Hrbas changing teams . . . Three Hells Angels convicted in beating death of former WHLer

F Jesse Mychan (Everett, Tri-City, 2011-13) has signed a one-year contract with the Cardiff Devils (Wales, UK Elite). Last season, with the Colorado Eagles (ECHL), he had 18 points, including 11 goals, in 55 games. He was pointless in three games while on loan to the Portland Pirates. . . .
G Tyler Weiman (Tri-City, 2000-04) has signed a one-year contract with Landshut (Germany, DEL2). Last season, with the Nuremburg Ice Tigers (Germany, DEL), he was 2.79 and .913 in 37 games.
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Marek Hrbas is changing teams.
Hrbas, who played defence with the Edmonton Oil Kings and Kamloops Blazers (2010-13), is preparing for his second season with Sparta Praha of the Czech Extraliga.
No, he’s not changing hockey teams; this is about basketball.
On Friday, having just returned to Prague following a vacation in Turkey, Hrbas learned that NBA star LeBron James had left the Miami Heat in order to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
No one who isn’t family has been a bigger fan of LeBron and the Heat than the 21-year-old Hrbas. Sheesh, his Facebook page is headed up by a banner photo of Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron celebrating a playoff victory. There also are a number of Heat-related photos on Hrbas’ Facebook page. I can tell you from experience that he loves to talk basketball.
All the Heat stuff, however, became history with LeBron’s announcement, at least to Hrbas.
“I think it's great,” the seemingly always-smiling Hrbas told me in a Facebook exchange. “He deserves respect for that and, of course, I will be a Cleveland fan now.”
When it was suggested that LeBron’s move will cost Hrbas some money, he replied: “I know! Haha gotta buy new bobblehead, jersey, hats, everything.”
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1. Alex Prewitt of the Washington Post has written a really good piece on F Miles Koules of the Medicine Hat Tigers, who has been in the Washington Capitals’ development camp. That story is right here. You have to love a story that begins with: “The son of Hollywood and hockey. . . .”

2. The Prince George Cougars have scheduled a “major” news conference for Tuesday, 10 a.m., outside their CN Centre dressing room. . . . Perhaps they will announce the signing of a general manager to replace Dallas Thompson, who wasn’t renewed following the ownership change. Since then, Todd Harkins, the director of player personnel, has been the interim GM. The betting is that the word ‘interim’ will disappear from Harkins’ job description.

3. D Tanner Mort’s WHL career came crashing to an end on Oct. 12, 2012. Mort, then a defenceman with the Spokane Chiefs, suffered a concussion/neck injury during a game in Kamloops. . . . On Friday night, as Bruce Bourquin of the Coeur d’Alene Press reports right here, Mort got to play on the same ice surface as the likes of Wayne Gretzky, Brett Hull and assorted others. . . . Bourquin also writes of Mort’s struggles with the reality that his injury had ended his dream of playing professionally. . . . Stick tap to SpokaneChiefsFanPage (@gochiefsgoblog) for this one.

4. The Detroit Red Wings have been searching for an assistant coach, having lost former Spokane Chiefs head coach Bill Peters to the Carolina Hurricanes, where he now is head coach. . . . Now comes word that former Kamloops Blazers head coach Tom Renney, another assistant under head coach Mike Babcock, may be the next president and chief executive officer of Hockey Canada. . . . Ansar Khan of mlive.com has that story right here.

5. So . . . do major junior hockey players really need a union? Sunaya Sapurji of Yahoo! Canada Sports tries to answer that question right here. . . . Read this piece, and read between the lines, and you get the feeling that this latest attempt to organize these players is doomed to failure, just like the last one.

6. “Applause and cheers broke out in B.C. Supreme Court Friday when three Hells Angels associates were convicted of manslaughter in the vicious fatal beating of a Kelowna dad,” writes Kim Bolan of the Vancouver Sun. “Justice Mark McEwan found brothers Matthew and Daniel McRae, as well as their pal Anson Schell, guilty for their roles in the brutal attack that left Dain Phillips dead in June 2011.” . . . Phillips played 82 regular-season and 21 playoff games in the WHL (1978-80), splitting them between the Lethbridge Broncos and Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Bolan’s complete story is right here.

7. Yes, LeBron James announced Friday morning that he’s going home to Cleveland and the Cavaliers. The best piece I’ve seen on the situation was written by Bill Simmons at Grantland and it’s right here.

8. Sports Illustrated scooped the world with the LeBron James story on Friday morning. But, Richard Sandomir of The New York Times, wonders right here if it really was journalism or was it the James Gang doing public relations? This really is food for thought. (Read this and you also will find out just how that letter/essay that was purportedly written by James really came to be.)

9. More than 40 years ago, a young sports writer from the Brandon Sun would spend the odd early morning at CKX radio chatting up an all-night DJ, who was an aspiring sportscaster. . . . Bob Irving now is into his 40th year of calling the play of Winnipeg Blue Bombers games. It’s not unreasonable to call him the Vin Scully of Canadian football play-callers. Yes, Irving is that good. . . . “My philosophy is simple, you describe what you see,” he told Herb Zurkowsky of the Montreal Gazette, who profiles Irving right here. “If it reflects badly on the home team, that’s too bad. You describe what you see. When the Bombers are getting beat 42-3, I’ve said on the air, more than once, this is getting hard to watch.” . . . Interestingly, when I was at the Brandon Sun in 1972, I worked alongside Bruce Penton, who covered the Wheat Kings at the time; he and Irving are close friends. Today, Penton’s son, Kirk, covers the Blue Bombers for the Winnipeg Sun.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Jody Hull, the head coach of the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, has been named head coach of Canada’s U-18 team that will play at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament next month. . . . Hull takes over from Derek Laxdal, the former Edmonton Oil Kings head coach who left to join the AHL’s Texas Stars as head coach. . . . Hockey Canada also added Martin Raymond, the head coach of the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs, as an assistant coach. . . . The other assistant coach is Eric Veilleux, the head coach of the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar. . . . Team Canada’s selection camp is scheduled for Calgary, Aug. 2-5, with the tournament running Aug. 11-16 in Piestany, Slovakia, and Breclav, Czech Republic.
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Jarrod Skalde is the new head coach of the Norfolk Admirals, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks. Skalde and Trent Yawney shared the position last season, but the latter has moved up and now is an assistant coach with the Ducks. . . . Skalde was a head coach for five seasons in the ECHL, winning the coach-of-the-year award in 2012-13 in his third season with the Cincinnati Cyclones. Skalde, 43, is from Niagara Falls, Ont. . . . Marty Wilford has been retained for a fourth season as an assistant coach.
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The Toronto Maple Leafs have added Peter Horachek and Steve Spott to their coaching staff as assistants alongside head coach Randy Carlyle. . . . Horachek was the head coach of the Florida Panthers, while Spott was head coach of the Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate. The Marlies now are in the market for a head coach.
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Thank you all for the love and support! Excited to begin a new journey in Europe! @cardiffdevils
— Jesse Mychan (@jmychan28) July 11, 2014

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Benson, Howorko, Mort all retire

Two players off the Swift Current Broncos’ roster — forwards Shea Howorko and Brent Benson — tweeted on Tuesday, confirming that they have had to quit playing hockey due to post-concussion syndrome.
Shawn Mullin, the radio voice of the Broncos, spoke with Howorko. That story, along with the interview, is right here.
Here’s one paragraph:
"I don't even know what it feels like not to have a headache anymore," Howorko said. "It's just like part of my life now I guess. Just wake up with a headache and continue my day but not be active at all."
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Mullin ends his piece on Howorko with this: "The Western Hockey League Concussion Management Safety Program reports that concussions were down over 20% overall during the 2012-13 season compared to the 2011-12 season."
Unfortunately, the WHL has never released statistics involving how many concussions there were. Of course, you are aware that the WHL lists all injuries as being of the lower- or upper-body variety. Until the WHL presents the hard evidence that concussions were down 20 per cent — which would be a whopping decrease in one year — it's pretty tough, if not impossible, to believe that statement.
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D Tanner Mort, 20, won’t be returning for a fifth season with the Spokane Chiefs. Mort, who is from Post Falls, Idaho, plans on attending the U of Idaho and studying engineering. . . . According to a Chiefs’ news release, Mort “missed the majority of the 2012-13 season after sustaining a neck injury on October 12, 2012, at Kamloops. Though any head trauma subsided quickly, the neck injury symptoms persisted, which influenced Mort's decision to move on.” . . . He played 137 regular-season games with the Chiefs, recording 32 points, four of them goals.
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Jay McKee, a former NHL defenceman, has signed on as the playing coach of the Dundas, Ont., Real McCoys, the host team for the 2014 Allan Cup tournament. McKee is preparing for his second season with the McCoys, but last season he only played. . . . Ken Mann and Ron Bernacci will serve as McKee’s assistant coaches.
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The Rose Garden in Portland is no more. The NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers and Moda Health announced Tuesday that, effective immediately, the arena is to be known as the Moda Center at the Rose Quarter. . . . According to a news release: “The agreement was jointly announced during a press conference in the center’s South Atrium. At the request of Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen, the new logo for the Moda Center, when unveiled at a later date, will incorporate a rose as a salute to the city of Portland.” . . . Financial terms of the deal for naming rights weren’t disclosed. . . . The WHL’s Portland Winterhawks play some of their games in the arena.
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Jim Matheson, the Edmonton Journal’s hall-of-fame hockey writer, says it’s time for NHL owners to pony up and pay Wayne Gretzky what is owed to him for his time in Phoenix with the Coyotes. That blog entry is right here.
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D Landon Oslanski (Spokane, Lethbridge, Everett, 2009-13) has signed with the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder. Oslanski played out his junior eligibility last season with the Everett Silvertips. . . . After Everett’s season ended, he joined the Thunder and got into six playoff games, picking up one assist, on an OT goal at that. . . . He had 48 points in 72 games with Everett last season.
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The Prince Albert Raiders are less than two weeks away from the start of training camp and general manager Bruno Campese can’t wait to get rolling. Dave Leaderhouse of the Prince Albert Daily Herald has more right here.
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The Saginaw, Mich., Times Herald reported Tuesday that D Dalton John Young of the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit “was arraigned Sunday on charges of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder, first-degree home invasion, and resisting and obstructing a police officer.” . . . There is more right here.
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“On Tuesday, those who best knew Jordan Boyd held onto those memories a little tighter,” write Sean Gordon and Allan Maki of The Globe and Mail. “It was all they could do after hearing the 16-year-old Nova Scotia athlete had died Monday, during a skating drill at the Titan rookie camp.
“While the exact cause remains unknown, Boyd’s death has generated an outpouring of grief and questioning: What happened? Why Boyd? Was there any way of preventing it?”
Boyd, 16, died during a training camp session in the camp of the QMJHL’s Acadie-Bathurst Titan on Monday.
The Globe and Mail story is right here.
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Whitey Bulger, who was convicted this week of, among other things, 11 murders, has a Stanley Cup ring and he wants to keep it. Chris Nilan, who was married for 25 years to the daughter of a Bulger girlfriend, says it isn’t one of his rings. Stu Cowan, the sports editor of the Montreal Gazette, has a whole lot more right here. Did you know that Bulger may have paid for Nilan’s wedding?
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Charles P. Pierce, who can write, tackles the subject of “Tiger Woods and the weary pursuit of Jack Nicklaus.” That piece, from grantland.com, is right here. “Woods was never effervescent, even in the glorious heart of his young career,” Pierce writes, “but he didn't look the way he does now, coming up the fairway toward the green like an aging farmer coming to work in fields he knows are burnt and fallow but remembers with fondness and with pain the verdancy they once had.”
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And here’s one more good read for today. It’s from Murray Chass, one of the greatest baseball writers to ever sit before a typewriter or keyboard. I have just recently discovered his website (murraychass.com) and have been digging in. This piece right here is a devastating look at Bud Selig, the commissioner of Major League Baseball, and his reign during the steroid era.
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From Brent Benson (@benzySON): “Like to thank @bladeshockey and @SCBroncos for my time spent in both places, great memories with guys ill never forget #bestofluckboys”
Benson, the sixth overall selection in the 2008 bantam draft, has had to retire prior to his 20-year-old season due to post-concussion syndrome.
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From Shea Howorko (@ShaezerBeam): “Like to thank the @SCBroncos organization & fans for a tremendous experience! Unfortunately due to my injury my career is done! #GreatTeam”
Howorko, like Benson, has had to retire due to post-concussion syndrome. A second-round pick in the 2009 bantam draft, Howorko is 19.

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Kris Beech (Calgary, 1995-2001) signed a contract with AIK Stockholm (Sweden, Elitserien) for the rest of this season. Beech, who signed a "game-by-game" contract with AIK in December, has two goals in two
games with AIK. He started the season with Pardubice (Czech Republic, Extraliga), getting two goals and six assists in 21 games before his release in November. . . .

G Marek Schwarz (Vancouver, 2004-05) was traded by Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga) to Liberec (Czech Republic, Extraliga) for G Marek Pinc. Schwarz has a 3.84 GAA and an .890 save percentage in 16 games with Sparta this season. . . .


D Darcy Werenka (Lethbridge, Brandon, 1989-1993) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Kapfenberg (Austria, National Amateur). Werenka has not played so far this season. Last season, he had four goals and 20 assists in 26 games for Rouen (France Ligue Magnus). Werenka has dual Canadian-Austrian citizenship.
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TANNER MORT

The Spokane Chiefs have shut down D Tanner Mort, 19, “for the foreseeable future after he and the organization reassessed his injury situation,” according to a news release issued by the team on Friday.
Mort, from Post Falls, Idaho, was in his fourth season with the Chiefs. He suffered a suspected concussion on Oct. 12, during a 5-1 loss to the Blazers in Kamloops.
He suffered what the Chiefs are calling “an upper body injury.”
"Tanner's injury has steadily improved,” Chiefs general manager Tim Speltz said in the news release, “but he is still experiencing some discomfort so we all agreed that it would be best to shut him down to rest and recover."We are all willing to be patient with the process and understand that Tanner's health is the number one priority.”
Mort has 32 points in 137 career regular-season games with the Chiefs.
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Three Friday afternoon tweets from TSN’s Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie):
1. “NHL teams have until Fri Jan 18 to return underage juniors to their respective teams or they must be put on the NHL roster.”
2. “If an underage junior plays 6 NHL games this season, it burns a year of entry-level contract.”
3. “Underager can be returned to jr until April 3 (NHL trade deadline/roster freeze). If played in 5 NHL or less games, no contract year burned.”
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Put your team in front of a bus and you will get a three-game suspension. At least that’s what happened to Terry Jones, the head coach of the junior B Beaver Valley NiteHawks. There’s more right here.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES:
In Moose Jaw, D Nick Walters drew three assists to help the Brandon Wheat Kings end a five-game losing streak with a 6-2 victory over the Warriors. . . . The victory moved Brandon, which is last in the 12-team Eastern Conference, to within a point of the Warriors and kept them within a point of the Kootenay Ice. . . . Walters was acquired from the Everett Silvertips on Thursday. He had nine assists in 35 games with Everett this season. . . . This was the first three-point game of Walters’ career and came in his 146th regular-season game. . . . According to Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, “Walters . . . drove from Everett to Abbotsford, B.C., at 5 a.m., caught a flight to Calgary, then flew to Regina where the Wheat Kings bus picked him up to drive him to Moose Jaw.” . . . Brandon D Rene Hunter scored his first goal of the season and was plus-4. . . . The Warriors have lost six straight games. . . . Among Brandon’s scratches were F Jayce Hawryluk (ill) and D Ryan Pulock (wrist). . . . F Ben Duperreault, who plays for the midget AAA Moose Jaw Generals, made his debut with the Warriors, who were without F Jordan Wyton (undisclosed) and F Torrin White (mononucleosis). . . . Moose Jaw is without D Morgan Rielly, who is in Toronto preparing for the Maple Leafs’ training camp. . . .

In Swift Current, F Adam Lowry ran his point streak to 19 games as the Broncos beat the Prince Albert Raiders, 3-1. . . . Lowry drew an assist on F Colby Cave’s empty-netter at 19:52 of the third period and now has the longest point streak in the WHL this season. . . . Swift Current G Eetu Laurikainen stopped 43 shots. . . . Broncos F Jay Merkley broke a 1-1 tie at 2:25 of the third period. He’s got 16 goals. . . . There was only one minor penalty called in the game, that to Swift Current F Daniel Dale for goaltender interference at 3:00 of the second period. . . . The Raiders were without F Mark McNeill (ill). . . .

In Regina, the Calgary Hitmen won their sixth straight game and 30th of the season, beating the Pats, 6-1. . . . F Brady Brassart and F Jake Virtanen had two goals each for Calgary. . . . Calgary F Brooks Macek may not be the second-coming of ‘Sudden-Death’ Mel Hill, but there has to be a nickname for him. He set a franchise record by scoring nine seconds into a game earlier this week, and then counted six seconds into the second period in the next game. Last night, he scored 13 seconds into the game. . . . Macek has 23 goals this season. . . . The line of Macek, Brassart and Cody Sylvester, who had two assists, has 38 points over its last six games. . . . The Hitmen lead the Eastern Conference and are three points ahead of the Edmonton Oil Kings atop the Central Division. . . .

In Saskatoon, the Red Deer Rebels scored the game’s first three goals and beat the Blades, 3-1. . . . Red Deer G Patrik Bartosak stopped 34 shots. . . . Saskatoon G Andrey Makarov, in his first appearance since playing for Russia at the World Junior Championship, turned aside 29 shots. . . . Red Deer F David Volek scored his fourth goal in nine games with the Rebels, while F Rhyse Dieno got his 11th goal in 23 games. . . . D Matt Dumba was in Red Deer’s lineup. He leaves today for training camp with the NHL’s Minnesota Wild.

In Edmonton, G Tristan Jarry set a club record as the Oil Kings blanked the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 4-0. . . . Jarry stopped 23 shots for his WHL-leading fourth shutout this season and the fourth of his career. That is a single-season record. He had shared the record with Torrie Jung and Laurent Brossoit. . . . Jarry has recorded back-to-back blank jobs — he turned aside 24 shots in a 5-0 victory over visiting Vancouver on Saturday. . . . F Trevor Cheek scored his first goal with Edmonton, and his 19th this season. He came over from Vancouver in a trade earlier in the week. . . . D Keegan Lowe had two assists. . . . This is the Oil Kings’ lone three-game weekend of the season. They are in Saskatoon tonight and in Medicine Hat on Sunday. . . . D Griffin Reinhart played for the Oil Kings. He leaves today for the training camp of the NHL’s New York Islanders. . . .

In Cranbrook, F Brock Montgomery and F Sam Reinhart scored three times each as the Kootenay Ice beat the Medicine Hat Tigers, 7-5. . . . Montgomery’s third goal, his 18th, came via the PP and broke a 5-5 tie at 16:42 of the third. . . . F Jaedon Descheneau had three assists for the Ice, which has won seven in a row. . . . Reinhart completed his hat trick with an empty-netter, giving him 19 goals this season. . . . F Elgin Pearce, a former Ice skater, had two goals, giving him 18, and an assist for the Tigers. . . . The Ice was 3-for-5 on the PP. . . . F Boston Leier had a goal and two helpers for the Tigers. . . . According to Ice radio voice Jeff Hollick, it was the second time two Kootenay players have had hat tricks in the same game. F Marek Svatos and F Tyler Beechey did it in a 10-7 victory over Medicine Hat in January 2001. . . . Earlier Friday, the Ice named D Joey Leach, 20, as its new captain. . . .

In Kelowna, the Rockets erased a 2-0 deficit with four straight goals and beat the Tri-City Americans, 6-3. . . . Kelowna has won 17 in a row on home ice. . . . The Rockets next play at home Tuesday against the Spokane Chiefs. A Kelowna victory would tie the franchise record for longest home-ice winning streak. . . .  F Dylen McKinlay had two goals and two assists for the Rockets. . . . The Rockets have won eight in a row and now lead the B.C. Division by four points over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Kelowna G Jordon Cooke stopped 26 shots as he put up his 15th straight victory. . . . Kelowna F Myles Bell left in the third period after checking Tri-City D Zach Yuen from behind. Bell received a major and game misconduct; Yuen was helped off the ice but returned. . . . Tri-City F Justin Feser picked up an assist for his 296th career point. He is four points from becoming the seventh player in Tri-City history to get to 300. . . .

In Portland, the Winterhawks scored four third-period goals and beat the Spokane Chiefs, 5-2. . . . D Troy Rutkowski scored his 13th goal and added two assists. . . . F Brendan Leipsic of the Winterhawks broke a 2-2 tie at 15:06 of the third period on a PP. . . .
Starting with Leipsic's goal, Portland scored three times in a span of 1:39. . . . Leipsic also had an assist and now is on an 11-game point streak. He had an 18-game run earlier in the season. . . . Portland F Nic Petan had a goal and an assist. He leads the WHL scoring race with 71 points. . . . Petan and Spokane F Todd Fiddler each scored his 28th goal, one shy of the WHL lead held by Saskatoon F Josh Nicholls. . . . This was the Chiefs’ first visit to Portland this season. . . . Prior to the game the Winterhawks assigned F Alex Schoenborn, 17, to the BCHL’s, errrr, NAHL’s Wenatchee Wild. He had two points in 18 games with Portland. . . . The Winterhawks also assigned D Layne Viveiros, 17, to the AJHL’s Camrose Kodiaks for the balance of this season. He had three assists in 20 games in his second season in Portland. Last season, he finished with three assists in 39 games. He was a ninth-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft. . . .

In Prince George, G Brett Zarowny stopped 44 shots to lead the Cougars to a 1-0 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Zarowny, a 17-year-old freshman from Edson, Alta., evened his record at 9-9-0 as the Cougars halted a seven-game losing streak. . . . Sophomore forward Jordan Tkatch scored the game’s only goal, getting his fourth of the season at 12:15 of the second period. . . . Zarowny stopped 23 shots in the third period to post his third shutout of the season. . . . This was the first time the Blazers have lost 1-0 since March 12, 2011, when Kelowna’s Adam Brown stopped 33 shots and the host Rockets won 1-0 in a shootout. . . . The Cougars took all three of the game’s minor penalties. . . . D Rinalds Rosinkis, who played for Latvia at the World Junior Championship, was back in the Cougars’ lineup. . . . Kamloops had F JC Lipon and D Marek Hrbas back in the lineup. Both played at the WJC, Lipon with Canada and Hrbas with the Czech Republic. . . . The Blazers, who have lost two in a row after having won three straight, and Cougars meet again tonight in Prince George. . . .

In Everett, the home side struck for seven goals for the first time this season and beat the Victoria Royals 7-4 in the Silvertips’ first game with GM Garry Davidson running the bench. . . . Davidson replaced Mark Ferner as head coach earlier in the week. . . . Everett has won four of six. . . . F Ryan Harrison scored twice for Everett, with both goals into an empty net. . . . F Tyler Sandhu had three assists for Everett. . . . The victory lifted Everett into seventh place in the Western Conference, a point ahead of the idle Seattle Thunderbirds.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Tyler Yaworski, Brandon
F Myles Bell, Kelowna (major)
F Mikulas Rimmel, Spokane

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
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From Swift Current D Reece Scarlett (@reecescarlett7): “Just got stuck for 45 mins. Thanks to the gentlemen that stopped and helped.. Still no thanks to you and your snowplowing swifty”
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From Paul Buker (@Pnbuker), a sports writer with The Oregonian: “Going to Winterhawks game vs. Spo, 7 p.m. Ladies night. They’re giving away a $7,000 pair of earrings. If a player’s mom wins this there . . .”
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Buker, cont’d: “. . . is a $200,000 reward for the first fan to report this egregious extra benefit to the WHL office in Calgary”

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The Spokane Chiefs and Prince Albert Raiders got the annual post-Christmas feeding frenzy started on Wednesday morning. Yes, the Jan. 10 trade deadline is fast approaching.
Obviously unhappy with their goaltending, the Chiefs dealt F Anthony Bardaro, 19, who was their leading scorer, G Luke Lee-Knight, 18, and a 2012 fifth-round bantam draft pick to the Raiders for G Eric Williams, 18, and F Todd Fiddler, 18.
(The fifth-round pick had been acquired from the Raiders in September when the Chiefs sent D Tyler Vanscourt to Prince Albert for Lee-Knight.)“Quite simply we needed to strengthen our goaltending,” Spokane GM Tim Speltz told Dave Trimmer of the Spokane Spokesman-Review. “And we needed to change the team. There wasn’t any question about that.”
Williams, a fourth-round round pick in the 2008 bantam draft from Langley, B.C., was the key to this deal going through. He is 8-15-3, 3.86, .884 this season, his second with the Raiders. Last season, he went 17-17-2, 3.71, .898.
Fiddler, a third-round pick of the Medicine Hat Tigers in 2008, had 38 points, including 23 goals, as a freshman last season. This season, Fiddler, who is from Meadow Lake, Sask., has 10 points, including four goals, in 35 games. However, he has only three points in his last 17 games.
Bardaro, from Delta, B.C., led the Chiefs in goals (18) and points (37), having played in 29 games. He is in his third full WHL season. Bardaro was scratched just prior to the Chiefs’ 4-1 victory over the Rockets in Kelowna on Tuesday night, indicating that the deal may have been done at that point.
“We’re trading a proven scorer in Anthony, but not a guy we were having success with as a proven scorer,” Speltz told Rimmer. “We felt needed to change things. (Fiddler) hasn’t gotten off the mark. We’re hoping the change will help him.”
Lee-Knight, a Calgarian, is 2-0-2, 2.91, .868 in nine games. He was dealt to the Chiefs on Sept. 15 for Vanscourt.
The Chiefs are trying to get back in the chase in the Western Conference. They have games in hand on the four teams ahead of them but are eight points behind the fourth-place Portland Winterhawks. Spokane, a team that has to work hard to score, needs better goaltending than it has been getting. Mac Engel has been the starter and two of his numbers – 2.83, 14-11-3 – aren’t bad. But his save percentage (.884) isn’t what it needs to be.
The Chiefs are a better defensive team than the Raiders, so Spokane’s management must feel that Williams will have better numbers there.
The Raiders, who have been getting some solid work from G Cole Holowenko, obviously felt they could give up some goaltending in order to add even more offence.
Still, Prince Albert, which has won four straight, is tied for 11^th in the 12-team Eastern Conference, eight points out of the last playoff spot.
The Raiders, who have won four in a row, are at home to the Saskatoon Blades tonight; the Chiefs meet the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook on Friday.
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After the deal was announced, Williams tweeted:
“Would like to thank
@PARaidersHockey for a great experience and all the fans for their support! Going to miss #hockeytownnorth”
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You may have noticed that D Tanner Mort was back in the Spokane lineup on Tuesday night in Kelowna. Having requested a trade, he hadn’t played since Dec. 2. However, the two parties ironed out their differences over the Christmas break and the 18-year-old from Post Falls, Idaho, has rejoined the team.
Unfortunately, he suffered a shoulder injury in the third period on Tuesday and is out indefinitey.
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The Prince Albert Raiders have added D Matt Waseylenko, 18, to their roster. In fact, he played his first game Tuesday as the Raiders scored a 3-2 shootout victory over the Broncos in Swift Current.
Waseylenko had been with the AJHL’s Camrose Kodiaks, putting up five assists and 23 penalty minutes in 27 games. A native of St. Albert, Alta., he was a fifth-round selection by the Raiders in he 2008 bantam draft.
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At the U-17 World Hockey Challenge, Team Pacific scored a 4-1 tuneup victory over Sweden on Wednesday. Assistant manager David Michaud reports that TP goals came from Jaedon Descheneau (Kootenay), Curtis Lazar (Edmonton), Torrin White (Moose Jaw) and Josh Morrissey (Prince Albert). White also had an assist. . . . G Eric Comrie (Tri-City) stopped 16 of 17 shots in the first half, with Tristan Jarry (Edmonton) coming on to stop all 24 shots he faced. . . . Each team was 1-5 on the PP.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
In Brandon, D Ryley Miller scored at 1:23 of OT to give the Wheat Kings a 3-2 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . It was the third goal of Miller’s career. . . . He has three goals in 33 games this season, after not scoring in the first 136 games of his career. . . . Regina F Lane Scheidl had forced OT when he scored with 4:09 left in the third. . . . F Brendan Walker had given Brandon a 2-0 lead with his 14^th and 15^th goals, both in the first period and both on the PP. . . . Scheidl scored both Regina goals, giving him 13. . . . Walker also assist on Miller’s winner. . . . F Michael Ferland had three assists for Brandon. . . . F Tyrel Seaman (concussion) was back in Brandon’s lineup for the first time since Nov. 25. . . .
In Everett, F Luke Lockhart scored the only shootout goal as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Silvertips, 4-3. . . . Everett is 1-7 in shootouts, including a 2-1 loss to Seattle in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday. . . . Everett trailed 3-1 in the second period before F Ryan Harrison scored twice, getting his ninth at 12:58 of the second and tying it with a shorthanded score at 15:00 of the third. . . . Seattle G Calvin Pickard, who stopped 32 shots, moved into eighth place on the WHL’s career list for minutes played. He passed Ed Staniowski (Regina, 1971-75). Pickard has played 12,095 minutes, with Evan Lindsay (Tri-City, Prince Albert, 1995-2000) next at 12,131, followed by Steve Passmore (Tri-City, Victoria, Kamloops, 1988-94) at 12,149. . . . D Cason Machacek of Seattle scored his first goal in 24 games this season. It was the fifth of his 219-game career. . . . The Thunderbirds are without F Brandon Troock (wrist), who was injured in the second period of Tuesday’s 2-1 shootout victory over the visiting Silvertips. . . . Seattle also is without D Kyle Verdino, who didn’t play in the third period of a 5-1 loss to the host Tri-City Americans on Dec. 17 and apparently may have a concussion. . . . With Troock out, F Connor Sanvido got back into the lineup after being a healthy scratch in four of the previous five games. He had one assist. . . .
In Moose Jaw, F Sam Fioretti’s shootout goal gave the Warriors a 4-3 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . F Brett Lyon’s 11^th goal of the season gave the Warriors a 3-2 lead at 17:00 of the third period. . . . Edmonton F Tyler Maxwell got his 20^th at 17:40 to force extra time. . . . F Michael St. Croix also got his 20^th for the Oil Kings, his coming on a second-period PP. . . . F Justin Kirsch (wrist) was back in Moose Jaw’s lineup for the first time since Nov. 25. He had one assist and a shootout goal after missing 10 games. . . . Maxwell also scored in the shootout. . . . The Warriors left after the game for a trip into the U.S. Division. . . . Moose Jaw F Carter Hansen was named Team West’s captain at the U-17 World Hockey Challenge. . . . The teams were missing a combined nine players between the World Junior Championship and the WHC. . . .
In Kamloops, D Bronson Maschmeyer broke a 1-1 tie at 18:48 of the second period and the Blazers went on to a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . Maschmeyer, 20, began his WHL career with the Giants before being dealt to the Blazers. It was his fourth goal of the season. . . . The Giants had won three in a row, including a 4-3 shootout victory over visiting Kamloops on Tuesday. . . . The Blazers have points in five straight (3-0-2). . . . The Blazers now hold a five-point lead over the Giants atop the B.C. Division. Kamloops is one point behind Western Conference-leading Tri-City, with the Americans holding three games in hand. . . .
In Prince George, F John Odgers, playing his first WHL game, scored the winner as the Cougars got past the Calgary Hitmen, 3-1. . . . Odgers, who plays for the SJHL’s Yorkton Terriers, broke a 1-1 tie at 17:52 of the second period. He is the son of former WHL/NHL player Jeff Odgers, who now scouts for the Cougars. . . . Prince George F Austin Daae also scored his first WHL goal. It came in his 23^rd game of this season. . . . Cougars G Drew Owsley stopped 37 shots. . . . The Cougars dressed 15 skaters, three under the maximum. They are without F Brock Hirsche (undisclosed, finished for this season), D Shane Pilling (injured), D Reid Jackson (injured), F Chase Witala, F Jordan Tkatch, F Alex Forsberg, D Martin Marincin and F Jarrett Fontaine. . . . Marincin is with Slovakia at the World Junior Championship; Witala, Tkatch, Forsberg and Fontaine are at the U-17 World Hockey Challenge. . . .
In Portland, the Winterhawks unloaded 54 shots as they beat the Victoria Royals, 6-3. . . . Victoria G Keith Hamilton, who was acquired from Portland in the offseason, stopped 48 shots. . . . The Winterhawks have won 10 in a row at home. . . . Portland D Joe Morrow had a goal and two helpers. . . . Portland F Brad Ross scored twice, giving him a six-game goal streak. He has 24 goals this season. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie was unsuccessful on a second-period penalty shot. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi, who is at the World Junior Championship, suffered an apparent upper body injury on Tuesday as his Swiss side dropped a 4-3 shootout decision to Sweden. . . . Victoria D Tyler Stahl, out with a concussion since Oct. 1, had hoped to return after Christmas. But he apparently has suffered a setback and remains out indefinitely.
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Stu Hackel at SI.com takes a look at the month that was with the NHL and concussions. Warning: It isn’t pretty.
“Last week on TSN,” Hackel writes, “veteran commentator Dave Hodge called the NHL’s ongoing concussion problem the most critical issue facing the league in its history. He’s not overstating things. The challenge is curbing this problem without excessively tampering with two of the sport’s essential characteristics that make it so appealing — speed and physicality.”
Hackel’s complete report is right here.
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Early in his piece, Hackel refers to Dustin Fink, who runs The Concussion Blog. With concussions having become THE story in hockey, I have added a link to this blog over there on the right.
This blog is sure to provide some important reading.
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The 50-50 payout at the Canada-Czech Republic game in Edmonton last night was $84,642. It was won by Mike Futa, a scout with the Los Angeles Kings.

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JUST NOTES:
D Dave Sutter of the Seattle Thunderbirds, F Sven Bartschi of the Portland Winterhawks and F Alessio Bertaggia of the Brandon Wheat Kings are among the 33 players in the Swiss national junior team’s selection camp. . . . That camp is being held in Red Deer. . . . The World Junior Championship opens Dec. 26 in Calgary and Edmonton. . . .
D Tanner Mort, 18, has asked the Spokane Chiefs to trade him. Dave Trimmer reports in the Spokane Spokesman-Review that Mort, “who has sat out seven games . . . requested a trade.” . . . Spokane GM Tim Speltz tells Trimmer: “We want players who are totally engaged. Tanner has had a stretch this year he needed to reflect. Because guys want (something), it doesn’t matter what they want. What matters is what’s best for the team.” . . . Mort has five assists and 11 penalty minutes in 20 games this season, his third with the Chiefs. He played 30 games in 2009-10 and 63 last season when he finished with 16 points. . . . Mort was a fourth-round selection by the Chiefs in the 2008 bantam draft. . . .
The BCHL’s Penticton Vees made it a franchise-record 18 in a row on Saturday, beating the visiting Powell River Kings, 7-2. . . . Freshman Mario Lucia, 18, had three goals, giving him 60 points, including 26 goals, in 31 games. . . . The Vees (30-3-0-2) next play Jan. 4 when they are at home to the Vernon Vipers. . . .
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SATURDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS:
In Moose Jaw, F Andrew Johnson scored the winner as the Warriors beat the Kamloops Blazers 4-3 in a shootout. . . . The Warriors are 7-1-2 in their lst 10; Kamloops is 7-2-1. . . . It was the first time this season the Blazers had gone to a shootout. They were the last WHL team to get there. . . . Kamloops, which went 3-2-1 on its East Division swing, led 2-0 early in the second period. . . . The Warriors came back with three straight PP goals, with Johnson tying it eight minutes into the second and D Joel Edmundson giving the home side the lead for the first time at 7:22 of the third. It was his first goal of the season. . . . Kamloops F Chase Souto forced OT at 13:33. . . . Moose Jaw G Spencer Tremblay stopped 43 shots through OT. He gave up one goal in the shootout, made two stops and got help from a post on another attempt. . . .

In Saskatoon, F Carter Rigby scored his 10th goal and added two assists as the Kelowna Rockets droipped the Blades, 5-1. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown turned aside 37 shots. . . . The Rockets were 3-for-8 on the PP; the Blades were 0-for-5. . . . Kelowna finished its East Division trek at 2-3-1. . . . The Blades have lost three straight and are just 2-8-0 in their last 10 outings. . . .

In Edmonton, the Oil Kings ran their winning streak to 11 with a 2-1 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . The Oil Kings, in their fifth season of existence, will complete their pre-Christmas schedule today against the visiting Regina Pats. But Edmonton will go into the break riding high atop the Eastern Conference, its 23-8-3 record leaving it with a one-point lead on the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . F Alex Gogolev game the Hitmen a 1-0 lead at 7:16 of the first on a PP. . . . Edmonton F Mitchell Moroz tied it with the Teddy Bear goal at 19:46 of the first. . . . F T.J. Foster go the winner, his 16th goal this season, on a PP at 13:58 of the second. . . .

In Lethbridge, the Hurricanes won their fourth straight game, 4-1 over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Hurricanes, given up for dead not that long ago, have won four in a row and are 8-2-0 in their last 10 outings and will go into the break feeling good about their game. Still, they are eight points out of a playoff spot. . . . The Hurricanes scored the game’s first three goals, including F Cam Braes’ 20th of the season, a shorthanded effort at 1:31 of the second that stood up as the winner. . . . Lethbridge G Damien Ketlo stopped 35 shots. . . . Lethbridge D Albin Blomqvist, an 18-year-old freshman from Sweden, scored his first goal of the season in his 28th game. . . . Lethbridge F Juraj Bezuch, a Slovakian freshman who turned 18 on Tuesday, incurred a clipping major at 19:42 of the third. Swift Current D Erik Fleming took a slashing major at the same time. . . . Lethbridge F Graham Hood scored the Teddy Bear goal, on a PP, 45 seconds into the second period. . . . The Broncos have lost four straight. . . .

In Medicine Hat, F Hunter Shinkaruk scored two goals to lead the Tigers to a 4-2 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . Shinkaruk has 30 goals, second in the league to Portland Winterhawks F Ty Rattie, who has 33. Shinkaruk and teammate Emerson Etem, who is with the U.S. national junior team, have 30 apiece. . . . Shinkaruk has 48 points in 36 games; last season, he finished with 42 points, 14 of them goals, in 63 games. . . . The Tigers broke open a 1-1 game with three straight goals, F Scott McKay scoring at 19:42 of the first and Shinkaruk striking twice in the second period, at 8:49 and 19:25. . . .

In Red Deer, the Rebels scored two early second-period goals and went on to a 2-1 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . F Tyson Ness gave Red Deer a 1-0 lead 29 seconds into the second, and F Turner Elson upped that to 2-0 at 1:05. . . . Regina F Jack Rodewald cut the lead to 2-1 at 9:18 of the third but the Pats weren’t able to equalize. . . . Red Deer G Deven Dubyk stopped 22 shots. . . .

In Spokane, the Portland Winterhawks posted an 8-6 victory over the Chiefs, giving them a 4-0 record against their divisional rivals this season. . . . F Brad Ross had two goals and two assists for the Winterhawks, while F Ty Rattie had a goal, his WHL-leading 33rd, and two helpers. Both players were cut by Canada’s national junior team earlier in the week. . . . The Winterhawks were without F Sven Bartschi, who is attending the Swiss national junior team’s tryout camp. . . . Portland led this one 2-1 just 3:39 into the first period and then never trailed. . . . Spokane F Colin Valcourt scored on a second-period penalty shot to cut Portland’s lead to 3-2. . . . However, Rattie scored 6:20 later on a PP and Ross scored shorthanded eight minutes after that. . . . Ross has 22 goals. . . . F Jarid Hauptman had two goals and an assist for Spokane, with F Marek Kalus chipping in a goal and two assists. . . .

In Kent, Wash., the Tri-City Americans exploded for five third-period goals and beat the Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-3. . . . Tri-City F Justin Feser started the comeback just 34 seconds into the third period. . . . F Patrick Holland tied it with goals at 2:29 and 4:13. . . . Feser got his 17th, at 6:21, and that stood up as the winner. . . . F Mason Wilgosh added insurance at 18:02. He also had three assists in becoming the 49th player in franchise history to reach 100 career points. . . . This was Wilgosh’s second career four-point night. . . . Tri-City G Ty Rimmer stopped 25 shots, 13 fewer than Seattle’s Calvin Pickard. . . . Feser also had two assists, while Holland had one. . . . Tri-City F Adam Hughesman, 20, was held off the scoresheet in his 300th regular-season game. He has 293 points, including 113 goals, in those 300 games. He is the seventh player to play No. 300 in an Americans uniform. . . . Tri-City is 27-7-0, its best-ever record at the Christmas break. . . . In four of the last five seasons, the Americans have had at least 23 victories at the break. . . . The Americans have won eight in a row, the seventh time in franchise history the team has put together a streak of eight or more victories. . . . Tri-City leads the WHL in victories (27), points (54) and winning percentage (.794). . . . They also have the fewest losses (7). . . .

In Prince George, F Cain Franson scored twice to help the Vancouver Giants to a 3-1 victory over the Cougars. . . . Franson had scored once and set up two others Friday as the Giants won 3-2 in Prince George. . . . He has 14 goals. . . . Franson has 10 points in six games against the Cougars. . . . Prince George F Alex Forsberg scored the Teddy Bear goal at 15:26 of the third period on a PP. . . . Earlier, there was a false alarm when a Prince George hit the cross-bar and was ruled no goal. It did result in a few Teddy Bears on the ice, thought. . . . More bears hit the ice with 5:39 to play and the Giants leading 2-0. This time it was a fight involving Cougars D Jesse Forsberg and Vancouver D Luke Fenske that brought out the bears. . . . Must have been tough to maintain any momentum with three separate Teddy Bear-related delays. . . .
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SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Kristians Pelss, Edmonton.
F Marc McCoy, Red Deer.
D Zach Yuen, Tri-City.
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SATURDAY’S TWEET OF THE DAY:
From freshman F CurtisLazar of the dmonton Oil Kings:
“Solid evening, 2pts for the boys- @MitchMoroz picked up the teddy bear goal and we got Nintendo DS 3D's as a X-mas gift #WHL #Oilkings”
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SATURDAY’S TWEET OF THE DAY, Part 2:
From the Spokane Chiefs:
“The Chiefs want to send out a very special thank you to Dave Trimmer (@SRtrim) for all the years of great journalism. You will be missed and best of luck in the future.”
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F Charlie Coyle, the 28th overall selection in the NHL’s 2010 draft, has left the Boston University Terriers and joined the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs. “I’m at the point where I want to just focus on hockey,” he told the Boston Globe. “I just want to set school aside and focus on my pro career and get to (the NHL). That’s why I made the move to go play for Saint John, to put my 100 percent effort toward hockey.” . . . Coyle, 19, is from East Weymouth, Mass. . . . The San Jose Sharks selected him in the 2010 draft. But they dealt his rights to the Minnesota Wild last summer, along with F Devin Setoguchi and a 2011 first-round pick, for D Brent Burns.
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F Ryan Walsh, an all-star player during his QMJHL and Canadian university career, is the latest player to retire due to post-concussion syndrome. Walsh, 33, had been playing with the Clarenville Caribous of the Newfoundland Senior league. "For the most part, I'm fairly healthy,” he told John Browne of the St. John’s Telegram. “I don't have any headaches, which I had when I was younger and had a few concussions. I'm fortunate. It's not that bad. And, at the end of the day, it's just a game.”
The complete story is right here.
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This has nothing to do with hockey, but everything to do with putting people on pedestals.
This is from the blog of Gregg Doyel, a national columnist for cbssports.com:
“Rudy Ruettiger was unmasked this week as a financial fraud, a liar and a swindler who used his fame — and a series of lies — to pump up the profile of his company to unwitting investors, then dump the stock at an enormous profit.”
Rudy Ruettiger? He is the Rudy of Rudy/Notre Dame fame. If you’ve seen the movie . . . RUDY! RUDY!! RUDY!!!
Doyel spins his story into more on Tim Tebow and it’s definitely worth a read.
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For today’s good read, we take you to The Globe and Mail and a piece headlined: Ken Dryden’s call to action for NHL boss Gary Bettman.
It is right here.