Showing posts with label Calgary Hitmen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Calgary Hitmen. Show all posts

Thursday, July 27, 2017

Hitmen trim two 20-year-olds ... Rasmussen joins Team Canada's camp ... Ex-Royals coach stays in NHL

The last rays of a setting sun bounce off a cloud over
the Monte Lake fire on Thursday night.
We woke up to a whole lot of smoke on Thursday, but it apparently was coming from the Elephant Hill fire, which is the one that has caused so much damage in the Ashcroft/Cache Creek area, and not the Monte Lake fire that started late Wednesday afternoon. However, by late afternoon on Thursday most of the smoke had moved away from our area, leaving behind a beautiful evening. . . . However, there was quite a bit of air traffic between Kamloops and Monte Lake at the same time, so they obviously aren't out of the woods there just yet. . . . With high winds and high temps forecast -- we've been around 35 and are headed for at least 37 in a day or two -- the summer of fire doesn't appear to be anywhere near its end.
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THE MacBETH REPORT . . .

F Taylor Stefishen (Prince George, 2010-11) has signed a one-year contract with the Edinburgh Capitals (Scotland, UK Elite). Last season, he had 12 goals and 23 assists in 44 games with Dijon (France, Ligue Magnus). He led his team in assists and points.
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A LITTLE OF THIS . . .


The Calgary Hitmen are left with four 20-year-olds on their roster after G Cody Porter and D Jaydan Gordon cleared waivers. . . . That leaves the Hitmen with G Nick Schneider, F Jakob Stukel, F Matteo Gennaro and D Brady Reagan as the four remaining 20s on their roster. Each WHL team will have to declare a maximum of three 20s shortly after the new season begins. . . . Porter, from North Vancouver, was 14-16-3, 3.46, .888 in 34 appearances with the Hitmen last season. In 117 regular-season appearances, 42 with the Vancouver Giants and 75 with Calgary — he is 52-42-9, 3.30, .887. . . . Gordon, from Cochrane, Alta., had two goals and six assists in 70 games last season. He played his first two seasons with the Swift Current Broncos. In 172 career games, he has three goals and 13 assists. . . . Porter’s departure leaves Schneider as Calgary’s undisputed No. 1 goaltender. At the moment, veteran Kyle Dumba, 19, would appear to be No. 2 on the depth chart. Chance are, however, that the Hitmen won’t want to go into the season with a 19-year-old in a backup role. . . . Schneider, who was acquired from the Medicine Hat Tigers this summer, has signed an entry-level contract as a free agent with the NHL’s Calgary Flames, whose parent company also owns the Hitmen.
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F Michael Rasmussen has been added to Team Canada’s roster for the World Junior Showcase that is scheduled to begin today (Friday) in Plymouth, Mich. . . . Rasmussen, from the Tri-City Americans, had last season cut short by a broken scaphoid in his left wrist. His addition to the roster would seem to indicate that he now is healthy. . . . Rasmussen was added after F Tyler Benson of the Vancouver Giants was forced to opt out. He apparently hasn’t yet fully recovered from sports hernia surgery in the spring. . . . F Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings, who has had at least two surgical procedures due to sports hernias, also isn’t able to take part. . . . Also unable to take part are F Gabe Vilardi of the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires and F Adam Mascherin of the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers.
Meanwhile, G Carl Stankowski, who backstopped the Seattle Thunderbirds to their first WHL championship last season, was scratched from Hockey Canada’s U-18 selection camp in Calgary due to an undisclosed injury. His spot was filled by Kevin Mandolese of the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. . . . Team Canada, under head coach Brent Kisio of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, will leave next week for the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Bratislava, Slovakia. The tournament opens on Aug. 7.
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F Kolten Olynek, who played out his junior eligibility last season, has decided to attend the U of Western Ontario and play for the Mustangs in 2017-18. Olynek, who is from Saskatoon, was a second-round selection by the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the WHL’s 2011 bantam draft. . . . He split last season between the Prince Albert Raiders and Saskatoon Blades. During his career, he also played with the Hurricanes, Moose Jaw Warriors and Spokane Chiefs. . . . In 253 regular-season games, he had 32 goals and 45 assists.
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D Austin Adam, who played four seasons in the WHL with the Everett Silvertips and Moose Jaw Warriors, is transferring to Simon Fraser U after spending one season at the U of Western Ontario. . . . The 6-foot-6 Adam, 22, is from Surrey, B.C. He had a goal and two assists in 28 games with the Mustangs last season. . . . SFU plays in the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League.
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Mike Fraser, a veteran WHL scout who now works for the Brandon Wheat Kings, also has been writing a column for the Brandon-based Westman Journal. Those columns have mostly revolved around the world of WHL scouts and there adventures. However, there has been a change at the Journal and Fraser has chosen to end his column-writing career, at least for now. His last column is right here.
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Really . . . I mean, really . . . how are we doing in Kamloops in this summer of flames? Well, it seems that old friend Jack Knox of the Victoria Times Colonist paid us a recent visit and he quite liked what he saw, except for the fact that his volunteer services weren’t needed, that is. . . . His last column is right here.
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If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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THE CONCUSSION REPORT . . .

John Urschel sometimes was referred to as the smartest man in football. Urschel, 26, was in line to be the Baltimore Ravens’ starting centre in the upcoming season, that was before he surprised coaches, teammates and observers by announcing his retirement on Thursday. That decision came two days after researchers released the results of a study in which CTE was found in the brains of 110 of 111 deceased football players. . . . There’s more on Urschel’s decision right here.
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THE COACHING GAME . . .

Ben Cooper, a former WHL assistant coach, has signed on with the NHL’s Florida Panthers as their video coach. Cooper, 40, spent the past three seasons as the Vancouver Canucks’ video coach. Prior to that, he worked two seasons (2011-13) with the WHL’s Victoria Royals. . . . He also has experience with Hockey Canada, and was on the coaching staff of Canadian teams that won gold at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the 2009 World Junior Championship.
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TWEET OF THE DAY



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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:45 PM
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Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Homecomings in Calgary ... T-Birds poised to name head coach ... Pats' Paddock adds players


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 D Kalvin Sagert (Kamloops, Lethbridge, Prince George, 2002-08) has signed a one-year contract with Gherdëina Selva Gardena (Italy, Alps HL). Last season, he had two goals and four assists in 27 games with Fehérvár AV19 Székesfehérvár (Hungary, Erste Bank Liga). . . .
D Emerson Hyrnyk (Prince Albert, Chilliwack, 2009-11) has signed a one-year contract with the Dundee Stars (Scotland, UK Elite). Last season, he had four assists in 26 games with Mount Royal University (U Sports).
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 If they didn’t, the Calgary Hitmen should have had Hagood Hardy’s The Homecoming playing in the background of their Tuesday morning news conference.
After all, Jeff Chynoweth, the Hitmen’s new general manager, is coming back to Calgary for the first time in 31 years, while Dallas Ferguson, the new head coach, is returning to Alberta after coaching in Alaska since 2002. Dallas Thompson, the new director of player personnel, is from Hayter, Alta.
Chynoweth joins the Hitmen after spending 16 seasons as the GM of the Kootenay Ice, a franchise that
The Calgary Hitmen braintrust: Dallas Ferguson (left),
Jeff Chynoweth, Mike Moore and Dallas Thompson.(Photo: Candice Ward/Hitmenhockey.com)
was owned by his family. The Chynoweths sold the Ice earlier this summer to Winnipeggers Greg Fettes and Matt Cockell.
With the Hitmen, Chynoweth takes over from Mike Moore, who now is vice-president and alternate governor. Moore had been the GM since 2013.
Chynoweth spent a good part of his youth in Calgary and, in fact, was the visiting teams’ stick boy at Flames games in the early 1980s. The Flames, of course, own the Hitmen.
Ferguson, meanwhile, takes over from Mark French, who left after three seasons as head coach in order to work in Switzerland.
Ferguson, who is from Wainwright, Alta., has been on the coaching staff of the U of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks since 2004. He has been the head coach since 2008. Before joining the Nanooks’ coaching staff, he was an assistant coach with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs for two seasons.
For Hitmen fans wanting to know Ferguson a bit better, right here is a College Hockey News story from when he was named the Nanooks’ head coach. . . . Click right here and you’ll find a Q&A that CHN managing editor Adam Wodon did with Ferguson early last season.
www.collegehockeynews.com/news/2008/05/21_ferguson.php
Assistant coaches Trent Cassan and Joel Otto are returning to work alongside Ferguson.
Thompson replaces Dan Bonar, who spent 14 seasons with the Hitmen, the last four as director of player personnel. Thompson worked for the Hitmen for the past two seasons as B.C. scouting director. He is a long-time WHLer, having spent 10 seasons as the general manager of the Prince George Cougars.
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With the Calgary Hitmen having hired Dallas Ferguson as their new head coach, it leaves the Seattle
Thunderbirds as the only one of the WHL’s 22 franchises without a head coach.
The Thunderbirds, the WHL’s reigning champions, are poised to name a a successor to Steve Konowalchuk who left after six seasons and now is an assistant coach with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks. That announcement is scheduled for today (Wednesday) at noon PT.
Matt O’Dette, an assistant coach alongside Konowalchuk for the past four seasons, is believed to be the leading candidate as Seattle’s next head coach.
What it all means is that, barring any more changes, six teams will have new head coaches when the new season arrives.
Besides Calgary and Seattle, the Everett Silvertips, Kootenay Ice, Spokane Chiefs and Victoria Royals have made changes.
In Everett, the Silvertips chose not to renew Kevin Constantine’s contract after four seasons, and have replaced him with Dennis Williams.
In Kootenay, Luke Pierce, the Ice’s head coach for two seasons, got caught up in an ownership change and has been replaced by James Patrick.
In Spokane, veteran head coach Don Nachbaur and the Chiefs split up after the season and he has since signed on as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings.
In Victoria, the Royals lost head coach Dave Lowry to Los Angeles, also for an assistant coaching position. The Royals promoted assistant coach Dan Price to head coach.
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The Regina Pats will be the host team for the 2018 Memorial Cup tournament, and GM/head coach John Paddock is having a busy offseason. He picked up F Matt Bradley, a sniper, from the Medicine Hat Tigers in a move that garnered some notice. In a couple of other moves, Paddock has signed F George King, 19, who scored 36 goals with the MJHL’s OCN Blizzard last season, and F Rayman Bassi, who had 49 points with the major midget Okanagan Rockets. . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has more right here.
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The Vancouver Giants have signed D Parker Hendren to a WHL contract. From Regina, Hendren was a seventh-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . Last season, Hendren had 15 points, two of them goals, in 43 games with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians.
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If you would like to attend seventh annual TeamSnap Hockey Coaches Conference in Vancouver on Friday and Saturday, Taking Note has a deal for you. Click on The Coaches Site website right here and as you register enter the coupon code TakingNote and you’ll get 20 per cent off the registration fee. . . . Enjoy the weekend!
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If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Coaching

 Two men with ties to the WHL moved into the NHL coaching ranks on Tuesday. . . . Kelly Buchberger (Moose Jaw, 1984-86) has left the Edmonton Oilers organization and now is an assistant coach with the New York Islanders. . . . In Pittsburgh, the Penguins moved Mark Recchi (New Westminster, Kamloops, 1985-88) into an assistant coaching role, filling the vacancy created when Rick Tocchet signed on as head coach of the Arizona Coyotes. . . . Buchberger, 50, spent nine seasons with the Oilers, six as an assistant coach before moving into player personnel and player development. . . . Recchi, 49, has been in player development with the Penguins for the past three seasons. He also is a co-owner of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers. Recchi will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame later this year.
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Ted Nolan has signed on as the head coach of Poland’s national men’s team. Nolan, a former NHL coach of the year, spent four years with the Latvian national team. Tom Coolen, an assistant coach with Nolan in Latvia, will fill the same role in Poland.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:40 PM
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Monday, July 10, 2017

Today is it for Hitmen ... Kisio moves up with U-18 side ... Inside the KHL in tweets


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 D Keaton Ellerby (Kamloops, Moose Jaw, 2004-08) has signed a one-year contract with Mora (Sweden, SHL). Last season, he had three goals and nine assists in 43 games with Lukko Rauma (Finland, Liiga).
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The Calgary Hitmen are poised to make some personnel introductions today (Tuesday).
As was first reported here late Saturday, the Hitmen will name Jeff Chynoweth their new general
manager, with Dallas Ferguson taking over as head coach.
As well, Dallas Thompson will move up to head scout after working for the Hitmen in B.C. for the past two seasons.
Chynoweth, of course, has long been associated with the Edmonton/Kootenay Ice. He, his mother Linda and brother Dean sold the Ice earlier this summer to Winnipeggers Greg Fettes and Matt Cockell.
With the Hitmen, Chynoweth will take over from Mike Moore, who now is  vice-president and alternate governor. Moore had been the GM since 2013.
Ferguson, a native of Wainwright, Alta., will succeed Mark French, who left after three seasons as head coach to take a job in Switzerland. Ferguson, 44, has been at the U of Alaska-Fairbanks since 2004-05. He spent four seasons as an assistant coach and has been the head coach since 2008-09. Ferguson was named head coach on May 21, 2008, about a month after he had stepped in as interim coach following the resignation of Doc DelCastillo.
As a player, Ferguson spent four seasons (1992-96) as a defenceman with the Nanooks.
Thompson, a former WHL player who spent 16 seasons with the Prince George Cougars, the last 10 as GM, will replace Dan Bonar, who had been with the Hitmen for 14 seasons, the last four as director of player personnel.

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Brent Kisio, the head coach of the Lethbridge Hurricanes, has moved up to head coach of the Canadian U-18 team that will play in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup next month. . . . Kisio, who was named as an assistant coach earlier this summer, replaces Paul McFarland, the former head coach of the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs who now is an assistant coach with the NHL’s Florida Panthers. . . . Kisio is preparing for his third season as the head coach in Lethbridge. . . . Drew Bannister, the head coach of the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves, has been added to the U-18 team as an assistant coach. . . . The Ivan Hlinka Memorial runs from Aug. 7-12 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Bratislava, Slovakia.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes won’t have Russian F Egor Babenko back for a third season. This means that they are looking at veteran D Igor Merezhko, who is from Ukraine, and Russian F Yegor Zudilov as their two imports in 2017-18.
Merezhko, 19, has two goals and 29 assists in 128 regular-season games with the Hurricanes.
Zudilov, who will turn 17 on Sept. 10, was selected in the CHL’s 2017 import draft. He had 65 points, including 31 goals, in 35 games with Avangard Omsk’s U-17 team last season. The previous season, he put up 63 points, 31 of them goals, with Avangard Omsk’s U-16 side.
Babenko, now 20, has signed a two-year contract with Lada Togliatti of the KHL. He had 53 goals and 71 assists in 133 regular-season games with the Hurricanes.
Babenko is eligible to play one more season in the WHL, but as a 20-year-old import he would have been a two-spotter.
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One day after losing director of player personnel Ryan Jankowski to the Buffalo Sabres, Hockey Canada waved farewell to one of its goaltending coaches Monday as Fred Brathwaite left to join the New York Islanders. . . . Brathwaite has worked with Hockey Canada’s U-18 team for the past three seasons. He also has been involved with Canada’s national junior team.
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If you are planning on attending the seventh annual TeamSnap Hockey Coaches Conference but haven’t yet registered, don’t forget that we’ve got a deal for you. . . . The conference runs Friday and Saturday in Vancouver, so time is running out for you to register. You are able to get 20 per cent off the registration fee by clicking right here. Tour around the site and when you register just enter the coupon code TakingNote and you will get the discounted rate.
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If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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If you have any interest at all in the inner-workings of the KHL — i.e. how does it survive? — read this series of tweets from Slava Malamud.


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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:13 PM
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Sunday, July 9, 2017

Source: Hitmen announcements coming today ... Rasmussen fine, but sits out ... Hockey Canada loses top scout


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 F Egor Babenko (Lethbridge, 2015-17) has signed a two-year two-way contract with Lada Togliatti (Russia, KHL) after his rights were acquired from CSKA Moscow. Last season, with Lethbridge, he had 24 goals and 31 assists in 66 games. . . . Babenko was a first-round selection (19th overall) by CSKA in the 2014 KHL junior draft. . . . Babenko, 20, had 124 points, including 53 goals, in 133 games over two seasons with the Hurricanes.
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 The Calgary Hitmen are expected to make at least three hockey operations-related announcements and Taking Note has been told that it could happen as early as today (Monday).
When Taking Note suggested that the Hitmen might prefer to wait until Stampede Week is over — the
JEFF CHYNOWETH
annual Calgary Stampede pretty much owns the Calgary media at this time of July — the response was: “I’m hearing it will be announced (Monday).”
Whenever it happens, the Hitmen are expected to introduce Jeff Chynoweth as general manager, with Dallas Ferguson having been named head coach and Dallas Thompson head scout.
Chynoweth will take over from Mike Moore, who was named the franchise’s vice-president and alternate governor on May 15. Chynoweth spent the past 16 seasons as the general manager of the Kootenay Ice.
Ferguson will replace Mark French, the head coach for the previous three seasons who left to coach in Switzerland. Taking Note also was told Sunday that Ferguson had been in the mix in Spokane before the Chiefs hired Dan Lambert as head coach. Ferguson has been the head coach of the U of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks since 2008-09.
Thompson will fill the vacancy created when the Hitmen chose to terminate Dan Bonar, although the organization has yet to announce his departure. Bonar had been with the Hitmen for 14 seasons, the last six as head scout or director of player personnel.
Thompson, who spent 10 seasons as the general manager of the Prince George Cougars, has been scouting in B.C. for Calgary for the past two seasons.
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F Michael Rasmussen of the Tri-City Americans didn’t take part in a Sunday scrimmage at the Detroit Red Wings’ development camp in Traverse City, Mich. It was the only scrimmage of the camp. . . . Rasmussen, who was the ninth overall selection in the NHL’s 2017 draft, suffered a broken scaphoid in his left wrist in February and didn’t play again last season. . . . He participate in the first two days of Detroit’s development camp and all went well, so he was held out of the scrimmage as a precaution. . . . Detroit’s camp concludes on Tuesday.
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The seventh annual TeamSnap Hockey Coaches Conference runs Friday and Saturday in Vancouver. Should you attend, you will hear from a number of hockey coaches. But you also will get presentations from the likes of Dr. Lawrence Spriet of the U of Guelph; Jason Dorland, co-owner of Your Mindset Coaching; Pavel Barber, Glenn Carnegie and Jim Vital, all of whom are skills coaches; and Mike Snee, the executive director of College Hockey Inc.
Yes, the Hockey Coaches Conference covers a lot of bases.
If you want to attend but haven’t registered, Taking Note has cut a deal on your behalf. Click right here to register, enter the coupon code TakingNote, and get 20 per cent off your registration fee.
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The NHL’s Buffalo Sabres have hired Ryan Jankowski as their director of amateur scouting. Jankowski spent the previous four seasons working with Hockey Canada, first as head scout and later as director of player personnel. He oversaw player evaluation and selection for Canada’s national junior team as well as the U-18 and U-17 programs. . . . Before joining Hockey Canada, Jankowski, who is from Calgary, spent 10 years with the Montreal Canadiens and seven with the New York Islanders. . . . The Sabres also announced that they have promoted Jeff Crisp to assistant director of amateur scouting. He spent last season as the club’s head amateur scout.
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G John Chartrand, who played with three major junior teams, was killed in a car accident in Toronto on Friday, his 24th birthday. Chartrand died when his car slammed into the back of a slowing transport truck on Highway 401 around 3 a.m. He was the lone occupant of the car.
Chartrand, who played with the OHL’s Niagara IceDogs, Barrie Colts and Belleville Bulls, was one of the players involved in the class-action lawsuit filed against the CHL, OHL, QMJHL, WHL and their teams in an attempt to gain minimum wage, vacation pay and other benefits. . . . If you are interested, Chartrand’s affidavit, which was taken in June 2016, is right here.
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If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:37 PM
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Saturday, July 8, 2017

Do Hitmen have their men? ... Big day for Seibel family ... Ice adds a coach


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Scattershoot

 Spent most of Saturday inside taking a break from the smoke, so here’s some scattershooting . . . 
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Mark Recchi, who is from Kamloops and stands about 5-foot-8, played 21  NHL seasons and, according to hockeyzoneplus.com, had career earnings of US$50,943,000.
Kelly Olynyk, who is from Kamloops and is a 7-footer, has played four NBA seasons with the Boston Celtics and, according to sportrac.com, has career earnings of US$9,321,294. A few days ago, he agreed to a four-year deal with the Miami Heat that could pay him $50 million.
Yes, Olynyk will make almost as much over the next four seasons as Recchi made in 21 seasons.
Over his first eight seasons, Recchi was paid $9,133,000. When Olynyk’s four-year deal with the Heat is up, he will have been paid $59,321,294 over eight seasons.
Meanwhile, James Harden, now with the Houston Rockets, has agreed to a four-year extension that, starting in 2019-20, would pay him US$37.8 million, $40.8 million, $43.8 million and $46.8 million.
If you see anything about Harden and $228 million, that total includes his salary over the next two seasons, too. No matter how you look at it, though, that’s a lot of dough. You just wonder where it all ends, though, don’t you?

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Yes, we are burning up in B.C.
The photo was taken off our deck, facing east, on Saturday at 1 p.m. You can’t see it, but Mount
Martin is located through all that smoke.
Yes, this is quite similar to the late summer of 2003 although the fires aren’t (yet?) quite as close to Kamloops as they were in that hot time.
Still, you hear nightmarish stories . . . like the employee of a shop in a local mall who on Saturday, with smoke everywhere, says she noticed a woman in a van smoking while hooked up to a portable oxygen tank.
The smoker flipped the butt out the window, so the employee walked over, ground the butt into the asphalt and reprimanded the smoker. The employee also said that she was going to jot down the licence plate, and walked around to the rear of the van to do just that.
At which point, the smoker started the van and put it in reverse.
Injuries were avoided.
Welcome to the burning of B.C.
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“Cornerback Shareece Wright took a 450-mile Uber ride to Buffalo to make the Bills’ voluntary offseason workout,” reports RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com. “At the very least, he's a lock for the taxi squad.”
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Here’s a great suggestion, as passed along by Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times . . .
Author unknown, with a good argument for calling one’s toilet the Jim instead of the John: “It sounds better when I say I go to the Jim first thing every morning.”
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You make the call, suggests the afore-mentioned Perry . . .
The greatest 99 in history is:
Wayne Gretzky
J.J. Watt
George Mikan
Warren Sapp
Aaron Judge
Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn
Barbara Feldon
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 D William Wrenn (Portland, 2010-12) has signed a one-year contract with Bolzano (Italy, Erste Bank Liga). Last season, he had three goals and six assists in 38 games with the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
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 The next general manager of the Calgary Hitmen?
A well-connected source has told Taking Note that the position is to be filled by Jeff Chynoweth, the
former president, governor and general manager of the Kootenay Ice.
Chynoweth, his mother Linda and brother Dean recently sold the Ice, leaving the WHL without a Chynoweth involved for the first time since 1972.
The Hitmen have been without a general manager since May 15 when Mike Moore, who had been the vice-president of business operations and GM, was named vice-president and alternate governor.
The Hitmen also are in need of a head coach, Mark French having left after three seasons in order to coach in Switzerland.
Jeff Chynoweth also has worked with the Brandon Wheat Kings, Medicine Hat Tigers, Red Deer Rebels and Spokane Chiefs. He was Kootenay’s general manager for 16 seasons (2001-17). The Ice won WHL titles in 2000, 2002 and 2011, also winning the Memorial Cup in 2002.
Meanwhile, it has been suggested to Taking Note that the leading candidate to replace French as Calgary’s head coach is Dallas Ferguson, who has been at the U of Alaska-Fairbanks since 2004. Ferguson, a 44-year-old from Wainwright, Alta., was an assistant coach with the Nanooks for four seasons and has been the head coach since 2008-09.
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If you are wanting to attend the seventh annual TeamSnap Hockey Coaches Conference in Vancouver but haven’t yet registered, well, we have a deal for you.
The conference runs Friday and Saturday and here’s how you can get 20 per cent off your ticket: Simply click right here to register and enter the coupon code TakingNote to receive the discount.
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There was exciting news in the Seibel household on Saturday when the Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced that Sophia, daughter of Teresa and Steve, has been selected on a full-time basis to the Girls Elite REX (Regional Excel Centre) Program that operates out of Burnaby, B.C. Entrance to this program is by invitation only, so this is a great accomplishment.
From the news release:
“Sophia joined TOFC (Thompson-Okanagan FC) as an intake U12 player in 2014. She is a technically and tactically strong player who has become a perennial BC Soccer High Performance Program selection. She has been part of the Whitecaps FC Prospects Academy in Kamloops for the past three years. Her highly competitive character will serve her well as she moves on to the next level of high performance soccer.”
Sophia’s brother, Sol, was selected by the Swift Current Broncos in the seventh round of the WHL’s 2014 bantam draft. A defenceman, he played last season as a 17-year-old with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers, putting up eight assists in 49 games.
Teresa is a triathlon competitor and coach, who, among other things, also is a swim coach.
Steve, a lawyer in Kamloops, is a basketball referee who has worked in three Olympic Summer Games, including last summer in Rio de Janeiro, and countless other international games.
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The Kootenay Ice has named Doug Swanson as its mental skills coach. . . . From a news release: “Swanson has more than 20 years of experience as a mental skills coach, working with numerous athletes in diversified sports disciplines including hockey, basketball, figure skating, golf, volleyball, ringette, baseball, swimming, synchronized swimming and gymnastics. (He) has worked with numerous high-performance hockey programs in the WHL, Hockey Alberta and currently supports the U18 and development female high performance program.” . . . Swanson, from Sorrento, B.C., has a masters in educational psychology, along with a bachelor of education in special education, and a mental deficiency nursing diploma. He is a retired teacher, having taught for 32 years.
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If you’re a regular here, and even if you aren’t, feel free to make a donation to the cause. You are able to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
BTW, if you want to contact me with some information or just feel like commenting on something, you may email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:43 PM
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Sunday, June 18, 2017

Hitmen closing in on GM/head coach? ... Calgary signs draft pick ... Ex-WHLers in NHL coaching mix


F Ian McDonald (Tri-City, 2000-06) has signed a one-year contract with Gherdëina Selva Val Gardena (Italy, Alps HL). Last season, with Corona Brașov (Romania, MOL Liga), he had 26 goals and 36 assists in 38 games. He led his team in assists and was fourth in the league’s scoring race. . . .
F Martin Erat (Saskatoon, Red Deer, 1999-2001) has signed a one-year extension with Kometa Brno (Czech Republic, Extraliga). Last season, he had 13 goals and 23 assists in 39 games. . . .
F Jared Aulin (Kamloops, 1997-2002) has signed a one-year extension with Rapperswil-Jona (Switzerland, NL B). Last season, he had 19 goals and 35 assists in 47 games. . . .
F Brett Sonne (Calgary, 2004-10) has signed a one-year contract with Angers (France, Ligue Magnus). Last season, he had 10 goals and 21 assists in 37 games with Herlev (Denmark, Metal Ligaen). . . . Angers’ head coach is Brett’s older brother, Brennan (Everett, Red Deer, Edmonton, 2005-08; assistant coach Everett, 2014-17).
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 Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
To all who took the time to offer congratulations after Taking Note was awarded a Paul Carson Award for a third straight year, thank you so much. It really means a lot.
There is no doubt in my mind that the best part of social media — like Facebook and Twitter — is the way it allows people to be in touch and to stay in touch. Once again, this all was proof of that.
Thanks again.
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The Calgary Hitmen have signed F Ryder Korczak to a WHL contract. He was a second-round selection in the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft. Last season, he had 27 goals and 56 assists in 30 games with the bantam AA Yorkton Terriers. He also played two games with the midget AAA Yorkton Maulers, recording two assists. . . . His older brother, Kaedan, was a first-round selection by the Kelowna Rockets in the 2016 bantam draft. Kaedan, a defenceman, played four regular-season and five playoff games with Kelowna last season.
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Meanwhile, the Hitmen continue their search for a general manager and a head coach.
They need a GM after the parent Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation moved Mike Moore, who also had been vice-president of business operations, to vice-president and alternate governor on May 15. Moore, a veteran of 20 seasons in the WHL, 10 of them with Calgary, had been the GM through four seasons.
The Hitmen need a head coach because Mark French, who signed a multi-year extension a year ago, left late last month to take over as head coach of the Fribourg-Gottéron Dragons of Swizerland’s NL A. French had spent three seasons as Calgary’s head coach.
There has been speculation that the Hitmen have shown interest in having Tim Hunter fill both positions. Hunter, 56, is preparing for his fourth season as the head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors, who announced on June 2 that he had signed a contract extension, the length of which wasn’t revealed.
It’s doubtful that the Warriors would release Hunter from his contract were he to move to another coaching position, but they almost certainly would let him go were he to take a GM/head coach job.
Hunter has some history with Calgary, having played nine full seasons (1983-92) and parts of two others with the Flames, who, like the Hitmen, are controlled by CSEC.
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Former WHL/NHL tough guy Rudy Poeschek now is facing a charge of failing to appear in court after missing a June 2 court date at which he was to have been tried on a charge of breaching probation. A warrant has been issued for his arrest. . . . Tim Petruk of Kamloops This Week has more right here.
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As you were laying in bed last night, you were wondering: Whatever happened to Peter Pocklington? . . . Well, the man who traded Wayne Gretzky — or did he sell him? — from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings is living in Palm Desert, Calif., and continuing to ponder ways to make money. Marty Klinkenberg has a look at Pocklington right here.
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If you’re a regular here, and even you aren’t, feel free to contribute to the feeding of the Drinnan family by making a donation to the cause. You are able to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
BTW, if you want to contact me with some information or just feel like commenting on something, you may email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Coaching

 The NHL’s Minnesota Wild are searching for an assistant coach to replace former NHL hitter Scott Stevens, who left the team after the season. According to Michael Russo of the Minneapolis StarTribune, Bob Woods, a former WHL player who did a turn as the Saskatoon Blades’ GM/head coach, “is the likely frontrunner.” . . . That’s because Woods has a long history with Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau, having coached alongside him with the AHL’s Hershey Bears and the NHL’s Washington Capitals and Anaheim Ducks. . . . Woods spent last season as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, but they have a new general manager (Jason Botterill) and a new head coach (Phil Housley) so change is in the wind. . . . Russo also speculates that a couple of other former WHLers — Ryan McGill and Dean Chynoweth — may be in the mix in Minnesota. McGill is the head coach of the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack. Chynoweth didn’t coach last season after spending the previous season as the head coach of the San Antonio Rampage, the Colorado Avalanche’s AHL affiliate. . . . According to Russo, Boudreau wants “a former defenceman with NHL experience.” McGill and Chynoweth both played and coached in the NHL.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:25 PM
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Sunday, May 28, 2017

Spitfires win 99th Memorial Cup ... Is it time for a format change? ... Hitmen looking for new head coach


D Ty Wishart (Prince George, Moose Jaw, 2004-08) has signed a one-year contract with Dynamo Pardubice (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, he had five goals and six assists in 49 games with Banská Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga).
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 F Aaron Luchuk broke a 3-3 tie at 5:07 of the third period as the host Windsor Spitfires won the 99th Memorial Cup with a 4-3 victory over the OHL-champion Erie Otters on Sunday night. . . . This was the best game of what had been a rather mundane tournament. . . . The Spitfires, who won the tournament for the third time in nine years, ran the table in the four-team tournament, going 4-0. . . . The Otters wound up 3-2. . . . Also in the tournament were the QMJHL-champion Saint John Sea Dogs, who went 1-2 in the round-robin and then lost 6-3 to Erie in the semifinal game, and the WHL-champion Seattle Thunderbirds (0-3). . . .
Erie held 2-1 and 3-2 leads during the championship game. . . . Windsor F Jeremy Bracco, who finished with a goal and two assists, opened the scoring, on a PP, at 16:07 with his third goal of the event. . . . Erie F Dylan Strome tied it 49 seconds later. He finished with seven goals, one shy of the tournament record. . . . Erie took the lead at 5:35 of the second period, on a PP, when the puck hit F Warren Foegele (2) in the left skate and bounced into the net. The goal call was confirmed after video review, although many observers were left wondering exactly what constitutes a distinct kicking motion. . . . Windsor pulled even 52 seconds later when D Logan Stanley scored his first goal. . . . Erie went back out front at 12:41 as F TJ Fergus, the son of former NHL F Tom Fergus, scored his first goal. . . . The Spitfires tied it again, at 14:53, on another PP goal, this one from F Graham Knott (3). . . . That set the stage for Luchuk’s winner, which was set up by Bracco. . . . Windsor got two assists from each of F Gabriel Vilardi and Logan Brown. . . . Strome added an assist to his goal. . . . Both goalies had great games. . . . Michael DiPietro stopped 32 shots to record the victory over Troy Timpano, who made 18 saves. . . . Windsor was 2-4 on the PP; Erie was 1-4. . . . Announced attendance: 6,519, the tournament’s first sellout in the WFCU Centre, which has a capacity of 6,500. It also was the first sellout of the 2016-17 season in the facility. . . . Steve Papp, who works in the WHL, was one of the game’s two referees. The other was the OHL’s Darcy Burchell. . . .
Strome and F Taylor Raddysh of Erie led the tournament with 11 points each. . . . Strome also led in goals (7), while teammate Alex DeBrincat had a tournament-high eight assists. . . . DiPietro finished 4-0, 2.00, .932. . . . Windsor’s Rocky Thompson is the first head coach to win a Memorial Cup without having won a playoff series. . . . The Spitfires lost out to the London Knights in Game 7 of a first-round playoff series and then were off for 44 days before the tournament opened. . . . The last host team to win the Memorial Cup? The QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes, in 2012. All told, 10 host teams have won it all since the format was adopted in 1983. . . . The 2018 Memorial Cup tournament, which will celebrate 100 years, is scheduled to be held in Regina with the WHL’s Pats as the host team. . . . Erie played in its 95th game of the season on Sunday, while Windsor was playing No. 79. . . .
The OHL now has won three straight Memorial Cups. . . . Windsor joins the Cornwall Royals and Kamloops Blazers atop the list, each with three Memorial Cup championships since the round-robin format began. . . . The New Westminster Bruins/Kamloops franchise won five titles. . . . Warren Rychel, the Spitfires’ general manager, has won three championships, tying Matt Leyden (Oshawa Generals, 1939, 1940, 1944) and Bob Brown (Kamloops, 1992, 1994, 1995). . . . Rychel is expected to leave the Spitfires for a spot in the front office of the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche.
Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun has a game story right here.
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Every year, it seems, the Memorial Cup format comes under fire once the tournament has concluded.
When the host team wins, which is what happened on Sunday when the Windsor Spitfires did just that, well, the flames seem to be just a little bit hotter.
OHLBut, really, is there a better way to decide a Memorial Cup champion than under the present format?
Ideally, it would be decided the way it was back in the day — with the eastern and western champions meeting in a best-of-seven series.
There also was a time (1972-82) when the Memorial Cup was decided in a three-team format without a host team. How do you think the 2017 event would have been received had it featured the Erie Otters, Saint John Sea Dogs and Seattle Thunderbirds in Windsor?
Having a host team allows an organizing committee to turn the tournament into a 10-day festival of sorts. Knowing where the tournament will be well in advance also means fans are able to book vacations and make plans to attend.
The one thing the 2017 tournament did was provide more evidence that junior hockey has lost its way to a certain degree. When it comes to ticket pricing, junior hockey needs to realize that it’s just that — junior hockey. Even with the Spitfires playing well and going 3-0 in the round-robin, the only game in Windsor that sold out was the final one.
It will be interesting to see how the Regina organizing committee and the CHL price tickets for the 2018 tournament in the Brandt Centre, which has a capacity of 6,484.
As we prepare for Regina, maybe the thing to do is come to the realization that the Memorial Cup doesn’t mean what it once did. Winning a league championship in the OHL, QMJHL or WHL is what it’s all about; winning a Memorial Cup is gravy, but it’s not the end of the world if a team gets there and comes up short.
While we’re at it, let’s take Memorial Cup week — or Memorial Cup 10 days — for what it is, a celebration of hockey, a time to enjoy being around other hockey people, fans and media (or what’s left of the media), and have a good time.
Now . . . about those ticket prices.  
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The Calgary Hitmen are in the market for a head coach.
The Hitmen announced Sunday that Mark French, their head coach for the past three seasons, has
signed on as head coach of the Fribourg-Gottéron Dragons of Switzerland’s National League A.
Rumblings about that possibility surfaced early this month with reports from Europe that French was to be interviewed by the Dragons.
Under French, the Hitmen went 117-80-19, qualifying for the playoffs each season. This season, Calgary was 30-32-10, grabbing the Eastern Conference’s second of two wild-card spots, before being swept by the Regina Pats in a first-round playoff series.
The Hitmen had signed French to what the club said was a “multi-year extension” on June 20.
French, who is from Milton, Ont., had joined the Hitmen after being head coach of Medveščak Zagreb in the KHL. He also was to have been an assistant coach with the U-18 Canadian team that will play in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament in August.
There now are two WHL teams without a head coach, the other being the Spokane Chiefs.
Former Kelowna Rockets coach Dan Lambert, who was fired last week by the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres as head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, has been rumoured to be in the mix in Spokane.
The Hitmen also are looking for a general manager, having promoted Mike Moore to vice-president and alternate governor on May 15. Moore is acting as general manager until a successor is found. Moore, who has been with the Hitmen for 10 seasons, had been Calgary’s GM through the past four seasons.
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If you’re a regular here, and even you aren’t, feel free to contribute to the feeding of the Drinnan family by making a donation to the cause. You are able to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
BTW, if you want to contact me with some information or just feel like commenting on something, you may email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).

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.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:53 PM
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