Showing posts with label Penticton Vees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Penticton Vees. Show all posts

Monday, July 3, 2017

Rizzo commits to Vees; Blazers' first-rounder picks BCHL ... A July 4 look at hot dogs


F Gaelan Patterson (Saskatoon, 2006-10) has signed a one-year contract with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite). Last season, with Chamonix-Morzine (France, Ligue Magnus), he had two goals and three assists in 23 games. . . . 
F Jan Dalecký (Swift Current, 2007-09) has signed a one-year contract with the Herning Blue Fox (Denmark, Metal Ligaen). Last season, with Ústí nad Labem (Czech Republic, 1. Liga), he had eight goals and six assists in 39 games. . . . 
F Jesse Schultz (Tri-City, Prince Albert, Kelowna, 1999-2003) has signed a one-year contract with Nové Zámky (Slovakia, Extraliga). Last season, he had eight goals and 11 assists in 22 games with the Sheffield Steelers (England, UK Elite). He also had four goals and seven assists in seven games with Debrecen (Hungary, MOL Liga). . . .
F Max Ross (Lethbridge, 2008-11) has signed a one-year extension with Gap (France, Ligue Magnus). Last season, he had seven goals and 17 assists in 44 games, as Gap won the French league championship.
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F Massimo Rizzo, the 14th selection in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft, has made his decision — he will play for the BCHL’s Penticton Vees in 2017-18.
The Vees made the announcement on their Twitter account on Monday afternoon.
Each of the 13 players selected before Rizzo in that 2016 bantam draft has signed with the WHL team that picked him.
Rizzo, from Burnaby, B.C., and his father met with representatives of the Blazers in Vancouver on Wednesday. The Blazers’ group included majority owner Tom Gaglardi, part-owner Shane Doan, general manager Stu MacGregor and head coach Don Hay.
Rizzo played last season with a midget prep team at the Burnaby Winter Club, finishing with 84 points in 48 games. He also played a total of 20 games — regular-season, playoff, Western Canada Cup and RBC Cup — with the Vees. While he was pointless in three regular-season games, he had one goal in seven playoff games, a goal and four assists in five games at the WCC and a goal in five games at the RBC Cup.
Rizzo is one of 111 players invited by Hockey Canada to attend an under-17 development camp in Calgary starting on July 22.
The Blazers already have signed their 2017 first-round selection. They announced the signing of F Josh Pillar of Allan, Sask., on June 12.
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“Professional athletes are tested in ways that most of us can only imagine,” writes Phil Barber of the Santa Rosa, Calif., Press Democrat. “Their jobs frequently involve pain and risk of injury. Public failure hangs over them like a swaying piano, adulation whispers to them like an untrustworthy friend. It makes sense that the emotions that consume their days would also invade their nights.” . . . So what shows up in the dreams of pro athletes? . . . Barber asked a number of them and his story is right here.
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Few wordsmiths today are able to spin it like Steve Rushin of Sports Illustrated. So, on this Fourth of July, he provides a look at . . . yes, the hot dog. Click right here and enjoy.
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I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:14 PM
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Thursday, June 29, 2017

Ex-WHLer heads to Vegas ... 'Canes add assistant coach ... Ice gets forward from Rebels


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 F Garry Nunn (Vancouver, Edmonton, 2007-10) has signed a one-year contract with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen). Last season, with the San Antonio Rampage (AHL), he had eight goals and 10 assists in 53 games. . . .
F T.J. Foster (Edmonton, 2008-13) has signed a one-year contract with Frisk Asker (Norway, GET-Ligaen). Last season, with the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL), he had two goals and three assists in 12 games. He also had 23 goals and 32 assists in 50 games with the Norfolk Admirals (ECHL). He led the Admirals in goals, assists and points. . . .
D Daine Todd (Medicine Hat, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with Örebro (Sweden, SHL). Last season, he had four goals and 11 assists in 36 games with Luleå (Sweden, SHL). . . .
F Roberts Libsbergs (Seattle, 2012-15) has signed a one-year extension with Dinamo Riga (Latvia, KHL). Last season, he had three goals and four assists in 31 games.
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RYAN McGILL
(Photo: attackhockey.com)
Ryan McGill, a former WHL player and coach, has left the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack to join the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights as an assistant coach. McGill, 48, spent two seasons as the Attack’s head coach and was the OHL and CHL coach of the year for 2016-17. With the Golden Knights, he joins head coach Gerard Gallant and fellow assistants Mike Kelly and Ryan Craig. . . . In the WHL, McGill began his coaching career as an assistant with the Edmonton Ice (1996-98), and took over as head coach during the 1997-98 season. . . . He was the head coach of the Kootenay Ice (1998-2002, 2012-15), guiding them to the 2002 Memorial Cup title. He played four seasons (1985-89) in the WHL, splitting that between the Lethbridge Broncos, Swift Current Broncos and Medicine Hat Tigers. He helped the Tigers to the 1988 Memorial Cup championship.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes have added Jeff Hansen as an assistant coach. Hansen, 35, spent the previous four seasons as video coach with the Calgary Hitmen. For the first two of those seasons, Brent Kisio, the Hurricanes’ head coach, was an assistant coach with the Hitmen. . . . Before joining the Hitmen, Hansen was an assistant coach with the AJHL’s Calgary Mustangs. He also has coached in the Alberta Major Midget Hockey League. . . . With the Hurricanes, Hansen fills the vacancy created when Mike Craig left the team in May. He had been on staff through four seasons. . . . The Hurricanes' staff also includes Darcy Wakaluk, a former goaltender coach with the Hitmen.
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Bruce Gordon played three seasons (1979-82) in the WHL, starting with the Medicine Hat Tigers (71 games) and finishing up with the Saskatoon Blades (112 games). A grinding, tough forward who played hard at home and on the road, he totalled 22 goals, 65 assists and 818 penalty minutes. . . . Gordon, 54, has been incredibly fit. He’s an Ironman triathlete. He lifts, he cycles, he does it all. He was a member of the Saskatoon Police Service, then, at 50, he decided to become a defence lawyer. . . . The other day, things changed when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. . . . Dan Zakreski of CBC News has the story right here.
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CAMERON HAUSINGER
The Kootenay Ice has acquired F Cameron Hausinger, 18, from the Red Deer Rebels for a fourth-round selection in the 2018 WHL bantam draft. . . . The Ice had gotten that fourth-round pick from Lethbridge on Jan. 8 in a deal that had F Zak Zborosky, F Matt Alfaro and a sixth-round pick in 2018 go to the Hurricanes for F Brett Davis, F Colton Kroeker and a 2018 second-round pick. . . . Hausinger, who is from Anchorage, had seven goals and eight assists in 61 games split between Red Deer and the Saskatoon Blades last season. . . . The Blades selected him in the seventh round of the 2014 bantam draft. He had six goals and five assists in 58 games with the Blades in 2015-16. . . . The Blades traded him to Red Deer on Nov. 25 for two draft picks — a seventh-rounder in 2017 and a fifth in 2018.
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MASSIMO RIZZO
The Kamloops Blazers have yet to sign F Massimo Rizzo, their first pick in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. But he hasn’t yet turned them down, either. . . . Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week reports that “the Blazers brought the heavyweights — (majority) owner Tom Gaglardi, part-owner Shane Doan, general manager Stu MacGregor and head coach Don Hay” to a meeting with Rizzo and his father in Vancouver on Wednesday. . . . Last season, Rizzo put up 84 points in 48 games with the midget prep team at the Burnaby Winter Club. Rizzo also played in a few games with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. He was pointless in three regular-season games and had one goal in seven playoff games. But he really hit is stride at the Western Cup, where he had a goal and four assists in five games and got some power-play time. He also had a goal in five games at the RBC Cup. . . . Hastings’ story is right here.
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OHLThe OHL-champion Erie Otters have signed Chris Hartsburg as their new head coach. He takes over from Kris Knoblauch, who now is an assistant coach with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. . . . Hartsburg, a former assistant coach with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips 2009-13), has been the head coach of the USHL’s Lincoln Stars for the past three seasons. . . . He spent 2013-14 as an assistant under Knoblauch with the Otters. . . . From Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., he is the son of former NHL player/coach Craig Hartsburg, who also did a stint (2009-11) as Everett’s head coach. . . . The Otters also signed GM Dave Brown to a three-year extension through 2019-20, and promoted assistant coach B.J. Adams to associate coach. Adams and assistant coach Wes Wolfe were extended through 2019-20.
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The QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads have signed Sylvain Favreau as an assistant coach to work alongside head coach Jim Midgley. Favreau, 39, had been the director of hockey operations and head coach with the CCHL’s Cumberland Grads. From Orleans, Ont., he has been coaching in the CCHL, with Cumberland the Gloucester Rangers, since 2009.
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D Jordan Wharrie, who has played the past three seasons in the WHL, has decided to play for the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers in 2017-18. Wharrie, 20, is from Port Moody, B.C. . . . The Everett Silvertips selected him in the fifth round of the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft. . . . He played seven games with Everett in 2013-14, then spent 2014-15 with the Silvertips. In 2015-16, he played for the Victoria Royals. He split last season between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Vancouver Giants. . . . In 162 regular-season games, he had eight goals and 10 assists.
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The junior B Creston Valley Thunder Cats of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League have signed Brad Tobin as their new general manager and head coach. He takes over from Jeff Dubois, who has signed on as assistant GM/assistant coach with the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. . . . Tobin joined the Thundercats a year ago as assistant GM/associate coach. He had been an assistant coach with the BCHL’s Surrey Eagles (2010-16). . . . Creston also promoted assistant coach Jeff Wagner to assistant GM/associate coach. . . . Dubois had been the head coach in Creston for three seasons, going 97-42 with four ties. He is the KIJHL’s reigning coach of the year.
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F Adam Brooks, who completed his junior eligibility with the Regina Pats last season, has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. They selected him in the fourth round of the NHL’s 2016 draft. . . . Brooks, who is from Winnipeg, won the WHL scoring title in 2015-16 when he put up 120 points. In 2017-18, he totalled 130 points and finished second to teammate Sam Steele in the scoring race. . . . Brooks finished his WHL career with 335 points, including 119 goals, in 317 regular-season games. He added 49 points, 33 of them assists, in 42 playoff games.
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The SPHL’s Knoxville Ice Bears have named Jeff Carr as their new head coach. He had been an assistant coach with the Ogden, Utah, Mustangs of the Western States Hockey League for the previous two seasons. . . . Carr replaces Mike Craigen, whose contract wasn’t renewed after the 2016-17 season ended. Craigen had been the Knoxville head coach for seven seasons.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:33 PM
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Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Top WHL goaltender leaves for school ... Seattle, Lethbridge take leads ... Vees win BCHL title


F Aaron Gagnon (Seattle, 2001-07) has signed a one-year contract with Langnau (Switzerland, NL A). This season, with Lukko Rauma (Finland, Liiga), he had 11 goals and 15 assists in 43 games. He also played seven games with Bern (Switzerland, NL A), scoring three times and adding two assists. . . . 
F Brandon Segal (Calgary, 1999-2004) has signed a one-year extension with the Nuremberg Ice Tigers (Germany, DEL). This season, he had 16 goals and 16 assists in 52 games.
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Zach Sawchenko, one of the WHL’s premier goaltenders, revealed on Tuesday that he won’t be returning to the Moose Jaw Warriors for his 20-year-old season. Instead, he will be attending the U of Alberta and playing for the Golden Bears.
ZACH SAWCHENKO
It seems the insecurity inherent with a professional career doesn’t appeal to Sawchenko, at least not without a backup plan.
“This is going to come as a surprise to most, but now more than ever, the uncertainty in the game is through the roof,” Sawchenko told Marc Smith of discovermoosejaw.com. “You're seeing guys like Zach Fucale end up in the (ECHL) where they're making $40,000 a year, it's tough to live off that, it's tough to live off a signing bonus. Your career could end at any time and you have to have a plan B.”
This season, Sawchenko went 30-14-7, 2.79, .917 in the regular season. He was selected as the Eastern Conference’s top goaltender and named to the conference’s first all-star team, the latter for a second straight season.
A native of Calgary, Sawchenko played four seasons in Moose Jaw, going 88-65-16, 3.11, .908 in 177 games.
The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder never was selected in the NHL draft. He went into the 2016 draft ranked by NHL Central Scouting as No. 6 among North American goaltenders.
The Warriors selected Sawchenko in the second round of the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft.
The Warriors’ depth chart now will show Brody Willms as the organization’s No. 1 goaltender, with Adam Evanoff sliding into the No. 2 spot.
Willms, who turns 19 on July 21, is from Coquitlam, B.C. He was an eighth-round selection in the 2013 bantam draft. This season, he got into 25 games, going 12-7-2, 3.11, .907.
Evanoff is from Penticton, B.C., and was a 10th-round selection in the 2015 bantam draft. He will turn 17 on Aug. 16. He played this season at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton, going 2.44, .918 in 19 appearances.
Smith’s story is right here.
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The Victoria Royals have signed F Tyus Gent, who was a fourth-round selection in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. Gent, 16, is from Delta, B.C. He played this season with the Delta Hockey Academy’s Elite 15s of the Canadian Sports School Hockey League, putting up 25 goals and 25 assists in 25 games. He led the Elite 15s in goals and points, and was saluted as the MVP at season’s end. . . . He also got into eight games with the academy’s prep team, scoring twice and adding an assist.
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F Judd Caulfield, a highly touted prospect out of the North Dakota high school ranks, has decided to join the U.S. National Team Development Program, according to Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald. . . . Caulfield, 16, will be part of the U-17 program. . . . Caulfield, whose WHL rights belong to the Portland Winterhawks, put up 64 points, including 25 goals, in 27 games this season with Grand Forks Central, which won the state championship to conclude an undefeated season. . . . Caulfield was selected by Portland in the 10th round of the 2016 WHL bantam draft. He committed to the U of North Dakota on Oct. 5.
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In the BCHL, F Duncan Campbell scored on a rebound at 9:25 of OT to give the Penticton Vees a 1-0
DUNCAN CAMPBELL
victory over the host Chilliwack Chiefs in Game 7 of the championship final. . . . Campbell, 20, is from Brandon and spent the previous two seasons playing for the Wheat Kings. He joined the Vees early this season and put up 28 points, including 11 goals, in 40 games. . . . Three of the last four games in the BCHL final were decided in OT. . . . Both teams advanced to the Western Canada Cup that runs in Penticton from April 29 through May 7. It also features the AJHL-champion Brooks Bandits, SJHL-champion Battlefords North Stars and MJHL-champion Portage Terriers. . . . Interestingly, F Keegan Kolesar, whose two goals helped the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 2-1 victory over the Rockets in Kelowna last night, also was born in Brandon.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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Coaching

 The NHL’s Vancouver Canucks will introduce Travis Green, a former WHL player and coach, as their new head coach at a news conference today. . . . Green, 46, is from Castlegar, B.C. He played four seasons (1986-90) in the WHL, three-plus with the Spokane Chiefs and the last 25 with the Medicine Hat Tigers before going on to a pro career that included 970 NHL games. As a coach, he spent three seasons (2010-13) on the Portland Winterhawks’ staff. For the past four seasons, Green has been the head coach of the Utica Comets, the Canucks’ AHL affiliate. . . . In Vancouver, he replaces Willie Desjardins, who was relieved of his duties when their season ended. . . . You can look for Green to bring along Nolan Baumgartner, a former WHL defenceman, as his lead assistant coach. Baumgartner, 41, has been an assistant through all four seasons with Green in Utica. Baumgartner played four seasons (1992-96) with the Kamloops Blazers and was twice named the WHL’s top defenceman.
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The junior B Port Moody Panthers of the Pacific Junior Hockey League have hired David McLellan as their head coach. He replaces Mike Renner, who was dropped on March 29. . . . McLellan has PJHL experience, having worked as head coach of the Delta IceHawks (2010-13), where he won a league championship in 2012. Most recently, he was the GM/head coach with the junior B Nelson Leafs of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. He also has coached in the BCHL, B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League and in Japan.
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Jeff Brown resigned Tuesday as the general manager and head coach of the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s. He cited personal reasons in leaving after three seasons. . . . He served as head coach for three seasons and GM for the past two. . . . “The move back to Ottawa has been difficult at times for my family,” Brown said in a news release, “and it’s time I put them first and became a full-time father as we transition back to our hometown of St. Louis.” . . . That news release is right here.
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The Chicago Blackhawks have fired Ted Dent, who was the head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs. Dent had been with Rockford through six seasons, going 221-179-54. Before taking over as head coach, he had been an assistant with the Blackhawks’ AHL team, either in Rockford or Norfolk, for five seasons.
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TUESDAY’S GAMES:


At Kelowna, F Keegan Kolesar scored his second goal of the game with 20 seconds left in the third period to give the Seattle Thunderbirds a 2-1 victory over the Rockets. . . . Seattle leads the Western
KEEGAN KOLESAR
Conference final, 2-1, with Game 4 in Kelowna tonight. . . . The Thunderbirds won the opener, 5-4, on a PP goal by D Ethan Bear with 12 seconds left in the third period. The Rockets won Game 2, 4-3 in OT. . . . Last night, the winner came off a faceoff in Kelowna’s, with F Mathew Barzal getting the puck back to D Turner Ottenbreit. His shot didn’t get through to the net, but the puck went to Kolesar who snapped a shot from the slot that beat G Michael Herringer through traffic. . . . Kolesar, who has nine goals, gave Seattle a 1-0 lead at 11:33 of the second period. . . . The Rockets tied it on a PP at 13:53 when F Calvin Thurkauf (7) scored a goal that was confirmed after a lengthy video review. A shot by F Nick Merkley went off the end boards and rebounded over the Seattle net, where Thurkauf batted it past G Carl Stankowski. . . . “They said that it was right at the cross bar,” Seattle head coach Steve Konowalchuk told Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle. “It seems in the three games, we’re not getting any calls. Two goals last game, there were plays on the goals that could have been called and we’re just not getting the calls right now. We have to persevere and control what we can control.” . . . Kelowna was 1-7 on the PP; Seattle was 0-1. The Thunderbirds enjoyed the game’s first PP opportunity, then watched the Rockets get the last seven. . . . The Rockets have at least one PP goal in eight straight games. . . . Stankowski finished with 34 saves and was the game’s first star as he continued to weave his playoff magic. He is 10-1 in the playoffs since replacing injured starter Rylan Toth, who has yet to dress for a game. . . . Herringer finished with 12 saves. . . . Seattle had four shots on goal in each of the first and third periods. . . . Kelowna F Reid Gardiner, who leads the playoffs in goals (15) and points (27), had his point streak snapped at nine games. Gardiner had put up eight straight multi-point games, getting 24 points over that stretch. . . . Seattle F Donovan Neuls had his point streak end at 10 games, the longest in the playoffs this season. . . . Announced attendance: 5,085. . . . Eide’s story is right here. . . . Larry Fisher of the Kelowna Daily Courier has a game story right here.
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At Lethbridge, F Jadon Joseph broke a 1-1 tie in the second period and the Hurricanes went on to score a 3-1 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . Lethbridge leads the Eastern Conference final, 2-1, and will play
JADON JOSEPH
host to Game 4 tonight. . . . Joseph, who has two goals in these playoffs, took a slashing minor at 11:46 of the second period. He stepped out of the penalty box and went in to score the go-ahead goal at 13:54. . . . Joseph, a freshman from Sherwood Park, Alta., had three goals in 68 regular-season games. . . . D Brennan Menell (5) had given the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead just 16 seconds into the first period. . . . Regina tied it when F Dawson Leedahl (9) scored at 10:43 of the second period. . . . The Hurricanes got some insurance from F Egor Babenko (8), at 4:08 of the third period. . . . D Brady Poteau and F Tyler Wong each had two assists for Lethbridge. . . . The Hurricanes got 28 stops from G Stuart Skinner, who won his 10th game of the playoffs. . . . G Tyler Brown blocked 24 shots for Regina. . . . Each team was 0-3 on the PP. . . . The Pats received the game’s first three PP opportunities but weren’t able to score. That may well have been a turning point. Regina’s PP is 0-9 in the series. It was No. 1 (31.5 per cent) in the regular season. . . . Regina F Austin Wagner left the game in the second period and didn’t return. He has 12 goals and two assists in 14 games. . . . The Hurricanes remain without F Matt Alfaro, 20. . . . Announced attendance: 5,178. . . . Darren Steinke, the Travellin’ Blogger, is in Lethbridge and his Game 3 post is right here. . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Seattle at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m. (Seattle leads, 2-1)
Regina at Lethbridge, 7 p.m. (Lethbridge leads, 2-1)

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.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:21 PM
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Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Hurricanes-Pats gets TV treatment ... Regina merch sales off the charts ... Home-ice advantage important?



Has Dart Guy become the new Marlboro Man? If so, you have to wonder how happy the NHL pooh-bahs are to have a guy with a dart stuck in the middle of his painted face as one of the icons for the first round of playoffs.
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 If you were wondering, Shaw TV and Access7 will show the WHL’s Eastern Conference final between the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Regina Pats. That series opens with games in Regina on Friday and Saturday nights. . . . This should be something of a grudge match, too, seeing as the Pats, a wild-card team a year ago, dumped the Central Division-champion Hurricanes in five games in a first-round series.
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 There should be some emotion in the Western Conference final, too, seeing as it’s the fourth time in five seasons that Kelowna and Seattle have clashed in the playoffs. A year ago, the Thunderbirds swept the Rockets in the conference final. . . . The most memorable series between these teams occurred in the first round in 2013 when Seattle won the first three games and Kelowna won the last four.
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 Rylan Toth of the Thunderbirds led all WHL goaltenders with 36 regular-season victories. However, he was injured late in the season and hasn’t even dressed for a game in these playoffs. In his absence, freshman Carl Stankowski has gone 8-0, 2.24, .913. . . . This being the playoffs, Toth’s mother, Marie, likely doesn’t even know if he’s healthy enough to play. But what does Seattle head coach Steve Konowalchuk do if Toth is ready?
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 I didn’t have a dog in the hunt, but it was good to see F Tyler Wong, the Hurricanes’ captain, emerge as Tuesday night’s hero with the Game 7 OT goal — shorthanded at that — against the host Medicine Hat Tigers. Wong is wrapping up his WHL career with his fifth season in Lethbridge and he’s stuck it out through thick and thin. You know that no one has enjoyed the past two seasons more than has Wong, who may be the most-loved player in franchise history.
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 Wong and Kelowna F Reid Gardiner are tied for the playoff scoring lead, each with 22 points. . . . So, yes, Regina will pay a little extra attention to Wong, and, yes, it already has started. Here’s John Paddock, Regina’s GM and head coach, in conversation with Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post: “(Wong is) a hard-working, inspirational guy who has skill. He’s physical. He jumps a couple feet in the air when he hits guys and doesn’t get called.” . . . Sheesh, John, don’t you realize that WHL officials, both on-ice and off, don’t read anything in the playoffs.
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 You may recall that it was almost two years ago — May 5, 2015 — when WHL commish Ron Robison was in Lethbridge, suggesting to the team’s board of directors that they should sell the franchise. You have to think the hockey fans of Lethbridge are rather pleased that it didn’t happen. ——
 What does it mean to a WHL team to be alive this deep into the playoffs? Well, Stacey Cattell, the Pats’ COO, told CBC News in Regina that “merchandise sales are . . . almost 50 per cent more than they were last (season) overall.” He also revealed that the Pats surpassed last season’s total merchandise sales by the fourth game of these playoffs.
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 If you haven’t yet seen Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees at the plate, well, you’re cheating yourself. The Yankees’ starting right fielder, he is 6-foot-7 and 282 pounds, and he moves like a much smaller man. Last night, Judge, who bats right, hit a 448-foot home run that landed halfway up the left-field bleachers. At the age of 24, he has two of the three longest homers to have been hit at the ‘new’ Yankee Stadium — he hit a 457-footer last season and that’s No. 1. ——
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As the WHL takes a break, Hartley Miller, the sports director at 94.3 The Goat in Prince George, points out: Home teams went 22-22 in the first round; Home teams went 13-10 in the second round. He adds that when it came to Game 7s, home teams in Round 1 were 1-1 and they were 1-1 in Round 2. The numbers would indicate that home-ice advantage, which teams supposedly play so hard for over the 72-game regular season, is vastly over-rated. The third round — aka conference finals — is scheduled to open on Friday with the Kelowna Rockets meeting the Seattle Thunderbirds in Kent, Wash., and the Lethbridge Hurricanes visiting the Regina Pats. To this point, the Rockets have played in 11 playoff games; the Thunderbirds have been in the minimum eight, having swept the Tri-City Americans and Everett Silvertips. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes, who scratched five regulars for Games 6 and 7 against the Medicine Hat Tigers, have played in 14 games; the Pats have been in 11.
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 The Lethbridge Hurricanes have signed F Brendan Stafford, 17, to a WHL contract. From Edmonton, Stafford is a list player. He also is a cousin go F Drew Stafford of the NHL’s Boston Bruins. This season, Brendan had six goals and 18 assists in 60 games with the AJHL’s Sherwood Park Crusaders. Last season, he had 17 goals and 21 assists in 52 games with the midget A team at Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Faribault, Minn.
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 D Scott Allan, who played with three WHL teams, has decided to attend Concordia University of Edmonton and play hockey for the Thunder. Allan, who is from Thornton, Colo., played most of the last two seasons with the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors, helping them to a national championship a year ago. In the WHL, the 6-foot-7, 225-pounder had stints (2013-15) with the Medicine Hat Tigers, Seattle Thunderbirds and Lethbridge Hurricanes.
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 The Battlefords North Stars will represent the SJHL at the Western Canada Cup in Penticton, April 29 through May 7. The North Stars beat the host Flin Flon Bombers 6-5 on Wednesday night to sweep the SJHL’s championship series and win the Canalta Cup. In fact, the North Stars went 12-0 as they ran roughshod through the playoffs. If you’re wondering, the last teams to run the SJHL playoff table were the dynastic Prince Albert Raiders, in 1976 and 1982. . . . The North Stars last were SJHL kings in 2000. . . . In the MJHL, the Portage Terriers won their third straight championship, beating the visiting OCN Blizzard, 1-0, last night behind 27 saves from G Kurtis Chapman. The Terriers, who have won seven titles in 10 seasons, won the series, and the Turnbull Cup, in six games. Portage lost the first two games of the final, then roared back with four victories. . . . In the BCHL, the host Penticton Vees erased a 3-0 deficit and beat the Chilliwack Chiefs, 4-3 in OT. The Vees now lead the series, 3-1, with the first opportunity to wrap it up on Saturday in Chilliwack. . . . F Ryley Risling got the OT winner. . . . The Vees, of course, are in the Western Canada Cup as the host team, so the Chiefs will be the BCHL representative.
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 If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there. If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com. If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
 ———

WEDNESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.
——

THURSDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled
——

FRIDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Kelowna vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m. (Game 1) Lethbridge at Regina, 7 p.m. (Game 1)
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.

Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:10 PM
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Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Wong wins it for 'Canes ... Shorty in OT sends 'Canes to Regina ... Series opens Friday


The Eastern Conference final, featuring the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Regina Pats, will open at the Brandt Centre in Regina with games on Friday and Saturday nights. Tickets for those games sold out in about 10 minutes on Tuesday. . . . All eyes are on Regina F Adam Brooks, the team captain, who hasn’t taken a shift since injuring a knee in Game 2 of the second-round series with the Swift Current Broncos that ended in Game 7 in Regina on Monday. . . . “I don't know for sure (if he could return)," John Paddock, the Pats’ GM and head coach, told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post on Tuesday. “I’d like to say that I’m hopeful at some time in the series, but that’s me talking. That’s not really (trainer) Greg (Mayer) or the doctors telling me that.” . . . Brooks was in uniform and on the Pats’ bench for the last three games of the series with the Broncos, but he never got on the ice. . . . A prolific scorer, he won the WHL scoring title last season and finished one point behind teammate Sam Steel this season.
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F Alexander Kuvayev (Lethbridge, Vancouver, 2010-12) has signed a one-year extension with Spartak Moscow (Russia, KHL). This season, he was pointless in 22 games with Spartak; and had seven goals and three assists in 17 games with Khimik Voskresensk (Russia, Vysshaya Liga).
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On Tuesday, I mentioned ticket scalpers being in evidence prior to Game 7 between the Swift Current Broncos and the Pats in Regina on Monday night.

It wasn’t long before I heard from Dan Russell, the former host of the popular Vancouver radio show Sportstalk and a man with considerable experience doing WHL play-by-play.

He recalled two instances of seeing scalpers prior to WHL games.

The first was in 1984 at Queen’s Park Arena, the home of the New Westminster Bruins. They were playing the Portland Winterhawks and it was Game 9. Yes, Game 9.

“(They were doing a) rousing business outside,” Russell recalls, “and I remember hearing $75-$100 in those days.”

Russell added: “Portland won the series after trailing 4-3 through seven games. Lol. (Cliff) Ronning was huge (for the Bruins) in that series and scored what many of us felt was the tying goal in the third period (of Game 9), before there was any hint of video review.”

Russell also recalled seeing scalpers in 2005 when the Vancouver Giants were playing the Kelowna Rockets in Game 6 at the Pacific Coliseum.

“It was during the NHL lockout,” he recounted. “Fans were starving (for hockey). Shaw’s TV coverage and heavy Sportstalk radio coverage was the only hockey being talked about in a starved market and it led to crowds that just kept building during series. Game 6 was a sellout with confirmed scalpers doing strong business. The telecast was the most viewed TV show in the market on that night.”
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Finland beat Team Canada 6-3 to conclude round-robin play at the IIHF U-17 World Championship in Poprad, Slovakia, on Tuesday. Finland (4-0-0-0) finished atop Group A, with Canada (2-1-0-1) second. D Jett Woo of the Moose Jaw Warriors had one of Canada’s goals. G Ian Scott of the Prince Albert Raiders gave up five goals on 27 shots before being lifted at 1:24 of the third period. . . . Team Canada will play Sweden (2-0-0-2), the third-place team from Group B, in a Thursday quarterfinal game in Spisska Nova Ves, Slovakia. . . . In another game, D Mark Rubinchik of the Saskatoon Blades had two goals, including the winner, and an assist as Russia got past Czech Republic, 5-4. Rubinchik had six points, including two goals, in four round-robin games. Russia will meet Sweden in a quarterfinal game on Thursday. . . . In the other quarterfinal games, it’ll be Finland against Czech Republic and Team USA vs. Switzerland.

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The Prince George Cougars have signed F Liam Ryan, who turned 17 on Jan. 2, to a WHL contract. From New Westminster, B.C., he was a seventh-round selection in the 2015 WHL bantam draft. This season, he had 15 goals and 28 assists in 38 games with the Vancouver Northeast Chiefs of the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League.

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The Vancouver Giants have signed G Jacob Wassermann, ??, to a WHL contrct. The 6-foot-5 native of Humboldt, Sask., was an eighth-round selection in the 2015 bantam draft. This season, he played for the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers, going 10-13-0, 3.23, .902 in 26 games. In five playoff games, he was 1.81, .947.

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  QMJHLThe QMJHL lost its defending champion on Tuesday night as the Chicoutimi Sagueneens bet the host Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, 4-3 in OT, in Game 7 of a second-round series. Chicoutimi, which trailed 3-1 with 10 minutes left in the third period, went into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed; the Huskies were No. 2. . . . The Sagueneens next will face the No. 1 Saint John SeaDogs. . . . The other semifinal will have the No. 4 Charlottetown Islanders up against the No. 5 Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. The Armada beat the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan, 7-1, in Game 7 last night.

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  In the OHL, F Warren Foegele scored at 10:40 of OT to give the host Erie Otters a 5-4 victory over the London Knights in Game 7 of their second-round series. The Knights are the defending Memorial Cup champions. . . . The Otters will meet the Owen Sound Attack in the Western Conference final, one that will feature a pair of former WHL coaches. Kris Knoblauch runs the bench for the Otters; Ryan McGill does the same for the Attack. . . . In the Eastern Conference final, it’ll be the Peterborough Petes facing the Mississauga Steelheads. —— There will be a definite WHL flavour to the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame’s 2017 inductions on Oct. 7 at Winnipeg’s Canad Inns Polo Park. Included in the Class of 2017 are Murray Bannerman (Winnipeg Clubs, Victoria Cougars, 1973-77), Jim Benzelock (Winnipeg Jets, 1967-68), Laurie Boschman (Brandon Wheat Kings, 1976-79), Pat Falloon (Spokane Chiefs, 1988-91) and Lew Morrison (Flin Flon Bombers, 1967-68), all of whom played in the WHL. Also being inducted will be Rob Martell, a former WHL linesman who went on to a career in the NHL. . . . For more on the complete Class of 2017, check this right here.

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AJHLThe Brooks Bandits won their second consecutive AJHL championship on Tuesday, beating the host Whitecourt Wolverines, 4-1, to sweep a best-of-seven final. . . . Brooks has won four championships in the past five seasons — 2012, 2013, 2016 and 2017. . . . This time, Brooks went through the playoffs with only one loss, while outscoring its opposition, 75-16. . . . Brooks had finished the regular-season with the AJHL’s best record — 51-5-4. . . . The Bandits now move on to the Western Canada Cup in Penticton, B.C., April 29 through May 7. The five-team tournament will feature the host Penticton Vees, the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, the Bandits and the champions of the SJHL and MJHL. The top two teams in that tournament will advance to the RBC Cup. The Vees hold a 2-1 lead over Chilliwack, having posted a 5-2 home-ice victory before 3,009 fans last night. They’ll play Game 4 tonight in Penticton. . . . F Massimo Rizzo, taken 15th overall by the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL’s 2016 draft, opened the scoring for the Vees, on a PP, with his first BCHL goal. Rizzo has yet to sign with the Blazers or commit to the NCAA route.

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 If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there. If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com. If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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———

TUESDAY’S GAME (all times local):



At Medicine Hat, F Tyler Wong scored his second goal of the game, at 3:02 of OT, to give the Lethbridge Hurricanes a 5-4 victory in Game 7 of a second-round series. . . . The Hurricanes are 5-0 in Game 7s in franchise history, with two of those on the road. They now will meet the Regina Pats in the Eastern Conference final. That series will open with games in Regina on Friday and Saturday nights. . . . With the Medicine Hat defenders backing up, Wong skated into the Tigers’ zone and beat G Michael Bullion with a 20-foot wrist shot. . . . Just moments earlier, Lethbridge G Stuart Skinner had made a huge save on Tigers F John Dahlstrom. . . . Wong’s goal sent the Hurricanes into the third round for the first time since 2008. . . . F Zach Fischer (7) had given the Tigers a 1-0 lead at 8:47 of the first period, only to have the Hurricanes score three times before the end of the period. . . . F Jordy Bellerive (4) tied it just nine seconds later. . . . Wong gave the Hurricanes their first lead, at 16:22. . . . F Egor Babenko (7) extended that lead at 19:13, with Wong earning an assist. . . . Medicine Hat went back out front with three goals in the first half of the second period. . . . F Matt Bradley (4) got the Tigers to within a goal at 4:07. . . . F Mark Rassell, who finished with seven goals, then scored twice, at 5:14 and 9:26, to send the home team out front. . . . F Dylan Cozens, a 15-year-old AP, tied it for Lethbridge, with his second goal of the series, at 17:17 of the third period. . . . Cozens also had an assist on Bellerive’s goal. . . . Wong, the captain, won it with his 11th goal of these playoffs. It came 54 seconds after Lethbridge D Brennan Riddle had been sent off for high-sticking. . . . Bellerive added an assist to his goal. . . . Skinner finished with 36 saves, 11 more than Bullion. . . . The Tigers were 1-5 on the PP; the Hurricanes were 0-3. . . . Just like for Game 6, the Hurricanes scratched D Calen Addison, F Matt Alfaro, F Zak Zborosky, F Ryan Vandervlis and F Zane Franklin, all of them regulars. . . . Lethbridge added F Connor Lyons to the lineup, taking out F Jayden Davis. Both are APs. . . . “I am so proud of the team,” Lethbridge GM Peter Anholt told Taking Note, via text, shortly after game’s end. “(Head coach) Brent (Kisio) and the coaches did such an unreal job of keeping the guys focused. Never looked for excuses. Just played. Faced adversity and overcame it. So proud.” . . . The road team won five of the seven games in this series. The Hurricanes went into Medicine Hat and won Games 2, 5 and 7. . . . Announced attendance: 5,556.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.
 ——

THURSDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled
 ——

FRIDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Kelowna vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m. (Game 1) Lethbridge at Regina, 7 p.m. (Game 1)

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.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:09 PM
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Monday, March 27, 2017

Wheat Kings skate without Patrick . . . Estephan expected back for Game 3 . . . Two BCHL series go 7


The defending-champion Brandon Wheat Kings are down 2-0 and on the road again as the WHL playoffs resume Tuesday after taking Monday off. . . . The Wheat Kings lost Games 1 and 2 to the Tigers in Medicine Hat on the weekend, and now are in Dauphin, Man., for two games in the hopes of prolonging things. . . . The Wheat Kings haven’t had F Nolan Patrick in their lineup yet this series after he was injured in the second-last game of the regular season. He didn’t skate on Monday in Dauphin, so isn’t likely to play in Game 3. . . . Brandon G Logan Thompson, who left Saturday’s second game after a goal-mouth collision, was on the ice yesterday. . . . The Tigers, meanwhile, skated in Dauphin yesterday and they did so without D Brad Forrest, who was scratched from Game 2 as D Ty Schultz returned from a broken leg. Schultz was back in the Tigers’ lineup earlier than expected after Forrest suffered an undisclosed injury.
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The Regina Pats won the first two games of their first-round series with visiting Calgary on the weekend, outscoring the Hitmen 10-3 in the process. However, John Paddock, the Pats’ general manager and head coach, says there is lots of room for improvement. . . . “We’re glad we’re up 2-0, that’s for sure,” Paddock told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post on Monday. “They left us a lot of room for some teaching clips. It starts with intelligence and focus, (including) some of the penalties we took. We’re not playing near the kind of hockey you have to play.” . . . The Pats take a 10-game winning streak into Game 3 in Calgary tonight (Tuesday).
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes expect to have F Giorgio Estephan back in the lineup on Wednesday when they resume their series with the Red Deer Rebels. The teams split the first two games in Lethbridge. . . . Estephan left in the second period of Sunday’s Game 2, a 5-2 Hurricanes’ victory, after taking a high-stick to the face from Red Deer F Michael Spacek. . . . “He’s fine,” Lethbridge head coach Brent Kisio told Dale Woodard of the Lethbridge Herald. “He’s good to go.” . . . Of course, this being the playoffs, nothing will be official until the lineup sheet for Game 3 is posted.
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F Duncan Campbell, who began this season with the Brandon Wheat Kings, had a goal and an assist on Monday as his Penticton Vees beat the visiting Merritt Centennials, 6-2, in Game 7 of a BCHL semi-final series. The game drew 3,774 fans to the South Okanagan Events Centre. The Vees he'd led the series 3-1 before the Centennials won two straight games to force Game 7. . . . The Vees and Vernon Vipers will clash in the next round. . . . Meanwhile, at the Q Centre in Victoria, F Keyvan Mokhtari scored 57 seconds into the second OT to give the Grizzlies a 2-1 victory over the Powell River Kings in another Game 7. This one drew 1,705 fans. . . . Victoria advances to meet the Chilliwack Chiefs in the second semi-final.
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Three coaches with WHL experience have been chosen by BC Hockey to lead the team that will compete at the 2017 U-16 Western Canada Challenge Cup in Calgary and the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer. . . . Steve O’Rourke, an assistant coach with the Prince George Cougars, has been named head coach. He spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the Red Deer Rebels before joining the Cougars. . . . Jason Becker and Brian Pellerin will serve as O’Rourke’s assistants. . . . Becker, a former WHL player, is an assistant with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. He spent five seasons as an assistant coach with Prince George and two as a head coach at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton. . . . Pellerin, also a former WHL player, is associate coach with the Tri-City Americans. He also has coaching experience in the AHL, the Central league and a sports school. . . . Kevin Pedersen, an assistant coach with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers, will be the video coach, with Kim Penner (Merritt Centennials) as trainer and Craig Carter (major midget Okanagan Rockets) as equipment manager.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
———

MONDAY GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.
——

TUESDAY GAMES (all times local):

Moose Jaw at Swift Current, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)
Medicine Hat vs. Brandon, at Dauphin, Man., 7:30 p.m. (Medicine Hat leads, 2-0)
Regina at Calgary, 7 p.m. (Regina leads, 2-0)
Kelowna at Kamloops, 7 p.m. (Kelowna leads, 2-0)
Everett at Victoria, 7:05 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)

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.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:53 PM
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