WHL trade deadline over for another year

The WHL trade deadline arrived on Saturday at noon MT. That’s 11 a.m. Pacific and 1 p.m. Central.
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THE NUMBERS:

(Since Dec. 10)
Trades: 38.
Players: 60.
Draft picks: 44.
Conditional draft picks: 8.
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Thankfully, the WHL trade deadline has gone by. It slithered past like a snake making its way through the grass in your backyard.
Maybe it’s the impact of social media, but it seems that this thing just gets sleazier and sleazier every year.
This time around, the WHL’s 22 teams were responsible for 60 players being traded since Dec. 10. If each team carries 23 players, there are 506 players in the WHL at any given time.
Granted, not every player traded over the last while was on a WHL roster at the time. But if every one of those players was on a roster, that would mean that 11.9 per cent of those players were moved since Dec. 10.
Yes, there are always going to be trades in the WHL, which is more business and entertainment than anything else. But if the WHL really, really, really cares about the relationship between its players and their education, as it says it does, isn’t it time to move the trade deadline a couple of weeks and have it fall during the Christmas break?
That would allow traded players to get relocated over the break and prepare to enter new schools when they start up again after the New Year holiday.
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According to Paul Kingsmith of Global TV in Lethbridge, the Hurricanes have made 11 moves since Christmas. As he tweeted, “5 players, 4 picks come in. 8 players, 2 picks head out.”
Pat Siedlecki, the former radio voice of the Hurricanes, then tweeted: “How busy have the Canes been trading? Since start of 2013-14 season: 30 separate trades, involving 47 players and 30 draft picks.”
It’s worth pointing out that between the start of the 2013-14 season and the passing of this trade deadline, the Hurricanes won 22 games.
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Les Lazaruk, the veteran radio voice of the Saskatoon Blades, pointed out that since the start of the 2013-14 season, and according to the WHL website, the Blades have made 31 trades involving 48 players and 44 draft picks. Lazaruk adds that “only five players remain from last season.” . . . The Blades have won 25 games since the start of the 2013-14 season.
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In an interesting exercise, Josh Schroeder at jdschroeder.ca has calculated the total distance travelled by WHL players who have been traded since the end of the Christmas trade moratorium. Give it a look right here.
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When one player is traded, the impact is felt in a lot of places and nowhere does it home harder than with his family. In a letter to the Regina Leader-Post, Jeff Hunt, the father of F Dryden Hunt, relates how things went after his son was traded by the Regina Pats to the Medicine Hat Tigers. That letter is right here.
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SATURDAY’S TRADES:

The Victoria Royals acquired D Bryton Sayers, 18, from the Lethbridge Hurricanes for a 2016 fifth-round bantam draft pick. . . . Sayers, from Prince Albert, has two goals and eight assists in 38 games with Lethbridge this season. He was a third-round pick by Lethbridge in the 2011 bantam draft. In 84 career games, he has 21 points, including six goals. . . . In 2012-13, while playing for the Prince Albert Mintos, he was honoured as the Saskatchewan Midget AAA League’s top defenceman. That season, he led all SMAAHL defencemen with 53 points in 44 games.
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The Swift Current Broncos picked up F Miles Warkentine, 18, from the Lethbridge Hurricanes for a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2017 bantam draft. . . . A native of Prince Albert, he also has played with the Moose Jaw Warriors, who selected him 16th overall in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . In 19 games this season, he has two goals and an assist. . . . In 125 career games, he has 19 points, including six goals.
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The Spokane Chiefs acquired F Kolten Olynek, 18, from the Moose Jaw Warriors for a 2015 sixth-round bantam draft pick. . . . Olynek, from Saskatoon, had 10 points, including three goals, in 43 games with the Warriors. . . . He was a second-round pick by the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . In 104 career games, he has 24 points, eight of them goals. . . . The Warriors had acquired Olynek from Lethbridge for F Miles Warkentine in May. Warkentine was dealt by Lethbridge to Swift Current on Saturday, at about the same time that the Warriors were moving Olynek to Spokane. . . .
Having added Olynek, the Chiefs then dropped F Mitch Lipon from their roster. He is expected to join the SJHL’s Melville Millionaires. . . . Lipon, an 18-year-old Regina native, had two goals in 13 games with the Chiefs. In 71 career games, he has 15 points, eight of them goals. . . . He also has played with the Kamloops Blazers and Saskatoon Blades, and is a younger brother of former Blazers F JC Lipon.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes, wanting more size in their lineup, acquired D Scott Allan, 18, from the Seattle Thunderbirds for a fifth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . The 6-foot-6, 235-pound Allan is from Thornton, Colo. . . . He was pointless in 34 games with the Medicine Hat Tigers last season. . . . This season, in Seattle, he had a goal and two assists in 25 games. . . . The Thunderbirds got him from Medicine Hat on Oct. 13, giving up a fifth-round pick in the 2016 draft in the process.
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The Tri-City Americans acquired D Carter Cochrane, 18, from the Everett Silvertips for a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . Cochrane, from Kamloops, has one assist in 31 games with Everett this season. . . . He played last season with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs and was a second-team all-star and on the all-rookie team.
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The Vancouver Giants acquired F Parker Smyth, 16, from the Saskatoon Blades for a sixth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . The Blades had selected Smyth, a native of Red Deer, with the 44th pick in the 2013 bantam draft. . . . Smyth, the son of former WHL/NHL F Kevin Smyth and nephew of former WHL/NHL F Ryan Smyth, has 12 points, six of them goals, in 22 games with the midget AAA Red Deer Optimist Chiefs. . . . Last season, Parker played on a line with Vancouver F Tyler Benson at the Pursuit of Excellence Hockey Academy in Kelowna.
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The Portland Winterhawks have acquired F Mitch Walter, 18, from the Edmonton Oil Kings for a fourth-round selection in the 2016 bantam draft. Walter, from South Delta, B.C., was a second-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . Last season, he had two assists in 29 games with the Memorial Cup-champion Oil Kings. This season, he has two goals and three assists in 38 games. . . . The Winterhawks were in need of some help up front after F Tyson Predinchuk and F Ethan Price both left the team. . . . Brian Swane of the Edmonton Sun pointed out that Walter is only the second player Oil Kings GM Randy Hansch has traded since taking over as GM in the summer of 2013. The other was D Stephen Shmoorkoff, 20, who was dealt to the Swift Current Broncos. He now is with the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders.
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TRADE DEADLINE DEALS:

(All draft picks in bantam draft)
Dec. 10 . . .
To Kelowna: D Josh Morrissey (95), F Gage Quinney (95).
To Prince Albert: D Jesse Lees (95), F Austin Glover (96), 2016 second-round pick, 2017 third-round pick.
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Dec. 12 . . .
To Red Deer: D Nelson Nogier (96), F Austin Adamson (96).
To Saskatoon: F Mason McCarty (97), 2015 second-round pick, 2016 first-round pick.
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Dec. 16 . . .
To Calgary: G Thatcher Demko, 19, who is at Boston College.
To Spokane: Conditional draft picks. Guy Flaming of The Pipeline Show tweeted that he had it as a second-rounder in 2015 and a second- or third-rounder in 2016.
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Dec. 27 . . .
To Swift Current: D Griffin Foulk, 19.
To Lethbridge: Conditional eighth-round pick in 2016.
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Dec. 27 . . .
To Red Deer: D Colton Bobyk, 18, and a 2016 fourth-round pick.
To Spokane: D Nick Charif, 19, a second-round 2015 pick and a conditional sixth-round 2016 selection.
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Jan. 2 . . .
To Brandon: F Morgan Klimchuk, 19.
To Regina: F Jesse Gabrielle, 17.
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Jan. 5 . . .
To Medicine Hat: D Kyle Burroughs, 19, and F Dryden Hunt, 19.
To Regina: D Connor Hobbs, 17, and two draft picks -- second-rounder in 2016 and third-rounder in 2015.
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Jan. 5 . . .
To Saskatoon: D Kolton Dixon, 19.
To Red Deer: G Trevor Martin, 18.
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Jan. 5 . . .
To Red Deer: F Connor Gay, 19, and three bantam draft picks -- a first-rounder in 2016, a second in 2015 and a seventh in 2017.
To Regina: F Jake Leschyshyn, 15, and a fourth-round pick in 2017.
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Jan. 5 . . .
To Brandon: D Reid Gow, 20.
To Spokane: A fifth-round pick, Spokane’s option for 2015 or 2016.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Kelowna: F Leon Draisaitl, 19.
To Prince Albert: F Tomas Schmidli, 18, D Dalton Yorke, 18, and three bantam draft picks -- a first-rounder in 2015, a fourth-rounder in 2016 and a conditional fourth-rounder in 2016 or 2017.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Prince George: D Tomas Andrlik, 19.
To Prince Albert: A 12th-round pick in 2015.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Moose Jaw: D Connor Clouston, 18.
To Kamloops: A fifth-round pick in 2017.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Calgary: G Brendan Burke, 19.
To Portland: G Evan Johnson, 18, and a fourth-round pick in 2016.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Lethbridge: D Brady Reagan, 17.
To Regina: F Taylor Cooper, 19.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Victoria: F Alex Forsberg, 19, a third-round pick in 2015 and a fourth-round pick in 2016.
To Saskatoon: F Brayden Dunn, 16, and a first-round pick in 2017.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Portland: D Adam Henry, 20.
To Saskatoon: A second-round pick 2017.
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Jan. 6 . . .
To Moose Jaw: F Axel Blomqvist, 19, a third-round pick in 2015 and a fifth-round pick in 2017.
To Victoria: D Alexey Sleptsov, 18, G Justin Paulic, 19, and a sixth-round pick in 2015.
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Jan. 7 . . .
To Tri-City: F Tyler Sandhu, 18.
To Red Deer: Fourth-round picks in 2015 and 2016.
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Jan. 7 . . .
To Kamloops: D Marc McNulty, 19, and a 2016 sixth-round draft pick.
To Prince George: D Josh Connolly, 19, and a 2015 sixth-round draft pick.
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Jan. 7 . . .
To Saskatoon: D Brycen Martin, 18, and a conditional 2017 fifth-round draft pick.
To Swift Current: D Jordan Thomson, 18, and a 2016 first-round draft pick (originally belonged to Red Deer).
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Jan. 8 . . .
To Kootenay: D Lenny Hackman, 19.
To Lethbridge: A 12th-round pick in the 2015 draft.
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Jan. 8 . . .
To Saskatoon: F Mitch Skapski, 18, and 2015 fifth-round draft pick.
To Victoria: A 2016 fifth-round draft pick.
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Jan. 8 . . .
To Lethbridge: G Jayden Sittler, 18.
To Victoria: A 2016 seventh-round draft pick.
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Jan. 8 . . .
To Seattle: F Cory Millette, 19.
To Prince Albert: A sixth-round pick in the 2015 or 2016 bantam draft.
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Jan. 9 . . .
To Kelowna: F Chance Braid, 20.
To Prince George: F Brogan O’Brien, 17.
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Jan. 9 . . .
To Edmonton: D Marshall Donald, 19.
To Calgary: A 2015 fourth-round draft pick.
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Jan. 9 . . .
To Kamloops: F Joel Hamilton, 20.
To Vancouver: A 2017 sixth-round draft pick.
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Jan. 9 . . .
To Lethbridge: F Mike Winther, 20.
To Kamloops: A 2017 eighth-round draft pick.
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Jan. 9 . . .
To Vancouver: F Zane Jones, 20.
To Lethbridge: F Johnny Wesley, 17.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Victoria: D Bryton Sayers, 18.
To Lethbridge: A 2016 fifth-round bantam draft pick.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Swift Current: F Miles Warkentine, 18.
To Lethbridge: A conditional seventh-round pick in the 2017 bantam draft.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Spokane: D Kolten Olynek, 18.
To Moose Jaw: A 2015 sixth-round bantam draft pick.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Lethbridge: D Scott Allan, 18.
To Seattle: A fifth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Vancouver: F Parker Smyth, 16.
To Saskatoon: A  sixth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Tri-City: D Carter Cochrane, 18.
To Everett: A conditional seventh-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft.
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Jan. 10 . . .
To Portland: F Mitch Walter, 18.
To Edmonton: A fourth-round selection in the 2016 bantam draft.

THE END!

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More unrest in Lethbridge . . . Oil Kings part ways with assistant coach

 Please allow me to remind you that my wife, Dorothy, will take part in the 2014 Kidney Walk in Kamloops on Sunday. She underwent a kidney transplant on Sept. 23 and now is healthy enough to walk the 2.5 kilometres and give something back to the Kidney Foundation.
Should you like to sponsor her and be part of Dorothy's Team, please click right here and then go to Sponsor a Participant.
If you are interested in seeing how much money she has raised, click on the link and you will find a list of fund-raisers on the right-hand side. Click on her name, and you will see a list of donors on a scroll.
 Thank you.
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D David Nemecek (Saskatoon, 2013-14) has signed a tryout contract with TPS Turku U20 (Finland, U20 SM-Liiga). Last season, with Saskatoon, he had 15 points, five of them goals, in 56 games. . . .
D Logan Stephenson (Tri-City, 2001-06) has signed a one-year contract with Tohoku Free Blades Hachinohe (Japan, Asia Hockey League). Last season, with Sparta Sarpsborg (Norway, GET-Ligaen), he had seven goals and 16 assists in 44 games.
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If you are still confused about the options that are available to D Julius Honka and F Leon Draisaitl, I will try to clarify them by bringing D Tommy Vanelli into the picture.
Draisaitl was a first-round selection, third overall, by the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL’s 2014 draft; Honka went to the Dallas Stars in the first round, 14th overall, of the same draft.
Vanelli, 19, was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the second round of the 2013 draft.
Draisaitl, who will turn 19 on Oct. 27, was drafted from the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders; Honka, whose 19th birthday is on Dec. 3, was taken from the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos.
The Blues drafted Vanelli, who played last season with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, from a high school team in Minnetonka, Minn.
And therein lies the rub. . . .
Because Draisaitl and Honka played last season with CHL teams and because they were the property of those teams when drafted, their immediate futures include two options for their 19-year-old seasons -- they either play in the NHL or they are returned to their WHL teams. That is the rule according to the CBA between the NHL and the NHLPA.
Because Vanelli was drafted from a team that is not under the CHL umbrella, his options include the NHL, the AHL and the WHL. Yes, he could be assigned to the Blues’ AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.
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When will the circus leave Lethbridge?
Two veteran players -- F Reid Duke and D Macoy Erkamps -- were no-shows on Wednesday when the Hurricanes opened camp.
Paul Kingsmith of Global Lethbridge tweeted that Duke, according to general manager Brad Robson, is expected today.
Erkamps, however, has asked to be traded.
Duke, 18, was the fifth overall selection in the 2011 bantam draft. A native of Calgary, he had 40 points, 15 of them goals, in 62 games as a sophomore last season. That followed a freshman season in which he put up 24 points, eight of them goals. The Minnesota Wild selected him in the sixth round of the NHL’s 2014 draft.
Erkamps, 19, has played three seasons in Lethbridge, after being a second-round pick in the 2010 bantam draft. From Delta, B.C., he has had 20-, 35- and 31-point seasons. In 201 career games, he has 86 points, 14 of them goals.
But wait . . . there’s more!
F Giorgio Estephan, the fourth overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft, was injured at Hockey Canada’s U-18 camp and will sit for six weeks. He apparently was recovering from a fractured foot, aggravated it and has since had surgery.
The 17-year-old from Edmonton had 12 goals and 12 assists in 64 games last season as a freshman.
All of this comes after a 2013-14 season in which the Hurricanes missed the playoffs for a fifth straight season, thanks to a 12-55-5 mark, the poorest record in the 22-team league. During the season, the likes of Sam McKechnie, Jaimen Yakubowski and Ryan Pilon, all veterans, asked out and were traded.
On top of this, there is speculation in Lethbridge that G Justin Myles, 19, will retire.
Myles, from Calgary, was selected by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the fifth round of the 2010 draft. Seattle dealt him to Kamloops on Jan. 10, but he showed up with an upper body injury, believed to be a brain injury, and never played a game with the Blazers. On May 12, they dealt him to Lethbridge for a fourth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft.
Without Myles, the Hurricanes might be looking at going into the season with Jonny Hogue, 18, and Stuart Skinner, who won’t be 16 until Nov. 1, as their two goaltenders. They are two of the six goaltenders used by the Hurricanes last season. Hogue played in 18 games; Skinner got into four.
On Wednesday, the Hurricanes signed F Zane Franklin, a second-round pick from the 2014 bantam draft. He had 116 points in 38 regular-season and playoff games with the bantam AAA Lloydminster Heat last season.
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F Mitch Lipon, 18, is in camp with the Spokane Chiefs. Lipon, from Regina, had seven points, two of them goals, in 31 games with the Kamloops Blazers last season, before he was dealt to the Saskatoon Blades. He had six points, including four goals, in 24 games with the Blades. The 5-foot-8, 160-pound Lipon was dropped by the Blades during the 2014 bantam draft. . . . He is the younger brother of former Blazers F JC Lipon, who played last season with the AHL’s St. John’s IceCaps.
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F Chris Stockl, who has played with the Saskatoon Blades and Red Deer Rebels, is in camp with the Everett Silvertips. Stockl, 19, is from Winnipeg. He was a fourth-round selection by the Saskatoon Blades in the 2010 bantam draft. . . . He had one goal in five games with the Blades in 2012-13, before moving on to Red Deer, where he had nine points, including two goals, in 57 games. Last season, he had one goal in 16 games with the Rebels. He missed about two months of the season with a brain injury, and then joined the MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals. He was pointless in two games with them.
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The Edmonton Oil Kings announced Thursday that they “have agreed to part ways” with Sean Brown, who had been an assistant coach through two seasons. . . . General manager Randy Hansch said, in a news release: “With the promotion of Steve Hamilton and the hiring of Ryan Marsh this off-season, as well as the increased roles of Dustin Schwartz and Jory Stuparyk, we're excited to have our coaching staff in place.” . . . Hamilton was promoted from assistant to head coach after Derek Laxdal left the reigning Memorial Cup champions to take over as head coach of the AHL’s Texas Stars.
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By the time things finished shaking out this week, the Toronto Maple Leafs had a three-man analytics department. That’s about all we know and about all we will ever find out about that particular part of the Toronto organization. To paraphrase Gare Joyce, the sun will never shine on the Maple Leafs’ analytics department. Joyce, a longtime observer and writer of all things hockey, has more on the NHL’s seemingly sudden move to analytics right here.
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G Jean-Sebastien Giguere announced his retirement on Thursday, ending a career that included 16 seasons in the NHL. He was with the Colorado Avalanche for most of the last three seasons. . . . Giguere was selected 13th overall by the Hartford Whalers in the NHL’s 1995 draft. He played eight games with the Whalers in 1996-97 and is the last active NHLer to have played for Hartford. . . . Giguere is a part-owner of the QMJHL’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. He plans to stay in hockey by learning the junior hockey ropes with the Armada.
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Pour yourself a big cup of coffee before clicking on this story right here. It’s from GQ and was written by Michael Finkel. It’s about a guy who drove into the forest in northern Maine in 1986 and didn’t come out until 2013. This is an amazingly interesting read.
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In Saskatoon, the home of the Blades is gets a new name today. The Credit Union Centre for the past 10 years now is SaskTel Centre, with signing expected to go up on Friday. City council approved a deal on Thursday that gives SaskTel naming rights for 10 years for $3.5 million. The previous deal was worth $1.6 million over 10 years. “The Blades retain the right to rink board advertising, except the centre-ice logo, during WHL games,” writes Phil Tank of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix in a story that is right here. “SaskTel has the right to renegotiate the agreement should a WHL team no longer be a permanent fixture at the arena, while the city has the right to seek more money should a professional hockey or basketball team move to Saskatoon and start playing in the facility.” . . . D Ben (Boo) Grist of North Saanich, B.C., suffered a suspected concussion during a scrimmage in the Red Deer Rebels’ camp on Thursday. He was a sixth-round pick of the Rebels in the 2014 bantam draft. . . . Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald reports that Silvertips G Austin Lotz reported to camp having lost a few pounds. “Lotz played at 203 pounds last season,” Patterson writes, “but he reported to camp at a trim 180 pounds, looking nearly unrecognizable. The main factor in Lotz's weight loss was getting serious about nutrition during the offseason.” . . . The Portland Winterhawks released their venue schedule on Thursday. They will play 17 games in the Moda Center and 16 in Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The venue for three other games will be decided later, depending on building availability. The Moda Center also is home to the NBA’s Trail Blazers.
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Your move, @SeattleTbirds. Who's our special guest? MT @rachelhunterx: super excited to get there Saturday to watch Red & White game Sunday
— TBird Tidbits (@TBirdTidbits) August 21, 2014

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Rebels, Wheat Kings, Raiders in quite a battle

One night, F Mitch Lipon of the Saskatoon Blades and one of his best friends, F Tim Bozon of the Kootenay Ice, were at a Goo Goo Dolls concert. Three nights later, Bozon was in critical condition in a Saskatoon hospital, leaving Lipon to wonder what had happened to his friend. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here.
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G Shannon Szabados, who is a double Olympic gold medallist, will sign with the SPHL’s Columbus Cottonmouths. Szabados, 27, plans on finishing this season with the Cottonmouths. . . . According to The Canadian Press: Szabados previously played provincial college hockey (at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) with current Cottonmouth players Jordan Draper, Andy Willigar and captain Kyle Johnson. She will become the first woman to play in the SPHL since its inception 10 years ago.” . . . Szabados expects to officially sign her contract on Thursday, at which time she will be introduced at a news conference. . . . The Cottonmouths’ head coach is Jerome Bechard (Moose Jaw, 1985-90). . . . Szabados, then 16, was in training camp with the WHL’s Tri-City Americans prior to the 2002-03 season, getting into some preseason action. She later played 50 seconds in one regular-season game.
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IF THE PLAYOFFS BEGAN TODAY:
Eastern Conference
Edmonton (1) vs. Brandon (8)
Regina (2) vs. Red Deer (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Swift Current (6)
Medicine Hat (4) vs. Kootenay (5)
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Western Conference
Kelowna (1) vs. Tri-City (8)
Portland (2) vs. Vancouver (7)
Victoria (3) vs. Everett (6)
Seattle (4) vs. Spokane (5)
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SATURDAY’S WHL GAMES (all times local):
Calgary at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Regina at Kootenay, 7 p.m.
Swift Current at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Prince Albert, 7 p.m.
Red Deer at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Vancouver at Portland, 7 p.m.
Spokane at Prince George, 7 p.m.
Tri-City at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Everett at Seattle, 7:05 p.m.
Kamloops at Victoria, 7:05 p.m.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES:
At Prince Albert, F Leon Draisaitl scored twice and added two assists to lead the Raiders to a 5-2 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Draisaitl, who has 34 goals, broke a 2-2 tie at 19:08 of the second period on the PP. He later added an empty-netter. . . . In 16 games since Feb. 1, Draisaitl, a sophomore from Cologne, Germany, has 36 points, including 15 goals. He has 12 multi-point games in that stretch and has been held pointless just once. . . . Raiders D Josh Morrissey scored his 26th goal and added an assist. . . . F Jake Virtanen scored twice, giving him 42, for Calgary. . . . Prince Albert G Nick McBride, making his fourth start in five games, stopped 32 shots. . . . A note from Andrew Schopp of the Prince Albert Daily Herald: “McBride is the first 16-year-old keeper since Aaron Sorochan in 2001 to remain on the (Raiders’) roster for an entire season.” . . . The Hitmen, who were playing the fourth game on a five-game road trip that ends tonight in Saskatoon, had been 3-0-0 against the Raiders this season. . . . The Raiders (32-30-5), who have won three straight, are ninth in the Eastern Conference, two points behind the Red Deer Rebels and Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The Wheat Kings are in Prince Albert tonight. . . . The Hitmen (44-17-7) have lost two in a row and now are two points behind the conference-leading Edmonton Oil Kings. . . .

At Saskatoon, D Dallas Valentine scored twice to help the Moose Jaw Warriors to a 6-1 victory over the Blades. . . . Valentine, who has three goals, broke a 1-1 tie at 5:45 of the second period. . . . A 17-year-old from Lousana, Alta., Valentine went into the game with one goal in 77 regular-season games over two seasons. . . . Warriors G Zach Sawchenko stopped 25 shots. . . . Warriors F Bryson Gore scored his ninth goal and added two assists, while F Tanner Eberle picked up his 20th goal of the season and added an assist. . . . G Brandon Kegler made his first WHL appearance when he came on to relieve Troy Trombley to start the third period. Kegler was beaten twice on 11 shots; Trombley had given up four goals on 22 shots. . . . Saskatoon D Ayrton Nikkel left in the first period with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return. . . . Blades head coach Dave Struch summed things up when he told Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix: “Two fundamental parts of the game – stopping the puck and scoring a goal – we had a real tough time with tonight.” . . . The Warriors (19-40-9) are 10th in the Eastern Conference, 10 points ahead of the Blades (16-46-5). . . .

At Brandon, F Mads Eller and F Curtis Lazar each scored twice as the Edmonton Oil Kings doubled up on the Wheat Kings, 6-3. . . . The Oil Kings led 4-0 before the game was 13 minutes old, with three of the goals coming in a span of 1:47. . . . Eller has eight goals; Lazar has 38. . . . Edmonton G Tristan Jarry stopped 26 shots in winning for the 41st time this season. . . . Jarry is 67-23-4 in 101 career regular-season appearances. . . . The Wheat Kings have lost 11 of their past 14 games. . . . Brandon F Peter Quenneville missed his eighth straight game with an undisclosed injury, while F Jens Meilleur sat out his third straight game. . . . F Jayce Hawryluk, who leads Brandon in assists (40) and points (64), was ejected after taking a charging major at 11:15 of the second period. . . . Edmonton (47-17-3) leads the Eastern Conference by two points over Calgary. The Oil Kings have three more victories and a game in hand. . . . The Wheat Kings (31-28-9) are tied for seventh with the Red Deer Rebels in the Eastern Conference. . . .

At Cranbrook, F Jaedon Descheneau had a goal and two assists to help the Kootenay Ice to a 5-2 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Descheneau has set career highs with 41 goals, 50 assists and 91 points, in 65 games. Last season, in 69 games, he had 78 points, including 30 goals. . . . F Sam Reinhart had two assists for the Ice, while F Zach Franko scored his 21st goal and added an assist. . . . D Tommy Vannelli, who hadn’t played since Feb. 14, scored his 14th goal for the Tigers. . . . Ice G Mackenzie Skapski stopped 30 shots. . . . The teams evenly split six games this season, each winning three times at home. . . . The Ice (38-25-4) clinched a playoff spot for the 16th straight season. Kootenay is fifth in the Eastern Conference, six points behind the Tigers (41-23-4). . . .

At Lethbridge, the Regina Pats got 30 saves from G Dawson MacAuley as they dropped the Hurricanes, 5-2. . . . MacAuley has become the Pats’ go-to guy with G Daniel Wapple sidelined by a sprained right ankle. . . . G Tyler Fuhr of the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves, who was added to Regina’s list earlier this season, is backing up. The Ice Wolves didn’t qualify for the SJHL playoffs. . . . F Dyson Stevenson scored his 36th goal and added two assists for Regina. . . . The game was 1-1 going into the second period when the Pats scored four times, including a shorthanded effort by F Braden Christoffer that broke that tie. . . . Regina D Cody Williams got his ninth goal of the season at 19:53 of the second, giving his guys a 5-1 lead. . . . F Josh Derko scored twice for Lethbridge, giving him 11 goals. He hadn’t played since Dec. 28 as he missed 27 games with a knee injury. . . . After the game, Regina play-by-play man Phil Andrews tweeted: “Pats head coach Malcolm Cameron says Chandler Stephenson will play (tonight) against KTN. Not sure about Williams and Burroughs.” . . . Stephenson was injured in the first period last night, while Williams left in the third period after absorbing a hit from Derko. D Kyle Burroughs left the game in the third after getting the worst of a collision with Lethbridge F Carter Folk. . . . The Pats (38-24-6) lead the East Division by five points over the Swift Current Broncos, with each team having four games left. . . . The Hurricanes (12-51-5) have lost 10 in a row. . . .

At Red Deer, G Patrik Bartosak turned aside 33 shots and the Rebels scored the game’s last four goals as they beat the Swift Current Broncos, 4-1. . . . Swift Current F Graham Black got his 31st goal at 10:41 of the first period. . . . F Wyatt Johnson tied the game at 19:27 of the first and F Aspen Sterzer broke the tie at 17:56 of the second. . . . Johnson has 12 goals; Sterzer has 27. . . . The Rebels also scored in the last minute of the second as F Adam Musil got his ninth goal at 19:03. . . . The Rebels (33-30-5) are 4-0-1 in their last five. They are tied for seventh with Brandon in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Prince Albert. . . .

At Portland, F Brendan Leipsic scored twice and added two assists, helping the Winterhawks to a 7-3 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Leipsic has 36 goals and 49 assists in 55 games this season. . . . Portland F Oliver Bjorkstrand scored his 44th goal and added two assists. He has 100 points, the third WHLer to get there this season. . . . Portland D Mathew Dumba scored twice and set up another. . . . Dumba has 17 points, including five goals, and is plus-23 in 22 games since coming over from the Red Deer Rebels after the World Junior Championship. . . . The Winterhawks are 6-2-2 against the Thunderbirds this season. . . . Portland D Derrick Pouliot had two assists, giving him 201 points in 243 career regular-season games. He has 66 points, 49 of them assists, in 54 games this season. The 49 assists are a career high, one more than he had in 72 games in 2011-12. . . . F Mathew Barzal had two assists for Seattle, which tied the game 3-3 on second-period PP goals from D Shea Theodore, his 19th, and F Ryan Gropp, his 16th. . . . Bjorkstrand broke the tie with a PP goal at 19:22 of the second and Dumba added insurance at 5:35 of the third. . . . Portland G Corbin Boes left the game in the second period. He was shaken up during a scramble, stayed in for a bit and then departed. That allowed Adin Hill, a 17-year-old from Calgary, to make his second WHL appearance. Brendan Burke was Portland’s starter before coming down with mononucleosis. . . . Hill, who entered a 3-3 game, stopped all 12 shots he faced and got the victory. He now is 2-0 and has allowed one goal on 41 shots. . . . The Winterhawks were 3-for-5 on the PP; Seattle was 3-for-7. . . . The Winterhawks (49-13-5), the Western Conference’s second seed, appear headed for a first-round matchup with the Vancouver Giants, who are in Portland tonight. . . . Seattle (39-21-6) is fourth in the conference, four points ahead of the Spokane Chiefs. . . .

At Prince George, the Spokane Chiefs scored four third-period goals and beat the Cougars, 4-2. . . . The Cougars took a 2-0 lead into the third period on second-period scores from F Troy Bourke, his 27th, and F Todd Fiddler, his 46th. . . . Fiddler’s goal ran his point streak to 19 games. . . . Spokane F Adam Helewka got his guys started with his 22nd goal, on the PP, at 3:32 of the third. . . . F Mike Aviani tied it at 4:48 and F Keanu Yamamoto gave the Chiefs the lead with his 10th goal at 14:59. . . . Aviani got his 34th into an empty net to add insurance. . . . Chiefs G Garret Hughson stopped 34 shots. . . . Spokane D Reid Gow had three assists. The 19-year-old from Killarney, Man., has 59 points, including 53 assists, in 60 games. . . . Chiefs F Mitch Holmberg picked up two assists, giving him a WHL-leading 109 points. He holds a two-point lead over Portland F Nic Petan. . . . The Chiefs (37-24-6) are fifth in the Western Conference, four points behind Seattle. . . . The Cougars (26-35-8) are ninth, four points out of the conference’s last playoff spot. . . .

At Kennewick, Wash., the Everett Silvertips won their fifth straight game, beating the Tri-City Americans, 4-2. . . . Everett G Austin Lotz stopped 32 shots. . . . Everett F Ivan Nikolishin broke a 1-1 tie with his 17th goal, via the PP, at 8:30 of the second period. . . . F Logan Aasman made it 3-1 with his third goal at 18:31. . . . Americans G Eric Comrie stopped 34 shots. . . . Everett (35-23-9) is sixth in the Western Conference. It is 7-0-1 in its last eight and now trails Spokane by only one point. . . . The Americans (28-31-8) are eighth in the conference, four points ahead of Prince George, which has three games remaining. . . .

At Victoria, F Ben Walker drew four assists, leading the Royals to a 5-1 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . The Royals took a 4-0 lead into the last minute of the second period, with Walker in on each of the goals. . . . Victoria was playing at home for the first time since Feb. 12. . . . The Royals went 8-1-0 on the road in February; at home, they were 11-1-1. In the process, they established franchise records for home and road victories in a single month. . . . Victoria leads the season series with Kamloops 6-1-0 with the final game on the Island tonight. . . . F Axel Blomqvist and F Brandon Magee each scored his 24th goal of the season for Victoria. . . . Victoria F Tyler Soy, who is in his first WHL season, faced the Blazers for the 15th time in his young career, including preseason, regular season and playoffs. He was held off the scoresheet, but has eight points, five of them goals, in seven games against the Blazers this season. He also scored twice in a preseason game against Kamloops. . . . Victoria had a 40-18 edge in shots on goal. . . . The Royals have outscored the Blazers 9-0 in the third period of games in Victoria this season. . . . The Blazers have three players sidelined with broken jaws -- D Sam Grist, F Luke Harrison and F Tyson Ness. . . . The Royals (46-17-4) will be the No. 3 seed for the opening round of playoffs. . . . The Blazers (13-50-5) have lost six in a row. They are 3-21-1 since Guy Charron stepped in as head coach, replacing Dave Hunchak.
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From James Peters (@Jamloops) of CFJC-TV in Kamloops: “In #Kamloops (Friday), I asked @adriandix what's wrong with the Canucks. Went on for 5 minutes. Said they should rebuild, like @blazerhockey.”
Adrian Dix is soon to be the former leader of the B.C. NDP.

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Lipon brothers meet up during Blazers scrimmage

Forward Mitch Lipon of the Kamloops Blazers applies some freezing gel
to his upper front teeth after having them chipped when he was checked
by his brother, JC, during an earlier scrimmage on Sunday.
(HUGO YUEN / Kamloops Daily News)

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
JC Lipon was chuckling.
His younger brother, Mitch, was grimacing.
Their mother, Shelley, was, well, she was being a mother.
During a Sunday morning scrimmage at the Kamloops Blazers’ training camp at Interior Savings Centre, JC caught Mitch with a shoulder check in open ice.
“He got me with a shoulder and my teeth went into my visor,” offered Mitch, 17, showing the damage to his two upper front teeth, both of which were chipped, then adding that he was going to have to call home.
“I hit him in middle ice,” said JC, 20, with a laugh, while nodding in the direction of Mitch.
“I suppose (JC) is just trying to toughen up his little brother,” Shelley wrote in a text from Regina. “I have just come to the conclusion that it’s part of hockey.
“But it is tough on a mom!”
While JC has spent four seasons with the Blazers, Mitch, who played last season with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians, is hoping for a spot here this season. He put up 51 points, 20 of them goals, in 44 games with Regina last season, and also got a late-season taste of life with the Blazers, getting limited playing time and going pointless in three regular-season and five playoff games.
Having been here last spring has made this camp a bit easier for him.
“It’s a lot easier to come in here knowing all the guys, having been here before and knowing how things work,” Mitch said. “You’re still a rookie but you know what to do and are expected to know what to do.”
Mitch also has gotten more help than a shoulder to the face from his older brother.
“He helps me out a lot,” Mitch said. “He gives me that extra push. He’s in my face quite a bit but it’s all good.
“He said I have the skill, I just have to put in the work ethic to get where I want to be and get a spot on the team. I want to make the team and find a spot where I can contribute.”
JC, meanwhile, is hoping to play this season for the St. John’s IceCaps, the Newfoundland-based AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. They selected Lipon in the third round of the 2013 NHL draft.
That put a cap on a season during which Lipon really came of age, at one point leading the WHL in scoring and then earning a spot on the Canadian team that played at the world junior championship in Ufa, Russia.
“Obviously a lot of good things happened last winter,” Lipon said. “I made some big strides. But it’s like you’re in the doghouse again . . . you get drafted and start from the bottom again. It’s another challenge in life and I’m looking forward to it.”
Shortly after the draft, Lipon attended a Jets’ prospects camp that, he said, only served to help his confidence.
Asked how he stacked up there, he replied: “Good, really good.”
He admitted to having been intimidated a bit in fitness testing “with the college guys.”
“But,” he added, “then you get on the ice and you know why you’re there. I did really well in all the practices and in the game, too. I’m pretty happy with the way things are.”
Lipon, who has yet to sign an NHL contract, will head for Winnipeg on Sept. 4 and then play for the Jets team at the Young Stars tournament in Penticton, Sept. 5-9.
“Obviously, I want to make the big team,” he said. But, being realistic, “definitely St. John’s is where I want to be.”
And if he ends up back in Kamloops?
“It is what it is,” he said. “There’s good coaching staff here. We’re young but just from being here it’s an awesome coaching staff. They’ve kind of developed that over the last few seasons and it’s a good organization to be in.”
Of course, if Lipon should wind up back here, he could get to play with Mitch, something he said is “pretty exciting.”
“He worked really hard this summer,” Mitch said. “I told him, ‘it’s your position to lose and he’s got to work hard.’ ”
Yes, even if it means taking a shoulder to the mouth from big brother.
So . . . when is payback?
“I don’t know,” Mitch said. “I guess we’ll see.”
JUST NOTES: Of the 57 players left in the Blazers’ camp, 32 were born in 1997 or ’98. The 14 players born in 1998 aren’t eligible for WHL rosters this season. . . . Veteran F Chase Souto, who turns 19 on Oct. 8, is the lone American in camp. . . . Sophomore D Jordan Thomson remains day-to-day with a cut to one foot. Thomson, who was injured while vacationing with his family, skated Sunday. . . . F Tim Bozon, 19, will leave Sept. 4 for Montreal and the Canadiens’ training camp, while F Colin Smith, 20, leaves Friday to join the Colorado Avalanche. Both have signed NHL deals. . . . G Bailey De Palma, the son of Blazers goaltending coach Dan De Palma, stopped 23 of 24 shots during his stint and was the second star last night as the host Prince George Spruce Kings dropped a 5-2 decision to the visiting Merritt Centennials in a BCHL exhibition game.

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
Dusseldorf (Germany, DEL) announced the signings of F Colin Long (Kelowna, 2005-09) and F Ashton Rome (Moose Jaw, Red Deer, Kamloops, 2002-06) to one-year contract extensions. Long had eight goals and nine assists in 15 games and Rome had 13 goals and 12 assists in 33 games with Dusseldorf this season. Long, who missed the first part of the season with a concussion, also serves as an assistant coach. . . .

G Dusan Salficky (Tri-City, 1990-91) signed a one-year contract extension with Pardubice (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had a 3.02 GAA and a .909 save percentage in 34 games with Pardubice this season.


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The Prince George Cougars have written an open letter that thanks “fans, volunteers, off-ice officials, billets, local media and corporate sponsors for their continued support in 2012-2013.”
More importantly, the letter, which is posted on the Cougars’ website, would seem to indicate that the franchise isn’t going anywhere.
“Our loyal season-ticket holders stuck with our team through thick and thin and we were so grateful to see your familiar faces at the CN Centre on a nightly basis,” the letter reads. “Your knowledge, and support of the Prince George Cougars has not gone un-noticed, and we can’t wait to welcome you back in September. You are a strong part of the fabric that holds our team together.”
There are numerous references to next season, including this as part of a thank you to sponsors: “We have some exciting plans for the 2013-2014 season, and we look forward to partnering up with the Prince George business community once again.”
The letter closes with: “ . . . we look forward to greater success both on and off the ice in 2013-2014 and beyond.”
Sorry, Chilliwack, but it looks like you will have to wait.
———
I kept reading and hearing that the Regina Pats won the WHL’s bantam draft lottery on Wednesday.
But, really, they didn’t.
I mean, do you phone your neighbours and tell them that you won the lottery when, really, you got the second prize?
So the truth is that the Vancouver Giants won the draft lottery, which means they will have the first selection on May 2 in Calgary. (What, you expected the draft to be held over two days on a weekend in, say, Moose Jaw or Portland?)
The Giants will select first — hello, there, Tyler Benson — followed in order by Regina, the Prince George Cougars, Brandon Wheat Kings, Moose Jaw Warriors and Lethbridge Hurricanes. Those are the WHL’s six non-playoff teams.
The first-round order of selection following those picks is:
7. Everett Silvertips; 8. Seattle Thunderbirds; 9. Kootenay Ice; 10. Medicine Hat Tigers; 11. Victoria Royals; 12. Swift Current Broncos; 13. Prince Albert Raiders; 14. Red Deer Rebels;
15. Tri-City Americans; 16. Spokane Chiefs; 17. Saskatoon Blades; 18. Calgary Hitmen; 19. Kamloops Blazers; 20. Edmonton Oil Kings; 21. Kelowna Rockets; 22. Portland Winterhawks.
Keep in mind that the draft lottery only impacts the first round. Here’s the draft order for all subsequent rounds:
1. Vancouver; 2. Prince George; 3. Brandon; 4. Everett; 5. Seattle; 6. Regina; 7. Moose Jaw;
8. Lethbridge; 9. Kootenay; 10. Medicine Hat; 11. Victoria; 12. Swift Current; 13. Prince Albert; 14. Red Deer;
15. Tri-City; 16. Spokane; 17. Saskatoon; 18. Calgary; 19. Kamloops; 20. Edmonton; 21. Kelowna; 22. Portland.
Also keep in mind that the afore-mentioned draft order doesn’t include any selections that already have been traded.
———
The WHL handed out some Eastern Conference awards. If you haven’t yet seen who got what, you are able to check it out at whl.ca. . . . It’s the Western Conference’s turn today. Yes, Travis Green of the Portland Winterhawks should be the conference’s coach of the year. But will he?
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Phil Andrews, the radio voice of the Regina Pats, reports via Twitter that F Chandler Stephenson “will join the AHL's Hershey Bears on Monday next week for the remainder of their season.” . . .
The Red Deer Rebels have added F Adam Musil and G Taz Burman to their roster. Musil, the brother of Edmonton Oil Kings D David Musil, was a first-round selection in the 2012 bantam draft, while Burman was taken in the second round. . . .
The Kamloops Blazers have added F Mitch Lipon, 16, to their roster for the remainder of the season. Lipon, a list player, is the brother of Kamloops F JC Lipon. Mitch played this season with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians, picking up 51 points in 44 games. . . .
F Colin Jacobs of the Prince George Cougars has joined the Rochester Americans, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. He was a fourth-round pick in the 2011 NHL draft, taken by the Sabres while he was with the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . .
Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald reports that the Everett Silvertips are likely to be without veteran F Ryan Harrison for the start of the playoffs. Harrison hasn’t played or practised since March 8, thanks to an undisclosed injury. . . . Everett F Logan Aasman (undisclosed) also is likely to miss at least the first two games. . . .
Not that there really was any doubt, but the Portland Winterhawks are expecting to have Mac Carruth in goal when they open against visiting Everett on Friday night. Carruth left a March 12 game with an undisclosed injury but it was never believed to be serious. . . . However, as Nick Patterson points out, Brendan Burke, Portland’s other goaltender, is 7-0-0 against the Silvertips this season. . . .
The Saskatoon Blades are likely to be without  F Erik Benoit (undisclosed) when they open tonight against the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers. He left a game on Friday and hasn’t practised. . . .
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The playoffs start tonight with the Medicine Hat Tigers in Saskatoon to play the Blades, and the Swift Current Broncos in Calgary to meet the Hitmen. . . . The other six series all open on Friday.
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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)
———


From BCHL watcher Brian Wiebe (@Brian_Wiebe): “Head Coach/GM Jon Calvano no longer listed on @BCHLExpress website, only assistants listed. No idea what's up with Calvano.”


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