Commish wants more support for Ice, new rink in P.A. . . . or else!

Nice to welcome @Kelowna_Rockets to Brandon to play our @bdnwheatkings Two great teams! And thanks for flying #YBR 😉 pic.twitter.com/JgW33wUCxy

— shannon (@ShannonMannall) May 6, 2015

WEDNESDAY’S GAME:

No Game Scheduled.

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The WHL’s championship final, for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, begins Friday in Brandon with the Wheat Kings meeting the Kelowna Rockets. . . .
Each team is 12-3 in these playoffs. . . . Brandon has won each of its series in five games; Kelowna has won in four, five and six games, which, if you are into omens, might indicate the Rockets will win the final in seven. . . . The Wheat Kings have scored 65 goals in their 15 games; the Rockets have scored 65. . . . Brandon has surrendered 34 goals; Kelowna 39. . . . Kelowna fell behind in five of the six games in its 4-2 Western Conference final victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . As for injuries, Brandon F Reid Duke, F Tanner Kaspick and D Kale Clague have been practising this week. Duke was injured in Game 5 of a second-round series. Kaspick and Clague went down in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. . . . The Rockets will be without F Tyrell Goulbourne, who underwent surgery last week to repair a skate cut to his left calf. F Rourke Chartier, a 48-goal scorer in the regular season, is day-to-day after missing the last three games against Portland. . . . Here’s an interesting tidbit from Brandon Sun sports editor Rob Henderson: “The combined 226 points that Brandon and Kelowna racked up this season are more than any other pair of finalists except 1979 when the Wheat Kings (with a league-record 125 points) topped the Portland Winterhawks (111) for the WHL title.”
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Last week, you will recall, Avenir Sports & Entertainment, purchased majority ownership of the Kloten Flyers, a team that players in the Switzerland’s NL A. Avenir is owned by Bill Gallacher, who also owns the Portland Winterhawks. Perhaps you are wondering that the move might mean to the Winterhawks. If so, here’s what Winterhawks president Doug Piper told Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune:
"When Bill bought the Winterhawks (in 2008), his intention was to also buy an NHL franchise. Those opportunities have come and gone, so we started thinking about the European market. We've always loved Swiss players — the three who have played for us have been fantastic. Switzerland is a great hockey market, almost Canadian-like in its appreciation with the game.
"The WHL allows each team only two imports, but the ones we've had have been impactful. Switzerland has a sophisticated youth program. We've always been tuned into Europe, but we feel this helps us get even more eyes over there and be in line to find more Niederreiter-like talent. The more we understand the world as a whole and start looking at it that way, we felt it was a wise thing to do for the future.”
The three Swiss players to have been with the Winterhawks are Nino Niederreiter, Sven Baertschi and Luca Sbisa.
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Ron Robison, the commissioner of the WHL, was in Lethbridge on Monday, where he met with shareholders of the Hurricanes and urged them to sell the franchise to private owners. . . . On Tuesday, he told Les Lazaruk, the radio voice of the Saskatoon Blades, that the Kootenay Ice and Prince Albert Raiders need help if they are to remain where they are in the long term.
Robison, on the Ice: “The attendance in (Cranbrook) is not where we need it to be. We're addressing that and hopeful that we can get some solution in place here very soon. But, the reality is that in order to continue to operate in markets such as Cranbrook, the Kootenay Ice have to draw more people . . . have to get better support in that community. Otherwise, we may have no alternative but to relocate the franchise.”
Robison, on the Raiders: “There's no question that in order for the Prince Albert Raiders to be viable long term, a new facility is required. I think the city acknowledges that. The Raiders certainly understand that moving forward and I think it would be a major asset to the community. They want to preserve their franchise and, certainly, discussions are underway in that regard.”
Lazaruk’s story is right here.
Brett Smith of the Prince Albert Daily Herald followed up on that story by talking with Raiders officials. That story is right here.
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The WHL bantam draft is scheduled to be held today in Calgary. When it comes to coverage, the day belongs to Alan Caldwell over at Small Thoughts at Large. So check out his blog for all the happenings. . . . If you click right here, you will find his spreadsheet that features all of the WHL trades that involved draft picks.
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Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reports that Pats F Braden Christoffer, 20, has signed with the Oklahoma City Barons, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. According to Harder, Christoffer, the Pats’ captain, isn’t expected to join the Barons now; rather, he will report next season when the franchise has moved to Bakersfield, Calif. He also will play for the Oilers in a prospects tournament in Penticton, B.C., in September.
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The WHL held its awards luncheon in Calgary on Wednesday. For a look at all the winners, click right here.
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During the WHL’s awards luncheon, former Regina Pats owner Russ Parker was honoured with the 2014-15 Governors Award. Parker and his wife, Diane, purchased the Pats from the WHL in 1995. They sold the franchise prior to this season.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Moe Mantha, a former NHL defenceman, has signed on as the first GM/head coach of the French River Rapids, who will begin play in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League next season. The 54-year-old Mantha is a native of Sturgeon Falls, Ont., which is a short drive from Noelville, the home of the Rapids. Mantha had been working as the head coach of the NAHL’s Michigan Warriors. . . . Randy Russon of Sault This Week has more right here.
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Ryan Donald has signed on as assistant GM and assistant coach with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He had been the head coach and assistant GM of the Woodstock Slammers of the junior A Maritime Hockey League. He is a graduate of Yale who captain the Bulldogs. He also played in the AJHL with the Fort Saskatchewan Traders and Camrose Kodiaks. In Trail, he will be working with GM/head coach Nick Deschenes and assistant coaches Craig Clare and Barry Zanier.
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Some 5'9" dude from Spokane is leading the #NHLPlayoffs in goals. Didn't see that coming when he was a @chiefshockey player

— Chad Balcom (@hawkeyblog) May 7, 2015

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.

Ownership transfers on tap today

F Lukáš Zeliska (Prince Albert, 2006-07) has signed a one-year extension with Bordeaux (France, Division 1). This season, he had 38 points, including 13 goals, in 26 games. . . .
G Eetu Laurikainen (Swift Current, 2012-14) has signed  a one-year-plus-option deal with the Espoo Blues (Finland, Liiga). This season with the Broncos, he was 2.90 and .914 in 54 games.
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The WHL’s board of governors will meet today in Calgary and is expected to sign off on the transfer of two franchises -- the Prince George Cougars and Regina Pats -- to new ownership groups.
In both instances, the franchises being sold have been under the guidance of long-time owners, the Cougars by Rick Brodsky and the Pats by Diane and Russ Parker, and are being sold to groups, each of which appears to have at least five or six members.
In Prince George, I am told the local businessman Greg Pocock, the front man for the group, is in for 35 per cent, while NHL defencemen Eric Brewer and Dan Hamhuis, both of whom are ex-Cougars, each will own 15 per cent. As yet unnamed partners will share the remaining 35 per cent, with one in for 20 per cent and two others each at 7.5 per cent. The Prince George Citizen has reported that “sources close to the deal say it is worth $7 million.”
In Regina, no one has yet said anything about who will own how much of the Pats. The Queen City Sports and Entertainment Group is led by Anthony Marquart and includes four other Regina-based businessmen in Todd Lumbard, who is a former Brandon Wheat Kings and Pats goaltender, Jason Drummond, and Gavin and Shaun Semple. The Regina Leader-Post has reported that “the price tag is believed to be in the neighbourhood of $7.5 million.”
Earlier this season, Jack, Bob and Debbie Brodsky, Rick’s siblings, sold the Saskatoon Blades to Edmonton-based auto dealer Mike Priestner and his son, Colin. The Saskatoon StarPhoenix has reported that “a source close to the negotiations said the transaction is worth around $9 million.”
If the board of governors approves both transfers today, as it almost certainly will do, it will mean six of the WHL’s 22 teams will have changed hands since the summer of 2007.
None of them has had near the success of the Portland Winterhawks, who were purchased by Calgary-based businessman Bill Gallacher during the summer of 2008.
Prior to Gallacher stepping in, the Winterhawks were worse than abysmal -- they won 17 games in 2006-07 and 11 in 2007-08. The franchise was often thought to have one foot in the grave and another on a banana peel.
In Lethbridge, where the Hurricanes have hit fallen upon hard times and haven‘t appeared in the playoffs since the spring of 2009, WHL commissioner Ron Robison admitted Monday that such challenges aren’t “isolated to Lethbridge.”
He told City Council that there have been times when he “was concerned” whether certain franchises were “going to make it or not.”
One of those franchises, he said, was Portland.
“The Portland one was a great example,” Robison told councillors. “It is privately owned. To the credit of the current ownership . . . (he) had to go in and invest heavily in order to turn that franchise around. Now it is arguably a model franchise within our league.”
It is interesting that Portland, which is into the WHL’s championship final for a fourth straight season, has had great success under Gallacher’s ownership, but no other franchise has tried to follow the plan that got the Winterhawks’ rolling.
While it was common knowledge late in the summer of 2008 that Gallacher was in the process of purchasing the franchise, the sale didn’t close until Oct. 23, well after the season had started. In the meantime, Gallacher, who is believed to have paid Cdn$7.5 million for the franchise, put together new business, management and coaching teams, that included president Doug Piper and general manager/head coach Mike Johnston.
When the deal closed, the new people moved in and the rest is history.
The Winterhawks went 19-48-5 in 2008-09, but followed that up with seasons in which they won 44, 50, 49, 57 and 54 games. Today, they are the WHL’s defending champions.
The Kamloops Blazers had gone from being community-owned to private ownership during the summer of 2007, a year before Portland changed hands. But the new owners in Kamloops chose to maintain the status quo.
So did the Victoria Royals, who were the Chilliwack Bruins until being sold during the summer of 2011.
After the sale, Kamloops struggled through four mediocre seasons before enjoying back-to-back 47-victory seasons and a trip to last season’s Western Conference final. However, the Blazers just completed the worst season in franchise history.
The Royals weren’t good in their first season in Victoria, but then underwent major changes, with Cam Hope coming on board as general manager and Dave Lowry as head coach. They won 35 games in 2012-13 and just completed a season in which they won 48 games and enjoyed the franchise’s first 100-point season.
The Blades’ new owners, meanwhile, maintained the status quo, then brought out the brooms after a 16-victory season. The Priestners have yet to hire a general manager or a coaching staff.
In Regina, no one has indicated what might happen with general manager Chad Lang or the coaching staff, although Marquart, the only one of the group who has spoken with the media, hasn’t even hinted at change.
In Prince George, Pocock hasn’t given any indication what might happen, but there is ample speculation that general manager Dallas Thompson won’t be back. No one from Pocock’s group is believed to have spoken with head coach Mark Holick or assistant coach Jason Becker.
“These things can get turned around but it (doesn’t) happen overnight. It was a process,” Robison told Lethbridge’s City Council. “The plan is the key. We’ve taken the success models, if you will, from other franchises and addressed that with the Hurricanes and have asked them to follow a very similar model to ultimately achieve the kind of success you’re looking for.”
It would seem that owners could do worse than follow the plan used by the model franchise that the Winterhawks have become.
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In his appearance before City Council in Lethbridge, WHL commissioner Ron Robison indicated that the process by which the WHL selects host cities for the Memorial Cup tournament may be in for a change.
This occurred after Robison was asked by Councillor Joe Mauro about the chances of Lethbridge ever being selected to play host to a Memorial Cup tournament.
Mauro pointed out that the city has “spent a whole pile of money” on the Enmax Centre.
“Our dream and our goal is to host the Memorial Cup,” Mauro said. “What I’m hearing out there is that we’ll never do it . . . the Memorial Cup will go to a privately-owned team before it’ll ever go to a community-owned team.
“Realistically, do we have a chance of hosting a MC in the near future?”
Robison’s reply:
“Maybe I can tell you a little bit more after our June (annual) meeting because we have some recommendations in front of our board of governors at that time which I think are going to change the course of our selection process for the Memorial Cup.
“I’m a believer that every community that meets the criteria that we have for hosting events of this magnitude should get that opportunity to host the event.
“Quite frankly, my view of it is that it is driven by the quality of the hockey program. It comes back to the hockey program because in order to generate excitement in the community you need a quality team. In the particular case of hosting the Memorial Cup, you need a team that is a championship-calibre team, first and foremost.
“Secondly, then you have to look at why have we gone to certain locations in recent years and why has the World Junior Championship moved to major markets like Toronto and Montreal? It’s because of economics, no question, and it’s because of provincial governments, quite frankly, stepping in and providing significant financial support for those events.
“If I have my way, it’s going to be a hockey-driven decision next time . . . not just the largest venue or the best economic offer that we have on the table.”
Robison pointed out that the Memorial Cup hasn’t been held in Alberta “for more than 40 years.”
“It’s too long in my opinion,” he said. “It’s something that is on our agenda for discussion.”
The Memorial Cup was last held in Alberta in 1974 when the Regina Pats won it in the Calgary Corral. The Red Deer Rebels were thought to be a favourite to play host to the 2013 tournament, but it ended up going to Saskatoon.
The WHL next will play host to the Memorial Cup in 2016. The Vancouver Giants, who were the host team in 2007, have indicated that they are building towards the 2015-16 season and are expected enter a bid.
The Memorial Cup hasn’t been held in a U.S. Division city since 1998 when it was in Spokane.
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1. The WHL bantam draft is scheduled for Thursday in Calgary. As usual, you won’t be able to read about it on this blog. Instead, you will want to spend the day with Alan Caldwell, over at Small Thoughts At Large. He assures me that he is ready with all the statistics and info you might want.

2. If you haven’t seen this right here, it’s worth a read. Marcus Thompson II of the San Jose Mercury News reported on his blog that the Golden State Warriors had a plan to boycott Tuesday night’s NBA playoff game if commissioner Adam Silver had gone soft on Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.

3. I was told on Tuesday that Tyler Kuntz is soon to be named the new head coach of the UBC Thunderbirds men’s hockey team. Kuntz, who is from Regina, just completed his sixth season as an assistant coach with the Thunderbirds. . . . A defenceman during his playing days, Kuntz played five seasons at UBC. . . . He will succeed Milan Dragicevic, who was fired in March after 12 seasons as the team’s head coach.

4. For the first time in QMJHL history, both semifinal series went seven games, and both were decided last night. . . . The Val-d’Or Foreurs went into Halifax, where they had won the first two games, and beat the Mooseheads, the defending Memorial Cup champions, 3-2. Val-d’Or trailed 2-1 after the first period and won it with two second-period scores. F Maxime Presseault broke a 2-2 tie with his first goal at 13:59, while G Antoine Bibeau, who was acquired from the Charlottetown Islanders for a first-round draft pick (along with two other picks) in December, stopped 39 shots. . . . Meanwhile, in Baie-Comeau, the Drakkar rode two first-period goals to a 2-1 victory over the Blainville-Boisbriand Aramada, 2-1. . . . The final will open Friday in Val-d’Or. . . . Neate Sager of Yahoo! Sports has more on the two QMJHL games right here.

5. F Mike Baird of the North Bay Battalion has been hit with a 20-game suspension by the OHL for physical abuse of an official during a playoff game on April 10. . . . Baird, in his first OHL season, missed six games while under indefinite suspension and won’t play in the OHL final which opens Thursday with the Battalion in Guelph to play the Storm. . . . Baird, who turned 17 on March 25, had one assist and 27 penalty minutes in 28 regular-season games.

6. The NHL playoffs will feature three Game 7s tonight. I’m thinking there will be a lot of unanswered phone calls in homes across North American tonight and a lot of wives going shopping.

7. I’m thinking my friend Brad Hornung will be in front of a TV set tonight, because there isn’t a bigger hockey fan anywhere. It’s hard to believe that more than 27 years have passed us by since he was left a quadriplegic after an unfortunate incident during a WHL game in Regina. . . . The one thing that wasn’t damaged that evening was his spirit. . . . You owe it to yourself to read this story right here, by Austin M. Davis of the Regina Leader-Post.
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THE FOURTH ROUND (best-of-seven; all times local):
WHL final, for the Ed Chynoweth Cup
(x - if necessary)
(All games televised live by Shaw)
(All games televised by Root Sports -- Game 2 live, others on delayed basis)
PORTLAND (2, West) vs. Edmonton (1, East)
Season series: Portland, 0-0-1; Edmonton, 1-0-0.
Saturday: Edmonton at Portland, 7 p.m. (Moda Center)
Sunday: Edmonton at Portland, 5 p.m. (Moda Center)
Tuesday: Portland at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, May 7: Portland at Edmonton, 7 p.m.
x-Friday, May 9: Edmonton at Portland, 7 p.m. (TBA)
x-Sunday, May 11: Portland at Edmonton, 4 p.m.
x-Monday, May 12: Edmonton at Portland, 7 p.m. (TBA)
INJURIES
Portland: None.
Edmonton: None.
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TUESDAY’S GAME:
No game scheduled.
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From Neate Sager (@neatebuzzthenet) of Yahoo! Sports: “Population of the cities of 6 teams left in #WHL, #OHL and #LHJMQ playoffs: 1.16 million; 600,000; 141,000; 64,000; 33,265; 28,789.”
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One more from Sager: “Both #LHJMQ cities could fit inside North Bay, those 3 fit inside Guelph; those 4 fit inside Portland & all 5 could fit inside Edmonton.”

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Someone's interested in buying Pats

THE MacBETH REPORT:

D Cam Barker (Medicine Hat, 2001-06) has signed for the rest of the season with Barys Astana (Kazakhstan, KHL). Last season, Barker had two assists in 14 games with the Vancouver Canucks (NHL) and eight points, three of them goals, with the Texas Stars (AHL).
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The morning dawned damp and dreary in Vancouver yesterday. And it only got worse when the first email to arrive notified me of the death of Bob Hughes, a former sports editor/columnist at the Regina Leader-Post.
He was the sports editor who hired me — I had been in my second stint at the Brandon Sun — in the spring of 1983. He later promoted me to assistant sports editor, and when he moved into the managing editor's office in 1988 he asked me to succeed him as sports editor.
That's when I found out how hard it is to replace a legend.
Hughes was one of the last of the lead sports columnists who also was a newspaper's sports editor. For a lot of his career as THE columnist and THE voice in Regina, the beloved Saskatchewan Roughriders couldn't get out of their own way, as they stumbled from one season to the next. For all of that time, Hughes' columns were must-reads as his thinly veiled sarcasm skewered the footballers, the coaches and the management like so many shish kebabs.
When he became the managing editor, it marked the end of an era as the decision was made to separate the roles of columnist and sports editor.
Still, almost everywhere I went, people would ask me why I was so soft on the Roughriders, never mind that I wasn't the columnist. And, really, it wasn't that the new columnist, Nick Miliokas, was soft on anyone; it was that Bob Hughes' column no longer was there to be enjoyed by a reader with his/her morning coffee.
I always will remember Hughes for always being there for me. When I was the assistant sports editor, he worked during the day and I worked at night. I frequently would drop by during the day to chat, more to find out what was going on with the Roughriders and to learn how he wanted to handle it.
But when he moved up and I moved into the chair behind what had been his desk, he left me alone. Rarely, if ever, did he venture to my little corner of the office. But his door always was open. That is something that I have never forgotten.
He also was the push behind a sports department that at one time included a staff of 12 and was responsible for putting out a tremendous sports section. It was because of Hughes that we often covered a Roughriders home game with the sports editor, four writers and two photographers. The message from him as he left sports was that when it's the only show in town, you can't over-cover it. When it's the only show in town, you make it your show -- let the readers know where to turn if they want the best coverage.
What else do I remember about Bob Hughes? Well, he was the most impeccable dresser I have ever encountered. I can't ever remember seeing him when he didn't look as though he had stepped out of an ad in GQ.
I remember his sense of humour and a laugh that had more than a bit of a cackle in it.
I remember one day when he and I took his oldest son and my son to a home/auto show that was in some of the buildings on the exhibition grounds. On display was one of those expensive cars, a Lamborghini perhaps, with two short-skirted gals standing guard alongside a velvet rail. With Hughes chatting up one of the girls, the boys got under the rail and into the car. They were -- VROOM! VROOM! -- having the time of their lives and Hughes thought it was hilarious. He did manage to extricate both boys between laughs.
That is what I will remember about Bob Hughes. That and Chaos by the Creek.
For more on Hughes, right here is a story that appeared on The Leader-Post's website.
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And one more makes three . . .
D Ryan Pilon, the third overall selection in the 2011 bantam draft, is at home awaiting a trade after leaving the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
Pilon, from Duck Lake, Sask., turned 17 on Oct. 10 and was going to be a cornerstone of the rebuild that the Hurricanes' braintrust is working on.
This season, Pilon has seven points, three of them goals, in 17 games. Last season, as a freshman, he had 28 points, including five goals, in 57 games.
Pilon played for the gold medal-winning U-18 Canadian team at the 2013 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament and was Team West's captain at the last U17 World Hockey Challenge.
Pilon is the third player to leave the Hurricanes in recent days. F Jaemen Yakubowski and F Sam Mckechnie, both 19, were traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds after asking for trades.
The Hurricanes are 2-13-3 and already are 11 points out of a playoff spot in the 12-team Eastern Conference.
Will the last one out, please turn out the lights in the dressing room.
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Tweet from Brody Sutter (@Sutts19): "Time for a change in Lethbridge, community ownership is clearly not working. With local investors interested, why wouldn't you #SellTheCanes."
The son of former WHLer Duane Sutter, Brody played three-plus seasons with the Hurricanes. He now is with the AHL's Charlotte Hurricanes. In recent times, at least two of his uncles, Rich and Ron Sutter, have expressed interest in purchasing the Hurricanes.
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F Peter Quenneville, 19, has left the Quinnipiac University Bobcats to join his brother, John, 17, with the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Another brother, David, was selected by the Medicine Hat Tigers with the 10th overall selection of the 2013 bantam draft. . . . They are from Edmonton. . . . The Wheat Kings acquired Peter's rights from the Prince George Cougars for a third-round selection in the 2015 bantam draft. The Cougars had selected him in the fourth round of the 2009 draft. . . . Peter was a seventh-round selection by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the NHL's 2013 NHL draft. . . . Peter had four assists in five games with the Bobcats. He played last season with the USHL's Dubuque Fighting Saints, putting up 70 points, including 33 goals, in 63 games. He also played two seasons with the AJHL's Sherwood Park Crusaders and was the league's MVP in 2011-12. . . . The Wheat Kings, now with two 19-year-old forwards on the roster, are at home to the Saskatoon Blades on Thursday. . . . Quinnipiac is based in Hamden, Conn.
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Tweet from John Quenneville (@jaquinder88): "One of the best days of my life. Reunited with the big bro @Triple_P_Pete #deadly"
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The Regina Pats haven't been sold. Yet. . . . "Our situation is," Russ Parker, who owns the WHL franchise with his wife Diane, told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post, "if somebody comes along and the deal makes sense, then it's something we'd probably consider. I've heard this last week that a deal was done. We're talking to someone but that's all it is. I'm not divulging anyone's names or anything. All I'm saying is there's interest in our team and leave it at that." . . . Harder's story is right here.
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OK. Where does it end? The ECHL's Bakersfield Condors have unveiled the sweaters they will wear in a game on Sunday, which just happens to be the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. Check out the wardrobe right here.
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A fan writes with questions for WHL commissioner Ron Robison, who will meet with about 100 season-ticket holders in Kelowna on Thursday:
1. What is the league trying to hide when designating an injury as 'upper' or 'lower' body without reporting the issue? In reporting details of injuries, are you afraid insurance rates will rise significantly as a result of the true scope of the injuries sustained?
2. Doesn't the use of developmental referees in a developmental league exacerbate the issue of injuries when a raw referee who can't quite see the game as clearly as a veteran official could, may miss countless calls away from the puck (be it head shot, stickwork, boarding) and the resulting infraction ends up as a retaliation call?
3. Why doesn't the WHL allow teams to replay penalty calls on their in-house screens for the fans to get a better look at the quality of officiating?
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There wasn't anything on the WHL website last night, but there are reports that D Evan Wardley of the Seattle Thunderbirds has drawn a four-game suspension after taking a charging major in a game against the visiting Portland Winterhawks on Friday. He already has served one game. . . . There also wasn't anything on the WHL website about a suspension to Everett Silvertips F Dawson Leedahl. But he apparently got two games for a checking-from-behind major against the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings on Friday. He has missed one game, so will be eligible to return after sitting out a game against the visiting Kamloops Blazers tonight.
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TUESDAY NIGHT:
In Cranbrook, G Wyatt Hoflin came on in relief and stopped 30 shots to help the Kootenay Ice to a 3-1 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Ice G Mackenzie Skapski left with an undisclosed injury after one period and eight saves. . . . The Ice erased a 1-0 second-period Calgary lead with three third-period goals. . . . F Jon Martin scored the Ice's last two goals. . . . F Jaedon Descheneau notched his 14th goal of the season for Kootenay. . . . Attendance was announced at 1,958, and that's the second straight home game that the Ice played before fewer than 2,000 fans. . . .

In Kamloops, G Bolton Pouliot stopped 36 shots to lead the Blazers to a 4-1 victory over his former team, the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Pouliot, 19, was dealt to the Blazers earlier this season, for a sixth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . Red Deer plans on riding Patrik Bartosak, so GM/owner Brent Sutter dealt Pouliot to give him an opportunity to play. . . . F Cole Ully had a goal, his eighth, and two assists for Kamloops. . . . The Blazers (6-10-2) have points in their last three games (2-0-1). . . .

In Vancouver, G Tristan Jarry turned aside 37 shots as the Edmonton Oil Kings beat the Giants, 3-0. . . . Jarry has two shutouts this season and eight in his career. . . . This was Edmonton's first victory in six visits to the Pacific Coliseum. . . . Edmonton D Cody Corbett, who missed seven games with an injury, scored his eighth goal of the season in his 11th game. That is tops among WHL defencemen and also is a career high. He scored six goals in 54 game two seasons ago and had seven in 71 games last season. . . . Corbett also had an assist. . . . The Oil Kings are 4-1-0 in their last five games, all on the road. They'll play the next three on the road, too.
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From Victoria Cougars (@victoriacougars): "I wonder if this Marty the Marmot 'attack' is a staged publicity stunt by the Victoria Royals. Only 3500 fans last Friday is disturbingly low."
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From Tommy Carson (@tommycarson): "Front page of Times Colonist 'Police Probe Assault on Royals Mascot'. Page 2, story of scout leader sexually assaulting boys. #bizzaroworld"

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.

Damien Cox of the Toronto Star:
“Well, whether you look at the NHL or the OHL or any league that currently only penalizes fighters with five-minute major penalties, there’s absolutely no correlation between winning and teams that fight a lot or teams that don’t, no evidence that scrappin’ squads win or lose more than teams that don’t.
“It’s just irrelevant, really. Irrelevant and pointlessly dangerous.
“Again, it’s one thing for professionals to do it, quite another for teenagers getting paid less than $100 a week to trade blows for the amusement of the paying public.
“That’s sick.”
His complete column is right here.
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The WHL, if you were wondering, is on pace for an 800-fight season.
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John MacKinnon of the Edmonton Journal offers up his take on the debate -- to fight or not to fight -- right here.
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Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times writes right here about Spokane Chiefs F Liam Stewart, the son of you know who and you know who. The big news here is that Liam’s father and a few other family members apparently are planning on attending a game or two in Spokane in the immediate future.
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The Phoenix Coyotes have signed F Brendan Shinnimin of the Tri-City Americans to a three-year entry-level NHL contract. Shinnimin, an undrafted free agent, attended the Coyotes’ camp prior to this season. . . . In the last few days, Shinnimin has been named the WHL player of the week and player of the month, and the CHL player of the week and player of the month. That came after he put up an amazing 43 points in 14 February games. Shinnimin, who turned 21 on Jan. 7, is from Winnipeg and is represented by Mark MacKay, a former WHL rookie of the year.
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Russ Parker, the owner of the Regina Pats since 1995, is one of the latest members of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame. He was inducted as a builder in the sports of baseball and hockey. He has a long-time love affair with baseball, going back to before he managed the Alberta Dodgers in the mid-1960s. He later owned professional teams in Calgary. . . . In fact, if pushed, Parker, a native of Moosomin, Sask., would surely admit that baseball is his first love; yes, even over hockey.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES:
(If you’re on Twitter, follow @WHLFacts for lots of facts and numbers.)
In Prince Albert, the Moose Jaw Warriors scored two late goals and beat the Raiders, 4-3. . . . F Cam Braes tied the game at 13:45 of the third, with his 38th score, and F Torrin White won it with his 10th at 15:21. . . . Braes had two goals, while F James Henry had a goal, his 15th, and two assists. Braes and Henry, both 20, were acquired by the Warriors at the trade deadline. . . . Raiders F Chance Braid, a 17-year-old from Chauvin, Alta., opened the scoring with his first point in 54 games. . . . F Justin Maylan drew three assists for the Raiders, while F Anthony Bardaro had a goal, his 31st, and two helpers. . . . Moose Jaw has won three in a row. . . . The Warriors, who lead the East Division, are four points behind the idle Edmonton Oil Kings, who lead the Eastern Conference. . . .

In Brandon, F Brenden Walker scored twice to help the Wheat Kings to a 6-2 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . F Alessio Bertaggia had three assists for Brandon, while F Michael Ferland had two. . . . Brandon scored the game’s first three goals and the last three. . . . The Wheat Kings had F Kevin Sundher and F Jason Swyripa back from injuries. . . . Brandon D Ayrton Nikkel had one assist and was plus-4. . . . Brandon is 7-0-1 in its last eight and has moved into seventh in the Eastern Conference, one point behind the Saskatoon Blades and one ahead of the Regina Pats. . . .

In Calgary, F Cody Sylvester scored his second goal of the game at 3:46 of OT to give the Hitmen a 4-3 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Blades held a 3-1 lead halfway through the third period. . . . Sylvester scored at 10:18 and F Victor Rask tied it, with his 30th, at 14:01. . . . Sylvester won it with his 22nd goal of the season. . . . F Jimmy Bubnick got his 30th goal for Calgary. . . . F Matej Stransky got his 35th for Saskatoon. . . . Calgary G Chris Driedger came on after Saskatoon’s third goal. He stopped all six shots he faced and got the victory. . . . The Hitmen, with three straight victories, clinched a playoff spot. They are fourth in the Eastern Conference, four points behind Medicine Hat and five ahead of the Kootenay Ice. . . . The Blades are sixth, a point behind Kootenay and a point ahead of Brandon. . . .

In Red Deer, G Jon Groenheyde stopped 45 shots to lead the Swift Current Broncos to a 4-0 victory over the Rebels. . . . It was his second 4-0 shutout over the Rebels this season. . . . That is the most saves by a goaltender in recording a shutout this season. There have been 58 shutouts in the WHL this season. . . . Groenheyde has two shutouts this season and two in his career. . . . The Broncos have put up two shutouts this season; the Rebels have been blanked five times. . . . F Brad Hoban had a goal, his 19th, and two assists. . . . F Josh Derko’s eighth goal, at 6:42 of the first, stood up as the winner. . . . The Broncos were 2-2 on the PP. . . . F Taylor Vause scored his 35th goal of the season. . . . The Broncos swept the four-game season series. . . . The Rebels, with eight regulars on the shelf with injuries, are nine points out of a playoff spot with eight games left. . . .

In Kamloops, F Brett Bulmer and F Shane McColgan each had two goals to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 6-3 victory over the Blazers. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 43 shots in picking up his 20th victory. . . . The Blazers held a 46-18 edge in shots, including 22-5 in the third. . . . Bulmer, with his 30th, and McColgan, with his 16th, got the Rockets going with goals 49 seconds apart early in the first period. . . . F Zach Franko had three assists for the Rockets, who clinched a playoff spot with the victory. . . . Kamloops F Jordan DePape, playing his first game since suffering a shoulder injury on Oct. 10, scored the Blazers’ last goal, his third of the season. . . . These teams will play tonight in Kelowna with the Blazers needing one point to clinch the B.C. Division pennant. . . . Kelowna clinched a playoff spot and will finish sixth in the Western Conference. The Rockets will face the second-place team from the U.S. Division, either the Portland Winterhawks or Tri-City Americans, in the first round. . . .

In Prince George, the Spokane Chiefs scored the game’s last four goals as they beat the Cougars, 4-1. . . . Spokane G Mac Engel stopped 17 shots, 17 fewer than Prince George’s Drew Owsley. . . . Spokane F Darren Kramer scored his 20th goal. . . . With the victory, the Chiefs, who have won three in a row, moved into fourth place in the Western Conference, one point ahead of the Vancouver Giants. Those two teams are headed for a first-round clash, with the Chiefs now holding home-ice advantage. Each team has eight games remaining. . . . The Cougars have dropped seven in a row. They are five points out of a playoff spot with eight games left. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Taylor Leier scored the game’s last two goals as the Portland Winterhawks beat the Tri-City Americans, 6-4. . . . The Winterhawks, who have won four in a row from the Americans and 10 of their last 11 overall, took a 4-2 lead in the second period, only to have the Americans tie it on goals by F Adam Hughesman, his 39th, at 12:28 and D Zach Yuen, his 11th, at 15:42. . . . Leier, who has 11 goals, scored at 3:23 of the third to break a 4-4 tie. He added an empty-netter at 19:44. . . . F Brendan Shinnimin had one assist for the Americans, who had won their previous seven games. . . . F Oliver Gabriel drew three assists for Portland, while F Brad Ross had two goals, giving him 38, and a helper. . . . F Justin Feser scored twice for the Americans, giving him 34. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 22 shots in winning his WHL-leading 40th game. . . . Tri-City’s Ty Rimmer turned aside 33. . . . The teams will meet Sunday in Portland. . . . With the victory, the Winterhawks moved into first place in the overall standings, one point ahead of the Americans, two up on Kamloops and three ahead of Edmonton. . . . Portland is 11-0-1 in its last 12 games. . . . Attendance was 6,121, the second-largest crowd in the Americans’ history in the Toyota Center. . . .

In Vancouver, the Medicine Hat Tigers erased a 3-1 first-period deficit and beat the Giants, 6-4. . . . Tigers D James Bettauer forged a 4-4 tie with his 20th goal, on a PP, just 35 seconds into the third period. . . . Tigers F Boston Leier broke the tie with his 13th at 5:11 and F Emerson Etem got his WHL-leading 54th goal at 5:45. . . . Vancouver G Adam Morrison gave up six goals on 19 shots, including three on four shots in the third period, before being hooked. . . . The Tigers were 3-7 on the PP; Vancouver was 0-8. . . . The Tigers went 3-0 on a short but long trip that took them to Prince George and Vancouver. . . . The Giants will catch a ferry to Victoria this morning where they will play the Royals tonight and again Sunday at 1 p.m. . . . Vancouver F Austin Vetterl (leg) was injured in practice this week and the team says he will be out four weeks. . . . Pro cheerleader Cameron Hughes, who was in Kamloops on Friday night, is due in Victoria tonight. . . . The Tigers were playing their 3,000th regular-season game, which means the legendary Bob Ridley, the Tigers’ radio voice, was calling his 2,999th game. . . . Ridley will get to No. 3,000 on Wednesday when the Kootenay Ice visits Medicine Hat. . . . The Tigers are third in the Eastern Conference, four points ahead of Calgary. . . . The Giants slipped a point behind fourth-place Spokane in the Western Conference. . . .

In Everett, G Kent Simpson stopped 25 shots to help the Everett Silvertips to a 4-0 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Simpson has one shutout this season and five in his career. . . . It was the sixth time this season that Seattle has been blanked. . . . F Josh Birkholz had a goal, his 27th, and an assist, as did F Reid Petryk, who has 15 goals. . . . D Ryan Murray scored his ninth goal. . . . Seattle took 50 of 76 penalty minutes. . . . The Silvertips were 1-8 on the PP; the Thunderbirds were 0-5. . . . The victory lifted Everett past Seattle and into eighth place in the Western Conference. . . . The Silvertips are a point ahead of Seattle and one behind the seventh-place Victoria Royals. . . . Interestingly, the Silvertips are in possession of a playoff spot despite having the fewest victories (18) of any team in the league. They do have nine loser points, though.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Jesse Forsberg, Prince George.
F Mitch Elliot, Seattle.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES
Swift Current at Edmonton
Calgary at Kootenay
Lethbridge at Moose Jaw
Saskatoon at Red Deer
Brandon at Regina
Tri-City at Everett
Kamloops at Kelowna
Seattle at Portland
Spokane at Prince George
Vancouver at Victoria
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ASK THE COMMISSIONER:
The WHL has awards to honour executives and head coaches, referees and marketing people and on and on. So, Mr. Commissioner, why aren’t there awards to honour the league’s hardest-working people, the assistant coaches, the trainers/athletic therapists and the equipment managers?

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Friday . . .

THE CHILLIWACK-TO-VICTORIA SAGA, Chapter 57:
The Regina Moose? The Regina Gophers? The Chilliwack Pats?
The Victoria Bruins?
When the dominoes start falling, who knows how all this will shake out. And now you have to wonder if one of the dominoes might be the Regina Pats?
The Pats are in lease negotiations with Evraz Place, the landlord that controls the Brandt Centre, the arena the team calls home.
These negotiations have been messy in the past and they appear headed down Nasty Street once again.
In fact, a source has told me that the Evraz people have given the Pats “a take-it-or-leave-it offer.”
The Pats’ owners — Diane and Russ Parker — are said to be seriously thinking of leaving it. Their son, Brent, is the team’s president after a long run as general manager.
I also have been told that the Evraz Place people have had discussions with the American Hockey League, which is doing preliminary planning in case a new home is needed for the Winnipeg-based Manitoba Moose. That move would become necessary should the NHL move the Phoenix Coyotes back to Winnipeg.
All of this is nothing more than speculation, of course, but it does mean there may be a sliver of light so far as the WHL fans of Chilliwack are concerned.
Understand that the Pats have been down this road a few times before and, at the end of the day, have always reached agreement with their landlord.
However, I don’t think the Pats have ever been in a position like they are now — with an arena such as the one in Chilliwack looking for a primary tenant. (The Bruins, if you’ve come in late, have been sold, presumably to Vancouver-based RG Properties, and will be relocated to Victoria.)
Yes, the Pats could very well use Chilliwack as a bargaining chip. However, it could work the other way, too, meaning that Evraz Place might have to be careful in calling the Pats’ bluff because the hockey team just might have another landing place.
Of course, it could be that Evraz Place has its eyes on an AHL franchise.
Oh, what a tangled web . . .
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Interestingly, the Colorado-based Arabian Horse Association wasn’t able to close negotiations to keep its Royal Red horse show at Evraz Place and revealed late in March that it has chosen to move it to Brandon’s Keystone Centre. The Royal Red had been held in Regina for 22 years.
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The Parkers have a long sporting history in the west and, in fact, Russ and Brent likely would be quick to tell you that baseball is their first love. Russ owned a AAA baseball franchise in Calgary not all that long ago, but it left town when he and the City couldn’t come together on the building of a new facility or the refurbishing of an old one.
A year ago, the Parkers bought a Golden Baseball League franchise and set it up in Victoria as the Seals. Darren Parker, another son, was put in charge. However, the owners weren’t at all pleased with playing conditions — apparently, Victoria is lacking in baseball facilities and the Seals played on a soccer pitch with a portable snow fence around the outfield — and the franchise folded over the winter.
Should the Pats end up in the centre of a controversy related to a possible move, it wouldn’t be the first time. In 1985-86, the franchise, then owned by the Pinder family of Saskatoon, was so close to moving to Swift Current during the Christmas break that one game scheduled to be played in Regina was postponed. The marquee in front of the Agridome even announced that the team was on the move. Saner heads prevailed, of course, and the Pats stayed where they belong.
The bone of contention back then was a $1 parking charge that Regina Exhibition Park, then the Pats’ landlord, chose to implement.
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And if you’re wondering how the ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings are doing . . . they opened a best-of-seven second-round series with the host Utah Grizzlies on Friday night. The Salmon Kings won, 4-2, with former Kootenay Ice F Adam Taylor sealing the victory with an empty-netter. . . . Attendance in the 10,207-seat Maverik Center was 3,063. . . . Game 2 is scheduled for tonight. . . . The series heads to Victoria for Games 3, 4 and, if necessary, 5 on Wednesday, Friday and April 23.
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MEANWHILE . . .
The hurt will be a while in going away, but Lorne Molleken, the general manager and head coach of the Saskatoon Blades, says he’ll be back behind the team’s bench next season.
After last season, Molleken thought about leaving the bench and focussing on the front-office duties.
“I sat down last year at the end of the (season) with (Blades co-owner) Jack Brodsky and we talked about the coaching,” Molleken told Cory Wolfe of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix. “The Brodsky family, at that time, their wishes were that I stay behind the bench. Jack asked me to commit for another three years, so I made that
commitment to him and we’ll move forward.”
Molleken told Wolfe that he plans “to stay coaching for a long time.”
For more on the Blades and how they are dealing with the way their season ended, check out Wolfe’s copy right here.
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DAWSON GUHLE

The Medicine Hat Tigers get their second opportunity to eliminate the Red Deer Rebels tonight. The Tigers take a 3-1 series lead into Game 5 in Red Deer.
The Tigers won the first three games of the series and a lot of fans thought the series was over when Red Deer lost G Darcy Kuemper with a high ankle sprain suffered in Game 3.
However, backup Dawson Guhle, 18, stepped in and pitched a shutout, stopping 19 shots as the Rebels won Game 4, 1-0.
Guhle will be back in goal tonight, as Kuemper, 20, still is on the limp. In fact, Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate reports that Kuemper “has been fitted with a special boot which he will wear for a least a month.”
Backing up Guhle, who was acquired from the Regina Pats in November, will be Bolton Pouliot, 16, from the midget AAA Calgary Royals.
The Rebels have scored just three goals in the four games with Medicine Hat. Obviously, then, Red Deer is going to have to find some offence if it hopes to keep on playing.
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The Tri-City Americans and the visiting Spokane Chiefs are 2-2 going into Game 5 in Kennewick, Wash., on Sunday. The Americans evened the series with a 4-3 double-overtime victory on Thursday.
If you’re planning on attending Sunday’s game, perhaps you should be prepared for OT. Nine of the last 14 playoff games between these teams have needed extra time.
If you’re wondering why this series has a 2-3-2 format, with the Americans playing host to the middle three, it’s because of scheduling difficulties involving an Elton John concert, a two-day youth wrestling tournament and an Amway convention.
The wrestling tournament will be held today and Sunday in the Toyota Center in Kennewick, with the facility to be converted for hockey in time for a 7:30 p.m. start.
Bob Tory, the Americans’ GM, wasn’t at all happy about not having any Friday dates.
"It's bad management," Tory told Annie Fowler of the Tri-City Herald earlier this month. "When you have Spokane and Tri-City and we can't have a weekend date, that is unacceptable. We are the anchor tenant with a history of playoff success the last five years."
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ON THE ICE FRIDAY NIGHT:

JESSEY ASTLES

In Portland, F Jessey Astles scored at 7:08 of OT to give the Kelowna Rockets a 2-1 victory over the Winterhawks. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 54 shots. . . . The goal was Astles third of the playoffs. He picked off a pass at the Kelowna blue line and skated in alone to beat G Mac Carruth to the blocker side. . . . Astles, an 18-year-old from Coquitlam, scored one goal in 56 regular-season games last season and three times in 59 games this season. Now, he has three goals in nine playoff games. . . . The Winterhawks hold a 3-2 lead as the series goes back to Kelowna for Game 6 on Sunday. . . . Kelowna won the first game, with Portland winning the next three. . . . F Mitchell (Dirty Harry) Callahan gave Kelowna a 1-0 lead at 4:38 of the second period via the PP. . . . Portland F Nino Niederreiter, on the PP, tied it at 15:09 of the second. . . . Callahan has five goals; Niederreiter has seven. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 36 shots. . . . Attendance in the Rose Garden was 8,505. . . . The Rockets lost D Colton Jobke to a boarding major and game misconduct at 16:34 of the first period. The play will be reviewed by the WHL office and he could be suspended. . . . Portland had F Brad Ross back in the lineup after he served a three-game suspension. He picked up two minor penalties, one of them coincidental, the other resulting in a Kelowna PP. . . . Kelowna F Zach Franko, who was hit by Ross in Game 1, didn’t play.
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FRIDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
None.
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A tip of the cap to Taylor Piller, a 20-year-old forward with the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves. From Saskatoon, Piller has played four seasons in the SJHL — two with the Humboldt Broncos and two with the Ice Wolves. Remarkably, he has won four SJHL championships.
Darren Zary of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has that story right here.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
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Parkers fold team

Lindy Ruff, who played with the Lethbridge Broncos (1976-79), coached his 1,000th NHL game Wednesday night, as his Buffalo Sabres got past the host New Jersey Devils 5-4 in a shootout.
Ruff is the 18th head coach in NHL history to get to No. 1,000. Ruff, Al Arbour (1,500 games with the New York Islanders) and Billy Reay (1,012 with the Chicago Blackhawks) are the only head coaches to get there with just one team.
Ruff was hired to replace Ted Nolan. Since Ruff began in Buffalo with the start of the 1997-98 season, there have been 155 coaching changes in the NHL.
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After two seasons in the Golden Baseball League, the Victoria Seals have ceased operations, effective immediately.
A notice on the team’s website cites “restrictive conditions of the current lease with the City of Victoria along with the unstable state of the Golden Baseball League.”
The Seals, who operated in Victoria for two seasons, were owned by Regina Pats owner Russ Parker and his son, Darren, who served as the team’s president.
“Despite expressing continuous concerns over the current lease agreement at out-dated Royal Athletic Park, the Seals were unable to find an agreement with the City that would address several alarming issues with the operation of a professional baseball team,” the notice reads. “Specifically, the poor field conditions, lack of a permanent outfield fence, unreasonable concession agreement and strained relationship with management at the current facility.
“In addition, the current uncertainty surrounding the makeup of the GBL and the financially demanding geographic layout of the league put added stress on the organization.”
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F Brayden Schenn, who has played eight games with the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, is expected to be a healthy scratch tonight for the third straight game. The Kings are to play the visiting Dallas Stars tonight. And there are starting to be whispers that he will be returned to the Brandon Wheat Kings. Schenn, 19, was the fifth overall pick in the 2009 NHL draft. . . . Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times has more right here. . . . The Prince Albert Raiders are celebrating their 40th anniversary and will have the Centennial Cup and the Memorial Cup in the Art Hauser Centre on Dec. 11. Before joining the WHL, the Raiders all but owned the Centennial Cup, which went to the national junior A champion, winning it in 1977, 1979, 1981 and 1982. They joined the WHL for 1982-83 and won the Memorial Cup in 1985. . . . Kamloops Blazers D Josh Caron was back skating Wednesday for the first time since suffering a broken collarbone on Sept. 25. He hopes to see game action before month’s end. . . .
The injury-stricken Swift Current Broncos brought in two players for Tuesday’s game with the visiting Portland Winterhawks. The Broncos had D Tanner Clark and F Zac MacKay in the lineup. Clark, 17, is with the SJHL’s Humboldt Broncos, while MacKay, 15, is with the midget AAA Swift Current Legionnaires. . . . The Broncos also have lost F Andrew Sullivan, an 18-year-old from Calgary who had three points and 82 penalty minutes in 79 career games. Sullivan, who was a seventh-round bantam pick in 2007, has left the team and returned home. . . . The Prince George Cougars announced Wednesday that D Dan Hamhuis of the Vancouver Canucks will serve as Team WHL’s honourary captain next week when the Subway Super Series wraps up at the CN Centre. Hamhuis, who is from Smithers, B.C., played 247 regular-season with the Cougars and is their all-time leading scorer among defencemen. . . . The touring Russian team will play Team WHL in Kamloops on Nov. 17 and in Prince George on Nov. 18. . . . The Russians are 2-0, having swept the first two games from QMJHL teams. . . . The last time the Russians swept two games from one league in this series? That was in 2004 when the Russians beat the QMJHL twice by 4-3 scores, in Quebec City and Montreal. . . .
The visiting Seattle Thunderbirds got a goal and two assists from each of F Colin Jacobs and F Luke Lockhart in beating the Prince Albert Raiders, 5-2. Seattle G Calvin Pickard stopped 27 shots. . . . Lockhart has four goals and two assists over his last two games. . . . The Thunderbirds, who have won two in a row, are 2-1-1 on their East Division swing; the Raiders have lost 9 of 10. . . . In Regina, the Portland Winterhawks worked overtime to run their winning streak to 10 games. F Brad Ross scored his ninth goal of the season at 1:06 of OT to give the visitors a 5-4 victory over the Pats. . . . The goal originally was credited to F Ryan Johansen, who scored the game’s first goal, his eighth. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi scored his 14th goal to run his points streak to 13 games. . . . Portland F Riley Boychuk forced OT with his second goal of the game at 17:00 of the third period. . . . F Spencer Bennett had three assists for the winners. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 33 shots and now is 9-1. . . . F Thomas Frazee, taken 11th overall by Portland in the 2005 bantam draft, had a goal and two assists for Regina. . . . Portland was without F Oliver Gabriel, who was injured Tuesday in Swift Current. . . . The Winterhawks continue their trip in Saskatoon against the Blades on Friday night. . . . The Blades will be wearing their denim-look jerseys, with Shannon Tweed and some guy named Gene Simmons in attendance. . . .
The Calgary Hitmen erased a three-goal deficit but lost 5-4 in OT to the host Lethbridge Hurricanes. The WHL’s defending champions now have lost 10 straight games. . . . Lethbridge F Mitch Maxwell got the winner on the PP at 1:20 of extra time. Calgary F Kris Foucault, who forced OT with a PP goal at 7:44 of the third, was off for high-sticking when the winner was scored. . . . Lethbridge got two goals from F Alex Kuvaev, a goal and two assist form F Graham Hood, and three assists from F Michael Sofillas. . . . G Adam Brown stopped 26 shots, including all nine he faced in the third period, as the host Kelowna Rockets edged the Edmonton Oil Kings, 2-1. D Tyson Barrie broke a 1-1 tie on the PP at 14:49 of the second period. . . . The Rockets, who not that long ago had a near-empty bandwagon, now have won five in a row and it’s filling up fast. The Rockets now are eighth in the Western Conference, a point up on the Spokane Chiefs and Everett Silvertips, both of whom hold two games in hand. . . . Kelowna F Mitchell (Dirty Harry) Callahan had one assist, giving him 13 points during the five-game winning streak. . . . The Red Deer Rebels went to a shootout for the first time this season and lost 3-2 to the Giants in Vancouver. The loser point was enough to lift the Rebels into first place in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the idle Saskatoon Blades. . . . The shootout went 14 shooters, with Vancouver freshman F Matt Bellerive, who turns 16 on Dec. 7, getting the winner. Bellerive played sparingly and had had just one shift in the third period. . . . Red Deer F Byron Froese, with his 11th, and F Dalton Siwak erased a 2-0 deficit with goals at 11:42 and 12:33 of the third period. . . . Four of the WHL’s top four scorers were in the game. Craig Cunningham (38 points) and Brendan Gallagher (31) of the Giants and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (30) and Byron Froese (30) of the Rebels combined for one point, that being Froese’s goal. . . . Cunningham played in his 280th regular-season game with the Giants, tying the franchise record held by F Mitch Bartley. Cunningham will break the record this afternoon when the Giants meet the Bruins in Chilliwack. Game time is 2 p.m.
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WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Two minors:
Red Deer D Aaron Borejko
Vancouver D Luke Fenske

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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Taking Note on Twitter