Hay healthy and enjoying hometown life with Blazers

Don Hay isn’t going anywhere.

Hay will turn 63 on Feb. 13. He has his health. He loves what he’s doing. He’s back in his hometown of Kamloops, surrounded by family and friends. There is more family, including grandchildren, in Salmon Arm, about an hour to the east, where son Darrell is cutting his teeth in the coaching game as an

DON HAY

assistant with the BCHL’s Salmon Arm Silverbacks.

Add it all up and it means the head coach of the Kamloops Blazers is quite content with his life at this moment.

“I’d like to go as long as I can,” Hay said after his Blazers had beaten the visiting Kelowna Rockets 3-1 on Friday night. “I really enjoy coming to work every day . . . I enjoy it.”

Asked if the end of his career is in sight, Hay replied: “It’s something that we play by ear each year.”

If you missed it, it was thought that Hay posted his 700th victory as a WHL head coach on Friday. However, in the post-game conversation between Hay and reporters, it was discovered that there might be a few victories missing.

Hay was of the belief that his first victory came on Sept. 26, 1992, when the Blazers beat the host Tacoma Rockets, 8-7 in OT.

However, the WHL office had told Earl Seitz, the sports director at CFJC-TV in Kamloops, that victory No. 1 happened on Dec. 13, 1991, when the Blazers beat the visiting Spokane Chiefs, 7-4.

At the time, Hay was an assistant under head coach Tom Renney, who had left for a stint as an assistant coach with Canada’s national junior team. With Renney away, the Blazers went 6-4-0 under Hay.

“I didn’t know they added those ones on,” said Hay, who then pointed out that “I took over for Hitch when he went to the world juniors, too.”

Yes, indeed. Blazers head coach Ken Hitchcock was an assistant coach under Dave Chambers with Team Canada at the 1988 World Junior Championship. With Hitchcock gone, Hay was in charge of a WHL team for the first time.

The Blazers went 2-4-1 with Hitchcock gone and Hay in charge, meaning that his first victory as a WHL head coach actually occurred on Dec. 18, 1987, when the Blazers beat the Thunderbirds, 5-2, in Seattle.

With those two victories added to his total, it means that Hay’s 700th coaching victory actually came on Dec. 30 when the Blazers beat the Vancouver Giants, 4-2, in Langley, B.C.

So . . . when the Blazers beat the Rockets on Friday night, it left Hay with 702 victories, 40 behind Ken Hodge, the only other person with 700 WHL coaching triumphs. (This also means that Hitchcock’s record will lose two victories, leaving him with 289.)

“I can remember coaching against Portland when we were assistant coaches,” Hay said, “and Hodge was the head guy. He obviously did a great job in Portland for a lot of years.”

Hay has been coaching for a lot of years, too. He got started with the senior Kamloops Cowboys after a brief pro career that includes IHL stops with the Columbus Owls and Flint Generals.

Hay returned home to Kamloops and began what he thought would be a career as a firefighter. That all changed thanks to one angry coach.

“I got the opportunity to be player-coach when the head coach was mad at us and didn’t come to a game,” Hay said. “Everybody was kind of looking around and asking who wants to coach. I put up my hand and it’s something I’ve really enjoyed ever since.”

He has made NHL coaching stops with the Calgary Flames, Phoenix Coyotes and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. He has coached with the AHL’s Utah Grizzlies. In the WHL, he also has worked with the Tri-City Americans and Vancouver Giants. 

The circle was completed in the summer of 2014 when Hay left the Giants — he had been with them for 10 seasons and had one year left on his contract — to come home to the Blazers.

When it was suggested on Friday that he might end his career in his hometown, he replied: “I hope so . . . I’m happy here.”

But like the coach he is, he also admitted that, well, the NHL is always there.

“If there’s an offer . . . well . . . never say never,” he said. “But I’m really enjoying my time here.”

How much is he enjoying it?

“I’m excited every day to come to work. I show up here every day in the summertime,” he said. “It’s my routine.”

——

Here’s a look at WHL head coaches who have more than 500 regular-season victories to their credit (after games of Jan. 6):

1. Ken Hodge (Edmonton, Portland), 742

2. Don Hay (Kamloops, Tri-City, Vancouver) 702

3. Don Nachbaur (Seattle, Tri-City, Spokane) 682

4. Lorne Molleken (Moose Jaw, Saskatoon, Regina) 626

5. Ernie McLean (Estevan, New Westminster) 548

6. Pat Ginnell (Flin Flon, Victoria, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, New Westminster) 518
7. Mike Williamson (Portland, Calgary, Tri-City) 516

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Hitchcock to Edmonton? . . . Wenatchee to BCHL? . . . We Not The North?

With apologies to Blackie Sherrod, we are scattershooting late on a Sunday night:
1. It has been a while since the Kelowna Rockets have faced a challenge. It will be interesting to see how they react now that they’re 1-1 with the Portland Winterhawks and headed to the Rose City for a doubleheader.
2. Perhaps when TSN has six or seven channels, they’ll be able to show all of Sunday Night Baseball, rather than joining it in progress.
3. Whenever I watch G Devan Dubnyk and consider his numbers with the Minnesota Wild, I wonder if goaltending really was an issue with the Edmonton Oilers. Maybe it’s all about defensive structure and commitment.
4. Gawd, I love that Molson commercial that opens with old friend Don Dietrich heading to the hockey game on the glacier. If you haven’t read his book — No Guarantees — give it a go. You won’t be disappointed.
5. The headshot by Calgary Hitmen F Jake Virtanen on F Tanner Kaspick of the Brandon Wheat Kings on Friday is every disciplinarian’s worst nightmare. Virtanen is a star player whose team is down 2-0 in a conference final and that team plays in the city where the WHL office is located. Richard Doerksen, the next move belongs to you.
6. The final buzzer was still echoing Sunday and there was speculation that Ken Hitchcock had coached his last game with the St. Louis Blues. Well, his coaching career began in Edmonton, so why not?
7. Whenever talk to turns to potential homes for WHL franchises, someone invariably mentions Wenatchee, Wash., home of the 4,300-seat Town Toyota Centre. But you can end that talk because it now seems likely that the Wild, which has played in the NAHL, will be in the BCHL for 2015-16.
8. If you’re an NFL fan, you know the draft starts on Thursday. Which means you won’t want to miss Peter King’s Monday Morning Quarterback, which is right here. (Question: If the NFL is moving the draft around — this year's is in Chicago, not New York — so why couldn't the WHL move its bantam draft around?)
9. Why does my TV remote always find the Jason Statham movies?
10. Does what happened to the Toronto Raptors mean We Not The North?
———

SUNDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.

———


A look at the WHL’s 10 winningest head coaches in terms of playoff victories:
Don Hay (Kamloops, Tri-City, Vancouver) 103
Ken Hodge (Edmonton, Portland) 101
Ernie McLean (Estevan, New Westminster) 87
Pat Ginnell (Flin Flon, Victoria, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat) 80
Willie Desjardins (Saskatoon, Medicine Hat) 67
Ken Hitchcock (Kamloops) 66
x-Brent Sutter (Red Deer) 66
x-Don Nachbaur (Seattle, Tri-City, Spokane) 65
x-Kelly McCrimmon (Brandon) 62
Dean Clark (Calgary, Brandon, Kamloops, Prince George) 61
(x — active.)
——
The U.S. won the IIHF U-18 men’s world championship, beating Finland 2-1 in OT in Zug, Switzerland, on Sunday. F Colin White score the winner at 12:44 of extra time. . . . G Evan Sarthou of the Tri-City Americans made 19 stops for the victory. . . . It was the sixth time in seven years that the U.S. won the title. . . . Canada won the bronze medal, with a 5-2 victory over Switzerland. F Glenn Gawdin of the Swift Current Broncos scored twice for Canada.
——
In the OHL, F Connor McDavid scored two goals as the Erie Otters post a 4-2 victory over the visiting Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds last night. The Otters lead the Western Conference final, 2-1. . . . McDavid has 32 points, 18 of them goals, in 12 playoff games. . . . They’ll play in the Soo again on Tuesday. . . . Also last night, the host Oshawa Generals beat the North Bay Battalion 1-0 in OT. D Dakota Mermis got the winner at 1:00 of the first OT period. . . . That series is 1-1 as it shifts to North Bay for games Tuesday and Wednesday.
——
In the QMJHL, the Quebec Remparts have a 2-0 lead over the Moncton Wildcats with Games 3 and 4 scheduled for Quebec City tonight and Tuesday. . . . The Rimouski Oceanic leads the Val-d’Or Foreurs 2-0 in the other semifinal, with the series in Val-d’Or for games on Tuesday and Wednesday.

———







From a story by Dan Barry of The New York Times: “Examinations of the brain of Patrick Risha, 32, at the University of Pittsburgh and Boston University revealed chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or C.T.E., the degenerative disease caused by repeated blows to the head that has been found in the brains of dozens of former football players. C.T.E. has been linked to depression, impulsive actions and short-term memory loss, among other symptoms.” . . . You won’t be sorry for giving this right here a read.
———

When asked about the officiating tonight, Mavs HC Rick Carlisle put a piece of tape over his mouth. pic.twitter.com/UItDkr3Lmm
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 27, 2015

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

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

At least four schools, some of them likely in California, are close to deciding whether to add NCAA Division 1 hockey to their athletic departments. A report in the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Thursday indicated that a number of schools would love to emulate the success of the Penn State Nittany Lions, a program in contention for the Big 10 title in only its third season of existence. As well, Arizona State is preparing to ice a Division 1 team. . . . Jason Gonzalez of the Star Tribune has more right here. . . . The WHL, of course, recruits heavily in California, and having Division 1 teams in the state would no doubt make things a bit more difficult. Keep in mind that there haven’t been any Division 1 teams west of the Rocky Mountains.
———
The Guelph Gryphons and UNB Varsity Reds advanced on the first day of play at the CIS men’s hockey championship in Halifax. . . . F Cam Braes (Lethbridge, Moose Jaw, 2007-12) scored four times to lead the No. 2 Varsity Reds to a 6-2 victory over the No. 7 Windsor Lancers. Braes, from Shawnigan Lake, B.C., tied a CIS record for most goals in a national championship tournament game. “I pride myself on being a playoff performer when the chips are down. I always want to elevate my game,” Braes said. . . . In the day’s other game, the No. 3 Gryphons dumped the No. 6 Calgary Dinos, 3-1. F Teal Burns (Portland, Vancouver, Prince Albert, Everett, 2009-2012) and F Seth Swenson (Portland, Seattle, Lethbridge) had goals for Guelph. Calgary got its goal from F Chris Collins (Chilliwack, Saskatoon, 2007-2012). . . . Today, the host StFX X-Men, the eighth seed, meet the No. 1 Alberta Golden Bears, the defending champions, and the No. 4 UQTR Patriots meet the No. 5 Acadia Axemen.
———
It was moving day on Thursday as three teams — two in the AHL and one in the OHL — announced that they will have new homes next season. . . . The NHL’s Winnipeg Jets made it official — they are moving the AHL’s St. John’s IceCaps from Newfoundland to the MTS Centre in Winnipeg where they likely will play as the Manitoba Moos. . . . The Montreal Canadiens then revealed that their AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, will be moving to St. John’s. They will play as the IceCaps. In another couple of years, the franchise is likely to end up in Laval, Que., where a new arena is being built. . . . In the OHL, the board of governors announced that it had approved the sale of the Belleville Bulls, who will be moving to Hamilton and will be renamed the Bullodgs. . . . Michael Andlauer sold the Bulldogs to the Canadiens, then purchased Belleville’s OHL franchise. . . . The OHL hasn’t been in Hamilton since the Dukes played there (1989-91).
———
Ken Hitchcock, the head coach of the St. Louis Blues, became the fourth head coach in NHL history with 700 career victories last night. When the Blues beat the visiting Philadelphia Flyers 1-0 in a shootout, Hitchcock joined Scotty Bowman (1,244), Al Arbour (782) and Joel Quenneville (745) as members of the 700 club.
———
Jerome Bechard, the head coach of the SPHL’s Columbus Cottonmouths, got a little excited in the first period of a game last night. How excited? Well, Bechard (Moose Jaw, 1986-89) actually ended up on the ice. . . . There’s video right here.
———




Ch-ch-ching! Peter Anholt, the general manager and head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, has been fined $500 after he was hit with a game misconduct late in a 4-1 loss to the host Kootenay Ice on Tuesday night. . . .
The Brandon Wheat Kings, with 49 victories, are at home to the Saskatoon Blades tonight. They may get D Kale Clague back from an undisclosed injury. He played three games since Oct. 28. . . . F Nolan Patrick has missed 10 games and is skating, but hasn’t been cleared for contact. . . . F Reid Duke and F Quinton Lisoway remain week-to-week. . . .
The Kelowna Rockets continue to show that three of their top players aren’t about to come off the injury list in a day or two. The Rockets, who go home-and-home with the Kamloops Blazers this weekend, show F Rourke Chartier and F Justin Kirkland as being week-to-week, while D Josh Morrissey is out for two to three weeks. That would indicate that the Rockets are hoping to have them, along with F Gage Quinney and D Mitch Wheaton, ready for the start of playoffs. . . .
The Portland Winterhawks have won 40 games for a sixth straight season. That ties a franchise record set from 1978-83. . . .
F Dawson Holt has joined the Vancouver Giants and could play at some point this weekend. Holt, 16, was a first-round selection in the 2014 bantam draft. He was free to join the Giants once his team, the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts, had its season end. . . .
F Taylor Crunk of the Victoria Royals has been charged with assault causing bodily harm after an incident that occurred at a New Year’s Eve party. . . . The Victoria Times Colonist has more right here. . . .
Regina Pats F Sam Steel isn’t expected to play this weekend after suffering a leg injury on Tuesday during a game in Prince Albert. The Pats play in Moose Jaw tonight and then are at home to the Warriors on Saturday. . . . While Steel may not play until the playoffs, Regina F Austin Wagner (concussion) is likely to return this weekend after missing eight games. . . .
The Moose Jaw Warriors expect to have F Jaimen Yakubowski in the lineup when they play host to the Regina Pats tonight. He has missed six games with an undisclosed injury. . . . Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has more on the Warriors right here. . . .
F Cameron Hausinger, a 17-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, says the Saskatoon Blades are very much on his radar, especially after he wasn’t one of the 50 players invited to the U.S. National Team Development Camp. Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here. ———

THE COACHING GAME:

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

THE WHL PLAYOFF PICTURE:

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

IF THE WHL PLAYOFFS BEGAN TODAY:

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

THURSDAY’S GAMES

No Games Scheduled
———

FRIDAY’S GAMES

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

SATURDAY’S GAMES

(all times local)
Calgary at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Moose Jaw at Regina, 7 p.m.
Prince Albert at Swift Current, 7 p.m.
Kootenay at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Edmonton at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Prince George at Portland, 7 p.m.
Seattle at Everett, 7:05 p.m.
Tri-City at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Kamloops at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Vancouver at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
———

“@funnyordie: Sorry, Cody. But there's no crying in baseball. #FerrellTakesTheField pic.twitter.com/gxgXKMb475” - 😢......
— Cody Decker (@Decker6) March 13, 2015

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Hitting right notes in Prince George . . . Two more players leave teams . . . Another shutout for Whistle

THE MUSIC MAN:

CURTIS ABRIEL

Recently, the Moose Jaw Warriors' Twitter account (@MJWARRIORS) was playing a game of "Remember When . . ." At one point, the tweet was: “We had the actual organ in the Civic Centre #glorydays #livemusic #intune.”
Which brings us to Prince George’s CN Centre, the home of the Cougars who, if you aren't aware, are under new ownership this season.
---
The Cougars’ new owners are hoping for a revival in their community this season.
And like the hosts to a good revival meeting, they see nothing wrong with a little organ music at their games.
It used to be that an organist was almost the entire stoppage-time
entertainment at a lot of hockey games. However, with the growth of computers, more and more teams have gone to pre-packaged music and the organs got squeezed out.
In Prince George, the Cougars have done something to reverse that. Yes, a keyboardist has become a big part of their game presentation.
"Apart from our relatively good improvements on the ice, the thing we are most happy about is that an exciting, electric atmosphere has once again returned to the CN Centre, and the fans are having an extremely good time attending our games," Andy Beesley, the Cougars' vice-president business, told Taking Note via email. "We’ve made some dramatic changes to the ‘fan experience’, including our incredible pre-game light/laser show, and, of course, our music upgrades."
The Cougars have hired Curtis Abriel as their music director. A resident of Prince George who is from Kitimat, Abriel is a well-known figure on the city's music scene.
With the Cougars, Abriel controls all music and sound effects, and also plays a live keyboard which, according to Beesley, is "mostly organ" and is used a lot throughout a game.
"Curtis has a natural ability to read the crowd, and get them clapping and cheering with various musical punctuations to mimic the mood of the crowd during stoppages in play," Beesley added. "Curtis has made a major contribution to the atmosphere inside the CN Centre . . . the power of a live keyboard with a skilled musician cannot be overstated."
How popular has the addition of Abriel proven to be?
The Cougars, who are at home to the Kamloops Blazers on Saturday (7 p.m.) and Sunday (2 p.m.), now have added a camera inside the video control room where Abriel operates from "so we can show live shots of him on the video scoreboard from time to time," Beesley writes.
The Cougars are using a lot of live music on game nights. On opening night, they had a local band, Out of Alba, on the roof of the CN Centre to welcome fans to the game; Out of Alba also played inside during 90-second timeouts during the game.
During a recent Saturday game, the Cougars had a live DJ -- DJ Ant -- doing his thing during stoppages in play and intermissions. Beesley reports that the DJ was "set up in the stands and was a huge hit."
In fact, DJ Ant was so popular, according to Beesley, "that we have arranged to have him set up in the stands again and play ALL the music for an upcoming game, with Curtis also playing live organ from time to time."
The Cougars, Beesley reports, also plan to include more live musicians during future games, including, yes, a trumpet player.
CHARGE!
---

MORE PLAYER DEPARTURES:

Two more players have chosen to leave their WHL teams.
D Connor Hobbs, 17, has asked to be traded and has left the Medicine Hat Tigers, while D Tyler Green, 19, has decided to leave the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Hobbs, from Saskatoon, had two assists in five games with Canada at last summer's Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament. He had a goal and an assist in 12 games with the Tigers this season. Last season, he had three points, including a goal, in 10 games. He had been one of eight defencemen on the Tigers' roster.
Hobbs was a fourth-round pick by the Prince Albert Raiders in the 2012 bantam draft. The Tigers acquired Hobbs on Jan. 1, 2013. Along with Hobbs, they got D Zach Hodder, then 19, F Logan McVeigh, 18, and a second-round pick in the 2013 bantam draft for D Dylan Busenius, 19, F Jayden Hart, 18, and a sixth-round pick in the 2014 draft.
Green, meanwhile, apparently told the Warriors that he wants to get on with his education.
“He contacted us (Wednesday) and asked to meet with Tim (Hunter) and I,” Alan Millar, the Warriors' general manager, told Katie Brickman of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald. “He just explained to us that he has lost the passion for the game and didn’t feel like he wanted to play any longer.”
Green, 19, is from Port Coquitlam, B.C. He was a second-round selection by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the 2010 bantam draft. Seattle dealt him to the Brandon Wheat Kings and they, in turn, traded him to Moose Jaw on Oct. 5 for a fifth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft.
The Warriors acquired the 6-foot-7, 220-pound Green after D Austin Adam, a 6-foot-5, 200-pounder, suffered a shoulder injury. Adam is back skating but isn't expected to play for a couple of weeks.
Green's departure leaves the Warriors with six defencemen.
Green is at least the third player to walk away from the Warriors this season. Veteran forwards Brandon Potomak, 19, and Scott Cooke, 20, left after having played just two games each.
On Wednesday, the Kootenay Ice and D Jordan Steenbergen, 18, parted company by mutual agreement. He was pointless in 12 games this season.
The Prince Albert Raiders had two players -- F Dakota Conroy and F Colton McCarthy -- leave the club earlier this month. Conroy, 20, had two points in 10 games, while McCarthy, 18, was pointless in eight games.
---



G Jared Rathjen, who has yet to play this season, is joining the Prince George Cougars. Rathjen, 20, is from Prince George. He was placed on waivers by the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Rathjen opened training camp with the Tigers and got into two exhibition games. However, he was sidelined when a health issue was discovered. He recently received medical clearance to return to action but has yet to play, although he has been practising with the Tigers. . . . Rathjen was acquired by the Tigers from the Vancouver Giants over the summer. The Tigers gave up a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft in the exchange. . . . In 74 regular-season games with the Victoria Royals and the Giants, he is 20-30-8/3.81/.873. Last season, he was 13-8-5/2.98/.898. . . . The acquisition of Rathjen leaves the Cougars with three goaltenders, the other two being sophomore Ty Edmonds, 18, and freshman Tavin Grant, 16. . . . Edmonds is 7-7-0/4.04/.875, while Grant is 1-1-0/5.75/.828. . . .
---
In order to make room for Rathjen, the Cougars have waived D Wil Tomchuk, who is joining the AJHL's Fort McMurray Oil Barons. He is from Fort McMurray. . . . The Cougars are left with Rathjen, F Jari Ericsson and F Chance Braid as their 20-year-olds. . . . Tomchuk have five assists in 26 games with the Cougars last season, after coming over from the Tri-City Americans. This season, he had two assists in 15 games. In 131 regular-season games, he had a goal and 10 assists. . . . The Tigers are down to 23 players, including eight defencemen and 13 forwards. Their 20s are D Tyler Lewington, D Kyle Becker and Czech G Marek Langhamer. Lewington turns 20 on Dec. 5.
---
Scoop Cooper, who writes at hockeybuzz.com, has known Gordie and Mark Howe for a number of years. With Gordie having suffered a stroke, Cooper writes right here about Mr. Hockey
 ---




Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal chatted with former Portland Winterhawks head coach Brent Peterson about Gordie Howe, Andrew Ference and more. It's all right here. . . .

F Alex Forsberg, who suffered an undisclosed injury a week ago, practised with the Saskatoon Blades on Thursday. He is listed as questionable for tonight's game against the Pats in Regina. Saskatoon D Ryan Coghlan has been out since Oct. 22 and will sit for at least another month. He suffered a separated shoulder during a fight. . . . The Blades will make a move on defence before too long because they are down to six healthy defenders. . . .

There was an interesting revelation from the NHL's St. Louis Blues on Thursday morning. In an era when hockey teams are reluctant to release information regarding injuries, Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock told reports that forwards David Backes and T.J. Oshie have concussions and are out indefinitely. . . . "Backes is concussed, out ... Oshie is concussed, out," Hitchcock said.
---

THE COACHING GAME:

There is an interesting story developing in Cold Lake, Alta., where the board of the directors of the Ice, a junior B team, has fired head coach Neil Langridge. The Ice was 10-2 when Langridge was fired on Tuesday. Furthermore, the Ice is coming off four straight league titles and is to be the host team for the 2015 Keystone Cup. Theresa Seraphim and Peter Lozinski of the Cold Lake Sun have more right here. "I can say that I will be leaving this organization with my head held allot higher then others involved," Langridge tweeted.
---

THURSDAY'S GAMES:

In Portland, G Jackson Whistle stopped 29 shots to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 5-0 victory over the Winterhawks. . . . It was Whistle's second shutout in his last three starts. He's got three shutouts this season and six in his career. . . . The Rockets (13-1-0) have won three in a row. . . . F Rourke Chartier scored twice, giving him 11 goals this season. . . . F Justin Kirkland added a goal, his sixth, and two assists, while F Austin Glover drew three assists. . . . The Winterhawks hadn't been shut out at home since Oct. 9, 2011, when Ty Rimmer of the Tri-City Americans stopped 43 shots in a 4-0 victory. . . . The Americans also blanked Portland on Dec. 11, 2011, the last time the Winterhawks have gone without a goal. On that night, Rimmer turned aside 29 shots in a 3-0 victory. . . . With eight defencemen dressed, the Rockets had Jesse Lees playing on a forward line at times. . . . The Rockets were without head coach Dan Lambert, who is in Sarnia, Ont., preparing to coach one of Canada's entries in the U-17 World Hockey Challenge. . . . If you keep track of such things, the coaching victory belongs to assistant coach Kris Mallette, his first. . . . The Rockets and Winterhawks (5-10-2) will meet again Saturday in Portland, where the Winterhawks are 0-5-2. . . .

In Seattle, F Lane Pederson scored his first two WHL goals to help the Thunderbirds to a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Pederson, a 17-year-old from Saskatoon, was playing in his 14th game of the season. He was pointless in two regular-season and three playoff games last season. . . . Seattle scored the game's first four goals and took a 5-1 lead into the third period. . . . Seattle G Taran Kozun stopped 22 shots, three more than Edmonton's Patrick Dea. . . . F Mathew Barzal and F Ryan Gropp each scored his seventh goal of the season for Seattle. . . . “I thought they just outworked us,” Oil Kings head coach Steve Hamilton said on the team’s website. “We need to play with more pace to our game. We have to be harder to play against. We got our show run by a team that was aggressive and in our face.”
---

198 - With tonight's 5-0 victory, the @Kelowna_Rockets have ended Portland's streak at 198 straight reg season games with at least one goal
— WHL Facts (@WHLFacts) October 31, 2014

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Sebastian Svendsen (Vancouver, Edmonton, Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, 2009-12) signed a two-year contract with Aalborg (Denmark, AL-Bank Liga). Svendsen started the season with Moose Jaw, getting two goals and two assists in 11 games. He returned to Denmark in December, where he played four games with Hvidovre (Denmark, U20 Liga), getting four goals and two assists in four games, and 12 games with Copenhagen Hockey, (Denmark, AL-Bank Liga), scoring three goals and four assists to go along with 49 PIMs. . . .
F Erik Christensen (Kamloops, Brandon, 1999-2004) signed a one-year contract with Lev Prague (Czech Republic, KHL). He had one goal and four assists in 20 games with the New York Rangers, two goals and one assist in five games with Connecticut Whale (AHL), and six goals and one assist in 29 games with Minnesota Wild this season.
———
JUST NOTES:
Rob Morphy of Kamloops has been named director of scouting/head scout by the BCHL’s Salmon Arm Silverbacks. It’s a reunion of sorts for Morphy and Troy Mick, the Silverbacks’ new GM and head coach. The two worked together with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers and won the 1999 Royal Bank Cup. . . . Morphy also is a veteran WHL scout, most recently having worked with the Chilliwack Bruins and Tri-City Americans. . . .
The Tri-City Americans have signed D Tyler Fraser, who was a third-round pick, 55th overall, in the 2012 bantam draft. Fraser, from Surrey, B.C., played for the bantam AAA Cloverdale Colts; in fact, he was the team captain. He also was partnered with Parker Wotherspoon, the Americans’ first-round selection in the 2012 draft. . . .
Hockey Now has named F Mathew Barzal of the Burnaby Winter Club and F Jansen Harkins of the North Shore Winter Club as co-winners of its B.C. minor hockey player-of-the-year award. . . . Barzal was selected first overall by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft. . . . Harkins went second overall to the Prince George Cougars. . . . There’s more right here.
———
THE COACHING GAME:
Steve Johnson has signed on as an assistant coach with the U of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks. He will work alongside head coach Dean Blais. Johnson and Blais both are former head coaches of the USHL’s Fargo Force. In fact, Johnson replaced Blais for the 2009-10 season. For the last two seasons, Johnson has been an assistant coach at St. Cloud State. . . . Back in the day, Johnson spent four seasons as a player at the U of North Dakota; Blais was an assistant coach with the Fighting Sioux at the time. . . .
Gary Graham is the new head coach of the Southern Professional league’s Pensacola Ice Flyers. Graham is coming off four seasons as an assistant coach with the Fort Wayne Komets, who played in the IHL and the Central league and now are making the move to the ECHL. Graham worked under veteran coach Al Sims with the Komets.
———
The 2012 Hockey Coaches Conference is all set for July 20-21 at the Delta Burnaby Hotel and Conference Centre. And it promises to be the best one yet, with presenters like Ken Hitchcock, Mike Keenan, Don Hay, Glen Hanlon, Brent Peterson, Milan Dragicevic and Troy Ward.
There’s more on the conference right here. In fact, if you’re a coach — or an aspiring coach — you should have this site bookmarked.

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Pursuit of pro job takes Ferner to Everett

MARK FERNER

He’s still the same Mark Ferner. Down home. Folksy. Old school. Hey, he could pass for a Sutter if you didn’t know him.
Neither life in the big American city nor all of that success in Vernon, where he spent four seasons coaching the junior A Vipers, has changed the man who now is the head coach of the WHL’s Everett Silvertips.
He’s still the same Mark Ferner, one of our city’s favourite sons, albeit adopted, whose stint as head coach of the then-your Kamloops Blazers ended the way so many of these relationships do.
Yes, he was fired.
“Was I ready to coach here?” he asks, before adding: “I don’t know if I was or not.”
The tone of his voice, however, tells you the answer.
He continues: “Being honest . . . with what the situation was . . . we all understand and all know that situation when Dean (Clark) had stepped down and just wanted to be the GM.”
To take you back, it was the 2004-05 season. The Blazers were owned by a group of community shareholders and the organization was trying to overcome, among other things, the disappearance of about $1 million, the eventual jailing of the office manager, the resignation of the franchise’s long-time president and on and on.
Twenty games into 2004-05, Clark stepped aside and Ferner moved up from associate coach to head coach.
The next season, with the Blazers 16-16-0 and playing mostly uninspired hockey, Clark pulled the pin on Ferner. It was a bitter experience that opened an abyss between the former teammates.
“I talk to Hitch a lot,” Ferner says, referencing former Blazers head coach Ken Hitchcock, “and he said, ‘You really don’t become a coach, a real coach, until you’ve been fired.’ ”
Until you have felt the pain?
“Yeah . . . yeah,” Ferner says and more scar tissue breaks free.
If that doesn’t make you a coach, winning championships will.
Under Ferner, the Vipers experienced only 51 regulation-time losses in 240 regular-season games. They won the last three BCHL championships. They won two straight RBC national titles before losing in the final last spring.
Clearly, Ferner could have stayed in Vernon indefinitely. Just as clearly, it was time to move.
“I want to give myself an opportunity to coach pro hockey,” Ferner says. “I don’t know if I could get to the pro level from junior A.”
During his stint in Vernon, he heard from pro teams. They loved the success he had had but, at day’s end, it still was junior A. Which is how it came to pass that Doug Soetaert, the general manager of the Silvertips, on July 6 introduced Ferner as the fourth head coach in franchise history.
The Silvertips, who are in their ninth WHL season, have had an uncommon amount of success in their early life. But it started to come apart last season and Soetaert has undertaken a full-scale rebuild.
As Ferner stands and talks, his Silvertips are 8-26-8. Two nights later, they are 8-27-9. They aren’t likely to make the playoffs, something that will feel strange to Ferner, considering his last three seasons with the Vipers.
The U.S. Division also is a tough place in which to live when you are working on your foundation. It is home to the Tri-City Americans, perhaps the CHL’s model franchise these days, as well as the Portland Winterhawks and Spokane Chiefs, who aren’t far behind.
Ferner knows that, but he feels his young charges can only learn from those three teams.
“The culture has to change,” he says, repeating something that was a mantra during his days on the Blazers’ coaching staff.
He now sees a big part of his job as “making sure that the kids understand what the expectations are and that there is no substitute for hard work. Regardless of the talent level that we have, the one thing that has to stay consistent is our work ethic . . . and that’s non-negotiable.”
These days, he says, it’s all about work ethic and trust.
“Confidence is a huge thing in this game,” he notes, “and they’re a fragile group right now. There has to be a lot of teaching, not babying, but at the same time the message has been sent if you’re not going to work, you’re not going to play.”
That message was delivered via ex-Blazers winger J.T. Barnett, who was a healthy scratch Friday against the visiting Chiefs.
That is the Ferner way, something some players will learn the hard way.
In a conversation last week, Kamloops defenceman Bronson Maschmeyer talked about how structured play and trust in each other have played roles in the Blazers’ success to this point. That is exactly what Ferner is trying to establish with the Silvertips.
“We need to trust what we’re doing; we need to trust each other,” Ferner says.
He tells his players to “go out and believe you’re good enough to be here. You’re here because you’re a good player. You’re not here because of things you can’t do; you’re here because of things you can do.”
Yes, he feels he is making progress, but sometimes it is slow going.
He says the process hasn’t been hard on him personally, but admits that “it’s humbling . . . no question.”
But, he adds, “it’s hockey and I understand where we’re at, where we just consistently can’t do it for 60 minutes right now. We see flashes of it . . . if the game was 27 minutes long, some nights we’d be OK. It’s getting them to understand it’s not a sometime thing, it’s an all-the-time thing.”
In other words, Ferner, as usual, is all-in. He wants to make sure his players are, too.

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

Brendan Shinnimin of the Tri-City City Americans
and Spokane Chiefs goaltender Mac Engel get up close
and personal on Saturday night.
(Photo by John Allen / AridAcres.com)

If you haven’t already, please go on over to loveforlokomotiv.com and make a donation.
As it reads on that website:
“On Sept 7, 2011, 44 lives were lost in the worst tragedy in professional hockey history. A plane carrying crew members, hockey personnel, coaches and players of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl hockey team went down, breaking the hearts of their loved ones near and far.
“In a united effort to show support for the grieving families, hockey wives and girlfriends from around the world have created this website in hopes to raise money for their dear friends.”
Please visit the website and make a donation. You also are able to get memory bracelets there.
Don’t wait. Do it now.
Please and thanks.
———
Former Kamloops Blazers head coach Ken Hitchcock could be back as head coach of the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets as early as Monday.
The Columbus Dispatch’s hockey blog — Puck-Rakers Blog — reported early this morning that team president Mike Priest has talked with Hitchcock, who was fired as head coach by the Blue Jackets but still is under contract to the team. He would replace Scott Arniel.
The complete report is right here.
———
In Brandon, F Mark Stone scored his 11th goal of the season to help the Wheat Kings to a 3-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Stone, who now is tied for second in the WHL’s scoring race, is riding a season-opening 15-game point streak. He has 31 points, one behind Victoria Royals F Kevin Sundher. . . . Stone also is on a five-game goal-scoring streak. . . . Edmonton D Mark Pysyk was a late scratch. That allowed D Cody Corbett, who was signed out of the Minnesota high school ranks earlier in the week, to make his WHL debut. . . . Corbett was pointless but did finish plus-1. . . . It was the Wheat Kings’ 1,500th regular-season WHL victory. . . .

In Calgary, F Trevor Cheek’s fourth goal of the season broke a 1-1 tie and the Hitmen went on to a 3-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . Cheek’s goal, a shorthanded effort, came at 19:33 of the second period. . . . Everett G Kent Simpson, who turned aside 52 shots Friday in a 3-2 shootout victory over the Rebels in Red Deer, made 39 saves, 16 of them in the first period. . . .

In Cranbrook, F Erik Benoit and F Max Reinhart each scored twice as the Kootenay Ice dumped the Portland Winterhawks 4-1 in a rematch of last season’s championship final. . . . The Ice, which hsa won four in row now, won that series in five games. . . . Reinhart broke a 1-1 tie with a shorthanded goal at 17:58 of the second period. He later added his eighth goal of the season, into an empty net. . . . Benoit has five goals. . . . Obviously, the rivalry built up in last season’s final is still alive, witness the Ice taking 39 of 68 penalty minutes. All told, referee Sean Raphael whistled 27 infractions. . . . Attendance was 2,751. . . . The Winterhawks went 2-3-1 on their Central Division swing. They will play the Blazers in Kamloops on Wednesday, then go into Kelowna for a Friday-Saturday double-dip with the Rockets. . . .

In Lethbridge, G Patrik Bartosak stopped 29 shots to help the Red Deer Rebels to a 5-0 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . Bartosak, an 18-year-old Czech freshman, is 9-3-0, 1.81, .941. . . . This was his first shutout. . . . D Matt Dumba had two PP goals, giving him five snipes this season. . . . The Hurricanes now have lost 13 in a row after opening 2-0-1. . . .

In Moose Jaw, the Warriors scored the game’s last two goals and beat the Regina Pats, 3-2. . . . It was the Pats’ first visit to Mosaic Place and the joint was sold out (4,513). . . . Regina held 1-0 and 2-1 first-period leads. . . . F Quinton Howden tied it at 19:04 of the second period and F Brett Lyon won it on the PP at 2:02 of the third. . . . Lyon, 20, has seven goals in 15 games. He went into this season with eight goals in 158 career regular-season games. . . . Each team took five minor penalties. . . .

In Prince Albert, the Saskatoon Blades ruined Steve Young’s debut as the Raiders’ head coach, as they posted a 4-3 victory. . . . Young was promoted from assistant GM/associate coach to head coach on Friday. He replaced Bruno Campese as head coach; Campese stays on as GM. . . . The Blades, trailing 1-0 midway in the first period, responded with three straight goals. . . . Saskatoon F Jake Trask returned after being out since Oct. 5 with an injury. . . . Saskatoon G Andrey Makarov stopped 31 shots as his club was outshot 34-18. . . .

At Medicine Hat, G Tyler Bunz stopped 30 shots and F Emerson Etem became the WHL’s first 20-goal man as the Tigers dumped the Swift Current Broncos, 5-0. . . . Etem scored three goals, giving him 21, and added an assist. He has 31 points in 15 games, one point of the WHL scoring lead. . . . Etem scored the game’s first three goals. . . . Bunz recorded his second shutout this season and the seventh of his career as he picked up his 10th victory of the season. . . . F Trevor Cox, the great grandson of the legendary Cyclone Taylor, scored his second career goal. He had picked up his first goal one night earlier as the Tigers lost 3-2 in Swift Current. . . . Emotions got heated in the Gas City, too. As Shawn Mullin, the radio voice of the Broncos tweeted: “We nearly had a goalie fight there... Jon Groenheyde took down Kale Kessy and eventually called out Tyler Bunz... but no deal.” . . .

In Prince George, F Alex Forsberg scored a PP goal at 16:16 of the third period to give the Cougars a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . G Drew Owsley of the Cougars stopped 28 shots as his side was outshot 29-18. . . . The Cougars had lost their previous eight games. . . . The Giants, who had won four straight, had beaten the host Cougars 4-2 one night earlier and 6-2 on Tuesday in Vancouver. . . .

In Kelowna, F Dylan Willick scored twice for the second time in two nights as the Kamloops Blazers beat the Rockets, 4-3. . . . Willick has nine goals, all coming over his last 10 games. . . . He scored twice Friday as the Blazers beat the visiting Rockets, 5-2. . . . Kamloops F Brendan Ranford’s ninth goal, at 18:26 of the third, gave his side a 4-2 lead and proved the winner. . . . The Blazers, who didn’t make the playoffs last season, are 11-3-0 and have won four in a row. They boast the WHL’s top winning percentage (.786) and are tied with the Tri-City Americans (11-5-0) atop the Western Conference. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Brendan Shinnimin broke a 1-1 tie at 12:59 of the third period and the Tri-City Americans went on to a 3-1 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Shinnimin, who took a misconduct at 14:42 of the first period, also scored the game’s first goal. . . . F Adam Hughesman drew assists on both of Shinnimin’s goals. . . . F Justin Feser iced it with an empty-netter. . . . Spokane F Blake Gal, who scored his club’s goal, was ejected with a boarding major at 19:33 of the first period. . . . The Americans lead the 12-game season series, 2-1. . . .

In Victoria, F Kevin Sundher enjoyed a five-point night in leading the Royals to a 7-3 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Sundher scored four times and added an assist to move into the WHL scoring lead. He has 32 points, one more than Brandon F Mark Stone and Medicine Hat F Emerson Etem. . . . Sundher, who has 11 goals, had 23 points over his last 11 games. That includes two four-point outings and the five-pointer. . . . His career high going into this season was four points. He did that once last season. . . . One of the WHL’s most under-appreciated players, Sundher, 19, has 209 points in 232 career regular-season games. . . . Victoria F Robin Soudek had a goal and four helpers. He had played 201 regular-season games and had never had more than three points in a game.
———
Brent Peterson, a former Portland Winterhawks player and coach, continues his scrap with Parkinson’s diseason. Peterson told Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal that he wants a better quality of life so will undergo surgery in December as doctors at Vanderbilt University in Nashville implant a neurostimulator in his brain.
Matheson’s complete story on Peterson is right here. Peterson hasn’t lost his sense of humour and there are a couple of good anecdotes here.
———
The hazing story involving the MJHL’s Neepawa Natives isn’t going away any time soon. It has legs, as they say. Randy Turner of the Winnipeg Free Press has a terrific piece on the whole mess right here. . . . And there were reports late Saturday that the Natives have traded at least three players.
———
Every hockey parent should read The Lost Dream, a book written by Toronto Sun sports columnist Steve Simmons. The book’s subtitle is The Story of Mike Danton, David Frost, and a Broken Canadian Family. . . . This book tells an ugly, ugly story, one with which you may be familiar as Danton — he was Mike Jefferson before changing his name. . . . There are so many angles to this story that it is impossible to list them all there. . . . Just read the book if you get the opportunity. . . . My only real quibble is with the book’s title. It should be: The Lost Family.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Blazers complete weekend sweep

BRENDAN RANFORD

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
For awhile, it was as though Batman chose to be Robin’s caddy. Or the Green Hornet decided to spend a night as Kato’s assistant.
Left-winger Brendan Ranford, the WHL’s leading triggerman, turned playmaker Sunday night, setting up the Kamloops Blazers’ first two goals and getting them started towards a 3-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips before 3,920 fans at Interior Savings Centre.
Right-winger Jordan DePape scored those goals, both coming via the power play, and Ranford later iced this one with his 20th goal of the season as he completed this third straight three-point game. He has 11 points, including seven goals, over his last four games.
One night earlier, Ranford scored twice and set up a third, goaltender Jeff Bosch stopped 23 shots and the much-maligned penalty-killing unit was perfect in beating the visiting Kelowna Rockets, 4-0, in what was the Blazers’ best home-ice performance of the season.
The Blazers (11-9-1) knew going into the weekend that if things broke a particular way they could have been in the 10-team Western Conference cellar by Sunday night.
Instead, the two victories have them tied with the Prince George Cougars for fifth, just a point out of third.
Last night, the Blazers were facing an Everett team (8-8-4) that was playing its third game in as many nights and had won the first two. On Saturday, the red-hot Rockets (10-11-0) were in their third game in four nights.
“We beat two teams . . . this team was undefeated in three games,” Kamloops head coach Guy Charron said, “and (Saturday) night we beat a team that was undefeated in six games. Credit should be given to the hockey team.”
While the Blazers played Saturday what Charron called a “textbook” game, they weren’t able to repeat that effort against an Everett team that was quite structured.
“We thought for sure this would be a very similar situation (to Saturday’s game),” Charron said, “but sometimes it’s not within our control. The players want to but . . .”
The two DePape goals — he now has seven in 16 games — put the Blazers up 2-0, with winger Kellan Tochkin pulling the visitors to within a goal at 6:19 of the second period.
After that, though, Bosch closed the door. He finished with 38 saves, including 16 in the third period.
“Everyone except one guy wasn’t very good,” Charron said.
Bosch, who tweaked a knee and came out after the first period of a 5-4 victory over the Hitmen in Calgary on Nov. 5, said he “felt really confident and really strong” in both games.
Some of that, he said, was due to a couple of sessions he had last week with former NHL goaltender Bill Ranford and Blazers goaltending coach Dan DePalma.
“That really helped out, I thought,” Bosch said.
On Saturday, Bosch put up his second shutout of the season, and the 10th of his career, and the penalty killers were 7-for-7.
Bosch, who now has 10 career shutouts, also blanked the host Red Deer Rebels, beating them 1-0 on Oct. 20.
Ranford’s two goals lifted him into the WHL lead, one ahead of Brendan Gallagher of the Vancouver Giants. Ranford stretched that lead to two last night.
But it was the penalty killers, who according to the numbers were the worst in the league going into Saturday, who saved the game.
The Blazers walked into three minor penalties in a span of 1:59 early in the second period. Kamloops, which had a week between games to work on things, was more aggressive and more structured than it had been on the kill and it was able to keep the game scoreless.
Late in the period, the Blazers struck three times in 1:49 to beat the Rockets, who came in having won six in a row.
Chase Schaber and Colin Smith had the Blazers’ other goals.
JUST NOTES: On Sunday, the Blazers were 2-for-2 on the PP, while Everett was 1-for-2. . . . One of Everett’s scratches was F Landon Ferraro, who suffered an upper-body injury in Saturday’s 3-2 OT victory over the visiting Chilliwack Bruins. . . . The last time Kamloops blanked Kelowna? Dec. 1, 2006, when Dustin Butler stopped 11 shots in a 5-0 home-ice victory. . . . Saturday’s attendance was 4,496, the second-largest crowd of the season. . . . Schaber’s assist on Ranford’s second goal Saturday was the 100th point of his WHL career. . . . Former Blazers head coach Ken Hitchcock, who isn’t listed as a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets’ front office staff but is working as a special advisor, took in both weekend games. He was fired as the Blue Jackets’ head coach last season despite having a contract that runs through 2011-12 at US$1.3 million per. . . . The Blazers will play their annual game against the local Special Olympics floor hockey team tonight at Brocklehurst Middle School. The fun starts at 7 o’clock. . . . It’s Team WHL against the Russians on Wednesday as the Subway Super Series comes to the ISC. The Blazers will be well represented on the WHL team with D Austin Madaisky, Ranford, Schaber, Charron and trainer Colin Robinson. Game time will be 7 p.m.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter