Kozun blanks Silvertips. . . . Big night for Cougars' Witala . . . Hitmen catch Tigers

D Ole-Kristian Tollefsen (Brandon, 2002-04) has signed a two-year-plus-option extension with Färjestad Karlstad (Sweden, SHL). Tollefsen, the team captain, has two goals and three assists in 42 games with Färjestad this season.
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The Regina Pats have announced a new ticket-pricing schedule along with new prices. As Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post writes, it all “is proving to be a tough sell” with fans. . . . Harder’s story is right here.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES

B.C. DIVISION: Kelowna (12 games remaining) lost in Victoria (12); those two will finish 1-2 in the division. . . . Kelowna leads the overall standings by two points over Brandon. . . . Vancouver (12) beat visiting Kamloops (11), while Prince George (11) was winning at home. Vancouver holds third place by three points over Prince George and five over Kamloops. Prince George is five points out of the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot.
U.S. DIVISION: Everett (13) lost on the road, while Portland (13) won at home. Everett leads the division by three points over Portland. . . . Seattle (13), which beat Everett at home, is five points behind Portland. . . . Spokane (14) lost at home and holds down the Western Conference’s first wild-card spot. It is 11 points behind Seattle and one up on Tri-City (12), which also lost at home.
EAST DIVISION: Brandon (12) won on the road and now trails Kelowna by two points in the overall standings. . . . Regina (14) won at home and is 23 points behind Brandon, but leads Swift Current (13) by 13 points. Swift Current won at home last night. . . . Moose Jaw (12) ended a seven-game road trek with a loss. It is five points out of a playoff spot. . . . Prince Albert (12) lost in Swift Current and is seven points out of a playoff spot.
CENTRAL DIVISION: Calgary (13) won on the road to move into a tie with idle Medicine Hat (13) atop the division. . . . Red Deer (13) is third, eight points off the pace and seven points ahead of Kootenay (12), which won on the road. . . . The Ice holds down the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot four points ahead of idle Edmonton (13).
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In Swift Current, the Broncos erased a 2-0 first-period deficit with five goals as they beat the Prince Albert Raiders, 5-2. . . . Goals by F Tim Vanstone, his 10th, and F Austin Glover, his 12th, gave the visitors a 2-0 lead by the 12-minute mark of the first. . . . F Colby Cave, with his 27th, and F Jake DeBrusk, with his 35th, on a PP at 11:40, tied it in the second period. . . . D Brett Lernout broke the tie with his 13th on another PP at 18:23. . . . The Broncos were 3-for-5 on the PP; the Raiders were 0-for-5. . . . Broncos F Coda Gordon scored his 19th goal and added two assists. . . . The Broncos (29-25-5) have won two in a row. . . . The Raiders (24-33-3) are 1-1-1 in their last three. . . .

In Regina, the Pats scored the games first four goals, three of them via the PP, as they beat the Red Deer Rebels, 4-1. . . . F Jesse Gabrielle got the game’s first goal, at 15:49 of the first period. He’s got 19. . . . Regina then scored three second-period PP goals. F Braden Christoffer got his 19th goal at 6:52. F Adam Brooks added No. 22 at 11:34. D Colby Williams scored his seventh at 13:41. . . . Regina G Tyler Brown, who stopped 23 shots, lost his shutout when D Haydn Fleury scored his fourth goal at 2:02 of the third. . . . Regina was 3-for-9 on the PP; Red Deer was 0-for-4. . . . The Pats (32-19-7) have won two in a row. . . . The Rebels (30-20-9) have lost two straight. . . .

In Saskatoon, F Jayce Hawryluk and F Rihards Bukarts each had two goals and two assists to help the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 7-3 victory over the Blades. . . . F Ryan Graham gave the Blades a 1-0 lead with his 15th goal 23 seconds into the game. . . . Brandon scored four goals before the period ended to take control. . . . Hawryluk, who has 24 goals, has seven points in two games since returning from a 13-game absence. . . . Brandon F Tim McGauley scored twice, giving him 37, and added an assist. He is riding a 16-game point streak. One of his goals came on a second-period penalty shot. . . . Brandon’s Quenneville brothers, John and Peter, each had two assists. . . . D Nikita Soshnin and F Wyatt Sloboshan had two assists each for the Blades. . . . Saskatoon F Brett Stovin played in game No. 250, all with the Blades, while D Brycen Martin, who was acquired from Swift Current in January, played in his 200th regular-season game. . . . Already without D Ivan Provorov, F Nolan Patrick, D Kale Clague and F Reid Duke, Brandon scratched F Braylon Shmyr (ill) after the pre-game warmup. That left it with 16 skaters. . . . Without G Alex Moodie (concussion) and G Logan Thompson (pink eye), Brandon had Justin Holder backing up Jordan Papirny. Holder, a 19-year-old from Brandon, plays for the MJHL’s Waywayseecappo Wolverines. . . . Brandon improved to 44-10-6. . . . The Blades (17-39-3) have lost three straight. . . . Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun has a game story right here. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has a game story right here. . . .

In Kent, Wash., G Taran Kozun stopped 15 shots for the shutout as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Everett Silvertips, 7-0. . . . Kozun has four shutouts this season, all in his last 10 appearances, and 10 shutouts in his career. . . . This was the first time this season that Everett was blanked. . . . F Keegan Kolesar’s 18th goal, at 8:23 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . F Roberts Lipsbergs scored twice, giving him nine, and added two assists, while F Scott Eansor scored his 11th goal and had two assists, and F Mathew Barzal had three assists. Barzal has seven assists in his last two games. . . . Each team was 0-for-3 on the PP. Seattle had scored at least one PP goal in 12 straight games. . . . The Thunderbirds (31-21-7) have won two in a row. . . . Everett (35-17-7) had been 2-0-3 in its last five but now is on its first three-game losing skid of the season. . . .

In Portland, F Paul Bittner and F Oliver Bjorkstrand each scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Winterhawks to a 5-2 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Bittner has 26 goals. . . . Bjorkstrand has 43 goals. He’s got at least one goal in eight straight games. He has 12 goals in that stretch. . . . The Winterhawks scored the game’s first two goals and were never headed. . . . F Nic Petan drew three assists for Portland. . . . F Giorgio Estephan had Lethbridge’s goal. He’s got 17. . . . Portland G Aden Hill stopped 21 shots, 10 fewer than Lethbridge’s Jayden Sittler. . . . The Hurricanes were without F Mike Winther, who drew a one-game suspension for a spearing major and game misconduct that he took the previous night. . . . The Winterhawks (35-20-4) are 4-0-1 in their last five. . . . The Hurricanes (18-34-7) have lost three in a row (0-2-1). . . .

In Prince George, F Chase Witala scored two goals and added two assists to lead the Cougars to a 4-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Witala tied the game 1-1 at 4:09 of the first period and later closed out the scoring with his 30th goal, at 15:35 of the third. . . . After Witala’s first goal, Cougars D Josh Connolly scored twice, at 19:10 of the first and 1:20 of the second. He’s got 11 goals. . . . The Cougars got three assists from F Jansen Harkins and two from F Zach Pochiro. . . . F Brayden Point scored his 27th goal of the season for Moose Jaw. . . . Moose Jaw G Brody Willms stopped F Jari Erricson on a penalty shot with 49 seconds left in the second period. . . . Willms finished with 25 saves, seven fewer than Prince George’s Ty Edmonds. . . . The Warriors were 0-for-5 on the PP; the Cougars were 0-for-1. . . . The Cougars improved to 24-33-4. . . . The Warriors (24-31-5) went 3-3-1 on a seven-game road swing while the Canadian women’s curling championship was being decided in their home arena. . . .

In Vancouver, G Payton Lee stopped 33 shots as the Giants got past the Kamloops Blazers, 1-0. . . . F Dakota Odgers scored the game’s only goal, his fourth, at 4:44 of the second period. . . . Kamloops G Connor Ingram stopped 21 shots. . . . Vancouver was 0-for-1 on the PP; Kamloops never had an opportunity. . . . Lee has three shutouts this season and five for his career. . . . The Giants improved to 26-31-3. . . . The Blazers (22-33-6) have lost four in a row. . . . After the game, Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province tweeted that Giants F “Dalton Sward left in the 2nd with a hand injury and was getting X-rays afterwards, according to coach Claude Noel.” . . .

In Spokane, G Wyatt Hoflin turned aside 29 shots as the Kootenay Ice dumped the Chiefs, 5-0. . . . Hoflin has three shutouts this season. . . . F Jon Martin’s seventh goal, at 8:41 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . The Ice got two goals from each of F Luke Philp, who has 26, and F Jaedon Descheneau, who has 27. . . . Philp also had an assist. . . . F Austin Vetterl and F Sam Reinhart each had two assists. . . . The Ice roster now includes four 25-goal men. . . . The Ice (31-27-2), which won four of five from Spokane, is 3-0-1 in its last four. . . . The Chiefs (27-27-4), who have been blanked six times since Jan. 17, have lost three in a row. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., the Calgary Hitmen unleashed a season-high 55-shot attack as they beat the Tri-City Americans, 7-2. . . . The Americans scratched G Eric Comrie, who apparently was injured on Friday night, and G Evan Sarthou, so gave emergency backup Casey Kaiser, a 19-year-old from Richland, Wash., his first WHL start; in fact, it was his first WHL appearance. . . . Calgary had a 19-3 edge in first-period shots but didn’t score until F Jake Virtanen solved Kaiser with 7.2 seconds left. . . . The Hitmen opened the second period with three goals in 5:14. . . . Virtanen, who has 16 goals, also had two assists. . . . D Jake Bean scored his fourth goal and added two assists for Calgary, while D Travis Sanheim had three assists. . . . Calgary F Adam Tambellini scored his 41st goal and had an assist, while F Connor Rankin, who played the first 244 games of his WHL career with Tri-City, got his 28th goal and added an assist. . . . F Elliott Peterson also had a goal, his 10th, and an assist for the Hitmen. . . . The Hitmen (36-18-5) have won four in a row. They are 2-0-0 on an 11-game road trip. . . . The Americans are 27-30-3. . . .

In Victoria, F Taylor Crunk scored twice and F Logan Fisher had four assists to help the Royals to a 5-2 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . One night earlier, the Rockets had beaten the host Royals 3-2, with F Leon Draisaitl breaking a 2-2 tie in the last minute of the third period. . . . Last night, the teams were 1-1 going into the third period. . . . F Brandon Magee broke the tie with his 17th goal at 6:39 and F Jack Walker got his 16th goal at 8:04. . . . Crunk provided more insurance with his second of the game and eighth of the season at 14:07. . . . Draisaitl scored his 11th goal, on a PP, at 17:00 to get the Rockets to within two, but Royals D Travis Brown got an empty-netter at 17:37. He’s got 17 goals. . . . Victoria G Justin Paulic stopped 31 shots, three fewer than Kelowna’s Michael Herringer. . . . The Royals (33-23-4) had lost their previous two games. . . . The Rockets (46-10-4) had a four-game winning streak snapped. . . . These teams will meet again Wednesday, this time in Kelowna.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES

(all times local)
Medicine Hat at Edmonton, 1 p.m.
Lethbridge at Everett, 4:05 p.m.

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

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