Whoa! Check out that third sweater . . . Warriors talking mental health awareness . . . Raiders add veteran forward

F Martin Filo (Moose Jaw, 2007-09) signed a one-year contract with Dukla Trenčín (Slovakia, Extraliga). Filo had been released last week by Unia Oświęcim (Poland, Ekstraliga) without playing a game.
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I don’t get too excited over the third sweaters that are trotted out on a regular basis by sporting teams in this day and age. The novelty has long since worn off.
But every once in a while one comes along that catches my eye and makes me say: Whoa!
The Prince Albert Raiders have come up with just such a sweater, one that they trot out on Nov. 7 against the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds, which is only fitting. Seattle is the only WHL city that also is home to a Major League Baseball team, and Conexus Baseball Night will definitely have a baseball theme.
Thus the baseball-themed sweaters.
The Raiders will wear these sweaters and they will be auctioned off live right after the game. Proceeds will go to the Raiders education fund.
A special guest in the person of former MLB pitcher Jack Morris will be on hand, too.
According to a Raiders news release: “The entire night will revolve around baseball! We will be playing some baseball themed music, having special promotions, hot dogs will be on sale in the concessions and we encourage fans to wear their baseball jerseys!”
Morris will be in Prince Albert as he is scheduled to be the guest speaker at the Kinsmen Sportsman Dinner on Nov. 8 in the Art Hauser Centre.
BTW, the Victoria Royals will get into the third sweater act tonight as they open a Friday-Saturday doubleheader against the visiting Vancouver Giants. Just a hunch, but I’m thinking black might figure in the Royals’ new-look colour scheme.
The Royals, who are opening a five-game homestand, are coming off a six-game road trip that produced four victories. Earlier this season, the Giants twice beat the Royals, 3-1 and 5-3, in Vancouver.
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A tip of the hat to the Moose Jaw Warriors for the work involving mental health awareness that the organization is doing. Donna Boyer, the Moose Jaw branch director with the Canadian Mental Health Association, held a three-hour presentation for the Warriors on Tuesday, dealing at length with the safeTALK program. In attendance were players, billet families and the team’s staff. Katie Brickman of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald has more right here.
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What the Moose Jaw Warriors are doing is terribly important as we work hard to increase mental health awareness in all corners of our society. . . . “I think, first and foremost, we just wanted them to understand that they can talk,” Alan Millar, the Warriors’ general manager, told Brickman. “There are people within the organization and people outside the organization that if for any reason they are overwhelmed or not feeling right or anything that there are people to talk to. I think the education is about eliminating that stigma that you hide from it.” . . . While the OHL has partnered with the Canadian Mental Health Association on a program called Talk Today, the WHL appears to be content to allow individual teams to address the situation. In Prince George, the Cougars are working with Dr. Saul Miller, a long-time performance consultant and mental coach. He is in daily contact with Cougars head coach Mark Holick and deals individually with players. If Holick feels a player is acting out of character, he is quick to inform Dr. Miller, who has a PhD in clinical psychology. He is available to players on a 24/7 basis and the emphasis is definitely not on game performance.
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The Prince Albert Raiders have added veteran F Marcus Messier, 20, to their roster. Messier’s arrival gives the Raiders three 20-year-olds as he fills the spot that opened up when F Dakota Conroy left the team and was placed on the suspended list. . . . Messier, from Canmore, Alta., also has played with the Tri-City Americans and Spokane Chiefs. He played two games with the Chiefs this season before getting caught up in the 20-year-old game and being released. In 229 regular-season games, he has 67 points, including 26 goals. Messier was a second-round selection by the Americans in the WHL’s 2009 bantam draft.
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The Kootenay Ice is struggling to score goals; in fact, they are the second lowest-scoring team in the WHL. So they really are looking forward to the return of F Tim Bozon, something that is supposed to happen tonight against the visiting Calgary Hitmen. . . . Taylor Rocca of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman has more right here.
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Daniel Nugent-Bowman, who covers the WHL and the Saskatoon Blades for the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, takes a look right here at the fallout from the class-action lawsuit that was filed against the CHL on Oct. 17. “Combine the unexpected news with rumblings of a players’ union that re-emerged this summer,” he writes, “and there appears to be at least some appetite for systematic change.” However, as he points out, people need to be careful what they wish for.
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The Regina Pats are averaging 3,642 fans through six home games. The franchise’s new owners would like to see more bums in the seats, but they aren’t about to push the panic button. "We have a long-term plan. It's early. We're still learning ourselves,” Anthony Marquart, the president of Queen City Sports and Entertainment Group, tells Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post right here. "(But) we're committed to doing our best to put the best product on the ice and improve the game-day experience. Over time I'm confident we'll have more people coming to the games."
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Chico Resch, one of hockey’s good guys, will be honoured tonight by the New Jersey Devils. Resch, who was born in Moose Jaw, was a long-time member of the Devils’ broadcast crew before retiring after last season. There was a time back in the day when he had a stint as the head coach of the WHL’s Tri-City Americans. . . . Rich Chere of nj.com has more right here.
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Elliotte Friedman starts his weekly 30 Thoughts with a look at the value of young NHL defencemen. These days, it seems, a team can’t win a Stanley Cup without one. Friedman’s piece is right here.
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In case you missed it, the Toronto Blue Jays have raised the price of most of their season-ticket packages. The announcement was made on Thursday. Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star has that story right here. Two questions: 1. When will the price increases end, and I mean the cost of everything, from utilities to fruits and veggies to event tickets; and, 2. Rogers, which owns the Blue Jays, wouldn’t be using money from the Blue Jays to fund the 12-year NHL package, would it?
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Two of the highest-scoring teams in the WHL meet up tonight in Kamloops as the Blazers (8-5-1) entertain the Brandon Wheat Kings (9-2-1). The Blazers have scored 51 goals in 14 games, including seven in their last outing, a 7-2 victory over the visiting Vancouver Giants on Wednesday night. The Wheat Kings, who opened this road trip with a 7-4 victory over the Prince George Cougars on Wednesday, have scored 66 goals, including 25 in their last three games. . . . Kamloops F Cole Ully leads the WHL scoring race, with 22 points, including nine goals. Brandon F Rihards Bukarts has 20 points, seven of them goals, in 12 games. . . . Bruce Luebke, the radio voice of the Wheat Kings, tweeted yesterday that F John Quenneville, who has missed six games with an undisclosed injury, is back practising without any restrictions. . . . Join me on Twitter tonight if you want to follow along. . . .

An interesting tidbit from Neal’s Notes. Andy Neal, who works WHL games for Shaw-TV, was in Swift Current this week and chatted with Portland Winterhawks assistant coach Kyle Gustafson.
Neal writes that Gustafson “paid quite the compliment to (Brandon Wheat Kings D Kyle) Clague . . . saying he might be the best 16-year-old defenceman he’s ever seen. Remember, this comes from a coach who just had Derrick Pouliot to work with the last four years and was pretty impressive in his rookie year, too.”
Keep in mind, too, that Gustafson is into his 11th season on the Winterhawks’ coaching staff. . . .

Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald reports that Silvertips F Dawson Leedahl has “damage to the medial collateral ligament in his right knee and likely will need surgery which will sideline him for four to six months.” Leedahl, 18, was injured Saturday as the Silvertips bet the host Spokane Chierfs, 3-2, in overtime. . . .

F Dillon Dube of the Kelowna Rockets won’t be taking part in the U-17 World Hockey Challenge next month in Sarnia, Ont. Warren Henderson of the Kelowna Capital News reports that Dube suffered an undisclosed injury on Saturday during a 5-2 loss to the host Tri-City Americans. According to Henderson, Dube will be out for up to six weeks. He missed the start of the season with another injury and has only played in two games. . . .

The Saskatoon Blades have won five of their last six games and they’ll entertain the Lethbridge Hurricanes tonight. Saskatoon’s power-play is 6-for-11 over its last four games, three of which have been victories. . . . Saskatoon D Ryan Coghlan injured a shoulder during a fight on Wednesday night and won’t play tonight. . . .

Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province reported via Twitter on Thursday that Giants F Jakob Stukel (hand) “got some skating in on the side at the end” of the team’s practice. Stukel “avoided pucks,” according to Ewen, who added: “Still seems ways away.” . . .

The Regina Pats got their roster down to 23 on Thursday by releasing F Rylee Zimmer, 17, from their roster. He will join the MJHL’s WayWayseecappo Wolverines. Zimmer, from Russell, Man., had one goal in four games this season. He was pointless in 44 games last season. He was a fifth-round selection by the Pats in the 2012 bantam draft. . . . The Pats’ roster now includes 14 forwards and six defencemen, along with three goaltenders.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Billy McGuigan is back with the Maritime Hockey League’s Summerside Western Capitals. McGuigan has signed on as their head coach, replacing Tom Schurman who was fired earlier in the week. McGuigan was the Capitals’ head coach for two seasons before spending last season as an assistant coach with the WHL’s Regina Pats.

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The lawsuit facing the CHL is an absolute joke. So tired of kids and parents whining about not getting paid. Best years of your life.
— Brett Breitkreuz (@Bkreuz29) October 23, 2014

McVeigh's back with Blazers . . . Rockets a perfect 10!

F Martin Filo (Moose Jaw, 2007-09) has been released by Unia Oświęcim (Poland, Ekstraliga) by mutual agreement. He had yet to play this season. Last season, with Königsborner JEC Unna (Germany, Oberliga), he had 17 goals and 20 assists in 28 games.
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The Kamloops Blazers, with room on their roster for a third 20-year-old, have added F Logan McVeigh, who had been with the Regina Pats. . . . In getting down to three 20s, the Pats placed McVeigh on waivers and the Blazers claimed him. . . . McVeigh, from Kenaston, Sask., was a second-round pick by the Blazers in the WHL’s 2009 bantam draft. In 267 career games, he has 116 points, including 45 goals. . . . He also has played with the Prince Albert Raiders and Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . McVeigh’s arrival means the Blazers are carrying 25 players, including eight defencemen and 15 forwards. . . . He joins D Brady Gaudet and F Mike Winther, both also trade acquisitions, as the Blazers’ 20-year-olds. . . . McVeigh was in the lineup Friday night as the Blazers dropped a 3-0 decision to the Giants in Vancouver.
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F Andrew Johnson, 20, has joined the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors. Johnson, from Saskatoon, was dropped by the Swift Current Broncos as they got down to the 20-year-old limit of three on Wednesday. In 263 regular-season WHL games split between the Moose Jaw Warriors, Seattle Thunderbirds and Swift Current, he has 102 points, 44 of them goals.
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"Where are all the people who insisted that they would not attend another Regina Pats game until Russ Parker sold the WHL team?" writes Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post. "The Pats, who are now owned by a group led by Anthony Marquart, have routinely played before sub-4,000 crowds." . . . After five home games, the Pats are averaging 3,716 fans.
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I have to admit to being more than a little surprised to find out about the work the Vancouver Canucks have been doing to grow the game of hockey in China. With support from the Canucks, Aaron Wilbur, the managing director of the Coaches Site, and Michael Butler, program co-ordinator for BC Hockey, took part in hockey shools in Shenzhen and Shangai, Aug. 10-19. Wilbur, in fact, has been travelling to China and spreading the word for three years now. . . . For more, including photos and video, check this out right here.
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The Swift Current Broncos have scheduled an interesting game for Nov. 15. It’s be the Bronco alumni against the Calgary Flames Alumni, with faceoff set for 2 p.m.
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In Brandon, the Wheat Kings broke a 3-3 tie with five goals in the last nine minutes of the third period and beat the Swift Current Broncos, 8-3, on Friday night. . . . D Ivan Provorov, a 17-year-old freshman from Yaroslavl, Russia, had two goals and an assist for the Wheat Kings. He's got 11 points, four of them goals, in his first 10 games. . . . F Duncan Campbell, who is from Brandon, scored twice for the Wheat Kings, giving him three goals in his first season. . . . The Broncos were without F Jay Merkley (undisclosed injury), who has seven goals to date. . . .

In Moose Jaw, F Nic Petan drew three assists to lead the Portland Winterhawks to a 6-2 victory over the Warriors. . . . It was Portland's first game of a six-game East Division tour. . . . Petan was in the lineup after leaving Portland's previous game early, after a hit from Seattle D Evan Wardley that drew a seven-game suspension. Earlier Friday, Petan was named the Winterhawks' captain. . . . F Dominic Turgeon and F Oliver Bjorkstand each had two goals for Portland. Bjorkstrand, in his third season, has 181 points, including 87 goals, in 140 career regular-season games. . . . G Bolton Pouliot, picked up from Kamloops on Thursday, was on the Portland bench, backing up Brendan Burke. . . . Moose Jaw had been 5-0-1 in its last six games. . . . Warriors F Noah Gregor took a hit from Portland F Keegan Iverson early in the first period and left the game. He already has been ruled out of tonight's game in Swift Current. . . . D Blake Heinrich made his debut with the Winterhawks. He had been sidelined with a concussion. . . .

In Prince Albert, the Edmonton Oil Kings scored twice in the game's first 4:08 and went on to a 3-1 victory over the Raiders. . . . F Edgars Kulda scored twice for Edmonton, getting the winner at 4:08 of the first and adding an empty-netter late in the third. . . . Edmonton has won three straight games. . . . Kulda has scored in each of the three victories. . . . The Raiders had F Tim Vanstone in the lineup after he had missed the first eight games with an undisclosed injury. . . .

In Lethbridge, F Axel Blomqvist came back to bite his former team as he scored twice to help the Victoria Royals to a 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . Blomqvist, a 19-year-old Swede, was dealt to Victoria by Lethbridge last season. The Hurricanes acquired fourth- and eighth-round picks in the 2014 bantam draft in the deal. . . . Blomqvist, who has signed with the NHL's Winnipeg Jets, has three goals in six games. He sat out a few games with a suspected concussion. . . . The Royals broke a 2-2 tie with goals from F Tyler Soy and Blomqvist just 37 seconds apart early in the third. . . . Victoria D Joe Hicketts had two assists. He has 13 points in 10 games, after putting up 24 in 36 games in an injury-shortened sophomore season. He had 24 points in 67 games as a freshman. . . . The Hurricanes, now 1-7-1, have lost five straight. . . . The Royals had fallen behind 2-0 in each of the first four games of this six-game road trip that ends tonight against the Kootenay Ice. They were able to come back and win two of those games. . . . In this one, Victoria scored the game’s first two goals, then the Hurricanes came back to tie it. . . . Victoria F Austin Carroll had his eight-game goal streak snapped. . . . This was the Royals’ 12th game, meaning F Brandon Magee has served the 12-game suspension left over from a playoff game last season. . . .

In Cranbrook, G Wyatt Hoflin stopped 34 shots as the Kootenay Ice beat the Regina Pats, 1-0. . . . The shutout was the first of Hoflin's career. . . . D Troy Murray scored the game's only goal, on a PP 33 seconds into the second period. Murray, the younger brother of Columbus Blue Jackets D Ryan Murray, is from White City, Sask., just a stone's throw east of Regina. The goal was the first of the sophomore's WHL career and came in his 73rd regular-season game. . . . Regina had a 34-16 edge in shots. . . . Kootenay F Jon Martin returned after missing three games with an undisclosed injury, but F Tim Bozon didn‘t make his return due to an undisclosed injury. . . . The Ice played with 16 skaters, two under the maximum. Taylor Rocca of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman reported: "The Ice also went without defencemen Bryan Allbee and Dylan Overdyk, as well as forward Jared Legien. The trio missed Friday's game . . . due to team-imposed suspensions after violating team rules at Mount Baker High School earlier this week." . . . Rocca's game story is right here.

In Saskatoon, the Blades broke a 1-1 tie with two second-period goals and hung on for a 3-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Blades have won three in a row, after opening the season with six straight losses. . . . F Alex Forsberg and F Sam McKechnie each had a goal and an assist for Saskatoon. . . . Forsberg's goal was a shorthanded marker and ended up as the winner. . . . Saskatoon F Nick Zajac left in the third period with an undisclosed injury -- he took a check from Red Deer F Evan Polei -- and is doubtful for tonight's game against visiting Edmonton. . . . After the game, Brent Sutter, Red Deer’s GM and head coach, told the Red Deer Advocate: “Jeff (Rebels associate coach Truitt) said it best: ‘Right now we have a bunch of guys you’d like to take fishing, but they’re not going to battle like they need to.’ ” . . .

In Medicine Hat, F Adam Tambellini scored at 3:08 of OT to give the Calgary Hitmen a 2-1 victory over the Tigers. . . . It was Tambellini's sixth goal of the season. . . . Medicine Hat had a 40-21 edge in shots. . . . Tigers F Chad Butcher scored his eighth goal, forging a 1-1 tie at 9:58 of the third. . . . F Greg Chase had two assists for Calgary. . . . These same teams will meet tonight in Calgary. . . .

In Kent, Wash., the visiting Prince George Cougars ran their winning streak to four with a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Cougars G Ty Edmonds stopped 26 shots, losing his shutout bid when F Keegan Kolesar scored with less than one second remaining in the third period. . . . F Jansen Harkins had a goal, his third, and an assist for the Cougars, who got another goal from F Jari Erricson, his eighth. . . . Erricson, 20, missed all but three of last season’s games with a concussion. . . . F Jared Bethune was in the Cougars's lineup for the first time. Bethune, 17, left the USHL's Lincoln Stars to join the Cougars. According to Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen, Bethune “decided to make the jump to the WHL when he learned the Stars were about to trade him.” . . . Bethune drew an assist on the Cougars' second goal for his first WHL point. . . . The matchup between Seattle F Matt Barzal and Harkins drew 16 NHL scouts. . . .

In Spokane, the Kelowna Rockets ran their record to 10-0-0 with a 3-2 victory over the Chiefs. . . . G Jake Morrissey stopped 26 shots to pick up his first career victory. He‘s the younger brother of Prince Albert D Josh Morrissey. . . . The Rockets erased a 1-0 deficit with three straight goals. . . . D Riley Stadel gave Kelowna a 2-1 lead with his sixth goal, on the PP, 32 seconds into the second period, and D Madison Bowey made it 3-2 just 59 seconds later. . . . The Rockets lost F Dillon Dube with an undisclosed injury. He may not play tonight against the host Tri-City Americans. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., the host Tri-City Americans scored two shootout goals and beat the Everett Silvertips, 5-4. . . . D Parker Wotherspoon and F Vladislav Lukin had the Americans' shootout goals, negating one by Everett F Ivan Nikolishin. . . . The Silvertips have lost twice in OT and once in a shootout but have yet to lose in regulation time (5-0-3). . . . Everett D Cole MacDonald scored on his 19th birthday. He has three goals in seven games after scoring twice in 63 outings last season and twice in 60 games as a freshman in 2012-13. . . . The Americans will be at home to the unbeaten Kelowna Rockets tonight. . . . Tri-City head coach Mike Williamson will work his 900th WHL game tonight. Williamson, 41, also has been head coach in Portland and Calgary. . . . Told that it would be No. 900, he told Annie Fowler of the Tri-City Herald: “I didn’t know that. It just makes me feel old. For anyone, it’s a great league to be associated with. It’s a privilege. I’m just excited to still be able to go out and work with these players.” . . . According to Fowler, Williamson’s record is 433-378-36-20, with 31 ties. . . .

In Vancouver, G Payton Lee stopped 23 shots to help the Giants to a 3-0 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . It was Lee's first shutout of the season and the third of his career. . . . The game marked the return to Vancouver of former head coach Don Hay. He spent 10 seasons with the Giants before leaving over the summer for Kamloops, where he again is head coach of the Blazers. . . . Vancouver D Dmitry Osipov scored the game's first goal, his first of the season, on a second-period PP. . . . F Tyler Benson got his third goal of the season on a third-period PP. . . . Former Prince George Cougars Brett Connolly, now with the Tampa Bay Lightning, was in the house. His brother, Josh, is a defenceman with the Blazers. The Lightning meets the Canucks in Vancouver tonight.

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"A" for effort "D" for spelling "A+ for Freudian slip #WHL #winnerhawks pic.twitter.com/O0Z2W1jbwu
— CellPhones&PlaneTix (@hawkeyblog) October 17, 2014

Colby Armstrong off to Sweden

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Colby Armstrong (Red Deer, 1998-2002) signed a one-year contract with Växjö Lakers (Sweden, SHL). He had two goals and three assists in 37 games with the Montreal Canadiens (NHL) last season. . . .
F Martin Filo (Moose Jaw, 2007-09) signed a one-year contract with Königsborner JEC Unna (Germany, Oberliga). He had one goal and four assists in 26 games with Dukla Trencin (Slovakia, Extraliga) last season.
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Jerome Bechard was a fierce competitor through four seasons (1986-90) with the Moose Jaw Warriors. He put up 238 points in 284 regular-season games. He also piled up 880 penalty minutes. He has been in Columbus, Ga., since 1996, first as a player with the Cottonmouths and now as the general manager and head coach. On June 6, Bdchard underwent open-heart surgery. Things went well and he now is recuperating and preparing for another season. . . . Kathy Gierer of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer has more right here.
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Lou Gehrig was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 1939. Unfortunately, he was dying of ALS and too ill to be there. What might he have said in his acceptance speech? Jonathan Eig, the author of Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig, tries to answer that question right here.


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