ASK THE COMMISSIONER:
I visited the WHL’s Facebook page to see what kind of response there has been to the league’s version of Ask the Commissioner. There are some, uhh, interesting comments over there, including this one from John McCarthy:
Why is that even until today, 1 year after the WHL and former Majority Bruins ownership set the wheels in motion to screw over the City of Chilliwack, and the Bruins fans, we the fans of the Chilliwack Bruins have never received an apology for being lied to, fed misleading comments not only from the Commisioners Office, but also from the BoG and even the snakes who sold this team? This underhanded deal, actually violated the WHL's own policy of "not giving up on a market until all avenues are exhausted". You lied and left us all hanging in the breeze when you knew full well that the deal was presented and completed, pending the conclusion of the playoff season. How do you expect the fans of this league to trust you, or any of the BoG's again, when it comes to important information that is released to the very people who keep all these teams afloat, including indirectly your salary Mr. Robison? Can you explain why any WHL fan should trust anything this league tells us again? At least the Weasel Gary Bettman admitted that the NHL screwed up and that Winnipeg and Quebec City deserved teams back in their city. Why are you trying to ignore us in hopes we just go away? Sorry, but unless December 21, 2012 is the end of the world...we are not going away Mr. Robison. I'm gonna stay and remain a pain in your butt until you finally come clean on the "Chilliwack Screw Job".
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Condolences to Derek Laxdal, the head coach of the Edmonton Oil Kings, on the death of his father, John, on Sunday morning.
The Oil Kings announced that John Laxdal, who was 75, passed away “peacefully in his sleep with his family at his side in his home in Stonewall, Man.”
A funeral is expected to be held sometime over the weekend in Stonewall.
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Things are heating up on the NCAA/CHL front.
Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald reports that “College Hockey Inc., is working to enact legislation — either with the oversight of the NHL or through the transfer agreement between USA Hockey and Hockey Canada — to bar Canadian major junior teams from stealing a player who has signed a letter of intent until after the player’s freshman year.”
As Schlossman reports, NCAA teams can’t recruit CHL players, because they no longer are eligible to play at a U.S. school.
“We need to have a deal in place with the NHL and with the CHL,” U of North Dakota head coach Dave Hakstol said. “We are going into a back-alley brawl. They are bringing guns. We’re coming with no weapon and one hand tied behind our back.”
Paul Kelly, the executive director of College Hockey Inc., told Schlossman that “it is our position that once a kid signs a letter of intent, he’s made up his mind and demonstrated it in written form. He should be off limits and shouldn’t be continually recruited until at least after his freshman year. Continued recruiting of players after they’ve committed in writing to college, we find that conduct to be unacceptable. We’ve communicated that fact to the NHL. We’re hoping to bring some order to the process.”
Schlossman’s complete story is right here, including thoughts from Hakstol on the possibility that the NCAA could re-do its rules regarding the college eligibility of CHL players.
Folks, take cover. The shooting is soon to start.
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Morris Dalla Costa of the London Free Press has taken the OHL to task for the decision to suspend Sarnia Sting F Nail Yakupov for not playing in the Top Prospects Game last week in Kelowna.
“The Ontario Hockey League embarrassed and damaged itself on the weekend,” Dalla Costa writes.
“It acted like the schoolyard bully that didn't get his way and in the process proved what many have known for a while — players are no more than meat passing through the processing plant.
“The suspension of Sarnia Sting forward Nail Yakupov for two games by OHL commissioner David Branch was a clear indication that selling tickets, appeasing sponsors and making money — no matter the cost to the player or his teams — is the No. 1 priority.
“This should be the first story handed to a player in the throes of making a decision about where to play the game at the next level.
“Go ahead, play in the OHL, but be aware that they own you.”
The complete column is right here.
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There’s more on the Yakupov story here as the doctor who treated him as blasted the OHL.
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On the subject of that Top Prospects Game, if you watched the game you will recall a fight between F Tom Wilson of the Plymouth Whalers and D Dalton Thrower of the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Well, it seems that Wilson broke a knuckle in one hand during the fight that occurred after he hit F Lukas Sutter with a rather solid body check. Thrower and Sutter are teammates with the Saskatoon Blades.
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MONDAY’S GAMES:
In Portland, F Sven Baertschi scored three second-period goals and the Winterhawks went on to a 5-4 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . Baertschi, who has 18 goals, broke a 1-1 tie with an even-strength goal at 7:15, made it 3-1 on a PP at 11:54 and then scored shorthanded, at 19:13, to give his guys a 4-2 edge. . . . He also had an assist. . . . Vancouver got two goals from Marek Tvrdon, who has 22. . . . Vancouver G Adam Morrison stopped 37 shots, two more than Portland’s Mac Carruth, who won his WHL-leading 32nd game. He is three shy of the franchise’s single-season record of 35, held by Brent Belecki (1997-98). . . . The WHL record of 48 victories belongs to Glen Hanlon, who did it with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 1976-77. Hanlon now is an assistant coach with the Giants. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie, the WHL scoring leader, sat this one out after suffering an undisclosed injury in Saturday’s 3-2 loss to visiting Vancouver. . . . The Giants won three of four games from the Winterhawks this season. . . . The Winterhawks also were without D William Wrenn, their captain, for a third straight game. He, too, has an undisclosed injury. . . . Portland did have F Brad Ross back in the lineup after he was scratched twice for disciplinary reasons. . . . The Winterhawks lost F Brendan Leipsic with a fighting major and game misconduct at 16:31 of the first period. . . . I was listening to the Vancouver broadcast and there certainly seemed to be some confusion as to why Leipsic got the ol’ heave-ho. It might be time to give the referees microphones and let them make the announcements, as they do in the NHL. Of course, referees Brett Iverson and Jason Nissen would have received a lot of airtime had that been the case in this one. After all, they dished out 25 penalties. . . .

In Spokane, D Brendan Kichton broke a 2-2 tie at 19:37 of the first period and the Chiefs went on to a 7-3 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Kichton’s goal, via the PP, was his 13th of the season and 41st of his career, making him the highest-scoring defenceman in franchise history. He broke out of the tie with Sean Gillam (1992-96). . . . F Mike Aviani had a goal and two assists for Spokane. . . . The Chiefs were playing their fifth game in seven nights. . . . The Thunderbirds will play in Spokane again on Friday. . . . The Spokane victory lifted the fourth-place Chiefs two points clear of the Vancouver Giants in the Western Conference. . . . Seattle, which has lost six in a row, is eighth, two points behind the Victoria Royals. . . . The Royals are home to the Everett Silvertips tonight and Wednesday. Everett is 10th, five points behind Seattle.
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MONDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Tyler Wotherspoon, Portland.
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MONDAY’S CHECK-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None.
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For today’s good read, we go to Esquire magazine and a story that has nothing to do with sport. You may recall the day not that long ago when all eyes were on Zanesville, Ohio, where the keeper of numerous exotic animals turned them loose and then shot himself. Chris Jones, who is a terrific writer, delves into that situation right here. . . . It’s a long, long piece, but well worth the time.
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Parents of young hockey players and those players should take a look at this piece by Roy MacGregor of The Globe and Mail. It’s about John Tavares of the New York Islanders and how lacrosse has help make him a better hockey player. In other words, he didn’t need to play summer hockey.

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Angel Krstev (Lethbridge, 1999-2000) was assigned on loan by Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga) to Pisek (Czech Republic, 1.Liga) for the rest of this season. He had five assists in 21 games for Sparta this season.
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What’s next? Vanity Fair? GQ?
Lorne Molleken, the general manager and head coach of the Saskatoon Blades, is featured on the cover of Saskatoon Well Being Magazine, and also is the subject of a feature story.
After checking this out, you may agree that there just might be some truth to the rumour that ZZ Top had Molleken in mind with Sharp Dressed Man.
One thing is for certain, though. The late Maurice (Rocket) Richard would have taken one look at the photos and said: “Two minutes for lookin’ so good.”
Check it out right here.
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Shock waves continue to reverberate throughout the WHL following the Everett Silvertips’ announcement Thursday that they had fired general manager Doug Soetaert.
A front-office official with one team said “shock” best described the feeling in his organization’s office when people reported to work Friday morning.
One other team official told me that “Doug is a respected general manager in our league. Good GMs don’t grow on trees.”
Soetaert, whose contract was due to expire after this season, has yet to comment.
Gary Gelinas, the Silvertips’ president and governor, has said ownership decided now was the time to go in a new direction and that it is hoped a replacement will be in place in time to deal with the offseason.
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ASK THE COMMISSIONER:
The commissioner has yet to respond to any of the questions that have been posted here, all but one of which have come from readers of this blog.
However, I did hear from a WHL team official on Friday, and this person was kind enough to offer some clarification on a few things pertaining to the education situation, all of which was enlightening to me.
It was pointed out that a player in his 21-year-old season, who comes out of the WHL, is able to play an entire season of pro hockey and remain eligible to use his WHL education package.
Such a player could, for example, spend an entire season in the ECHL and enroll in school the following autumn.
However, that player would have to sit out an entire season of hockey before becoming eligible to play in the CIS.
The reason?
CIS rules call for a player to be enrolled by the second semester in order to be eligible to play that season. This is why we see players leaving the pro ranks over the Christmas break and heading to school. That allows them to play that season. If they play a full season of pro and then go to school, they have to sit out one season.
As for the WHL education fund that was referred to in one question, there isn’t such a creature. A player’s education is paid for by the team for which he played. The WHL administers the process, but the liability belongs to the teams.
At least one team budgets an average cost of $6,500 per player in school. So if a team has a dozen ex-players in school, that is an expense of $78,000. Make it 16 players and a team is paying out more than $100,000.
As this person told me, “That is the cost of doing business.”
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FRIDAY’S GAMES:
In Brandon, G Damien Ketlo turned aside 41 shots as the Lethbridge Hurricanes doubled the Brandon Wheat Kings, 4-2. . . . Ketlo stopped 25 shots through two periods as his teammates built a 2-0 lead on F Graham Hood’s 10th goal at 2:16 of the second, via the PP, and F Juraj Bezuch’s sixth at 16:24. . . . F Mark Stone got his 33rd for Brandon to get his side to within two, at 3-1, at 5:59 of the third. . . . Lethbridge F Max Moline, who had been out since Sept. 30 with a knee injury, got his first of the season at 7:39 of the third. It was his first career goal in 58 games, 54 of which were with the Tri-City Americans prior to this season. From Lethbridge, he was a fifth-round selection of the Americans in the 2008 bantam draft. . . . Lethbridge ended a three-game losing streak. . . . Brandon has lost six in a row at home. . . .

In Edmonton, F Michael St. Croix broke a 1-1 tie late in the first period and the Oil Kings skated to a 3-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . St. Croix got his 33rd goal of the season at 19:40. . . . F Mitch Moroz scored Edmonton’s other goals, opening the scoring at 2:58 of the first and upping his side’s lead to 3-1 at 10:14 of the second. He’s got 13 goals. . . . F Charles Inglis scored both Red Deer goals, giving him 15. . . . The Oil Kings lost F Kristians Pelss with a major for checking behind at 14:01 of the third. After the ensuing scrap, the Rebels ended up with a three-minute power play but weren’t able to score. . . . Red Deer D Aaron Borejko came out of that with stitches in his forehead. It’s not known if he will play tonight. . . .

In Cranbrook, F Sam Reinhart scored the winning goal in the last second of the third period to give the Kootenay Ice a 2-1 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Reinhart, who has 22 goals, had opened the scoring at 4:05 of the first period. . . . Calgary F Jimmy Bubnick tied it, with his 22nd, at 15:33 of the third period. . . . Ice F Drew Czerwonka was back after missing seven games with an undisclosed injury. F Max Reinhart (foot) remains sidelined. . . . Kootenay F Dylen McKinlay had two assists. . . . The Hitmen had won six in a row. Still, they have won 14 of their last 16. . . .

In Portland, F Oliver Gabriel and F Brendan Leipsic scored two goals each to lead the Winterhawks to a 7-3 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . It was a special night as former coach/player Brent Peterson was inducted into the Winterhawks’ Hall of Fame. . . . Portland has won a franchise-record 19 straight home games. . . . The teams were tied 2-2 when Portland D Troy Rutkowski scored at 17:20 of the first period. . . . Gabriel scored 19 seconds into the second period and Portland was off to the races. . . . F Cam Reid added a goal and two assists for Portland. . . . Winterhawks F Ty Rattie had one assist, as did linemate Sven Baertschi. . . . Portland was 3-for-3 on the PP; Everett was 0-for-7. . . . D Ryan Murray scored his eighth goal of the season for Everett, while D Josh Caron had two assists. It was the first two-point game of Caron’s career. Caron, 20, has played in 151 regular-season games. . . . Portland D Layne Viveiros, whose father Emanuel played for the Prince Albert Raiders (1982-86), earned his first WHL point, an assist on Portland’s first goal. . . . Emanuel now coaches in Austria, where he also is the Austrian national team’s head coach. . . .

In Prince Albert, the Medicine Hat Tigers erased a 1-0 deficit with three straight goals and beat the Raiders, 3-2. . . . F Hunter Shinkaruk broke a 1-1 tie with his 37th goal 56 seconds into the third period. . . . F Emerson got his WHL-leading 48th goal at 3:28 to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead. . . . Those two goals both came via the PP. . . . Medicine Hat G Tyler Bunz stopped 24 shots in winning his 106th career regular-season game, a franchise record. He had shared the record with Matt Keetley (2003-07). . . . Prince Albert F Mark McNeill got his 24th goal on a third-period PP. . . . Etem also had an assist. . . .

In Prince George, F Shane McColgan broke a 1-1 tie at 10:06 of the third period as the Kelowna Rockets got past the Cougars, 2-1. . . . Kelowna F Cody Chikie opened the scoring at 1:42 of the second period. . . . Cougars F Spencer Asuchak tied it at 3:28 of the third. . . . McColgan won it with his 14th goal of the season. . . . The Rockets were 0-for-1 on the PP; the Cougars were 0-for-5. . . .

In Saskatoon, the Blades opened up a 3-0 lead midway through the first period and went on to a 6-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . D Dalton Thrower scored twice for the Blades, giving him 14, while G Andrey Makarov stopped 35 shots. . . . Saskatoon has won three in a row. . . . The Warriors had won three in a row and had points in seven straight. . . . Saskatoon F Jake Trask had a goal, his 17th, and two helpers. . . . F Jesse Paradis, a 20-year-old who joined the Blades from the Warriors early in the season, opened the scoring with his 13th at 6:31 of the first, with F Brent Benson getting his eighth at 10:32 and Thrower his 13th at 11:25 via the PP. . . . Thrower and Trask scored early in the second period and the Blades were home free. . . .

In Spokane, F Blake Gal and F Mitch Holmberg scored in the shootout to give the Chiefs a 6-5 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . The Royals forced OT with two late third-period goals. F Brandon Magee got his 17th at 16:46 and F Robin Soudek added his 22nd at 19:25. . . . F Ben Walker assisted on both goals. . . . The Royals had trailed 6-3 until F Steven Hodges got his second goal of the game, and 17th of the season, at 16:09 of the second on a PP. . . . Spokane F Dominik Uher had a goal, his 22nd, and two assists. He scored shorthanded in the first period. . . .

In Swift Current, G Adam Beukeboom stopped 27 shots for his first WHL shutout as the Regina Pats blanked the Broncos, 4-0. . . . Beukeboom, 17, is from Calgary. A freshman, he was appearing in his 12th game. . . . The Pats lost three in a row. . . . Regina F Jordan Weal had a goal and an assist. The goal, his 31st, opened the scoring at 8:32 of the first period. . . . Weal had had a 13-game point streak snapped on Wednesday in Prince Albert, but later got an assist threw a scoring change. That means he now has a 15-game point streak going. . . . Ch-ch-ching! A third-period line brawl resulted in 94 penalty minutes being handed out. . . . All told, the Broncos took 74 of 126 penalty minutes. . . . The referees were Fraser Lawrence and Tyler (Red) Adair, who perhaps had some trouble putting out the fire in this one. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Brendan Shinnimin’s 30th goal stood up as the winner as the Tri-City Americans beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 4-1. . . . Shinnimin gave his side a 2-0 lead at 6:30 of the second, via the PP. . . . F Jesse Mychan opened the scoring with his seventh of the season and fourth in 11 games since being acquired from the Everett Silvertips. . . . F Connor Honey, with his third, got Seattle to within one at 17:33 of the second, on the PP. . . . F Justin Feser put it away with two empty-netters in the last minute of the third. He’s got 26 goals this season. . . . The second one was Feser’s 100th regular-season goal. . . . The Americans have won 20 home games for a sixth straight season. . . .

In Vancouver, the Giants wasted a 3-0 first-period lead then came back to score a 7-5 decision over the Kamloops Blazers on Gordie Howe Night in the Pacific Coliseum. . . . The Giants led 3-0 when F Nathan Burns scored at 10:02 of the first period. . . . The Blazers tied it with three goals before F Brendan Gallagher scored his 30th at 8:30 of the second to give Vancouver a 4-3 lead. . . . F Jordan Martinook got his 28th at 11:41 to up that to 5-3 and Kamloops chased the rest of the way. . . . Martinook finished with two goals and an assist, while F Taylor Makin had three assists. . . . Martinook has 29 goals, after scoring 11 last season. . . . Burns also scored twice for Vancouver and has 10 on the season. . . . The Blazers got three assists from D Bronson Maschmeyer, 20, who began his career with the Giants in 2008-09. . . . F Dylan Willick scored the Blazers’ WHL-leading 16th shorthanded goal of the season. That is 12 more than they scored all of last season.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Dalton Thrower, Saskatoon Blades.
F Kristians Pelss, Edmonton Oil Kings (major).
D Brad Deagle, Seattle.
F Tim Bozon, Kamloops.
D Austin Madaisky, Kamloops.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Curtis Valk, Medicine Hat.
D Antoine Corbin, Prince Albert.
D Joey Leach, Kootenay Ice.
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In the BCHL on Friday night, the host Penticton Vees ran their winning streak to 29 games with a 5-1 victory over the Chilliwack Chiefs. The Vees have tied the BCHL record for most consecutive victories on one season. They share it with the 1989-90 New Westminster Royals. . . . The Vees play in Chilliwack on Tuesday. . . . Attendance in Penticton was 3,886.
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The MJHL has lost two members of its extended family.
What follows is off the MJHL website:
“I was saddened to see Doug Smith an old competitor and MJHL alumnus pass away,” former Selkirk Steelers goaltender Willy Cole said in an email to the MJHL website.
“Doug, or Smitty, as we all knew him, was a feisty competitor when I played against him when he played with the Winnipeg Monarchs (1966-67). And then we hooked up again at Winnipeg Junior Jets training camp. Smitty ended up getting drafted by the Oakland Seals in ’68. Doug was only 63. Too soon!”
Kruk was a former St. Boniface Canadians player and was picked up to play with the Winnipeg Braves, who went on to win the 1959 Memorial Cup, the last year Manitoba won the Cup.
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F Nail Yakupov of the Sarnia Sting had a note from a doctor and everything, but he still got a two-game suspension from the OHL for skipping the Top Prospects Game in Kelowna on Wednesday.
Ryan Pyette of the London Free Press has more right here.
With this decision, one can only assume that someone — the CHL? — will suspend Bobby Orr and Don Cherry, too. After all, the teams were named after them and neither one of them showed up.
Neate Sager of Yahoo! Sports offers up his take on the Yakupov suspension right here.
When I first heard about this suspension, I burst out laughing. I actually did. A two-game suspension to a player coming off a serious knee injury because he didn’t show up for an exhibition game? Sorry, but I still don’t get it.
I’m thinking that it’s time to cut some of these players some slack. That a player gets suspended for two games for not playing in a game that is nothing but a money grab is silly. Especially when none of that cash would have made its way into his pockets.
Junior hockey operators, Hockey Canada and all the other nations already push these teenagers almost 12 months of the year. If a player is coming off a knee inury, if his own team (never mind that there was a doctor’s slip involved here) believes he would be best-served by rest, well, let him rest.
It is things like this that really make one wonder if a Major Junior Hockey Players Association isn’t somewhere in the not-too-distant future.
I mean, you get two games for missing the Top Prospects Game. You get eight games for flunking a drug test after what all involved agree was inadvertent doping. You get two games for a headshot here and you get eight games for a headshot there.
Someone’s rights might be getting trampled on here. No?
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Angelo Dundee died this week at the age of 90. A boxing trainer, he came from an era when the media and the sporting figures weren’t constantly at odds. Dave Kindred of Grantland writes about The Last Sweet Man in Boxing. That piece is right here.

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Brad Schell (Spokane, 1999-2004) signed a one-year contract after a successful tryout with Dornbirn (Austria, Nationalliga). He had five goals and five assists in six games during his tryout period. . . .
F Jakub Klepis (Portland, 2001-02) was placed on waivers by Salavat Yulayev Ufa (Russia, KHL) for the purpose of sending him to their minor league affiliate, Toros Neftekamsk (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). However, three KHL clubs put in claims — Metallurg Novokuznetsk, Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk and OHK Dynamo Moscow (all Russia, KHL). In the KHL, multiple claims made on players placed on waivers before Nov. 15 are decided based on the final standings from last season. Under this rule, Metallurg Novokuznetsk won the waiver claim but, according to Metallurg GM Leonid Vaisfeld, Klepis was never in their plans. Metallurg then traded Klepis to OHK Dynamo Moscow in exchange for a first-round draft pick. Klepis had three goals and two assists in 15 games with Salavat Yulayev this season. . . . As a side note, former NHL F Robert Nilsson also was placed on waivers at the same time as Klepis but he went unclaimed and will report to Toros.
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SOME FRIDAY LEFTOVERS: Head coach Jim Hiller picked up his 100th victory with the Tri-City Americans on Friday as they posted a 1-0 victory over the Cougars in Prince George. Tri-City G Eric Comrie stopped 17 shots for his first career shutout in that one. . . . According to an Americans’ news release, Hiller is the third coach in franchise history to get to 100 victories. “He is also the fastest coach to reach the mark,” reads the released, “doing it in just 157 games (.659 winning percentage). It took Bob Loucks (103 wins) 207 games to reach the mark while Don Nachbaur, Tri-City’s all-time coaching wins leader (229), got his 100th win in game No. 236.” . . . If you missed it Friday night, Shaun Clouston’s Medicine Hat Tigers beat brother Cory’s Brandon Wheat Kings 5-2 in the Gas City. Cory still holds a 4-2 edge in the matchup of coaching brothers. . . . Medicine Hat F Kellan Tochkin returned to the Tigers’ lineup in that one. He hadn’t played since Thanksgiving Day when he suffered an upper body injury (concussion?) as he was punched in the head by Kamloops Blazers D Josh Caron. . . . The Vancouver Giants scored six PP goals in beating the visiting Victoria Royals, 8-1. . . .
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NOW THAT WE’RE CAUGHT UP: Bob Ridley, the venerable radio voice of the Medicine Hat Tigers, was heard to say during a Saturday night broadcast that there is an “entirely good possibility” that the Gas City boys and the Kamloops Blazers could meet in the WHL playoffs. That, of course, would mean they are in the WHL final. . . . F Nail Yakupov of the Sarnia Sting has the OHL scoring lead after putting up three points on Saturday. The Russian, who is eligible for the 2012 NHL draft, has 29 points in 13 games. . . .
F Liam Stewart of the Spokane Chiefs scored his first WHL goal on Saturday, as he knocked a puck out of midair and into the net. It came in his sixth game and helped the Chiefs to a 3-2 victory over the visiting Everett Silvertips. . . . This is the last time that this blog will mention that Stewart is the son of model/actress Rachel Hunter and rocker Rod Stewart. Now that he’s on the board, he’s Liam Stewart and he might as well be the son of a Prairie farmer. OK? . . . That was Spokane’s sixth straight victory and was the fifth game in a row in which the Chiefs came from behind to win. . . . The Chiefs also have won seven straight on home ice. . . . Everett F Ryan Chynoweth, the grandson of the late Ed Chynoweth, the longtime WHL president, picked up an assist for his first WHL point. He is the son of Jeff Chynoweth, the Kootenay Ice’s president and general manager. . . .
On the MSG-TV telecast of last night’s game between Edmonton and the New York Rangers, Oilers president Kevin Lowe said, according to a tweet from @EJHradek_NHL: “I’d be shocked if (Ryan Nugent-Hopkins) goes back, but we’ll make that decision in a week or two.” . . . The Nuge scored again last night and added an assist. He played 16:04 in a 2-0 victory over the visiting New York Rangers. . . . He has a team-high five goals. Sorry, Red Deer! Sorry, Canada!! . . . F Tyler Giebel, 18, who had six points in 49 games with the Everett Silvertips last season, has joined the SJHL’s Yorkton Terriers. Giebel, who is from Regina, was pointless in eight games with Everett this season when he was released. . . .
Brandon F Mark Stone ran his season-opening point streak to 13 games as he scored once in the Wheat Kings’ 4-2 victory over the host Lethbridge Hurricanes last night. Stone leads the WHL scoring race with 28 points. . . . Brandon finished its seven-game road trip, which included five stops in the U.S., at 4-3-0. . . . The Hurricanes now has lost 11 in a row. . . . The Moose Jaw Warriors dropped a 2-1 decision to the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook last night. The Warriors dropped three one-goal decisions over the previous four days. . . .
Tri-City G Eric Comrie, 16, put up his second shutout in as many nights Saturday as the Americans beat the Cougars 1-0 in Prince George. Comrie, who stopped 17 shots in a 1-0 victory on Friday, turned aside 30 shots last night. . . . In both games, Comrie bettered former Americans G Drew Owsley. . . . According to Dan Mulhausen of the Americans, Comrie is “the first Americans goaltender to ever win consecutive 1-0 games, and the first 16-year-old goaltender in the franchise’s history to record back-to-back shutout victories.  Current Montreal Canadiens’ G Carey Price had three straight shutouts in December 2004, but he was 17 at the time.” . . . Mulhausen also reports that this was the eighth time in Tri-City history that it has won back-to-back games via shutout. Owsley and Price each did it twice, while Chet Pickard (Jan. 30-31, 2009), Jeff Blair (Feb. 20-26, 1999), David Trofimenkoff (Feb. 26-28, 1995) and Lance Leslie (Feb. 16-20, 1993) also did it. . . .
Former Kamloops/Regina D Victor Bartley scored the winning goal last night as the Milwaukee Admirals beat the Heat 3-1 in an AHL game in Abbotsford. It was his first goal and came in his fifth game. . . . The highlight of Saturday night? Watching the third period of the Dallas Stars at Los Angeles Kings — sorry, Jon Rosen, missed you in the intermission — and seeing Yvon Barrette in the nosebleeds with the commoners. He even did the “Who howns the Chiefs?” line when interviewed. Perhaps you know him better as goaltender Denis Lemieux from Slap Shot. . . . Going into Sunday games, 15 of the WHL’s 22 teams boast a winning percentage of .500 or better.
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Will the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning keep F Brett Connolly or return him to the Prince George Cougars? John Romano of the St. Petersburg Times has the latest right here.
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Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun reported via Twitter last night that “Justin Bieber went for a little twirl with Selena Gomez at MTS Centre” after the Winnipeg Jets game.
If you were wondering, both were wearing Jets jersey. Bieber, who put on a concert in the ’Peg on Friday, wore No. 6, while she wore No. 9.
And you thought the Biebs was a basketballer!
Hmmm! Gotta wonder if Biebs and his gal pal might be interesting in owning a WHL franchise in the Manitoba capital? Why not? Michael Buble owns a chunk of the Vancouver Giants.
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Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon Star Phoenix has written a solid story on Colton Stephenson, who has ended his WHL career because of post-concussion syndrome. That piece is right here.
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So . . . did a junior A team’s players have to run laps outdoors after returning home from a road game in which they blew a 4-0 third-period lead? Could it be that old-time hockey is back in Nanaimo, at least off the ice?
Philip Wolf of the Nanaimo Daily News tried to find out. He didn’t seem to get any denials for the piece that is right here.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Cory Flett, the WHL’s director, communications:
“It is seems that 'parody' could be the #WHL buzz word thus far this season, each team has at least 3 losses, except Spokane with 2.”
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For today’s good read, we bring you Hockey World, the weekly compilation by the Jim Matheson, the Edmonton Journal’s Hockey Hall of Famer. It’s right here and it’s about two cups of coffee in length. Enjoy!

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
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