The American Academy of Neurology has changed the way its members will look at concussions. Rather than attempting to group concussions or grade them, the AAN has said that every concussion should be treated on an individual basis.
The New York Times has more right here.
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Paul Buker of The Oregonian has spoken with Mike Johnston, the suspended general manager and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks.
Early on in the piece, Buker writes:
“Johnston was certainly devastated and shocked by what happened, but he dealt with it, showing the same class and character that has made him so highly respected in the hockey world.
“Johnston remains hopeful he will be able to fully plead his case, and the franchise remains hopeful the penalties will be reduced.
“There has been no comment from the WHL office, which wants to keep the process private.”
Every single person in the WHL, including, I am told, the commissioner, is under a gag order when it comes to Winterhawkgate.
But despite the WHL’s obvious hopes that this whole thing will go away, it isn’t going anywhere. And when hockey people who aren’t involved with the WHL talk about this situation, one thing amazes them more than anything else: There are no grounds for appeal.
And, as Buker points out, Johnston was suspended for the remainder of this season and has yet to be able to “fully plead his case.”
Buker’s piece is right here.
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The Kelowna Rockets revealed yesterday that F Colton Sissons, the team captain, will be out for up to 12 weeks with an “upper body injury” that is believed to be a shoulder problem.
Sissons left a 6-2 victory over the Giants in Vancouver on Friday night. He had one arm in a sling at the Rockets’ awards bash on Sunday evening.
Sissons missed 10 games with a concussion earlier in the season, an injury that caused him to miss the Canadian national junior team’s December selection camp in Calgary. The Rockets went 8-2-0 while Sissons was injured.
On Sunday, Sissons was named the team’s MVP and top defensive forward.
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F Michael Ferland, who missed the last five games of the regular season with an undisclosed injury, was back on the ice with the Saskatoon Blades on Monday. He is expected to play in Thursday’s opener against the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers.

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The Prince Albert Raiders have brought in G Nick McBride, 15, for the remainder of their season. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound McBride, a second-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, played for the major midget Vancouver-North East Chiefs, going 12-7-0, 3.74.
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Phil Andrews, the radio voice of the Regina Pats, tweeted Monday evening that F Lane Scheidl of the Regina Pats has signed with the Worcester Sharks, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. . . . Scheidl, 20, is a native of Saskatoon. Despite the fact the Pats didn't qualify for the playoffs, Scheidl had a terrific season, earning 80 points, including 41 goals, in 72 games.

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The Saskatoon Blades have signed three players — F Austin Adamson, F Cameron Hebig and Clayton Kirichenko. . . . Adamson, a list player, spent this season with the major midget Vancouver Canadians. . . . Hebig was the Blades’ first pick in the 2012 bantam draft, taken in the third round, 56th overall. He played with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. . . . Kirichenko, a seventh-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft, played the last two seasons with t the midget AAA Sherwood Park, Alta., Kings. He also got into 10 games with the AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints.
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The WHL’s first-round playoff matchups:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Swift Current (6)
Red Deer (4) vs Prince Albert (5)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Everett (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Spokane (4) vs. Tri-City (5)
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 Shaw TV will show the first-round Eastern Conference series between the No. 2-seed Saskatoon Blades and No. 7 Medicine Hat Tigers.
You are going to get play-by-play from Dan Russell, with analysis from Bill Wilms. Peter Loubardias will be the rink-side host. Andy Neal will be the host of WHL Central.
Here’s the schedule (all times local):
Game 1, Thursday, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Game 2, Friday, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Game 3, Tuesday, March 26, at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
Game 4, Wednesday, March 27, at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
x-Game 5, Friday, March 29, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
x-Game 6, Sunday, March 31, at Medicine Hat, 6 p.m.
x-Game 7, Tuesday, April 2, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
x — if necessary.


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By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
The Kamloops Blazers began serious preparations for their playoff opener on Monday.
The Blazers, who begin a first-round series with the visiting Victoria Royals on Friday, did it with centre Matt Needham on the ice and right-winger JC Lipon nowhere to be found.
Needham sat out the regular-season’s last 13 games with an undisclosed injury. Needham, who finished with 33 points, including 12 goals, in 15 games, last played on Feb. 15.
Yesterday, he was wearing a yellow (non-contact) jersey and looked to be skating easily as he centred Tim Bozon and Dylan Willick.
Needham, in his second WHL season, had shown terrific improvement as the winter wore on and had become one of the Blazers’ top defensive forwards and penalty-killers.
Lipon finished his fourth WHL season with 89 points, including 36 goals, in 61 games. He was ill yesterday  so was told to stay home to cut down on the risk of other players getting sick.
Lipon practised in yellow late last week and then sat out the last two regular-season games with what the team said was an “upper body injury.” Head coach Guy Charron said that Lipon ran the risk of aggravating his injury with contact and that the time off would be good for him.
With Lipon not skating, the Blazers had freshman Mitch Friesen in his spot alongside centre Brendan Ranford and Cole Ully. They also moved Chase Souto into Bozon’s spot with centre Colin Smith and Kale Kessy.
A fourth line featured Nick Chyzowski with Aaron Macklin and Josh Connolly.
Forward Deven Sideroff, who had a goal and an assist in his second WHL game, Saturday’s 7-0 victory over the Cougars in Prince George, has returned to his midget team at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton.
Centre Joe Kornelsen, who missed the last six games with a leg injury, was in Interior Savings Centre but didn’t skate. It is looking more and more like Kornelsen, a 19-year-old from Abbotsford who had 12 points in 60 games and provides experienced depth, won’t be ready to open against the Royals.
Victoria will be without centre Alex Gogolev, its leading scorer, after he underwent surgery to repair damage from a skate cut to his left leg.
Neither goaltender Patrik Polivka nor defenceman Tyler Stahl, both of whom have undisclosed injuries, practised yesterday. Both are expected to at least skate today.
Victoria forward Trent Lofthouse, who hasn’t played since Jan. 31, was out of the yellow jersey and back to full practice yesterday. Lofthouse, who was acquired from the Everett Silvertips during the season, is the son of former New Westminster Bruins star Mark Lofthouse.
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There are other WHL teams with some injury concerns, too.
The Kelowna Rockets revealed yesterday that centre Colton Sissons, their captain, will miss up to 12 weeks with what is believed to be a shoulder injury.
Sissons, a 19-year-old from North Vancouver, is their MVP and top defensive forward. He wasn’t able to finish Kelowna’s 6-2 victory over the host Giants on Friday night after being involved in a collision with Vancouver defenceman Mason Geertsen. Sissons had one arm in a sling at Kelowna’s awards banquet on Sunday.
Sissons, who had 67 points in 61 games, missed 10 games with a concussion earlier in the season, an injury that caused him to miss the Canadian national junior team’s December selection camp in Calgary. The Rockets went 8-2-0 while Sissons was injured.
The Rockets, the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, open against the No. 7 Seattle Thunderbirds in Kelowna on Friday night.
In Saskatoon, the Blades, the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed and the host team for the Memorial Cup, have played five games without winger Michael Ferland. However, he is back practising and should play Thursday when the Blades open at home against the Medicine Hat Tigers.
In Portland, the Winterhawks, who had the WHL’s best regular-season record, were without starting goaltender Mac Carruth, who didn’t finish a 4-1 victory in Victoria on March 12, for their last three games. But he skated lightly on Sunday and is expected to start Friday against the visiting Everett Silvertips.

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THE MacBETH REPORT:

F Oscar Möller (Chilliwack, 2006-08) signed a four-year contract extension with Skellefteå (Sweden, Elitserien). He has 12 goals and six assists in 22 games with Skellefteå this season. The contract ties Möller to Skellefteå through the 2016-17 season.
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The Saskatoon Blades will go hunting for a franchise record tonight and they’ll do it without F Michael Ferland. He’s been suspended for one game after taking a cross-checking major late in Wednesday’s 5-1 victory over the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Tonight, the Blades will be in search of their 14th straight victory when they take on the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings. This season’s team shares that record with the 1987-88 club that went from Feb. 14 to March 16 without losing. . . . Saskatoon goaltending coach Tim Cheveldave and assistant coach Curtis Leschyshyn both were on that 1987-88 team. Cheveldave was the starting goaltender; Leschyshyn was a defenceman.
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Ch-ch-ching! . . . Mike Stothers, the head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors, was touched up for $750 after being tossed from that Wednesday game in Saskatoon. . . . Stothers apparently was upset after Saskatoon GM/head coach Lorne Molleken put out his top PP unit with a 4-1 lead late in the third period. Molleken said he did that because Moose Jaw D Kendall McFaull had gotten overly physical with Saskatoon F Josh Nicholls.
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The Prince George Cougars have signed G Matt Kustra, who was an eighth round pick in the 2012 WHL bantam draft. Kustra, from Yorkton, Sask., plays for the midget AAA Notre Dame Hounds, who play out of Wilcox. Kustra has dressed as the backup to Mac Engel in each of the Cougars’ last three games.
The Cougars now have five goaltenders under contract, one from each birth year from 1993 through 1997 — in order, Engel, Devon Fordyce, Brett Zarowny, Ty Edmonds and Kustra. . . . A while back, the Cougars also signed G Tyler Santos, who was born in 1995, but they have since dropped him from their list.
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In a column on the hit by Vancouver Canucks F Jannik Hansen on Chicago Blackhawks F Marian Hossa, Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun touched on the NHL’s approach to contact with the head.
“If incidental head contact is cause for suspension,” Cole writes in Thursday’s Sun, “how is it possible for the league to continue to condone, even tacitly encourage, fighting, wherein two players punch each other repeatedly in the head, with nothing in mind other than intent to injure, and are given five minutes each, and remain in the game?
“This paradox, as we’ve noted many times before, cannot withstand any reasonable examination.
“If any point-of-first-contact head blow is cause for supplemental discipline, a participant in a fight has to be tossed out of the game, at minimum.
“I say this as someone who understands the fight-in-anger and even enjoys seeing a good, venomous scrap where a wronged party – or a more muscular teammate of his – is taking the required pound of flesh from the perpetrator of a dirty hit or a spear or a high stick. But then the combatants have to go.
“On the other hand, the staged, pre-meditated fight, off a faceoff — or three of them in a row, as in Vancouver-Dallas last week — is ridiculous, and the league should be embarrassed. Except the league is embarrass-proof.”
Cole’s complete column is right here.
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The matchups, if the WHL playoffs opened today:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Swift Current (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Medicine Hat (6)
Prince Albert (4) vs. Red Deer (5)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Everett (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Tri-City (4) vs. Spokane (5)
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THURSDAY’S GAMES:
No games scheduled.

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Travis Green, it seems, will be the man in Portland for the duration of this season.
Green began the season as the Winterhawks’ assistant general manager/assistant coach. He has been the interim GM/head coach since Nov. 28, which is when the WHL suspended Mike Johnston for the remainder of this season, including the playoffs.
You will recall that the Winterhawks, who were convicted of what most observers felt were minor rules violations, also were banned from the first five rounds of the 2013 bantam draft, lost first-round draft picks in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, and were fined $200,000.
The WHL held meetings in Las Vegas on Monday and Tuesday, during which the Winterhawks, with owner Bill Gallacher in attendance, made their case for some relief.
While there hasn’t yet been an announcement, I am told that there will be some relief, but none of it will involve the sentence handed to Johnston.
The Winterhawks apparently offered up apologies for what had transpired and expressed contriteness, all of which is expected to result in the reduction of some penalties but not Johnston’s reinstatement, not even for the playoffs.
Since Johnston was forced by the WHL to leave the team, the Winterhawks are 23-4-2, including last night’s 4-3 loss to the visiting Calgary Hitmen.
Still, the Winterhawks lead the WHL’s overall standings, by five points over the Kelowna Rockets and six over the Edmonton Oil Kings, are the only WHL team with a winning percentage above .800 (.824), and are the No. 1 team in the CHL’s weekly rankings.
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Having started a stretch of four games in five nights last night with a 5-0 victory over the visiting Kelowna Rockets, the Spokane Chiefs have added D Adam Power to their roster. He had been with the junior B Spokane Braves, who play in the Kootenay International Junior League. Power, 17, is from Post Falls, Idaho. He had one assist in eight games with the Chiefs earlier this season. . . . The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder has two goals in nine games with the Braves
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The Regina Pats, with a number of players out with injuries, have brought in D Sean Whelan, 18, from the SJHL’s Kindersley Klippers. Whelan, 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, has four points in 30 games with the Klippers. Whelan, from Moose Jaw, is to turn 19 on Monday. He was an 11th-round selection by the Pats in the 2009 bantam draft.
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The Everett Silvertips, with eight players on the injury list, have added G Adam Todd, 18, D Kevin Davis, 15, and F Kyle Raymond, 16, to their roster, at least for tonight’s game in Kamloops against the Blazers. . . . Todd, who played 11 games with the Saskatoon Blades last season, has been with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He will fill in for injured G Austin Lotz (ankle) and back up G Daniel Cotton. . . . The Silvertips had G Nik Amundrud, 15, with them for a bit, but he has been returned to the midget AAA Tisdale, Sask., Trojans. . . . Davis, who is from Kamloops and plays for the major midget Thompson Blazers, already has played four games with Everett this season. He was the 11th overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft. . . . Raymond has been brought in from the junior B Princeton, B.C., Posse of the Kootenay International Junior League.
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What kind of a season has it been for the Everett Silvertips? Well, perhaps this note from Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald sums it up: “There’s been a revelation about defenceman Austin Adam. Adam has been out an extended period with lingering concussion symptoms. However, it was discovered that Adam has mononucleosis, and the mono may have been the cause of those symptoms. Of course, having mono means Adam will remain out for a while, but hopefully that means the concussion wasn't as severe as it appeared.”
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
Now that last night’s games are out of the way, folks can focus on the upcoming doubleheader in Kelowna between the Rockets (40-11-4) and Portland Winter hawks (43-8-3). . . . They’ll play Friday and Saturday nights in Kelowna. . . . Both teams lost last night, the Winterhawks falling 4-3 to the visiting Calgary Hitmen and the Rockets losing 5-0 to the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . The Rockets and Winterhawks haven’t met since Sept. 28 and 29 when they played a doubleheader in Portland. The Winterhawks won the opener 1-0 behind 31 saves from G Cam Lanigan, who now is with the Medicine Hat Tigers, and a goal from D Derrick Pouliot, who now is injured. The Rockets took the second game, 4-3, on F Zach Franko’s goal at 19:01 of the third period.

In Spokane, the Chiefs won the 1,000th game in franchise history, dropping the Kelowna Rockets, 5-0. . . . Kelowna had been 17-0-2 in its previous 19 outings. . . . Spokane G Eric Williams stopped 33 shots in earning his third shutout this season and the fifth of his career. . . . F Todd Fiddler scored his 36th goal and added two assists for the Chiefs, while F Mike Aviani scoed No. 24 and added two assists. . . . Chiefs D Brenden Kichton scored his 17th goal and added an assist. He is tied with Portland’s Troy Rutkowski for the goal lead among defencemen, and has the outright lead in assists (45) and points (62). . . .

In Portland, the Calgary Hitmen erased a 3-1 third-period deficit and beat the Winterhawks, 4-3. . . . Calgary G Chris Driedger stopped 42 shots. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic took over the WHL goal-scoring lead, with his 37th, which gave his side a 3-1 lead at 17:30 of the second period. . . . F Ty Rattie had scored his 30th goal just 14 seconds earlier, via the PP. . . . Calgary captain Cody Sylvester scored 56 seconds into the third period, with F Brooks Macek tying the score at 6:57. . . . Sylvester won it with his 28th goal at 18:28. . . . Sylvester also had an assist. . . . Portland F Nic Petan, the WHL scoring leader, had one assist. . . . The Hitmen, who are five games into a nine-game road trip, had lost their last three games, the last two by shutout. . . . A tweet from Portland freelance writer Scott Sepich: “With the 4-3 win, @WHLHitmen have won 4 straight in Portland. Former Hawks coach Mike Williamson 2-0 with Hitmen in PDX.” . . . Portland D Troy Rutkowski set a franchise record by playing in his 222nd consecutive game. The previous record had been held by D Andrew Ference (1994-99). . . .

In Brandon, F John Quenneville’s eighth goal broke a 1-1 tie and the Wheat Kings went on to a 4-1 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . F Axel Blomqvist pulled Lethbridge into a 1-1 tie at 19:46 of the first period. . . . Quenneville broke that tie at 15:52 of the second. . . . F Jens Meilleur scored twice for Brandon, giving him nine, while linemate Taylor Cooper had a goal and two assists and Tim McGauley, the third skater on the line, had three assists. . . . Brandon G Curtis Honey stopped 36 shots. . . . With G Corbin Boes (knee) out of action, the Wheat Kings have brought back Jordan Papirny from the midget AAA Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club Southgate Lions to back up Honey. . . . The Wheat Kings pulled into an 11th-place tie with the idle Regina Pats in the Eastern Conference. Both teams are nine points out of a playoff spot. . . .

In Saskatoon, F Michael Ferland scored the game’s first two goals and the Blades went on to a 7-1 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . With the victory, their sixth in a row, the Blades moved to within four points of the East Division-leading Raiders. . . . Ferland scored twice in 1:57 late in the first period and the Blades put it away with two goals 22 seconds apart in the opening minute of the second period. . . . F Shane McColgan scored 31 seconds into the period and F Matej Stransky made it 4-0 at 0:53. . . . Ferland has eight goals, McColgan has 12 and Stransky 28. . . . Blades F Brenden Walker, playing in his 250th regular-season game, had three assists. . . . Saskatoon G Andrey Makarov, making his 13th straight start, stopped 30 shots. . . .

In Prince George, the Red Deer Rebels scored twice in the circus and beat the Cougars, 4-3. . . . Red Deer G Patrik Bartosak made 50 saves through OT. . . . Rebels F Christian Stockl tied the game 3-3 with his third goal of the season at 10:10 of the third. . . . F Rhyse Dieno and F Dominik Volek scored the shootout goals to win it. . . . Cougars F Zach Pochiro scored twice, giving him 10, and added an assist. . . . D Jordan Harris, the 10th pick in the 2011 bantam draft, was in the Cougars’ lineup. He joined them from the midget AAA Prince Albert Mintos a few weeks ago but was out with post-concussion syndrome. . . . D Mark McNulty was back in Prince George’s lineup after missing eight games with what is believed to have been a concussion. . . . The loser point lifted the Cougars to within three points of Seattle, which holds down eighth place in the Western Conference. . . . Red Deer is fourth in the Eastern Conference, a point ahead of Saskatoon. . . . When the Rebels travelled into the U.S. Division earlier in the season, they weren’t able to play the Seattle Thunderbirds (of Kent) because the arena was booked for an ice show. So the Rebels now are on a three-game road swing. They opened last night in Prince George, will travel to Kent today and play the Thunderbirds there on Friday, and then will meet the Blazers in Kamloops on Saturday. . . .

In Victoria, F Jamie Crooks scored twice as the Royals beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . One night earlier, the Royals also beat the Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . The Royals were without F Alex Gogolev, their leading scorer, who suffered a skate cut to a leg in Tuesday’s game. . . . Crooks has 26 goals. . . . It was a five-point night for Victoria’s Walker boys, with Ben getting his 14th goal and adding two assists, and Jack drawing two assists. . . . The Royals are tied with Spokane for fifth in the Western Conference, a point behind the Tri-City Americans.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Colten Mayor, Calgary

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Tim Traber, Victoria
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Portland Winterhawks D Derrick Pouliot (@dpouliot51): “Off to Pittsburgh for a few days.”
Pouliot is rehabbing a high-ankle sprain. He has played one game since Jan. 11 and only four since Dec. 18. He was a first-round selection, eighth overall, by the Penguins in the NHL’s 2012 draft. He has 38 points and is plus-31 in 39 games with Portland.

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SATURDAY’S GAMES:
There were 10 games last night and five ended in shutouts. . . . Also when the night was done, three players were tied for the WHL lead in goals, with 36. . . .

In Portland, G Mac Carruth was writing records again as the Winterhawks blanked the Spokane Chiefs, 4-0. . . . Carruth stopped 26 shots as he set a single-season franchise record with his sixth shutout. Lanny Ramage had set the record of five in 2000-01. . . . It also was Carruth’s 10th career shutout, extending his franchise record. . . . The Winterhawks also extended the team franchise record with this season’s 11th shutout. . . . As well, D Troy Rutkowski played in his 221st straight game, tying D Andrew Ference for the franchise’s iron man record. Ference set the record by playing from Feb. 18, 1995 through Oct. 11, 1998. . . . Rutkowski has played in 332 regular-season games. . . . F Taylor Leier got the game’s first goal, his 20th, at 14”22 of the first period. . . . Portland held a 21-1 edge in shots in the opening period. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic scored twice, giving him 36 goals this season and moving him into a tie for the WHL lead with teammate Nic Petan and F Colin Smith of Kamloops. . . . Petan, the WHL’s points leader, was held of the score sheet and now holds a three-point lead, 93-90, over Leipsix. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie also was blanked and had his 15-game point streak ended. . . .

In Saskatoon, F Michael Ferland scored three times to lead the Blades to a 4-1 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Saskatoon now has won four in a row. . . . Ferland, who also had an assist, broke a 1-1 tie with his second goal at 6:01 of the second and later added an empty-netter. He’s got six goals now. . . . Ferland was playing in his 200th regular-season game. . . . The Broncos have followed a seven-game winning streak by dropping three of four. . . .

In Prince Albert, G Luke Siemens turned aside 40 shots as the Raiders beat the Calgary Hitmen, 2-0. . . . Siemens put up his fifth shutout this season and the 11th of his career. . . . F Shane Danyluk scored the game’s first goal, his seventh, shorthanded at 11:32 of the second period. He’s got seven goals. . . . F Chase Braid, with his eighth, added insurance at 2:38 of the third. . . .

In Brandon, F Jayce Hawryluk scored twice to help the Wheat Kings to a 5-2 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . Hawryluk, who has 15 goals, also scored twice Friday in Brandon’s 3-2 loss in Regina. After his first goal last night, he had been in on seven consecutive Brandon goals, scoring five of them. . . . Brandon D Ryan Pulock drew five assists for his first career five-point night. . . . Brandon lost D Tyler Yaworski to a headshot major that took Regina D Luke Fenske out of the game. . . .

In Cranbrook, G Mackenzie Skapski turned aside 23 shots as the Kootenay Ice beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 3-0. . . . Skapski has four shutouts, all of them this season. . . . F Levi Cable’s shorthanded goal at 7:00 of the second period stood up as the winner. . . . The Ice scored its other two goals via the PP, the last one into an empty net. . . . F Jaedon Descheneau had two assists. . . . Ice F Sam Reinhart drew one assist and ran his point streak to 16 games, the longest active streak at the moment. . . .

In Medicine Hat, G Laurent Brossoit earned his second straight shutout as the Edmonton Oil Kings beat the Tigers, 6-0. . . . Brossoit stopped 23 shots in putting up his fourth blank job this season and the ninth of his career. He already held the modern-day franchise record. . . . Brossoit and Tristan Jarry have posted seven shutouts in Edmonton’s last 16 games. . . . The Oil Kings have played 53 games and have held the opposition to two or fewer goals in 36 of those. . . . D Ashton Sautner’s second goal this season, at 19:00 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . D Martin Gernat had three assists. . . . F Curtis Lazar and F Henrik Samuelsson each scored his 27th goal. . . . F Michael St. Croix had a goal and an assist to run his point streak to nine games. . . . The defending-champion Oil Kings have won eight straight. . . .

In Prince George, F Alex Gogolev scored the lone goal of the circus as the Victoria Royals beat the Cougars, 2-1. . . . The Cougars had beaten the Royals 6-2 on Friday. . . . Gogolev gave Victoria a 1-0 lead with his 19th goal at 5:41 of the second period. . . . D Dallas Ehrhardt got his fifth to tie it at 18:26 of the third. . . . Gogolev was the seventh shooter in a four-round shootout. . . . Victoria G Patrik Polivka stopped 38 shots through OT. . . .

In Everett, F JC Lipon scored once in regulation time and again in the circus as the Kamloops Blazers got past the Silvertips, 3-2. . . . Everett D Landon Oslanski forced OT with his 12th goal, via the PP, at 11:54 of the second. . . . Lipon was the only scorer in a shootout that went four rounds. . . . Kamloops F Colin Smith scored his 36th goal. He has goals in five straight games. . . . Everett was able to dress only 16 skaters, two under the maximum. . . . On top of the injuries they had going into the weekend, Everett was without F Tyler Sandhu, who was injured in Friday’s 2-1 shootout loss to visiting Tri-City, and F Kohl Bauml (ill). . . . Of the 18 players Everett dressed last night, 12 were freshmen. . . . The teams meet again Thursday in Kamloops. . . .

In Kelowna, G Jordon Cooke stopped 22 shots to lead the Rockets to a 5-0 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . The Rockets had beaten the host Giants 5-1 on Friday. . . . Cooke has five shutouts, all this season. . . . The Rockets won their 23rd straight home game, one shy of a franchise record set in 1994-95 when the team played out of Tacoma. . . . F Myles Bell scored twice, giving him 31, and added an assist, while F Colton Sissons had three assists and now has an 11-game point streak. . . . The Rockets scored two shorthanded goals and one on the PP. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Justin Feser scored the game’s last two goals as the Tri-City Americans beat the Seattle Thunderbirds (of Kent), 4-3, in overtime. . . . Feser tied the game at 18:27 of the third period and won it 27 seconds into OT. . . . Tri-City’s captain has 29 goals this season. . . . Americans G Luke Lee-Knight turned aside 32 shots.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Lukas Sutter, Saskatoon
D Mason Geertsen, Vancouver (double minor)

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
D Tyler Yaworski, Brandon (major)
F Jens Meilleur, Brandon
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From Everett G Austin Lotz (@lotzy30): “Shopping will be the reason that one day il be homeless #clothesonclothesonclothes”
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From Portland D Troy Rutkowski (@TRutter2): “Would like to thank the @pdxwinterhawks for flying my family and @abawdzy in this weekend. #firstclassorganization”

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The Calgary Hitmen have released F Brendan Hurley, 19, apparently at his request. Hurley, from Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., had 12 points in 31 games after joining the Hitmen from the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings in October.
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The Spokane Chiefs will be gunning for the franchise’s 1,000th victory when they meet the Blazers in Kamloops on Friday. . . . The Chiefs entered the WHL with a 6-3 loss to the host Blazers on Oct. 4, 1985. The Chiefs actually led that one 3-0 at 5:24 of the first period. . . . The Chiefs will play the 2,000th game in franchise history on Feb. 10 when the Victoria Royals pay a visit.
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Former WHL D Mike McBain (Red Deer, 1993-97) has been sentenced to four to 15 years in prison on Wednesday in Las Vegas for sexually assaulting a girl over a four-year period. . . . There’s more right here.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Edmonton, the Oil Kings scored the game’s first four goals and went on to beat the Kootenay Ice, 4-2. . . . The fourth annual Hockey Hooky game -- it began at 11:30 a.m. -- drew 9,975 fans. . . . Edmonton F Luke Bertolucci scored his second goal and added an assist. A 17-year-old from Montrose, B.C., he has five points in 32 games. . . . F Sam Reinhart scored his 26th goal for the Ice. . . . Kootenay G Wyatt Hoflin, who turns 18 today, stopped 39 shots. . . .

In Brandon, the Saskatoon Blades scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Wheat Kings, 5-1. . . . Saskatoon F Michael Ferland, who was acquired from Brandon at the trade deadline, broke a 1-1 tie at 2:10 of the second period. It was Ferland’s third goal of the season. . . .

In Regina, F Jordan Messier was the only one of eight circus shooters to score as the Moose Jaw Warriors beat the Pats, 3-2. . . . The Warriors scored twice in the first period; the Pats got two in the second. . . . Regina D Stephen Hak tied it with his second goal in 36 games at 18:43 of the second. . . . The Pats now have lost eight in a row. . . .

In Vancouver, the Giants unloaded a 57-shot barrage as they dumped the Prince Albert Raiders, 5-1. . . . F Jackson Houck scored twice for Vancouver, giving him 17, while F Brendan Rouse had a goal, his ninth, and two assists. . . . Vancouver D Arvin Atwal scored his first WHL goal and also earned his first assist. They came in his 16th game, 11 of which he has played this season. He also was plus-3. . . . Vancouver G Jared Rathjen stopped 22 shots, losing his shutout when F Mark McNeill scored his 20th goal, via the PP, at 6:08 of the third. . . . Raiders G Luke Siemens went the distance, stopping 52 shots. . . .

In Swift Current, F Ryon Moser scored at 19:59 of the third period – there was 0.8 left on the clock – to gave the Broncos a 5-4 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . F Adam Lowry led the Broncos with his 33rd goal and three assists. . . . Moser has 15 goals this season. . . . Broncos F Levi Bews, who hadn’t played since Dec. 30 because of a leg injury, scored his 15th goal in 39 games. . . . Calgary F Brady Brassart scored his 20th and 21st goals to give the Hitmen a 3-2 lead early in the second. . . . Lowry tied it at 12:30 of the second and D Richard Nedomlel gave the home side a 4-3 lead at 2:33 of the third. . . . Calgary D Alex Roach, with his second of the night and 13th of the season, put his side out front at 4:23. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., Tri-City F Justin Feser had three assists as he played in his 300th consecutive regular-season game and the Americans beat the Prince George Cougars, 5-2. . . . Feser is riding the second-longest such streak in WHL history. The record (311) is held by D Dwayne Newman (Brandon, Victoria, 1987-92). . . . Feser drew assists on each of his club’s first three goals. . . . Tri-City G Luke Lee-Knight stopped 42 shots. . . . F Chase Witala scored both of Prince George’s goals, giving him 11. . . . The Americans lost F Tyson Dallman to an interference major and game misconduct at 10:08 of the first period. Prince George G Brett Zarowny was injured on the play and had to leave the game. . . .

In Portland, the Winterhawks gave up the game’s first two goals then roared back to beat the Kamloops Blazers, 5-2. . . . Earlier in the day, the Winterhawks appeared at No. 1 in the CHL’s weekly rankings, having unseated the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads by putting up three straight shutouts. . . . Portland F Nic Petan, the WHL’s leading scorer, broke a 2-2 tie at 5:20 of the third period. . . . Portland F Taylor Peters, in his 300th game, added insurance with a shorthanded goal at 15:20. . . . Petan had a goal, his 35th, and an assist, and was plus-3. He leads the WHL in assists (55) and points (90), and is tied for the goal lead with F Todd Fiddler of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic is second in points (85), with Kamloops F Colin Smith third, at 80. . . . Leipsic had a goal, his 33rd, and two assists. . . . Smith scored his 34th goal to give Kamloops a 2-0 lead at 16:24 of the first. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie scored once, running his points streak to 15 games. . . . The Blazers lost D Joel Edmundson to a headshot major and game misconduct in the first period. Portland F Adam (Samuel) De Champlain, who was the victim, didn't return to the game and was watching in street clothes in the second period.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Trent Ouellette, Regina
F Chase De Leo, Portland

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
D Joel Edmundson, Kamloops (major)
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From former Prince George Cougars captain Brock Hirsche (@bigsexytweet10), whose career is over due to shoulder problems: “Starting a new chapter in my life. Thank you so much Prince George for letting me live out my dream of playing in the Western Hockey League”

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