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I can’t remember the last time ticket scalpers, of the Internet or street-corner variety, were interested in a WHL game but that was the case Monday in Regina prior to the Pats meeting the Swift Current Broncos in Game 7 of an Eastern Conference second-round series. When I asked columnist Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post when was the last time that had happened, he responded: “I can’t recall a precedent for that.”
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The Broncos went into Game 6 on Saturday night with a 3-2 series lead over the visiting Pats. The Broncos then went on to build up a 3-1 lead in Game 6. However, the Pats scored the last four goals in that one, for a 5-3 victory, then opened Game 7 in Regina on Monday by scoring the first four goals en route to a 5-1 victory.
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Regina hadn’t played host to a Game 7 in 45 years. In 1972, the Pats beat the visiting Flin Flon Bombers, 3-2, in Game 7 to win a first-round series, 3-2-2. That was an eight-point series — the first team to eight points won — and there wasn’t any OT. . . . According to Pats historian Kevin Shaw, this also was the first time in franchise history that the Pats had won a series after trailing 3-1. The Pats are the oldest junior franchise in existence.
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F Adam Brooks was on the Pats’ bench for a third straight game Monday, and for a third straight game he didn’t get on the ice. Brooks, who put up 250 points over the past two regular seasons, injured a knee in Game 2 of the second-round series. He is in his final junior season, and it had to provide motivation for his teammates to have him there. You know that teammates would look down the bench, see Brooks and think: “We don’t want his season to end like this.” . . . Now we will have to wait and see if he’ll be able to play in the Eastern Conference final.
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A memorial was built, a winning team was iced and our town rallied behind @SCBroncos in a way many haven't seen in their life. Good year.— Ryan Swïtzer (@ryan_switzer) April 18, 2017
The Broncos may have bowed out in the second round but you can bet that the community-owned team’s board of directors will look at this as a successful season. They got six home playoff dates and that will make a huge difference to their bottom line, likely guaranteeing a profit for the 2016-17 season. That’s rather important for the team that plays in the 60-team CHL’s smallest market.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes and the Tigers are in Medicine Hat for their own Game 7 tonight. The Hurricanes needed seven games to get past the Red Deer Rebels in the first round, while the Tigers were sweeping the Brandon Wheat Kings. The Hurricanes scratched five regulars — D Calen Addison, F Matt Alfaro, F Zane Franklin, F Ryan Vandervlis and F Zak Zborosky — from Game 6 so you’re free to wonder if/when fatigue sets in. . . . “There’s times that I expected them to look a little more tired than they have,” Shaun Clouston, the Tigers’ GM and head coach, told Sean Rooney of the Medicine Hat News. “What (Tyler) Wong and (Giorgio) Estephan have done this series has been unbelievable, it’s been spectacular. They’ve played an absolute ton every night, almost like two lines. Now the challenge is can they keep it going? So far they’ve been very effective at doing that. We have to expect them to be able to do that again and match it.”
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While flipping channels last night, I happened to hear the first two rules of baseball, according to Chicago White Sox broadcaster Ken (Hawk) Harrelson: “First rule. Not hitting, not pitching or anything. You got to catch the ball. Can’t give that other team 28, 29, 30 outs when you’re getting 27. The next rule in baseball is don’t mess with Joe West.”
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With the visiting Washington Capitals and Toronto headed to OT on Monday night, Bryce Thoma, an assistant coach with the Saskatoon Blades, picked Tyler Bozak to win it for the Maple Leafs. Bingo! Bozak’s goal gave Toronto a 4-3 victory. . . . That came one day after Thoma picked Ottawa D Dion Phaneuf to score in OT against the visiting Boston Bruins. Bingo!! Phaneuf won that one. . . . Thoma was last seen headed for a lottery kiosk.
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You are aware, of course, that the Toronto Maple Leafs have as many victories in these playoffs (2) as the Toronto Blue Jays have in the 2017 regular season.
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You are aware, too, that Canadian teams now are 8-7 in the NHL playoffs, which comes after starting 0-5. Canadian teams also are leading in four series. Sorry, NBC-TV. . . . OK. You may have seen that coming. But no way you saw Dart Man as a first-round star.
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F Axel Blomqvist (Lethbridge, Victoria, Moose Jaw, 2012-15) has signed a one-year contract with Osby (Sweden, Division 2). This season, he had two goals in six games with the Tulsa Oilers (ECHL); went pointless in seven games with Södertälje (Sweden, Allsvenskan); and had a goal and two assists in seven games with Kristianstad (Sweden, Division 1).
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F Keegan Iverson of the Portland Winterhawks has joined the Ontario Reign, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings. Iverson, who played out his junior eligibility this season, had 70 points, including 26 goals, in 55 regular-season games with Portland. In five seasons with the Winterhawks, he had 80 goals and 110 assists in 293 games. He also may be the only player in WHL history to have played at least one playoff game in six consecutive seasons. . . . Iverson, from St. Louis Park, Minn., was selected by the New York Rangers in the third round of the 2014 NHL draft but never signed.
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Two days after being named to Team Canada’s roster, F Cody Glass of the Portland Winterhawks scored twice and added an assist in a 7-3 victory over Switzerland at the IIHF U-17 World Championship in Poprad, Slovakia, on Monday. Glass and the Winterhawks were eliminated from the WHL playoffs on Friday in Kelowna; he was added to Team Canada’s roster on Saturday morning. . . . F Stelio Mattheos of the Brandon Wheat Kings also scored for Canada, giving him at least a goal in three straight games. F Tate Olson of the Tri-City Americans scored for Canada, too. . . . Finland (3-0-0-0) leads Group A with nine points. Canada (2-1-0-0) is second, with eight. Teams get three points for a regulation victory, two for an OT victory and one for an OT loss. . . . Canada meets Finland today as the round-robin portion of the tournament ends.
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It was like dominoes falling in the OHL on Monday. . . . The Sudbury Wolves announced that Barclay Branch had stepped down as general manager. Later in the day, he was named vice-president of hockey operations and general manager of the Flint Firebirds. . . . In Flint, Branch replaces George Burnett as GM. You may recall that the OHL sent Burnett into Flint a year ago to, according to an OHL news release, “re-establish the team both on and off the ice.” . . . Later on Monday, Burnett was named GM and head coach of the Guelph Storm and, to complete the circle, Rob Papineau now is the GM in Sudbury. . . . There’s more on these announcements at ontariohockeyleague.com.
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Reports late Monday night indicated that Grant Potulny, an assistant coach with the Minnesota Gophers, will be introduced today as the head coach of the Northern Michigan Wildcats. Potulny, 37, is from Grand Forks, N.D., and is a cousin to former Portland Winterhawks F Paul Gaustad. . . . Potulny played four seasons at Minnesota, then went on to a pro career that ended after the 2008-09 season. He has been on staff at Minnesota for eight seasons and also has twice been an assistant coach with USA Hockey’s national junior team. . . . At Northern Michigan, he will take over from Walt Kyle, whose contract wasn’t renewed after 15 seasons there.
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Just the most inspiring thing I've seen in forever: @NHL legend Bobby Carpenter pushing @dlaing14 across the #BostonMarathon finish line. pic.twitter.com/iekFNuQybp— Lisa Altobelli (@Lisa_Altobelli) April 17, 2017
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MONDAY’S GAME:
The #Regina #Pats charge on to the ice to celebrate their Game 7 victory of a #WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series. pic.twitter.com/6dtI4h9Wce— Darren Steinke (@StanksSports) April 18, 2017
At Regina, the Swift Current Broncos didn’t have an answer for the Man of Steel as the Pats posted a 5-1 victory in Game 7 of a second-round series. . . . The Pats will open the Eastern Conference final at home on Friday night. The opponent will be the winner of tonight’s Game 7 between the host Medicine Hat Tigers and Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Regina hasn’t been in the conference final since the spring of 1993. . . . Regina F Sam Steel, the WHL’s reigning scoring champ, went into last night with three goals and six assists in the first six games against the Broncos. He gave the Pats a 1-0 lead at 2:19 of the first period and made it 3-0 at 9:19 of the second period, with his seventh goal of these playoffs. Both of last night’s goals came on rebounds. . . . In between, F Filip Ahl added his second goal, at 4:57 of the first period, scoring on a breakaway after two Broncos defencemen collided at their blue line. . . . F Austin Wagner increased Regina’s lead to 4-0 at 15:36 of the second. . . . Trailing 4-0 and on the PP with six minutes left in the third period, the Broncos pulled G Jordan Papirny for an extra attacker and F Conner Chaulk (2) got them on the scoreboard at 14:33. . . . Shortly after, the Pats took another penalty and Papirny was back on the bench. This time, Wagner scored a shorthanded goal into the empty net. He’s got 10 goals now. . . . The Pats got three assists from D Connor Hobbs, with Ahl adding an assist to his goal. . . . The Broncos were without F Lane Pederson for a second straight game. . . . Swift Current was 1-6 on the PP; Regina was 0-5. . . . The Pats got 23 saves from G Tyler Brown, while Papirny blocked 38. . . . Papirny ended his career with a combined 159 regular-season (119) and playoff (40) victories. That is believed to be second in WHL history, behind Mac Carruth, who put up 166 (117 and 49) victories with the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Papirny recorded 145 victories with the Brandon Wheat Kings, who dealt him to the Broncos in January. . . . G Tyson Sexsmith is believed to hold the WHL record for regular-season victories, having put up 120 with the Vancouver Giants. He also had 30 playoff victories. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484, the 20th sellout of this season in Regina.Job well done @WHLPats As much as it hurts to see the @SCBroncos run end, u deserve a stick tap for handling adversity very well. Good luck!— Liam Choo-Foo (@lchoo65) April 18, 2017
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TUESDAY’S GAME (all times local):
Lethbridge at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 3-3)
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However, Brent Sutter, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Rebels, has told Greg Meachem, the sports editor of the Red Deer Advocate, that he is testing the wind before becoming fully involved.
1. Followers of the Portland Winterhawks may be sweating a bit as the Vancouver Canucks’ field of coaching candidates narrows. There are rumblings from some corners of the Vancouver media that Willie Desjardins is the leading candidate to replace the fired John Tortorella. However, Desjardins, the former Medicine Hat Tigers’ GM/head coach who guided the Texas Stars to the AHL title, may well end up with the Pittsburgh Penguins. . . . According to a tweet from Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada: “PIT interviewed him by phone Wednesday, now bringing him in. That's a quick-moving romance.” . . . Should Desjardins go to the Penguins, that might move Mike Johnston, the Winterhawks’ GM/head coach, to the top, or near the top, of the Canucks’ list. Johnston has some history in Vancouver, too, having worked for the Canucks as an assistant and associate coach. . . . Dan Bylsma, who was fired the other day as head coach of the Penguins, also has been interviewed for the Canucks’ job. But he may end up with the Florida Panthers. Or will the Panthers sign Gerard Gallant, an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens? . . . What this all means is that the guessing games in the media will continue for another day or two, and Portland fans will continue to hold their collective breath.
2. The Saskatoon Blades have promoted Steve Hildebrand from trainer to assistant general manager. Hildebrand spent 13 seasons on the Blades’ training staff. He also spent time with the SJHL’s Flin Flon Bombers, the AHL’s Manitoba Moose and the U of Manitoba Bisons. . . . According to a news release from the Blades: “Hildebrand's role will include helping manage and track the players on the Blades’ 50-man protected list, and taking care of team travel arrangements, contracts and league paperwork, while also watching players at all levels including bantam, midget, junior A and the WHL.” . . . The Blades also announced the hiring of James McDonald as their athletic therapist. He spent the past two seasons as the trainer/equipment manager with the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more 
3. For the first time since 1995, Ron Rumball no longer is the general manager of the SJHL’s Weyburn Red Wings. It was announced at the team’s annual meeting that head coach Bryce Thoma (Red Deer, 1999-2002) also is the GM now. . . . Rumball remains with the Red Wings and will work in player development. . . . For the longest time, Rumball was the GM and Dwight McMillan the head coach with the Red Wings. In fact, it seemed they were partners longer than Hope and Crosby.
4. The Everett Silvertips have extended the contract of assistant coach Mitch Love through the next three seasons. Love, a former WHL defenceman, has been on the Silvertips’ staff for three seasons now. He will continue to work alongside head coach Kevin Constantine. The Silvertips also will sign a second assistant coach before the season arrives. . . . Love, who turned 30 on Sunday, played five seasons in the WHL (Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Everett, 2000-05). He played two seasons under Constantine with the Silvertips, helping them to the Western Conference championship in their expansion season and serving as team captain the following season, as a 20-year-old.
5. Former Spokane Chiefs head coach Bill Peters has been signed as the head coach of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes. . . . General manager Ron Francis will introduce the first head coach of his regime today at noon EST. . . . Peters, 48, has been on head coach Mike Babcock’s staff with the Detroit Red Wings for the past three seasons. Before that, Peters spent three seasons as head coach of the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. . . . Peters was the Chiefs’ head coach for three seasons (2005-08), winning the Memorial Cup in the spring of 2008. . . . Peters and Babcock are former WHL head coaches and both were head coaches with the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns. Peters was a head coach with the Chiefs for four seasons before going to the Pronghorns.
6. The Brandon Wheat Kings have revealed that they sold 1,662 season-tickets by the time its early-bird deadline flew by on Friday. That’s up 33 from the same time last season. . . . “We were hopeful that the increase would have been larger than what it is to date and yet we’re encouraged that there has been quite a few new season tickets sold, and that’s a good sign for us . . .,” Kelly McCrimmon, the Wheat Kings owner, GM and head coach, told James Shewaga, the sports editor of the Brandon Sun. “I think it was helpful for us that we were selling season tickets while our team was still playing, that was a good move by us ... and I think people are excited about our team and the upcoming year.” . . . The Wheat Kings had 2,361 season-ticket holders last season.
F Brett Breitkreuz (Kelowna, Edmonton, Vancouver, 2006-10) signed a one-year contract with Augsburger Panther (Germany, DEL). He had three goals in 35 games with Cologne (Germany, DEL) and seven assists in 12 games while on loan to Duisburg (Germany, Oberliga) this season.
There really wasn’t anything new in the report that surfaced Monday about the WHL wanting to put a franchise in Nanaimo. That is old news. Even before the Victoria Royals moved from Chilliwack where they were the Bruins (remember them?), the WHL was talking about wanting to have a team in Nanaimo. There was a time when the WHL’s pooh-bahs said they wouldn’t put just one team on Vancouver Island, that it had to be two teams. . . . Well, now they’ve got one team there and they badly want another one, simply to alleviate some of the travel logistics.
The ownership group of the Trenton Titans has pulled the franchise out of the ECHL. It looks like poor attendance was a major factor, but is sounds like the owners are hoping to resurrect the franchise after a year away. . . . The Titans were affiliated with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. . . . According to a statement from the ECHL, all Titans players signed to ECHL contracts, except those owed as future considerations, are unrestricted free agents. . . . Jenna Pizzi of the Times of Trenton has the story 
The AHL’s Chicago Wolves have signed a three-year affiliation deal with the NHL’s St. Louis Blues. . . . The Wolves had been hooked up with the Vancouver Canucks, while the Blues owned the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen. However, the Blues have sold the Peoria franchise to the Canucks. . . . Speculation was that Vancouver would end up with its AHL affiliate in Abbotsford, B.C. But the Calgary Flames have said they will continue to operate the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat.
The Red Deer Rebels and assistant coach Bryce Thoma have parted company “after a mutually agreed upon decision,” according to a news release. . . . Thoma played four seasons (1999-2003) with the Rebels and was part of their 2001 Memorial Cup-winning team. He also played for the U of Saskatchewan Huskies while earning a commerce degree. . . . He had been on the Rebels’ coaching staff since 2008. . . .
The ECHL’s Las Vegas Wranglers announced Tuesday that Ryan Mougenel, the general manager and head coach, won’t be back for another season. He had been with Las Vegas for four seasons.
In Calgary, the Hitmen scored five second-period goals and beat the Edmonton Oil Kings, 5-2. . . . F Trevor Cheek got Edmonton on the board at 6:29 of the first, via a PP. . . . F Greg Chase scored for Calgary just 24 seconds into the second period and the Hitmen went on to build a 5-1 lead. . . . Calgary had 12 players with at least one point, but only F Calder Brooks with two. He had a goal and an assist. . . . Calgary was 2-for-8 on the PP; Edmonton was 2-for-5. . . . Hitmen G Chris Driedger stopped 27 shots; Edmonton starter Laurent Brossoit didn’t finish. . . . Edmonton D Griffin Reinhart left in the third period with an undisclosed injury. . . . The Hitmen were without F Jake Virtanen, who was suspended for two games earlier in the day. That was for a knee-on-knee hit on Edmonton D Cody Corbett in Game 2. The Oil Kings have said Corbett will miss at least two games. . . . 
In Kamloops, the Blazers reunited the line of Tim Bozon, Colin Smith and JC Lipon, and then beat the Winterhawks, 5-1. . . . Bozon had two goals and two assists. . . . Smith had a goal and two assists. . . . Lipon had one assist. . . . The Blazers got 35 saves from G Cole Cheveldave, who was especially good in the first period. He finished with 35 saves. . . . Portland got the game’s first goal, from F Ty Rattie on an early 5-on-3, but didn’t score again. . . . Rattie leads the WHL with 14 goals this spring. This one was the 44th goal of his playoff career, leaving three shy of former Medicine Hat Tigers F Mark Pederson, who holds the WHL career record. . . . Rattie also has 85 career playoff points, one shy of former Calgary Hitmen F Brad Moran, who is third on the list.
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