The American Academy of Neurology has changed the way its members will look at concussions. Rather than attempting to group concussions or grade them, the AAN has said that every concussion should be treated on an individual basis.
The New York Times has more right here.
———
Paul Buker of The Oregonian has spoken with Mike Johnston, the suspended general manager and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks.
Early on in the piece, Buker writes:
“Johnston was certainly devastated and shocked by what happened, but he dealt with it, showing the same class and character that has made him so highly respected in the hockey world.
“Johnston remains hopeful he will be able to fully plead his case, and the franchise remains hopeful the penalties will be reduced.
“There has been no comment from the WHL office, which wants to keep the process private.”
Every single person in the WHL, including, I am told, the commissioner, is under a gag order when it comes to Winterhawkgate.
But despite the WHL’s obvious hopes that this whole thing will go away, it isn’t going anywhere. And when hockey people who aren’t involved with the WHL talk about this situation, one thing amazes them more than anything else: There are no grounds for appeal.
And, as Buker points out, Johnston was suspended for the remainder of this season and has yet to be able to “fully plead his case.”
Buker’s piece is right here.
———

The Kelowna Rockets revealed yesterday that F Colton Sissons, the team captain, will be out for up to 12 weeks with an “upper body injury” that is believed to be a shoulder problem.
Sissons left a 6-2 victory over the Giants in Vancouver on Friday night. He had one arm in a sling at the Rockets’ awards bash on Sunday evening.
Sissons missed 10 games with a concussion earlier in the season, an injury that caused him to miss the Canadian national junior team’s December selection camp in Calgary. The Rockets went 8-2-0 while Sissons was injured.
On Sunday, Sissons was named the team’s MVP and top defensive forward.
———
F Michael Ferland, who missed the last five games of the regular season with an undisclosed injury, was back on the ice with the Saskatoon Blades on Monday. He is expected to play in Thursday’s opener against the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers.

———
The Prince Albert Raiders have brought in G Nick McBride, 15, for the remainder of their season. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound McBride, a second-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, played for the major midget Vancouver-North East Chiefs, going 12-7-0, 3.74.
———

Phil Andrews, the radio voice of the Regina Pats, tweeted Monday evening that F Lane Scheidl of the Regina Pats has signed with the Worcester Sharks, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. . . . Scheidl, 20, is a native of Saskatoon. Despite the fact the Pats didn't qualify for the playoffs, Scheidl had a terrific season, earning 80 points, including 41 goals, in 72 games.

———
The Saskatoon Blades have signed three players — F Austin Adamson, F Cameron Hebig and Clayton Kirichenko. . . . Adamson, a list player, spent this season with the major midget Vancouver Canadians. . . . Hebig was the Blades’ first pick in the 2012 bantam draft, taken in the third round, 56th overall. He played with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. . . . Kirichenko, a seventh-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft, played the last two seasons with t the midget AAA Sherwood Park, Alta., Kings. He also got into 10 games with the AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints.
———

The WHL’s first-round playoff matchups:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton (1) vs. Kootenay (8)
Saskatoon (2) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
Calgary (3) vs. Swift Current (6)
Red Deer (4) vs Prince Albert (5)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland (1) vs. Everett (8)
Kelowna (2) vs. Seattle (7)
Kamloops (3) vs. Victoria (6)
Spokane (4) vs. Tri-City (5)
———


 Shaw TV will show the first-round Eastern Conference series between the No. 2-seed Saskatoon Blades and No. 7 Medicine Hat Tigers.
You are going to get play-by-play from Dan Russell, with analysis from Bill Wilms. Peter Loubardias will be the rink-side host. Andy Neal will be the host of WHL Central.
Here’s the schedule (all times local):
Game 1, Thursday, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Game 2, Friday, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Game 3, Tuesday, March 26, at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
Game 4, Wednesday, March 27, at Medicine Hat, 7 p.m.
x-Game 5, Friday, March 29, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
x-Game 6, Sunday, March 31, at Medicine Hat, 6 p.m.
x-Game 7, Tuesday, April 2, at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
x — if necessary.


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By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
The Kamloops Blazers began serious preparations for their playoff opener on Monday.
The Blazers, who begin a first-round series with the visiting Victoria Royals on Friday, did it with centre Matt Needham on the ice and right-winger JC Lipon nowhere to be found.
Needham sat out the regular-season’s last 13 games with an undisclosed injury. Needham, who finished with 33 points, including 12 goals, in 15 games, last played on Feb. 15.
Yesterday, he was wearing a yellow (non-contact) jersey and looked to be skating easily as he centred Tim Bozon and Dylan Willick.
Needham, in his second WHL season, had shown terrific improvement as the winter wore on and had become one of the Blazers’ top defensive forwards and penalty-killers.
Lipon finished his fourth WHL season with 89 points, including 36 goals, in 61 games. He was ill yesterday  so was told to stay home to cut down on the risk of other players getting sick.
Lipon practised in yellow late last week and then sat out the last two regular-season games with what the team said was an “upper body injury.” Head coach Guy Charron said that Lipon ran the risk of aggravating his injury with contact and that the time off would be good for him.
With Lipon not skating, the Blazers had freshman Mitch Friesen in his spot alongside centre Brendan Ranford and Cole Ully. They also moved Chase Souto into Bozon’s spot with centre Colin Smith and Kale Kessy.
A fourth line featured Nick Chyzowski with Aaron Macklin and Josh Connolly.
Forward Deven Sideroff, who had a goal and an assist in his second WHL game, Saturday’s 7-0 victory over the Cougars in Prince George, has returned to his midget team at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton.
Centre Joe Kornelsen, who missed the last six games with a leg injury, was in Interior Savings Centre but didn’t skate. It is looking more and more like Kornelsen, a 19-year-old from Abbotsford who had 12 points in 60 games and provides experienced depth, won’t be ready to open against the Royals.
Victoria will be without centre Alex Gogolev, its leading scorer, after he underwent surgery to repair damage from a skate cut to his left leg.
Neither goaltender Patrik Polivka nor defenceman Tyler Stahl, both of whom have undisclosed injuries, practised yesterday. Both are expected to at least skate today.
Victoria forward Trent Lofthouse, who hasn’t played since Jan. 31, was out of the yellow jersey and back to full practice yesterday. Lofthouse, who was acquired from the Everett Silvertips during the season, is the son of former New Westminster Bruins star Mark Lofthouse.
———
There are other WHL teams with some injury concerns, too.
The Kelowna Rockets revealed yesterday that centre Colton Sissons, their captain, will miss up to 12 weeks with what is believed to be a shoulder injury.
Sissons, a 19-year-old from North Vancouver, is their MVP and top defensive forward. He wasn’t able to finish Kelowna’s 6-2 victory over the host Giants on Friday night after being involved in a collision with Vancouver defenceman Mason Geertsen. Sissons had one arm in a sling at Kelowna’s awards banquet on Sunday.
Sissons, who had 67 points in 61 games, missed 10 games with a concussion earlier in the season, an injury that caused him to miss the Canadian national junior team’s December selection camp in Calgary. The Rockets went 8-2-0 while Sissons was injured.
The Rockets, the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, open against the No. 7 Seattle Thunderbirds in Kelowna on Friday night.
In Saskatoon, the Blades, the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed and the host team for the Memorial Cup, have played five games without winger Michael Ferland. However, he is back practising and should play Thursday when the Blades open at home against the Medicine Hat Tigers.
In Portland, the Winterhawks, who had the WHL’s best regular-season record, were without starting goaltender Mac Carruth, who didn’t finish a 4-1 victory in Victoria on March 12, for their last three games. But he skated lightly on Sunday and is expected to start Friday against the visiting Everett Silvertips.

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The Victoria Royals have signed D Isaac Schacher, who turned 18 on Feb. 7, and he made his debut in Wednesday’s 4-1 loss to the Kootenay Ice in Cranbrook. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound Schacher, from Kimberley, B.C., was pointless and plus-1 in his first game. He plays for the junior B Kimberley Dynamiters of the Kootenay International Junior League, for whom he has 36 points and 44 penalty minutes in 45 games.
———
After a 22-game absence, sophomore F Logan Nelson is scheduled to return to the Victoria Royals’ lineup tonight as they meet the Rebels in Red Deer. Nelson was out with an undisclosed injury that, according to Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist, “put him on crutches.” . . . Nelson, 19, has 31 points, including 23 assists, in 34 games.
———
F Gage Quinney, a list player from Las Vegas, is spending a few days with the Prince Albert Raiders. He has 40 points, 24 of them goals, in 37 games with the Las Vegas Storm of the U.S. U-18 Tier 1 Elite Midget Hockey League. . . . Quinney, 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, is the son of former WHLer Ken Quinney (Calgary, 1981-85), who now is a firefighter in Las Vegas.
———
A total of 34 folks from Prince Albert, all of them involved with the Raiders, civic politics or local businesses, toured Mosaic Place in Moose Jaw on Tuesday. . . . “We’re not going home and getting into a debate about whether we should build a hospital or a bridge or a rink,” Raiders president Dale McFee told the delegation, as quoted in a story by Perry Bergson of the Prince Albert Herald. “That’s not why we’re here … The last thing we want is to go home and start this debate with ‘We’re building a rink tomorrow’ and have everybody up in arms in Prince Albert. There’s a lot of homework that needs to be done. This is just step one.”
The Raiders’ home arena, the Art Hauser Centre, has 2,580 seats and standing room for 786. It is the smallest arena in the 60-team CHL.
Bob MacDonald, who is on the Raiders’ board, told Bergson that the team’s budget has gone from $1.2 million to $2.1 million in 10 years.
“We need revenues,” MacDonald told Bergson. “I think we’re going to find that there’s going to come a point and time when we can’t support a team in a 2,500-seat arena. The league is fine as long as we’re paying our bills.”
Bergson’s complete story is right here.
———
The matchups, if the WHL playoffs opened today:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton vs. Lethbridge
Prince Albert vs. Swift Current
Calgary vs. Medicine Hat
Saskatoon vs Red Deer

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland vs. Seattle
Kelowna vs. Everett
Kamloops vs. Tri-City
Victoria vs. Spokane
———
THURSDAY’S GAME:
In Kelowna, G Jackson Whistle stopped 20 shots and the Rockets three PP goals as they dumped the Everett Silvertips, 4-1. . . . The Rockets had beaten the Silvertips 3-2 in Everett on Sunday. . . . Were the playoffs to begin today, Kelowna and Everett would meet in the first round. . . . Whistle is 13-2-1, 2.01, .927 since being acquired from the Vancouver Giants. . . . F Ryan Olsen scored twice for the Rockets, giving him 30, and added an assist. . . . Kelowna captain Colton Sissons scored his 24th goal and added two helpers. . . . D Landon Oslanski scored for the Silvertips at 19:29 of the second period. However, the goal wasn’t awarded until after a lengthy video review following the end of the period. It was then determined that Oslanski’s shot had gone through the net’s mesh. . . . Everett has lost eight in a row. . . . The Rockets lead the B.C. Division by seven points over the Kamloops Blazers. The teams play tonight in Kamloops and Saturday in Kelowna.
---
CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
None

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
---


From Saskatoon Blades F Logan Harland (@LoganHarland): “Well Dairy Queen Blizzard, looks like its just you and me this Valendines day :) but I’m okay with that because you’re so good it’s rDQlous!”


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Ryan Kinasewich (Medicine Hat, Tri-City, 1998-2004) was released by mutual agreement by Red Bull Salzburg (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had four goals and seven assists in 14 games this season. . . .
F Ashton Rome (Moose Jaw, Red Deer, Kamloops, 2002-06) signed a one-year contract with Dusseldorf (Germany, DEL). He was pointless in five games this season with the Greenville Road Warriors (ECHL). Last season, Rome had 11 goals and nine assists in 66 games with the Portland Pirates (AHL). . . .
F Domenic Pittis (Lethbridge, 1991-94) signed a contract through Nov. 30 with Visp (Switzerland, NL B). He had 12 goals and 19 assists in 49 games with the ZSC Lions Zurich (Switzerland, NL A) last season. . . .
F Martin Hanzal (Red Deer, 2006-07) signed a lockout contract with Ceske Budejovice (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had eight goals and 26 assists in 64 games with the Phoenix Coyotes last season.
F Scott Hartnell (Prince Albert, 1997-2000) has agreed to a lockout contract with KalPa Kuopio (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had 37 goals and 30 assists in 82 games with the Philadelphia Flyers last season. Hartnell’s contract will become effective on Nov. 15 should the NHL lockout still be in effect. Hartnell is one of the owners of KalPa and would join Nashville F Craig Smith on the team. According to the local Kuopio newspaper Savon Sanomat, the agreements with both players are consistent with all NHL locked-out players currently playing in Finland. The players are drawing no salaries; the clubs are providing only travel expenses, local accommodations, and contract insurance premiums. The paper reports that the insurance premiums for Hartnell are about €40,000 per month (US$51,800) and about €10,000 per month (US$12,950) for Smith. . . .
If people are wondering about wages in normal situations in Europe, Swedish player agent Gunnar Svensson told Edmonton Journal reporter Jim Matheson that the three best-paying hockey leagues, in order, are the NHL, the KHL, and Sweden’s Elitserien. He went on to say that top salaries in Elitserien are around $500,000 US per season and the average is about $110,000 US.
———
No longer will teams be able to go into the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland and try to run the Winterhawks out of the bandbox. Paul Buker of The Oregonian has the story right here about how the Coliseum now has an NHL-sized ice surface. . . . The first game on the new surface is scheduled for Sunday with the Tri-City Americans playing the Winterhawks.
———
The Everett Silvertips have trimmed two 19-year-olds players from their roster. . . . G Cole Holowenko has returned home to await a move, while F Zach McPhee has left the club. . . . According to a news release, McPhee chose to leae “to pursue opportunities outside the major junior level.” . . . Holowenko was acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders, but went 0-2-1, 6.41, .808 and was passed on the depth chart by Austin Lotz and Daniel Cotton. . . . McPhee, who came over from the Tri-City Americans in 2010-11, had 10 points in 49 games with Everett. This season, he was pointless in 11 games. . . .
———
Veteran F Drew Czerwonka, 20, has chosen to leave the Kootenay Ice and retire. He had been the team’s captain since the start of last season. . . . In 227 games, Czerwonka, who is from Glenavon, Sask., had 112 points, including 48 goals, and 321 penalty minutes. . . . He was in his fifth season with the Ice, but injuries limited him to 40 games last season. He had four assists in eight games this season. . . . “More or less that he had lost the fire and it's been on his mind for about the past month,” Jeff Chynoweth, the Ice’s president and general manager, told Jeff Holick, the club’s radio voice. “He gave it a lot of thought. He's a very thorough young man and . . . I respect the decision.” . . . For more, check out Holick’s blog over there on the right.
———
FRIDAY’S GAMES:
In Vancouver, the Giants ended a five-game losing streak with a 4-1 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . The Royals had won the first three games of the season series. . . . The Royals are in Kamloops tonight. . . . The Royals, who had won three in a row, didn’t get even one shot on goal in the first period, the second time this season they have been blanked in one period. It happened in Kamloops in the second period of a 5-2 loss on Oct. 10. . . . F Marek Tvrdon had three goals and an assist for the Giants. . . . Tvrdon, a 31-goal man last season, now has four this time around but he is on a seven-game point streak. . . . F Kale Kessy, 20, played in his first game with Vancouver. He was acquired from the Medicine Hat Tigers while in the midst of a 12-game WHL-issued suspension. . . . G Payton Lee, 16, made his second straight start for Vancouver, this time stopping 13 shots. . . . The Giants left on a road trip right after the game and, according to Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province, Lee wasn’t on the bus. He has returned to the junior B Richmond Sockeyes, leaving the Giants with Liam Liston and Tyler Fuhr as their goaltenders. . . . The Giants were without F Cain Franson, who suffered an injury in a 3-2 loss to the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings on Wednesday. He may have been hurt on a play on which Brandon D Tyler Yaworski was given a headshot major. Yaworski was hit with a ‘tbd’ suspension on Friday morning. . . . Vancouver lost F Thomas Foster with an apparent shoulder injury in the first period. . . . The Giants play in Edmonton on Sunday. . . .

The Everett Silvertips won their fourth straight game, beating the visiting Spokane Chiefs, 6-5. . . . It was Everett’s first home victory of the season. The Silvertips, who entertain the Seattle Thunderbirds tonight, are 1-3-1 at home. . . . F Kohl Bauml had two goals for Everett. . . . D Ben Betker had a goal and an assist, both WHL firsts, for the Silvertips. . . . G Daniel Cotton stopped 29 saves in winning his fourth straight game. . . . The Chiefs trailed 6-2 before scoring the game’s last three goals. . . . According to a Spokane news release, “The Chiefs suffered a further blow when leading scorer Mitch Holmberg took a hit to the head midway through the first period and had to leave the contest.” There were no headshot penalties handed out, according to the online scoresheet. . . . Holmberg has 23 points, including 11 goals, in 14 games. . . .

F Colin Smith had a goal and three assists to help the host Kamloops Blazers to an 8-1 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Smith ran his season-opening point streak to 14 games as the Blazers ran their record to 13-0-1. . . . F JC Lipon, the WHL’s leading point man, had three assists. . . . Kamloops has won 11 straight games. . . . F Dylan Willick and F Tim Bozon had two goals each. . . . Kamloops D Tyler Hansen had a goal and two assists. He was playing in his 199th regular-season game and this was his first three-point outing. . . . Bozon also had an assist, giving the Blazers’ big line a 10-point night. . . . Kamloops F Jordan DePape scored in his return from a shoulder injury that cost him six games. . . . The Wheat Kings are 2-3-1 on a seven-game road trip that ends tonight against the Prince George Cougars. . . . The Blazers are at home tonight to Victoria. The Royals beat the Blazers 4-3 in a shootout on Sept. 28 and that is the lone blemish on Kamloops’ record. . . .

G Brandon Glover stopped 44 shots to help the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 3-1 victory over the visiting Tri-City Americans. . . . Glover stopped 17 shots in the third period when his mates scored twice to break a 1-1 tie. . . . This was the first meeting of the season between the teams. Last season, the Americans lost the first game and then won nine in a row from the Thunderbirds. . . . Seattle F Robert Lipsbergs broke a 1-1 tie with his first WHL goal at 4:12 of the third period. . . . Tri-City had won its last four games in Seattle’s home rink in Kent, Wash. . . . After eight in a row on the road, the Americans are at home to the Spokane Chiefs tonight. . . .

F Colton Sissons scored twice to lead the visiting Kelowna Rockets to a 3-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Sissons recorded his 50th career goal and 100th career point. . . . He’s got eight goals this season. . . . Kelowna F Ryan Olsen came off a three-game suspension to score his club’s other goal. . . . The Rockets play in Edmonton tonight. . . . Red Deer F Wyatt Johnson played his first game of the season. He missed all of the exhibition season and 15 regular-season games with a concussion. . . . The Rebels are at home to the Calgary Hitmen tonight. . . .

F Curtis Valk scored five times and set up another as the Medicine Hat Tigers whipped the host Calgary Hitmen, 10-1. . . . F Hunter Shinkaruk had a goal and four assists for the Tigers. . . . Valk, who has a WHL-leading 14 goals, scored three times in the second period as Medicine Hat took a 7-0 lead. . . . The Tigers scored four PP goals in 10 chances. . . .

The Moose Jaw Warriors scored the games last three goals and beat the host Prince Albert Raiders, 3-2. . . . The teams meet again tonight in Prince Albert. . . . F Dakota Conroy scored his eighth goal since coming to Prince Albert in a swap with the Victoria Royals. . . . Moose Jaw F Brayden Point pulled his side even with two second-period PP goals and F Sam Fioretti got the winner at 13:11 of the third. Fioretti has 12 goals. . . . F Justin Kirsch had three assists for Moose Jaw. . . . The Raiders have lost four of their last five home games. . . . Prince Albert F Tim Vanstone completed a four-game suspension. . . .

The Lethbridge Hurricanes reached the .500 mark with a 6-1 victory over the visiting Regina Pats. . . . The Hurricanes are 7-7-1. . . . G Ty Rimmer, who has started all 15 Lethbridge games, stopped 28 shots. . . . Lethbridge held a 55-29 edge in shots, including 44-13 after two periods. . . . The Swift Current Broncos visit Lethbridge tonight. . . . 

First, the Kootenay Ice lost its captain, then it lost a hockey game. F Drew Czerwonka, 20, announced his retirement prior to the Ice dropping a 5-2 decision to the visiting Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Ice was able to dress only 17 skaters, one under the limit. They also are down to two 20-year-olds and GM Jeff Chynoweth is actively looking for a third. . . . The Ice scored the game’s first goal, with the Broncos then scoring four in a row.
———
CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Elliott Peterson, Calgary (twice)
F Henrik Nyberg, Kelowna
D Tyler Bell, Kamloops
F Alex Gogolev, Victoria
F Connor Honey, Seattle

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
———
TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Kamloops Blazers F Jordan DePape (@papskos17): “Congrats to my ex-roommate Kurtis Mucha on becoming the first goalie in Canada West hockey history to score a goal tonight. #he’scatching me”
Mucha stopped 18 shots as the U of Alberta Golden Bears scored a 7-1 victory over the host Lethbridge Pronghorns. . . . Mucha was credited with the game’s first goal at 12:40 of the first period when he was the last Alberta player to touch the puck before the Pronghorns scored an own goal with a delayed penalty about to be called on Alberta. 

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Troy Bourke of the Prince George Cougars, here getting tight coverage
from Patrick Holland (41) of the Tri-City Cougars, beat goaltender
Ty Rimmer twice on Tuesday night.
(Photo by John Allen / AridAcres.com)

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Zdenek Blatny (Seattle, Kootenay, 1998-2001) signed a one-year contract with the Vienna Capitals (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had 20 goals and 26 assists in 47 games this season with the Graz 99ers (Austria, Erste Bank Liga).
———
The NHL in Saskatoon? Why not?
Terry Jones of the Edmonton Sun spent 10 days in Saskatoon covering the Tim Hortons Brier (aka the Canadian men’s curling championship) and takes an extensive look at Toontown and the NHL right here.
———
A note from a WHL fan who lives in Sudbury, Ont.:

JESSE WALLIN

“Is there any precedent in the WHL in giving coach of the year honours to someone whose team never made the playoffs?
“Because I think Jesse Wallin really deserves it.
“I can't think of any coach who's managed to keep his team together with all the injuries he's had to endure.
“The Rebels have won road games in tough buildings on a regular basis with 14 or 15 skaters.
“I don't know if coaches or media vote on this, but it would make a
real statement about the integrity of this league if he got the plaque.”
Can’t argue with that!
And as if to empasize the point, the Rebels, who won’t make the playoffs, went into Medicine Hat and beat the Tigers 4-2 last night.
———
F Dylan Wruck of the Edmonton Oil Kings, who suffered a shoulder injury in a 7-4 victory over the visiting Red Deer Rebels, won’t play until at least the start of playoffs. Head coach Derek Laxdal has told Chris O’Leary of the Edmonton Journal: “He’s doing OK. . . . We’re hoping to have him back for Game 1 of the playoffs, but it’s a wait-and-see approach right now.” . . . The Oil Kings, who will finish atop the Eastern Conference, have three games remaining and are a point behind the Tri-City Americans, who lead the overall standings. Should the Oil Kings win out, they will finish first overall. The Oil Kings are on the road against the Kootenay Ice tonight, the Medicine Hat Tigers on Friday and Red Deer on Saturday.
———
The Kelowna Rockets expect to have F Colton Sissons, their captain, back in their lineup on Friday night as they open a season-ending home-and-home series with the Vancouver Giants. They’ll play in Vancouver on Friday and in Kelowna on Saturday. . . . Sissons, who has been out with a concussion since Feb. 11, skated with contact on Tuesday. . . . Meanwhile, F Spencer Main, who also has been concussed, has skated, albeit without contact, and will see a doctor this week. Main hasn’t played since Oct. 23. . . . Neither will play tonight against the visiting Everett Silvertips. . . . Doyle Potenteau of the Kelowna Daily Courier reports that D Mitchell Chapman is likely to miss the Rockets’ last three regular-season games with an undisclosed injury. He should be ready to go when the playoffs open.
———
If you think there’s a war going on with Brian Burke, the man who runs the Toronto Maple Leafs, and anyone in the media, well, forget it. It’s nothing. Howard Berger, who has been around the Leafs for a long time, has a piece right here that is all about the way it used to be . . . when Harold Ballard was around.
———
THE COACHING GAME:
The QMJHL’s Baie Comeau Drakkar have fired head coach Mario Pouliot. The axe fell with three games left in the regular season and the Drakkar 2-7-1 in its last 10 games and tumbling from ninth to 14th place. Pouliot spent 114 games as the head coach, winning just 37. . . . General manager Steve Ahern has taken over as head coach.
———
F Sven Baertschi of the Portland Winterhawks scored his second goal in three games with the NHL’s Calgary Flames last night. He got the game’s second goal in the Flames’ 3-2 victory over the visiting San Jose Sharks. . . . Former Chilliwack Bruins F Roman Horak drew an assist on Baertschi’s goal. . . . Interestingly, the Flames returned F Krys Kolanos to the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat after the game, while keeping Baertschi on emergency recall. Kolanos was a healthy scratch last night. . . . Baertschi played 20 shifts, including two in OT, totaling 14:06. . . . Vicki Hall of the Calgary Herald has the details of Baertschi’s latest game right here.
In Tampa Bay, G Dustin Tokarski, a product of the Spokane Chiefs (2006-09), stopped 33 shots as the Lightning beat the Stanley Cup-champion Boston Bruins, 6-1. That was Tokarski’s first NHL victory. He was named the game’s second star. . . . This was his fifth appearance with Tampa Bay, three of which have come this season. This season, he is 1-1-0, 2.64, .906. . . .
I got a phone call on Tuesday from a fan of the Chilliwack Bruins (remember them?), pointing out that I missed D Brandon Manning’s NHL debut with the Philadelphia Flyers last week. Manning played three games, finishing plus-2. He played 14:59, 14:01 and 13:57 against visiting Florida, in Toronto and in New Jersey, respectively. . . . With D Kimmo Timonen returning from injury and playing in last night’s 3-0 victory over the visiting New Jersey Devils, Manning was a healthy scratch. But he took part in the morning skate and is still with the Flyers, at least as of last night.
———
TUESDAY’S GAMES:
In Saskatoon, F Matej Stransky had a goal and four assists as the Blades beat the Prince Albert Raiders, 11-5. . . . The game was televised by Shaw and featured a third-period line brawl. . . . Prince Albert D Josh Morrissey tied the game 5-5 on a PP just 37 seconds into the third period. . . . The Blades then scored six straight goals. . . . Stransky, 18, has 77 points, including 37 goals, in 68 games. Last season, he finished with 26 points, 14 of them goals, in 71 games. . . . Saskatoon got two goals from each of F Ryan Olsen, who has 15, Jake Trask, who has 22, and Travis McEvoy, who has six. . . . Prince Albert F Joey Santucci scored his first WHL goal while killing a penalty. Santucci, 17, is from Coquitlam, B.C. He was playing in his eighth game. . . . Saskatoon was 4-6 on the PP. . . . Referees Adam Byblow and Reagan Vetter gave the Raiders 86 of the game’s 165 penalty minutes. Ch-ch-ching! They handed out 85 minutes from a line dance at 14:37 of the third period. . . . Because of injuries, the Blades dressed only four defencemen. . . . The victory lifted the Blades one point ahead of Kootenay and Regina, into fifth in the Eastern Conference. . . .

In Medicine Hat, D Alex Petrovic scored twice to lead the Red Deer Rebels to a 4-2 victory over the Tigers. . . . Petrovic broke a 1-1 tie 39 seconds into the third period with PP goal. . . . F Tyson Ness upped the visitors’ lead to 3-1 with his 20th goal at 10:00. . . . Petrovic has 12 goals. . . . Medicine Hat D James Bettauer scored his 21st goal of the season. . . . Red Deer G Deven Dubyk stopped 28 shots. . . . Medicine Hat G Tyler Bunz turned aside 31 shots but was unable to pick up his 40th victory of the season. . . . The Tigers had six players out with injuries; the Rebels, who had lost four in a row, scratched nine injured players. . . . Jesse Wallin, the Rebels’ general manager and head coach, watched the game from the press box. “I wanted to take in the game from a little different perspective,” Wallin told Greg Meachem, the sports editor of the Red Deer Advocate. “You kind of remove the emotion a bit when you’re sitting up top, it’s a different point of evaluation.” . . . The Tigers remained third in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Calgary. . . .

In Kent, Wash., G Calvin Pickard kicked out 41 shots to lead the host Seattle Thunderbirds to a 3-1 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Pickard stopped Spokane F Steve Kuhn on a first-period penalty shot with the game still scoreless. . . . F Connor Honey scored twice, giving him eight this season, and F Seth Swenson ran his goal streak to three games with his 10th. Swenson also drew two assists. . . . F Brendan Rouse also had two assists for Seattle. . . . All three Seattle goals came via the PP as it went 3-4 with the man advantage. . . . The Chiefs’ PP was 0-6. . . . A note from @WHLFacts: “It's now been 150 games since someone not named Calvin Pickard has won a @SeattleTbirds game.” . . . The Thunderbirds are ninth in the Western Conference but now are just one point behind the Victoria Royals. Seattle has three games remaining, while Victoria has two to play. . . . The Chiefs are fifth, two points behind Vancouver. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., D Jesse Forsberg scored at 1:02 of OT to give the Prince George Cougars a 5-4 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . The goal was Forsberg’s fifth this season. . . . F Troy Bourke scored twice for the Cougars, giving him 18, while F Spencer Asuchak, who began his WHL career with the Americans, had his 16th goal and an assist. . . . Prince George also got two assists from F Caleb Belter. . . . The Cougars erased a 3-1 deficit and took a 4-3 lead on Bourke’s second goal at 12:42 of the second. . . . Tri-City F Adam Hughesman forced OT with his 48th goal at 3:52 of the third. . . . Cougars G Drew Owsley stopped 31 shots, 12 more than Tri-City’s Ty Rimmer. . . . Owsley has 98 career victories, 76 of them with the Americans, who dealt him to the Cougars for Rimmer over the summer. . . . Hughesman scored twice, giving him nine goals in his last five games, and added an assist. . . . Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin scored his 58th goal and added an assist. The WHL’s leading scorer ran his point streak to 21 games and is the first WHLer to 130 points since F Pavel Brendl put up 134 with the Calgary Hitmen in 1998-99. . . . Tri-City F Patrick Holland had two assists, meaning he has at least one assist in 18 straight games. . . . Holland also finished minus-4. . . . The Cougars kept their playoff hopes alive. With two games remaining, they are three points behind eighth-place Victoria. . . . The Americans lead the overall standings by one point over Edmonton and are two points ahead of Portland atop the Western Conference. . . . Edmonton has three games left, while Tri-City has two to play. So if the Oil Kings run the table they would finish first overall.
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TUESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Jesse Forsberg, Prince George.
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TUESDAY’S CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None.
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IF THE PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY:
Eastern Conference
Edmonton (1) vs. Brandon (8)
Moose Jaw (2) vs. Regina (7)
Medicine Hat (3) vs. Kootenay (6)
Calgary (4) vs. Saskatoon (5)
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Western Conference
Tri-City (1) vs. Victoria (8)
Kamloops (2) vs. Everett (7)
Portland (3) vs. Kelowna (6)
Vancouver (4) vs. Spokane (5)
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TODAY’S GAMES
Moose Jaw at Brandon
Lethbridge at Calgary
Edmonton at Kootenay
Prince Albert at Regina
Everett at Kelowna
Kamloops at Spokane
Portland at Victoria

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Garry Davidson, the new general manager of the Everett Silvertips.
(Everett Silvertips photo)

ASK THE COMMISSIONER:
Right off the WHL’s Facebook page comes this question from Doug Schneider: “What really happened with the Chilliwack franchise?”
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Darryl Boyle (Brandon, 2004-08) signed a one-year contract extension with the Augsburger Panther (Germany, DEL). He has six goals and 14 assists in 44 games for the Panther this season.
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There has been an interesting development in the WHL’s decision not to admit to players being sidelined with concussions or post-concussion syndrome.
The Kelowna Rockets are admitting that F Colton Sissons, their captain, has a concussion. In discussing his club’s injuries prior to last night’s game against the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings, Kelowna head coach Ryan Huska told Doyle Potenteau of the Kelowna Daily Courier:
“Potentially, we might have Cody Chikie back, but Colton is out with a concussion. The frustrating part of it is the league is fully aware of Colton having a concussion and yet the player in Kamloops is still playing, so there’s no suspension.
“They talk about head shots and wanting to clean it up, but there we go with another situation.”
Apparently, Sissons was injured in the third period of a 3-2 loss to the visiting Blazers on Saturday.
What is interesting about this is that Bruce Hamilton, the Rockets’ owner, president and governor, is the chairman of the WHL’s board of governors. He will have played a role in the WHL’s decision prior to this season to clam up about concussions.
Which makes one wonder why the Rockets now are admitting that their captain is out with a concussion?
Sissons didn’t play Tuesday in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Seattle Thunderbirds in Kent, Wash. Potenteau reports that Sissons will be out for “one month-plus.”
Sissons was one of seven regulars out of the lineup on Tuesday. He joined D Mitchell Chapman (undisclosed), Filip Vasko (knee), Chikie (undisclosed), F Spencer Main (concussion), F Jessey Astles (undisclosed) and Brett Lyon (WHL suspension). Astles also is believed to have a concussion. Chikie played last night against Edmonton.
Potenteau reported that “according to Kelowna, it leads the league in lost man-games, having hit 300 on Tuesday night.”
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As expected, the Everett Silvertips introduced Garry Davidson as the second general manager in the franchise’s history on Wednesday.
Davidson, 60, had been the Portland Winterhawks’ director of player personnel, having signed on there before the 2008-09 season following the purchase of the franchise by Bill Gallacher. Davidson and Mike Johnston, the GM and head coach of the Winterhawks, are products of Brandon University’s now-defunct hockey program.
It will be interesting to watch Davidson, who is an astute judge of young talent, operate as a general manager in WHL circles. After all, WHL folks don’t think very highly of him, thanks to his many seasons in the BCHL where he proved to be a consistent recruiter of talent against the WHL. In fact, there are a number of WHL people who shake their heads and wonder how it is that he is even working in their league.
Davidson’s philosophy? Here’s what he told a news conference in Everett yesterday: “We're going to put together a team with lots of speed and lots of skill and one that plays an uptempo game. I think it's fan appealing and I think it's a way you can win hockey games.”
A three-time, BCHL coach of the year, Davidson was the owner, GM and head coach of the Salmon Arm SilverBacks. He also worked as GM/head coach in Nanaimo, Penticton, Trail and Victoria.
Having known Davidson since the early 1970s when the likes of him and Andy Murray (the hockey coach, not the tennis player) were hockey/football players at Brandon University, I would recommend that other WHL general managers not under-estimate him. If they do, he will pick their bones clean.
The Silvertips didn’t announce the length of Davidson’s contract, only that it is “multi-year.” I would bet on five years, which seems to be the going thing these days.
The connection between the Silvertips and Davidson is Gary Gelinas, the franchise’s president and governor. They both were owners in the BCHL at the same time.
Davidson takes over from Doug Soetaert, who was in the last season of his contract when he was fired on Feb. 2. It is interesting that Gelinas told a news conference in Everett on Wednesday that he had targeted Davidson before having fired Soetaert.
Gelinas also implied that head coach Mark Ferner, who is in his first season with the Silvertips, won’t be going anywhere. Gelinas said one of the requirements in hiring Davidson was that he had to accept Ferner as the head coach.
The Garry Davidson era started yesterday but on the ice it gets underway on Friday when the Silvertips play host to — you guessed it! — the Winterhawks.
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The Portland Winterhawks have signed F Dominic Turgeon, the son of former NHLer Pierre Turgeon.
Dominic was a third-round selection, 64th overall, in the 2011 bantam draft.
This season, Turgeon, who is said to be a superb skater, is with the U16 AAA Colorado Thunderbirds, who play in the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League. In 35 games, he has put up 37 points, including 23 goals.
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Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reports that the Regina Pats have had two bantam draft picks opt to go the NCAA route, both of them with Ivy League schools. . . . D Alec McCrea, a 10th-round pick in the 2010 draft, is playing with the NAHL’s Janesville Jets and has committed to Harvard. . . . D Nolan De Jong, who was taken in the seventh round in 2010, is with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. He has committed to Cornell.
As well, Harder reports, two of the Pats’ list players, both defencemen, also are planning on going to school.
Harder writes that those two skaters are “Brady Skjei, 17, a highly touted NHL prospect who’s planning to attend the University of Minnesota, and Rhett Holland, an 18-year-old with the AJHL’s Okotoks Oilers who has a scholarship offer from Michigan State.”
However, you can expect the Pats to be active in continuing to recruit those four players.
“Despite those commitments, it doesn’t necessarily mean the door to Regina is closed,” Harder writes. “The controversial exodus of NCAA players to the major-junior ranks has been well publicized, as is the NCAA’s desire to prevent CHL teams from raiding its talent.
“Right or wrong, the Pats would be foolish to not take advantage of the current system and step up their efforts to lure high-end American prospects, especially now that the team has more to offer as it builds momentum toward establishing a winning culture under the guidance of Lang and head coach Pat Conacher.
“In the past, those kind of players would elude Regina and fall in the laps of teams like the Vancouver Giants, Calgary Hitmen and Portland Winterhawks.
“Maybe now it’s the Pats’ turn.”
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It has been quite a couple of months for the Maschmeyer family of Bruderheim, Alta. . . . Bronson, 20, is a defenceman with the Kamloops Blazers. He is having the best season of his career as the team enjoys success the franchise hasn’t seen in more than 10 years. . . . Emerance, a 17-year-old goaltender with the AJHL’s Lloydminster Bobcats, was the starter as Canada’s U-18 women’s team won the 2012 world championship in the Czech Republic early in January. . . . And now there is word that Brock, a 19-year-old defenceman with the AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons, has committed to the Northern Michigan U Wildcats. This season, he has 42 points in 57 games with the Oil Barons. . . . Walt Kyle, who once did a turn as head coach of the Seattle Thunderbirds, is the head coach at NMU.
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Catherine Litt of the Kamloops Daily News continues to search for the origin of the Go Vees Go cap that apparently was worn by waitresses at Warwick’s Commodore Café in Penticton back in the day.
Check right here for the latest on this story.
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Scott McDonald, the head coach of the women’s hockey team at the Rochester Institute of Technology, has pleaded not guilty to a third-degree assault charge after an incident in a rec hockey league game.
There is more on this situation right here.
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The Seattle Times is reporting that a news conference will be held in that city today to outline details of a potential new arena that could be home to NBA and NHL teams. It’s worth nothing that there isn’t a lot of NHL mention here, but you have to think it would be a natural. Anyway, that story is right here.
———
WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:
Firstly, I don’t know what’s going on, but there were nine games played and in four of them a grand total of 11 minor penalties were called. . . . Red Deer at Prince George: Two referees handed out four minors. . . . Brandon at Lethbridge: Two referees called three minors. . . . Regina at Medicine Hat: One referee called three minors. . . . Calgary at Victoria: Two referees found only one infraction worthy of a minor penalty. . . . On Tuesday night, I watched two referees “let the boys play” as the Kamloops Blazers beat the Edmonton Oil Kings, 3-2. Edmonton head coach Derek Laxdal did a marvellous job of biting his tongue after his club didn’t get even one power-play opportunity. . . . Last night, the Oil Kings were 4-for-6 with the man advantage in beating the Rockets 6-3 in Kelowna. . . .

In Kelowna, the Edmonton Oil Kings fell behind 2-0 in the first period and then roared back to beat the Rockets, 6-3. . . . F Zach Franko gave Kelowna a 2-0 lead, scoring on a penalty shot at 18:02 and on the PP at 18:38. . . . The Oil Kings then scored six straight goals, five of them in the second period and three of those on the PP. . . . Leading 2-1, the Rockets had two goals disallowed. On the second one, Kelowna F Brett Bulmer was penalized for goaltender interference. The Oil Kings scored on the PP and they were off to the races. . . . F Tyler Maxwell tied it with two, giving him 34, before F Michael St. Croix, F Rhett Rachinski and D Keegan Lowe found the range. . . . Franko completed his hat trick on the PP at 7:46 of the third. . . . Six of the game’s goals came via the PP, as Edmonton, which was 0-0 in a 3-2 loss in Kamloops on Tuesday, went 4-5 and Kelowna was 2-6. . . . Edmonton D Martin Gernat drew three assists. . . . The Oil Kings now are back within three points of the Blazers, who lead the overall standings. . . . The Oil Kings lead the Eastern Confernce standings by five points over the Moose Jaw Warriors and hold a nine-point edge over the Medicine Hat Tigers in the Central Division. . . . The Rockets, who are winless in five, complete a stretch of four games in five nights when they are home to the Calgary Hitmen on Friday and the Red Deer Rebels on Saturday. . . .

In Moose Jaw, F Kenton Miller scored three times as the Warriors erased a 2-0 deficit and beat the Saskatoon Blades, 5-2. . . . Miller, 20, has 23 goals in 44 games with Moose Jaw after opening the season with three goals in 11 games with the Calgary Hitmen. His 26 goals are a career high. He had 32 points, including 12 goals, in 71 gams with the Spokane Chiefs in 2009-10. This season, in 55 games, he has 36 points. . . . F Cam Braes broke a 2-2 tie with his 33rd goal at 16:23 of the second. . . . Miller added insurance 47 seconds later and completed the hat trick at 14:18 of the third. . . . F Jesse Paradis, a former Warriors skater, opened the scoring with his 15th goal, and fourth shorthanded score, of the season for the Blades. . . . Saskatoon took 52 of 99 penalty minutes. There were five fighting majors handed out at 17:28 of the third period. . . . Might be ch-ch-ching time! . . . The Warriors now lead the East Division by nine points over the Blades. . . .

In Prince Albert, F Taylor Vause scored his 32nd goal of the season just 18 seconds into OT as the Swift Current Broncos beat the Raiders, 4-3. . . . The Broncos snapped a five-game losing streak. . . . Prince Albert forced OT with two third-period goals — F Mike Winther got his 28th goal at 7:11 and F Jesse Knowler got his first WHL score — it was his 45th game — at 16:18. . . . F Coda Gordon had two goals for the Broncos, giving the freshman sensation 23 scores. . . . Swift Current G Jon Groenheyde stopped 41 shots. . . . The Broncos are 15 points out of a playoff spot with 14 games to play. . . . The Raiders are 23 points out with 15 to play. . . .

In Lethbridge, F Brenden Walker scored the game’s first three goals and the Brandon Wheat Kings went on to a 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . Walker, who had three assists in Tuesday’s 4-3 victory over the host Kootenay Ice, scored at 8:07 of the first and 0:21 and 11:21 of the second. . . . Brandon F Mark Stone had two assists. He leads the WHL scoring race with 94 points. . . . Brandon G Corbin Boes stopped 39 shots. . . . Due to injuries, Brandon was down to nine forwards and six defencemen for this one. F Jason Swyripa, who had played 136 consecutive games to begin his career, took the pregame warmup but then was scratched with an undisclosed injury. . . . The Wheat Kings now have won five of six and are eight points ahead of the ninth-place Red Deer Rebels in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Hurricanes are 18 points out of a playoff spot with 13 games left. . . .

At Medicine Hat, F Jordan Weal had a goal and an assist, leading the Regina Pats to a 3-1 victory over the Tigers. . . . Weal has 92 points, including 33 goals. He is two points off the WHL scoring lead. . . . Regina led 2-0 on goals from F Matt Marantz, his 11th, and D Martin Marincin, his eighth, midway through the second period. . . F Trevor Cox got the Tigers on the board at 14:31 of the second. . . . Weal wrapped it up with an empty-netter at 19:24 of the third. . . . Regina G Matt Hewitt stopped 31 shots. . . . The Tigers started Kenny Cameron in goal, giving Tyler Bunz a rest after 25 consecutive starts. Cameron made 25 saves. . . . Regina is seventh in the Eastern Conference, three points behind the Calgary Hitmen and three ahead of the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Medicine Hat is third, four points ahead of the Kootenay Ice. . . .

In Prince George, D Cody Carlson broke a 1-1 tie at 9:50 of the third period as the Cougars beat the Red Deer Rebels, 3-1. . . . Carlson has eight goals. . . . F Troy Bourke scored his 10th goal, an empty-netter at 19:39 of the third. He also assisted on Carlson’s winner. . . . Prince George G Drew Owsley stopped 38 shots, 21 more than Red Deer’s Deven Dubyk. . . . With seven regulars out with injuries, the Rebels had F Scott Feser, D Kevin Pochuk and F Dexter Bricker, all recalls from midget AAA, in their lineup. . . . Feser player his eighth game of the season, Pochuk his fifth and Bricker his fourth. . . . Red Deer F Charles Inglis was pointless in his return to Prince George. The Cougars traded him to Red Deer after sending him home for being in violation of team rules. . . . The victory kept the Cougars in the playoff chase in the Western Conference. They are 10th, one point behind the Everett Silvertips and two behind the Victoria Royals, who hold down the last playoff spot. . . . The Cougars headed south right after the game. They have games in Victoria on Friday and Saturday. . . .

In Portland, G Mac Carruth won for the 35th time this season as the Winterhawks beat the Tri-City Americans, 5-3. . . . Carruth, who leads the WHL in W’s, now is tied with Brent Belecki (1997-98) for the franchise’s single-season record. . . . It also was Carruth’s 80th career win, one more than Belecki put up. Carruth now trails only Darrell May Sr., who earned 105 victories as a Portland goaltender. . . . At one point in the first period, the Winterhawks had a 15-1 edge in shots and were leading 2-0. . . . The period ended with the score tied 2-2 and the shots 25-7. . . . Portland F Marcel Noebels broke the 2-2 tie with his 14th goal at 5:06 of the second period and D Troy Rutkowski upped the lead to 4-2 at 14:28. . . . Portland F Brad Ross was credited with his 100th career goal when Tri-City D Zach Yuen scored an own goal, tipping a cross-ice Ross pass behind G Ty Rimmer. . . . Ross joins Perry Turnbull and Brendan Morrow in the Winterhawks’ 100-200-600 club. That would be 100 goals, 200 points and 600 penalty minutes. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi had a goal and two assists. He has 73 points, including 52 assists, in just 37 games. He has one more assist this season than he picked up in 66 games last season. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie drew two assists, as did D Derrick Pouliot. . . . Rattie and Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin, who scored his sixth shorthanded goal, each have 91 points, three off the scoring lead. . . . The victory lifted Portland, which has won four straight, into a tie with the Americans atop the U.S. Division standings. . . . Portland has won the last three meetings with Tri-City. . . . The Americans are 6-8-3 since having a 13-game winning streak snapped by Kamloops on Jan. 11. . . .

In Victoria, the Calgary Hitmen erased a 2-0 first-period deficit with four straight goals en route to beating the Royals, 5-3. . . . F Victor Rask pulled Calgary into a 2-2 tie at 13:40 of the first period, with his 24th goal, and F Trevor Cheek got his 20th, at 3:37 of the second, to give the visitors the lead. . . . F Danny Gayle’s 12th, at 5:17 of the second, stood up as the winner. . . . The Hitmen snapped a four-game skid. . . .

In Spokane, F Jackson Houck broke a 1-1 tie at 9:35 of the third period as the Vancouver Giants got past the Chiefs, 2-1. . . . Houck has five goals. . . . F Liam Stewart scored his ninth to give the Chiefs a 1-0 lead at 5:38 of the second. . . . Vancouver F Cain Franson got his 23rd at 19:02 of the second. . . . Vancouver G Adam Morrison stopped 32 shots. . . . The home team had a 17-5 edge in shots in the third. . . . The victory lifted the Giants into fourth place in the Western Conference, two points ahead of the Chiefs. Might this have been a first-round preview? . . . The Giants lost F Marek Tvrdon at 20:00 of the first period when he was hit with a match penalty for spearing. He will be hearing from the WHL office. . . . The victim was D Brendan Kichton, who was back for the second period.
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WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Joey Baker, Portland.
———
WEDNESDAY’S CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
D Riley Guenther, Prince Albert.

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.