The WHL’s arena advisory committee’s next meeting is scheduled for August, at which time, Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports, commissioner Ron Robison is going to recommend that all WHL facilities install acrylic glass. . . . The glass has been installed in the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon at a cost of, uhh, $350,000. In Saskatoon’s case, the province kicked in $250,000 with the city good for 100 grand.
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Meanwhile, Nugent-Bowman also reports that WHL fans are going to be able to watch On the Edge: Road to the Memorial Cup on Sportsnet as a lead-up to the 2013 tournament that is to be played in Saskatoon. It sounds like it’s all but a done deal, with the show to be patterned after 24/7, the show HBO has done that leads fans into the NHL’s Winter Classic. . . . The difference being that 24/7 deals with professional adults, not with teenagers. . . . Two questions, if you’re a parent: 1. Do you want your child as a subject of such a show?; 2. If such a show goes ahead and you child is on it, would you like to see some cash coming his way?
Nugent-Bowman’s story is right here. . . . Would have loved to have had a show like this around when Lorne Molleken, the Blades’ GM/head coach, was playing for the Winnipeg Clubs. Could have called it Full Mooner over Winnipeg. Now that would have been a ratings hit.
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The Edmonton Oilers have hired one of hockey’s good guys to replace another of the good guys. Rick Carriere has been named senior director of player development, replacing the retired Billy Moores. . . . Carriere, 53, was the GM of the Medicine Hat Tigers (2000-04) and scouted for them through last season. He also served as a head coach with the Tigers and Red Deer Rebels. . . . It was Carriere who took the bullets when the Tigers bottomed out, but, Mama, look at them now. The decision to rebuild through the draft and put the faith in the scouting staff has paid off in a full house night after night. . . . Carriere has been teaching at Vimy Ridge Academy in Edmonton. . . . Interestingly, Carriere played for Moores with the U of A Golden Bears in the early 1980s. . . . Moores will remain with the Oilers, as a consultant in the player development area.
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More WHLers off to NHL development camps. . . . The Philadelphia Flyers have added F Mitch Elliot (Seattle), F Austin Fyten (Vancouver), F Cole Grbavac (Medicine Hat), D Matt Konan (Medicine Hat) and D Justin Hamonic (Tri-City). . . . Hamonic’s name also appears on the camp roster for the Toronto Maple Leafs and I’m told that he will attend both development camps. It sounds something like a rock star on tour. No? Here’s hoping he keeps a diary as there might be a good book there. . . . F Adam Hughesman (Tri-City) will join the Maple Leafs. . . . D Joey Leach (Kootenay) is going camping with the Winnipeg Jets, while F Trevor Cheek (Calgary) is headed for the Carolina Hurricanes. . . . F Taylor Peters (Portland) will camp out with the Florida Panthers. . . . G Mackenzie Skapski (Kootenay) is to join the Minnesota Wild.
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F Max Moline, 19, won’t be back with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, deciding instead to attend the U of Lethbridge. Moline, who is from Lethbridge, began his career with the Tri-City Americans and finished with the Hurricanes. However, injuries limited him to 75 games, during which he earned eight points, two of them goals. . . . He got some publicity last season when his fiancee, Kaylee Lyon, gave birth to Ronald James Winston Moline in January.
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The San Francisco Bulls are getting closer to their debut in the ECHL. Their first player, Czech F Peter Sivak, was introduced to fans on Thursday. Oldtimers may be incredulous to learn that the Bulls will play, yes, in the Cow Palace, which apparently has had something of a makeover.
Steve Langsam of the Martinez News-Gazette has more right here.
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The Vancouver Giants have hired Alex Grebenyuk as their new director of media relations and broadcasting, which means he will be the team’s play-by-play voice. For the last four seasons, he has been the radio voice of the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials. Grebenyuk replaces Dan Elliott, who was dropped after last season and now is at his alma mater, the U of British Columbia, as the manager of media relations.
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After five seasons in the ownership game, the Okanagan Hockey Academy is unloading the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. The OHA has reached an agreement with the Port Alberni Junior Hockey Society that will have 100 per cent of the franchise change hands. Ron Rauch of the Victoria Times Colonist has more right here.
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The UBC Hornets minor hockey coach who got caught on video tripping an opposing player? It seems that he is going to live in infamy because all signs point to this incident become a teaching moment for minor hockey coaches. Sarah Boesveld of the National Post has more right here. And if you haven’t there’s a link to the video there, too.
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THE COACHING GAME:
D.J. Smith is the new head coach of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals. . . . He has been with the Windsor Spitfires since 2005, first as assistant and then associate coach. . . . Smith, a defenceman, played for the Spitfires before going on to a pro career that included stints with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Colorado Avalanche. His playing career was halted by post-concussion syndrome. . . . Smith takes over from Gary Agnew, who was dropped in April. . . .
Former NHLer Rick Vaive is getting into the coaching game. He is taking over as head coach of the minor midget AAA Oakville Rangers, a team that comprises 1997-born players. Vaive, 53, is a longtime resident of Oakville, Ont. He has pro coaching experience in the ECHL (East Carolina Stingrays), AHL (Saint John Flames) and OHL (Mississauga IceDogs). He also has coached minor hockey, and once had a team whose roster included Jeff Skinner and Tyler Seguin, both of who now are NHLers.

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Hurricane warning for ISC tonight

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor

It is time to clean out the notebook as the Kamloops Blazers get ready to entertain the Lethbridge Hurricanes tonight at Interior Savings Centre . . .
THE SCHEDULE: The Hurricanes are 17-29-1 and struggling to get back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture. They are 12 points out of a playoff spot, so it’s unlikely that they will get there, especially in the loser-point era.
The Blazers (31-10-3) go in having won six in a row, including the first three on this four-game homestand. They are three points behind the Tri-City Americans (34-10-0), who lead the overall standings. The Blazers lead the B.C. Division by 11 points over the Vancouver Giants, who lost 6-3 to the visiting Hurricanes last night.
The Hurricanes, who got two goals and three assists from F Philip Tot last night, are the fourth of the WHL’s weak sisters to face the Blazers since Jan. 1. Kamloops beat the Prince George Cougars three times, and also dumped the Seattle Thunderbirds and Everett Silvertips in that stretch.
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THE MASSEY RATINGS: If you are interested in a statistical analysis of the WHL and its teams, visit www.masseyratings.com.
This website rates the WHL’s 22 teams, taking into account such things as estimated team strength, offence, defence, home-ice advantage and strength of schedule.
The Blazers went into last night’s game ranked No. 2, behind the Americans. Kamloops is ranked highly in all categories except home-ice advantage (11th) and strength of schedule (20th).
The Blazers are 17-6-0 at home. And, as mentioned earlier, they have played some of the poorer teams of late, which has resulted in the strength of schedule ranking.
Interestingly, the Americans are ranked 21st in strength of schedule, with the Portland Winterhawks, who are third overall in the Massey Ratings, at No. 19.
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ROAD, SWEET ROAD: The Blazers are making their points on the road, where they are 14-4-3, for a WHL-best .738 winning percentage. And that is easily the league’s top road record, with the Tri-City Americans next at .652. . . . There are five teams with better home winning percentages than Kamloops (17-6-0, .739). The Americans (19-2-0, .905) are No. 1. . . . After tonight’s game, Kamloops will have 12 home games remaining on its schedule and 15 away from home. . . . This is the Blazers’ last home game in January. They will play five road games before returning home to meet the Spokane Chiefs on Feb. 1.
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POWERING UP: The Blazers are 2-for-15 on the power play over their last three games. So what’s up? “I don’t think we shoot enough,” head coach Guy Charron said after Saturday’s 5-2 victory over the Everett Silvertips at ISC. “We have good puck movement. Our timing is off as far as when to shoot and when not to shoot. When we should shoot we pass and when we should pass we shoot.”
Charron said the recent lack of success isn’t a “big concern” because “I think we have the players to make it a successful power play.”
Left-winger Tim Bozon, who scored twice against Everett, including once on a power-play unit that went 1-for-5, also is of the opinion that more shots are needed.
“We need more one-two passes and shoot,” Bozon said, adding that the Blazers also need to do a better job of getting bodies to the front of the opposition’s net in those situations.
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THE GOALTENDER: Cole Cheveldave is scheduled to start in goal for the Blazers tonight. This will be his seventh straight start and his 23rd in the last 25 games.
Since being a healthy scratch four times in the season’s first seven games, Cheveldave, 18, has started 30 of the club’s 37 games. He is 23-5-3, 2.39, .916.
Cheveldave has played 1,905 minutes, which is closing in on the 2,521 minutes he played last season with the AJHL’s Drumheller Dragons. He was the AJHL’s rookie of the year after going 16-20 with six ties, 2.90, .917.
Cam Lanigan, who backs up Cheveldave, hasn’t played since Dec. 30 when he started a 6-3 loss to the visiting Calgary Hitmen. Lanigan is 7-4-0, 3.26, .882.
After tonight, the Blazers go to Kent, Wash., for a Friday night engagement with the Thunderbirds. You have to wonder if Lanigan will get that start, with Cheveldave going Saturday against the host Americans.
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MR. MOM: Lethbridge F Max Moline, who turns 19 on Jan. 30, and his fiancee, Kaylee Lyon, became parents on Sunday when Ronald James Winston Moline was born at 1:05 a.m. . . . Moline, who was acquired from the Tri-City Americans for a conditional 2012 fifth-round draft pick, is from Lethbridge. He has played three games this season but hasn’t played since Sept. 30 and the WHL’s latest injury report lists him as being out for at least another month with a lower body injury.
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JUST NOTES: Game time is 7 p.m. . . . Lethbridge G Damien Ketlo made his 13th straight start Saturday as the Hurricanes lost 4-2 in Prince George. Last night, the Hurricanes gave Liam Liston his first start since Dec. 6 and he made 38 saves in winning in Vancouver. . . . Kamloops F Chase Schaber has scored six game-winning goals, leaving him one off the WHL lead held by F Emerson Etem of the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . F Brendan Ranford, Schaber’s long-time linemate, has five winners. . . . Bozon is on a seven-game point streak, with 12 points, six of them goals, in that stretch. . . . Colin Smith, who centres Bozon and J.C. Lipon, is the WHL’s player of the  week. He had seven points, including three goals, and was plus-6 as the Blazers went 3-0-0 last week. . . . F J.T. Barnett, whom the Blazers dealt to Everett on Nov. 14, has had his season ended by a knee injury. Barnett, 19, played here Saturday despite tweaking a knee while doing some pregame stretching. It turns out that he tore a lateral collateral ligament in one knee. . . . D Brad Lukowich, who spent three seasons (1993-96) with the Blazers, played in his 1,000th professional game Monday as his Texas Stars dropped a 2-0 AHL decision to the host Rockford IceHogs. . . . G Braden Krogfoss of the Vancouver North West Giants is the B.C. Major Midget league’s player of the month for December. Krogfoss, a seventh-round selection by the Blazers in the 2010 bantam draft, was 3-0-0 with a 0.33 GAA and two shutouts last month. He is from Cloverdale.

The Spokane Chiefs have dealt D Tyler Vanscourt, 19, to the Prince Albert Raiders in exchange for G Luke Lee-Knight, 18, and a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft.
(Note that the news release from the Raiders refers to the draft pick as conditional; the news release from the Chiefs doesn’t use the word conditional.)
Lee-Knight, who was listed by the Raiders in January 2011, was 7-7-7, 2.56, .912 with the midget AAA Calgary Royals last season. He got into two exhibition games with the Raiders, going 4.00, .886 in 60 minutes of action.
Vanscourt was a seventh-round selection by the Kootenay Ice in the 2007 bantam draft. He had 23 points, including four goals, and 49 penalty minutes in 57 games with the Chiefs last season.
"This trade was dictated by our abundance of young defensemen ready to take the step and play in the WHL," Spokane GM Tim Speltz said in a news release. "It strengthens our draft position, which is always important, and also strengthens our goaltending position."
At the same time, the Chiefs released G Jacob Edwards, 19, who is from Calgary.
They now are carrying 26 players, including three goaltenders and nine defencemen.
Joining Lee-Knight in the crease are veteran Mac Engel, 18, and newcomer Zach Rakochy, 18, who is from Canora, Sask.
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The Calgary Hitmen have traded D Kyle Schmidt, 18, to the Saskatoon Blades for a fourth-round pick in the 2013 bantam draft.
Schmidt, from Waldheim, Sask., is a right-hand shot, something for which teams often are searching. He had 10 points, three of them goals, and 74 penalty minutes in 65 games with Calgary last season.
The Blades’ roster is at 26, including two goaltenders and seven defencemen.
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The Tri-City Americans have dealt F Max Moline, 18, to the Lethbridge Hurricanes for a conditional fifth-rounder in the 2013 bantam draft.
The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Moline, who is from Lethbridge, had four points and 42 penalty minutes in 53 games with the Americans last season. He was a fifth-round pick by the Americans in the 2008 bantam draft.
“Max is a quality kid and this move will allow him to play closer to home in front of his family and friends,” Bob Tory, the Americans’ GM, said in a news release.
Moline should be in the Lethbridge lineup for games tonight against the Kootenay Ice and Saturday against the Calgary Hitmen in the Crowsnest Pass, Alta. Those teams are taking part in the Thunder in the Pass preseason tournament to benefit Crowsnest Minor Hockey.
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D Josh Caron, 20, of the Kamloops Blazers has what the Minnesota Wild is calling a “minor injury” and is to see a doctor today.
Caron was with the Wild’s rookie team at the tournament in Traverse City, Mich., and is on Minnesota’s main camp roster. Caron travelled the same road last season and came out of it with an NHL contract. Thus, he is eligible to play in the Wild’s organization.
He also is one of three 20-year-olds on the Blazers’ roster, the others being D Bronson Maschmeyer and F Chase Schaber, who is the team captain and who was on the Edmonton Oilers’ rookie team that played in the Young Guns tournament in Penticton, B.C., this week.
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F Brett Hextall is in camp with the Phoenix Coyotes as he gets his first shot at helping the Hextalls become the NHL’s second four-generation family.
This will be worth watching.
Eons and eons ago I was in camp with the MJHL’s Portage Terriers when Bryan Hextall Sr. was their coach. The family patriarch has been a Hockey Hall of Famer since 1969. I also spent some time in the Brandon Wheat Kings’ camp a long, long time ago when Randy Hextall was there.
I would later cover the Wheat Kings when Ron Hextall, Brett’s father, was their starting goaltender. And, yes, Ron was a starting goaltender in every sense of the word — he was known to start things. Ron now is the Los Angeles Kings’ assistant general manager.
I also got to know Ron’s father, Bryan Jr., who split 549 NHL games and 99 goals between six teams.
And let’s not forget Dennis, Bryan Jr.’s brother, who scored 153 goals in 681 NHL games and was as tough as they came. He finished with 1,398 PMs.
Rick, another brother, didn’t get to the NHL but he did play pro for a handful of seasons.
It’s worth noting that the Hextall clan will gather in Poplar Point, Man., which is where it all began, early in 2013. There will be a celebration from Feb. 1-3.
The Detroit Red Wings alumni team will be there to play against the Poplar Point Alumni in a fund-raiser for the local community club.
Anyway . . . Brett, who played three seasons at North Dakota, was in action on Wednesday night against the Kings (yes, Ron was in the stands) and Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times was there. Her report is right here.
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Greg Meachem, the sports editor of the Red Deer Advocate, reports:
“Veteran Adam Kambeitz returned to the Rebels Wednesday after attending the Phoenix Coyotes rookie camp, while fellow forward John Persson is expected back Saturday from the rookie camp of the New York Islanders.
“Forward Turner Elson and defencemen Alex Petrovic and Justin Weller will attend the main camps of the Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers and Coyotes, respectively, starting this weekend. All three are expected to be back with the Rebels before the team’s regular-season opener Sept. 23 versus the defending league champion Kootenay Ice.
“Byron Froese, a Chicago Blackhawks prospect, will at least start the season in the AHL and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will be given every chance to earn regular employment with the Edmonton Oilers as the first overall pick in June’s NHL entry draft.”
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Despite what you may have seen or heard — Vancouver’s Tom Gaglardi gets an NHL team, read the headline on one website — Vancouver’s Tom Gaglardi doesn’t own the Dallas Stars.
Not yet, anyway.
Gaglardi, the majority owner of the Kamloops Blazers, has been in hot pursuit of the NHL franchise for at least a year now. And, finally, it would appear that the end is near.
First, though, things have to go through bankruptcy court in Delaware, after which there is likely to be an auction.
As Kate Hairopoulos writes in the Dallas Morning News:
“The bankruptcy plan allows for a court-supervised auction of the sale, so Gaglardi’s offer is subject to higher bids.”
Why Delaware? As Hairopoulous notes: “Delaware is known as an efficient place to do bankruptcy business.”
Her complete story is right here and is a must read if you want to know the latest in this long, drawn-out saga.
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It seems G Deven Dubyk, 20, was rather surprised when to learn he had been claimed on waivers by the Moose Jaw Warriors. Darren Steinke of the Medicine Hat News has that story right here.
———JUST NOTES: F Jason Swyripa of the Brandon Wheat Kings didn’t practise on Thursday after taking a hit to the head during a 4-0 loss to the Pats in Regina on Wednesday night. Regina F Michael Jung was given a major penalty for checking to the head. A suspension may follow. . . . The Alberni Valley News reports that F Sawyer Mick has had to end his hockey career because of a shoulder injury. According to the newspaper, he “will instead pursue a new career as a firefighter. Mick is enrolled in a three-month firefighting course at Kilgore College in Kilgore, Texas. After Mick completes the course, he will participate in a two-week practicum en route to becoming a firefighter.” . . .
Larry Mitchell, the dean of St. Albert, drops a note to let us know that D Landan Viveiros, who will turn 18 on Oct. 25, is in camp with the AJHL’s St. Albert Steel. His brother, Layne, 16, is with the Portland Winterhawks. Their father, Emanuel, was a star defenceman with the Prince Albert Raiders back in the day and was named head coach of the Austrian national team earlier this week. . . . Tri-City F Adam Hughesman returned from the camp of the NHL’s New York Islanders to score two goals Thursday night and help the Americans to a 5-1 victory over the visiting Spokane Chiefs. Hughesman also had an assist. . . .
The Victoria Royals have released F Blair Wentworth, 19, who spent the last three seasons with the Chilliwack Bruins. He had 14 points and 132 penalty minutes in 149 regular-season games. “We have a lot of 16 and 17 year olds and we’re building with those young guys. Our strength is in our youth,” Royals GM/head coach Marc Habscheid told Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist. “(Cutting a veteran like Wentworth) is one of the most difficult things to do. But it’s part of the business. And the only constant in this business is change. Blair is a great kid and hopefully he can catch on with another (WHL) team or with a team in Junior A.” . . .
Former WHLer Josh Holden (Regina, 1994-98) has drawn an eight-game suspension in the Swiss National League A. He plays for Zug and was penalized for a hit to the head of Christian Dube of SC Bern. Holden was hit hard because he is a repeat offender. . . .
F Wheaton King, 19, has been released by the Medicine Hat Tigers and will return to the SJHL’s Kindersley Klippers. King had 11 points in 38 games with the Wheat Kings last season and 15 points in 16 games with the Klippers. . . . The Everett Silvertips got F Tyler Maxwell, 20, back from the Minnesota Wild’s rookie team that was in the Traverse City, Mich., tournament, while the Vancouver Canucks returned F Ryan Harrison. Everett F Josh Birkholz move on to the Florida Panthers’ main camp. . . . The Edmonton Oilers have returned G Adam Brown, 20, to the Kelowna Rockets. However, the Minnesota Wild have taken Kelowna D Colton Jobke and F Brett Bulmer on to main camp. The Rockets also got D Jessey Astles back from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From F Cody Beach of the Moose Jaw Warriors, who is in camp with the NHL’s St. Louis Blues: “physicals done, finally got to eat after 7 hours of no food. Pretty interesting places the doctor went, dont want to get into details #yikes”

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