D Alex Plante (Calgary, 2004-09) signed a one-year contract with Anyang Halla (South Korea, Asia HL). Last season, with Lørenskog (Norway, GET-Ligaen), he had six goals and nine assists in 43 games. He also led the league with 189 penalty minutes. . . .
F Brandon Kozun (Calgary, 2006-10) signed a one-year contract with Jokerit Helsinki (Finland, KHL). Last season, he had two goals and two assists with the Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL), and five goals and six assists in 23 games with the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
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Some note from The MacBeth Report on the KHL . . .
The KHL held its annual meeting on Wednesday and confirmed 28 teams for this season, the same number as last season. The only change is that Atlant Mytishchi, which is in the Moscow area, is out and Spartak Moscow returns. . . . Teams will play a 60-game regular-season schedule that will start on Monday, Aug. 24 and end on Thursday, Feb. 18. . . . The playoffs will end no later than April 19. . . . Each team will play every other team twice (home and away), and each team will play six additional games against geographically close teams. That means that Jokerit Helsinki will make one road trip to Khabarovsk and Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, 6,749 km away. Vancouver is closer to Vladivostok at 4,595 km. To put this into a North American perspective, Edmonton to London, England, is 6,811 km. The two NHL franchises separated by the most distance are probably the Vancouver Canucks and Florida Panthers, with Vancouver to Fort Lauderdale being a distance of 4,495 km. . . . Earlier reports stated that the Russian Ministry of Sport is responsible for drafting the schedule and it will be set up to accommodate all Russian National Team games and practices. . . . Jokerit has said the schedule will be released by the end of June.
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Six players off WHL rosters have been invited by USA Hockey to attend its summer evaluation camp. . . . G Evan Sarthou and D Brandon Carlo of the Tri-City Americans, F Scott Eansor of the Seattle Thunderbirds, and F Dominic Turgeon, D Caleb Jones and F Paul Bittner of the Portland Winterhawks are expected to attend the evaluation camp in Lake Placid, N.Y., Aug. 1-8.
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James Stucky, the Everett Silvertips’ equipment manager since the birth of the franchise in 2003, has signed a contract extension. Stucky, 41, is preparing for his 13th season with the Silvertips. . . . The team didn’t announce the length of the extension. . . . He is scheduled to work his 1,500th regular-season game when the Brandon Wheat Kings visit Everett on Oct. 28. . . . It’s worth noting that he has been around the WHL for a long time, having worked as a stickboy with the Seattle Thunderbirds in the late 1980s. He also worked as a game-day assistant with the Tacoma Rockets. . . . Stucky also is one of the founders of the WHL Popcorn Poll, which tracks the quality of popcorn in arenas throughout the league.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Ron Rolston is the new head coach of the Springfield Falcons, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes. Rolston, 48, was the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres for 51 games (2012-14). He also spent two seasons (2011-13) as the head coach of Buffalo’s AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. . . . Last season, he worked as pro scout with the Coyotes. . . . Also in the AHL, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that veteran coach Mike Sullivan has been signed as head coach of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, while Terry Murray has left the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to work as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. . . . John Hynes, who had been the head coach of the AHL’s Penguins, now is head coach of the NHL’s New Jersey Devils.——
Brent Gough is leaving the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors to join the Arizona Bobcats AAA program. . . . Gough, who had been with the Warriors for five seasons, had been the assistant general manager and associate head coach. He will continue as the Warriors’ assistant GM and director of player personnel. . . . According to a Warriors’ news release, he is joint the Bobcats “to help align him with his career goals of coaching in NCAA hockey.” . . . GM/head coach Rylan Ferster announced that Shae Naka is the Warriors’ new assistant coach. Naka worked with the Warriors a couple of seasons ago, before spending last season at the Pursuit of Excellence.
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Very proud of my two daughters tonight! @emmaaa_39 JV Athlete of the Year @Madietaylor99 Coaches Awards! pic.twitter.com/ZUSnLNII5Y
— Chewy (@millchew) June 19, 2015
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series, for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, 2-0. . . . The next three games, if needed, are scheduled for Kelowna — on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. . . . As they did in Game 1 on Friday, the Rockets scored key goals late in one period and early in another. . . . Merkley broke a 1-1 tie at 19:57 of the first period and F Gage Quinney stretched the lead to 3-1 just 27 seconds into the second period. . . . Brandon tied it on two goals by F Peter Quenneville, at 2:49 and 6:37, in the third. He’s got 10 playoff goals. . . . Merkley got the winner, his fourth goal of these playoffs, at 10:16 while skating shorthanded. . . . Moments earlier, Brandon had come up empty on a 2-on-1 break. . . . Kelowna F Leon Draisaitl closed it out with an empty-netter at 19:39. . . . F Dillon Dube had two assists for Kelowna, with Draisaitl and F Rourke Chartier each with a goal and an assist. . . . F Morgan Klimchuk had two assists for Brandon. . . . Kelowna G Jackson Whistle stopped 38 shots, 12 more than Brandon’s Jordan Papirny. . . . Brandon was 1-for-4 on the PP; Kelowna’s PP never got on the ice. . . . The referees were Jeff Ingram and Reagan Vetter. . . . At one point in the first period, the Wheat Kings had a 5-1 edge in shots on goal. At period’s end, the Rockets led, 16-8. . . . There weren’t any lineup changes from Game 1. . . . Attendance, for the second night in a row, was 5,502. . . . Bruce Luebke, who calls Wheat Kings games on CKLQ, has a game story 
F Auston Matthews isn’t eligible for the NHL draft until 2016, but there already is a lot of buzz around the phenom from Scottsdale, Ariz. As things now sit, he is considered by most observers to be the favourite as the top pick in that 2016 NHL draft. . . . Matthews is coming off a tremendous season in the U.S. National Team Development Program. . . . Now the $64,000 question is this: Where will Matthews play in 2015-16? . . . To date, the options have been seen as the NCAA (Boston College, Boston University, Denver, Michigan or North Dakota) and the WHL. The Everett Silvertips selected him in the third round of the 2012 bantam draft. . . . But perhaps there is another option. On Saturday, Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reported that Matthews’ advisors have said he is “fielding offers from the Swiss League.” . . . Kennedy’s piece is 
F Dominic Turgeon of the Portland Winterhawks has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings. Turgeon, the son of former NHLer Pierre Turgeon, turned 19 on Feb. 25. He was a third-round pick by the Red Wings in the NHL’s 2014 draft. . . . This season, he had 43 points, including 18 goals, in 67 games. In three seasons, he has 82 points., 31 of them goals, in 187 games. He scored eight times in Portland’s 17 playoff games this spring. . . . Turgeon has joined the Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit’s AHL affiliate, for the remainder of the playoffs.
In the OHL, the host Oshawa Generals scored a 5-1 victory over the Erie Otters to take a 2-0 lead in the championship series. . . . F Matt Mistele scored twice for Oshawa, giving him 10 goals in these playoffs. . . . Erie F Connor McDavid had his 16-game playoff point streak snapped. He has 43 points, including 19 goals, in 17 games. . . . Attendance was 6,085. . . . They’ll play in Erie on Monday and Wednesday nights.
In Prince Albert, the Victoria Royals scored two late goals and beat the Raiders, 5-4. . . . The Royals, who won their 40th game of the season, have won seven straight away from home. Victoria is 20-6-1 on the road. . . . Royals D Travis Brown tied the game with a PP goal at 9:49 of the third, and F Jack Walker won it at 14:54. Brown has 12 goals; Walker has five. . . . F Brandon Magee had three assists for the Royals, who opened a five-game East Division swing, while D Joe Hicketts and F Axel Blomqvist each had two. The Broncos will play in all East Division cities with the exception of Swift Current. Victoria beat the host Broncos 4-3 in OT on Dec. 12. . . . F Leon Draisaitl and F Collin Valcourt each had three assists for the Raiders, who had taken a 4-3 lead on F Dakota Conroy’s 22nd goal at 5:21 of the third. . . . Victoria G Coleman Vollrath stopped 22 shots in earning his 20th victory. . . . The Royals, who are 10-0-2 in their last 12 outings, are thrd in the Western Conference, five points behind the Portland Winterhawks and five ahead of the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . The Raiders (26-28-4) are four points out of the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Regina, F Glenn Gawdin scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Swift Current Broncos a 4-3 victory over the Pats. . . . Regina F Dyson Stevenson forced OT with a PP goal at 5:42 of the third period. He’s got 26 goals. . . . F Colby Cave scored twice -- he’s got 27 -- for the Broncos, at 16:37 of the second and 42 seconds into the third, as they took a 3-2 lead. . . . F Graham Black got his 29th goal for the Broncos. . . . Swift Current G Eetu Laurikainen stopped 46 shots, 16 more than Regina’s Daniel Wapple. . . . The Broncos were 1-for-1 on the PP; the Pats were 1-for-5. . . . The Broncos (29-22-8) got two points for the victory, while Regina (30-22-6) got the loser point. The outcome left the teams tied for first place in the East Division. . . . After the game, Shawn Mullin, the radio voice of the Broncos, tweeted that Broncos F Nate Burns “left the game hurt at the end of regulation. Hopefully it's not serious.” . . .
In Brandon, F Jaedon Descheneau scored his 37th goal and added three assists as the Kootenay Ice skated to a 5-2 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . Ice F Sam Reinhart had a goal, his 31st, and an assist as he ran his point streak to 17 games, the second-longest active streak in the WHL. . . . Brandon has lost five in a row. . . . Kootenay had won 3-2 in OT in Brandon on Friday night. . . . Ice F Tim Bozon scored his 100th regular-season goal in his 198th game. It was his 28th of the season and came into an empty net at 19:32 of the third period. . . . Six of the goals were scored in the first period. . . . Brandon D Ryan Pulock had given his side a 1-0 lead with his 17th goal at 2:43. Pulock has 58 career goals, three shy of Brad McCrimmon’s franchise record for a defenceman. . . . Ice F Luke Philp got his 25th at 4:02 and the Ice went on to get goals from Reinhart, Descheneau and F Austin Vetterl, his 11th (shorthanded), before the period ended. . . . Ice D Landon Peel helped out with two assists. . . . The Wheat Kings were able to dress only 16 skaters as they scratched five injured regulars -- F Rihards Bukarts, F Jayce Hawryluk, D Rene Hunter, F Richard Nejezchleb and F John Quenneville. . . . The Ice (33-22-4) is fifth in the Eastern Conference, five points behind the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . The Wheat Kings (28-23-8) are two points behind Regina and Swift Current. . . . 
In Lethbridge, F Adam Tambellini scored three times to lead the Calgary Hitmen to an 8-1 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . The Hitmen have won six in a row. . . . Tambellini has 24 points, including 12 goals, in 18 games since leaving the U of North Dakota and joining the Hitmen. Eight of his goals have come over his last six games. . . . Calgary D Alex Roach scored twice, giving him four goals in his last two games after he had gone 17 games without a goal. He’s got eight on the season. . . . D Travis Sanheim added three assists for Calgary. . . . Calgary F Brady Brassart had an assist, giving him a career-high nine-game point streak. . . . With No. 1 G Chris Driedger serving a team-issued suspension, G Mack Shields stopped 29 shots. . . . The Hitmen were 4-for-8 on the PP, and held a 47-30 edge in shots. . . . Lethbridge D Macoy Erkamps took a kneeing major and game misconduct at 6:38 of the third period. . . . The Hitmen were without D Jaynen Rissling, who drew a TBD suspension under supplemental discipline after a game against the visiting Saskatoon Blades on Friday night. . . . Calgary (38-15-6) is tied with the idle Edmonton Oil Kings atop the Central Division and the Eastern Conference. The Oil Kings (40-14-2) hold three games in hand. . . . Lethbridge (12-43-5) is back in the WHL cellar, .004 behind the Kamloops Blazers. . . . 
In Red Deer, the Saskatoon Blades scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Rebels, 4-1. . . . F Conner Bleackley scored his 26th of the season for the Rebels at 6:32 of the first period. . . . Saskatoon F Chase Clayton tied it with his eighth goal at 11:20 and F Ryan Graham gave the Blades the lead at 18:53, via the PP. . . . Graham finished with two goals, giving him nine this season. . . . Saskatoon G Troy Trombley stopped 41 shots. . . . Les Lazaruk, the play-by-play voice of the Blades, called his 1,500th WHL game. . . . The Blades (16-39-5) are 11th in the Eastern Conference. . . . The Rebels (28-27-4) hold down the conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Medicine Hat, F Curtis Valk ran his point streak to 18 games as the Tigers beat the Moose Jaw Warriors, 6-1. . . . Valk scored his 34th goal, just 16 seconds into the first period, and later added an assist. . . . F Josh Winquist of the Everett Silvetips had an 18-game point streak earlier in the season. Those are the longest streaks in the WHL this season. . . . The single-season record? F Jeff Nelson of the Prince Albert Raiders had a 56-game streak in 1990-91. . . . Medicine Hat G Nick Schneider turned aside 29 shots. He is 3-0 with the Tigers, who acquired him from the Regina Pats in January. . . . Medicine Hat F Trevor Cox scored his 20th goal. . . . The Warriors were without F Scott Cooke, who completed a two-game WHL suspension. . . . The Tigers (36-20-3) have won four straight and are fourth in the Eastern Conference, five points ahead of Kootenay. . . . The Warriors (15-34-8) are 10th. . . . 
In Kamloops, F Cole Ully scored in OT to give the Blazers a 4-3 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . Ully’s goal, at 3:27 of extra time, snapped the Blazers’ 11-game losing streak. . . . In regulation time, the Cougars erased 2-0 and 3-1 deficits. . . . F Mitch Friesen scored his first WHL goal for the Blazers. He started the season with them, but has been playing for the junior B Kamloops Storm. . . . Ully’s 27th goal, at 17:50 of the second period, had given Kamloops a 3-1 edge. . . . Kamloops D Edson Harlacher had one assist and was plus-3. . . . F Todd Fiddler, with his 38th goal of the season, shorthanded, got the Cougars to within one and F Troy Bourke, with his 24th, tied it at 4:10. . . . Fiddler also had two assists. . . . The Blazers won’t play at home again until March 12 as the Tim Hortons Brier, the Canadian men’s curling championship, takes over the Interior Savings Centre. The Blazers have 13 games remaining in their regular season and only two of them are at home. . . . Kamloops (12-42-5) now has a .246 winning percentage, just ahead of the cellar-dwelling Lethbridge Hurricanes (.242). . . . The Cougars (24-29-8) are four points out of the Western Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . 
In Vancouver, the Portland Winterhawks set a franchise record as they beat the Giants, 7-4. . . . The Winterhawks, who broke open a scoreless game with five second-period goals, now have won 16 straight games, breaking the franchise record that had been shared by the 1979-80 and 1997-98 teams. . . . The Kelowna Rockets also won 16 straight games this season. . . . Portland next plays on Tuesday when it entertains the Prince George Cougars. . . . The Winterhawks’ last regulation loss occurred Jan. 4 when they were beaten 3-2 by the visiting Victoria Royals. Six days later, Portland dropped a 3-2 shootout decision in Victoria. . . . Portland led this one 6-0 when F Nic Petan scored his 32nd goal, on a PP, just 34 seconds into the third period. Petan also had an assist and now leads the WHL, with 100 points, three more than Spokane Chiefs F Mitch Holmberg, who had four-point night. . . . Petan also has a 12-game assist streak, tying him with F Leon Draisaitl of the Prince Albert Raiders for the longest this season. Petan has 16 assists in the 12 games, exactly what Draisaitl put up. . . . Portland F Dominic Turgeon had a goal, his 10th, and two assists, while F Alex Schoenborn also had a goal, his 16th, and two helpers. . . . Portland F Oliver Bjorkstrand helped out with three assists, while F Paul Bittner scored his 20th goal. . . . F Tim Traber scored twice for Vancouver, giving him 12 goals this season. . . . Prior to the game, the Giants inducted F Brendan Gallagher, their all-time leading scorer, into their Ring of Honour. . . . The Winterhawks went 4-0 on a swing into the B.C. Division. They won twice in Prince George and once in Kamloops. . . . Portland (42-12-5) is seven points behind the Kelowna Rockets, who lead the overall standings. . . . Vancouver (27-23-10) has lost five in a row and is tied for sixth with the Everett Silvertips in the Western Conference. . . 
In Everett, the Seattle Thunderbirds scored two third-period goals and beat the Silvertips, 3-2. . . . With the victory, Seattle clinched a Western Conference playoff spot. . . . F Russell Maxwell tied the game at 1:39 of the third and F Adam Henry won it at 9:03. Maxwell has 13 goals; Henry has seven. . . . Everett F Josh Winquist scored his 37th goal on a first-period PP. That was his 200th career point. . . . Seattle G Taran Kozun stopped 27 shots, including all 11 he faced in the third period. . . . Attendance was 7,579. . . . The Thunderbirds were fined $750 for their role in a line brawl with the visiting Tri-City Americans on Friday night. It was Seattle’s second such incident this season. . . . Seattle (37-17-5) is fourth in the Western Conference, five points behind Victoria and eight ahead of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . Everett (28-22-8) is tied with Vancouver for sixth. . . . 
In Spokane, G Eric Williams recorded the shutout and F Mitch Holmberg, who was playing in his 300th regular-season game, had four points as the Chiefs beat the Tri-City Americans, 7-0. . . . Williams stopped 16 shots in posting his third shutout this season and the ninth of his career. . . . Holmberg had two goals, giving him a WHL-leading 49, and two assists. He now has 97 points, three behind Portland F Nic Petan, who leads the scoring race. . . . Spokane D Reid Gow had three assists. He has 46 assists in 51 games; he finished last season with a career-high 44 in 64 games. . . . Gow has 51 points this season, equalling his total from last season. . . . Chiefs F Adam Helewka scored his 20th goal. . . . The Chiefs are 7-1-1 against the Americans this season. The teams will meet three more times before season’s end. . . . Tri-City F Jessey Astles was assessed a headshot major and game misconduct at 19:26 of the second period. . . . The Americans drew a $500 fine for their part in a line brawl with the host Seattle Thunderbirds on Friday night. It was Tri-City’s first such incident this season. . . . Spokane (33-20-5) is fifth in the Western Conference, eight points behind Seattle. . . . Tri-City (27-26-6) is eighth, four points ahead of Prince George.
puts them inches ahead of the Edmonton Oil Kings (132 against in 53 games, 2.49) and the Kelowna Rockets (138 in 54, 2.55).
comedian Andrew Grose. . . . It also featured a whole lot of memorabilia, all of it up for grabs. . . . An autographed Steven Stamkos jersey went for $1,100, while a Jordan Eberle-autographed Titleist bag brought in $1,050 and an autographed Matt Calvert sweater sold for $1,000. . . . When it was all over, the Wheat Kings issued a news release that included this interesting gem on the first Sportsman’s Dinner (May 2, 1959): “Guest speakers that night were pitcher Lefty Gomez, Father Athol Murray and former Chicago Blackhawks great Bill Mosienko.”
The Vancouver Giants have signed F Johnny Wesley, 16, who is playing with the junior B Richmond Sockeyes of the Pacific International junior league. Wesley, who was listed by the Giants last year, has 48 points, including 22 goals, in 40 games with he Sockeyes. . . . On Thursday, the BCHL's Langley Rivermen announced that Wesley had agreed to play for them next season. 
In Lethbridge, F Tim Bozon scored three times and added an assist as the Kootenay Ice dumped the Hurricanes, 8-1. . . . Bozon has 26 goals, with 14 of those coming in his last 14 games. . . . Ice F Sam Reinhart had a goal, his 26th, and two assists as he ran his point streak to 12 games. . . . The Ice, winner of four straight, also got two goals and an assist from F Luke Philp, who has 22 goals, and a goal and two helpers from F Jaedon Descheneau, who has 35 goals. . . . Lethbridge G Teagan Sacher got into action for the first time since being injured on Dec. 28. He came on in relief of Jonny Hogue and stopped 23 of 28 shots over the last two periods. . . . Ice G Mackenzie Skapski turned aside 23 shots. . . . The same teams meet tonight in Cranbrook, which may explain the late-game scraps last night. . . . Kootenay (29-21-4), 8-1-1 in its last 10, is fifth in the Eastern Conference, five points behind the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . .
In Brandon, F Tim McGauley scored twice to help the Wheat Kings to an 8-1 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . He's got 15 goals. . . . Brandon scored the game's last six goals. . . . F John Quenneville was back in Brandon's lineup after sitting for six games with an undisclosed injury. He had a goal, his 22nd, and an assist. His brother, Peter, drew three assists. . . . F Jayce Hawryluk added a goal, his 17th, and two assists for Brandon. . . . Broncos F Graham Black got his 27th goal. . . . Brandon was 4-for-9 on the pp; the Broncos were 1-for-3. . . . Referees Nathan Wieler and Chris Crich handed out 128 penalty minutes, 75 to the Broncos. Of that total, 104 came at 17:00 of the third period when nine misconducts were doled out. . . . The Broncos have lost three in a row. . . . The Wheat Kings (28-20-6) now have sole possession of first place in the East Division, two points ahead of the Broncos (26-21-8). The East Division champ will be the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference when the playoffs open. . . .
In Saskatoon, F Dylan Bredo had a goal and two assists as the Medicine Hat Tigers beat the Blades, 5-2. . . . The Tigers swept the four-game season series from the Blades. . . . Bredo has three goals this season. He scored into an empty-net to give the Tigers a 4-2 lead. . . . Tigers F Curtis Valk ran his point streak to 13 games with an assist. That is the longest ongoing streak in the WHL at present. . . . Tigers F Cole Sanford broke a 1-1 tie at 8:07 of the first period, his 26th goal coming via the PP. . . . Tigers F Anthony Ast made it 3-1 with his ninth, shorthanded, at 11:40 and the visitors were never headed. . . . The Blades remain without F Nikita Scherback, the WHL’s leading freshman scorer. He has an undisclosed injury. . . . Medicine Hat (32-19-3) has won three in a row and is fourth in the Eastern Conference, seven points behind the Calgary Hitmen and five ahead of Kootenay. . . . 
In Prince Albert, the Moose Jaw Warriors ended their nine-game losing streak with a 7-1 victory over the Raiders. . . . F Brayden Point had three goals and three assists to lead the Warriors to their fifth victory in six meetings with the Raiders. . . . According to Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, the last Moose Jaw skater with a six-point game was Steven Gillen, who had seven against the Swift Current Broncos on Jan. 28, 2007. . . . Point has 25 goals this season. In 53 games, he now has 58 points. Last season, he finished with 57 points, including 24 goals, in 67 games. . . . Interestingly, only seven Warriors had at least a point last night. . . . The Warriors had scored a total of seven goals over their previous five games. . . . Moose Jaw G Justin Paulic stopped 39 shots. . . . The Warriors scratched F Colton McCarthy, F Sam Fioretti, F Brandon Potomak and D Jesse Forsberg. Fioretti was serving a suspension; the others are injured. . . . With Fioretti and Forsberg out, the Warriors didn’t dress any 20-year-olds. . . . The Raiders (24-26-3) are seven points out of a playoff spot with 19 games remaining. . . .
In Kennewick, Wash., the Portland Winterhawks scored three times in a span of 1:22 in the first period and went on to beat the Tri-City Americans, 10-3, as they ran their winning streak to 11 games. . . . Portland also won 11 in a row from Oct. 12 through Nov. 2. . . . Portland D Josh Hanson, who was plus-5, had a career-high three assists as 17 of 18 skaters picked up at least one point. . . . Portland G Brendan Burke stopped 29 shots in winning for the 30th time this season. He had a shutout going until midway in the third period when his shutout streak ended at 174 minutes 57 seconds. . . . Portland got two goals from each of Nic Petan, who has 28, and F Alex Schoenborn, who has 13. . . . Petan now has 89 points, just three behind Spokane Chiefs F Mitch Holmberg, who leads the WHL. . . . Portland F Oliver Bjorkstrand scored his 38th goal and added two assists. He has scored in five straight games, the second time he’s done that this season. . . . The Winterhawks were 3-for-4 on the PP. . . . Portland (37-12-5) leads the U.S. Division by four points over the Seattle Thunderbirds. Portland has two games in hand. . . . The Americans (26-23-5) are eighth in the Western Conference, four points ahead of the Prince George Cougars. . . . 
In Kent, Wash., G Taran Kozun shut out Spokane for the third straight game as the Thunderbirds beat the Chiefs, 4-0. . . . Kozun stopped 35 shots and also drew an assist on the game’s first goal when F Mathew Barzal scored off an end-to-end rush. Barzal also had two assists. Barzal, the first overall pick in the 2012 bantam draft, has 42 points, including 10 goals, in 43 games. He has seven points, two of them goals, in his last three games. . . . Since being acquired from the Kamloops Blazers at the trade deadline, Kozun is 9-1-0 with four shutouts. He has a 1.18 GAA and a .962 save percentage. . . . Kozun also leads all goaltenders with four assists. . . . In seven games versus Spokane this season, the Thunderbirds are 7-0 with a 29-9 edge in goals. . . . Spokane has gone 197:23 without scoring against the Thunderbirds. The Chiefs have been blanked five times in their last 12 games. . . . Seattle scored its first three goals via the PP as it went 3-for-4 with the man advantage. . . . Barzal scored his 10th goal at 6:29 of the second period, with F Brendan Troock getting his 21st at 12:14 and F Ryan Gropp adding his 14th just 53 seconds later. . . . Gropp added another goal at 6:38 of the third period. . . . Seattle has won three in a row; the Chiefs have dropped four straight. . . . Seattle (35-16-5) is fourth in the Western Conference, one point behind the Victoria Royals and eight clear of the Chiefs (31-18-5). . . . Spokane is four points ahead of the Vancouver Giants. . . .
In Vancouver, G Chris Driedger turned aside 44 shots to lead the Calgary Hitmen to a 5-0 victory over the Giants. . . . According to WHL Facts (@WHLFacts) that is the most saves by a goaltender recording a shutout this season. . . . It was Driedger’s third shutout this season and the eighth of his career. . . . Calgary F Brady Brassart got the game’s first goal, his 25th, at 12:01 of the first period. He has scored in five straight games for a second time this season. . . . F Adam Tambellini scored twice, giving him seven in 14 games. He has 17 points since joining the Hitmen from the U of North Dakota. . . . Calgary was 3-for-5 on the PP; the Giants were 0-for-9. . . . The Giants remain without D Dalton Thrower, their 20-year-old captain, who has an ankle injury. . . . Vancouver (27-20-9) is sixth in the Western Conference, three points ahead of the idle Everett Silvertips, who hold two games in hand. . . .
In Prince George, F Todd Fiddler scored twice and set up another as the Cougars ran their winning streak to five games with a 5-3 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Fiddler broke a 2-2 tie with his 33rd goal of the season at 4:37 of the second period. He later added No. 34 into an empty net. . . . Prince George G Adam Beukeboom stopped 46 shots, nine more than Red Deer’s Patrik Bartosak. . . . F Presten Kopeck had a goal, his 10th, and an assist for the Rebels. He’s got 15 points, including six goals, in 15 games since moving over from the Portland Winterhawks in a January deal. . . . Red Deer now has lost five straight. . . . The Cougars haven’t enjoyed a five-game winning streak since December 2005. . . . Prince George (23-26-7) is four points behind Tri-City, which holds down the Western Conference’s last playoff spot. . . . Red Deer (27-24-4) is eighth in the Eastern Conference, a point behind the Regina Pats and seven ahead of Prince Albert. . . . 
In Kelowna, F Mitch Moroz scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Edmonton Oil Kings a 3-2 victory over the Rockets. . . . The game matched the WHL’s conference leaders, with the Oil Kings skating to their 10th straight victory. . . . Edmonton now is 8-10 in road games played in the B.C. Division. . . . F Myles Bell got the Rockets on the board with his 36th goal, via the PP, at 4:08 of the first period. . . . Edmonton took the lead on goals by F Cole Benson, his fourth, at 8:12 of the first, and F Brett Pollock, his 20th, via the PP, at 5:54 of the second. . . . Kelowna F Carter Rigby forced OT with his 14th goal at 17:42 of the second. . . . Edmonton G Tristan Jarry (34-11-1, 2.27, .913) stopped 26 shots, one more than Kelowna’s Jordan Cooke (30-4-4, 2.39, .918). . . . Each team was 1-for-6 on the PP. . . . The Rockets came awfully close to winning this game in OT. From an Oil Kings’ news release: “The result could have (gone) the other way as Ryan Olsen broke in alone on Jarry with 4.6 seconds left in overtime. His breakaway chance was stopped by Jarry’s pad but bounced off his own skate and back between Jarry’s legs where it disappeared before slipping out the side of the goal as the net was knocked off. After a lengthy review, the original no-goal call was upheld.” . . . Edmonton (39-13-1) leads the Central Division by five points over Calgary. . . . Kelowna (43-7-4) is atop the overall standings, 11 points up on Edmonton and Portland. . . . 
In Kamloops, F Tyler Soy broke a 1-1 tie with a shorthanded goal at 1:29 of the third period and the Victoria Royals went on to beat the Blazers, 3-1. . . . Soy, the eighth overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft, has 11 goals this season; that was his first shorthanded effort. . . . Victoria has points in its last eight games (6-0-2). . . . The Royals won for the 36th time this season, breaking the franchise record set last season. This also was their 17th road victory, breaking the franchise record set in 2009-10. . . . Victoria has 76 points, one shy of the franchise record set last season. . . . The Royals are 5-1-0 against Kamloops this season, with a 26-9 edge in goals. . . . F Brandon Magee scored his 20th goal for Victoria. He’s got at least 20 goals in each of the last three seasons. . . . Victoria G Coleman Vollrath turned aside 36 shots. He’s 16-5-2, 2.09, .936 this season and has played extremely well in the recent absence of Patrik Polivka, who is out with an undisclosed injury. . . . Kamloops has lost eight in a row. . . . The Blazers added D Cam Reagan, 16, to their roster for last night’s game. He also will play tonight against the visiting Calgary Hitmen. . . . Kamloops was without D Sam Grist (one-game WHL suspension) and five injured players -- D Connor Clouston, F Luke Harrison, G Justin Myles, F Matt Needham and F Tyson Ness. . . . The Royals (36-16-4) are third in the Western Conference, a point ahead of Seattle. . . . Prior to the game, the WHL honoured Dennis Coates, a longtime director with the Kamloops Blazers Sports Society and a former alternate governor, with one of its distinguished service awards. 
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