Time for WHL to honour Kennedy? . . . Monarchs close in on Calder Cup . . . Parrish in coaching game

SHELDON KENNEDY

To say the last few months of Sheldon Kennedy’s life have been amazing would be something of an understatement.
Consider that . . .
On Dec. 26, it was announced that he would receive the Order of Canada, which recognizes “outstanding achievement, dedication to community and service to the nation.”
On May 12, the Manitoba government announced that Kennedy, who is from Elkhorn, Man., will be inducted into the Order of Manitoba on July 9. This is Manitoba’s way of recognizing, according to the Winnipeg Sun, “people who have demonstrated excellence and achievement in any field of endeavour, benefiting the social, cultural or economic well-being of Manitoba and its residents.”
On May 25, the U of Guelph announced that Kennedy would receive the 2015 Lincoln Alexander Outstanding Leader Award. According to the university, the award “honours exemplary and dedicated Canadian leaders whose careers have included groundbreaking, socially significant pursuits.”
On June 8, the U of Calgary honoured Kennedy by presenting him with an honourary degree, Doctor of Laws. According to a news release from the university, the honourary degree “is the University of Calgary’s highest academic honour, bestowed on individuals whose notable achievements and community service merit recognition.”
These awards follow such honours as being named Calgary’s Citizen of the Year for 2012, a Scotiabank Humanitarian Award and the 2014 David Foster Foundation Humanitarian Award.
In making its announcement the U of Calgary referred to Kennedy as “Canada’s finest role model.”
Here’s more from the U of Calgary’s news release:
“Kennedy’s decision to go public with charges against his former junior hockey coach brought the issue of child sexual abuse to the social forefront. He has become an unofficial, international spokesperson for abuse survivors and has made personal appearances on Oprah, ABC’s Nightline, W-5 and The Fifth Estate. Kennedy was named Canada’s newsmaker of the year in 1997 and his life story was made into an award-winning television movie, The Sheldon Kennedy Story, which aired in 1999.
“In 2013, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the official naming of the Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre, a first-of-its-kind facility that utilizes a collaborative model for investigating and treating child abuse. Kennedy serves on the centre’s board and continues to influence social change through Respect Group, the company he co-founded to provide empowering online education for the prevention of abuse, bullying and harassment in youth.”
For more on what is happening with the Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre, click right here.
Kennedy, who will turn 46 on June 15, played three seasons with the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos (1986-89), and it was during that time when he was sexually abused by Graham James, the team’s general manager and head coach.
Kennedy went on to a nine-season professional career that included 310 NHL games with the Detroit Red Wings, Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins. But he was a broken man and wasn’t nearly the player he could have been under different circumstances.
To have known Kennedy then and to see what he has made of his life is to have witnessed a most remarkable transformation. In so doing, Kennedy has become one of the most influential and most respected people in our country.
Unfortunately, I don’t believe the WHL has an award for people in Kennedy’s situation. The WHL’s Governors and Distinguished Service awards are given to people who have contributed to the WHL and/or its teams in a distinguished fashion.
Perhaps it’s time the WHL inaugurated an award for former WHLers — players, coaches, front-office types, owners, whomever — who have gone on to bigger and better things outside the league.
Perhaps it could be called the Sheldon Kennedy Award.
Perhaps Sheldon Kennedy could be the first recipient.
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F Ben Maxwell (Kootenay, 2003-08) signed a one-year contract with Sochi (Russia, KHL). This season, Maxwell was an alternate captain with Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk (Russia, KHL). In 46 games, he had 14 goals and 13 assists. . . . He also played 12 regular-season games with league-champion Kärpät Oulu (Finland, Liiga), scoring three times and adding three assists. In 19 playoff games, he had seven goals and five assists. . . .
F Colton Yellow Horn (Lethbridge, Tri-City, 2003-08) signed a one-year contract with Orli Znojmo (Czech Republic, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with the Nippon Paper Cranes Kushiro (Japan, Asia HL), he had team highs in goals (21), assists (38) and points (59). He also led the team, at plus-23.
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In the AHL, the visiting Manchester Monarchs scored three second-period goals en route to a 6-3 victory over the Utica Comets in Game 4 of the Calder Cup final series. . . . The Monarchs, who are affiliated with the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, hold a 3-1 lead in the series, with Game 5 in Utica tonight. . . . Manchester, which was founded in 2001, has never won the Calder Cup. The Monarchs will move to Ontario, Calif., after this season. . . . The Monarchs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, but the Comets, who are affiliated with the Vancouver Canucks, tied it before the period ended. . . . The Monarchs broke the tie with two PP goals and then F Nic Dowd got his second goal of the game at 19:49. . . . F Sven Baertschi scored his eighth playoff goal for the Comets. . . . Monarchs G Patrik Bartosak (Red Deer, 2011-14) stopped 22 shots as he made his first pro playoff start. . . . Attendance was 3,835.
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Oscar Johnson, who worked on the medical staff with the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies, has pleaded guilty to one charge involving the prescription of painkillers that may have ended up in the hands of the late Derek Boogaard. . . . Benjamin Weiser and John Branch of The New York Times have more right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Mark Parrish is the new head coach of the boys’ hockey team at Orono High School in Orono, Minn. Parrish, who played one season with the Seattle Thunderbirds (1997-98), retired as a player following the 2011-12 season. He began helping with the Orono hockey team late this season. . . . There’s more right here.
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THE CONCUSSION REPORT:

“The lawsuit against a Thayer Academy high school field hockey coach, accused of putting a player on the field with a concussion, highlights the need for player safety protocols, doctors and coaches say,” writes Lindsay Kalter of the Boston Herald.
“A Superior Court judge ruled that Amy Dugan, a junior at Braintree’s Thayer Academy in 2011, can sue coach Erin Cash for negligence. According to the decision in which a judge denied the defendant’s motion to dismiss, the player was hit in the head with a field hockey ball, and the coach failed to get the player evaluated.
“The player was put in a game five days later, when she suffered a second head injury.”
Kalter’s story is right here.

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Wheaties win in Edmonton . . . Tambellini OT hero . . . Langhamer, Hill pitch shutouts

If you didn’t watch the fifth estate’s episode — The Pain Game: Drugs, Doctors and Pro Sports — you should give it a view. It’s right here.
A lot of the news magazine’s show deals with the late Derek Boogaard and it really is scary stuff.
The foundation for a lot of the show is work done by Len Boogaard, Derek’s father who has retired from the RCMP. Through this, Len has documented the trail of drugs that led to his son’s opiate addiction and, ultimately, to his death.
The document is 23 pages in length and to sit and peruse it, one prescription at a time, really is overwhelming.
“In an effort to better understand the circumstances that contributed to the death of my son,” Len writes, “I requested documentation from team medical staff, outside physicians, the NHL’s substance abuse program, the rehabilitation facilities Derek attended, drug testing facilities and the pharmacies that filled his numerous prescriptions.
“In addition, I have spoken with a number of people who knew Derek and I have analyzed his own personal documents, such as cell phone, bank and email records.
“I was not always provided with the documentation I requested; however, I believe I have obtained information sufficient to construct a time-line of sorts spanning from Derek’s first entry in a rehabilitation facility in September 2009 until his passing.”
The document is heart-breaking and raises all kinds of questions. More than anything, though, it shows how the NHL, a couple of NHL teams, the NHLPA and various doctors — a couple of whom all but run from the fifth estate’s camera — failed Derek Boogaard.
You really need to watch this episode of the fifth estate. And if you haven’t already, read Boy on Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard. Written by John Branch of The New York Times, this is a devastating look at how Boogaard went from a fun-loving youngster who was just trying to fit in to an NHL enforcer who was enabled every step of the way.
Package all of this together and you get a look at an unseemly side of the NHL.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:

In Edmonton, G Jordan Papirny stopped 41 shots and the Brandon Wheat Kings scored the game’s last two goals as they beat the Oil Kings, 3-2. . . . The Wheat Kings lead the series 2-1 with Games 4 and 5 scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Both games are to be televised by Sportsnet. . . . Last night, Brandon D Macoy Erkamps, in his fourth WHL season but in the playoffs for the first time, broke a 2-2 tie at 6:02 of the third period. . . . Brandon F Jayce Hawryluk had tied it at 2:31 of the third with his third goal of the series. . . . The Wheat Kings took a 1-0 lead on F John Quenneville’s goal with 26.3 seconds left in the first. . . . The Oil Kings scored twice in the second — F Davis Koch at 1:54 and D Ben Carroll, on the PP, at 6:30. . . . The Oil Kings thought they had tied the score late in the third period when F Brandon Baddock had his own rebound go off his chest and past Papirny. But the goal was disallowed after video review. . . . “Hands are tied: you can’t glove it in, you can’t high-stick it in, you can’t use your feet, so I tried to use my body,” Baddock said on the Oil Kings’ website.“They said . . . I kind of directed my shoulders into it, and obviously that’s not allowed.” . . . Edmonton G Tristan Jarry stopped 26 shots. . . . Brandon F Braylon Shmyr was unsuccessful on a penalty shot at 16:23 of the first period. . . . Edmonton was 1-for-4 on the PP; Brandon was 0-for-3. . . . Edmonton F Mads Eller left the game in the first and didn’t return. He was injured when he hit one of the gates at the Oil Kings’ bench in attempting to check Shmyr. Eller’s status for Tuesday’s game isn’t known. . . . The Oil Kings took out D Marshall Donald and F Brayden Brown, replacing them with D Jake Kohlhauser and G Tyson Gruninger. . . . Brandon had F Duncan Campbell and F Tanner Kaspick back after they missed the first two games. To get them in, Brandon took out F Stelio Mattheos and D Mark Matsuba . . . Attendance was 5,957. . . . Bruce Luebke, the radio voice of the Wheat Kings, reports that Brandon F Quintin Lisoway is expected to have knee surgery today. Lisoway last played on March 4.

In Calgary, F Adam Tambellini’s goal at 16:36 of OT gave the Hitmen a 3-2 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . The series is 1-1 as it heads for Cranbrook, B.C., and games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . F Pavel Kamaukhov scored both of Calgary’s regulation-time goals, both via the PP. He also drew an assist on the winner. . . . Kamaukhov gave the Hitmen a 1-0 lead at 9:01 of the second period and tied the game 2-2 at 10:31 of the third. . . . F Sam Reinhart got the Ice’s first goal, on a PP, at 17:51 of the second. . . . F Jaedon Descheneau gave the visitors a 2-0 lead at 19:36 of the second. . . . Hitmen F Radel Fazleev had two assists, giving him four helpers in two games. . . . Calgary G Mack Shields came on to start the third period and stopped all 19 shots he faced. Starter Brendan Burke had given up two goals on 18 shots. . . . Ice G Wyatt Hoflin turned aside 30 shots. . . . The Hitmen were 2-for-2 on the PP; the Ice was 1-for-2. . . . D Jake Bean was among Calgary’s scratches. He suffered an apparent ankle injury in the third period of Friday’s game. . . . Attendance was 8,560. . . . Scott Fisher of the Calgary Sun has a game story right here.

In Medicine Hat, F Trevor Cox scored the game’s only goal as the Tigers beat the Red Deer Rebels, 1-0, in overtime. . . . The Tigers had won the opener 2-1 on Saturday, so goals have been hard to come by. . . . Cox had two assists on Saturday, so has been in on all three of his side’s goals. . . . The teams now head to Red Deer for games on Wednesday and Thursday nights. . . . Medicine Hat G Marek Langhamer stopped 27 shots in earning his first career playoff shutout. . . . Red Deer G Rylan Toth turned aside 36 shots. . . . Cox finished second in the regular-season points race, with 109 points, including a WHL-leading 80 assists, banked the winner in off Toth. . . . The Tigers were 0-for-5 on the PP; the Rebels were 0-for-3. . . . Medicine Hat had D Ty Lewington, its captain, back in the lineup after he served a one-game WHL suspension. . . . Attendance was 4,006.

In Portland, G Adin Hill turned aside 21 shots to lead the Winterhawks to a 3-0 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . It was Hill’s first career playoff shutout. . . . The series is tied 1-1 with the next two games in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday and Thursday nights. . . . F Nic Petan scored the game’s first goal, at 14:23 of the first period. . . . The Winterhawks iced it with empty-net goals from F Dominic Turgeon, at 18:02 of the third, and F Oliver Bjorkstrand, at 18:14. . . . Seattle G Taran Kozun stopped 36 shots. . . . Each team was 0-for-2 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 9,119. . . . The game story that freelancer Scott Sepich wrote for The Oregonian is right here. . . . Paul Danzer of The Columbian has a game story right here.
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With the Portland Winterhawks having opened the playoffs with two home games, Scott Sepich, a freelancer who often writes for The Oregonian, looks at the team’s relationship with Veterans Memorial Coliseum, a venue that is 55 years of age and in need of at least some help. . . . That story is right here.
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“More than a quarter of all helmets worn by hockey players, from the NHL to youth leagues, are unsafe, according to an independent study provided to ‘Outside the Lines’ that ranked hockey helmets based on their ability to reduce concussion risk,” writes Steve Fainaru of the ESPN investigative newsmagazine Outside the Lines. “Out of 32 helmets in the marketplace that were tested by researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, nine failed to earn a single star on a five-star scale and were classified as ‘not recommended.’ Just one helmet, made by Warrior Sports, received three stars. The rest received one or two stars.” . . . The really scary part of this report is, as Fainaru writes, “Hockey players wearing the ‘not recommended’ helmets risk incurring at least six concussions per season, and in some cases more than eight, according to Virginia Tech.” . . . The complete story, including a chart showing test results, is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Dwayne Kirkup won’t be back as head coach of the MJHL’s Neepawa Natives. He had been in the position since May 6, 2013, having joined the Natives after a stint as head coach of the MJHL’s Swan Valley Stampeders. He was the MJHL’s coach of the year in 2009-10. . . . This season, the Natives finished 15-42-3, leaving them with the 11-team league’s poorest record.
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LOOK: TV analyst Brian Engblom takes puck to forehead, returns to game after needing stitches http://t.co/hRHZ8KSwhW pic.twitter.com/opGeAdK7Ks
— Eye on Hockey (@EyeOnHockey) March 30, 2015

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No concussions from fighting. Really? . . . Oil Kings pounce on Tigers . . . Silvertips hold off 'Canes

I haven’t watched Don Cherry on Coach’s Corner in a number of years, simply because I grew tired of the inane comments. Judging by social media, there was more inanity on Saturday night.
Apparently, Cherry was opining on the fight earlier in the week that featured Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby and Columbus Blue Jackets pest Brandon Dubinsky.
Did Cherry really say “never mind the concussions” in reference to Crosby’s past? Did Cherry really say "you don't see guys getting concussions from fighting.”?
He is quoted in various places on the Internet as having said same, so I’m assuming that is what came out of his mouth.
Well, I’m sorry, Mr. Cherry, but I have witnessed at least two WHL players get concussed in recent fights. Neither one was at all pretty and, at least from where I’m sitting, two is two too many.
Perhaps Mr. Cherry could take a few minutes and read this column right here. It’s by David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune and was written following the recent death of former NHLer Steve Montador.
“The brain of (Derek) Boogaard, who died of an accidental overdose in 2011 at 28,” Haugh writes, “was afflicted with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Montador also donated his brain to science for study and if CTE is found, how much more evidence does the NHL need to link fighting and concussions? Until then, the NHL preaching concussion prevention and allowing fights will be like the NFL promoting player safety but scheduling more Thursday night games.”
In the two recent incidents in which I witnessed WHL players getting concussed while fighting, one took a tremendous right hand directly to the face, while the other was struck four times straight in the head.
Like the NHL, the WHL can’t be seen as working to limit the number of concussions its players suffer while it allows them to punch each other in the head.
It just doesn’t compute, does it?
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SUNDAY’S GAMES

B.C. DIVISION: All five teams had the day off, allowing them to watch the Academy Awards as team-building exercises.
U.S. DIVISION: Everett won at home, stretching its lead atop the division to five points over idle Portland. Everett has 12 games remaining; Portland has 13.
EAST DIVISION: All six teams were given the day off, allowing them to watch the final game of the Canadian women’s curling championship as team-building exercises.
CENTRAL DIVISION: Edmonton beat visiting Medicine Hat and now holds the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot by seven points over idle Moose Jaw. Each team has 12 games left. . . . Medicine Hat is tied with idle Calgary for the division lead. Calgary has 13 games yet to play; Medicine Hat has 12. . . . Calgary is 9-1-0 in its last 10; Medicine Hat is 2-8-0.
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In Edmonton, the Oil Kings scored the game’s first five goals as they beat the Medicine Hat Tigers, 5-1. . . . The Oil Kings took control with two goals in the last two minutes of the first period. . . . F Brett Pollock scored his 26th goal, on a PP, at 18:00 and F Edgars Kulda got his eighth at 19:24. . . . Kulda and D Dysin Mayo each had a goal and an assist. Mayo has 12 goals. . . . Edmonton F Davis Koch drew two assists. . . . Tigers F Matt Bradley scored his 14th goal at 18:22 of the third, on a PP. . . . Edmonton G Tristan Jarry stopped 30 shots and earned an assist as he put on quite a display of his puck-handling skills. . . . The Tigers played their third straight game without F Trevor Cox, who leads the WHL scoring race. He was serving a three-game WHL suspension. . . . The Oil Kings improved to 27-27-6, while the Tigers slipped to 37-20-3. . . . Brian Swane of the Edmonton Sun has a game story right here. . . .

In Everett, the Silvertips jumped out to a 4-0 lead and then withstood a furious Lethbridge comeback before beating the Hurricanes, 5-4. . . . F Graham Millar gave Everett a 4-0 lead with his 12th goal at 16:12 of the first period, on a PP. . . . Lethbridge began its comeback seven seconds later on F Jamal Watson’s 23rd goal. . . . F Giorgio Estephan made it 4-2 with his 18th goal, on a PP, at 5:22 of the second. . . . F Brayden Burke got his sixth goal, at 7:14, on another PP, and now it was 4-3. . . . Everett D Noah Juulsen relieved the pressure with his seventh goal at 6:44 of the third. . . . Juulsen had missed the previous two games with an undisclosed injury. . . . F Nikita Scherbak scored his 24th goal and added two assists for Everett, while F Patrick Bajkov got his 22nd goal and an assist, and F Kohl Bauml had two helpers. . . . Scherbak came up short on a penalty shot at 19:33 of the second period, with his side leading 4-3. . . . Watson also had an assist, while F Mike Winther, back after serving a one-game suspension, drew two assists. . . . Lethbridge G Stuart Skinner stopped 34 shots, 15 more than Everett’s Austin Lotz. . . . Everett was 2-for-5 on the PP; Lethbridge was 2-for-6. . . . The Silvertips (36-17-7) are 1-1-2 in their last four. They snapped the first three-game losing streak of their season with this victory. . . . Lethbridge (18-35-7) has lost four straight (0-3-1).
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MONDAY’S GAME

(all times local)
Regina at Saskatoon, 11:30 a.m. (Inaugural Team Up for Respect game)
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TUESDAY’S GAMES

(all times local)
Kootenay at Swift Current, 7 p.m.
Portland vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Calgary vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m.

@WHLHurricanes OMG the Canadian military has invaded Washington State #shootpucksnotguns #settlethisontheice #WHL
— CellPhones&PlaneTix (@hawkeyblog) February 23, 2015

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The Book Shelf: Part 1 of 4

Just in time for Christmas, here’s a brief look at some of the books I have read over the last while:

The Black Ace -- An old friend has died and Brad Shade, a former junior hockey star and ex-NHLer, is in Swift Current for the funeral. Of course, he gets drawn into the situation as there may be more to an apparent suicide than what meets the eye. If you are aware of author G.B. Joyce’s history with the citizens of Swift Current, there is more to this book than meets the eye, too. (Penguin, 362 pages, soft cover, Cdn$22.00)

Boy On Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard -- John Branch, a writer with The New York Times, wrote a three-part series on Boogaard, a WHL and NHL enforcer, for his newspaper. That led to this book, a thoroughly engrossing and unsettling look into the life on and off the ice of a giant of a man-child who wanted only to fit in and not be lonely. You need to read this book and then ask yourself why there still is fighting in hockey. You also might ask yourself how many positive drug tests it takes before the NHL, NHLPA or teams will intervene in the life of a troubled player. (HarperCollins, 371 pages, hard cover, Cdn$32.99)

Can’t Anybody Here Play This Game? (The Improbable Saga of the New York Mets’ First Year) -- That first year was 1962. Casey Stengel was the manager and he’s the one who coined the book’s title. Pulitzer Prize-winner Jimmy Breslin, the legendary New York newspaper columnist, takes us inside the Mets’ world, and it‘s hilarious and touching, all at the same time. Sheesh, Richie Ashburn could have returned for a second season with the Mets, but he chose to join the Philadelphia Phillies’ broadcast crew and took quite a paycut to do so. This is a quick and terrific read that should be on the must-read list of any sports fan. (Kindle)

City of Fallen Angels: A Mike Ward Mystery -- Mike Ward is a journalist for a wire service. He is Canadian and has been writing from Europe in the pre-Second World War years. But now he has been assigned to Los Angeles and all its glitter and its grunge. Yes, there has been a suicide, or was it a murder? Author Howard Engel gives the reader characters who are rich and dialogue that is richer. (Kindle)

Collision Low Crossers: A Year Inside the Turbulent World of NFL Football -- The New York Jets allowed author Nicholas Dawidoff access to all corners of their operation during the 2011 season -- they gave him everything he needed, including a security code, a locker and a desk. He attended meetings, stood on sidelines, watched games with co-ordinators. The result is one of the best sports books I have read. It especially provides the reader with a real feel for the brutality of pro football, not only with the injuries, but with the lack of job security for players and coaches. If you get the opportunity to read this book, do so. (Little, Brown, 485 pages, hard cover, Cdn$32.00, US$29,00)

A Drink Before The War -- Dennis Lehane is a favourite of mine, and he doesn’t disappoint with this book that introduced us to private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro. The action takes place in Boston, so, yes, there are politicians involved. It’s Lehane’s ability to turn a phrase and to capture the seamy side of Boston in all its stinking glory that allows this book to rise to the top. This is good stuff, really good stuff. (Harper, 323 pages, soft cover, Cdn$12.99) 

The Drop -- I don’t know that anyone writes about the mean streets of Boston better than the afore-mentioned Dennis Lehane, and that is in evidence here. There are gangsters and bartenders and love and a puppy, all wrapped up into a nifty, grungy story. This one isn’t long so is perfect for a cold winter’s night. (Kindle)

Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt -- Michael Lewis, perhaps best known in sporting circles as the author of The Blind Side and the terrific Moneyball, has turned to Wall Street for his latest book. He has been here before, especially with Liar’s Poker, a book that read like a novel but was about his time as a trader, so the ground isn’t unfamiliar. But, like Liar’s Poker, Flash Boys is so fantastic that the reader thinks it has to be fiction. Making Flash Boys even more interesting is that the hero, if he can be called that, is Brad Katsuyama, a Canadian who, in the beginning, works for the Royal Bank of Canada and wants only to do the right thing. (Kindle)

Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts -- Author Gare Joyce, who knows his way around more hockey arenas than he no doubt cares to admit, is a draft geek, no matter the sport. But with hockey in his veins, he is partial to the NHL draft. Thus, he spent the 2006-07 season inside the world of NHL scouts and the resulting book, which was published in 2008, is a terrific read with great insights from a number of perspectives. The reader gets a feel for life as a scout, some of which isn’t especially comfortable, and for the pressures on teenage hockey players as they strive to reach the NHL. (Kindle)

Rigby on the move . . . Bozon back with Ice . . . Big catch for Cougars

The Victoria Royals have claimed Russian D Marsel Ibragimov, 17, off waivers. The freshman had played one game with the Edmonton Oil Kings before they released him in order to get down to the limit of two import players. Edmonton kept veteran forwards Mads Eller, 19, and Edgars Kulda, who turns 20 on Nov. 13. . . . In order to make room for Ibragimov, the Royals released Slovakian F Kristian Ferletak, who also is a freshman.
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The Swift Current Broncos have acquired F Carter Rigby, 20, from the Kelowna Rockets for a third-round pick in the 2016 WHL bantam draft. Rigby, who is from Penticton, B.C., had five goals and four assists in seven games with the Rockets this season. In 150 games with the Rockets, he put up 84 points, 51 of them goals. . . . The trade means the Rockets are prepared, at least for now, to go with F Tyrell Goulbourne, who is injured, F Colton Heffley and D Cole Martin as their 20-year-olds. . . . The Broncos, meanwhile, now have five 20s on their roster, so more moves are to come. Still there are Rigby, F Colby Cave, who turns 20 on Dec. 26, F Andrew Johnson 20 on Oct. 15, F Coda Gordon and D Stephen Shmoorkoff, who will be 20 on Sunday. Last night, in a 5-0 victory over the visiting Kootenay Ice, the Broncos dressed just two 20s -- Cave and Gordon.
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The Montreal Canadiens have returned F Tim Bozon, 20, to the Kootenay Ice for a fourth WHL season. . . . “Tim Bozon has come a long way," Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin said in a news release. "He fought a life-threatening disease with courage and determination and we are pleased with what he accomplished in the last few months. He was able to take part in the rookie camp, the Canadiens’ official camp and the Hamilton Bulldogs' training camp. However, with his progression having been diminished due to illness, we feel that one of the priorities for his long-term development is for him to fully regain his physical strength. We believe that joining the Kootenay Ice in the WHL is the right decision at this time as it will allow Tim to fully recover." . . . Bozon was struck down by Neisseria meningitis late last season and spent most of a month in Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon. For part of the time, he was in a medically induced coma. . . . The Ice had acquired Bozon from the Kamloops Blazers on Oct. 22. He had 62 points, 30 of them goals, in 50 games with Kootenay. In 203 regular-season games, he has 231 points, 105 of them goals. . . . He was a third-round pick by the Habs in the 2012 NHL draft. . . . Bozon joins fellow forwards Levi Cable and Austin Vetterl as the Ice's 20-year-old players; D Rinat Valiev, who is injured, is the team's other import.
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 If you have tried to access the WHL's website or one belonging to a team over the past few weeks, you may have run into an issue or two . . . or three. Tbird Tidbits takes a look right here at what is going on with this situation, and it ain't pretty.
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Over at Yahoo! Canada Sports, Scott Sepich has an interesting piece right here on Seattle Seahawks punter Jon Ryan, who is from Regina, making reference to having been cut by three different WHL teams. Near the end of the piece, Sepich mentions baseballer Justin Morneau also having been something of a hockey player.
He also could have mentioned Larry Walker, who went on to a pretty decent MLB career after he had been in camp with the Regina Pats. I stand to be corrected but I think it may have been Bob Strumm who suggested to Walker that as a goaltender he made a pretty good hitter. Walker's brother Carey, also a goaltender, had an excellent three seasons (1975-78) with the WHL's New Westminster Bruins.
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Tom Gaglardi, the majority owner of the Kamloops Blazers, wasn't in court Friday as lawyers made sentencing submissions. Gaglardi and Northland Properties have been convicted of two counts of harmful alteration of a fish habitat. Crown prosecutor Digby Kier is asking for the maximum penalty, a $300,000 fine; defence lawyer Rob Bruneau asked for a fine between $50,000 and $75,000. . . . Tim Petruk of Kamloops This Week has more right here.
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Cathal Kelly, The Globe and Mail's sports columnist, was watching Sportsnet on Wednesday and Thursday nights, after which he filed this piece right here reflecting on what he saw. He pretty much hits the nail squarely on the head, and he does it without yelling or talking over anyone.
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There isn't much that is more entertaining than reading the thoughts of the always loquacious Brian Burke, no matter the subject. Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun chatted with Burke about fighting in the NHL, and the result is right here. Hmm, do you think Burke is anti- or pro-fighting?
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I purchased Boy on Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard, by John Branch of The New York Times, on Friday and will be digging into it in short order. In the meantime, Jeremy Keehn has reviewed the book for The Globe and Mail. That review is right here, and it includes this:
"More damning still is the cool and non-judgmental picture the author paints of hockey’s reckless disregard for its toughest, most vulnerable players. In recounting Boogaard’s fights, Branch includes not just the old one-two, but the announcers’ excitement, the video editors’ tale-of-the-tape graphics, the fans’ consistent approval. This cultural embrace is one thing when it’s of men who are over 18 and making their own choices as adults, quite another when it’s of boys at the sport’s junior echelons.
"The pathologist who diagnosed Boogaard’s CTE acknowledged in her report that it was impossible to know the extent to which the disease had influenced his addictions and struggles, but the facts paint a suggestive picture: from the time he was a teenager, Derek Boogaard participated in a sport that encouraged him to incur and deliver trauma to the head, and that rewarded him for doing so; at the time he died, his brain bore the evidence. Junior-hockey fans who accept the suggestion are left with a dilemma: can we, in good conscience, pay money for entertainment that encourages minors to stand toe-to-toe with the pure intent to concuss? I wonder why we’re even allowed to under the law."
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D Blake Heinrich, who has yet to play for Portland this regular season, is back skating with the Winterhawks. He suffered a concussion during an exhibition game. Heinrich, 19, is from Cambridge, Minn. He was a fifth-round pick by the Washington Capitals in the NHL's 2013 draft. The Winterhawks selected him in the 12th round of the 2012 bantam draft. . . .
In what is seen in the hockey world as a big catch, the Prince George Cougars have signed F Jared Bethune, 17, who had committed to the U of Minnesota-Duluth for 2016-17. Last season, with Warroad, Minn., High School, he had 84 points, including 31 goals, in 25 games. He also had two goals and three assists in six games with the USHL's Lincoln Stars. Bethune is a dual citizen and took part in the summer camp held by Canada's U-18 team. He now is in Prince George and attempts are going forward to finalize his release from USA Hockey.
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FRIDAY'S HIGHLIGHTS:

G Eric Comrie stopped 29 shots to help the Tri-City Americans to a 3-1 victory over the Pats in Regina. These teams meet only once each season and the Americans are on a five-game winning streak in the series. . . . The Pats honoured the 1974 Memorial Cup-winning team in a pregame ceremony. That team is holding a 40th anniversary reunion this weekend in Regina. . . . In Calgary, the Victoria Royals scored the game's last three goals, all in the third period, and beat the Hitmen, 3-2. F Austin Carroll, whose NHL rights belong to the Calgary Flames, scored the winner on a PP at 16:24 of the third period. . . .
G Landon Bow stopped 26 shots and F Jake DeBrusk scored the game's first two goals as the host Swift Current Broncos beat the Kootenay Ice, 5-0. . . . In Red Deer, D Kyle Becker scored the game's first two goals and added an assist as the Medicine Hat Tigers dumped the Rebels, 5-1. .  . The host Kamloops Blazers scored the game's last three goals, two coming from F Matt Needham, and beat the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 3-1. . . .
D Jared Hauf scored at 1:20 of OT to give the Seattle Thunderbirds a 2-1 victory over the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . The Thunderbirds forced extra time when F Mathew Barzal sacored a PP goal at 17:58 of the third period. . . . The Prince George Cougars scored the game's first two goals and hung on to beat the visiting Vancouver Giants, 2-1. F Jari Erricson scored his seventh goal of the season for the Cougars. . . . In Everett, F Carson Stadnyk scored twice and added an assist to help the Silvertips to a 6-2 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. Everett scored the game's last three goals.

A little of this, a lot of that . . . getting caught up on WHL news

F Hampus Gustafsson (Regina, Brandon, 2010-11) signed a one-month tryout contract with Grenoble (France, Ligue Magnus). This season, with Pantern Malmö (Sweden, Division 1), he was pointless in three games. Last season, with Troja-Ljunbgy (Sweden, Allsvenskan), he had nine goals and 10 assists in 42 games. . . .
F Martin Tomášek (Red Deer, 1996-97) has signed a one-year contract with Neuilly-sur-Marne (France, Division 1). He played there two seasons ago. Last season, with Feldkirch (Austria, Inter-National-League), he led the league with 35 goals and also added 20 assists, all in 36 games.
F Antonín Honejsek (Moose Jaw, 2009-11) has been released by Espoo Blues (Finland, Liiga) by mutual agreement. This season, he had one goal in two games with the Blues. On loan to Kiekko-Vantaa (Finland, Mestis), he had one assist in one game.
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Bowie Kuhn was the commissioner of Major League Baseball back in the day when Charlie O. Finley owned the Oakland Athletics.
And it was Kuhn who invoked the "best interests of baseball" clause in 1976 when he voided deals in which Finley sold ace reliever Rollie Fingers and outfielder Joe Rudi to the Boston Red Sox for $2 million and left-hander Vida Blue to the New York Yankees for $1.5 million.
Today, Ron Robison is the commissioner of the WHL and there are people, some of them inside the WHL, who feel that he should invoke a "best interests of the WHL" rule that would prohibit Kelly McCrimmon, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Brandon Wheat Kings, from communicating with Brad Robson, the general manager of the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
Consider that:
1. On May 2, 2013, McCrimmon acquired the sixth-overall selection in the 2013 bantam draft by giving Lethbridge his first-round pick and G Corbin Boes. McCrimmon used that pick to take D Kale Clague. . . . Clague, the son of former WHL G Jason Clague, had put up 77 points, including 35 goals, in 33 games with the Alberta Major Bantam League's Lloydminster Universal Heat. That broke the AMBHL record for points by a defenceman that had been held by Dion Phaneuf.
2. On Nov. 16, 2013, McCrimmon acquired D Ryan Pilon and the WHL rights to F Colt Conrad from the Hurricanes for D Nick Walters, F Taylor Cooper and D Tanner Browne.
3. On Tuesday, McCrimmon acquired F Reid Duke, D Macoy Erkamps and F Tak Anholt from the Hurricanes for D Kord Pankewicz, F Brett Kitt and F Ryley Lindgren.
In summation, then, McCrimmon got Clague, Pilon, Duke and Erkamps for Boes, Walters, Cooper, Browne, Pankewicz, Kitt and Lindgren. Conrad and Anholt, a second-round pick in 2013 who is at Yale Hockey Academy in Abbotsford, B.C., have yet to report to Brandon.
While McCrimmon no doubt will talk about giving up quality to get quality, most observers are of the opinion that he gave up quantity to get quality.
It's worth noting that Pilon, who had left the Hurricanes and requested a trade, was the third overall selection in the 2011 bantam draft, while Duke, who showed his discontent by refusing to report to the start of training camp prior to this season, was taken with the fifth pick in that same draft. Yes, they were going to be the centre pieces in the rebuilding of the Hurricanes. (Erkamps, a second-round pick in 2010, had expressed his unhappiness by not reporting to the Hurricanes at all prior to the start of this season.)
To say that Lethbridge’s rebuilding project has been slow in building momentum would be something of an understatement.
Not only have the Hurricanes been a bust on the ice in recent seasons -- they have missed the playoffs for five straight seasons and eight of the past 12 -- but they continue to implode financially. At the organization's AGM on Tuesday night, the board of directors, which had budgeted for a profit of $74,000, announced a loss of $390,331. That means that the franchise has dropped a cool $1.65 million over the last five seasons.
Among last season's expenses was $75,000 spent on having a new logo designed by a firm in, uhh, New York City.
(Paul Kingsmith of Global has more on the meeting right here.)
And yet the board told shareholders at the AGM that it is budgeting for a $114,863 profit this season, never mind that season-ticket sales have slipped to fewer than 1,300, down from 1,795 last season.
Interestingly, the Hurricanes' board is looking at a motion that would allow a vote on whether to explore the sale of the franchise. That motion was made at Wednesday's meeting, meaning it will be put to shareholders for a vote at the 2015 AGM.
Unless, of course, McCrimmon acquires the entire roster before then.
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On Wednesday, the Wheat Kings made a couple of more moves as they got their roster down to 25, including nine defencemen and 14 forwards.
F Kirklan Lycar, 17, and D Michael Mylchreest, 19, were released from the roster. Lycar, a fourth-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft, played last season with the midget AAA Eastman Selects and will be reassigned. Mylchreest is a former member of the Prince George Cougars who played last season with the NAHL's Springfield Jr. Blues.
Neither Lycar nor Mylchreest had gotten into a regular-season game with the Wheat Kings.
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The Prince Albert Raiders held their annual general meeting last week and announced a loss of $262,280. That comes one year after the organization announced a profit of $78,896 for 2012-13.
Andrew Schopp of the Prince Albert Daily Herald has more right here.
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Spokane returned G Alex Moodie, 19, to Saskatoon on Wednesday, thus voiding a May deal in which the Chiefs gave the Blades a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2016 bantam draft for the Winnipeg native. . . . The Chiefs have decided to go with veteran Garret Hughson, 19, as their starter, with Tyson Verhelst, 17, backing him up.
The Blades, meanwhile, have installed Moodie as their starting goaltender, a position he held for the first part of last season before he was laid low by injuries.
Nik Amundrud, who was acquired last month from the Everett Silvertips, will back up Moodie. Amundrud will turn 17 on Oct. 20. Trevor Martin, 18, who allowed 11 goals in three appearances with the Blades this season, is to join the SJHL's Melville Millionaires.
With the season still in its infancy, the Blades already have had five goaltenders on their roster. Troy Trombley, 20, and Michael Herringer, 18, both were released last month.
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The Chiefs have added F Jaret Anderson-Dolan to their roster at least through Oct. 10. Anderson-Dolan, from Calgary, was the 14th overall pick in the 2014 bantam draft. He won’t turn 15 until Dec. 9. "With our injury situation with our forwards, this will be a good opportunity for Jaret to join our team on a short-term basis," Tim Speltz, Spokane’s general manager, said in a news release. "It also helps our team as we are shorthanded, so it is a win-win situation. Jaret will benefit greatly from the experience." . . . On Thursday, the Chiefs released F Marcus Messier, 20. That leaves them with 25 players on their roster, including three 20-year-olds -- F Calder Brooks, F Connor Chartier and F Liam Stewart.
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The Swift Current Broncos took quite a hit during the week when it was revealed that they won’t be getting D Julius Honka, 18, back from the NHL’s Dallas Stars.
Honka was selected by the Stars in the first round of the NHL’s 2014 draft. Because he was drafted off a CHL roster, it was generally assumed that he had two options for 2014-15: Play in the NHL or with the Broncos.
It turns out, however, that there is a loophole in the NHL’s CBA with the NHLPA. Because Honka was on loan to the Broncos from his Finnish team -- most import players get a release in order to play in the CHL -- the rule doesn’t apply to him.
It turns out that Honka, one of the WHL’s most exciting players last season as a freshman, is able to play in Europe, the NHL, the CHL or the AHL. He now is with the AHL’s Texas Stars.
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Mike Sillinger, one of the most popular players in the history of the Regina Pats, is back with the WHL franchise. Sillinger, a Regina native, spent the past five seasons as the director of player development with the NHL's Edmonton Oilers. Now, he is a part-time hockey operations consultant with the Pats, while also serving as an assistant coach with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians. With the Pats, he will answer to John Paddock, the club's first-year senior vice-president of hockey operations and head coach. . . . "This is where my career started," Sillinger told Greg Harder of the Regina Leade-Post. "I'm thrilled to be back as a Regina Pat and part of an organization I've always been passionate about. It was an easy decision." . . . Harder's complete story is right here.
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Boy on Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard is due to hit bookstores this month. Written by John Branch, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer with The New York Times, the book is based on his three-part story that appeared in the newspaper following Boogaard’s death. . . . Steve Almond has read the book and his NYT review is right here.
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With G Tyler Fuhr away for what is being called “personal business,”, the Regina Pats have added G Tyler Brown, 17, to their roster. He plays for the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues. . . . D Kyle Burroughs, who has been out with a concussions, has returned to Regina’s lineup. He is the team captain. . . . F Scott Cooke, 20, who left the Moose Jaw Warriors late last month, has joined the BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs. . . . F Brandon Potomak, 19, who left the Warriors at the same time as Cooke, now is with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs. . . .
The Prince George Cougars have acquired F Cal Babych, 17, from the Calgary Hitmen for a seventh-round pick in the 2017 bantam draft. A fourth-round selection in the 2012 draft, Babych, from North Vancouver, had three goals and three assists in 41 games last season. This season, he had played one game with Calgary, picking up three assists. . . . He is the son of Dave Babych, who played 1,195 regular-season NHL games after playing in the WHL with the Portland Winterhawks (1977-80). . . .
The Kelowna Rockets are carrying four 20-year-olds, with the return of F Tyrell Goulbourne from the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. Goulbourne, however, has an undisclosed injury and hasn’t played even one game this season. The Rockets’ other 20s are F Colton Heffley, D Cole Martin and F Carter Rigby. . . . The Rockets moved to 5-0-0 on Friday night with a 5-4 OT victory over the Silvertips in Evertt. Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald reports that Kelowna D Mitchell Wheaton “went down after being hit into the boards by Everett's Logan Aasman on the game's first shift. He went off holding his left hand/wrist and did not return.” . . .
The Lethbridge Hurricanes got their roster down to 28, including nine defencemen and 17 forwards, by releasing F Zachary Goberis and D Thomas Lenchyshyn. . . . Both were selected in the 2012 bantam draft, Lenchyshyn with the 18th overall selection and Goberis in the fourth round. . . . Lenchyshyn, from Steinbach, Man., got into two regular-season games, while Goberis, who is from Arvada, Colo., played in two games. . . .
The Saskatoon Blades have released F Ty Mappin, who is off to join the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlies. The Everett Silvertips selected Mappin with the seventh overall pick of the 2011 bantam draft. They dealt him to the Blades in a conditional deal, meaning that his rights now have reverted to Everett. The Blades were to have given up a seventh-round pick, that could have been upgraded to a fifth, in the 2015 bantam draft. That pick now goes back to Saskatoon. . . . On Saturday, the Blades announced that they have claimed F Landon Welykholowa, 18, off waivers from the Calgary Hitmen. Welykholowa played last season with the Hitmen, Victoria Royals and the AJHL’s Calgary Canucks. He had one goal and four assists in 34 WHL games last season. He was a third-round pick by the Prince Albert Raiders in the 2011 bantam draft. . . .
F Tyler Benson, the first overall selection in the 2013 bantam draft, sat out a one-game suspension on Friday after he got tossed from Wednesday’s 7-5 loss in Kelowna. In that game, Benson was given a boarding major and game misconduct for a hit on Kelowna D Jesse Lees. Vancouver head coach Troy Ward didn’t agree with the call, telling Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province: ““I’ll tell him to hit him again; I didn’t think it was a penalty. I’ll tell him to keep playing hard. As soon as you take the lion out of him, you don’t have a lion king.” . . . Lees didn’t play in Kelowna’s 5-4 OT victory in Everett on Friday night. . . .
F Morgan Klimchuk, 19, has been returned by the NHL’s Calgary Flames to the Regina Pats, but he won’t play for another couple of weeks. He injured his left hand/wrist during an NHL exhibition game on Sept. 24. . . . The Brandon Wheat Kings have sold 2,387 season tickets, up from 2,357 last season.

Pam and Jim Duquette want only for their 10-year-old daughter Lindsey “to be a normal kid.”
Hopefully, their wish will come true now that Jim, a long-time baseball executive who now is a broadcaster, has had one of his kidneys surgically transplanted into Lindsey.
The New York Daily News has a story right here.
Kevin Kaduk of Big League Stew has more right here.
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Nathan Rempel (Saskatoon, 1994-98) signed a one-year contract extension with the Guildford Flames (England, Premier). He had 43 goals and 30 assists in 47 games this season with the Flames. Rempel was named to the First All-Star Team in the English Premier league and was the Flames leading scorer this season. . . .
F Mikhail Fisenko (Vancouver, Calgary, 2008-11) signed a two-year contract with Sibir Novosibirsk (Russia, KHL). He had one goal and two assists in 27 games for Metallurg Novokuznetsk (Russia, KHL), one goal and five assists in 13 games for Yermak Angarsk (Russia, Vysshaya Liga), and one goal and one assist in three games for Kuznetskie Medvedi (Russia, MHL) this season.
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Dr. Charles Tator, the foremost concussion expert in Canada, will be honoured for his work by USA Hockey on Wednesday in Colorado Springs. Roy MacGregor of The Globe and Mail has the latest with Dr. Tator right here.
According to Dr. Tator, MacGregor writes: “There is currently zero treatment for concussions” that can be proven effective, apart from time itself. Much of the treatment there is in today’s sports medicine is, in his learned opinion, “worthless” and needs to be“discarded.”
“Research is sadly lacking,” Tator says. “It has been a neglected issue in medical research.”
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THE COACHING GAME:
Peter Schaefer, who was honoured as the WHL’s top player in 1996-97, has joined the BCHL’s Surrey Eagles as an assistant coach and also will work in the area of player development. Schaefer, from Yellow Grass, Sask., played nine NHL seasons. In Surrey, Schaefer will work with GM/head coach Matt Erhart. . . .
The Saskatoon Blades have added Curtis Leschyshyn as a full-time assistant coach. He will work alongside GM/head coach Lorne Molleken and assistant coach David Struch. . . . Leschyshyn worked with the Blades on a part-time basis this season. . . . Leschyshyn played 127 regular-season games with the Blades (1985-88) before going on to a pro career. He was selected by the Quebec Nordiques with the third overall pick in the 1988 NHL draft. . . . The Blades are to be the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup tournament. . . .
The QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles have signed Jean Francois David as a new assistant coach. He replaces Kevin Higo, whose contract wasn’t renewed. . . . David, who will work alongside head coach Ron Choules, played five seasons in the QMJHL before going on to a nine-year pro career. . . . Higo worked in the AJHL before spending two seasons as an assistant coach with the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Higo now is the director of hockey operations and head coach, varsity boys hockey, at Rothesay Netherwood School in Rothesay, N.B. . . .
Steve Martinson has signed on as head coach of the Central league’s Allen Americans. The signing was announced Monday night as minority owners Ed Belfour, Mike Modano and Craig Ludwig, along with assistant coach Richard Matvichuk, all took part in a press conference that was open to the American’s fans. . . . Martinson was the head coach of the ECHL’s Elmira Jackals (2007-10) and was the head coach of the ECHL’s Chicago Express this season. The Express ceased operations after the season.
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JUST NOTES:
D Max Mowat, who played one game with the Kamloops Blazers in 2009-10 but has since been dropped from their list, has been involved in a BCHL transaction. Mowat, who will turn 19 on June 23, has been dealt by the Vernon Vipers to the Trail Smoke Eaters as the future considerations in a deal that was made on Jan. 10. Mowat, who is from Coldstream, B.C., had 15 points in 46 games with the Vipers this season.
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John Branch of The New York Times has written a devastating piece about the late Derek Boogaard and the ease with which he was able to obtain prescription drugs. . . . Len Boogaard, Derek’s father and a long-time RCMP officer, did a lot of digging into his son’s death, wanting to know why it had to happen.
Branch writes: “Len Boogaard knows that his son supplemented his drug habit with purchases of pills from dealers in Minneapolis; New York; and Regina, Saskatchewan. But he has found no sign of abuse until injuries sustained in fights were followed by steady streams of pills provided by team doctors.”
At one point, Len Boogaard tells Branch: “Derek was an addict. But why was he an addict? Everyone said he had ‘off-ice’ issues. No, it was hockey.”
You won’t want to miss this. It’s right here. All of it.
Just the other day, I was listening to an interview with an NHL player who talked of not being able to unwind on game nights until after the "adrenaline and Sudafeds" have worn off.
And I can't help but wonder if there is a connection from the use of Sudafeds to the abuse of prescription drugs.


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
Kladno (Czech Republic, Extraliga) announced the signings of F Jan Dalecky (Swift Current, 2007-09) and F Jan Eberle (Seattle, 2006-08) to one-year contract extensions. . . . Dalecky had 18 goals and eight assists in 25 games for Kladno U20 (Czech Republic, U20 Extraliga), was pointless in five games on loan to Berounsti Medvedi (Czech Republic, 1.Liga), and had two assists in nine games on loan to Pisek (Czech Republic, 1.Liga). . . . Eberle had four goals and four assists in 35 games with Kladno and eight goals and nine assists in 20 games on loan to Pisek this season. . . .
D Kenton Smith (Calgary, 1995-2000) signed a one-year contract extension with the Cardiff Devils (Wales, UK Elite). He had 12 goals and 32 assists in 62 games for the Devils this season. Smith was named the winner of the Devils' Coaches' Player of the Year award this season. . . .
D Doug Lynch (Red Deer, Spokane, 1998-2003) signed a one-year contract with Frölunda Gothenburg (Sweden, Elitserien). He had 16 goals and 18 assists in 48 games for Red Bull Salzburg (Austria, Erste Bank Liga) this season.
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Taylor Vause, who played out his WHL eligibility with the Swift Current Broncos this season, is a talented young man. Highly skilled with graphics and a computer, he designs hockey-themed movie posters as a hobby. On Friday night, he posted one in tribute to the late Derek Boogaard.
It is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Ryan Parent is the new director of hockey operations and head coach of the AJHL’s Lloydminster Bobcats. He had been coaching the major midget prep team at the Pursuit of Excellence in Kelowna. In 2010-11, he was an assistant coach with the BCHL’s Salmon Arm SilverBacks. . . . In Lloydminster, he replaces Brian Curran, who left for a five-year contract as GM and head coach with the AJHL’s Drumheller Dragons. . . .
Clarke Singer, the head coach of the U of Western Mustangs, who play out of London, Ont., will take a one-year sabbatical so will miss next season. Pat Powers, an assistant coach with the Mustangs, will serve as the interim head coach in Singer’s absence. . . .
There is ample speculation out there involving who will be the next head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, who announced Thursday that they weren’t renewing the contract of Brent Sutter. . . . Mike Brophy of Sportsnet has said a “Calgary source” told him that Dallas Eakins, the head coach of the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, will get a serious look. Brophy also wrote that “other candidates being mentioned for the Flames' job include Troy Ward, head coach with Calgary's farm team, former Bruins coach Mike Sullivan, ex-Oilers coach Craig MacTavish, Bob Boughner and Bob Hartley.” . . . Roger Millions, who covers the Flames for Sportstnet, tossed out the name of Mike Johnston, the GM/head coach of the Portland Winterhawks. Johnston has NHL experience as an assistant coach under head coach Marc Crawford with the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings.
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In the AHL, the Norfolk Admirals ran their amazing winning streak to 26 games with a 5-1 victory over the host Albany Devils. D Keith Aulie, who played in Brandon, had two assists and was plus-3, while F Tyler Johnson (Spokane) had an assist and was plus-2. . . . G Dustin Tokarski (Spokane) was on the bench in a backup role.
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The Humboldt Broncos won their fourth SJHL title in six years on Friday, beating the Red Wings 6-0 in Weyburn to take the best-of-seven final in six games. . . . Dean Brockman, the Broncos’ general manager and head coach, has been there for all four titles; the others came in 2007, 2008 and 2009. . . . The Broncos will meet the MJHL-champion Portage Terriers in the Anavet Cup series. But the Broncos are the host team for the RBC Cup — the national junior A championship tournament — so the Terriers are automatically in, too.
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Followers of the OHL’s Sarnia Sting have this little-known tradition of throwing walleye — some may know them as pickerel — on the ice after their favourite team’s first goal of a game. . . . No more. . . . The OHL has lowered the boom, as Neate Sager of Buzzing The Net relates right here. . . . I will say that a dead walleye belongs in a frying pan, not on a sheet of ice in an arena. . . . Hey, do fans of the Flin Flon Bombers still toss moose hooves onto the ice?
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Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald reports that the Moose Jaw Warriors may get all three of their injured players back for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. That series opens in Edmonton against the Oil Kings on Friday. . . . The Warriors have said that D Morgan Rielly (knee) is expected to play in the opener. . . . Gourlie writes that F Jordan Wyton and F Torrin White also might be ready. . . . Wyton suffered a broken hand during a March 13 practice. . . . White has been out since going knee-to-knee with Medicine Hat Tigers F Emerson Etem in Game 1 of their conference semifinal series. Etem drew a one-game suspension for the hit.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Kamloops Blazers F Jordan DePape (@papskos17): “Well, its already been 7 years today living strong and healthy with type 1 diabetes, almost 15,000 needles later! Time sure flys! #strength)
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FRIDAY’S GAME:
In Spokane, F Dominik Uher scored at 6:28 of OT to give the Chiefs a 3-2 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . The series is tied 2-2 with Game 5 in Kennewick, Wash., tonight. . . . They’ll play Game 6 in Spokane on Monday. . . . Uher beat Tri-City G Ty Rimmer on the shortside with a backhand shot from the right circle. . . . This was the fourth one-goal game of the series and the second decided in OT. . . . It was the 10th time in the last 17 playoff meetings between these teams that they needed OT to settle the issue. So if you’re going to tonight’s game, you should tell the babysitter that you’ll be late. . . . Spokane F Dylan Walchuk took off on a breakaway — Tri-City D Zach Yuen fell in the neutral zone — and hit a post with 1:40 left in the third period. . . . The Chiefs got first-period goals from F Colin Valcourt and F Mitch Holmberg. . . . Holmberg got his ninth of these playoffs on the PP. . . . The Americans tied it in the second, on goals by D Derek Ryckman and F Adam Hughesman, the latter scoring on the PP. . . . Spokane G Eric Williams stopped 33 shots, one fewer than Rimmer. . . . Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin was held off the scoresheet, ending his point streak at 30 games. The last time he went without a point was in a Jan. 29 game in Calgary. He put up 72 points, including 34 goals, in those 30 games.

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Goaltender Ty Rimmer of the Tri-City Americans reaches for a shot while
Brandon Magee of the Victoria Royals looks for a rebound on Tuesday night.
The Americans, in their first visit to Vancouver Island in 17 years,
beat the Royals, 6-2.
(Photo by Jonathon Howe)

With the late Derek Boogaard’s brain having been found to contain CTE, Gary Bettman, the NHL commissioner, was denying, denying, denying.
Here’s the Toronto Star’s Damien Cox:
“Gary Bettman was talking about Derek Boogaard and the possible connection between hockey, Boogaard’s death and a serious brain ailment.
“He just sounded like a global warming denier.
“The language was the same. A ‘limited data base.’ The need not to ‘jump to conclusions.’ The ‘gap in the science.’ The science being ‘in its infancy.’
By now it has become quite obvious that the NHL doesn’t want anything to do with any conversation involving the danger of fights to those absorbing the punches.
The players, at least a lot of them, are quite willing to catch punches with their faces and damn the consequences.
“It’s a physical sport,” Tim Jackman of the Calgary Flames told The Globe and Mail. “It’s our choice to play it … it’s kind of the price that we pay to play in this league.”
Jackman, something of a scrapper, also said: “Hopefully, I don’t have anything wrong with my brain.”
In the same story, Tanner Glass of the Winnipeg Jets is quoted as saying: “I feel like I can take it. It’s just the way I feel . . . maybe it’s not the brightest way to think right now.”
And then there is former NHLer Denis Gauthier, who told The Globe and Mail:
“I didn’t care about the consequences when I was a kid, but now I have three kids and I really want to be around for them. Would I do it again knowing what I do now? Probably. But my mentality would be completely different.”
Active hockey players worry only about the next game. That is how they are trained. One game at a time. Very few of them are concerned about whether they will be able to hug their grandchildren in 30 years.
And that’s too bad, because the evidence is mounting that points to concussions as carrying with them delibitating consequences in a lot of cases.
In the meantime, league officials, in the professional and junior ranks, love to point out how they are cracking down on headshots and taking better care of concussed players.
And yet they continue to allow players to punch each other in the face.
Which makes about as much sense as trying to stop a train by standing in front of it.
In junior hockey, where the players are not yet old enough to realize that none of us is on this earth forever, someone has to start protecting these players from each other.
There simply are too many players who aren’t able to complete their careers. There are too many players taking punches to the face without understanding what the consequences might be down the road.
The WHL is to be commended for the steps it has taken to penalize players for checks to the head. The natural progression is to ban punches to the head.
Isn’t it?
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Rob Vanstone, in the Regina Leader-Post, writes that “the tragic, untimely death of Derek Boogaard must not be in vain.” In this column right here, Vanstone writes that it’s time for fighting to go.
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Geoff Courtnall’s NHL career was brought to an end by concussions. These days he is working to raise concussion awareness. Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist has that story right here.
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In a piece headlined The NHL continues to trade money for brain cells, Roy MacGregor of The Globe and Mail opines on fighting in the NHL right here.
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And here is a piece written by Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post that appeared late last month. Harder spoke with Patrick Neary, the executive director of the Dr. Paul Schwann Applied Health and Research Centre in Regina.
Among other things, Neary said, in discussing athletes who ignore concussion symptoms: “People are going to have to make decisions. ‘If I have another 60 or 70 years on this planet, how do I want to live it? Do I want to live it in a wheelchair with somebody feeding me or do I want to be a productive member of society?’ ”
Neary, who is an avid hockey fan and still plays the game, also said:
“With the information I know now and all the research I’ve done, I would be hesitant to send (my son) into the hockey environment with somebody taking a shot at him, hitting him in the head, using their elbow, that type of thing. The (guilty party) gets a two-minute minor or maybe a five-minute major and maybe kicked out of the game. (The victim) might be kicked out of life. We need to have more respect for our opponent. If I knew that they were controlling the (illegal) hitting and if I knew there was no longer any fighting, then I would probably allow him to play, but the way the situation is right now I would certainly say, ‘We need to reconsider. Let’s take up tennis or golf.’ ”
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THE COACHING GAME:
The BCHL’s Alberni Valley Bulldogs have fired Paul Esdale, their head coach and assistant director of hockey operations. The Bulldogs are 10-14-1 and in last place in the Coastal Conference. . . . They are expected to introduce Kevin Willison as their new head coach today. He resigned as the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlys’ director of hockey operations and head coach on Nov. 28.
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JUST NOTES:
The Kamloops Blazers and Tri-City Americans both launched apps for iPhone and Android devices on Tuesday. For more info on those, visit the teams’ respective websites. . . .
Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reported late Tuesday night that “the Edmonton Oilers will face the New York Islanders in September in NHL pre-season action at the Brandt Centre. A formal announcement by Evraz Place is slated for 11:30 a.m. today at the Queensbury Centre.” . . .
The Czech Republic’s preliminary roster for its national junior team includes three WHLers -- D Marek Hrbas, Kamloops; D David Musil, Vancouver; and F Dominik Uher, Spokane. There are nine defencemen and 15 forwards, along with three goaltenders, on the roster. The players from Europe will arrive in Calgary on Dec. 17 and a camp will open in Lethbridge on Dec. 18. . . .
F Alessio Bertaggia of the Brandon Wheat Kings will attend the Switzerland national junior team’s selection camp. Bertaggia, 18, is the third member of the Wheat Kings invited to a selection camp -- F Michael Ferland and F Mark Stone will join the Canadian team in Calgary on Saturday. Bertaggia, in his first WHL season, has 27 points, including 13 goals, in 31 games. . . . The Swiss will gather in Red Deer on Dec. 17. . . .
F Victor Rask of the Calgary Hitmen is on the Swedish national junior team roster that will play in the World Junior Championship that opens Dec. 26 in Calgary and Edmonton. Rask, 18, has 24 points, including a team-high 15 goals, in his first season with the Hitmen. . . .
F Josh Nicholls of the Saskatoon Blades will miss up to two weeks with a knee injury suffered in a 6-3 loss to the Hurricanes in Lethbridge on Saturday night. How do we know that Nicholls is out? Well, he has been spotted using crutches to get around. And then on Tuesday afternoon he tweeted: “It's official...out 6-8 weeks with a grade 2 mcl sprain/tear :( ” . . .
F Jake Trask of the Saskatoon Blades drew a two-game suspension for a check to the head on Sunday in an 8-3 loss to the Oil Kings in Edmonton. That means he won’t play Saturday against the visiting Regina Pats and a week from tonight against his old club, the Kamloops Blazers, who will be on an East Division swing. . . .
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In Prince George, F Ty Rattie struck for three goals to lead the Portland Winterhawks to a 5-3 victory over the Cougars. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie scored the game’s first two goals to become the first WHLer to 30 snipes this season. . . . He later completed his second hat trick this season. . . . Portland has won five in a row. . . . D Martin Marincin gave the Cougars a 3-2 lead early in the third period, but Rattie tied it at 5:01 and F Nic Petan got the winner with 1:25 left. . . . Rattie has 31 goals in 30 games. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi had three assists and leads the WHL with 40. . . . They’ll do it all over again tonight. . . .
In Prince Albert, F Mike Winther scored three PP goals in the second period and the Raiders went on to beat the Regina Pats, 6-3. . . . Winther, 17, finished up with his first WHL hat trick and two assists. . . . The sixth overall pick in the 2009 bantam draft, Winther has 22 points, including 12 goals, in 32 games. Last season, he had 10 points, nine of them goals, in 61 games. . . . The Raiders, who have won three in a row, were 4-for-6 on the PP and scored twice while shorthanded. Regina was 0-for-6. . . . F Brandon Herrod had two goals and two assists for the Raiders, who got a goal and two helpers from F Mark McNeill and three apples from D Josh Morrissey. . . . McNeill will be in Calgary on Saturday for the start of the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. . . . Regina was without D Brandon Underwood (foot), who blocked a shot in a 2-0 victory in Brandon on Sunday. . . .
In Moose Jaw, F Quinton Howden scored the game’s last two goals as the Warriors beat the Red Deer Rebels, 6-5. . . . F Tyson Ness gave the Rebels a 5-4 lead at 14:12 of the third period. . . . Howden tied it at 14:34 and won it with 4.8 seconds to play. . . . Howden has 14 goals. . . . The Rebels have lost 10 in a row. . . . Moose Jaw F Andrew Johnson had three assists. . . . The Warriors had lost eight in a row to Red Deer before this one. . . . Red Deer F Turner Elson served the last game of a six-game WHL suspension. . . . The Rebels remain without D Aaron Borejko, F Josh Cowen, F Adam Kambeitz and F Daulton Siwak, all of whom are injured. . . .
In Edmonton, the Oil Kings ran their winning streak to seven games as they dumped the Calgary Hitmen, 6-2. . . . Edmonton D Griffin Reinhart had a goal and two assists. . . . Edmonton F Dylan Wruck, with a goal and an assist, and linemate Tyler Maxwell, with two assists, ran their point streaks to nine games. . . . Edmonton scored three times on the PP. . . . That PP unit is 8-for-14 in its last two games, including Sunday’s 8-3 victory over the visiting Saskatoon Blades. . . . The Oil Kings now are tied with the Kootenay Ice for first place in the Central Division, and with the Ice and Moose Jaw Warriors for the Eastern Conference lead. . . .
In Victoria, F Justin Feser had two goals and two assists as the Tri-City Americans beat the Royals, 6-2. . . . Feser has 14 goals. . . . The Americans lead the WHL with 22 victories. . . . Tri-City F Brendan Shinnimin added two goals, giving him 13, and an assist. . . . They will play in Victoria again tonight. . . . With 44 points, the Americans lead the WHL’s overall standings, but there are five teams within three points back. The Portland Winterhawks have 42 points, with the Edmonton Oil Kings, Moose Jaw Warriors, Kootenay Ice and Kamloops Blazers all at 41.
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TUESDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Austin Bourhis, Prince Albert.
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If you are wanting some background on The New York Times’ stunning three-part series on the late Derek Boogaard, check out this right here. David Brauer of MinnPost.com talks with John Branch, who wrote the NYT series, about how it all came together. This, people, is how journalism is supposed to work.
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