The CHL is the umbrella under which the three major junior leagues — the OHL, QMJHL and WHL — operate.
You might expect then that they would operate with the same rules and regulations.
And while that is true in some areas — two European players per team, three 20-year-olds, etc. — it turns out that it isn’t when it comes to the area of player benefits.
In fact, you may be as surprised as I was to find out how much difference there can be.
———————
On Nov. 28, when the WHL disciplined the Portland Winterhawks for spending money on what it called “illegal benefits,” some people involved with QMJHL teams must have gone: “Whoa! What’s the big deal?”
To refresh our memories, the WHL fined the Winterhawks $200,000, suspended GM/head coach Mike Johnston for the remainder of the season, prohibited them from taking part in the first five rounds of the 2013 bantam draft, and took away first-round draft picks in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017.
The WHL was adamant that the sins of the Winterhawks didn’t include any thing to do with the illegal recruitment of players or education packages. There weren’t any payoffs to agents. There weren’t any under-the-table payments to players.
Instead, the Winterhawks were convicted of flying parents in to watch their sons play hockey, paying for some offseason workouts, and providing cell phones for team captains.
According to a source familiar with the situation, the Winterhawks, in committing those sins, spent $23,850 over a five-year.
———————
Meanwhile, in the QMJHL, it seems that there were some crazy things happening. And it all was perfectly legal and above board.
One agreement that has been making the rounds shows that one team ended up on the hook for potentially far more than $100,000 to one player who no longer is with that team and isn’t likely to play for it in 2013-14.
For starters, the education commitment to this one player works out to more than $100,000.
Here’s how part of the agreement reads:
“After the Player’s QMJHL career the Club will provide Educational Assistance to the Player in the amount of US$23,750 per year for four (4) years while the Player attends an accredited college or university on a full-time basis.
“Upon receiving official notification of the Player’s enrolment as a full-time student at an accredited university or college (the) Club will make payment of US$11,875 to the player. . . . These semi-annual payments by the Club will continue for four consecutive years while the player is a full-time university or college student. Total Educational Assistance will not exceed US$95,000.”
Under terms of the deal, the player has to begin his “full-time university or college studies no later than the year of his 23rd birthday.”
As well, the player forfeits all education assistance “if Player signs a contract with a National Hockey League Club.”
The QMJHL team also agreed to pay any educational costs incurred while the player was with the team.
“Such educational costs . . . shall be in addition to the US$95,000 payment for Post-QMJHL Educational costs stipulated in this Agreement,” the contract reads.
The WHL’s standard player agreement calls for a team to “pay or reimburse or cause to be paid . . . the player’s educational expenses to enroll in and attend a designated publicly funded post-secondary educational institution based on the assessment for a full-time student . . . including tuition fees, compulsory student fees and textbooks directly related to the Player’s course of study . . .”
Those educational expenses are believed to run about $5,000 per year in instances where a player has activated his education policy.
———————
As well, according to the agreement between the QMJHL team and the player in question, “The Club will provide US$3,000 per season to defray costs of Player’s family to travel to (the team’s city) during the time the Player is with the Club.”
There is nothing in the WHL’s standard player agreement covering such expenses. A player’s travel expenses incurred in reporting to the team and returning home at season’s end, and a return trip at Christmas, will be paid by his WHL team.
The WHL apparently has a set of rules and regulations in which it is stated that paying parental travel expenses is against the rules. However, the WHL has never shown those rules, regulations or bylaws to the media, despite repeated requests, especially from working media in the Portland area. (You may want to read this May 3 piece right here from Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune.)
———————
The QMJHL club also agreed to “provide to the Player an allowance of US$2,500 per season . . . to be used to defray the costs of the Player’s off-season conditioning.”
Again, there is nothing in the WHL standard player agreement covering off-season workout programs. Again, it apparently states in a different set of WHL rules that such payments aren’t allowed.
———————
While the agreeement between a QMJHL team and a player referred to earlier was legal and approved by the league office, all of that since has changed.
Three years ago, the QMJHL took a look at the situation regarding player benefits and chose to change whatever rules were in place.
According to QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau, teams now are able to offer a maximum of $10,000 per year in scholarship money.
“We made adjustments,” Courteau said Wednesday, “and since then a team is not allowed to give more than $10,000 per year on a scholarship package. That is what has been adopted.”
As well, a team is able to provide up to $5,000 per season to cover parental travel expenses should the money be needed.
Courteau explained: “We do give them a maximum of $5,000 per season . . . if a kid is playing in the Montreal area and his parents are living in the Montreal area, they won’t get anything. When we’re talking about travel, we’re talking about parents who have to travel a good distance and they have to stay overnight . . . we give them a maximum of $5,000 for travel expenses.”
Also, a QMJHL team now is able to provide a maximum of $1,500 in offseason training money if a player is in need of it.
“It’s not all of them,” Courteau said. “Just if a player needs to have some specific training . . . he can apply for offseason training to the team.”
In the case of the QMJHL, its office, under Courteau’s supervision, monitors all of this.
“Teams have to submit each and every player standard contract plus that special agreement has to be submitted to the league office for commissioner’s approval,” Courteau said.
———————
Asked about the specific contract that is referred to earlier in this piece, Courteau stated that it was not “a standard” agreement.
“It was a special case,” Courteau said. “It was an American player. For those American players, special scholarship packages were allowed for them.”
That isn’t the case now, though.
“That’s done,” Courteau said. “They have to go through the same rules as what we adopted three years ago.”
———————
CHL president David Branch, who also is the commissioner of the OHL, chose not to comment, referring questions to Courteau.
Branch, however, did allow that “each of the three leagues has different policies as relates to such matters.“
———————
One person who covers major junior hockey and whom I had occasion to come in contact with this week, offered this:
“One of my friends who used to be a QMJHL team media relations person asked me what Portland did . . . I can't even remember the particulars now, but basically everything I said (cell phones for players, plane tickets for parents) he said, ‘We did that, too.’
“And they never got busted.”

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.

And the 2013 Memorial Cup goes to . . .

This is a big day for the WHL as the board of governors will vote on the host team for the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup.
As well, the WHL is expected to join the NHL, OHL, QMJHL and KHL by announcing that it will begin using video to explain the lengthier suspensions that are being handed out this season.
First, the Memorial Cup . . .
The chase began with five teams involved. However, the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Prince George Cougars were eliminated when the list was trimmed to three. That leaves the Kelowna Rockets, Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades to make final presentations today.
Red Deer has to be the sentimental favourite, if only because the Memorial Cup hasn’t been decided in Alberta since the Regina Pats won it in the Calgary Corral in 1974. The Enmax Centrium, the home of the Rebels, seats 5,735 with standing room for 1,000. But there are plans to expand the facility to 7,000 seats and to add more corporate boxes.
The Centrium will be home to the 2012 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women’s curling championship.
Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner and president who is head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, will be in Calgary today. He will be at the meeting, which means he will miss a Flames’ practice in Montreal.
The Rockets were the host team for the 2004 Memorial Cup, which they won. That tournament was as well run as any that have been held.
The Rockets’ home, Prospera Centre, seats 6,007, with standing room for 500.
The Memorial Cup last was held in Saskatoon in 1989, when the Swift Current Broncos beat the Blades in overtime, on Tim Tisdale’s goal, in the championship game. The Blades’ home, Credit Union Centre, can seat 15,195 fans.
Jack Brodsky, the Blades’ governor and president, is one of the WHL’s longest-serving owners. There has been speculation that Brodsky made be stepping aside, or at least moving into a role in which he will be less involved, after this season. That may well be in the minds of some of his fellow governors as the presentations and voting take place today.
In the end, however, it may come down to money, and wouldn’t that be a surprise. With expenses showing no signs of slowing down and some teams losing fistfuls of money (see: Broncos, Swift Current), it could be that the team that guarantees the biggest profit will be the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup.
The 2012 tournament is scheduled for Shawinigan, Que.
———
As for the use of video to explain the lengthier suspensions, it is hard to imagine that the WHL won’t take this step after the QMJHL announced Tuesday that is going down that road. The OHL has been using video for two or three weeks now.
The QMJHL said it will use video presentations to explain suspensions of three games or more. Those videos will be posted on the QMJHL website, with explanations in English and French.
"We want to be more transparent and explain the reasons behind the disciplinary decisions," QMJHL president Gilles Courteau said in a statement. "With video becoming increasingly prominent, we must take the necessary steps to make sure that our process is better understood."
The QMJHL has had to issue only one suspension longer than three games this season. That was a five-game sentence to D Etienne Boutet of the Rimouski Oceanic for a check to the head of F Thomas Flynn of the Moncton Wildcats.
(By the way, the Kontinental Hockey League has announced that it, too, will use video to explain suspensions.)
On Tuesday, Richard Doerksen, the WHL’s vice-president, hockey, who handles discipline told me via email: “When our meetings conclude (Wednesday), we will advise our position on this matter.”
Since the start of the preseason, Doerksen has doled out suspensions totalling 72 games to 21 players. F Joshua Smith of the Prince George Cougars will be suspended this week for a kneeing major and game misconduct he took Monday in Moose Jaw.
———
The OHL handed out two 10-game suspensions on Tuesday, hitting D Kyle Hope of the Oshawa Generals and F Josh Shalla of the Saginaw Spirit, both for penalties incurred in games on Friday.
Hope took a charging major and game misconduct, while Shalla took a major and game misconduct for a hit to the head.

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

Sunday . . .

The WHL’s bantam draft is set for Thursday in Calgary.
With the help of Tyler Neisz of Western Elite Hockey Prospects, we are providing a bit of advance coverage in the form of some of Western Elite Hockey Prospects’ rankings.
Today, here’s a look at WEHP’s top 15 forwards:
1. Jake Virtanen, Abbotsford BC, 5-11, 164
2. Ryan Gropp, Kamloops, 6-0, 146
3. Reid Duke, Calgary Royals, 5-10, 160
4. Reid Gardiner, Humboldt SK, 5-11, 162
5. Ty Mappin, Red Deer Rebels White, 5-10, 154
6. Conner Bleackley, Okotoks AB, 5-11, 170
7. Mile Warkentine, Prince Albert, 6-0, 165
8. Tanner Macmaster, Calgary Bisons, 5-8, 135
9. John Quennville, Southside Athletic Club, Edmonton, 6-0, 180
10. Rourke Chartier, Saskatoon Stallions, 5-7, 140
11. Adam Brooks, Winnipeg Hawks, 5-9, 153
12. Kolten Olynek, Saskatoon Outlaws, 5-7, 150
13. Collin Shirley, Saskatoon Bandits, 5-11, 150
14. Rhett Gardner, Moose Jaw, 6-1, 175
15. Blake Penner, Notre Dame, 5-8.5, 153
(SOURCE: Western Elite Hockey Prospects)
———
Brent Peterson, a former player and coach with the Portland Winterhawks, no longer goes on the ice with the Nashville Predators, even though he is an associate coach with the NHL team. He knows, too, that he won’t ever get to be an NHL head coach.
“His Parkinson's disease has finally worked over his body to the extent that he can't go on the ice any longer with the Nashville Predators,” writes Jim Matheson in the Edmonton Jounral. “It's a crying shame, really, but Peterson, who is Barry Trotz's right-hand man, can still be on the bench.”
Matheson’s complete story is right here.
———
Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist bids a fond farewell to the ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings right here. The Salmon Kings, who are being bumped from their town by the WHL’s Chilliwack Bruins, trail the Anchorage Aces 3-0 going into tonight’s game in Victoria. Should the Salmon Kings lose this one, their run will be over. Permanently.
———
One of the QMJHL’s semifinals ended in a sweep, with the Saint John Sea Dogs taking out the Lewiston Maineiacs, while the other is headed to Game 7. The host Gatineau Olympiques beat the Quebec Remparts 4-0 on Sunday to tie that series 3-3. Game 7 will be played Tuesday at the Colisee Pepsi in Quebec City.
———
The WHL playoffs resume tonight with the Portland Winterhawks in Spokane to meet the Chiefs. Portland holds a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference final, with the winner to meet the Kootenay Ice for the Ed Chynoweth Cup. . . . According to a Chiefs news release, “Four of the last five playoff meetings between the two have gone the distance and each time Spokane has won a sixth game forcing the seventh and deciding game.” . . . Game 7, if needed, is scheduled for Portland’s Rose Garden on Tuesday. Should this series go the distance, the teams will finish up having played four games in five nights. . . . Yes, the Ice is smilin’ and hopin’.
———
THE COACHING GAME: The KIJHL’s Grand Forks, B.C., Border Bruins have signed Brent Batten as their new GM/head coach. Batten spent this season coaching at the Pursuit of Excellent academy in Kelowna. The Border Bruins, a junior B team, had relieved GM/head coach Jesse Dorrans of his duties in January.

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

Sunday . . .

Doug Soetaert, the general manager of the Everett Silvertips, says there won’t be anymore reloading. Starting now, he says, the Silvertips are rebuilding. "We can't continue to bring other people's players in to win a championship every year," Soetaert told the Everett Herald‘s Nick Patterson. "It catches up to you. You have to get back to creating your identity and bringing your players through your system."
Patterson’s story is right here.
———
The QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads are looking for a new coaching staff, reports Willy Panov of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald. Former NHLer Bobby Smith, who is the club’s majority owner, is out as head coach, as is associate coach Chris Donnelly. Cam Russell, who started the season as general manager/head coach before Smith took over as coach, remains the GM but won’t be on the bench. Assistant coach Jason Troini has returned to the major midget Dartmouth Ice Dawgs as GM and head coach. Only goaltender coach Eric Raymond will be returning. . . . The Mooseheads were 4-9-1 when Smith moved in; they went 16-34-4 under him, and were swept by the Montreal Juniors in the first round of playoffs.
———
The gang from NHL Central Scouting has been in meetings, working to compile their final list before the June draft. There won’t be an official release with players ranked numerically until April 12, but Mike G. Morreale of NHL.com has a look right here at the top 10 from each of the three major junior leagues, as well as some other areas.
———
THE PLAYOFF PICTURE:
Seven of the eight first-round series are dust, with only the Medicine Hat Tigers versus Brandon Wheat Kings still on the go. The Tigers, who have won the last two games, take a 3-2 edge into Game 6 tonight in Winnipeg.
The Saskatoon Blades and Kootenay Ice advanced with victories on Sunday night.
Should Medicine Hat win its series, the second-round matchups will be Saskatoon against Kootenay and the Red Deer Rebels versus the Tigers. A Brandon victory, would put the Wheat Kings against the Blades, with the Rebels meeting the Ice.
Should the Wheat Kings win tonight to force a Game 7, that series will be decided Wednesday in Medicine Hat.
The Blades will open the second round at home on Friday night.
———
SUNDAY’S GAMES:
In Prince Albert, the Saskatoon Blades beat the Raiders 2-1 in overtime to win that series, 4-2. . . . F Matej Stransky took advantage of a turnover by Raiders G Jamie Tucker behind his net to score the winner at 4:24 of OT. . . . Cory Wolfe of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports that Blades F Marek Viedensky duped Tucker into passing him the puck. “I just heard my name ‘Tucks’ get called,” a teary-eyed Tucker told Wolfe. “I was on my backhand, so I thought it was my guy but I guess it was him.” . . . Viedensky flipped the puck out front to Stransky, who promptly scored the series winner. . . . Moments earlier, Tucker had robbed Saskatoon F Josh Nicholls with a huge glove save. . . . D Antoine Corbin gave the Raidersd a 1-0 lead at 2:43 of the first period. . . . Saskatoon F Brent Benson tied it at 12:21 of the second. . . . Stransky, who has three playoff goals, drew an assist on Benson’s goal. . . . Tucker finished with 35 saves, six more than Saskatoon’s Steven Stanford. . . . Attendance was 3,366 as the Art Hauser Memorial Centre was sold right out. . . .
In Moose Jaw, the Kootenay Ice jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and went on to beat the Warriors 5-4. . . . The Ice won the series 4-2. . . . This was the final WHL game in the Moose Jaw Civic Centre (aka the Crushed Can) as the Warriors are scheduled to move into a new multiplex in time for next season. . . . D Brayden McNabb gave the visitors a 1-0 lead just 1:36 into the first period. . . . F Max Reinhart and F Matt Fraser upped it to 3-0 with goals 1:04 apart later in the period. . . . The Warriors got back to within 3-2 and 4-3 and 5-4 but weren’t able to equalize. . . . Fraser finished with three goals, giving him five in the series. He gave the Ice a 4-2 lead at 9:12 of the second and a 5-3 edge at 9:22 of the third. . . . Reinhart also had three assists. . . . F Quinton Howden had a goal, his fifth, and an assist for the Warriors. . . . Attendance was 2,727.
———
SUNDAY’S CFB COUNT:
None.
———
And now for something completely different. . . .
This is every team’s worst nightmare . . . its season over before it really gets started. But, in truth, it happens a lot because there always are teams in a league that don’t have a chance of winning the championship.
But check this out right here to see what happened to the New York Mets the other day. (Hint: It involves a clip from Family Guy.)

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

Monday . . .

Shane Doiron coaches an atom team in Shediac, N.B. I don’t know the won-loss record of his team of nine- and 10-year-olds . . . not that it matters. Because he is my coach of the year for all of Canada.
Why? Because he is a hockey coach who gets it.
Check it out right here.
———
The San Jose Sharks were playing in Chicago on Monday night when play-by-play man Mike (Doc) Emrick made reference to Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews and the fact that his brother, David, plays for the Brandon Wheat Kings.
Which is when analyst Pierre McGuire informed that Kelly McCrimmon runs the Wheat Kings.
And someone mentioned that McCrimmon’s brother, Brad, is on the coaching staff of the Detroit Red Wings. If you weren’t aware, Brad’s nickname is The Beast. (Although at one time he was Sarge.)
To which Emrick intoned: “If Brad is The Beast, is Kelly . . . Beauty?”
No doubt Kelly has been called a lot of things, both during his career as a player and as an owner/general manager/coach. I have a feeling Beauty isn’t one of them.
Or maybe he has been. It could be that at some point in the past, someone perhaps has referred to McCrimmon as a “real beauty.” Don’t you think?
By the way, I’m thinking McCrimmon has to be given some consideration as the Eastern Conference’s executive of the year and also as coach of the year.
When you consider the Wheat Kings’ horrid start, the number of injuries they dealt with, the fact that they are riding two 17-year-ol goaltenders, and the fact that McCrimmon traded away F Brayden Schenn, well, who would have thought that Brandon would be a hard-charging sixth with a week left in the regular season?
McCrimmon may not win either award, but he has to be in the conversation with the likes of Lorne Molleken of the Saskatoon Blades and Jesse Wallin of the Red Deer Rebels.
———
Richard Doerksen, the WHL’s vice-president, hockey, appears to have cleared his plate of all but one case.
Doerksen, who is the WHL’s disciplinarian, suspended F Garrett Mitchell of the Regina Pats for one game for a third instigator penalty, hit F Max Ross of the Lethbridge Hurricanes with two games for a boarding major, and sat F Jonathan Parker of the Prince Albert Raiders for a game for an elbowing major.
All that leaves on Doerksen’s plate, at least for now, is the case of F Brendan Ranford of the Kamloops Blazers, who was tossed from a Friday night game with the visiting Kelowna Rockets after he cross-checked linesman Kris Hartley while being escorted to the penalty box.
The Blazers have two games left in the regular season — they go home-and-home with the Prince George Cougars on Friday and Saturday — and you have to think Ranford, who already has sat out one game, won’t play in either of those games.
The Blazers are two points out of a playoff spot, and the only question may be whether the suspension runs into the playoffs or into the 2011-12 season.
The WHL rule book doesn’t appear to be on the league’s website, which is strange if only because the OHL and QMJHL both make their rule books available.
Anyway, the OHL book has two rules (41.3 and 41.4) involving automatic suspensions, either of which would seem to apply to the Ranford situation.
Rule 41 — Physical Abuse of Officials
Rule 41.1 Game Misconduct
Any player or goalkeeper who deliberately applies physical force to an official solely for the purpose of getting free of such an official during or immediately following an altercation shall receive a game misconduct penalty. In addition the following (41.2, 41.3, 41.4) disciplinary penalties shall apply:
41.2 Automatic Suspension — Category 1
Any player who deliberately strikes an official and causes injury or who deliberately applies physical force in any manner against an official with intent to injure or who in any manner attempts to injure an official shall be automatically suspended for not less than 20 games. (For the purpose of the rule, “intent to injure” shall mean any physical force which a player knew or should have known could reasonably be expected to cause injury.)
41.3 Automatic suspension — Category 2
Any player who deliberately applies physical force to an official in any manner (excluding actions set out in Category 1) in which physical force is applied without intent to injury shall be automatically suspended for not less than 10 games.
41.4 Automatic Suspension — Category 3
Any player or goalkeeper who, by his actions, physically demeans an official or physically threatens an official by (but not limited to) throwing a stick or any other piece of equipment or object at or in the general direction of an official, shooting the puck at or in the general direction of an official, spitting at or in the general direction of an official, or who deliberately applies physical force to an official solely for the purpose of getting free of such an official during or immediately following an altercation shall be suspended for not less than three games.
---
So depending on how Doerksen interprets Ranford’s actions, and depending on how closely the WHL’s rules are to the OHL’s, Ranford could be looking at a three-game suspension or one that runs at least 10 games.
———
Arenas around the WHL were quiet on Monday night; there are three games on tap tonight.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes will visit the Oil Kings in Edmonton. Lethbridge is two points out of an Eastern Conference playoff spot, while the Oil Kings are seventh, three points behind the Brandon Wheat Kings.
The Kootenay Ice will meet the Tigers in Medicine Hat. The Ice, which has three games left, is fourth in the conference, five points behind the Tigers. An Ice loss, then, will mean it finishes fourth and will meet the Moose Jaw Warriors in the first round. . . . A Tigers victory moves them to within two points of the Red Deer Rebels, who, as Central Division leaders, are the conference’s No. 2 seed. The Tigers will use up their game in hand tonight.
And, finally, the Regina Pats are to visit the Broncos in Swift Current. The Broncos, who won’t be in the playoffs, can play spoiler tonight because a victory will finish the Pats. Regina has three games left and is six points behind the Prince Albert Raiders, who hold down the conference’s last spot.
Despite what you may have read or heard, the Pats have not been eliminated. They still can tie for that last spot. And a tie for the final playoff berth would necessitate a sudden-death game.
———
JUST NOTES: F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Red Deer Rebels is the WHL’s player of the week. He had 12 points, including five goals, in four games last week. . . . Adam Brown of the Kelowna Rockets is the WHL’s nominee as the CHL’s goaltender of the week. He was 3-0-0, 0.65, .979 last week. . . . The Vancouver Giants have lost six in a row and won’t have F Brendan Gallagher back Wednesday when the meet the Winterhawks in Portland. He is expected to play Friday when the Kelowna Rockets visit Vancouver. . . . Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun also reports that Giants head coach Don Hay is likely to be one of the applicants for the position of head coach of Canada’s national junior team. The deadline to apply is today. . . . “I think I'd like to help Canada win a gold medal,” Hay told Pap. “I think it's always a good challenge for coaches to get involved with that program.” . . . The 2012 tournament will be held in Calgary and Edmonton. . . . According to Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, the Warriors had F Antonin Honejsek (broken ankle) back on the ice Monday. He has missed 15 games. . . . However, the Warriors were missing F Cody Beach (leg), who was injured Saturday. Head coach Dave Hunchak said Beach is week-to-week. . . . Gourlie also reports that the Warriors are bringing in F Torrin White, the 21st overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft. He had 49 points in 33 games with the midget AAA UFA Bisons in Alberta. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi has 83 points, the most by a Winterhawks’ freshman since Richard Zednik put up 86 in 1994-95. The franchise record is held by Jiri Beranek (94, 1991-92). . . . Yes, Bartschi is the WHL’s highest-scoring freshman, by 19 points. . . . The Winterhawks had G Mac Carruth (concussion, groin) back at practice Monday and are hoping to get him into at least one game by week’s end. Keith Hamilton has played well in Carruth’s absence, going 7-2 since the starter was first injured on Feb. 22.

According to the Prince Albert Herald, G Jamie Tucker of the Prince Albert Raiders will be out for “at least two weeks” after he suffered a cut to his right thumb during a 5-4 loss to the Pats in Regina on Saturday night.
Tucker was injured in a collision with Regina F Garrett Mitchell. Tucker left the game in the first period and didn’t return.
———
Super Bowl Sunday wasn’t so super for Dave MacQueen.
MacQueen was fired Sunday as the general manager and head coach of the OHL’s Sarnia Sting. The Sting (18-26-6) is fourth in the Western Conference’s West Division, 19 points behind the Windsor Spitfires and three ahead of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
Assistant coach Trevor Letowski, a former NHLer, is the new interim head coaches. The general manager’s duties will be split up among front office staff.
———
According to reports, including from RDS, former NHLer Guy Carbonneau will take over as head coach of the QMJHL’s Chicoutimi Sagueneens today.
Carbonneau, who played and coached in the NHL, is part of Chicoutimi’s ownership group, and serves as president and governor.
The Sagueneens fired head coach Richard Martel last week. Marc-Etienne Hubert has been serving as the interim head coach.
The Sagueneens have won all three games they have played since Martel was released.

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

The QMJHL’s Chicoutimi Saguenéens fired GM/head coach Richard Martel on Wednesday.
Martel is the QMJHL’s winningest head coach, with 589 career victories.
Assistant coach Marc-Étienne Hubert and assistant GM Carl Bouchard were to run the bench for Wednesday’s game against the visiting Rimouski Oceanic.
The Sagueneens went into the game with an 18-22-10 record, good for 13th in the 18-team league. They were fifth in the East Division, four points behind Rimouski.
———
D Brodie Melnychuk of the Brandon Wheat Kings will be out indefinitely after having been found to have a fractured left leg.
Melnychuk is the most experienced player on the Brandon roster, having played 249 games.
He was injured Jan. 11 but the fracture wasn’t discovered until it showed up in X-rays this week. In fact, Melnychuk played four games with a sore leg, thinking it was bruised, before the fracture showed up.
Melnychuk, 19, was one of seven defencemen on the Brandon roster. Of the six left, one (Ryley Miller, 18) is a veteran, while the other five are in their freshman seasons — Ryan Pulock (16), Eric Roy (16), Jordan Fransoo (17), Spencer Galbraith (17) and Rene Hunter (17). . . . The Wheat Kings are at home to the Swift Current Broncos tonight, with the Regina Pats in the Wheat City on Friday.
———
Former WHL G Kelly Hrudey (Medicine Hat, 1978-81) and two partners — Paul Colborne and David Moir, both of Calgary — have purchased one-third of the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers. These three join Bill Gallacher, the Calgary-based businessman who owns the Portland Winterhawks, Ken Wagner, another Alberta-based businessman, and Bill Bestwick, the team’s GM and head coach, in the Clippers’ ownership group.
From a release on the BCHL website:
“Colborne’s background is in the oil-and-gas industry and he is currently on the board of directors for firms including Crescent Point Energy Corp., Legacy Oil & Gas Ltd. and Surge Energy. He was instrumental in the 2006 purchase of the Calgary Stampeders Football Club, helping put the team back into local hands. Colborne is also the creator of the National Sports Development Program that trains young athletes in all sports in the Calgary area.
“Moir has been involved in the NHL for 30 years and worked for the Calgary Flames organization in the 1980s, including the Stanley Cup-winning team of 1989. Since 1990 he has been a key part of the Hockey Night in Canada broadcast team as well as the TSN broadcast team in both the NHL and CFL. David has worked at seven Olympic Games, including the men's hockey games at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.”
———
JUST NOTES: F Brendan Shinnimin of the Tri-City Americans is the Husky WHL player of the month for January. Shinnimin, 19, had 29 points in 13 games in January. . . . Darcy Kuemper of the Red Deer Rebels is the Vaughn WHL goaltender of the month. Kuemper, 20, went 9-1-1, 1.74, .937 in January.
———
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Brandon, F Shayne Wiebe’s goal at 11:32 of the third period gave the Wheat Kings a 3-2 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Wiebe, who has eight goals over his last seven games, has 29 goals this season, three shy of his career high. . . . The Wheat Kings led 2-0 in the first period. . . . The Broncos tied it on F Justin Dowling’s 17th goal at 18:04 of the first period and D Reece Scarlett’s fifth at 9:30 of the second. . . . Broncos G Mark Friesen stopped 43 shots. . . . Brandon F Mark Stone, Brandon D Ryan Pulock and Swift Current F Jordan Peddle each had two assists. . . . Attendance was 3,298, the smallest crowd in Brandon this season. . . . Brandon, which dressed only 16 skaters, lost D Spencer Galbraith when he took a charging major and game misconduct at 2:24 of the second period. . . . The Wheat Kings have won five of seven and now are alone in eighth in the 12-team Eastern Conference, a point behind the Broncos, who have lost seven in a row, and one up on the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Prince Albert Raiders. . . . Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun reports that Broncos F Ryan Bloom, who absorbed the hit from Galbraith, Peddle and F dillong Wagner “all left the game with injuries.” . . .
———
In Saskatoon, the Blades got two goals from F Jake Trask as they won their seventh straight game, this one 6-2 over the Regina Pats. . . . It also was Saskatoon’s WHL-leading 40th victory of the season. . . . Saskatoon is 23-2-1 at home. . . . F Brayden Schenn had four assists for the Blades. . . . Trask also had one assist. He’s got 17 goals on the season. . . . Saskatoon D Darren Dietz had two assists and was plus-4. . . . The season series is 2-2. . . . The Blades scored three goals in the game’s first five minutes. . . . Attendance was 3,546. . . . The Pats are 11th, three points behind the eighth-place Brandon Wheat Kings. The Pats are scheduled to play in Brandon on Friday. . . .
———
In Prince Albert, F Byron Froese scored three times to help the Red Deer Rebels to a 7-4 victory over the Raiders. . . . Red Deer trailed 3-1 in the first period and 4-2 in the second before scoring the game’s last five goals. . . . Froese, who was acquired from the Everett Silvertips over the summer, has 30 goals this season. . . . F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and three assists for the Rebels, while F John Persson had a goal and two assists. . . . F Igor Revenko scored three times for the Raiders, giving him 16 goals. . . . The Raiders were 3-for-6 on the PP. . . . Red Deer G Dawson Guhle stopped 28 shots, seven fewer than the Raiders’ Jamie Tucker. . . . Attendance was 2,122. . . .
———
In Lethbridge, the Vancouver Giants scored twice in the shootout and beat the Hurricanes, 5-4. . . . The Giants led 4-2 late in the second period before the Hurricanes forced OT with goals from F Brody Sutter, at 16:50 of the seocnd, and D Mike Reddington, at 7:12 of the third. . . . F Brendan Gallagher and F Andrej Stastny scored for Vancouver in the shootout. . . . Gallagher had a goal, his 34th, and three assists in regulation time. . . . Vancouver F Spencer Bennett had a goal and an assist, as did F Brendan Rowinski. . . . Lethbridge F Austin Fyten (upper body) didn’t play. . . . Attendance was 3,990. . . . Gordie and Marty Howe, both of whom played with Lethbridge GM/head coach Rich Preston with the WHA’s Houston Aeros, were in the house. . . .
———
In Kamloops, F Tyler Maxwell broke a 2-2 tie at 16:29 of the third period to give the Everett Silvertips a 3-2 victory over the Blazers. . . . Everett has won four in a row for the first time since the first four games of the season. . . . Maxwell scored twice, giving him 35 of Everett’s 133 goals this season. . . . The winner came on the PP. . . . Everett G Kent Simpson stopped 36 shots, including 21 in the first period. . . . Everett D Ryan Murray had a goal and an assist. . . . Everett F Parker Stanfield made two key plays that led to Maxwell’s goals. First, he tried a wraparound and the rebound went to Maxwell, who whipped it home. Then, on the winner, Stanfield set a great screen that allowed Maxwell to pick the longside corner on G Jeff Bosch. . . . Attendance was 4,428. . . .
———
In Kelowna, F Evan Bloodoff scored twice to lead the Rockets to a 6-4 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . The Rockets have won seven straight, while the Bruins have lost six in a row. . . . Bloodoff has 14 goals. . . . D Tyson Barrie had three assists for the Rockets. . . . The Bruins got two goals from F Roman Horak, who has 21. . . . The teams were tied 3-3 midway through the second period. . . .Bloodoff broke the tie at 14:38 on a PP, and F Geordie Wudrick made if 5-4 with his 30th goal of the season at 15:12, on another PP. . . . Bloodoff’s first goal, at 8:40 of the second period, was a shorthanded effort. . . .. Kelowna was 2-for-10 on the PP, while Chilliwack was 1-for-6. . . . Attendance was 6,037. . . .
———
In Calgary, the Hitmen halted a six-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . One night earlier, the Ice had beaten the visiting Hitmen, 8-0. . . . . The Ice also had beaten the Hitmen seven straight times this season. . . . Kootenay G Nathan Lieuwen, who left Tuesday’s game after a collision with Calgary F Cody Sylvester, wasn’t dressed. Jeff Holick, the radio voice of the Ice, reports that Lieuwen has neck and back spasms and is day-to-day. . . . G Mackenzie Skapski, 16, stopped 25 shots in his second career WHL start. . . . Calgary G Brandon Glover made 32 saves, losing his shutout bid on F Matt Fraser’s 23rd goal at 18:02 of the second. . . . F Kris Foucault and F Jimmy Bubnick each notched his 16th goal for Calgary. . . . Attendance was 7,222. . . . The Ice has returned D Mike Simpson to the junior B Port Moody, B.C., Black Panthers and F Levi Cable to the midget AAA Yorkton, Sask., Harvest. At the same time, according to Holick, the Ice is bringing in D Jeff Hubic, a fourth-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft, from the midget AAA Tisdale, Sask., Trojans for the next four games. . . .
———
In Kennewick, Wash., D Matt MacKenzie’s OT goal gave the host Tri-City Americans a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton oil Kings. . . . MacKenzie scored his fifth goal just 53 seconds into OT. It came on the PP. . . . Tri-City F Jordan Messier forced OT with his 23rd goal, on the PP, at 15:39 of the third period. . . . Edmonton F Dylan Wruck had given his side a 3-2 lead with his 30th goal at 11:38 of the third. . . . Wruck, who scored twice in a 4-2 victory over Seattle on Tuesday, set the Oil Kings’ modern day franchise record for goals in a season. F Brenden Dowd scored 29 in 2008-09. . . . F Brendan Shinnimin had two assists for Tri-City, running his point streak to 20 games. He has 44 points over that stretch. . . . Tri-City G Chris Driedger stopped 23 shots to earn his second victory in his third WHL start. It was his ninth appearance of the season. . . . Edmonton G Jon Groenheyde stopped 42 shots. . . . Edmonton D Braeden Laroque left at 7:02 of the first period with a boarding major and a game misconduct. . . . Tri-City was 3-for-6 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 3,588. . . . The loser point was big for the Oil Kings, who are sixth in the Eastern Conference and now are five points ahead of the seventh-place Swift Current Broncos. Edmonton, which is in Portland on Friday, opened its U.S. swing with that 4-2 victory over Seattle on Tuesday.
———
WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Four minors:
Prince Albert D Harrison Ruopp
Kamloops D Austin Madaisky
Edmonton F Kristians Pelss (double minor)

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

F Killian Hutt of the Swift Current Broncos hasn’t played a game since Dec. 10. On that night, he suffered a severe concussion during a game against the Blazers in Kamloops.
He has spent most of his time since then recuperating at his family home in Edmonton.
But Hutt, 19, plans to spend this weekend in Swift Current — it’s parent weekend — and then return to Edmonton. But he is hoping to return to action this season.
“I’ve been doing better as of late,” he told me in a text Tuesday. “I’m looking at going back permanently (at the) end of February.”
Hutt was preparing to take a shot on goal when was injured on a hit by Kamloops F Jordan DePape, who was penalized and served a five-game WHL suspension.
———
The QMJHL announced Tuesday that no franchises — there are 16 of them —  filed notification of sale or relocation prior to Monday’s deadline.
"Although a number of reports have been published over the past few weeks, not a single Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team submitted a request to sell or relocate on Jan. 31," QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau said in a statement. "Guidelines are outlined in our Constitution and our members are well-aware of the process regarding these types of requests."
There had been speculation, and lots of it, that the Lewiston Maineiacs, who are averaging about 1,900 fans per game, would be moving to Summerside, P.E.I.
There also have been rumblings about the P.E.I. Rocket, which is averaging fewer than 1,700 fans per game in Charlottetown.
———
Brett Montsion, a WHL referee, has done a quick tour through the OHL and he tells Wally Donaldson of the Oshawa Express that he quite enjoyed it. That story is right here.
———
Mike Johnston, the GM and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks, lost out Sunday at the Oregon Sports Awards. He was nominated as Sportsperson of the Year. If you follow U.S. college football, it will come as no surprise that the award went to Chip Kelly, the head coach of the Oregon Ducks. All they did was play for the national championship. . . . But just the fact that Johnston was nominated shows the inroads the Winterhawks have made there in less than three seasons under new ownership. . . . He doesn’t get a whole lot of attention but it says right here that Thom Beuning, who handles the play-by-play of Seattle Thunderbirds games on 710 ESPN, is as smooth as they come. . . . F Travis Dunstall (Kamloops, Medicine Hat, Everett, 2004-10) is the Southern Professional league’s player of the week. Dunstall, who joined the Augusta RiverHawks on Jan. 18, had seven points, four of them goals, as his club won three road games. Two of those four goals were game-winners. Overall, he has eight points in five games.
———
Somehow I don’t think linesman Derek Nernberg, a 26-year-old from Regina, had planned on becoming a YouTube star by hitting a post. If you haven’t seen it, you are in the minority as this 28-second clip was heading towards 50,000 views late Tuesday night.
———
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM TUESDAY’S GAMES:
In Saskatoon, F Brayden Schenn scored his first two goals on home ice as the Blades won their sixth straight, getting past the Red Deer Rebels, 7-5. . . . The victory lifted the Eastern Conference-leading Blades five points clear of the Rebels who, as the Central Division leaders, are the No. 2 seed. . . . The Blades, who have won six in a row, now have scored 204 goals, the first Eastern Conference team to go over 200. There are three teams in the Western Conference — all from the U.S. Division — with at least 200 goals scored (Spokane, 216; Portland, 203; Tri-City, 200). . . . The Rebels had won their last 11 games. . . . Schenn, who also had an assist, was acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings on Jan. 10. . . . F Josh Nicholls and F Jake Trask each had a goal and an assist for the Blades. . . . The Rebels took a 3-2 lead on F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ 15th goal at 4:24 of the second period. . . . Saskatoon tied it on D Dalton Thrower’s sixth goal, at 9:44 of the second, then took control with two goals 16 seconds apart early in the third. Schenn scored 58 seconds into the period on a PP and Nichools got his 25th at 1:14. . . . Nugent-Hopkins, F Byron Froese and F Andrej Kudrna combined for two goals and three assists for Red Deer, but each was minus-3. . . . Saskatoon G Steven Stanford stopped 18 shots, 12 fewer than Red Deer’s Darcy Kuemper. . . . With G Adam Morrison out with mononucleosis, Stanford was making his sixth straight start. . . . Attendance was 5,184. . . . Schenn actually left the game for a brief time after absorbing a teeth-rattling open-ice hit from Red Deer F Brett Ferguson. “That hit (from Ferguson), I don’t if I’ve ever been hit that hard in my life,” Schenn told Cory Wolfe of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix. “It didn’t feel good at the time. I got winded there a bit, but I was able to come back.” . . . The Blades are at home to the Regina Pats tonight, while the Rebels meet the Raiders in Prince Albert. . . .
———
In Medicine Hat, F Spencer Bennett continued to weave his magic for Vancouver as his goal at the third-period buzzer gave the Giants a 3-2 victory over the Tigers. . . . The goal, which came on a wrap-around, came with one-tenth of a second left and wasn’t awarded until after a 10-minute video review. . . . Bennett scored twice, giving him 26 goals this season. He has 27 points, including 14 goals, in 15 games since being acquired from the Portland Winterhawks on Dec. 30. . . . The Tigers led this one 2-0 in the first period on goals by F Kale Kessy, his 10th, and F Emerson Etem, his 28th, shorthanded at 18:55. . . . F Dalton Sward, with his ninth, got Vancouver on the board at 15:55 of the second. . . . Bennett scored a PP goal 33 seconds into the third to tie it. . . . Vancouver G Mark Segal stopped 31 shots, 10 more than Medicine Hat’s Tyler Bunz. . . . Segal won for the 20th time this season. . . . With the victory, the Giants moved one point ahead of the idle Kelowna Rockets atop the B.C. Division. . . . Attendance was 4,006. . . . The Giants continue their Central Division swing tonight in Lethbridge, with Marty and Gordie Howe scheduled to be on hand. . . .
———
In Cranbrook, F Cody Eakin had two goals and three assists to lead the Kootenay Ice to an 8-0 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Eakin has 11 points, including five goals, in six games since being acquired from the Swift Current Broncos on Jan. 9. . . . On the season, he has 50 points in 36 games. . . . Kootenay goaltenders Nathan Lieuwen and Brett Teskey shared the shutout. Lieuwen made 27 saves before leaving at 8:17 of the third period after making a stop on F Cody Sylvester. Teskey came on to stop five shots. . . . D Brayden McNabb chipped in a goal and two assists, while F Kevin King and F Elgin Pearce each had two helpers. . . . The Ice was 4-for-7 on the PP; the Hitmen were 0-for-5. . . . Attendance was 2,159. . . . F Matt Fraser (concussion) returned to the Ice’s lineup for the first time since Jan. 18. Fraser, 20, scored the game’s last goal, his 22nd of the season, and you can bet it felt good. . . . The Ice meet the Hitmen tonight in Calgary. . . . The Ice has put up five shutouts this season, three of them against the Hitmen, who have been blanked a total of five times. . . .
———
In Seattle, the Edmonton Oil Kings scored the game’s last three goals and beat the Thunderbirds, 4-2. . . . It was the first of a four-game U.S. Division swing for Edmonton. . . . Seattle has lost nine in a row and remains in the Western Conference basement. . . . The Oil Kings took a 1-0 lead into the third period on F Travis Ewanyk’s ninth goal, shorthanded, at 10:53 of the second. . . . The Thunderbirds grabbed a 2-1 lead on third-period goals from F Mitch Elliot (1:57) and F Brendan Rouse (3:01). . . . However, F Kristians Pelss tied it for Edmonton at 10::11 and F Dylan Wruck won it with his 29th at 12:01. . . . F Jordan Hickmott got the empty-netter at 19:38. . . . Edmonton G Laurent Brossoit, in his third straight start, stopped 32 shots. He evened his record at 8-8-0. . . . Seattle G Calvin Pickard made 38 saves. . . . Attendance was 3,141. . . . Seattle play-by-play man Thom Beuning points out on his blog that the Thunderbirds are 1-10-0 since D Travis Bobbee was injured, and they are 0-6-0 since D Ryan Button went down. Those two have combined to play 541 regular-season games. . . . The Oil Kings are in Kennewick, Wash., against the Tri-City Americans tonight. . . .
———
TUESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
One minor:
Calgary F Danny Gayle

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

It sure does sound as though at least a couple of QMJHL teams are going to be on the move once this season draws to a close. It could be that the province of Prince Edward Island will lose one team but gain another. There is more right here.
———
It turns out that the website on the Lethbridge Maple Leafs that was mentioned here earlier this week is the work of Trevor Esau and his son, Darcen. They also have another site dedicated to hockey history. It is right here. Feel free to check it out and, once you do, don’t forget to bookmark it. . . . Make sure you find the photo of the 1970-71 Lethbridge Sugar Kings. There is Lanny McDonald, without the ’stache, and, yes, that is John Chapman kneeling in the front.
———
Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun was at the Top Prospects game on Wednesday night and he had Red Deer Rebels F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins as the best player on the ice. Koshan’s report from the Air Canada Centre is right here. . . . The attendance? One can only assume the hockey fans stayed at home to watch their Maple Leafs lost to the Rangers in New York. And how did that go?
———
They are the mostly unsung heroes of the WHL. They are the off-ice officials. About the only time you hear about them is when a coach is upset over the shots on goal.
Which is why congratulations are in order to Ken Thomas, who is an off-ice official with the Seattle Thunderbirds in Kent, Wash.
Thomas, who does it all from being a goal judge to spotter to penalty box attendant, has been named Kent’s new Chief of Police. The announcement was made Wednesday by Kent Mayor Suzzette Cooke.
Chief Thomas will be sworn in sometime in the next two weeks. Presently a captain of the 185-member department, he is a 22-year veteran of policing. He also serves on the Thunderbird Community Sports Foundation and is on the foundation’s grant review committee. As well, he makes an annual presentation to Seattle players on public safety.
———
Some folks were tweeting earlier today about WHL products on NHL rosters, and someone noted that every NHL team but one has a WHLer on its roster. That one, it was noted, was the New Jersey Devils. . . . The Devils do have one WHLer out with a long-term injury — D Bryce Salvador (Lethbridge, 1992-97) hasn’t played this season because of a concussion.
———
The MJHL’s Swan Valley Stampeders, who play out of Swan River, have signed head coach Dwayne Kirkup to an extension that will run through 2012-13. He was the MJHL’s coach of the year in 2009-10, his first season with the Stampeders. . . . Kirkup is from Souris, Man., which also produced the likes of Andy Murray, Garry Davidson and Glen (Ab) Williamson, all of whom have had good runs in hockey at one level or another.
———
One WHL player had his truck stolen on Wednesday afternoon. Which is why police officers regularly tell people not to leave their vehicles running, even when you are going to be away only for a minute or two. Read all about this incident right here.
———
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Moose Jaw, goaltenders Thomas Heemskerk and Brandon Stone combined for 20 saves as the Warriors blanked the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 4-0. . . . Heemskerk stopped 19 shots over 59:06, with Stone coming on to make one save in the final 54 seconds. . . . Moose Jaw head coach Dave Hunchak made the goaltending change as play got chippy late in the third period. . . . F Quinton Howden scored twice for the Warriors, giving him 27. . . . D Dylan McIlrath drew three assists, while F Sebastian Svendsen had two. . . . The teams combined for 104 penalty minutes, with 64 of those going to Lethbridge. . . . The Hurricanes have been blanked six times this season; the Warriors have put up three shutouts, with Heemskerk and Stone sharing two of them — both at home against Lethbridge. . . . The Crushed Can was rocking with 2,807 fans in the building. . . .
———
In Kelowna, F Spencer Main had four assists and G Adam Brown stopped 30 shots as the Rockets dumped the Prince George Cougars, 6-2. . . . F Cody Chikie scored his eighth and ninth goals of the season, getting both in the first period to help the Rockets take a 3-0 lead. . . . Chikie’s second goal, at 13:00, sent G Ty Rimmer to the bench in favor of James Priestner. Chikie stopped six of nine; Priestner 17 of 20. . . . Attendance was 6,061. . . .
———
In Kennewick, Wash., F Connor Rankin had a goal and two assists and G Drew Owsley earned his third shutout this season as the host Tri-City Americans blanked the Kamloops Blazers, 5-0. . . . The Americans were leading 1-0, on D Paul Sohor’s second goal, when F Carter Ashton and Rankin scored 19 seconds apart in the second period. . . . Owsley stopped 21 shots, only two in the third period, in earning his eighth career shutout and his 25th victory this season. . . . The Blazers were without injured forwards Jordan DePape, Thomas Frazee, Bernhard Keil and Chase Schaber, then lost C Dalibor Bortnak to an undisclosed injury in the third period. That left them with eight forwards on their bench. . . . The Americans have won 12 straight home games. . . . Kamloops D Josh Caron may hear from the WHL office after being hit with a spearing major and game misconduct in the third period. . . . Kamloops took 45 of the 59 penalty minutes handed out by referee Jason Nissen. . . . Attendance was 3,812. . . . The Blazers wrapped up the U.S. portion of their road schedule with the game. The Americans have yet to play in Kamloops this season.
———
WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Two minors:
D Daniel Johnston, Lethbridge
D Reid Jackson, Lethbridge

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

A couple of Robservations from Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post:
“If you are a member of a junior hockey team, how much fun can it possibly be to play a robotic, chip-and-chase, dump-it-in style of game? Too many coaches, at all levels of junior hockey, are seemingly determined to extract the fun and creativity from what should be a free-flowing game.
“Something is wrong with the WHL when a premier player like Everett Silvertips defenceman Ryan Murray — the pride of White City — visits his home province once every two years. The league's partial interlocking schedule is ridiculous. Every team should play in every building every season. Period.”
---
D Bruin McDonald made his QMJHL debut on Friday night as his Gatineau Olympiques dropped a 4-3 decision to the visiting Victoriaville Tigres. McDonald, who started his season with the Spokane Chiefs, was pointless and plus-1. The teams were 3-3 after one period, with the Tigres getting the winner on a third-period PP. . . . The Olympiques are home to the Rimouski Oceanic today.
---
The Saskatoon Blades have traded D Tyler Kizuik, 18, to the Lethbridge Hurricanes for a sixth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . The Hurricanes held two sixth-round picks, their own and Seattle’s. Even after this trade, Lethbridge still holds four selections in the first four two rounds of the 2011 draft. . . . The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Kizuik, who is from Indian Head, Sask., was a third-round pick of the Prince George Cougars in the 2009 bantam draft. He had nine points in 48 games last season. . . . Kizuik should be in the Hurricanes’ lineup tonight when they play host to the Medicine Hat Tigers.
---
A note from Kevin Paul Dupont in today’s Boston Globe:
A league source with direct knowledge of the negotiations reports that the sale of the Dallas Stars would have been concluded a month ago to Vancouver businessman Tom Gaglardi, but for commissioner Gary Bettman insisting the selling price ($175 million?) was too low. Gaglardi, majority owner of the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League, subsequently bowed out of the process. Another serious Canadian bidder, Bill Gallacher, also walked. Gaglardi, with partner Ryan Beedie, once tried to buy the Canucks. He’s serious about hockey and a serious businessman, traits that often have been lacking among the Lords of the Boards. As of Feb. 4, the Stars will have been up for sale for one year.
---
Some highlights from Saturday’s WHL games . . .
In Prince Albert, the Raiders scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Everett Silvertips, 5-1. . . . F Brandon Herrod scored twice for the Raiders. He has 14 on the season. . . . F Mark McNeill had a goal, his 15^th, and an assist for Prince Albert, which spent the night celebrating its 40^th anniversary season. . . . The game was tied 1-1 until Herrod scored at 15:35 of the second period and McNeill got his goal at 19:23. . . . Everett G Luke Siemens was credited with 47 saves. . . . F Jonathan Parker got his 17^th goal for the Raiders. He had 15 last season -- 13 with the Seattle Thunderbirds and two with P.A. -- and 17 as a freshman with Seattle in 2008-09. . . . G Eric Williams stopped 28 shots for the Raiders. . . . Attendance was 2,418. . . . Raiders D Jordan Rowley was plus-4, while D Ryan Button had one assist and also was plus-4. . . . Everett finished its East Division tour at 3-3-0 after a 3-1-0 start. . . .
---
In Brandon, the Kootenay Ice scored twice in the shootout and beat the Wheat Kings, 3-2. . . . That was Brandon’s 11^th straight loss. . . . The Ice led 2-0 on first-period goals by F Elgin Pearce, his sixth on the season and fourth in two games, and F Max Reinhart, his 16^th. . . . The Wheat Kings tied it on second-period PP goals from F Shayne Wiebe, his 16^th, and F Mark Stone, his 18^th. . . . F Matt Fraser and Reinhart scored in the shootout for the Ice, while Brandon F Scott Glennie and F Michael Ferland were foiled. . . . D Joey Leach had two assists for the Ice. . . . Attendance was 4,343. . . . Ice G Nathan Lieuwen stopped 34 shots, two more than Brandon’s Corbin Boes. . . . Kootenay was without D Brayden McNabb, who is in camp with the Canadian national junior team, and F Kevin King (infected elbow), who is its leading scorer. . . . Brandon was without F Brayden Schenn, who also is in camp with the Canadian team. . . .
---
In Edmonton, F T.J. Foster broke a 1-1 tie at 5:27 of the third period as the Oil Kings beat the Kelowna Rockets, 2-1. . . . The Oil Kings are 7-1-1 in their last nine games. . . . F Mitchell (Dirty Harry) Callahan scored for Kelowna, his 15^th, on a PP, at 1:01 of the second. . . . F Mike Piluso, with his sixth, pulled Edmonton even at 15:25 of the second. . . . Edmonton F Michael St. Croix had one assist. . . . Attendance was 4,502. . . . Foster, who has 10 goals, also had an assist. . . . Edmonton G Jon Groenheyde stopped 28 shots, five fewer than Kelowna’s Adam Brown. . . .
---
In Medicine Hat, F Kevin Sundher scored twice to lead the Chilliwack Bruins to a 4-1 victory over the Tigers. . . . F Jamie Crooks added two assists for the Bruins. . . . Sundher has 11 goals this season. . . . The Bruins took control by breaking a scoreless draw with three second-period goals, started by Sundher’s shorthanded score at 8:08. . . . F Emerson Etem got his 19^th of the season for the Tigers. That was their Teddy Bear goal. . . . Bruins G Braden Gamble stopped 31 shots, 11 more than Medicine Hat’s Tyler Bunz. . . .
---
In Red Deer, the Regina Pats outscored the Rebels 3-2 in the shootout and posted a 3-2 victory. . . . F Jordan Weal, F Colin Reddin and F Thomas Frazee all scored for Regina in the circus, with F Daulton Siwak and F Brett Ferguson counting for the Rebels. . . . The teams exchanged goals in regulation, with F Josh Cowen getting Red Deer on the board with his second goal, on the PP, at 13:07 of the second period. . . . Regina F Andrew Rieder, with his fifth, equalized at 12:27 of the third. . . . F Byron Froese got his 12^th to give Red Deer the lead at 17:49 of the third. . . . F Garrett Mitchell pulled Regina into a tie at 19:41 with his 10th. . . . Attendance was 4,074. . . . Regina G Matt Hewitt stopped 35 shots. Red Deer’s Dawson Guhle, who was acquired earlier in the season from the Pats, turned aside 26. . . .
---
In Spokane, F Tyler Johnson had a career-high six points, including four assists, to lead the Chiefs to a 10-5 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . In the Blazers’ last visit to Spokane, on Nov. 24, they were beaten 10-1. . . . The Chiefs, who fired 64 shots on two Blazers goaltenders, have won five straight games. . . . F Dominik Uher had three goals for the Chiefs. . . . Last season, Uher had four goals in 53 games. He went into last night with one goal in 24 games this season. . . . Spokane was 4-for-7 on the PP. . . . Uher also had an assist, while F Levko Koper had a goal and three assists. . . . Spokane D Tyler Vanscourt, D Brendon Kichton and F Brady Brassart each had two assists. . . . D Brady Gaudet scored three times for Kamloops. It was his first WHL hat trick and came in his 22^nd game of the season. He now has four goals this season. . . . Kamloops LW Brendan Ranford had one assist and moved into the WHL scoring lead with 50 points, one more than Medicine Hat Tigers F Linden Vey, who is in camp with the Canadian national junior team. . . . Ranford also leads the WHL in goals, with 26. . . . Kamloops F Shayne Neigum got his first goal of the season and also had two assists. . . . Kamloops ended up without both of Ranford’s linemates. RW Jordan DePape has been suspended after a Friday night hit on F Killian Hutt of the Swift Current Broncos. C Chase Schaber was given a game misconduct following a first-period fight with D Brenden Kitchton. Schaber was given the game misconduct for making an inappropriate gesture and is likely looking at a suspension. It was his sixth game back after serving a three-game suspension for making physical contact with an official. . . . The Chiefs have scored 10 goals on three occasions this season. . . . Attendance was 5,460. . . .
---
In Vancouver, the Swift Current Broncos scored the game’s first four goals and went onto a 4-1 victory over the Giants. . . . The Broncos, who lost 3-2 in Kamloops on Friday night, were without three of their top forwards, with Cody Eakin having left for the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp and Killian Hutt and Stepan Novotny both injured. . . . The Broncos scored three times in the last half of the first period, with F Brad Hoban getting his 13^th, D Kyle Verdino his second and F Dillon Wagner his third in nine games since returning from offseason knee surgery. . . . Vancouver G Mark Segal, the first star in each the last three games, was lifted after that first period. . . . F Adam Lowry had two assists for the Broncos. . . . Swift Current G Mark Friesen stopped 26 shots, losing his shutout bid to F James Henry at 13:24 of the third period. . . . Attendance was 6,391. . . .
---
In Portland, the Winterhawks broke a 3-3 tie with four third-period goals and beat the Prince George Cougars, 7-4. . . . Attendance on Teddy Bear Night in the Rose Garden was 10,558. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie got the Teddy Bear goal at 12:44 of the first period, and fans tossed 12,178 stuffed toys onto the ice. . . . Rattie has 16 goals. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 44 shots as the Cougars held a 48-26 edge in shots. . . . Rattie and D Joe Morrow each had a goal and two assists. . . . Portland F Riley Boychuk broke a 3-3 tie with his ninth goal at 2:36 of third on a PP. . . . F Taylor Peters added insurance with his third of the season at 7:30. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi had two assists, as did countryman Nino Niederreiter. . . . F Jaroslav Vlach, in his third game since returning from a broken thumb suffered in October, got his first goal of the season for the Cougars. . . . The Winterhawks had beaten the visiting Cougars 4-1 on Friday. . . .
---
In Kent, Wash., the visiting Tri-City Americans scored the game’s first five goals and beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-1. . . . Tri-City has won seven of its last nine games. . . . F Jordan Messier led the Americans with two goals, giving him 18. . . . F Brooks Macek, F Brendan Shinnimin and F Neal Prokop each had two assists for the Americans. . . . With G Calvin Pickard in camp with Canada’s national junior team, Seattle gave Michael Salmon his second start of the season. He made 28 saves. . . . Attendance was 3,577. . . . The Americans had beaten the visiting Thunderbirds 4-1 on Friday and now are 5-0 against Seattle this season. . . . The Americans were late arriving in Kent because of tough travel conditions in the mountain passes.
---
SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT (yes, there were 11 -- count 'em, 11 -- checking-from-behind calls made last night; do you think there might be a problem here, or was there a full moon?):
One major:
Red Deer F John Persson
Ten minors:
Edmonton D Adrian Van de Mosselaer
Medicine Hat F Dylan Bredo
Regina F Colin Reddin
Red Deer F Daulton Siwak
Red Deer F Adam Kambeitz
Vancouver F Brett Lyon
Vancouver D Tyler Hart
Seattle D Dave Sutter
Portland D Brett Ponich
Kamloops D Brandon Underwood

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

The QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques have added D Bruin McDonald, 18, to their roster. At first, it was thought he might join the Olympiques in time to play last weekend. That didn’t happen. Why not? Because he hadn’t headed east. McDonald, who started this season with the Spokane Chiefs, who had acquired him from the Prince George Cougars, is scheduled to fly out of Vancouver today at 7:30 a.m. . . . The Olympiques next play Friday when they are at home to the Victoriaville Tigers. . . . After being released by the Chiefs, McDonald joined the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. They traded him last week to the Vernon Vipers. While preparing to join the Vipers, McDonald was contacted by the Olympiques, who apparently have promised him a roster spot for the remainder of this season.
---
The Saskatoon Blades understand the importance of media coverage. Which is why the Blades, under GM/head coach Lorne Molleken, gave Cory Wolfe of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix complete access to their operation on Saturday as they prepared to play the Rockets in Kelowna. Wolfe’s story provides great insight into what goes on, especially involving a coach and his staff, in the hours and minutes leading up to a game. Check out the StarPhoenix’s website for Wolfe’s story. . . . By the way, Wolfe regularly makes the Blades’ B.C. or U.S. division swing, and his copy is as good as you’ll find in the world of hockey. Period.

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