THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Jonas Johansson (Kamloops, 2002-04) signed a one-year contract extension with Cortina (Italy, Serie A). He had 23 goals and 24 assists in 39 games with Cortina last season. . . .
F Jared Aulin (Kamloops, 1997-2002) signed a one-year contract with Örebro (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He had 10 goals and 20 assists in 36 games for Leksand (Swweden, Allsvenskan) last season. . . .
F Stanislav Balan (Portland, 2005-06) signed a one-year contract with Lev Poprad (Slovakia, KHL). He had eight goals and eight assists in 50 games with Zlin (Czech Republic, Extraliga) last season. . . .
F Konstantin Panov (Kamloops, 1998-2001) signed a two-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk (Russia, KHL). He had two goals and seven assists in 29 games with SKA St. Petersburg (Russia, KHL) last season.
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Paul Kariya announced his retirement as a professional hockey player on Tuesday. And everyone — every single person who is associated with hockey at any level today, from parents to fans to team and league officials — must read Eric Duhatschek’s piece in The Globe and Mail.
Kariya told Duhatschek that the risk of incurring another concussion simply is too great. So, Kariya, at 36 years of age, is walking away.
He took 2010-11 off in an attempt to recover from multiple concussions. And even though he now feels fine, well, that just isn’t good enough.
After the last concussion-causing hit, Kariya told Duhatschek, he “hoped his symptoms would go away over time, as they had before.
“Instead, they just kept getting worse and worse. My doctor said, ‘there’s no one in my profession that could clear you to play in this condition.’ Even last summer, he said, ‘even if you recover 100 per cent, I would advise you to retire.’
“I knew I was bad, but I didn’t know I was that bad. But they had concussion data on me all the way back to 1996, and then from the (Gary) Suter hit (just before the 1998 Winter Olympics), so they could track my results from one concussion to another.
“The drop in my brain function, the doctor said, was down by 50 per cent. At that point, I wasn’t thinking, ‘Am I going to play again?’ I just wanted to get healthy.”
Scary stuff.
And there’s a whole lot more in Duhatschek’s story, including what Kariya feels needs to be done to get most concussions out of hockey.
If you read only one thing today, make this the one.
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Matt Coxford of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman has the story of Brad Shaw, a former trainer with the Kootenay Ice, who has been hired by the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. That story is right here.
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Saskatoon definitely isn’t a city where the streets have no names.
One of them soon may be named after Shannon Tweed.
Yes, that Shannon Tweed. Hey, she did attend a Saskatoon Blades game last season.
Saskatoon city council has OK’d the adding of Tweed’s name to a master list that is used for street names.
According to CBC, “A report to council said Tourism Saskatoon wants a street named ’Tweed Lane’ in the Rosewood neighbourhood.”
The 54-year-old Tweed attended high school in Saskatoon — she was born in Newfoundland — and is married to Gene Simmons, the lead singer of KISS.
The two of them attended a Blades game last season while they were in the Bridge City taping a segment of their reality show — Gene Simmons Family Jewels.
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SOME IMPORT DRAFT NOTES:
The Kootenay Ice took a pass on the CHL import draft for a second straight year.
A year ago, Ice president/GM Jeff Chynoweth felt he had such a solid nucleus of players returning that it would have been tough to find a slot for an import on his roster.
This time around, he admitted that he had a line on a particular player. But the Ice held the 51st selection, which was too deep into the draft to land what he wanted so Chynoweth dealt the pick.
The Ice traded that selection to the Everett Silvertips for an eighth-round pick in the 2012 WHL bantam draft.
Everett used the import pick on German D Dominik Bittner.
The Ice last used import players in 2009-10 when Czech F Dominik Pacovsky and Czech D Petr Senkerik were on the roster. . . .
Meanwhile, the Brandon Wheat Kings used the 33rd selection to take F Alessio Bertaggia of Switzerland. The 5-foot-8, 156-pounder had 37 points and 75 penalty minutes with a junior team in Lugano last season.
However, if you are a WHL observer you will recall Bertaggia as the at-the-time nameless player who lit it up during a practice session with the Portland Winterhawks last season. . . .
The Winterhawks dealt the 58th pick — it became No. 57 when the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs passed at No. 53 — to Kelowna for the Rockets’ first selection in the 2012 import draft.
The Winterhawks’ roster includes two Swiss forwards — Sven Bartschi and Nino Niederreiter. Bartschi was a first-round selection by the Calgary Flames in the 2011 NHL draft, while Niederreiter went to the New York Islanders in the first round of the 2010 draft.
According to a news release from the Winterhawks, Portland will keep both plays “on the roster in the event they are returned to Portland by their National Hockey League teams.”
Niederreiter played nine games with the Islanders to start the 2010-11 season before being returned to the Winterhawks. . . .
The Vancouver Giants selected Finnish G Jonathan Iilahti, a 19-year-old, with the 39th pick in the import draft. he was taken by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round of the NHL’s 2010 draft.
Iilhati is expected to be the Giants’ starting goaltender. Mark Segal, last season’s starter, is 20 and has opted to attend McGill University in Montreal and play for the Redmen.
The Giants believe that Jackson Whistler, a 16-year-old from Kelowna, and Payton Lee, a 15-year-old from Cranbrook, are their goaltenders of the future.
They need Iilahti to be the bridge to those two.
Whistle was a fourth-round selection in the 2010 bantam draft and should battle Brandon Jensen, 18, who was 8-13-1, 3.76, .875 while backing up Segal last season.
Lee was taken by the Giants with the 28th pick in the 2011 draft. . . .
The Prince George Cougars used the 59th selection in the draft to take F Marko Dano, 16, out of Trencin, Slovakia. He is a late-1994 so isn’t eligible for the NHL draft until 2013. According to a news release from the Cougars: “Dano’s father, Jozef, scored five goals and nine points in 12 games for Slovakia at three IIHF World Championships (1996, ’97 & ’99).”
Earlier, the Cougars swapped import picks with the Saskatoon Blades, who got the 30th pick in the exchange. Prince George also got a 2012 third-round bantam draft pick from Saskatoon. The Blades took Russian G Andre Makarov with the 30th selection. He had been with the QMJHL’s Lewiston Maineiacs but came available with the unfortunate demise of that franchise. . . .
The Lethbridge Hurricanes used the 12th overall pick on Swedish D Albin Blomqvist, whose brother, Anton, was taken 167th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in last weekend’s NHL draft. . . .
The Edmonton Oil Kings dealt D Marek Hrbas, the fourth overall pick in the 2010 import draft, to the Kamloops Blazers earlier in the week. That deal involved a swap of import picks, with the Oil Kings moving up to 18th, where they took Slovakian D Martin Gernat, who is 6-foot-5 and 187 pounds. The Edmonton Oilers selected Gernat in the fourth round of the 2011 NHL draft. . . .
The Blazers used the 27th selection on Swiss F Tim Bolzon, whose father, Philippe, played 144 NHL games with the St. Louis Bllues (1991-95). Tim actually was born in St. Louis and has played internationally for French teams. . . .
The Calgary Hitmen used the third overall selection to take Swedish F Victor Rask, 18, who was a second-round pick by the Carolina Hurricanes in last weekend’s NHL draft. His agent apparently told the Hitmen that Rask doesn’t want to play in the WHL. But the Hitmen are prepared to wait and see how things develop after Rask attends the Hurricanes’ training camp.
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Neate Sager of Yahoo! Sports takes a look at the run on goaltenders in the import draft. Check that out right here.
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There were 59 players selected in the first round, with just three players taken in the second round when only the Calgary Hitmen, Tri-City Americans and Brandon Wheat Kings made selections. . . . The CHL’s 60 teams selected 15 players from Czech Republic and 11 from Russia. Others came from Sweden (9), Slovakia (7), Germany and Switzerland (each 5), Norway (4), Latvia (3), Finland (2) and Belarus (1). . . . It’s interesting that NHL teams took only eight Russians in last weekend’s draft.
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JUST NOTES: D Wes Vanieuwenhuizen of the Vancouver Giants, who wasn’t selected in the NHL draft, will attend the Edmonton Oilers’ prospects camp that is scheduled to run July 4-9. . . . If you were wondering, former Medicine Hat Tigers GM/head coach Willie Desjardins will stay on staff with the Dallas Stars, working under new head coach Glen Gulutzan. Also staying will be former WHLer Stu Barnes, who owns a chunk of the Tri-City Americans. . . . Former NHL D Charlie Huddy is the odd-man out in Dallas. He may get a shot at an assistant’s role with the Winnipeg Jets. . . . Seattle Thunderbirds F Luke Lockhart, who wasn’t selected in last weekend’s NHL draft, has accepted an invitation to the Washington Capitals’ development camp that begins July 10.
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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Showing posts with label Shannon Tweed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shannon Tweed. Show all posts
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Sunday, November 14, 2010
No bobbles in Speedy Creek
 |
| Cody Eakin, with his namesake bobblehead dolls. (Swift Current Broncos photo) |
That’s because it was Cody Eakin Bobblehead Night.
So who better to score the game-winning goal in OT than the man of the night?
Yes, Eakin’s goal at 1:46 of OT gave the Broncos a 2-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. Eakin, a third-round pick of the Washington Capitals in the NHL’s 2009 draft, scored his 11th goal of the season the PP with Seattle D Travis Bobbee off for slashing.G Derek Tendler, in his first appearance with the Broncos, stopped 26 shots for the victory. He was acquired from the Vancouver Giants earlier in the season.
At the other end, Seattle started Michael Salmon, who made 35 saves as he played for the first time this season. It was the first time this season that Calvin Pickard didn’t start and finish for the Thunderbirds, who were playing their 19th game.
The Thunderbirds, who had a three-game winning streak end, went 3-1-2 on their East Division swing.
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The Swift Current injury list looks like this: D Jordan Evans (concussion, week-to-week); D Tanner Muth (fractured clavicle, week-to-week); D Joel Rogers (high ankle sprain, day-to-day); F Brenden Silvester (back, indefinite); F Taylor Vause (hamstring, week-to-week); and F Dillon Wagner (off-season knee surgery, week-to-week). . . . Haven’t checked for a couple of hours to see if there are any additions. . . . Oh, and let’s not forget that Eakin is playing with a wonky hip. . . .
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Tomas Fojtik (Portland, 2003-04) signed a one-year contract with Montpellier (France Division 1). He had two assists in eight games with Spisska Nova Ves (Slovakia Extraliga) last season. He also appeared in two games with Prostejov (Czech Republic ) and two games with Neumarkt/Egna (ItalySerie A2), going pointless all four games.
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Wondering how it went for Shannon Tweed and Gene Simmons on Friday as they watched the host Saskatoon Blades score a 4-3 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. Check out a story from the Saskatoon StarPhoenix right here.---
The Medicine Hat Tigers had D Jace Coyle back in their lineup Friday after he missed five games with an injury. . . . When Brandon Wheat Kings F Scott Glennie scored in OT to beat the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes on Friday, it was his first goal since Oct. 26. But it’s not like he wasn’t contributing offensively -- he picked up 13 assists over his last eight games, including the 150th assist of his WHL career. . . . ---
It’s going to be a busy Monday in the WHL office.
For starters, Vancouver Giants D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen will find out the length of his suspension after he incurred a checking-from-behind major in a 5-1 loss to the Bruins in Chilliwack on Thursday. It was a nasty one and it’s doubtful that the suspension will be of the one-, two- or three-game variety.And there were two major penalties handed out Saturday night.
In Moose Jaw, the Warriors lost F Quinton Howden in the first period when he was tossed with a cross-checking major. Howden apparently popped Lethbridge Hurricanes F Cam Braes in the face area in retaliation for what he felt were a couple of cross-checks from Braes, who wasn’t penalized.
In Cranbrook, D Adrian Van de Mosselaer of the Edmonton Oil Kings left at 1:50 of the third period with a kneeing major after a hit on Kootenay Ice F Christian Magnus, who left the game.
As well, Portland Winterhawks forward Brad Ross is likely to be dealt with for an incident that occurred early in their 5-4 loss to the Blades in Saskatoon on Friday. He was given a game misconduct for a hit on Saskatoon F Ryan Olsen.
And at what point do we get concerned about the number of checking-from-behind penalties?
Officials handed out eight minors -- including one double minor -- on Friday night. Last night, there were four more minors dished out.
It would seem the message isn’t getting through. So what’s the next step?
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In Moose Jaw, G Brandon Stone stopped 32 shots as the Warriors blanked the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 3-0. . . . However, he got tossed with eight seconds
left in the third period so ended up sharing the shutout with Thomas Heemskerk. . . . The Warriors lost D Dylan McIlrath with an apparent knee injury when he fell awkwardly late in the third period. He is to be re-examined today. . . . Things got interesting at 19:52 of the third period with both starting goaltenders being penalized for leaving their creases. . . . F Jesse Paradis had a goal and an assist for Moose Jaw, while Joel Edmundson and Danny Gayle each had two assists. . . . Lethbridge G Brandon Anderson made 31 saves, but he, too, got the ol’ heave-ho. It seems that he skated the length of the ice to get at Stone. However, before fisticuffs could start, a linesman brought down Anderson. . . . Both goaltenders were given unsportsmanlike minors, minors for leaving their creases and misconducts. . . . ---
In Prince Albert, F Sven Bartschi scored two goals, running his points streak to 15 games, as the Portland Winterhawks dumped the Raiders, 8-2. . . . Bartschi, a freshman from Switzerland, has 16 goals. . . . F Nino
Niederreiter scored his second of the season for Portland. . . . Prince Albert actually led 2-0 before this game was six minutes old. But the visitors scored three times in 3:54 and took a 3-2 lead into the second period. . . . D Joe Morrow had three assists for Portland, while F Ty Rattie and D Troy Rutkowski each had two. . . . Portland G Keith Hamilton stopped 37 shots. . . . The Winterhawks, who are 3-1-0 on their East Division trip, scored three PP goals and two while shorthanded. They are in Moose Jaw on Monday. . . ---
In Cranbrook, G Brent Teskey stopped 12 shots for his first WHL shutout as the Kootenay Ice beat the Edmonton Oil Kings, 1-0. . . . Edmonton G Laurent
Brossoit turned aside 33 shots and was beaten by only F Elgin Pearce, who got his second goal at 10:09 of the second period. . . . The Ice lost F Christian Magnus in the third period with an apparent leg injury. . . . Kootenay F Erik Benoit missed his first game after hurting a knee in a 4-2 victory over the Hitmen in Calgary on Thursday. . . . The Ice also is without F Drew Czerwonka (shoulder), F Brendan Hurley (hand), D James Martin (nose) and F Brock Montgomery (concussion). . . . ---
In Kamloops, G Jeff Bosch stopped 23 shots for his second shutout of the season as the Blazers bounced the Kelowna Rockets, 4-0. . . . The Rockets
had a six-game winning streak snapped. . . . Kamloops F Brendan Ranford scored twice, giving him a league-leading 19 goals, one more than F Brendan Gallagher of the Vancouver Giants. . . . Ranford also had an assist. . . . Former Blazers head coach Ken Hitchcock, who is being paid not to coach by the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets, was in the crowd. . . .---
In Spokane, G James Reid stopped 20 shots for the shutout as the Chiefs
beat the Tri-City Americans, 5-0. . . . Attendance was 9,816. . . . Spokane has won three in a row. . . . The Chiefs broke open a 1-0 game with three goals in 4:56 late in the second period. . . . Reid has one shutout this season and 10 in his career. . . . The teams combined for 114 penalty minutes. . . . They meet again Saturday at the Toyota Centre in Kennewick, Wash. . . .---
In Medicine Hat, F Linden Vey had a goal and three assists, and was plus-4,
as the Tigers beat the Regina Pats, 6-4. . . . F Emerson Etem added two goals -- he has 13 -- and an assist for the Tigers. . . . Vey has 33 points in 19 games and is third in the points derby. . . . ---
In Vancouver, F Brett Connolly and F Troy Bourke scored in the shootout to give the Prince George Cougars a 3-2 victory over the Giants. . . . Only F
Matt MacKay was able to score for the Giants in the shootout. . . . The teams combined for 116 penalty minutes. . . . Vancouver led 2-0 midway in the first period, but the Cougars got two third-period goals, from F Tayler Stefishen, his fourth, and D Martin Marincin, his eighth, on the PP. . . Marincin and Stefishen each had an assist. . . . Cougars G Ty Rimmer stopped 37 shots. . . . F Brendan Rowinski, acquired Thursday by the Giants from Moose Jaw, didn’t play. He took the pregame skate but has yet to cleared by the Vancouver medical staff although he played two games with the Warriors before being dealt. He had major offseason knee surgery. . . . ---
In Everett, D Ryan Murray’s first goal of the season, with 23.1 seconds
left in OT, gave the Silvertips a 3-2 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins. . . . Chilliwack F Jamie Crooks forced OT with his seventh goal at 19:49 of the third. . . . F Kellan Tochkin scored twice for Everett with F Tyler Maxwell assisting on both. . . . Attendance was 7,256. . . . Everett G Kent Simpson stopped 38 shots.---
And, in Calgary, the WHL's website struggled to make sense of how more than half the teams could boast of being .500 or better, so it ran hot and cold for a lot of the night.
---
SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Four minors:
Kamloops D Corey Fienhage
Spokane D Tyler Vanscourt
Tri-City D Sam Grist
Everett F Scott MacDonald
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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