Lots for MacBeth to report . . . Rockets lose forward indefinitely . . . Virtanen off to AHL

F Sebastian Svendsen (Vancouver, Edmonton, Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, 2009-12) has signed a one-year contract with Frederikshavn (Denmark, Metal Ligaen). This season, with Herlev (Denmark, Metal Ligaen), he had seven goals and two assists in 34 games. He was an alternate captain. . . .
D Tomáš Voráček (Prince Albert, 2007-09) has been assigned on loan by Libbers to Mladá Boleslav (both Czech Republic, Extraliga) for next season. This season, he had five assists in 39 games with Liberec. . . .
D Tomáš Andrlik (Prince Albert, Prince George, 2013-15) has signed a tryout contract with Plzeň (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Prince Albert and Prince George, he had four goals and four assists in 62 games. . . .
D Renat Mamashev (Moose Jaw, 2000-01) has signed a one-year contract with Sochi (Russia, KHL). This season, with Sibir Novosibirsk (Russia, KHL), he had two goals and 11 assists in 33 games. . . .
F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) has signed a one-year contract with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite). This season, with the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite), he had a team-high 65 points, including 27 goals, in 60 games. . . .
F Kris Schmidli (Kelowna, Prince Albert, 2013-15) has signed a one-year contract with the GCK Lions Zurich (Switzerland, NL B). This season, with Kelowna and Prince Albert, he had 12 goals and 22 assists in 50 games. . . .
F Kris Foucault (Swift Current, Kootenay, Calgary, 2006-11) has signed a one-year contract with the GCK Lions Zurich (Switzerland, NL B). This season, with the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga), he had 22 goals and 25 assists in 54 games. He led the Capitals in goals, assists and points. . . .
F Lukáš Vantuch (Calgary, Lethbridge, 2005-07) has signed a one-year extension with Hradec Králové (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Landshut (Germany, DEL2), he had three assists in six games; and five goals and one assist in 25 games with Hradec Králové. . . .
F Cody Sylvester (Calgary, 2008-13) has signed a one-year extension with the Iserlohn Roosters (Germany, DEL). This season, with the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL), he had seven goals and 10 assists in 25 games. With Iserlohn, with whom he signed on Jan. 26, he had a goal and two assists in eight games.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.

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GOULBOURNE

The Kelowna Rockets will be without F Tyrell Goulbourne tonight when they meet the Winterhawks in Portland in Game 6 of the WHL’s Western Conference final. . . . Goulbourne, 21, underwent surgery after Game 5 on Friday night to repair damage to his left leg. He suffered a skate cut to his calf muscle in the second period after he initiated contact with Portland F Keegan Iverson. According to a tweet from the Rockets, their doctors “say it was successful surgery, he will make a full recovery. To be re-evaluated on week to week basis.” . . . The Rockets report that he is out indefinitely. . . . Goulbourne, who has signed with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers, is the leader of Kelowna’s physical game. He had 45 points, 22 of them goals, in 62 regular-season games. In 12 playoff games, he has one goal and one assist.
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The Kelowna Rockets lead the Western Conference final 3-2 going into tonight’s game against the Winterhawks in Portland. The Winterhawks are trying to reach the WHL’s championship final for a fifth straight season. . . . Four of the first five games have been decided by one goal; the exception was Game 3, which was won 7-3 by host Portland.
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The WHL’s championship final, for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, will begin with games in Brandon on Friday and Saturday nights. Tickets for those games will go on sale in Brandon on Monday morning. . . . The series will follow a 2-3-2 format. . . . The Wheat Kings last met the Kelowna Rockets in the final in the spring of 2005. The Rockets won that series in five games. . . . The last time Brandon and Portland met in the final, in 1998, the Winterhawks won, 4-0.
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Dave Anderson, who covered many a boxing match, has taken a look back at how things worked when he covered the big fights, and how things are now. In between, he tells some stories. This right here is good stuff.
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F Jake Virtanen of the Calgary Hitmen is expected to report to the AHL’s Utica Comets on Monday. The Comets are the AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks, who selected Virtanen in the first round, sixth overall, of the 2014 NHL draft. The Comets, who are coached by former Portland Winterhawks assistant GM/assistant coach Travis Green, defeated the visiting Chicago Wolves 4-2 last night to take that best-of-five first-round series, 3-2.
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In the OHL, F Connor McDavid had a goal and four assists to lead the Erie Otters to a 7-3 victory over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. The Otters won the Western Conference final, 4-2. . . . The game was 2-2 in the second period when Soo F Hayden Verbeek was given a match penalty for slewfooting Erie G Devin Williams. The Otters scored twice on the PP. . . . McDavid has 42 points, including 19 goals, in 15 games in these playoffs. . . . The Oshawa Generals lead the Eastern Conference final 3-2 with Game 6 scheduled for today in North Bay.
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#WHA #Jets #Aeros #Nordiques up next on Pay Per View... Campbell versus Baxter $0.19 much better value. :)

— Scott Campbell (@NHL_Campbell) May 3, 2015

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Laxdal leaves Oil Kings . . . Price is right at U of T

The KHL has announced that Lev Prague (Czech Republic) will go on “administrative leave” for the 2014-2015 season for financial reasons. Two major sponsors, Gazprom and Skoda, have withdrawn their financial sponsorship, reducing Lev Prague’s revenue by 50 per cent. Lev remains a member of the KHL and may rejoin the league in 2015. Ex-WHL players on Lev last season included F Michal Řepík (Vancouver, 2005-08) and F Jakub Klepiš (Portland, 2001-02), who signed with Färjestad Karlstad (Sweden, SHL) last week. . . .
D David Turon (Portland, 2002-03) has signed a one-year contract with Havířov (Czech Republic, 1. Liga). He grew up and played as a youth in Havířov. Last season, with Meran/Merano (Italy, Inter-National-League), he had 22 points, including 12 goals, in 25 games. In 16 games from January on with Fassa (Italy, Serie A), he had nine points, two of the goals, in 16 games. . . .
F Kris Foucault (Swift Current, Kootenay, Calgary, 2006-11) has signed a one-year contract with the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). Last season, he had 22 points, 11 of them goals, in 58 games with the Iowa Wild (AHL). . . .
F Kris Beech (Calgary, 1996-2001) has signed a one-year contract with Innsbruck (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). Last season, with the Straubing Tigers (Germany, DEL), he had 24 points, eight of them goals, in 36 games. In two games in March with the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga), he had a goal and three assists.
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There will be yet another coaching change in the WHL with the news on Thursday that Edmonton Oil Kings head coach Derek Laxdal has signed a three-year deal with the Texas Stars, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.
Laxdal leaves the Memorial Cup-champion Oil Kings for the team that won the Calder Cup as the AHL’s playoff champions. Willie Desjardins, the AHL team’s head coach, now is the head coach of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks.
Laxdal, 48, spent four seasons with the Oil Kings, with the team winning at least 50 games in each of the last three. The Oil Kings also appeared in the last three WHL championship finals, winning two of them.
With Laxdal behind the bench, the Oil Kings put together a 182-83-23 regular-season record.
Prior to joining the Oil Kings, Laxdal spent five seasons as head coach of the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads, who were affiliated with Dallas. Under Laxdal, the Steelheads won the Kelly Cup as ECHL champions in 2007.
From Stonewall, Man., Laxdal also played in the WHL (Portland, Brandon, New Westminster, 1982-86) and was a member of the Memorial Cup-champion Winterhawks in 1983.
It will be a shock if the Oil Kings don’t fill the head-coaching vacancy from within by promoting highly touted assistant coach Steve Hamilton, who is presently on vacation. Chances are he’ll be introduced as head coach next week.
Meanwhile, the Moose Jaw Warriors, Portland Winterhawks, Regina Pats and Vancouver Giants continue to search for head coaches, while the Calgary Hitmen, Kamloops Blazers, Kelowna Rockets, Saskatoon Blades and Tri-City Americans have already made changes at that position.
Interestingly, only the Rockets have promoted from within as five-year assistant coach Dan Lambert has taken over from Ryan Huska, who now is the head coach of the Adirondack Flames, the Glens Falls, N.Y.,-based AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Calgary Flames.
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Hockey Canada will have to replace Derek Laxdal as head coach of the U-18 team that is to play in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament in August.
Laxdal was named head coach on June 12, with Jody Hull, the head coach of the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, and Eric Veilleux, the head coach of the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar, as assistant coaches.
The U-18 team’s selection camp is scheduled for Calgary, Aug. 2-5, with the tournament to run Aug. 11-16 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia.
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1. So what are we to make of all these WHL coaches who have move on up hockey’s ladder? . . . “That tells you how good this league is,” former Moose Jaw Warriors head coach Mike Stothers told Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald. “It’s outstanding. I don’t want to blanket it and say it’s the best in all of junior hockey, but I don’t know how it can’t be. Every team has a great coach and that just bodes well for the league and the future of it.” . . . After three years with the Warriors, Stothers is leaving to become head coach of the AHL’s Manchester Monarchs.

2. The Swift Current Broncos are expected to introduce Josh Dixon as associate coach this morning. . . . “Although Dixon offered a polite ‘no comment’ when contacted via text message on Thursday,” Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reported, “multiple WHL sources confirmed that Dixon is set to be named the new associate coach of the Broncos, replacing Darren Evjen, who recently stepped down for family reasons.” . . . Evjen is going back to teaching school, although he will remain involved with the team to some extent. . . . Dixon spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach with the Regina Pats but resigned last month when he and the team’s new owners weren’t able to reach agreement on a new contract.

3. Malcolm Cameron, who was fired as head coach of the Regina Pats last week, has told the Regina Leader-Post’s Greg Harder that he is “very, very interested” in the opening in Moose Jaw. In fact, Cameron already has submitted his resume. . . . Cameron spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Pats, before taking over a year ago after the resignation of Pat Conacher. In Cameron’s lone season as head coach, the Pats finished atop the East Division and then were swept from the playoffs by the Brandon Wheat Kings in the first round.

4. Jim Brosnan was a decent relief pitcher who turned out to be a much better writer. He wrote The Longest Season, one of the best baseball books in anyone’s library. In fact, it’s one of the best books. Period. . . . Brosnan died Saturday at 84. . . . There’s more right here from The New York Times.

5. Ira Berkow of The New York Times writes:
“Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner whose remarkable story of survival as a prisoner of war in World War II gained new attention in 2010 with the publication of a best-selling biography by Laura Hillenbrand, died on Wednesday in Los Angeles. He was 97.
“A statement released by his family said he had been suffering from pneumonia.”
If you haven’t read Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, do yourself a favour and give it a read.
Berkow’s obituary of Zamperini is right here.

6. D Nick Walters, 20, of the Lethbridge Hurricanes has signed an amateur tryout (ATO) with the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets. A fourth-round pick by the St. Louis Blukes in the 2012 NHL draft, Walters wasn’t signed, so was a free agent. He also has played with the Everett Silvertips and Brandon Wheat Kings.

7. Veteran WHL coach Dan Price has signed on as a full-time assistant coach with the CIS U of Toronto Varsity Blues. Price, a former goaltender with the U of Regina Cougars (1995-98), will work alongside Darren Lowe, who is preparing for his 20th season as the Blues’ head coach. . . . Price graduade from law school at the U of Saskatchewan in 2001. . . . Last season, he was an assistant coach with the Tri-City Americans. He also has worked as a scout or assistant/associate coach with the Regina Pats, Calgary Hitmen and Chilliwack Bruins.
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Fantastic day on the water. 78 pound halibut. It's like bringing up a grand piano from the ocean floor! #workout pic.twitter.com/cp8kXSCmXA
— Todd Harkins (@coachharks) July 3, 2014

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Jaroslav Obsut (Swift Current, Medicine Hat, 1995-97) signed a one-year contract with Dynamo Minsk (Belarus, KHL). He had four goals and 13 assists in 50 regular-season games with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL) and Atlant Mytishchi (Russia, KHL) and had five goals and five assists in 24 playoff games with Atlant this season. . . .
F Randall Gelech (Kelowna, 2000-04) signed a one-year contract extension with Vipiteno (Italy, Serie A). He had 19 goals and 17 assists in 28 regular-season games and 15 goals and six assists in 17 playoff games for Vipiteno this season, helping the club win promotion from Serie A2. From the Vipiteno website: "This mix of good hands, clear head, hard shoulders, and dedication to the team made him a favorite with the fans, not just with the team board of directors." . . .
F Alex Leavitt (Swift Current, Everett, 2003-05) signed a one-year contract with HPK Hämeenlinna (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had 32 goals and 55 assists in 48 regular-season games for Ravensburg Towerstars (Germany 2.Bundesliga) this season. Leavitt added five goals and 14 assists in 12 playoff games. Ravensburg won the 2.Bundesliga championship and Leavitt led the league in scoring and assists. HPK head coach Harri Rindell: "Leavitt sees the ice well. He is a creative and skillful center, just the kind we've been looking for at the start of the summer." . . .
F Radek Duda (Regina, Lethbridge, 1998-2000) signed a one-year contract with Plzen (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had eight goals and 16 assists in 20 regular-season games and four goals and eight assists in 12 playoff games for Chomutov (Czech Republic, 1.Liga) this season. Duda also had 16 goals and 13 assists in 25 regular-season games on loan to Plzen. . . .
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F Kris Foucault of the Calgary Hitmen has signed a three-year deal with the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. . . . Capgeek.com has the details right here.
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WHL TRANSACTIONS
PRINCE ALBERT RAIDERS — Sign Dale Derkatch, director of player personnel, to contract extension, length undisclosed. Also name him skills development coach.
VANCOUVER GIANTS — Name Paul Fricker goaltending coach.

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What really killed Bill Masterton?

Let’s start off with today’s good read.
It’s from the Toronto Star and written by Rob Cribb and Randy Starkman, who try to answer the question: What really killed Bill Masterton?
Masterton is the only player in NHL history whose death has been linked to an on-ice incident during a game.
Here is one paragraph from the story:
“A Star investigation has uncovered evidence that an earlier, untreated concussion was likely responsible for Masterton’s death at the age of 29.”
If you read one story today, make it this one. It is riveting. And given the prominence of concussions in today’s dialogue, it is terribly relevant.
It’s right here.
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During the 17 years I spent in Regina, I always looked forward to running into Ed Staniowski, who was the goaltender when the Regina Pats won the 1974 Memorial Cup. He always had a smile on his face and a story to tell, usually from his latest military-based trip. No one has a better understanding of the history of the Memorial Cup than does Staniowski. Bob Duff of the Windsor Star caught up with Staniowski and filed this column.
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THE COACHING GAME: Ron Choules is the new head coach of the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. GM Pierre Roux made the announcement on Friday. Choules replaces Mario Durocher, who was fired as GM/head coach early in April. Choules is no stranger to the QMJHL, having served as head coach of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. He was an assistant coach with the Canadian team that won the 2010 Ivan Hlinka Memorial U-18 tournament. . . . The BCHL’s Merritt Centennials have signed Joe Martin to a two-year deal as assistant GM/assistant coach. Martin, who will work under Luke Pierce, the GM and head coach, had been GM/head coach of the junior B Creston Valley Thundercats, who play in the Kootenay International junior league.
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In case you missed it, it would seem that the Everett Silvertips might soon be in the market for a head coach.
The rather well-connected Bob McKenzie of TSN tweeted Friday afternoon: “Lots of talk out there that Craig Hartsburg will be leaving Everett of WHL to return to NHL bench, likely alongside Brent Sutter in CGY.”
Earlier in the month, Hartsburg’s name came up with regards to the head-coaching vacancy with the Minnesota Wild.
Should Hartsburg leave — he has been the head coach for two seasons — it would leave three WHL teams with head-coaching vacancies. The Moose Jaw Warriors and Seattle Thunderbirds are both in the process of making changes.
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JUST NOTES: F Kris Foucault of the Calgary Hitmen has signed a three-year contract with the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. Foucault played out his junior eligibility this season, earning 48 points in 65 games. He was a fourth-round pick in the 2009 NHL draft. . . . There were reports Friday evening that the QMJHL’s Lewiston Maineiacs’ franchise will be dissolved next week as the league holds its annual draft. The franchise would then be relocated to Sherbrooke, Que.
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Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun sums up this year’s Memorial Cup with one word — “whacked.” Read about it right here.
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The carriage turned into a pumpkin for the Kootenay Ice on Friday as its Memorial Cup dream ended with a 3-1 loss to the host team, the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors.
The Majors got their first goal, via the PP, in the game’s first two minutes and never trailed. F Devante Smith-Pelly scored the Majors’ first two goals.
The CHL will hand out its awards today.
The tournament final, featuring the QMJHL-champion Saint John Sea Dogs and the Majors will be played Sunday. Game times if 7 p.m. ET.
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In Houston, the host Houston Aeros scored three third-period goals and beat the Binghamton Senators in Game 1 of the AHL’s best-of-seven Calder Cup final. F Colton Gillies (Saskatoon, 2004-08) had two assists, with F Warren Peters (Saskatoon, 1997-2003) putting it away with the empty-netter. . . . Binghamton went into the game having won eight straight on the road. . . . Game 2 is tonight in Houston.
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In the Central league, the host Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs got a goal  from former WHLer Steven Crampton and beat the Colorado Eagles 2-1 in Game 7 of the final. . . . That gave the Mudbugs the CHL championship and the Presidents’ Cup. . . . The Eagles have been in five of the last seven finals, winning in 2005 and 2007, but losing in 2008 and 2009. . . . Crampton opened the scoring at 2:58 of the first period. . . . Adam Chorneyko, another former WHLer, scored for the Eagles with 1:04 left in the third period. . . . Scott Muscutt, the Mudbugs' coach for 11 seasons, said after the game that he won't return for a 12th season.

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Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald reports that Everett Silvertips trainer Chris Walker made a huge save following a WHL game on Feb. 4. Walker helped save the life of a recreation league player who had had a heart attack. That story is right here.
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Far too often we watch those who play in the WHL and forget that they are young men trying to find their way in this difficult and sometimes ugly world.
David Searle is an 18-year-old defenceman who played with the OHL’s Guelph Storm. At 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds, he is an impressive looking player.
But, in January, Searle asked the Storm for a leave of absence. He wasn’t injured. He wasn’t ill. He simply doesn’t know if he he wants to continue playing hockey.
Todd Vandonk of kawartha.com has Searle’s story right here.
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F Stephen Peat, one of the toughest players ever to skate in the WHL, has signed with the senior AAA Penticton Vees. Peat, 31, signed at the Feb. 10 deadline. Peat (Red Deer, Tri-City, Calgary, 1995-2000) was selected by the Anaheim Ducks with the 32nd pick of the NHL’s 1998 draft. His pro career was halted by a broken leg. He now lives in Vancouver. . . . The Vees and Prince George Mohawks will play Feb. 26, 8 p.m., in Summerland, B.C., and Feb. 27, 2 p.m., at Memorial Arena in Kamloops.
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HIGHLIGHTS FROM WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Saskatoon, F Brayden Schenn scored at 1:04 of OT as the Blades got past the Medicine Hat Tigers, 5-4. . . . Schenn also had an assist. . . . Schenn has 29 points in 13 games with Saskatoon. Of his 11 goals with the Blades, two are OT snipes. . . . Linemate Curtis Hamilton added a goal, his 19th, and two helpers. . . . Saskatoon F Jake Trask, the third member of that line, goit his 24th goal. He has points in nine straight games and at least one goal in eight of those. . . . The Tigers forced OT with two late third-period goals. . . . D Thomas Carr scored his sixth goal on a PP at 17:15. . . . F Emerson Etem tied it shorthanded at 18:45. . . . Etem, who had two goals, has 32 on the season. . . . Medicine Hat F Linden Vey had three assists. He now leads the WHL with 95 points, two more than Spokane F Tyler Johnson. . . . Tigers F Wacey Hamilton had two assists, as did Saskatoon D Duncan Siemens. . . . The Blades, down 1-0 midway in the second period, went ahead 3-1 with three goals in 3:10. . . . Attendance was 4,838. . . . Medicine Hat G Tyler Bunz stopped 34 shots, eight more than Saskatoon’s Stephen Stanford. . . . Saskatoon G Adam Morrison (mononucleosis) is back on the ice, so the Blades have returned G Tyler Oswald to the midget AAA Pembina Valley Hawks, who play out of Morden, Man. . . . The Tigers were without F Sam Dezman, F Tyler Pitlick, D Matthew Konan and D Scott Ramsay, all of whom are out with concussions. According to Sean Rooney of the Medicine Hat News, “Pitlick is listed as day-to-day, Ramsay as seven to 10 days, and Konan week-to-week. Konan was hurt Friday in Brandon, Ramsay last week in Moose Jaw, and Pitlick took a hit to the jaw (on Feb. 9) against Prince George.” . . . Rooney also reported that Dezman, who hasn’t played since Dec. 14, may be finished. Dezman, a 19-year-old from Edmonton, has a history of concussion-related problems. . . . Saskatoon, the first WHL team to 45 victories, has 92 points, eight more than the Red Deer Rebels in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Tigers, who clinched a playoff spot with the loser point, are tied with the Kootenay Ice for third. . . . As luck would have it, the Ice will play host to the Tigers on Friday night. . . . And, as more luck would have it, the Blades will visit the Ice on Saturday night. . . . And, as even more luck would have it, the Blades will be in Medicine Hat on Sunday. . . .
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In Moose Jaw, the Calgary Hitmen showed that they will continue to fight the good fight, as they dumped the Warriors, 3-1. . . . Defending-champion Calgary, with the WHL’s poorest record, scored the game’s first three goals. . . . F Jimmy Bubnick got it started with his 17th, at 1:07 of the first period. . . . F Kris Foucault had a goal, his 19th, and an assist, while F Trevor Cheek got his eighth. . . . F Andrew Johnson got his fourth for Moose Jaw, at 17:26 of the second. . . . Calgary G Mike Snider stopped 31 shots. . . . Moose Jaw G Brandon Stone turned aside 26. . . . Attendance was 2,512. . . . The Warriors, with 14 games left, appear headed for a fifth-place finish. They are nine points behind Kootenay and The Hat, and 11 points ahead of Edmonton. . . . A first-round matchup appears likely to have Moose Jaw meeting Kootenay or Medicine Hat, with the latter having home-ice advantage. . . . The Hitmen are 13 points behind eighth-place Prince Albert so will have to be content with playing the role of spoiler over their final 14 games. . . . The Warriors are in Prince Albert on Friday, while Calgary drops in on Regina. . . .
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In Regina, F Mark McNeill, a player the scouts are falling in love with, had two goals as the Prince Albert Raiders edged the Pats, 4-3. . . . The Raiders erased a 3-2 deficit with the game’s last two goals. . . . McNeill got his second, and 24th of the season, at 10:27 of the second on a PP. . . . F Justin Maylan scored the winner, his 13th, just 54 seconds later. . . . D Antoine Corbin and D Jordan Rowley each had two assists for the Raiders. . . . F Jonathan Parker got his 38th goal for the Raiders. . . . Regina got a goal and two assists from F Garrett Mitchell, who has 17 goals, and three assists from D Brandon Davidson. . . . Mitchell came up dry on a first-period peanlty shot. . . . Each team scored two PP goals. . . . Raiders G Eric Williams stopped 37 shots, eight more than Regina’s Matt Hewitt. . . . Attendance was 3,966. . . . This loss really hurt Regina, which is tied for 10th with Lethbridge and now is six points behind the Raiders, who hold down the conference’s final playoff spot. . . .
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In Vancouver, G Adam Brown kicked out 42 shots and F Colton Sissons scored three times and set up another to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 4-2 victory over the Giants. . . . Vancouver got on the board first, when F Spencer Bennett got his 28th just 34 seconds into the game. . . . The Rockets came back with the next three, with Sissons getting two and F Geordie Wudrick getting his 31st. . . . Vancouver F Andrej Stastny got his mates to within one at 16:56 of the second, only to have Sissons complete his hat trick at 17:33. . . . Sissons has 14 goals. . . . Vancouver G Mark Segal stopped 18 shots. . . . Kelowna F Zach Franko had two assists, on PP goals by Wudrick and Sissons. . . . Kelowna was 2-for-3 on the PP; Vancouver was 0-for-2. . . . Attendance was 5,877. . . . Kelowna still is without F Mitchell Callahan (head). Also missing were D Mitchell Chapman (head), F Jason Siebert (wrist), F Brett Bulmer (leg) and F Jessey Astles (shoulder). As well, F Colton Jobke served the third game of a seven-game suspension. . . . The Giants remain without D Joel Rogers (concussion) and F James Henry (knee). . . . The Rockets moved atop the B.C. Division with the victory. Actually, they and the Giants are tied, each with 65 points. But Kelowna, with a game in hand, has a .580 winning percentage; the Giants are at .570. . . . They are six points ahead of Prince George. . . . Spokane visits Kelowna on Friday, while the Giants are at home to Seattle. . . .
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In Everett, D Brendon Kichton scored two goals and was plus-5 as the Spokane Chiefs dumped the Silvertips, 7-2. . . . Spokane D Jared Cowen had two assists and was plus-6. . . . Spokane F Levko Koper scored three times, giving him 29. . . . Koper, 20, had a career-high 27 goals last season. . . . Chiefs F Anthony Bardaro had three assists. . . . Spokane F Tyler Johnson, who is second in the WHL scoring race, had one assist. . . . F Tyler Maxwell scored his 37th goal for Everett. . . . Everett G Kent Simpson, making his 12th straight start, stopped 46 shots. . . . G Mac Engel made 21 saves for Spokane, which had veteran James Reid back on the bench. He has been out with a hip injury. . . . Everett D Ryan Murray was unable to score on a first-period penalty shot. . . . Attendance was 4,723. . . . The Chiefs are second in the U.S. Division, three points behind Portland with each having played 57 games. The Tri-City Americans, with three games in hand, are two points behind Spokane. . . . Spokane is in Kelowna on Friday, while the Americans are at home to Chilliwack. Portland is idle Friday but will play visiting Chilliwack on Saturday. . . . The Silvertips, who are two points ahead of eighth-place Kamloops, are on their way to Prince George for a weekend double dip. . . . Kamloops opens a five-game Central Division swing in Edmonton on Friday.
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WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
None.

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