THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Justin Kurtz (Brandon, 1993-97) signed a one-year contract with Dresdner Eislöwen (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) He had six assists in 33 games with the Linz Black Wings (Austria, Erste Bank Liga) last season. Kurtz is scheduled to arrive in Dresden on Thursday.
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Cliff Wright, a former bus driver for the Swift Current Broncos, has been killed in a motorcycle accident near Castlegar, B.C. Wright, 66, was declared dead at a hospital in Nelson. . . . Wright and his wife, Stephanie, owned Sun West Coach in Swift Current. . . . The Nelson Star has more on the accident right here.
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Alan Millar, the general manager of the Moose Jaw Warriors, was a veteran of OHL front offices before coming to the WHL. Right here, he talks with discovermoosejaw.com about the sanctions delivered by OHL commissioner David Branch against the Windsor Spitfires for recruiting irregularities.
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Although the OHL is operating under a cone of silence when it comes to naming names from Spitfiregate, Bob Duff of the Windsor Star has taken a look at some of the players who may have been involved. That piece is right here.
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Here’s Mike Chappell, writing in the Indianapolis Star:
He led the Colts in tackling for seven seasons before retiring in 1998. But now, at age 46, Herrod said he's paying a big price. Migraines and memory loss. Sleep issues and sensitivity to light. Full-body pain. Blink-of-an-eye mood swings.
"I know I'm not going to be any better," said (the player), who made 1,337 tackles for the Colts and played 11 NFL seasons. "It's going to get worse. That's expected."
Chappell’s story is right here.

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Sundsvall (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He had two goals and eight assists in 13 games with the Las Vegas Wranglers (ECHL) this season. . . .
F Brett McLean (Tacoma/Kelowna, Brandon, 1994-99) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Lugano (Switzerland, NL A). He had seven goals and 14 assists in 36 games for the Rockford IceHogs (AHL) . McLean also played for Canada at this season's Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland, where he had one goal in three games. . . .
F Ladislav Kohn (Brandon, Swift Current, 1993-95) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Ambri-Piotta (Switzerland, NL A). He had five goals and 14 assists in 37 games for Trinec (Czech Republic, Extraliga) this season. . . .
D Justin Kurtz (Brandon, 1993-97) was released by Linz (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had six assists in 33 games for Linz this season. . . .
D Ross Lupaschuk (Lethbridge, Prince Albert, Red Deer, 1996-2001) was released by the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had 10 goals and 17 assists in 38 games for the Capitals this season. . . .
F Bernhard Keil (Kamloops, 2010-11) signed a one-year contract extension with the Straubing Tigers, (Germany, DEL). He has one goal and five assists in 32 games for Straubing and one goal and one assist in two games on loan to Regensburg (Germany, Oberliga) this season. Keil also played for the German national team at the Division 1 world junior championship in December. He had two goals and five assists in five games. . . .
F Rhett Gordon (Regina, 1992-96) signed a contract for the rest of this season with the Nottingham Panthers (England, UK Elite). He had one goal and four assists in t0 games with the Colorado Eagles (ECHL) this season.
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In the BCHL on Sunday, the Penticton Vees ran their winning streak to 25 games with a 3-1 victory over the visiting Prince George Spruce Kings. The Vees broke a 1-1 tie with two third-period goals. . . . The Vees next play Wednesday when they visit the Merritt Centennials.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:
In Calgary, F Chase Clayton scored twice to help the Hitmen to a 4-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Clayton scored the game’s first two goals, one shorthanded and the other on the PP. He has 10 goals this season. . . . D Mathew Dumba got the Rebels to within one 40 seconds into the third, but F Jimmy Bubnick answered, with his 21st, less than six minutes later. . . . Bubnick has 21 goals. . . . Calgary G Chris Driedger stopped 41 shots. . . . Calgary has won 10 of its last 11 games. . . . The Hitmen are seventh in the Eastern Conference, one point out of sixth and just three out of third. . . . The Rebels are ninth, four points out of eighth. . . .

In Vancouver, F Marek Tvrdon’s third-period goal stood up as the winner as the Giants beat the Seattle Thunderbird, 3-2. . . . Tvrdon’s 18th goal, on the PP, came at 10:47 of the third and gave the home side a 3-1 lead. . . . Seattle F Chance Lund got his second of the game and 12th of the season, on the PP, at 17:12. . . . The Giants outshot the visitors 14-0 in the first period. . . . The victory lifted Vancouver to within four points of the third-place Portland Winterhawks in the Western Conference. . . . Seattle is seventh, a point ahead of the Victoria Royals. . . . Tvrdon is riding an eight-game point streak during which time he has 14 points. . . . Seattle G Calvin Pickard made 42 saves, and the last one gave him the WHL record for most career saves. He now has stopped 9,659 pucks, one more than the previous record that was held by Danny Lorenz (Seattle, 1986-90). . . . Vancouver G Payton Lee, a 15-year-old from Cranbrook, stopped 24 shots for his second victory in three nights. . . . The Giants continue to be without F Brendan Gallagher (shoulder), F Dalton Sward (shoulder), D David Musil (wrist) and G Adam Morrison (concussion). The Giants are headed into Alberta for three games, and Gallagher, Morrison and Musil apparently are to make the trip. . . . Pickard has appeared in 217 regular-season games, averaging 32 saves per 60 minutes. . . . Last night, Pickard also set a franchise record for most career minutes played by a goaltender (12,639). That is five minutes more than Lorenz played for Seattle. . . . Pickard is third in the WHL record book, behind Kurtis Mucha (13,708) and Kyle Moir (12,774). Mucha played for Portland and Kamloops (2005-10) and Moir played for Swift Current (2002-07). . . .

In Spokane, the Chiefs completed a doubleheader sweep of Portland, beating the Winterhawks, 6-1. . . . Spokane, which is 8-1-1 in its last 10, had won 5-2 at home on Saturday night. . . . F Mitch Holmberg, with two goals and an assist, and F Mike Aviani, with two goals, led the Spokane offence. Holmberg has 19 goals; Aviani has nine. . . . The Chiefs scored the game’s first five goals. . . . Chiefs F Dominik Uher continued his impressive play with three assists. . . . Spokane F Darren Kramer had two assists for the second straight game. He also got tossed for his part in a late second-period dustup. . . . The Chiefs took 61 of the game’s 114 penalty minutes. . . . Spokane won three games on the weekend, all over the two teams ahead of it in the U.S. Division. The Chiefs began the weekend with a victory over the host Tri-City Americans on Friday. . . . The Chiefs remain fifth in the Western Conference, three points behind Vancouver and 11 ahead of the Kelowna Rockets.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
It comes courtesy of KingMaxymus23 (aka Tyler Maxwell of the Edmonton Oil Kings: “Why do I try to do so many things in between the time I start a microwave to the time it goes off?”
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Jeff Z. Klein of The New York Times offers up his take on the situation involving F Marc Savard of the Boston Bruins, who continues his recovery from post-concussion syndrome.
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Your good read today comes from Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. Matty’s Hockey World is right here.
 
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Friday . . .

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Karel Hromas (Everett, 2004-06) signed a one-year contract with Chomutov (Czech Republic 1.Liga). He had seven goals and four assists in 52 games for Sparta Prague (Czech Republic Extraliga) this season. . . .
D Justin Kurtz (Brandon, 1993-97) signed a one-year contract with the Black Wings Linz (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had seven goals and 33 assists in 48 games for the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (Germany 2.Bundesliga) this season.
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The WHL’s championship final opened in Portland on Friday night, with F Ty Rattie tipping in a shot on a PP just 55 seconds into OT to give the Winterhawks a 4-3 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . Rattie tipped in a shot by C Craig Cunningham after a faceoff in the Kootenay zone. The second assist went to D Derrick Pouliot, a 16-year-old who quarterbacks one of Portland’s PP units. He was the first overall pick in the 2009 bantam draft. . . . The Ice had its playoff winning streak snapped at 11 games, one shy of the WHL record. . . . Rattie has goals in three straight games. . . . Kootenay had a late PP after Portland F Brad Ross was penalized for high-sticking at 17:28 of the third. . . . Portland’s final PP came after Ice D James Martin went off for tripping at 19:04. He dumped Portland F Ryan Johansen. . . . Ice F Kevin King forced OT with an unassisted goal at 11:11 of the third period. The goal came moments after play was delayed while a broken pane of glass was replaced. . . . The game’s first five goals all came in the first period. . . . F Sven Bartschi scored Portland’s first two goals, with Ice D Hayden Rintoul scoring between those goals. . . . Ice F Joe Antilla tied it 2-2 at 17:50 of the first, with Portland F Nino Niederreiter giving his side a 3-2 lead with 3.9 seconds left in the first. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 39 shots, nine more than the Ice’s Nathan Lieuwen. . . . The Winterhawks were 1-for-6 on the PP; the Ice was 0-for-5. . . . The referees were Pat Smith and Derek Zalaski. . . . Attendance was 7,595. . . . Game 2 is scheduled for tonight in Portland. . . . The Ice remains without F Brock Montgomery (mononucleosis) remains out, while the Winterhawks are still without D Brett Ponich (knee) and F Oliver Gabriel (shoulder). Ponich is back skating but isn’t yet ready to return.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Two minors:
Kootenay D Brayden McNabb
Portland F Tayler Jordan
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In Victoria, the Salmon Kings were laid to rest on Friday as RG Properties announced that it won’t operate the ECHL franchise next season. And, just like that, the franchise, which spent seven seasons in Victoria, is dead and buried.
RG Properties, which manages the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, owned the ECHL franchise. It announced Friday that it “has withdrawn from the League with the full approval of the ECHL Board of Governors.”
According to a Salmon Kings news release: “The withdrawal effectively ends the Salmon Kings organization. The players have been awarded free-agency, and given the opportunity to choose the future direction of their hockey careers.”
The focus now has shifted to the former Chilliwack Bruins franchise, which is soon to be renamed the Victoria Tide or something like that. Andrew A. Duffy of the Victoria Times Colonist has that story right here.
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“Forget hunting for steroids and performance-enhancing substances: This is the real issue. Even if its not as sexy or black-and-white moralistic,” writes Jeff Blair in The Globe and Mail. Yes, he’s writing about Dr. Charles Tator and others and the research they are doing on concussions. If you’re a parent, or if you are playing a contact sport, you should give this a read. It’s right here.
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Meanwhile, James Mirtle of The Globe and Mail sat down with Brian Levine, senior scientist at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest in Toronto, and talked about the work they are doing with the NHL alumni association. That interview is right here.
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F Adam Chorneyko (Kamloops, Lethbridge, Saskatoon, 2004-09) scored at 4:35 of the third OT on Thursday night in Loveland, Colo., giving the Colorado Eagles a 2-1 victory over the Rapid City Rush in the fifth-longest game in Central league history. . . . The Eagles hold a 3-1 lead the Turner Conference final 3-1 with Game 5 in Rapid City, S.D., tonight. . . . The New York Rangers have signed Czech F Roman Horak to a three-year NHL contract. Horak played the last two seasons with the Chilliwack Bruins. He had 78 points, including 26 goals, in 64 games this season. Horak, who turns 20 on May 21, was a fifth-round pick in the 2009 NHL draft. . . . Former WHL D and coach Mark Ferner has been named head of Canada West for the 2011 World Junior A Challenge. Ferner is in his fourth season as GM/head coach of the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers, who have a chance to win their third straight national title this weekend in Camrose, Alta. A host community for the 2011 WHC has yet to be announced. . . . Former WHLer Dalyn Flette was named the RBC Cup’s top goaltender and most valuable player on Friday in Camrose, Alta. Flette now plays for the host Camrose Kodiaks. . . .
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In the OHL, D Matt Petgrave scored early in the first OT period Friday, giving the visiting Owen Sound Attack a 6-5 victory over the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors. Attendance was 4,053. . . . Mississauga holds a 2-1 lead in the championship final with Game 4 scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Owen Sound.
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A Friday morning tweet from Willy Palov of the Halifax ChronicleHerald: “Announcement coming on Monday at Lewiston Maneaics will move to Summerside, PEI.” . . .
That was followed by this from QMJHL_Fanhouse: “Lewiston to Summerside relocation rumors are heating up once again. Usually smoke leads to fire but we'll see.” . . .
However, Charles Reid of the Charlottetown Guardian reports that it isn’t that simple. His story is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME: Mel Pearson Jr., an assistant or associate coach for 23 seasons with the Michigan Wolverines, is the new head coach of the Michigan Tech Huskies. Pearson is a Michigan Tech alum. A native of Vancouver, Pearson is the son of the late Mel Pearson Sr., who played (1955-57) and coached the Flin Flon Bombers for two full seasons (1973-75) and part of one other (1975-76). . . . As expected, the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads have named Dominique Ducharme as their head coach. He spent the last three seasons as a head coach with the Montreal Junior.
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Tweet of the day, from @mpysyk03: Congrats to @backhandsauce07 for finally graduating high school! And also happy 25th birthday buddy! You did it!

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