THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Riley Armstrong (Kootenay, Everett, 2002-04) signed a contract with Barys Astana (Kazakhstan, KHL). According to Kazakh news reports, Armstrong is in Prague waiting for his visa. He had two assists in two games with Utah Grizzles (ECHL) this season. . . .
F Zdenek Blatny (Seattle, Kootenay, 1998-2001) signed a contract for the rest of this season with the Hannover Indians (Germany, 2.Bundesliga) after a successful tryout. Blatny had two goals and four assists in his four-game trial with the Indians.
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The Philadelphia Flyers have signed D Brandon Manning of the Chilliwack Bruins to a three-year NHL contract. Manning, 20, was never selected in the NHL draft. According to CapGeek.com, the contract calls for AHL salaries of US$60,000, $60,000 and $65,000, with NHL salaries of $690,000, $715,000 and $740,000. . . . Manning received a $270,000 signing bonus payable in three $90,000 instalments. . . . He leads all WHL defencemen with 26 points, including 10 goals, in 20 games with the Bruins this season. A native of Prince George, he is in his third season with the Bruins. . . . Manning, the Bruins’ captain, attended training camp with the NHL’s New York Rangers.
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The New York Islanders recalled D Travis Hamonic, 20, from the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Tuesday. Hamonic (Moose Jaw, Brandon, 2006-10) has seven points in 19 games as an AHL freshman. He was a second-round pick by the Isles in the 2008 NHL draft. . . . It is anticipated that he will make his NHL debut tonight against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
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Marc Fakler has been named GM and head coach of the Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings, who will return to the NAHL next season. These days, he is the associate director of hockey operations/director of player advancement and bantam major head coach for the West Michigan Hounds AAA club. He has four years experience as an assistant coach at Western Michigan and two at Robert Morris.
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F Garth Murray (Regina, 1998-2002) has signed with the ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings. Murray, 28, played last season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat; in fact, he was the team captain. He had 31 points and 169 penalty minutes in 80 games. His pro career includes 355 AHL games and 116 in the NHL, with the New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Florida Panthers and Phoenix Coyotes. He was a third-round selection by the Rangers in the 2001 NHL draft.
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D Dylan McIlrath is back skating with the Moose Jaw Warriors. McIlrath, who was in New York last week for an MRI on an injured knee, took part in an optional skate Monday and returned to practice on Tuesday. He has a strained MCL and is listed as day-to-day. . . . The New York Rangers selected him 10th overall in the NHL’s 2010 draft. . . . The Warriors, who face the Raiders in Prince Albert tonight, will have F A.J. Johnson (mononucleosis) back tonight after missing eight games. . . . D Shayne Gwimmer, 16, will make his WHL debut with the Warriors. Gwinner, a second-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft, was brought in from the midget AAA UFA Bisons, who are based in Strathmore, Alta. . . . The Chilliwack Bruins will be without D Jesse Pauls for up to four months. He had surgery after suffering a broken leg in Friday’s 4-3 victory over the visiting Tri-City Americans. Pauls, who is from Chilliwack, had 14 points in 21 games. . . .
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SOME TUESDAY HIGHLIGHTS:
In Kamloops, F Dalibor Bortnak scored 54 seconds into OT to give the Blazers a 4-3 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . F JT Barnett, who had gone 10 goals without a goal, had a goal and two assists for Kamloops. . . . F Matt Needham, the eighth pick in the 2010 bantam draft, scored his first WHL goal for Kamloops. It was his second WHL game. . . . The Pats are 1-0-2 on their B.C. Division swing. . . .
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In Red Deer, F Daulton Siwak had a goal and three assists as the Rebels beat the Kootenay Ice, 5-0. . . . G Darcy Kuemper stopped 28 shots in posting his WHL-leading fourth shutout of the season. He has 10 career blank jobs. . . . Siwak, a second-round pick in the 2008 bantam draft, went into the game with five points in 24 games. Last season, he totaled five points in 61 games. . . .
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In Medicine Hat, F Linden Vey had two goals and three assists to lead the Tigers to a 7-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Vey, with 17 points in his last five games, moved into top spot in the WHL scoring race. He now has 43 points, including 16 goals, and holds a two-point lead over F Craig Cunningham of the Vancouver Giants. . . . F Tyler Pitlick added two goals for Medicine Hat, giving him 10. . . . Medicine Hat F Emersom Etem scored his 15th goal and added two assists. . . .
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In Calgary, F Jimmy Bubnick had two goals and an assist to help the Hitmen to a 3-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The teams meet again tonight in Edmonton. . . . Bubnick, in his fourth WHL season, has 151 career points. . . . The Hitmen had lost nine straight games at home. . . . Calgary has won two of three after losing 12 in a row. . . . Attendance was announced as 7,165. However, Dan Toth reported in the Calgary Herald that “only a couple of thousand fans braved the frigid weather.” . . .
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In Saskatoon, F Curtis Hamilton and D Duncan Siemens had a goal and two assists apiece to lead the Blades to a 6-2 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . D Stefan Elliott scored his eighth goal of the season and it was his sixth game-winner. . . . Elliott also was plus-5, while Swift Current F Cody Eakin and D Reece Scarlett each was minus-5. . . . Saskatoon F Josh Nicholls had two assists. . . . Hamilton, who switched from No. 9 to No. 13 prior to this season, scored his 13th goal. He had worn No. 9 through three seasons, but injuries limited him to 26 games last season. He now has 32 points in 23 games. . . . With F Marek Viedensky (concussion) sidelined, Saskatoon GM/head coach Lorne Molleken moved Jake Trask up between Hamilton and Nicholls. Trask, who was acquired from the Kamloops Blazers, responded with a goal and an assist. . . . Swift Current is without D Tanner Muth (collarbone), F Stepan Novotny (knee), F Brenden Sylvester (back), F Taylor Vause (hamstring) and F Dillon Wagner (knee).
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TUESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
One minor:
Medicine Hat F Ryan Harrison.

 

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca

     

gdrinnan.blogspot.com

     

Taking Note on Twitter

Thursday . . .

This is the design of the jerseys being auctioned off by the Everett Silvertips.

The Everett Silvertips are at home to the Tri-City Americans tonight and it’s Pink the Rink night.
There will be a whole lot of things happening, with proceeds going to the Providence General Foundation.
Included will be a chuck-a-puck promotion; a ticket package that includes an upper-level ticket, an ‘I Pinked the Rink’ Silvertips t-shirt, and a $6 donation to the PGF, all for $20; and, an online auction involving commemorative pink-trimmed Silvertips jerseys.  Bids on each jersey start at $150 — email bids to auctions@everettsilvertips.com.
Notes from a Silvertips release: “In the subject line please place the name of the player that you are bidding on and in the body of the email please include your bid amount as well as a day-time phone number that we can use to contact you should you be the highest bidder. If you are submitting an online bid and will be in attendance please indicate that in your email.” Email bids will be accepted until today at 3 p.m.; bidding resumes in-person once the doors open on Friday at 6:30 p.m., and will continue through the end of the second period. Winning bids will be posted in the third period.
After the game, jerseys will be presented to the highest bidders.
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The Kamloops Blazers will conclude their Pink Power Play fund-raiser on Saturday as they play host to the Seattle Thunderbirds.
It’s all part of their efforts to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
As well, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation will continue its WestJet Raffle through the second period, with the winner announced during the third period.
The Blazers are auctioning off specially designed Bauer Vapor x60 Composite Sticks. Bid sheets will be out for Saturday's game, with the auction ending as the second period begins. Email bids will be accepted at aneuls@blazerhockey.com. For more info, or to check on bids, visit the Blazers’ website or the team’s Facebook page.
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The Saskatoon Blades are on the road this weekend and may not have the services of G Steven Stanford, 20, who left Thursday’s practice with a possible concussion.
As a result, the Blades have recalled G Adam Todd, a fourth-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft. Todd is to join the Blades in time for a Saturday game against the Rebels in Red Deer. The Blades then will meet the Hitmen on Sunday afternoon in Calgary.
Todd is in his first season with the major midget Okanagan Rockets. He is 3-2-0, 3.01, .894.
With Todd on the move, the Rockets plan on giving two weekend starts to freshman Connor De Melo, 15, who is 3-2-0, 3.04, .871. The Rockets have a weekend doubleheader with the Cariboo Cougars.
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The Kamloops Blazers have assigned F Jesse Sinatynski, 18, to junior A. He is expected to play somewhere in the AJHL. Sinatynyski, who is from Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., was acquired Oct. 14 from the Brandon Wheat Kings for a fifth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. He played three games with the Blazers, scoring once, and was a healthy scratch for one game. . . . Kamloops now is carrying 24 players, including two goaltenders and eight defencemen. That includes D Josh Caron, who is out for another month with a broken collarbone.
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Head coach Craig Hartsburg has returned to the practice ice with the Everett Silvertips. But he won’t be on the bench Friday when the Tri-City Americans are in town. Hartsburg underwent a heart catheterization last week and will undergo open hart surgery on Wednesday in Everett to repair an ascending aortic aneurysm. . . . Hartsburg will attend Friday’s game, but associate coach Jay Varady and assistant coach Chris Hartsburg will work the bench, as they did for three games last week. . . . After the surgery, Hartsburg won’t be back coaching until sometime in the new year. . . . The Americans lost three road games without Hartsburg -- 2-0 to the Portland Winterhawks, 4-3 to the Kelowna Rockets and 3-1 to the Vancouver Giants.
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It was a busy day for the Portland Winterhawks. First, they got F Nino Niederreiter back from the NHL’s New York Islanders. Then they announced that G Ian Curtis, 20, had cleared WHL waivers.
Niederreiter should play for the Winterhawks in a weekend doubleheader against the Kelowna Rockets. They’ll play twice at Memorial Coliseum tonight and Saturday night.
The fifth overall pick in the NHL’s 2010 draft,  Niederreiter, 18, had a goal and an assist in nine games with the Islanders. Because of his age and the fact that he was drafted off a CHL team’s roster, Niederreiter, who is from Switzerland, either had to play with the Islanders or be returned to Portland.
Last season, his first in the WHL, Niederreiter had 60 points, including a team-high 36 goals. He added 16 points, eight of them goals, in the playoffs. And, of course, he got a lot of pub during the World Junior Championship when he led Switzerland into the semifinals and was named a tournament all-star. And he played for Switzerland at the 2010 IIHF world championship.
It will be interesting to see how GM/head coach Mike Johnston and assistant Travis Green fit in Niederreiter among their top six forwards. He also is the third forward on the roster with an NHL contract as F Ryan Johansen, the fourth pick in the 2010 NHL draft, and F Oliver Gabriel, a free agent, have signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets. (D Brett Ponich, a second-round pick by St. Louis in 2009, has signed with the Blues.)
Later in the day, the Winterhawks announced that Curtis would be on the move as they have decided to go with their two 18-year-old goaltenders — Mac Carruth and Keith Hamilton.
The original plan was to go with Curtis and Carruth. But when both of them went down with injuries, Hamilton carried the mail through the season’s first couple of weeks and was outstanding.
Curtis is 2-0, 3.50, .909 this season. Last season, he went 27-21-3, 3.39, .906. He also has played with the Swift Current Broncos and Prince George Cougars.
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The Calgary Flames had a guest — F Ryan Howse of the Chilliwack Bruins — at their Thursday night game against the visiting Colorado Avalanche. Howse, a third-round selection by the Flames in the 2009 NHL draft, watched the Flames fall, 6-5. . . . Chilliwack plays the Hitmen in Calgary tonight. . . . The BCHL’s Langley Chiefs recently have added three former WHLers to their roster. D Brad Haber, who was released by the Red Deer Rebels, is with the Chiefs, as are the Scholten brothers, Dillon and Brandon, both of whom had been with the Vancouver Giants. Haber is 20, as is Dillon Scholten, a defenceman. Brandon Scholten, 18, is a forward. . . . Calgary Hitmen F Kris Foucault (shoulder) is questionable for a game tonight against the visiting Chilliwack Bruins. He was injured during Wednesday’s 3-0 loss to visiting Kootenay when he absorbed a clean hit from Ice D Brayden McNabb.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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Taking Note on Twitter

Nino back to Portland?

Today, we bring hope for followers of the Portland Winterhawks.
If you fall into that category, ask yourself this: Why wouldn’t the Winterhawks get F Nino Niederreiter back from the New York Islanders one of these days?
Niederreiter, who is from Switzerland, had a tremendous freshman season with the Winterhawks last season. He finished with 65 points, including 36 goals, in 60 games. He captured our imagination while playing for Switzerland at the World Junior Championship, too. Who can ever forget his performance against the Russians?
And then he was selected fifth overall by the Islanders in the NHL’s 2010 draft. He went to camp with the Islanders, signed a three-year NHL contract and has opened the season on their roster. In fact, he scored his first NHL goal Wednesday — it came in his third game — as the Islanders dropped a 2-1 decision to the host Washington Capitals.
The Islanders, however, have a number of players on their injured list, including F John Tavares (concussion), F Kyle Okposo (shoulder), F Rob Schremp (back), G Nathan Lawson (knee) and D Mark Streit (shoulder).
Tavares is due back shortly, with Schremp scheduled to return early next month. Lawson should be back early in December, while Okposo is out until early in 2011. Streit is gone until perhaps February.
When those players start to trickle back, the Islanders will have to make some roster decisions. For starters, who goes where when Tavares and Schremp return?
It could well be that one of those decisions may well involve Niederreiter, who turned 18 on Sept. 8, heading back to the Winterhawks. Right now, he is the youngest player in the NHL.
But the Islanders, you can bet, know full well that he would be better served as a sophomore in Portland than he is as the NHL’s baby.
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The Kootenay Ice got down to three 20-year-olds by releasing G Todd Mathews. That leaves the Ice with F Steele Boomer, F Matt Fraser and F Kevin King as its 20-year-olds.
Mathews, from Covina, Calif., has a 2.28 GAA and a .925 save percentage this season. Last season, he was 2.75, .907, with a 33-14-5 record.
It’s hard to believe there isn’t a place in today’s WHL for a goaltender with those kinds of numbers. (You also might think there would be room for F Mike Brown, who was dropped by the Tri-City Americans. He’s a 6-foot-3, 210-pounder who had six points in eight games. Is the WHL only business you know that throws assets out in the bath water like this?)
The Ice now is carrying 24 players, including two goaltenders and 15 forwards.
At the same time, the Ice has named D Brayden McNabb, 19, as the 15th captain in franchise history. He succeeds F Dustin Sylvester, who used up his eligibility last season. Boomer, Fraser and King were named alternate captains.
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Here, courtesy of the Regina Leader-Post’s Greg Harder, is a look at the 20-year-olds who survived cutdown day. . . .
Brandon Wheat Kings: D Darren Bestland, F David Toews, F Shayne Wiebe.
Calgary Hitmen: F Tyler Fiddler, F Misha Fisenko, F Kris Foucault.
Chilliwack Bruins: D Jeff Einhorn, G Lucas Gore, D Brandon Manning.
Edmonton Oil Kings: F Jordan Hickmott, F Mike Piluso, D Adrian Van De Mosselaer.
Everett Silvertips: F Clayton Cumiskey, F Parker Stanfield, D Chad Suer.
Kamloops Blazers: G Jeff Bosch, D Corey Fienhage, F Shayne Neigum.
Kelowna Rockets: F Evan Bloodoff, D Brendon Wall, F Geordie Wudrick.
Kootenay Ice: F Steele Boomer, F Matt Fraser, F Kevin King.
Lethbridge Hurricanes: F Mitch Maxwell, D Mike Reddington, F Max Ross.
Medicine Hat Tigers: D Thomas Carr, D Jace Coyle, F Wacey Hamilton.
Moose Jaw Warriors: F Spencer Edwards, G Thomas Heemskerk, F Dylan Hood, F Brendan Rowinski. (Rowinski is on the long-term injury list.)
Portland Winter Hawks: F Spencer Bennett, G Ian Curtis, F Tayler Jordan.
Prince Albert Raiders: D Nathan Deck, F Igor Revenko, D Jordan Rowley.
Prince George Cougars: F Sena Acolatse, F James Dobrowolski, F Taylor Stefishen.
Red Deer Rebels: D Colin Archer, F Brett Ferguson, G Darcy Kuemper.
Regina Pats: F Thomas Frazee, C Colin Reddin, D Mark Schneider.
Saskatoon Blades: G Steven Stanford, F Marek Viedensky, D Teigan Zahn.
Seattle Thunderbirds: D Travis Bobbee, D Brenden Dillon, F Travis Toomey.
Spokane Chiefs: F Tyler Johnson, F Levko Koper, G James Reid.
Swift Current Broncos: F Justin Dowling, G Mark Friesen, F Stepan Novotny.
Tri-City Americans: F Kruise Reddick, D Tyler Schmidt, D Zak Stebner.
Vancouver Giants: F Craig Cunningham, F Matt MacKay, F Randy McNaught.
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The Brandon Wheat Kings dealt D Kyle Krzyzaniak, 18, to Spokane for a 12th-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. He will join the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings, at least for now. . . . The Regina Pats, who have lost five straight games, meet the Hurricanes in Lethbridge tonight and the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook on Saturday. Regina may be without F Dane Muench (knee), who is listed as doubtful. Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reports that F Garrett Mitchell missed practice Wednesday with an undisclosed injury and is questionable for the weekend. . . . C Anthony Ast, the 19th pick in the 2010 bantam draft, is expected to make his WHL debut tonight for the Vancouver Giants against the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds. Ast, 15, has 11 points in eight games with the major midget Greater Vancouver Canadians. . . . Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun reports that LW Brodyn Nielsen of the Canadians also is likely to play tonight. Nielsen, 16, has 14 points in eight games with the Canadians. . . . Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun reports that the Wheat Kings are getting ready to head west Monday. They’ll play a home-and-home set with the Swift Current Broncos this weekend before opening a B.C. Division swing in Prince George on Wednesday. Henderson writes that D Jordan Fransoo (broken foot) is skating but not taking part in contact drills and that D Eric Roy (minor wrist injury) didn’t skate. “Other injured Wheat Kings include RW David Toews (ankle 4-6 weeks), LW Mike Ferland (knee, one month) and RW Jens Meilleur (hand, 2-4 weeks),” Henderson reports. . . . Marlow Weldon of the Red Deer Express reports that brothers Chad and Cody Huesby will be the linesmen on Saturday when the Prince Albert Raiders visit the Red Deer Rebels. This will be the first time in WHL history that twin brothers have officiated a WHL game together. That story is right here.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
Taking Note on Twitter