D Bryce Lampman (Kamloops, 2002-03) has signed for the rest of this season with Lørenskog (Norway, GET-Ligaen). This season, with Florida (ECHL), he had five points, including one goal, in eight games. . . .
F Kirill Starkov (Red Deer, 2006-07) has signed with Red Ice Martigny (Switzerland, NL B) for the rest of the season, with an option. (Red Ice contacted the Danish federation and inserted a termination clause should Starkov be suspended by the IIHF over a Danish betting case.)
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George Johnson, the Calgary Herald’s sporting columnist, is one of Canada’s best wordsmiths. He was in attendance Sunday as the hometown Hitmen dropped a 3-2 OT decision to the Edmonton Oil Kings, and his report is right here.
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Things appear to be going from bad to worse for the Kamloops Blazers. They have the WHL’s second-poorest record (11-33-5) and have only one victory in their last 10 outings. And now, as they prepare to play four games in five nights, they have lost two veterans to what they are calling “long-term injuries.”
F Luke Harrison, 18, suffered an undisclosed injury during a 4-0 loss to the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers on
Saturday. Harrison, who missed time earlier this season with a brain injury, was involved in a heavy collision with Tigers D Scott Allan at 14:13 of the third period. Harrison needed help from trainer Colin Robinson and left with gauze in his mouth.One night earlier, F Tyson Ness, 20, suffered a broken jaw when struck by a puck during a 7-2 loss to the visiting Victoria Royals. Ness is expected to be lost for the remainder of the season, although he has told team officials that he badly wants to play in one more game.
The Blazers also are missing freshman F Eric Krienke and veteran F Matt Needham, their captain, with undisclosed injuries. According to the team, Krienke is out one to two weeks, while Needham is week-to-week.
With the injuries, the Blazers have added F Deven Sideroff, 16, to their roster for this week. He has 55 points, 26 of them goals, in 33 games with the midget prep team at the Okanagan Hockey Academy.
G Cole Kehler, 16, also has rejoined the Blazers and will stay with the team while G Justin Myles, who was acquired from the Seattle Thunderbirds at the trade deadline, recovers from an undisclosed injury. Kehler also attends the Okanagan Hockey Academy and plays for the midget prep team for whom he has a 19-4 record. He has gotten into six games with the Blazers this season.
The Blazers are at home to the Spokane Chiefs on Tuesday night, then visit the Giants in Vancouver on Wednesday. F Quinn Benjafield, the Blazers’ first pick, 19th overall, in the 2013 bantam draft, is expected to make his WHL debut in Vancouver, which happens to be his hometown. Benjafield, 15, has 34 points, including 14 goals, in 27 games with the major midget Vancouver-North West Giants.
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The ECHL’s San Francisco Bulls folded on Monday. The Bulls had an
affiliation with the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. . . . “We regret to inform
you that the SF Bulls are ceasing operations, effective immediately,”
president/GM/head coach Pat Curcio wrote to season-ticket holders. “The
team was hoping to secure new ownership, however the terms of an updated
deal were unable to be finalized, cancelling the remainder of the
season.” . . . Included on the roster was D Kalvin Sagert (Kamloops,
Lethbridge, Regina, 2002-08). Sagert now is an unrestricted free agent,
as are any Bulls players who don’t have AHL or NHL contracts.---
Ron Judd of the Seattle Times starts your Super Bowl preparations -- it’s the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos on Sunday -- with a piece that includes this: “Denver’s Gates Corporation is the world’s largest producer of automotive belts and hoses. Seattle’s Gates Foundation is the world’s largest curer of global hunger and disease.” . . . There’s more right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks, who have won seven in a row, have earned 17 of a possible 18 points since Jan. 4. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic has 20 points in the nine games he has played since serving a seven-game suspension. He has 63 points in 38 games this season. . . . If you were wondering, the Winterhawks are 5-0-0 since D Mathew Dumba joined them after getting some rest following the World Junior Championship. He’s got six points, including two goals, and is plus-10. . . .
Don’t look now but things are heating up in the WHL’s scoring derby. Spokane Chiefs F Mitch Holmberg continues to lead, with 85 points in 48 games, but Portland F Nic Petan is on the move, with 79 points in 41 games. . . . Holmberg leads the WHL in goals, with 43, and that’s 10 more than Portland F Oliver Bjorkstrand, who is third in the points derby, with 70. . . . Petan leads the league in assists, with 55. . . . Leipsic and Petan shared the scoring title last season, each with 120 points. . . .
The Brandon Wheat Kings, who are 4-0-1 in their last five games, open a four-game road swing in Edmonton against the red-hot Oil Kings today. If you’re in the area, not that the game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. Yes, they are calling it Hockey Hooky. . . .
Kootenay Ice F Luke Philp is on a 10-game point streak, with 16 points in that time, while F Tim Bozon is riding a nine-game tear. He has 15 points over that stretch. . . . Philp has the longest ongoing streak in the WHL at the moment. . . .
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The Prince George Cougars were without three of their top eight scorers as they dropped a 6-3 decision to the Wheat Kings in Brandon on Saturday night. Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen reports that “centre Alex Forsberg (concussion) and winger Chase Witala (upper body) were out with injuries and centre Zach Pochiro was scratched as punishment for his undisciplined play after he took three straight minor penalties in the first period of the Regina game.” . . . The Cougars had lost 8-0 to the Pats in Regina on Friday. . . .
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MONDAY’S GAME:
In Prince Albert, F Zach Pochiro, back in the lineup after sitting out a game as a healthy scratch, forced OT and then won the game in the shootout as the Prince George Cougars beat the Raiders, 6-5. . . . Pochiro tied the game right off a faceoff with 15.4 seconds left in the third period. He then was the only one of eight skaters to score in the shootout. . . . F Todd Fiddler scored twice for the Cougars, giving him 30 goals this season. . . . The Raiders led five times in this one -- 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, 4-3 and 5-4. . . . The Raiders (23-23-3), who had scored five regulation-time goals in their previous five games, are ninth in the Eastern Conference, five points out of a playoff spot. . . . The Cougars (19-26-7) are ninth in the Western Conference, eight points out of the playoffs.---
From Francis Costello (@FrankCostello_): “Welcome back. I actually had to scroll box scores! Business idea alert: $10 annual subscription. I’d gladly play!!”
Hmmm . . . seeing as I’m unemployed . . .
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.
D Bryce Lampman (Kamloops, 2002-03) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Langnau (Switzerland, NL A) after he was released from a tryout contract with the Portland Pirates (AHL). He had no points in eight games with the Pirates during the tryout. Lampman started the season with the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL), getting three goals and nine assists in 21 games before joining Portland.
In Portland, F Brendan Leipsic scored 49 seconds into OT to give the Winterhawks a 4-3 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . The start of the game, played in Veterans Memorial Coliseum with the curtains open, was delayed about 20 minutes because of sunlight streaming in and reflecting off the ice. . . . Leipsic has 41 goals. He and linemate Nic Petan, who also scored once, lead the WHL in goals. Leipsic, with 103 points, leads the scoring race by two points over Petan. . . . Portland overcame a 2-0 lead and was up 3-2 until Vancouver F Cain Franson scored his 23rd goal at 16:01 of the third. . . . By night’s end, the Winterhawks, who lead the WHL’s overall standings, had clinched the U.S. Division title. . . . They lead the overall standings by 10 points over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . 
In Calgary, F Cody Sylvester scored twice to lead the Hitmen to a 3-1 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . Sylvester has 33 goals this season after scoring twice on the PP. . . . Calgary G Chris Driedger stopped 31 shots, losing his shutout bid when F Steven Hodges got his 24th goal, via the PP, at 17:25 of the third. . . . Calgary had played its previous nine games on the road. . . . The Hitmen are second in the Central Division, seven points behind Edmonton. . . . The Royals are tied with the Tri-City Americans for fifth in the Western Conference. . . . Victoria G Coleman Vollrath stopped 22 shots. He got the start after Patrik Polivka apparently was injured during the shootout portion of a 2-1 loss to the Rebels in Red Deer on Friday. The Royals had Michael Herringer, a ninth-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft, backing up Vollrath. Herringer, 16, is from Comox, B.C., and plays for the junior B Victoria Cougars. . . . 
In Medicine Hat, the Saskatoon Blades overcame a 2-0 deficit and beat the Tigers, 4-3. . . . The Blades, the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup, have won 11 in a row and now have sole possession of first place in the East Division, two points ahead of the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . The Tigers had won five straight. . . . Saskatoon trailed 2-0 after one period and 3-2 in the latter half of the third period. . . . The Blades won it with four goals in a span of 6:49. . . . Saskatoon F Brenden Walker broke a 3-3 tie with his 21st goal at 14:09 of the third. . . . The Blades got a goal and two assists from F Shane McColgan. He’s got 15 snipes. . . . F Josh Nicholls scored his 37th goal of the season for the Blades, while F Curtis Valk got his 37th for the Tigers. . . .
In Prince Albert, D Morgan Rielly scored two goals and added an assist as his Moose Jaw Warriors erased a 3-0 deficit and dumped the Raiders, 4-3. . . . The Warriors were 3-for-10 on the PP; the Raiders were 1-for-4. . . . Rielly scored his 10th and 11th goals, both on the PP, the latter tying the score 3-3 at 5:15 of the third. . . . F Sam Fioretti’s 28th goal, on another PP, broke the 3-3 tie at 11:13. . . . F Jayden Hart scored twice, giving him nine, for the Raiders. . . . 
In Brandon, F Jon Martin scored twice, the second one in OT, as the Kootenay Ice got past the Wheat Kings, 4-3. . . . Martin got his ninth goal at 1:17 of OT. . . . Kootenay led this one 3-1 before Brandon got goals from F Nick Buonassisi, his 11th, at 19:13 of the second and, and F Marek Kalus, his fourth, shorthanded, at 2:25 of the third. . . . The Wheat Kings finished a seven-game homestand at 3-3-1. . . . The Ice closed to within a point of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, who hold down the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Lethbridge, the Prince George Cougars erased a 1-0 deficit with five straight goals and beat the Hurricanes, 5-4. . . . F Colin Jacobs had a goal, his 22nd, and three assists for the Cougars, who got two goals from F Klarc Wilson. He’s got eight. . . . Jacobs has seven points over his last two games. . . . The Cougars were 3-for-6 on the PP; the Hurricanes were 1-for-6. . . . F Jaimen Yakubowski scored all four Lethbridge goals, giving him 31. He had a five-goal game earlier in the season. . . . Lethbridge F Russell Maxwell had four assists. . . . The Cougars are three points away from the Western Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Kennewick, Wash., G Troy Trombley posted his first WHL shutout in his second start as the Tri-City Americans beat the Spokane Chiefs, 6-0. . . . Trombley stopped 34 shots as he won for the second night in a row. He earned his first WHL victory on Friday night when he stopped 41 shots for a 6-2 victory in Portland. . . . F Connor Rankin had two goals and an assist for the Americans, who scored four times in the first period. . . . Rankin has 22 goals. . . . The Americans moved into a fifth-place tie with Victoria in the Western Conference, just a point behind Spokane. . . .
In Kelowna, F Brendan Ranford had a goal and an assist to lead the Kamloops Blazers to a 3-1 victory over the Rockets. . . . The previous night, Ranford had a goal and two helpers as the Blazers beat the visiting Rockets, 4-2. . . . The Blazers have won seven in a row. . . . Ranford, who has 17 goals, is on a nine-game point streak, with 18 points in that span. He has five straight multi-point games. . . . Kamloops D Joel Edmundson broke a 1-1 tie with his seventh goal, shorthanded, at 5:45 of the second. . . . Kamloops D Marek Hrbas provided insurance with his seventh goal, at 17:12 of the third. He’s got four goals in his last five games. . . . The Rockets had 18 shots on goal, their lowest such total this season. . . . The Blazers are three points behind the B.C. Division-leading Rockets. . . .
In Everett, the Seattle Thunderbirds scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Silvertips, 4-1. . . . Seattle F Roberts Lipsbergs broke a 1-1 tie with his 22nd goal at 19:46 of the first period. . . . The Thunderbirds had lost seven straight. . . . Everett has lost 10 in a row to equal a franchise record set last sesaon. . . . The victory moved Seattle into a tie for seventh with Everett in the Western Conference.
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