitals. The Winnipeg Saints, the team for which DePape played before moving to the WHL, relocated to Virden last summer.
DePape said he already has heard from Mike Sirant, the head coach of the U of Manitoba Bisons.
Sirant suggested that DePape could start classes in January, “do rehab and play this season,” DePape said. “I told him I think that’s going to be a little early for me to start up.”
What makes joining the Bisons an even more-intriguing option is that the team has a European trip planned for August.
This season, DePape had six points in 17 games when he left the Blazers, but he was hardly at 100 per cent for a lot of that. Last season, he had 14 points in 14 regular-season games — including nine points in nine games after returning in March — then added 13 points, including seven goals, in 11 playoff games.
JUST NOTES: The Blazers (20-6-2) are at home Friday to the Tri-City Americans (16-8-2). Game time is 7 p.m. . . . F Aspen Sterzer, who hasn’t played since Nov. 11 because of an undisclosed injury, skated yesterday. He is questionable for Friday’s game. . . . The Red Deer Rebels have added G Spencer Tremblay, 18, to their roster. Tremblay played 20 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors last season, but was released prior to this season. He got into three games with the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats earlier this season. He joins Czech Patrik Bartosak, 19, and Bolton Pouliot, 18, as goaltenders on the Red Deer roster.
 
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Inglis blazes way to Kamloops

CHARLES INGLIS
(Red Deer Rebels photo)

 By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
The Kamloops Blazers have added the enigmatic Charles Inglis to their roster.
Inglis, 20, was sent home to Saskatoon by Brent Sutter, the owner/general manager/interim head coach of the Red Deer Rebels last week to await a trade.
That trade occurred Monday morning when the Blazers surrendered a conditional fifth-round selection in the 2015 WHL bantam draft.
WHL teams rarely reveal what constitutes such ‘conditions’ but, in this case, it could be that the draft pick changes hands only if Inglis remains on the Blazers’ roster after the WHL trade deadline of Jan. 10.
WHL teams are allowed to have three 20-year-olds on their rosters. Inglis replaces right-winger Jordan DePape, who ended his WHL career on Saturday because of right shoulder problems. DePape has returned to Winnipeg and will have surgery on Nov. 26. Dr. Peter MacDonald, who did reconstructive surgery on DePape’s left shoulder a year ago, will handle this one, too.
Inglis, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound centre, has played with three other WHL teams and been traded three times.
The Saskatoon Blades selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 2007 bantam draft. He played two full seasons with the Blades, recording 37 points in 64 games in the second one (2009-10), before he was dealt to the Prince George Cougars for a second-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft.
He had 60 points, including 32 goals, in 69 games with the Cougars in 2010-11. But 16 games into last season – and following a game in Kamloops – Cougars management tired of his off-ice indiscretions and sent him home to await a trade.
Inglis said he was “happy to get out of Prince George,” saying that he felt he wasn’t treated fairly. The Cougars chose not to comment.
Inglis ended up in Red Deer – the Cougars got back forward Daulton Siwak and a 2012 third-round draft pick – and put up 26 points in 36 games. This season, he led the Rebels in goals (11) and points (14) when Sutter sent him home last week.
“I’m more than excited,” Inglis said Monday afternoon. “This is a great opportunity and I’m really looking forward to it.
Asked what happened in Red Deer, he replied: “I’m not too sure. Brent said they were playing younger guys . . . I likely wouldn’t have played Saturday (in a 2-1 victory over the visiting Swift Current Broncos).
“I was doing my best and I worked hard. In Red Deer, I did everything they asked. I took on a leadership role . . . things just didn‘t work out.”
Sutter appeared on The Pipeline Show on Saturday. When asked about Inglis’s departure from Red Deer, Sutter replied:
“Well I'll put it this way. At this point in time he was the leading goal scorer on the team, he was the leading scorer on the team and when a general manager has to send him home . . . I don't think I need to say any more than that."
Inglis is scheduled to practise with the Blazers today and could be in the lineup Wednesday against the visiting Regina Pats. It is expected that he will play centre with Brendan Ranford on the left side and perhaps Joe Kornelsen opening on right wing.
“That would be good,” Inglis said of playing with Ranford. “He and I could have some good chemistry.”
———
Lost in the departure of DePape on Saturday night was Kornelsen’s debut.
The Blazers acquired Kornelsen on Friday, sending a fifth-round selection in the 2013 WHL bantam draft to the Calgary Hitmen in exchange.
Kornelsen was in the Blazers’ lineup, playing mostly on a line with  Ranford and Matt Needham, for a 5-4 shootout victory over Prince George at Interior Savings Centre on Saturday. He also took a regular turn killing penalties.
“My first period wasn’t very good . . . nerves,” Kornelsen admitted later. “I thought I started playing better in the second and third.”
After that shaky first 20 minutes, the native of Abbotsford settled down and turned in a workmanlike effort. In 188 career regular-season WHL games, he has 62 points, including 24 goals. This season, he has yet to score, with four assists in 19 games.
This was the second trade of Kornelsen’s career. On Oct. 26, 2011, he and defenceman Collin Bowman, along with a 2012 fourth-round bantam draft pick, went to the Hitmen with the Warriors getting forwards Justin Kirsch and Kenton Miller.
“This (trade) is different because the last time I got traded it was with a teammate,” Kornelsen said. “This one, I’m on my own.”
However, he added, “it’s nice knowing” a couple of his new teammates.
Kornelsen and winger Rob Trzonkowski, who was acquired over the summer, were teammates in Calgary, and Kornelsen and centre Colin Smith were roommates with Team Pacific at the U17 World Hockey Challenge three years ago.
Kornelsen also is familiar with Kamloops associate coach Dave Hunchak, who was the head coach in Moose Jaw when he played there. As well, assistant trainer Jan Antons worked with the Hitmen last season.
Kornelsen didn’t dress for his last game with the Hitmen, a 4-0 loss to the visiting Kootenay Ice on Nov. 13. The next day, the Hitmen revealed that forward Victor Rask, 19, a 33-goal man last season, was on his way back from the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers.
“I got scratched the night before he got sent back so I kind of knew something was up,” Kornelsen said.
———
The Blazers unveiled a new look to their power play during Saturday’s victory over the Cougars.
During their 14-game winning streak, the Blazers got a lot of mileage out of a formation that would culminate with someone, usually left-winger Tim Bozon, getting great chances off a play to him at opposing goaltender’s blind side.
But as that winning streak wound down, teams started to take away that play. Which is how the Blazers came to go 1-for-23 in losing five of six games.
In winning their last two games, they went 2-for-8, scoring once with the man advantage in each game.
On Saturday, the Blazers, with the puck in the offensive zone, had a defenceman start the power play on the point and then go to the front of the net. It worked on their third goal — Cole Ully’s second of the game gave them a 3-2 lead early in the third period — when Sam Grist charged from the blue-line to screen Prince George goaltender Mac Engel.
———
The Blazers are expected to start goaltender Cole Cheveldave Wednesday against the Pats, who will be playing their fourth game in six nights — and second in two nights — on this B.C. tour. Regina spent Monday travelling from Victoria to Prince George for a game tonight.
Cheveldave was good in Friday’s 6-4 victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks, although he felt he had some problems with rebound control.
Against Prince George, head coach Guy Charron said, Cheveldave “didn’t have one of his better games. (He gave up) a couple of goals along the ice and those are the goals that usually aren’t scored against him.”
Cheveldave also got help in the shootout when Zach Pochiro put a shot off the crossbar and Alex Forsberg hit the outside of a post.
In the end, though, Cheveldave, a 19-year-old sophomore, got the victory. He is 8-0-0 against the Cougars.
———
Even though Saturday’s game was in doubt until right-winger JC Lipon won it in the fourth round of the shootout — and Cheveldave stopped forward Jordan Tkatch — the Blazers’ offence showed that it is out of its slump.
In the second period, the Blazers had 16 shots on goal. More importantly, Charron said his side had 15 scoring chances.
“I thought their goaltender played exceptionally well,” Charron said.  “With 15 scoring chances in the second period, what can I say? The puck didn’t go in. We played against a hot goaltender.”
Early in the second period, Engel came across to take an apparent empty net away from Bozon, who didn’t let up as he rifled the puck on what he must have thought would be his 16th goal. Instead, the puck ended up in Engel’s big trapper.
Bozon, gritting his teeth, could only skate into a corner, muttering to himself.
———
JUST NOTES: After Wednesday, the Blazers will be at home to the Saskatoon Blades on Friday and the Vancouver Giants on Saturday. . . . Lipon goes into this week with the WHL lead in goals (21) and points (50). C Colin Smith has the lead in assists (33) and is second in points (49). . . . Bozon is tied for fourth, with 36 points. . . . Smith was named the WHL’s player of the week on Monday, the second time this season he has won the honour. . . . The Blazers have added G Cameron Pateman, 16, to their protected list. From Regina, he is 4-2-2, 1.23, .937 with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians. Two other players off that team – F Jayden Halbgewachs and F Mitch Lipon, JC’s younger brother – also are on the Blazers’ list.

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First victory, then heartbreak

Jordan DePape, No. 17 at lower right, won't take part in any pregame whooping
with the Kamloops Blazers now that should problems have forced him to end
his WHL career. He left Kamloops on Sunday morning and headed home to Winnipeg.
(KAMLOOPS DAILY NEWS PHOTO)

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports EditorA pall hung over the Kamloops Blazers’ dressing room at Interior Savings Centre on Saturday night, despite the fact the local WHL team had just posted a 5-4 shootout victory over those pesky Prince George Cougars.
Shortly after game’s end, right-winger Jordan DePape, a member of the Blazers since Dec. 13, 2009, when he was acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings, walked out of the room, having just informed his teammates that his WHL career was over.
DePape had reconstructive surgery on his left shoulder on Nov. 4, 2011, which limited him to 14 regular-season games in 2011-12. He came back to finish with 14 points in 14 games, then added 13 in 11 playoff games.
This season, he tweaked his right shoulder early and missed six games. Then, on Nov. 11, during a 3-1 loss to the Winterhawks in Portland, he stood up forward Ty Rattie in the neutral zone — it wasn’t hard contact — and hurt the shoulder again. This time it was a subluxation — a temporary separation that could lead to more problems.
“It was a freak accident,” the 20-year-old Winnipegger said. “I never had (shoulders) problems until last season and now this season.”
DePape didn’t think it was fair to himself or his teammates to be in and out of the lineup all season. So . . .
“An MRI showed there is work that needs to be done. . . . I think it’s the best decision for me at this time,” he said.
What made it that much tougher is that the Blazers (19-5-1) own the WHL’s best record.
“I was so looking forward to this season,” DePape said. “I knew we would have a really good team and we should probably go far in the playoffs and that was the way I wanted to go out.
“Unfortunately . . . I don’t know what it is . . . the hockey gods just haven’t been on my side. I haven’t been able to catch a break.”
Immediately after the game, which the Blazers won on right-winger JC Lipon’s shootout goal, DePape informed his teammates of the decision.
“That was definitely the hardest part,” said DePape, who took in the pregame warmup from the bench area because he knew it would be his last one. “The past couple of days I’ve known and the staff has known I was going to be getting the surgery. It was my choice not to let the guys know. I didn’t want it to be a distraction because I knew these two games were huge to get back on track.
“After this game, it was emotional for me. I was tearing up; the guys were tearing up. They’re family to me and I’m going to really miss them.”
The feeling is mutual.
“We’re friends. We’re very close,” said a teary-eyed Brendan Ranford, who now has lost both his linemates to injury. Dylan Willick is out, likely until after Christmas, with a broken ankle.
“This is really tough,” Ranford continued. “He’s such a great guy.”
“It’s a pretty sad thing,” Kamloops head coach Guy Charron said, “when you have to face those kind of decisions, especially when you’re a young man and you feel you have all this energy to give.
“But I know that being an ex-player you can’t control injuries. It’s a sad one for him, but there’s lots of life ahead of him.”
A Type 1 diabetic who wears an insulin pump, DePape also did a lot of work with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation while in Kamloops, where he said “I met a lot of people and made a lot of good friends . . . who will be my friends for life.”
DePape had six points, four of them goals, in 17 games this season. He finishes his WHL career with 106 points, including 48 goals, in 142 regular-season games.
Meanwhile, Lipon, who had 19 goals in 69 games last season, ran his WHL-leading total to 21 with two goals against the Cougars. His second goal, at 15:25 of the third period, forged a 4-4 tie. Then he won it with a goal in the fourth round of the shootout.
When it went to a shootout, Lipon said he looked back at associate coach Dave Hunchak.
“He was like, ‘You got one?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ll go,’ ” Lipon said. “I was going to shoot and I ended up deking. You’ve kind of got to adapt at times.”
Lipon also became the WHL’s first 50-point man this season, while linemate Colin Smith had two assists to stay within a point of the lead.
Cole Ully also scored twice for Kamloops, ending a 10-game drought.
“It is amazing how if you shoot the puck you have the potential of scoring,” Charron said. “And if you don’t shoot, don’t expect to score. He shot twice and he got two goals.”
Asked if he had been urging Ully to shoot more, Charron replied: “Everyone. Not just him.”
The Cougars, who held 2-0 and 4-3 leads, got goals from Jari Erricson, Colin Jacobs, Chase Witala and Ryan Hanes. The latter, a former Blazers player in his second game with the Cougars, put the visitors ahead at 12:56 of the third period.
“I wasn’t nervous,” said Hanes, who is from Kamloops and heard loud cheers when he scored. “I was more excited to get going.”
While the Blazers (19-5-1) remain four points clear atop the WHL’s overall standings, the Cougars (7-11-4) are tied for the Western Conference’s last playoff spot.
“That’s the way we play all the time,” Cougars head coach Dean Clark said. “We’ve played a lot of good games where we’ve found a way not to win.”
Charron added: “They have our number as far as how they play us. They play hard and you have to give them credit. I give them credit for the effort they put out every time they play us.”
JUST NOTES: The attendance was 4,692. . . . Blazers G Cole Cheveldave stopped 27 shots, five fewer than Prince George’s Mac Engel. . . . Engel made the game’s best stop when he came across to get a glove on a hard shot Tim Bozon thought was into an open side in the second period. Bozon was left gritting his teeth and muttering to himself. . . . The Daily News Three Stars: 1. Lipon: Scoring leader comes through when needed; 2. F Jarrett Fontaine, Prince George: Mr. Hustle; 3. Ully: Blazers need more of that secondary scoring. . . . Former Blazers D Austin Madaisky is on the shelf with the ECHL’s Evansville IceMen. He has a wrist injury and is to be in Columbus today to see the Blue Jackets’ medical staff. Doctors in Evansville have indicated that he may have a torn ligament (scapholunate). He now wants to get a second opinion. Madaisky said it’s something that has been bothering him since he was in training camp with the AHL’s Springfield Falcons. Madaisky, 20, who is under contract to the Blue Jackets, has five points, including one goal, in eight games with the IceMen.


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DePape forced to make tough decision

JORDAN DePAPE

It was early in the most-recent NHL season when the Winnipeg Free Press published a book titled Back in the Bigs — How Winnipeg Won, Lost and Regained Its Place in the NHL.
The title sums up the book rather neatly.
One of the book’s early pages features a photo of a large gathering of fans at The Forks, an area near downtown Winnipeg that often is used for such celebrations as announcing the return of the NHL.
And there, right near the front of that particular photo, stands a young man wearing a cap and a jacket, and with a cell phone in one hand. The jacket has a small Kamloops Blazers logo on its front.
That young man is Jordan DePape. At the time, he was 19 years of age. A right-winger, he hadn’t been selected in an NHL draft. And here he was, along with so many other fans, welcoming the Jets and the NHL back to his hometown.
Oh, he had a dream!
In time, the Jets would show some interest in DePape and he would play for their team of prospects at the 2011 Young Guns tournament in Penticton. On Sept. 14, 2011, an excited DePape put on a Jets uniform for the first time and played in a 2-0 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.
“Just looking down at the Winnipeg Jets logo and seeing the fans in the crowd with Jets jerseys, it was pretty surreal,” DePape told Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun at the time.
Flash forward to Saturday night when DePape, dressed entirely in black, not unlike the late Johnny Cash, walked out of the Blazers’ locker-room. DePape didn’t say “I’m stuck in Folsom Prison.”
No.
With a rueful smile and a chuckle, he said: “Yeah, I’m going to a funeral.”
And, in a way, he was.
Do you know how hard it is for a 35- or 40- or 45- or 50-year-old man to admit that a dream is over? That it is dead? That there is no hope?
So how hard must it have been for a young man eight months past his 20th birthday to look in a mirror and tell himself that it’s over?
Prior to a dustup with Emerson Etem of the Medicine Hat Tigers here on Oct. 10, 2011, when he dislocated his left shoulder, DePape had never had any shoulder problems. Now, just over a year later, both shoulders have quit on him.
The result is that DePape’s dream died late last week and he told us about it on Saturday night.
At 20 years of age, his left shoulder having been surgically reconstructed a year ago and his recently injured right shoulder soon to feel the cut of a surgeon’s scalpel, DePape made the right decision. His shoulders have told him that it’s over. Showing maturity beyond his years, DePape has listened.
He has chosen to end his WHL career. The Blazers are 19-5-1 and on top of the WHL’s overall standings, so try to imagine how hard it must be for him to walk away. Try to imagine how hard it must be to all but close the door on playing professional hockey, a dream that has lived through so many street hockey games, so many games of shinny and 157 WHL games. He was so close and yet, as it turned out, so far away.
DePape is mature enough to realize what is going on and to understand that he needs a Plan B.
If things work out the way DePape hopes, he will have surgery, attend the University of Manitoba and take criminology, and then go on to a career as a police officer.
If his health will allow it, he might even play hockey for the Bisons. Yes, there still is the hope of a pro career but he knows it is only a glimmer.
Diagnosed as a Type 1 diabetic at the age of seven, DePape didn’t let that stand in his way. He was the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s rookie of the year when, at the age of 16, he totalled 85 points, including 34 goals, in 55 games with the Winnipeg Saints. He was selected by the Brandon Wheat Kings in the third round of the 2007 WHL bantam draft. The Blazers acquired him early in the 2009-10 season in exchange for forward Shayne Wiebe.
On Saturday, hours before DePape informed his teammates of his decision and then chatted with the media, Wiebe signed a pro tryout agreement with the AHL’s Connecticut Whale.
On Sunday, while Wiebe was preparing to practise, DePape and his father, Trevor, began the long drive back to Winnipeg, one chapter of the son’s life in the rearview mirror, the next one on the other side of the windshield.

(Gregg Drinnan is sports editor of The Daily News. He is at gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca, gdrinnan.blogspot.com and twitter.com/gdrinnan.)

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Our latest poll has closed and it was no contest. They don’t call it Win-nipeg for nothing.
The question was: Were the WHL to expand or relocate, what city should be at the top of the list?
In the end, there were 243 responses, with Winnipeg an easy winner, drawing 96 votes or 39 per cent. Langley, B.C., was next, with 68 votes (27 per cent), followed by Chilliwack (40) and Fort McMurray, Alta. (39), both at 16 per cent.
The lineup to get a team into Winnipeg forms on the left.
A new poll is up over there on the right, this one dealing with the NHL lockout.
Thanks for taking part.
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According to a report in the Columbus Dispatch, D Austin Madaisky, 20, needs surgery on a wrist and could miss up to three months of action. . . . Madaisky, who is under contract to the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets and with the ECHL-Evansville IceMen, told me Saturday night that report is “a little pre-mature.” . . . Madaisky is to go to Columbus on Monday to meet with the team’s medical staff, “then see what they say.” . . . The doctors in Evansville have told him that he may have torn a ligament known as a scapholunate in one wrist but have suggested he get a second opinion. . . . Madaisky also said that he wasn’t injured while playing with the IceMen. He said the wrist has bothered him since he was in camp with the AHL-Springfield Falcons. . . . He has five points, including a goal, in eight games with Evansville.
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D Ryan Murray of the Everett Silvertips suffered a separated or dislocated shoulder — there are reports out there indicating one or the other — in Friday night’s 5-0 loss to the Royals in Victoria.
He has to undergo an MRI, something that is expected to happen in the next day or two. The extent of the damage then will be known.
Murray, the second overall pick in the NHL‘s 2012 draft, has signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He also is a lock for a roster spot with Canada’s national junior team.
“It’s not good news,” Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson told Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. “Right now his arm is in a sling, held tight to his body, and he’s in a lot of pain He’ll have an MRI early this week, and then we’ll know more.
“You’ll have to see how much damage he’s done to the labrum. Does he have any broken bones from the thrust of the fall? Once it’s come out, it tends to come out easier in the future. Our doctors will take a look at the tests and we’ll decide the next step.”
Last season, Murray suffered a high ankle sprain in October and only just got back in time to play for Canada in the world junior championship.
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The Saskatoon Blades will play their second game of a B.C. Division swing today in Vancouver against the Giants. And Saskatoon has added D Matthew Pufahl to its list of walking wounded. Pufahl, 19, has an undisclosed injury after taking a hit from behind from Prince George Cougars F Caleb Belter on Friday night. Saskatoon also is without F Jessey Astles (wrist), F Brett Stovin (undisclosed) and D Dalton Thrower (undisclosed). . . . The Blades will get a look at F Nick Gomerich today and F Landyn Hickmott on Tuesday in Victoria. Both play for B.C. major midget teams -- Gomerich, a sixth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft, is with the Nanaimo-North Island Silvertips, while Hickmott, a third-rounder in 2011, is with the Abbotsford-Fraser Valley Thunderbirds. Hickmott was the Blades’ first selection in that 2011 draft, going 66th overall.
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Former Spokane Chiefs D Jared Cowen underwent surgery Saturday and is expected to be sidelined for up to eight months. Cowen, who plays for the NHL’s Ottawa Senators but had been with the AHL-Binghamton Senators during the lockout, had a torn labrum in his left hip.
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In the AJHL on Friday night, the Grande Prairie Storm dumped the visiting Brooks Bandits, 4-1. The Bandits had gone into the game 20-0. The victory ran the Storm’s winning streak to nine games. . . . The Bandits set an AJHL record for longest winning streak from the start of a season; the Olds Grizzlies opened 1993-94 with 18 straight victories. . . . The Bandits fell one game short of tying the AJHL record for longest winning streak, though. The Calgary Canucks set that record at 21 in 1987-88.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:
In Cranbrook, G Mackenzie Skapski stopped 28 shots to help the Kootenay Ice to a 4-0 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Skapski has three shutouts this season and three in his career. . . . The Wheat Kings, who have lost four in a row, were blanked for the first time this season. . . . The Ice swept the doubleheader, having beaten the visiting Wheat Kings 5-3 on Friday. . . . F Sam Reinhart scored the Ice’s first two goals. He has eight on the season. . . .

In Edmonton, G Luke Siemens stopped 50 shots and F Shane Danyluk scored in OT as the Prince Albert Raiders beat the Oil Kings, 4-3. . . . Danyluk has three goals this season. . . . The Raider led 3-0 late in the second period when the Oil Kings mounted a comeback. . . . Edmonton F Michael St. Croix forced OT when he scored at 16:17 of the third period. . . . Danyluk won it at 3:35 of OT. . . . The Raiders brought in G Rylan Parenteau from the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers. He is 6-2-0, 2.86, .897 with the Blazers. Parenteau was a third-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . Parenteau was on the bench backing up Siemens, replacing Andy Desautels who was in that role in Friday’s 3-2 victory in Lethbridge. . . . The Raiders (15-6-2) moved into first place in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Edmonton (13-5-4). . . . The Raiders have beaten the Oil Kings three times this season. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Justin Feser scored two shorthanded goals 1:01 apart in the first period and the Tri-City Americans celebrated their 25th anniversary with a 3-2 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Feser’s 16th and 17th goals of the season gave the Americans a 3-0 lead. . . . Feser has 128 career goals. That puts him into seventh place on the Americans’ all-time list, one ahead of F Dylan Gyori. . . . The Rockets got second-period goals from Rourke Chartier and Ryan Olsen but couldn’t equalize. . . . Tri-City G Eric Comrie stopped 42 shots. . . . One night earlier, Comrie stopped 41 shots in a 3-2 victory over those same Rockets. . . . The Rockets had won five in a row going into Friday’s game. . . .

In Victoria, F Morgan Klimchuk broke a 2-2 tie at 19:34 of the third period to give the Regina Pats a 3-2 victory over the Royals. . . . Klimchuk’s goal, his 13th, came 2:06 after D Jordan Fransoo had pulled the Royals into a 2-2 tie. . . . Regina G Teagan Sacher stopped 32 shots. . . . Pats D Luke Fenske had three assists. . . . Regina opened its B.C. Division swing with a 4-3 shootout loss in Vancouver on Friday. . . . The Pats play in Prince George on Tuesday and Kamloops on Wednesday. . . .

In Everett, the Silvertips scored the game’s last two goals to beat the Vancouver Giants, 6-5. . . . F Ty Mappin, with his second goal this season, pulled Everett into a tie at 11:13 of the third. . . . F Reid Petryk, with his second of the game, won it at 15:30. . . . The Silvertips played without D Ryan Murray (shoulder), who was injured Friday night in a 5-0 loss in Victoria. . . . The six goals were a season-high for Everett. Not only that, Everett had scored only five goals in its previous six games. . . . D Austin Adam (broken hand) returned to the Silvertips’ lineup. He was injured on the season’s opening weekend. . . .

In Portland, F Taylor Leier and F Ty Rattie had two goals apiece as the Winterhawks dumped the Medicine Hat Tigers, 5-2. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic had two assists, giving him eight straight multi-point games and running his point streak to 10 games. He has 23 points, including nine goals, in those 10 games. . . . The Winterhawks had their 12-game winning streak end Friday when they lost 6-4 in Kamloops. . . . F Nic Petan added three assists for Portland. . . . Medicine Hat F Hunter Shinkaruk left in the first period after taking a check from Portland D Seth Jones. Shinkaruk apparently suffered a skate cut of some kind. . . . Rattie has 14 goals, while Leier has eight. . . .

In Red Deer, F Turner Elson, the team captain, broke a 1-1 tie at 7:32 of the third period as the Rebels beat the Swift Current Broncos, 2-1. . . . It was owner/president/general manager Brent Sutter’s first game as the Rebels’ interim head coach. He removed Jesse Wallin as head coach earlier in the week. . . . F Rhyse Dieno, who was added to the Red Deer roster on Friday, had the Rebels’ other goal. . . .

In Kamloops, F JC Lipon, the WHL scoring leader, struck for two goals and the winner in the circus as the Blazers got past the Prince George Cougars, 5-4. . . . Immediately after the game, Kamloops F Jordan DePape, 20, informed his teammate that he was ending his WHL career thanks to a shoulder injury that needs surgery. There will be more on DePape and his decision right here early Monday morning. . . . The Cougars held 2-0 and 4-3 leads, the latter coming when F Ryan Hanes, a Kamloops native and former Blazers skater, scored at 12:56 of the third period on the PP. He was playing his second game with the Cougars since joining them from the BCHL’s Cowichan Valley Capitals. . . . Lipon tied it at 15:24 with his 21st goal of the season. He became the WHL’s first 20-goal man this season when he scored the Blazers’ first goal, at 12:52 of the second. . . . Last season, Lipon had 19 goals in 69 games. . . . With the second goal, Lipon became the WHL’s first 50-point scorer this season. He leads the WHL in goals (21) and points (50). . . . Linemate Colin Smith had two assists and has 49 points. . . . F Brad Morrison, 15, picked up one assist in his WHL debut with the Cougars. By the third period, Morrison, the seventh overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft, was playing on perhaps the Cougars’ best line, with Alex Forsberg and Hanes. . . . F Cole Ully also scored twice for Kamloops. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Todd Fiddler scored three times to lead the Spokane Chiefs to a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Fiddler has 15 goals in 22 this season after scoring 12 times in 73 games last season. He had four goals in 35 games with Prince Albert, before scoring eight times in 38 games after being acquired by the Chiefs. . . . He scored at 1:30 of the second period and 14:32 of the third to give the Chiefs a 2-0 lead. He later added his third goal into an empty net to complete the first hat trick of his career. . . . Fiddler finished last season with 28 points in those 73 games. He has 26 points in 22 games this season.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Tyler Yaworski, Brandon
D Tanner Faith, Kootenay
F Rob Trzonkowski, Kamloops

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Lucas Grayson, Everett
F Reid Petryk, Everett
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
Jordan DePape (@papskos17): “Wow, so thankful for all this support! Can’t believe it. Thank you. My phone has literally exploded and died in a matter of 30 minutes.”
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TWEET OF THE DAY II:
From Portland Winterhawks F Brendan Leipsic (@leip28): “Congrats on a great career @papskos sorry it had to end like this. #seeyousoon”
Leipsic and DePape both are from Winnipeg.
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TWEET OF THE DAY III:
From Prince George Cougars F Brock Hirsche (@bigsexytweet10): “@papskos17 best of luck in the future. I know what you are going through.”
Hirsche is fighting shoulder woes for a second straight season. He was on the Cougars’ bench as an assistant coach last night in Kamloops.
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TWEET OF THE DAY IV:
From Prince George F Ryan Hanes (@HANESR13): “Thank you to everyone who came out tonight! Fans are amazing even when I’m a cougar now! Love it!”


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