Ice firms up coaching staff ... Bondra signs with KHL team ... Mariners to honour T-Birds

F Adam Hughesman (Tri-City, 2006-12) has signed a one-year contract with Bordeaux (France, Ligue Magnus). This season, with Orli Znojmo (Czech Republic, Erste Bank Liga), he had 15 goals and nine assists in 49 games. . . . The head coach of Bordeaux is former St. Louis Blues F Philippe Bozon, father of F Tim Bozon (Kamloops, Kootenay, 2011-15). . . .

D Lukáš Bohunický (Kootenay, 2005-07) has signed a one-year extension with Dukla Trenčín (Slovakia, Extraliga). This season, he had three goals and five assists in 55 games. . . . 

F Denis Tolpeko (Seattle, Regina, 2003-06) has signed a one-year extension with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL). This season he started with Sochi (Russia, KHL), scoring two goals and five assists in 31 games. He was released on Dec. 20 and signed with Spartak on Dec. 21. He had two goals and an assist in 15 games with Spartak. . . . 

F Richard Rapáč (Moose Jaw, Prince George, 2006-07) has signed a one-year contract with Poprad (Slovakia, Extraliga). This season, with Zug Academy (Switzerland, NL B), he had eight goals and a team-high 16 assists in 39 games. He also was pointless in one game with Zug (NL A). . . . 

F Matt Ellison (Red Deer, 2002-03) has signed a two-year contract with Metallurg Magnitogorsk (Russia, KHL). This season, with Dinamo Minsk (Belarus, KHL), he had 16 goals and 33 assists in 54 games. He led the team in scoring. Ellison had one year left on his contract with Dinamo Minsk but asked for his release and it was granted on June 2. . . .

F Radovan Bondra (Vancouver, Prince George, 2015-17) has signed a one-year contract with Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia, KHL). This season, with Vancouver, he had 19 goals and 12 assists in 32 games, then put up 13 goals and 19 assists with Prince George. He finished the season with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs, going pointless in five games.

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Jon Klemm, a former NHL defenceman who is from Cranbrook, B.C., has joined the Kootenay Ice as associate coach.

James Patrick, who was named the Ice’s head coach on Tuesday, made the announcement Wednesday morning.

The Ice also announced that assistant coaches Gordon Burnett and Roman Vopat will be returning, while they have added Denis Sproxton as goaltending coach.

Klemm, 47, was an assistant coach with the Spokane Chiefs for three seasons (2009-12). Klemm also played in the WHL with the Seattle Thunderbirds and Spokane (1987-91) before going on to a pro career that included 773 NHL games split between the Quebec Nordiques, Colorado Avalanche, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars and Los Angeles Kings. He won a Memorial Cup with the Chiefs in 1991 and  Stanley Cups with the Avalanche in 1996 and 2001. Klemm retired after playing the 2008-09 season with the Straubing Tigers of Germany’s DEL. In recent years, Klemm has been coaching minor hockey in the Dallas area.

Burnett, 36, is preparing for his third season with the Ice, while Vopat just completed his first season there. Prior to that, Vopat was on staff with the Prince George Cougars for two seasons.

Sproxton, 46, has served as a goaltending consultant with Hockey Canada, Hockey Alberta and the Chiefs. Sproxton played four seasons in the WHL (Prince Albert, Swift Current, 1987-91). He was the Spokane Chiefs’ goaltending coach (2003-11) and won a Memorial Cup there in 2008.

The Ice also added Jake Heisinger to its staff as manager of hockey operations and player experience. Heisinger has a degree in business management from Curry College in Boston. He is the son of Craig Heisinger, the assistant GM and director of hockey operations with the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets.

The Ice also announced that director of scouting Garnet Kazuik, trainer/ equipment manager Darcy Ewanchuk, and athletic consultant Cory Cameron all will be returning.

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The Prince George Cougars have lost another 20-year-old from their roster with the news, as reported above in The MacBeth Report, that F Radovan Bondra has signed a one-year deal with Slovan Bratislava, a Slovakian team that plays in the KHL. . . . Bondra, who is from Trebisov, Slovakia, was a fifth-round selection by the Chicago Blackhawks in the NHL’s 2015 draft. . . . Bondra started this season with the Vancouver Giants, then was traded to the Prince George Cougars for F Bartek Bison, F Tyler Ho and a third-round pick in the 2018 WHL bantam draft. . . . With Bondra gone, the Cougars still have nine 20s on their roster — F Jared Bethune, F Aaron Boyd, D Shane Collins, F Brodan O’Brien, F Jesse Gabrielle, D Brendan Guhle, F Jansen Harkins, D Tate Olson and F Tanner Wishnowski. Gabrielle (Boston Bruins), Guhle (Buffalo Sabres) and Harkins (Winnipeg Jets) have signed NHL contracts.

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Steve Konowalchuk, the head coach of the WHL-champion Seattle Thunderbirds, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch on Saturday evening before the Seattle Mariners face the visiting Toronto Blue Jays at Safeco Field. . . . It’s all part of an evening during which the Mariners will honour the WHL champions, who won the Ed Chynoweth Cup with a 4-3 OT victory over the host Regina Pats in Game 6 of the final series.

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The Medicine Hat Tigers have signed F Corson Hopwo to a WHL contract. He was a seventh-round selection in the 2016 bantam draft. From Victoria, he played this season at the Delta Hockey Academy, putting up 19 goals and 25 assists in 30 games with the Elite 15s.

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Rob Sklaruk is the new general manager of the Spruce Grove Saints, who are under new ownership. Team president Ryan Smyth made the announcement on Wednesday. Sklaruk has lived in the area for 25 years and for the past five seasons has been president, GM and assistant coach for the senior AAA Stony Plain Eagles. He also is a former Eagles player.

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The Kamloops Blazers expect to have 24 players with birthdates in 2000, 2001 and 2002 on the ice

Saturday and Sunday as they hold a prospects camp. However, F Massimo Rizzo, a first-round selection in the 2016 bantam draft, won’t be there. The 14th overall pick in that draft, Rizzo is vacationing with family in Italy after finishing this season with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. . . . The 13 players selected ahead of Rizzo in that draft all have signed WHL deals. . . . Kamloops This Week reports that the Blazers expect to meet with the Rizzo family “at the end of the month to discuss Massimo’s future.” . . . Rizzo, who will turn 16 on June 13, had 53 points, including 12 goals, in 28 games with the Burnaby Winter Club’s prep team this season. He was pointless in three regular-season games with the Vees and had one goal in seven playoff games. In the Western Canada Cup, he put up a goal and four assists in six games, then added one goal in five games at the RBC Cup.

The Blazers expect to have F Josh Pillar, the 14th overall selection in the 2017 bantam draft, at their prospects camp, although he hasn’t yet committed to them. All told, eight of the WHL’s 22 first-round picks have yet to sign.

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A few days ago, Patrick Conway, who keeps close tabs on the KHL, took a look at the coaches of the Bobrov Division. This week, he checks out the men behind the benches in the Tarasov Division, and it’s all right here.

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Two of the head coaches who appeared in the Memorial Cup and have WHL ties moved into the pro ranks on Wednesday, Kris Knoblauch with the Philadelphia Flyers and Rocky Thompson with the Chicago Wolves, the AHL affiliate of the NHL expansion Vegas Golden Knights.

Knoblauch, 38, signed on as an assistant coach with the Flyers after spending the past five seasons as the head coach of the Erie Otters, who won this season’s OHL playoff championship.

Knoblauch, who is from Imperial, Sask., took over as head coach during 2012-13. In each of his four full seasons as head coach, the Otters won at least 50 games, marking the first time in OHL history that a team posted more than three straight 50-win seasons. He played in the WHL (Red Deer, Edmonton/Kootenay, Lethbridge, 1996-99) and was the Ice’s head coach for two seasons (2010-12), winning the 2011 WHL championship.

Thompson, meanwhile, is the new head coach of the Chicago Wolves. The Golden Knights have taken over the Wolves from the NHL’s St. Louis Blues. Craig Berube, the Wolves’ head coach this season, is expected to end up on the Blues’ staff.

Thompson, 39, guided the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires, as host team, to the Memorial Cup title, beating the Otters, 4-3, in the championship game.

Thompson, from Calgary, spent two seasons with the Spitfires.

As a player, he spent four seasons in the WHL (Medicine Hat, Swift Current, 1993-97). He began his coaching career in the WHL as an assistant coach with the Edmonton Oil Kings (2007-10), before moving on to the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons. He spent one season on staff with the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, then took over the Spitfires’ bench.

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Former WHL D Nolan Baumgartner has joined the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks as an assistant coach with head coach Travis Green. Baumgartner had been an assistant coach with the AHL’s Utica Comets, where Green was the head coach before being moved up to the Canucks as head coach. . . . Baumgartner, 41, is from Calgary. He played four seasons with the Kamloops Blazers (1992-96) and was on two Memorial Cup-championships teams (1994, 1995). . . . He twice was named the WHL’s top defenceman and once was the CHL’s top defenceman. . . . The Canucks also announced that Green’s other assistant coaches would be Newell Brown, Doug Jarvis and Manny Malhotra. . . . Also returning are skills coach Glenn Carnegie and video coach Ben Cooper, who is a former Victoria Royals assistant coach (2011-13).

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The ECHL’s Tulsa Oilers have hired Rob Murray as their director of hockey operations and head coach. Murray, 50, spent the previous six seasons as head coach of the ECHL’s Alaska Aces, who have ceased operations. Murray has been coaching since 2003 when he was an assistant with the AHL’s Providence Bruins. In Tulsa, Murray replaces Jason Christie, who left the team after their season ended.

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Congrats to @TheWHL milestone award winners Dave "Radar" Horning & Colin "Toledo" Robinson (1500 games) & Innes Mackie (3000 games) pic.twitter.com/w1H3vA3hKz

— Brian Cheeseman (@b_cheeseman) June 8, 2017

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Thunderbirds one win from first title ... Game 6 in Regina on Sunday ... Otters, Knoblauch win OHL

F Jordan Hickmott (Medicine Hat, Prince Albert, Edmonton, 2005-11) has signed a one-year contract with Villach (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with Banská Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga), he had 23 goals and 30 assists in 56 games. He led his team in goals and was fifth in the league’s scoring race. . . . 

F Štěpán Novotný (Kelowna, Swift Current, 2008-11) signed a one-year extension with Nové Zámky (Slovakia, Extraliga). This season, in 11 games, he had two goals and five assists. Novotný started this season with Žilina (Slovakia, Extraliga), scoring six goals and eight assists in 20 games. He was traded to Nové Zámky on Feb. 7.

D David Turoň (Portland, 2002-03) has signed a one-year extension with Polonia Bytom (Poland, PHL). This season, he had two goals and six assists in 15 games. He started the season with the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite), scoring three goals and five assists in 30 games. He signed with Bytom on Jan. 31.

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WATCH THIS: @TBLightning prospect @acirelli22 is the OT hero!

His goal at 2:41 gives @ErieOtters their first #OHLPlayoffs title in 15 years pic.twitter.com/nfckbRRt4p

— OntarioHockeyLeague (@OHLHockey) May 13, 2017

The Erie Otters won the OHL championship on Friday night, beating the visiting Mississauga Steelheads, 4-3 in OT, to take the Robertson Cup final in five games. . . . F Anthony Cirelli’s 15th goal of the playoffs, on a PP, won it at 2:41 of OT. . . . You may remember Cirelli from the 2015 Memorial Cup championship game when he scored twice, including once in OT, to give the Oshawa Generals a 2-1 victory over the Kelowna Rockets in Quebec City. . . . F Taylor Raddysh had Erie’s other three goals. . . . Announced attendance: 6,781. . . . The Otters are coached by Kris Knoblauch, a former WHL player and coach. Knoblauch was the head coach of the WHL’s Kootenay Ice when it won the 2011 WHL championship. He is the third head coach in CHL history to win championships in two leagues. The others? Geoffrey Brandon (@Geoffrey Brandow) points out that the others are Ted Nolan (Soo Greyhounds, OHL, 1991 and 1992; Moncton Wildcats, QMJHL, 2006) and Orval Tessier (Cornwall Royals, QMJHL, 1972; Quebec Remparts, QMJHL, 1973; Kitchener Rangers, OHL, 1981). . . . Erie moves on to the Memorial Cup, along with the QMJHL-champion Saint John Sea Dogs and the host Windsor Spitfires.

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The Calgary Hitmen have signed D Luke Prokop, the seventh overall selection in the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound Prokop is from Edmonton. He played this season with the Pursuit of Excellent bantam prep team in Kelowna. In 30 games, he had four goals and 37 assists. . . . Prokop’s older brother, Josh, was selected by the Swift Current Broncos in the fifth round of the 2015 bantam draft.

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The Tri-City Americans have signed G Talyn Boyko, who was a third-round selection in the 2017 bantam draft. From Drumheller, Alta., Boyko played this season with the bantam prep team at the Pursuit of Excellence in Kelowna. Boyko, who won’t turn 15 until No. 16, was 2.90, .886 in 18 appearances. In four playoff games, he was 3.66, .876.

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F Alexander Bodunov, who played for the Soviet Union in the 1972 Summit Series with Canada, died in Moscow on Thursday. He was 66. Bodunov was only 20 years of age when he played in the Summit Series. He played on a line with Vyacheslav Anisin and Yuri Lebedev, a unit that was called The Kid Line and The Headache Line. . . . Bodunov also played in a 1974 series against a team of WHA stars.

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Jamey Hicks has been named head coach of the Birmingham, Ala., Bulls, an expansion team that is scheduled to begin play in the SPHL next season. Hicks is a former Bulls captain (1996-2001) and, in fact, was the league’s MVP in 1997-98. Hicks, 47, is a native of Timmins, Ont.

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ICE 1st rounder @mcclennon_94 and his Dad just touched down in Cranbrook for a tour of our city and facilities#ICEcountry pic.twitter.com/6SvLwsdH54

— Greg Fettes (@greg_fettes) May 12, 2017

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FRIDAY’S GAME:

In Kent, Wash., the Seattle Thunderbirds twice scored two goals less than a minute apart en route to a 7-4 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . This was Seattle’s last home game of the season. The Thunderbirds lead the WHL championship series for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, 3-2, with Game 6 scheduled for Sunday in Regina. . . . Seattle has yet to win its first WHL title. . . . A seventh game, if needed, would be played Monday in Regina. . . . Last night, Seattle was 3-5 on the PP. In its last two games — Seattle won 6-1 on Wednesday — Seattle is 5-12 with the man advantage. In the five games, Seattle is 8-23. . . . Regina was 1-3 in Game 5 and is 7-20 in the series. . . . “We have to stay out of the penalty box. It’s really simple,” John Paddock, the Pats’ general manager and head coach, said after Game 5 had ended. . . . Last night, the Pats led 2-0 before the game was four minutes old, but the Thunderbirds pulled even on two quick PP goals. . . . Regina D Josh Mahura (7) scored on a wrist shot from the point through traffic at 1:05 of the first period. . . . F Jeff de Wit (5) made it 2-0 at 3:17 on a shot from the left circle. . . . Mahura and de Wit both were acquired this season from the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Seattle pulled even on two PP goals just 52 seconds apart. . . . D Donovan Neuls (8) scored on a rebound at 5:09 and F Mathew Barzal (6) counted at 6:01, scoring on a wrist shot from the slot. . . . Regina went ahead again, at 9:37 of the second period, when F Dawson Leedahl (12) toe-dragged his way around D Ethan Bear and snapped a shot past G Carl Stankowski. . . . But the Pats skated into penalty trouble again and surrendered two PP goals just 57 seconds apart as Seattle took a 4-3 lead. F Keegan Kolesar (11) scored off a 3-on-1 rush at 16:40 — Regina F Austin Wagner took a roughing minor on the play, putting the hosts right back on the PP — and Barzal got his seventh goal of the playoffs at 17:37, beating G Tyler Brown with a slapshot from the left faceoff circle. . . . Early in the third period, Stankowski stopped Wagner on a breakaway. Shortly after, Seattle F Nolan Volcan scored his fifth goal for a 5-3 lead. . . . Seattle F Ryan Gropp (6) added more insurance at 3:55 with a goal from the left side. . . . Wagner’s first goal of the series, and 15th of the playoffs, got the Pats to within two, 6-4, at 11:22. . . . Regina F Sam Steel skated in alone off the left boards but wasn’t able to beat Stankowski with 4:19 to play. . . . Seattle D Turner Ottenbreit (3) iced it with the empty-netter at 19:58. . . . Bear and Kolesar each had two assists for Seattle, with Barzal, Gropp and Neuls getting one each. . . . Regina got two assists from D Connor Hobbs and one each from Wagner and Mahura. . . . Barzal has played in 15 playoff games this spring and has at least one point in each of them. . . . Kolesar and Steel now lead the playoff scoring race, each with 29 points. . . . Wagner’s 15 goals has him tied with F Reid Gardiner of the Kelowna Rockets for the playoff lead. . . . Stankowski finished with 33 stops, one more than Brown. . . . F Bryan Lockner of the Pats left in the second period with an undisclosed injury. . . . Regina scratches: F Adam Brooks, D Dawson Davidson and F Jake Leschyshyn, all with injuries, G Max Paddock, F Duncan Pierce and F Owen Williams. . . . Seattle’s scratches: G Rylan Toth (injured), F Elijah Brown, F Tyler Carpendale, F Dillon Hamaliuk, D Jake Lee and F Luke Ormsby. . . . Announced attendance: 6,223, the largest single-game crowd for the Thunderbirds in the ShoWare Center. The previous record (6,220) was set on March 21, 2015, with the Portland Winterhawks in town.

Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here.

Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle had a game story right here.
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SATURDAY’S GAME:

No Game Scheduled.

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SUNDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Seattle at Regina, 6 p.m. (Seattle leads, 3-2)

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MONDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Seattle at Regina, 7 p.m. (if necessary)

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Sale of Ice will mark end of an era . . . Source: Robison wants it done by month's end

The Kootenay Ice dropped a 4-1 decision to the host Calgary Hitmen on Saturday night in a game that may have marked the end of an era.

If, as is being speculated, the Ice franchise is about to be sold that game may have been the last one played by a team that could boast of having the Chynoweth name on its masthead.

Should the sale occur, that game also will have signalled the end of the Chynoweth era in the WHL,

Jeff Chynoweth (left) and his father, Ed.
(Photo: chl.ca)

something that stretches back to 1970.

That is something that shouldn’t be ignored, because there hasn’t been a bigger name in WHL history and, indeed, in the history of junior hockey.

It all began with Ed Chynoweth, a native of Dodsland, Sask., who left a Saskatoon hotel and joined the Blades as assistant general manager in 1970.

By the 1972-73 season, Chynoweth was in the WHL office — it was the WCHL then — as assistant to the executive secretary, which is the title that Thomas K. Fisher carried.

Chynoweth was named the league’s president at its annual meeting in June 1973, an position in which he would continue through 1978-79. He spent 1979-80 as a part-owner and the general manager of the Calgary Wranglers. However, he returned to the WHL office after that season and ruled the roost through 1995-96.

At that point, he was granted an expansion franchise, the Edmonton Ice, that played two seasons in the Alberta capital before moving to Cranbrook, B.C., and morphing into the Kootenay Ice.

He was the Ice’s president and governor, and also served as the chairman of the WHL’s board of governors (1996-98, 2004-08). He was the chairman of the board when he died, at 66, on April 22, 2008.

Under Chynoweth, the Ice won the 2002 Memorial Cup, a trophy he had presented to his son, Dean, in

Ed Chynoweth got to present his son, Dean,
with the Memorial Cup.(Photo: Hockey Hall of Fame)

1988, when Dean, a rugged defenceman, was the captain of the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Dean played three seasons (1985-88) with the Tigers and later would return to the WHL for four seasons (2000-04) has head coach of the Seattle Thunderbirds. He would on from there and work for five seasons (2004-09) as general manager and head coach of the Swift Current Broncos.

Jeff is the Ice’s governor, president and general manager. He has been part of the WHL since 1986 and also has worked with the Spokane Chiefs (1986-87), Medicine Hat Tigers (1987-88), Brandon Wheat Kings (1988-89), Lethbridge Hurricanes (1989-91) and Red Deer Rebels (1991-95), before moving into the Ice’s front office in October 1995.

And, of course, there is Linda, the matriarch, who was married to Ed for 45 years. She has been there for all of it, from the day Ed joined the Blades’ organization through what will have been the family’s final days with the Ice. You can bet she has been a sounding board for more WHL-related decisions than any person in junior hockey history.

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Thank you to our corporate partners, billets, parents and FANS for your support of Kootenay ICE hockey this season!

— Kootenay ICE (@WHLKootenayICE) March 19, 2017

A source familiar with the Kootenay Ice situation has told Taking Note that Ron Robison, the WHL

commissioner, “is hoping to get things done with the Cranbrook group before the end of (March).”

That group, which includes former Ice F Colin Sinclair, made an offer to purchase the Ice in February. However, the group was informed that its offer wouldn’t be considered pending a March 11 referendum in Nanaimo, a Vancouver Island city in which the WHL badly wants to have a franchise. However, that referendum was soundly defeated, meaning the City isn’t able to borrow $80 million to build an events centre that was to include an arena.

Our source indicated that the Cranbrook group “pulled its previous offer earlier in the week after Nanaimo voters rejected building a new arena complex. That offer price-matched the Nanaimo offer, with the only difference being there would be no offer of a (general manager’s) job to the current owner/GM.”

That, of course, is in reference to Jeff Chynoweth, the Ice’s governor, president and general manager.

The source added that, with the referendum in the rearview mirror, the Cranbrook group now is “prepared to continue but at a different price point.”

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The OHL’s Erie Otters are the first team in Canadian Hockey League history to win at least 50 games in four consecutive seasons. On Saturday, the Otters beat the visiting Guelph Storm, 5-2, improving their record to 50-15-3. Starting in 2013-14, the Otters won 52, 50 52 and 50 regular-season games. . . . The Otters’ head coach in each of those seasons has been Kris Knoblauch, a native of Imperial, Sask., who played in the WHL with the Red Deer Rebels, Edmonton Ice, Kootenay Ice and Lethbridge Hurricanes (1995-99). . . . He also has coached with the Prince Albert Raiders (2006-07) and Kootenay (2007-12). He was the Ice’s head coach for two seasons (2010-12). . . . The WHL’s Kelowna Rockets (2012-15), Edmonton Oil Kings (2011-14) and Kamloops Blazers (1989-92), and the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs (2009-12) all had three-season runs. . . . The Otters have captured their third straight Midwest Division title with the victory and have clinched the Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL’s regular-season champions for a second consecutive season.

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Conference finals resume tonight

1. It’s Canada versus Russia at the U-18 world championship in Finland this morning. If you’re near a TV set, the game is on TSN at 6 a.m. Pacific time.

2. I took the night off from watching hockey on TV. Felt like a breath of fresh air, too. Kept track of the scores via Twitter.

3. Matt Cooke? No. Not Matt Cooke.

4. Spent some time with the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates. It was worth it just to see Reds outfielder Billy Hamilton go from first to third on a Joey Votto tapper back to the mound. Oh, and Hamilton hesitated going around second, too. . . . Hamilton may be faster than Cool Papa Bell who, legend has it, would get up to turn off the light before going to bed and be under the covers before it was dark.

5. Also saw Ike Davis, who was acquired by Pittsburgh from the New York Mets on Friday, hit a grand slam. That put him into the MLB record book as Elias reported that he is one of three players to have hit grand slams for two different teams against the same team in one season. (Earlier, he hit one for the Mets agains the Reds.) The others were Ray Boone and Mike Piazza. Coincidentally, Aaron Boone, one of Ray’s grandsons, was working the Reds-Pirates game for ESPN. Aaron says his grandfather’s nickname was Ike.

6. Phil Jackson, the president of the New York Knicks, fired head coach Mike Woodson and his five assistant coaches on Monday. Do all NBA teams employ six coaches? If so, is that the highest coach-per-player ratio on sports? BTW, the Knicks’ assistants were Dave Hopla, who was the shooting coach, LaSalle Thompson, Jim Todd, Darrell Walker and Herb Williams.

7. The Seattle Mariners have lost seven straight games. The Houston Astros snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 7-2 victory in Seattle last night. The visitors beat up on King Felix in the process. All of which is not a good sign for Mariners fans.

8. In the OHL, the Guelph Storm beat the host Erie Otters 7-1 to take a 3-0 edge in the Western Conference final. Kris Knoblauch, former head coach of the Kootenay Ice, is the Otters’ head coach.

9. A tweet from Adrian Dater (@adater) of the Denver Post: “Wild ‘media relations staff’ won't be making any Wild players available tomorrow. Mickey Mouse.” . . . Dater is trying to cover the NHL playoff series between the Colorado Avalanche and the Wild.

10. Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun writes: “ ’Tis the season, once more, to celebrate the things humans will do to one another, and to themselves, in order to climb over their opponents’ cold, dead corpses to the next round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.” . . . That column is right here.
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The WHL’s Western Conference final resumes in Portland tonight with the Winterhawks meeting the Kelowna Rockets. . . . In losing four regular-season games to Kelowna, the Winterhawks averaged 34.2 shots on goal. In erasing a 2-0 deficit and winning 5-4 in Kelowna on Saturday, the Winterhawks had 53 shots on goal. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic and D Derrick Pouliot each has at least one point in each of the team’s 11 playoff games. Leipsic has 21 points; Pouliot has 20. . . . Going back to the regular season, Leipsic is riding an 18-game point streak, while Pouliot’s is at 17. . . . Pouliot also has played in 75 playoff games, two shy of D Troy Rutkowski’s franchise record. F Shay Stephenson of the Red Deer Rebels (2000-04) holds the WHL record, having played in 87 playoff games.
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The Edmonton Oil Kings have some added inspiration this season as they move towards what they hope will be a third straight appearance in the WHL’s championship final. As Alicja Siekierska of the Edmonton Journal writes right here, Kristians Pelss is “is never far from his former teammates’ minds and always close to their hearts.”
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THE THIRD ROUND (best-of-seven; all times local):
(x - if necessary)
EASTERN CONFERENCE
EDMONTON (1) vs. MEDICINE HAT (4)
(Edmonton leads, 2-0)
Season series: Edmonton, 5-0-1; Medicine Hat, 1-5-0.
(All games on Shaw TV)
Friday: Medicine Hat 3 at Edmonton 8 (7,694)
Sunday: Medicine Hat 1 at Edmonton 3 (5,763)
Tuesday: Edmonton at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
Wednesday: Edmonton at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
x-Saturday: Medicine Hat at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
x-Monday: Edmonton at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
x-Tuesday, April 29: Medicine Hat at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
INJURIES
Edmonton: D Blake Orban, day-to-day.
Medicine Hat: F Anthony Ast, day-to-day; F Gavin Broadhead, day-to-day; F Hunter Shinkaruk, indefinite.
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WESTERN CONFERENCE
KELOWNA (1) vs. PORTLAND (2)
(Series tied, 1-1)
Season series: Kelowna, 4-0-0; Portland, 0-4-0.
Friday: Portland 4 at Kelowna 5 (6,218)
Saturday: Portland 5 at Kelowna 3 (6,341)
Tuesday: Kelowna at Portland (Moda Center), 7 p.m.
Wednesday: Kelowna at Portland (Moda Center), 7 p.m.
Friday: Portland at Kelowna, 7 p.m.
x-Sunday: Kelowna at Portland, 2 p.m.
x-Tuesday, April 29: Portland at Kelowna, 7 p.m.
INJURIES
Kelowna: F Myles Bell, week-to-week.
Portland: None.
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MONDAY’S GAMES:
No games scheduled.
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From WHL Facts (@WHLFacts): “6 - Through 6 days, the NHL playoffs already have more overtime games this year (6) than the WHL does in a month of post-season (5).”
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From ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo): “The Red Sox drop to 9-11 with loss to the Orioles. Sox have never made the playoffs when starting first 20 games under .500 (@EliasSports).”


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Farewell to a friend

Roy Antal, the Regina Leader-Post photographer who took the above photo on Nov. 18, 1994, has died. He passed away Saturday in Regina after a bout with cancer. He would have turned 67 in November.
Antal, who retired in 2010 after working at The Leader-Post for 41 years, was one of the good guys, quick to laugh and with an infectious smile. He had something of a unique golf swing, too; at least, I doubt that there is another one like it anywhere out there.
During my 17 years at The Leader-Post, we shared some breakfasts and more than a few Chinese food buffets. Mostly, though, we shared a lot of stories and more than our share of laughter.
That's Norm Johnston, then of the Regina Pats, on the left in the above photo, and Al Tuer, then with the Moose Jaw Warriors, bringing a bit of WWE to the WHL, which, it seems, was a lot more fun back in the day. That is Antal’s left hand in the bottom right corner of the photo. We can only imagine Antal's surprise when the two coaches brought their act right to him as he stood, camera in hand, between the team's benches in what was then the Regina Agridome.
If you would like to see some of Antal's best work, click right here.
(The flash bounce in the above photo is all mine. It happened when I attempted to make a copy of the photo that I have in my home.)

2. There is controversy brewing on the campus of the U of British Columbia and among the school's many alumni, many of whom donate money to the athletic department. . . . Iain MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun has a terrific piece right here, as he delves into what has all the signs of turning into something really messy in the not-too-distant future.

3. If you've been following the mess that is the saga involving Senator Mike Duffy and haven't seen the story that appeared in Maclean's in September, well, you should pour a cuppa and click right here. Jonathon Gatehouse does a great job of explaining Duffy's past and present situations.

JUST NOTES:
The BCHL's Penticton Vees have signed former WHL D Clint Filbrandt. An 18-year-old from Calgary, Filbrandt was released earlier by the Kootenay Ice, who had acquired him from the Tri-City Americans over the summer. The Americans had selected him in the 10th round of the 2010 bantam draft. He was to make his debut with the Vees last night. . . . The OHL's Erie Otters ran their winning streak to 10 on Saturday, beating the visiting Peterborough Petes, 4-0. Kris Knoblauch, Erie's head coach, is a former WHL player and coach.

SATURDAY NIGHT:
In Medicine Hat, F Curtis Valk had two goals and an assist to help the Tigers to a 6-4 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Medicine Hat snapped a three-game losing skid. . . . Among the Tigers' scratches was veteran F Hunter Shinkaruk (hip). . . . Saskatoon F Collin Valcourt played, and drew two assists, despite taking a charging major for running into Rebels G Patrik Bartosak in Red Deer on Friday night. Valcourt actually scored on the play and the Blades went on to a 4-3 victory. . . .

In Swift Current, the Broncos beat Edmonton 3-1, snapping the Oil Kings' winning streak at three. . . . F Connor Sanvido had an empty-net goal and two assists for the Broncos. . . . Edmonton F Curtis Lazar didn't finish, as he left the game with an undisclosed injury. . . .

In Prince Albert, the Raiders got 27 saves from G Cole Cheveldave as they got past the Regina Pats, 3-1. . . . Raiders F Tim Vanstone, 17, scored his first WHL goal in his 55th game, 15 of which are from this season. . . . Veteran F Shane Danyluk scored his first goal of the season, in game No. 15, for the Raiders. . . . Regina G Dawson MacAuley, who is from Prince Albert, started in his hometown for the first time. . . . The Raiders have won three of four, while the Pats have lost three in a row. . . .

In Cranbrook, F Jaedon Descheneau scored twice as the Kootenay Ice beat the Moose Jaw Warriors, 5-4. . . . The Ice had Mike Dyck helping its coaching staff on the weekend. The former WHL defenceman who has coaching experience with Lethbridge and Vancouver, will help assistant Jay Henderson when head coach Ryan McGill joins Canada's national junior team in December. . . . Among the Moose Jaw scratches was F Brandon Potomak, who injured a shoulder during Thursday's 4-3 OT victory over the Hurricanes in Lethbridge. . . .

In Prince George, F Pavel Padakin got the shootout winner as the Hitmen got past the Cougars, 4-3. . . . The Hitmen are 7-0-3 in their last 10 games and hold a four-point lead atop the Eastern Conference. . . . F Greg Chase had his first WHL hat trick to give the Hitmen a 3-1 lead in the first period. He's got 13 goals this season. . . . F David Soltes, a Czech freshman, missed 12 games with a leg injury. He returned Friday night and scored the shootout winner and added his second career goal last night. . . . F Chase Witala forced OT with his ninth goal at 12:21 of the third. . . .

In Kamloops, F Josh Winquist scored in overtime as the Everett Silvertips beat the Blazers, 7-6. . . . Winquist got his ninth goal on the PP at 3:32 of extra time. . . . Everett was 4-9 on the PP. . . . Winquist also had three assists for the second straight game. . . . Remember when Everett head coach Kevin Constantine was a defensive guru? Well, his Silvertips have given up 13 goals in their last two games and won them both. . . . Blazers F Cole Ully forced OT when he scored with 6.9 seconds left in the third period. . . . The Blazers led 2-0, 3-1, 4-2 and 5-4, before trailing 6-5 in the third period. . . . The Blazers took the game's last seven minor penalties. . . . Three of the four on-ice officials were from Kamloops. . . . The Silvertips (10-2-2) have won four in a row and are just a point back of the Western Conference-leading Portland Winterhawks. . . . Everett goaltender Austin Lotz made his 11th straight start. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Seth Swenson scored twice, the second into an empty net, as the host Thunderbirds beat the Vancouver Giants, 5-3. . . . F Jaimen Yakubowski, acquired this week from the Lethbridge Hurricanes, made his Seattle debut. F Sam Mckechnie, who also came over in that swap, didn't play. . . . Seattle F Branden Troock, who has an injury-filled WHL career, needed help off the ice in the second period with an undisclosed injury. . . .

In Spokane, Portland ran its winning streak to eight games with a 4-3 victory over the Chiefs. The Winterhawks went 5-0 on a road trip that ended last night. . . . Portland (11-3-1) also moved into top spot in the Western Conference, one point ahead of the Chiefs (11-4-0). . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic scored his 100th regular-season goal and also had two assists. Leipsic has 226 points in 211 career games. . . . Spokane F Mitch Holmberg had two assists. He leads the WHL with 37 points. He holds a seven-point lead on Portland forwards Oliver Bjorkstrand and Nic Petan. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., the host Tri-City Americans dumped the Brandon Wheat Kings, 4-1. . . . The Americans, who have won three in a row, won four of five games on the homestand. . . . The Wheat Kings are 0-2 in the U.S. Division and have been outscored 11-2. . . .

In Victoria, F Myles Bell scored in the shootout to give the Kelowna Rockets a 2-1 victory over the Royals. . . . Kelowna had opened the weekend doubleheader with a 4-1 victory on Friday. . . . The Royals went into the weekend leading the B.C. Division by two points over the Rockets. . . . Kelowna (9-2-2) now holds a one-point edge on Victoria (9-7-1).

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Clayton Stoner (Tri-City, 2002-05) signed a lockout contract with Banska Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga). He had one goal and four assists in 51 games with the Minnesota Wild last season. . . .
D David Hajek (Spokane, 1998-99) signed a contract extensio with Dresdner Eislwen (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) through the end of this season. He has three goals and four assists in 16 games for Dresden this season. Hajek had originally signed a try-out contract with Dresden in August. This was converted into a 3 1/2-month contract after one exhibition game and was set to expire on Dec. 15.
———
The OHL’s Erie Otters have named Kris Knoblauch as their new head coach, replacing Robbie Ftorek, 60, who was fired on Thursday. The Otters, whose roster includes 15-year-old phenom Connor McDavid, were 7-15-5, which has them in last place in the Western Conference. Knoblauch, 34, will work his first game tonight against the Hounds in Sault Ste. Marie. . . . Peter Sidorkiewicz remains as the Otters’ assistant coach. . . . Knoblauch was dismissed by the Kootenay Ice over the summer after he applied for the U of Alberta Golden Bears’ head-coaching position while still under contract. Knoblauch had been helping out as an assistant coach with the junior B Kimberley Dynamiters of the Kootenay International Junior League.
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JUST NOTES:
The Saskatoon Blades have decided to keep D Nelson Nogier for the remainder of the season. Nogier, a fourth-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft, started the season with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. Nogier was brought in prior to the Blades leaving on a B.C. Division swing. They are said to be especially enamoured with his leadership abilities, but don’t want to put too big a load on a 16-year-old freshman. . . . Nogier is the son of former WHL G Pat Nogier. . . . The Blades are in Calgary tonight and expect to have F Shane McColgan (concussion) back in their lineup after a three-game absence. . . .
The Prince Albert Raiders have signed F Austin Daae, 19, who was playing for the SJHL’s Estevan Bruins. Daae, who is from Estevan, had 16 points, including five goals, in 21 games. Daae had six points in 52 games with the Prince George Cougars last season. . . . The Raiders are looking for depth as they begin to prepare to lose a number of players to Christmas tournaments.
The Red Deer Rebels have acquired F Filip Vasko, who turns 19 on Dec. 10, from the Kelowna Rockets for a conditional sixth-round selection in the 2013 bantam draft. Vasko, a Slovakian sophomore, has 10 points, including three goals, in 19 games this season. Last season, in 51 games, he had 12 assists. The draft pick is payable if Vasko is on the Rebels’ roster after the Jan. 10 trade deadline.
A note from Alan Caldwell of Small Thoughts At Large about this trade: “Kelowna already owned Red Deer's 2013 6th round bantam pick from another conditional deal, the one that sent Austin Ferguson to Red Deer a month ago. Since Red Deer sent Ferguson home 2 weeks ago to decide if he wants to be a hockey player, I guess it's now safe to say the Ferguson trade has been nullified, Red Deer got the pick back and promptly traded it to Kelowna again for Vasko now.”
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In an interesting piece in The Globe and Mail, Alan Maki reports:
A season-long medical study like no other has examined head injuries among university hockey players and determined there is “significant underreporting” of concussions in both men’s and women’s hockey.
That story is right here.
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If you aren’t aware of it, there is an interesting story unfolding on a blog that carries the title The Myles McCauley Story. It is right here.
As the blog’s subtitle reads: “This is a story of Myles McCauley. Myles is hockey player from Sterling Heights, Michigan and this is the story of his journey in the OHL and a detour to Penticton, BC and the BCHL.”
The story includes emails and, well, you should check it out because someone, as they say, is going to have some splaining to do.

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Well, if that really was the debut day for the Canadian Hockey League Players’ Association, let’s just say it was rather inauspicious.
I mean, the worst movie you ever saw had a better debut.
It began with a tweet from the CHLPA:
“NEWS FLASH*** George Laraque signs on with the CHLPA as Executive Director”
Uhh, the gentleman’s name is Georges.
Later, Laraque apparently was to have appeared on a Toronto sports radio show. For some reason, he didn’t make it.
A report by The Canadian Press included this sentence: “Messages for Laraque weren’t returned.”
At the same time, David Branch, who heads up the CHL, was telling The Canadian Press that he knows nothing about the union and that he hasn’t been contacted by anyone from the CHLPA.
There was considerable CHLPA-related chatter on Twitter until later in the afternoon (Pacific time). That’s about when it got blown out of the twitterverse with the news that Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger were engaged.
Oh well, there’s always tomorrow. But, at least for now, the C in CHLPA doesn’t stand for credible.
———
Here’s Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun:
While CHLPA spokesman Derek Clarke told the Windsor Star that the union has representatives on all 60 CHL teams, Brandon Wheat Kings goalie Corbin Boes said he has never been contacted personally and doesn’t know of any other players who have.
“That’s the first I’ve ever heard of it,” he said. “Very surprising stuff for me.”
“I read an article (Monday) about it and I saw today Georges Laraque is the executive director, but I don’t know a whole lot,” he continued. “I’d probably have to look more into it, but I guess in some ways it could be beneficial to players, but I don’t really see how it’s necessary, I guess.”
Clarke’s assertion in the Star that “99.9 per cent of the players on active rosters last year know about it” but have been asked to keep tight-lipped for now also seems dubious given the comments of former Wheat King and current Vancouver Giant goaltender Liam Liston, a WHL veteran who is apparently part of the other 0.1 per cent, tweeting, “You’d think that the CHL players might get contacted about this whole CHLPA thing . . . but that would make too much sense.”
———
Scott Stinson of the National Post writes: “The CHL and its member leagues did not know anything about it. Players quoted in various stories are similarly uninformed, despite assurances from the CHLPA that an ‘overwhelming’ number of them support the initiative. And, most significantly, the people behind the organization have been cloaked in mystery.”
———
Evan Daum of the Edmonton Journal writes that neither Oil Kings captain Mark Pysyk nor any of his teammates seem to have heard from the CHLPA, nor do they know any more than anyone else about what’s going on.
———
Sunaya Sapurji of Yahoo! Sports takes a look at the CHLPA and what it’s up against if it hopes to gain certification in Ontario. That piece is right here. . . . She also found a couple of OHL players who heard from people purporting to be from a potential union/association, but neither player sounds too impressed.
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Meanwhile, in other news . . .
F Brayden Cuthbert of the Moose Jaw Warriors hasn’t played since Jan. 22, 2011, when he was nailed in open ice by Red Deer Rebels D Mathew Dumba. Since then, Cuthbert has been dealing with post-concussion syndrome. Cuthbert, 18, is in Moose Jaw and is skating, but has yet to receive medical clearance to return to full-contact workouts. Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has that story right here.
———
The junior B Kimberley Dynamiters, who play in the Kootenay International Junior league, have announced that they have added Kris Knoblauch to their coaching staff. He will work alongside head coach Roman Vopat and fellow assistants Jordan Freeman and Todd White. . . . Knoblauch spent the last two four seasons with the Kootenay Ice, the latter two as head coach. He lost his job when he agreed to be interviewed for the head-coaching position with his alma mater, the U of Alberta Golden Bears, while still under contract with the Ice.
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The Everett Silvertips have welcomed Lisa Rody, the wife of former WHL linesman Vaughan Rody, as their host family co-ordinator. She replaces Pat Jones, who had filled that spot since the Silvertips’ inaugural season (2003-04). She stepped down over the summer. . . . The Rodys have billeted players since 2004. Vaughan has worked the last 13 years as an NHL linesman after spending 10 seasons in the WHL. . . . As well, the Silvertips announced that Darren Parsons is returning for a second season as education co-ordinator. Parsons, originally from Prince Albert, played in the WHL with the Regina Pats and Brandon Wheat Kings (1986-89). He is a teacher at Lake Stevens Middle School.
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Hockey’s history is one of the most under-served areas of the game. Far too many leagues and teams have poor accounts of what happened back in the day.
The BCHL’s Merritt Centennials are preparing for their 40th anniversary season and are hoping to reconnect with a lot of the past.
The Centennials are looking for statistics and rosters from a number of seasons.
"The Centennials have never really had an accurate compilation of all-time statistics and we're close to getting there," Brian Wiebe, the team’s media and communications co-ordinator, said in a news release. "Out of 39 seasons, only a handful are missing."
Wiebe is hoping the team will be able “to compile all-time franchise leaders in goals, assists, points and penalty minutes for forwards and defencemen.”
As well, he said, “Because win-loss records are proving to be very hard to come by, for goaltenders we're just focusing on games-played, goals-against-average and hopefully, save percentage.”
Wiebe isn’t looking for originals to keep.
“All materials submitted will be returned if they are originals,” he said."
The team also would like to get scans of historic Cents photos that any fans may have.
The Centennials are missing full player stats and/or rosters for the following seasons:
1973-74
1976-77
1977-78
1978-79
1980-81
1981-82
1989-90
If you might be able to able, please contact Wiebe at 604-916-8448 or via email at info@merrittcentennials.com.
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The Victoria Times Colonist reports that there are a couple of players with familiar surnames in camp with the BCHL’s Victoria Frizzlies. . . . F Daniel Nachbaur, 17, is the son of Spokane Chiefs head coach Don Nachbaur. Daniel spent last season with the NAHL’s Wenatchee, Wash., Wild. . . . D Logan Hawgood of Kamloops is the son of Greg, a former Blazers star and head coach. Logan, 19, played last season with the Helena Bighorns of the American West League.

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A horse named I’ll Have Another is running for history on Saturday at Belmont Park in New York.
And you are going to watch Saturday’s third race in the Triple Crown after I tell you that there is a WHL angle to this horse.
That angle is named Larry Jones — he goes by the nickname Thumper — and he used to play in the WHL.
According to hockeydb.com, Jones played 58 games in 1977-78, splitting them between the Portland Winter Hawks, Medicine Hat Tigers and New Westminster Bruins. He played 13 games with the Lethbridge Broncos and 12 with the Regina Pats in 1978-79.
In 83 games, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound winger had four goals, seven assists and 212 penalty minutes.
It was while with the Bruins that Jones was involved in one of the most legendary bench-clearing brawls in WHL history. That was Feb. 12, 1978, against the Billings Bighorns.
“In the last game of that season (1977-78), we played Billings and pretty much brawled them up to the point that they had become terrified of us,” Jones told Tom Wolski of the Vancouver Province.
Ernie McLean’s Bruins went on to sweep the Bighorns en route to winning the 1978 Memorial Cup.
Jones’s hockey career was ended by back problems. Ultimately, he found relief from a chirorpactor.
It wasn’t quite this easy, but after finding help for his back, Jones wondered why he couldn’t do the same for horses. So he has done just that.
Most recent stories on him have referred to him as an “equine chiropractor,” although he has told Ryan Goldberg of The New York Times that “I’m not a chiropractor, I’m a positionalist.”
And there have been a lot of recent stories because the native of Stettler, Alta., has done a lot of work with I’ll Have Another, a horse that was ridden by Mario Gutierrez during the Kentucy Derby and the Preakness. (Gutierrez has been a regular jockey at Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver.)
There was a time when Jones worked at a now-defunct track in Kamloops and then went on to Exhibition Park in Vancouver.
On Saturday, Jones, now 53, will be at Belmont Park in New York.
And if I’ll Have Another should happen to win, Thumper’s legend — he is know for wearing shorts and cowboy boots — will continue to grow.
For more on Jones, check out Goldberg’s story right here.
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F Taylor Peters of the Portland Winterhawks can be a deep-thinker, which is why I linked to his blog (Blades of Glory) over there on the right.
In his latest entry, he provides a major junior player’s reaction to the story from The New York Times that detailed the easy access the late Derek Boogaard had to prescription drugs.
Check out Blades of Glory because it’s definitely worth a read.
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You should also check out Thom Beunig’s blog (In the Corner) that also is linked to over there on the right.
He lost one of his best friends on Wednesday and offers up some heartfelt thoughts and memories.
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The NHL has a problem. A big problem. It seems that its teams don’t know the direction in which the league is headed. For example, the Detroit Red Wings, with D Nicklas Lidstrom having retired, have a lot of money to spend under the cap. But they don’t know whether to spend it on skill or gritty shot-blockers. Seriously. . . . Roy MacGregor of The Globe and Mail has an intriguing look at the situation right here.
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F Dillon Wagner, who played out his eligibility this season, has decided to attend UBC and play for the Thunderbirds. Dillon played most of his WHL career with the Swift Current Broncos, but was traded to the Portland Winterhawks this season and then claimed on waivers by the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . He is a veteran of four WHL seasons, recording 66 points in 212 games. . . .
Three ex-WHLers have decided to go to the U of Lethbridge and play for the Pronghorns. G Damien Ketlo, who finished up his WHL career with the Lethbridge Hurricanes this season, has made the commitment. Head coach Greg Gatto immediately named Ketlo his starter, replacing the graduated Scott Bowles. . . . Ketlo played most his four-season career with the Regina Pats, before being dealt to Lethbridge this season. . . . Also agreeing to attend the U of L were D Hayden Rintoul and D Cason Machacek. . . . Rintoul played for the Kootenay Ice, who dealt him to the Victoria Royals prior to this season. He put up 144 points in 260 WHL games, and helped the Ice to the 2010-11 championship. . . . Machacek, who is from Lethbridge, finished up with Seattle, after playing for the Kootenay Ice and Lethbridge. He had 28 points and 536 penalty minutes in 245 WHL games.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Evan Daum of the Edmonton Journal has spoken with Kris Knoblauch, the former head coach of the Kootenay Ice. That piece is right here. . . . Knoblauch, you’ll recall, had his contract terminated by the Ice as he was trying to land the head-coaching job with the U of Alberta Golden Bears. . . . There are some extremely interesting comments from Knoblauch who, among other things, told Daum: “Certainly, there wasn’t a guarantee that the job was mine, but I was under the impression I was a very good candidate. Everything short of the job being guaranteed to me. After this process was over, I’ve heard many names of people being kind of given the same sales pitch of applying.”


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What happened in Cranbrook?

Jeff Chynoweth, the president and general manager of the Kootenay Ice, fired head coach Kris Knoblauch on Friday morning.
The news became public when a terse two-sentence press release was posted on the Ice’s website.
Here is that release in its entirety:
“Jeff Chynoweth, General Manager of the Kootenay ICE Hockey Club, today announced the Club has terminated Kris Knoblauch’s contract effective immediately. No other comments will be given at this time.”
Knoblauch, 33, just completed his second season as the Ice’s head coach. In his first season, 2010-11, the Ice won the WHL championship.
When this season ended, Knoblauch had one year left on his contract. Earlier this month, Chynoweth, convinced that his head coach was staying put, gave him a one-year extension through 2013-14.
The U of Alberta Golden Bears, Knoblauch’s alma mater, has been looking for a head coach. They posted the position with an application deadline of May 15.
At that time, Chynoweth said he knew Knoblauch was interested in returning to the U of A. At the same time, Chynoweth said he didn’t know if he could wait until after May 15 to find out whether his coach was leaving.
When the job was posted, Stan Marple, the U of A’s general manager and assistant coach, called Knoblauch, who brought it to Chynoweth.
Chynoweth, who never did hear from the U of Alberta during this process, told Knoblauch that he would give him a one-week window to decide what he wanted to do.
Knoblauch went back to Marple but the U of A had already posted the job with the May 15 deadline so wasn’t able to make a move at that time.
When the Golden Bears’ selection committee revealed earlier this week that it had short-listed to four, there was speculation that Knoblauch was on that list.
When I asked Chynoweth early in the week if Knoblauch was “in the running,” the response I got was: “Nope, never really has been.”
On Thursday night, a source told me that Chynoweth had given Knoblauch a one-year extension. Chynoweth confirmed that this morning.
When I contacted Chynoweth late Thursday night to see if Knoblauch definitely was out of the U of A picture, I was told that “Kris is in Saskatchewan visiting his family and his wife’s family. He is driving back to Cranbrook next week.”
While Chynoweth isn’t commenting on Knoblauch’s dismissal, it would seem that sometime after that he became aware that Knoblauch indeed is a candidate for the Golden Bears’ head-coaching position and that, yes, he is on the short list.
Chynoweth, who did tell me that he is “bitterly disappointed” in what has transpired, had held talks with Knoblauch earlier this week involving the hiring of an assistant coach. Todd Johnson, the Ice’s former assistant, left after the season to sign on as head coach of the U of Regina Cougars.
When Chynoweth confirmed Friday morning that Knoblauch was pursuing the Golden Bears job, Chynoweth felt he had no choice but to relieve Knoblauch of his duties.
It was the first time in his career that Chynoweth has fired a coach or anyone in hockey management.
That leaves the Ice and Brandon Wheat Kings as WHL teams without head coaches at this time.
The Wheat Kings fired Cory Clouston last week with a year left on his contract. Clouston spent five seasons (2002-06) as the Ice’s head coach.
Yes, you will hear Clouston’s name as a possible replacement in Cranbrook. You almost certainly also will hear Dean Chynoweth’s name. Chynoweth, Jeff’s brother, lost his job as an assistant coach with the NHL’s New York Islanders after their season ended. Dean, a former captain of the Medicine Hat Tigers, has WHL coaching experience with the Seattle Thunderbirds and Swift Current Broncos.
Ryan McGill, who was the Ice’s head coach when it won the 2002 Memorial Cup, was dropped as an assistant coach by the Calgary Flames after the 2010-11 season. He now is in the oil and gas business in Calgary.

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