THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) was released by Aalborg (Denmark, AL-Bank Liga) for personal reasons. Lukacevic signed with Aalborg at the end of January but he did not receive his Danish work permit until last week. In the meantime, he had to return to Canada to tend to family matters. As a result, Lukasevic did not appear in a game for Aalborg. Earlier this season, he was pointless in a two-game tryout with Eispiraten Crimmitschau and had three goals and eight assists in 15 games with Banska Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga).
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The Tri-City Americans have been cycling a few prospective players through their lineup as they deal with a few injuries. . . . They have returned F Matthew Gelinas to the AJHL’s Calgary Royals for their playoffs. . . . F Fraser Bulbuc will play for the Americans on Tuesday against the visiting Portland Winterhawks and then will rejoin the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders. . . . Meanwhile, the Americans are adding F Justin Marreck, 16, to their roster for their next three games. After his stint with the Americans, he will return to the major midget Kelowna-Okanagan Rockets for the B.C. Major Midget League playoffs. Marreck has 28 points in 36 games with thie Rockets this season.
The Americans’ injury list includes G Eric Comrie, F Phil Tot and D Brodie Clowes, all of whom aren’t expected to play again this season. F Tyson Dallman will miss up to three weeks, while F Justin Gutierrez and F Brian Williams should return in a week or so, and F Ryan Chynoweth is day-to-day.
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Goaltenders dream about getting onto the kind of roll that Kurtis Mucha is on these days. The former WHLer has put up four straight shutouts for the Alberta Golden Bears. Evan Daum of the Edmonton Journal has that story right here.
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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. Everett (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Tri-City (4) vs. Spokane (5)
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:
In Vancouver, the Giants scored three power-play goals and beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . F Cain Franson scored his 25th goal of the season for Vancouver, into an empty net. . . . Vancouver G Payton Lee stopped 23 shots, 19 fewer than Seattle’s Brandon Glover. . . . The Thunderbirds remain seventh in the Western Conference, one point ahead of the Everett Silvertips. . . . Vancouver was without D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen, the team captain. He took a boarding major and game misconduct for a hit on F JC Lipon in a 6-0 loss to the visiting Kamloops Blazers on Friday night and is awaiting word on a suspension. . . .

In Lethbridge, G Mackenzie Skapski stopped 36 shots as the Kootenay Ice dumped the Hurricanes, 2-0. . . . Skapski’s sixth shutout of the season allowed the Ice to move five points ahead of the Hurricanes in the chase for the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . Each team has 10 games remaining. . . . F Jaedon Descheneau scored both Kootenay goals, the second one, his 21st this season, into an open net. . . . Lethbridge G Ty Rimmer turned aside 48 shots. . . .

In Medicine Hat, F Curtis Valk scored three times to lead the Tigers to a 5-4 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Valk has 41 goals this season. . . . F Miles Koules scored the Tigers’ other two goals, giving him 17. . . . F Connor Bleackley scored twice for Red Deer, giving him nine. . . . The Tigers are sixth in the Eastern Conference, three points behind the Prince Albert Raiders and five behind Red Deer. . . .

In Swift Current, F Colby Cave and F Graham Black each scored twice as the Broncos beat the Brandon Wheat Kings, 6-1. . . . Black has 22 goals, while Cave has 18. . . . The Broncos scored the game’s first five goals. . . . Broncos G Eetu Laurikainen made 22 saves. . . . The Broncos are seventh in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of Kootenay and four behind Medicine Hat. . . . The Wheat Kings are one loss from being eliminated from playoff contention. . . .
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Josh Derko, Lethbridge (double minor)

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
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From Tyler Olsen (@ty_olsen): “Very sick of rec hockey games in which it’s left to players to pull guys who have dropped their gloves off of non-fighters.”


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Patrik Vrana (Moose Jaw, Prince George, 2006-07) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Polonia Bytom (Poland, 1 Liga) after being released by Vsetin (Czech Republic, 2. Liga) for financial reasons. He started the season with Sumperk (Czech Republic, 1. Liga), where he had one goal in nine games, before transferring to Vsetin, where he had one goal and five assists in 12 games. . . .

F Dylan Gyori (Tri-City, 1994-99) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Dresdner Eislöwen (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) after his release by the Hannover Indians (Germany, 2. Bundesliga). He had one goal and three assists in seven games with the Indians. . . .

D Brent Sopel (Saskatoon, Swift Current, 1992-97) was traded by Metallurg Novokuznetsk (Russia, KHL) to Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia, KHL) for "monetary compensation." Metallurg is out of the playoffs and Salavat Yulaev have clinched a playoff spot. Both teams have four games left in the regular season. Sopel had four goals and six assists in 47 games with Metallurg this season. A short message from Sopel thanking the fans of Metallurg is right here. Unfortunately, it is overdubbed in Russian. . . .

G Tyson Sexsmith (Vancouver, 2004-09) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Bolzano (Italy, Serie A) after his release by Metallurg Novokuznetsk (Russia, KHL). He had a 3.28 GAA and a .873 save percentage in four games with Metallurg this season. Bolzano has three regular-season games left and currently sits in first place in Serie A Master Round. Sexsmith replaces Czech G Tomas Duba, who left Bolzano to sign with Krefeld Pinguine (Germany, DEL) two weeks ago. . . .

D Shaone Morrisonn (Kamloops, 1999-2002) was traded by Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL) to CSKA Moscow (Russia, KHL) for "monetary compensation." He had one goal and three assists in 44 games for Spartak. Spartak also is out of the playoff race while CSKA has clinched a playoff spot with four games left for each team. You can see pictures of Morrisonn being welcomed to CSKA by general manager Sergei Fedorov right here. . . .

D Jordan Henry (Moose Jaw, Red Deer, 2003-07) signed a contract for the rest of this season with HPK Hämeenlinna (Finland, SM-Liiga). Henry started the season on a tryout contract with Södertälje (Sweden, Allsvenskan), where he had one goal and one assist in seven games. After his release form the try-out, he signed with the Stockton Thunder (ECHL) and was loaned to the Oklahoma City Barons (AHL) on a tryout five days afterwards. Henry had two assists in 20 games with the Barons but was released from his tryout loan and returned to Stockton on Jan. 21. He played two games with the Thunder and had two assists. . . .

F Lynn Loyns (Spokane, 1997-2001) was granted his release by the Ravensburg Towerstars (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) for personal reasons. He had two goals and three assists in 12 games for the Towerstars this season. . . .

F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Aalborg (Denmark, AL-Bank Liga) after a successful tryout. He did not play any games during his tryout period; he just participated in practices and training sessions. Lukacevic was pointless during a two-game try-out with Eispiraten Crimmitschau (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) and had three goals and eight assists in 15 games with Banska Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga) earlier this season.
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The Tri-City Americans are expected to have a pair of prospects make their WHL debuts tonight in Everett against the Silvertips. . . . D Parker Wotherspoon, the Americans’ first-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft, and F Justin Marreck, who has been on the Americans’ list for two years, have been brought in for the weekend. . . . Wotherspoon, the younger brother of Portland Winterhawks D Tyler Wotherspoon, plays for the major midget Fraser Valley Hawks. . . . Marreck, 16, plays for the major midget Okanagan Rockets. . . . Both plays also are to play Saturday when the Americans are to meet the Seattle Thunderbirds in Kent, Wash., and then return to their club teams.
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The WHL has suspended D Joel Edmundson of the Kamloops Blazers for four games, while Tri-City Americans F Tyson Dallman has been hit with a three-game sentence. . . . Both suspensions are the result of infractions in Wednesday games. . . . Edmundson received a headshot major and game misconduct for an open-ice hit on Portland Winterhawks F Adam De Champlain, who left the game afer the first-period hit and didn’t return. . . . Dallman was given an interference major and game misconduct after a collision with Prince George Cougars G Brett Zarowny, who also left the game.
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THURSDAY’S GAMES:
In Red Deer, F Turner Elson and F Ryhse Dieno each had two goals to lead the Rebels to a 6-2 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . Dieno also had two assists, while Elson had one. . . . Dieno has 33 points, including 17 goals, since joining the Rebels from the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves. . . . Ice F Sam Reinhart scored his 27th goal as he ran his point streak to 15 games. . . . With F Joel Hamilton having suffered an undisclosed injury in practice Wednesday, the Rebels brought in F Vukie Mpofu, a fourth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. Mpofu has 55 points in 34 games with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. That’s good for second place in the league scoring race. . . .

In Kelowna, the Rockets scored the game’s first four goals, three of them in the first period, and went on to a 6-1 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . F Tyson Baillie scored the game’s first and last goals, giving him 18. . . . The Rockets ran their home-ice winning streak to 22 games. The franchise record (24) is held by the 1994-95 Tacoma Rockets. . . . Kelowna F Dylen McKinlay had two assists in his 300th regular-season game. . . . With the victory, the Rockets became the second WHL team to clinch a playoff spot this season.


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The Tri-City Americans have signed F Justin Marreck to a WHL contract. Marreck, 16, is from West Kelowna, B.C. He played last season with the major midget Okanagan Rockets, picking up 33 points in 40 games. The Americans placed him on their list in June 2011. . . . Marreck will be with the Americans at this weekend’s tournament in Everett. He then will return home and play a second season with Okanagan. . . . The Americans are without F Jesse Mychan, who continues to recover from surgery to repair a severed Achilles tendon. He was injured in the first round of last season’s playoffs. . . . Also missing is F Malte Strömwall. “Mychan is ahead of schedule and we are happy with his progress,” Americans GM Bob Tory told the Tri-City Herald. “Malte will get here when his visa is approved. You have to follow government regulations.”
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The Swift Current Broncos have signed G Travis Child, the 29th overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft. Child, from Killam, Alta., played last season with the bantam Camrose Vikings, going 7-8-4, 3.46, .910. He stopped nine of 10 shots during a stint on Tuesday night as the Broncos dropped a 3-1 decision to the Moose Jaw Warriors.
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The Portland Winterhawks have signed G Adin Hill, 16, and F Joe Mahon, 18. . . . Hill was was added to Portland’s protected list after training camp a year ago. Hill, 6-foot-1 and 156 pounds, is from Calgary. He played for the minor midget AAA Calgary Rangers last season (8-6-2, 3.37, .927). . . . Mahon, 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, is another list player out of Calgary. He played for the AJHL’s Calgary Mustangs, putting up eight points and 90 penalty minutes in 35 games.
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The Regina Pats have signed D Brady Reagan, their first pick in the 2012 bantam draft. Reagan, from Blackie, Alta., was taken 31st overall. Last season, Reagan, 6-foot-2 and 197 pounds, had 65 points in 52 games at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton, B.C.
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The Victoria Royals may have established a record by announcing 11 player signings in one day. . . .
The Royals have signed F Tyler Soy, F Regan Nagy, F Matthew Campese and D Chaz Redekopp, all of them 1997-born players. . . . Soy was the eighth overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft. From Surrey, he played last season with the bantam A-1 Cloverdale Colts, picking up 65 points in 20 games. In the 46 games he played last season, he had 159 points, including 106 assists. . . . Reddekopp, from West Kelowna, was the 13th overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft. He played for the bantam 1 team at Pursuit of Excellence in Kelowna last season, putting up 59 points in 62 games. . . . Nagy, the 27th overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft, is from Ogema, Sask. He played for the bantam AA Weyburn Energy Wings, putting up 46 points in 23 games. . . . Campese, from Prince Albert, is the son of Prince Albert Raiders general manager Bruno Campese. Matthew played for the bantam AA Venice House Raiders. He had 53 points and 98 penalty minutes in 23 games. He was picked in the third round of the 2012 bantam draft. . . .
The Royals also signed four 1996-born players — F Michael Bell, F Brandon Fushimi, D Ryan Gagnon and G Michael Herringer. . . . Bell, from Kitimat, B.C., was a third-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. He played last season with the Prince George-based Cariboo Cougars of the B.C. major midget league. He had 12 points in 34 games. . . . Fushimi, a list player, is from Thornton, Colo. He had 23 points for the Rocky Mountain RoughRiders, a Tier 1 midget minor team last season. . . . Gagnon, from Quesnel, B.C., had 24 points in 38 games with the major midget Cariboo Cougars last season. He was a third-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . Herringer, from Comox, B.C., was taken in the ninth round of the 2011 bantam draft. He was the lone goaltender selected by Victoria in that draft. He played for the major midget North Island Silvertips, putting up a 3.63 GAA in 22 games. . . . Turning Point Sports Management had announced the signings of Fushimi and Herringer via Twitter on Wednesday. . . .
Also signing with the Royals were D Kolton Dix, 17, and F Logan Fisher, 17, both of whom played on the Red Deer Optimist Rebels who won the 2012 Telus Cup as national midget champions. . . . Fisher, a list player since last September, had 31 points in 34 games. . . . Dixon, who had 10 assists in 30 games, has been on the Royals’ list since September 2010. . . .
The Royals also have signed G Patrik Polivka, the 14th overall selection in the CHL’s 2012 import draft. Polivka, from Plzen, Czech Republic, started 31 games for HC Plzen’s U-20 team (3.20, .917). He also saw playing time with the HC Plzen U-18 team and with the Czech Republic’s U-18 and U-19 teams.
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Before meeting the visiting Victoria Royals in an exhibition game last night, the Kamloops Blazers signed three players. . . . F Mitch Friesen of Surrey, B.C., was selected in the fourth round of the 2011 bantam draft. Friesen, 6-foot-3 and 171 pounds, played last season for the major midget Valley West Hawks, picking up 56 points in 40 games. . . . F Jesse Shynkaruk of Saskatoon was a seventh-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. The 5-foot-8, 152-pound Shynkaruk had 57 points in 39 games with the midget AA Saskatoon Steel. . . . F Aaron Macklin of High River, Alta., is a list player who played last season with the midget AAA UFA Bisons. Macklin, 6-foot-2 and 189 pounds, had 20 points and 57 penalty minutes in 29 games.
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Tim Cheveldae is back with the Saskatoon Blades. So is Daryl Lubiniecki. . . . Cheveldae, who played goal for the Blades (1985-88) and also worked as an assistant coach (1998-2000) has signed on as the team’s goaltending coach. He takes over from John Stevenson, who isn’t with the team. . . . The Blades also announced that assistant coach Dave Struch has been promoted to associate coach. Struch has been on the Blades’ coaching staff since 2006. . . . Lubiniecki, a former Blades general manager and head coach who also has worked with the Prince George Cougars, has joined Saskatoon’s scouting staff. You can bet that news has put smiles on a lot of faces belonging to other WHL scouts. Yes, the master storyteller is back!
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Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reports that the Pats are missing some familiar faces as training camp opens. . . . Regina has released F Nils Moser, 20, who is with the AJHL’s Canmore Eagles, and F Tyler Bortsmayer, 19. . . . F Dominik Volek, 18, chose to play in the Swedish Junior Elite League, while F Lyndon Martell, 19, has been assigned to the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. . . . D Landon Peel, 18, has been assigned to the MJHL’s Swan Valley Stampeders. . . . F Locke Muller, 19, who played with the Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades and was added by the Pats in the off-season, has told Regina he has lost his desire.
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The U.S. national junior team may have suffered a blow Wednesday. According to Michael Russo of the Minneapolis StarTribune, “Mario Lucia . . . said he broke his left fibula and suffered ligament damge in his left ankle when a teammate fell on him during a battle drill.” . . . Lucia, a second-round selection by the Minnesota Wild in the 2011 NHL draft, is a freshman at Notre Dame after playing last season with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. . . . Early speculation is that Lucia could be out for three months. . . . “Hopefully I'll get back quicker than three months, but I'm in a cast for seven weeks, so there's not much I can do about that," Lucia told Russo.

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