Showing posts with label Ethan Bear. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ethan Bear. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Smoke over the hills ... Warriors ink goalie coach ... Ex-WHL coach's run ends in Tucson





The summer of fires moved closer to our home late Wednesday afternoon when one broke out near Monte Lake. We live about 20 km east of Kamloops above the north shore of the South Thompson River. When we go to Vernon or Kelowna, we head east on the Trans-Canada Highway to the Monte Creek interchange and then take Highway 97. Monte Lake is about 15 minutes up that highway. . . . The four photos above were taken off our deck on Wednesday evening. When I first heard about the fire, at about 5 p.m., I took a look and there was one fairly thin column of smoke. Inside of 30 minutes it had grown by leaps and bounds. . . . The top photo shows the light from the setting sun glancing off the smoke as the clock neared 9 p.m. . . . The photo second from top was taken just moments before the top one. . . . The third photo was taken around 6 p.m. . . . There were a number of airplanes working the fire; the one in the photo has a retardant bay on its bottom; it was headed back to the Kamloops airport for the night as darkness set in. . . . The Thompson Nicola Regional District put evacuation alerts and orders in place, and there are an untold number of buildings at risk. . . . Now we can only wait and see what morning will bring. 


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THE MacBETH REPORT:

F Charles Wells (Seattle, Prince Albert, Portland, 2007-12) has signed a one-year contract with the Guildford Flames (England, UK Elite). Last season, with Mulhouse (France, Division 1), he had six goals and 15 assists in 22 games. . . .
F Tyler Redenbach (Prince George, Swift Current, Lethbridge, 2001-05) has signed a one-year contract with Tappara Tampere (Finland, Liiga). Last season, he had 11 goals and 22 assists in 34 games with Pardubice (Czech Republic, Extraliga), and two goals and three assists in nine games with Třinec (Czech Republic, Extraliga). . . .
F Justin Maylan (Moose Jaw, Prince George, Prince Albert, 2007-12) has signed a one-year contract with Heilbronn (Germany, DEL2). Last season, with Fehérvár AV19 Székesfehérvár (Hungary, Erste Bank Liga), he had seven goals and 35 assists in 53 games. He led the team in assists.
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A LITTLE OF THIS . . .

Matt Weninger has joined the Moose Jaw Warriors as their new goaltender coach. . . . From a news release: “Weninger is currently the regional consultant and goaltending lead for Hockey Alberta and previously worked with the Saskatchewan Hockey Association in 2015-16 as a goaltending and coaching consultant.” . . . He also served as the goaltending coach for the SJHL’s Yorkton Terriers for two seasons (2015-17) and has worked with Laurentian University (U Sports) and Hockey Canada. . . . As a player, he spent four seasons (2010-14) at St. Lawrence U, where he holds school records for career and single-season games played, minutes played, consecutive games played, and total saves. . . . He also played three SJHL seasons, splitting that time between the Kindersley Klippers and Flin Flon Bombers. . . . In Moose Jaw, Weninger takes over from Jamie Hodson, who had worked with the Warriors since 2011. Hodson now is the director of business and hockey operations for the MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals.
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If you were wondering what was wrong with D Ethan Bear of the Seattle Thunderbirds late in the WHL playoffs and through the Memorial Cup, well, now we know. . . . As was reported here originally, Bear did have a broken finger. What we didn’t know until now is that he underwent surgery to repair the index finger on his left hand. . . . Bear was injured while blocking a shot in Game 3 of the Western Conference final against the Kelowna Rockets. He sat out the next three games, then returned for the final against the Regina Pats, a series that Seattle won, 4-2. . . . “I was lucky enough to get a quick surgery, and then I recovered enough to play in the final and then the Memorial Cup," Bear told Derek Van Diest for a story that is posted right here at nhl.com. “I had to adjust the knob on my stick and the way I placed my hand. But Seattle, they really made it work for me and I was able to play at my best abilities. They put a plate in it and couple of screws. The doctors did a really good job. They made it strong enough so that I could play and I wouldn't feel as much pain.” . . . According to Van Diest, “Bear still is recovering from his injury, but is expected to be ready for Oilers training camp in the fall.” . . . Bear, 20, was a fifth-round pick by the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL’s 2015 draft and has signed a three-year entry-level contract.
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There are three WHL players on the roster for Team Finland as it prepares to play in the World Junior Summer Showcase in Plymouth, Mich., from July 29 through Aug. 5. . . . F Sami Moilanen (Seattle Thunderbirds), D Juuso Valimaki (Tri-City Americans) and D Henri Jokiharju (Portland Winterhawks) all are on Team Finland’s roster for the tournament that also features teams from Canada, Sweden and the U.S.
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If you’re a regular here, and even you aren’t, feel free to contribute to the feeding of the Drinnan family by making a donation to the cause. You are able to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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THE COACHING GAME . . .

Mark Lamb, who spent six seasons as the general manager and head coach of the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos, is out after one season as head coach of the Tucson Roadrunners, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes. . . . John Chayka, the Coyotes’ president of hockey operations and general manager, announced Wednesday that Mike Van Ryn has taken over as head coach. . . . The assistant coaches will be John Slaney and Steve Potvin. . . . Mark Hardy, an assistant coach last season, also won’t be returning. . . . Van Ryn spent the past season working as the Coyotes’ development coach. . . . In 2015-16, he was the head coach of the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers. . . . Slaney spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the Coyotes, while Potvin has been with the organization for one season as the skills coach. . . . The Roadrunners finished 29-31-8 last season, their first in the AHL. Their winning percentage (.485) left them sixth in the eight-team Pacific Division. They didn’t qualify for the playoffs.
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TWEET OF THE DAY . . .


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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:49 PM
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Friday, May 5, 2017

Grenfell fella is Game 1 hero . . . Seattle wins in OT . . . Bear has hand in victory


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 F Šimon Stránský (Prince Albert, 2014-17) has signed a long-term contract with Vítkovice Ostrava (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, he had 22 goals and 26 assists in 57 games with the Raiders. Stransky, who will turn 20 on Dec. 21, would have been eligible to return to the Raiders for one more season. . . .
F Brock Nixon (Kamloops, Calgary, 2003-08) has signed a one-year contract with the Graz 99ers (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, with Esbjerg (Denmark, Metal Ligaen), he had 20 goals and 27 assists in 45 games. He was the team captain, an all-star and finished sixth in the league’s scoring race. . . .
D Rory Rawlyk (Medicine Hat, Vancouver, Prince Albert, Red Deer, 2000-03) has signed a one-season contract with the Sydney Ice Dogs (Australia, AIHL). The AIHL regular season began on April 22. Rawlyk signed a one-year contract for next season with Memmingen (Germany, Oberliga) on Tuesday. . . .
F Tyler Spurgeon (Kelowna, 2001-06) has signed a one-year extension with Innsbruck (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). The team captain, he had 14 goals and 29 assists in 52 games this season. . . .
F Pavel Padakin (Calgary, Regina, 2012-15) has signed a one-year one-way extension with Sochi (Russia, KHL). This season, he had six goals and six assists in 52 games. . . . 
F Vitali Karamnov (Everett, 2007-08) has signed a one-year extension with Dynamo St. Petersburg (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). This season, the team’s captain had nine goals and 10 assists in 49 games. . . .
F Steven Kuhn (Spokane, 2008-12) has signed a one-year contract with Caen (France, Division 1). This season, he had 10 goals and 10 assists in 24 games with Neuilly-sur-Marne (France, Division 1). Kuhn is spending our summer playing with the Newcastle North Stars (Australia, AIHL). In four games, he has a goal and four assists. . . .
F Marcin Kolusz (Vancouver, 2003-04) has signed a one-year contract with Podhale Nowy Targ (Poland, PHL). This season, with Tychy (Poland, KHL), he had nine goals and 13 assists in 32 games. . . . 
F Maximilian Brandl (Prince Albert, Portland, 2007-09) has signed a one-year contract with Bad Nauheim (Germany, DEL2). This season, he had seven goals and 13 assists in 52 games with the Revensburg Towerstars (Germany, DEL2).
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 I was MIA on Thursday, thanks to a flu bug, but here’s a look at a couple of trades that took place during the WHL’s 2017 bantam draft.
The Victoria Royals surrendered a sixth-round selection in the 2018 bantam draft to get F Yan Khomenko, 19, from the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Khomenko, who is from Novosibirsk, Russia, is preparing for his third WHL season and the Royals will be
YAN KHOMENKO
his fourth team. He began his career with the Everett Silvertips in 2015-16, then split this season between the Prince George Cougars and Moose Jaw.
This season, he totalled 15 goals and 16 assists in 68 games. In Everett, he had five goals and three assists in 46 games.
Cam Hope, the Royals’ general manager, has had good luck in acquiring European players from elsewhere in the WHL, rather than go through the machinations of the CHL import draft.
Hope picked up F Vladimir Bobylev from the Vancouver Giants, and got D Marsel Ibragimov from the Edmonton Oil Kings. Both are from Russia.
Bobylev had three goals and six assists in 52 games with the Giants in 2014-15, then had 67 points, 28 of them goals, in 72 games with Victoria the next season. After that season, the Toronto Maple Leafs selected him in the fifth round of the 2016 NHL draft. This season, he had 36 points, including 27 assists, in 38 games with the Royals.
On Oct. 10, 2014, the Royals claimed Ibragimov off waivers after he had played one game with the Oil Kings. In 182 games with Victoria, he has three goals and 18 assists.
Bobylev and Ibragimov are eligible to return for their 20-year-old seasons, but would be two-spotters, so it’s unlikely both would be back. Considering that Bobylev started this season playing professionally in Russia, it could be that he won’t be back in Victoria.
Moose Jaw now has room to add one import player, who will join Russian D Dmitri Zaitsev, 19, who is expected to return for his sophomore season.
Meanwhile, the Red Deer Rebels acquired F Mason McCarty, 20, from the Saskatoon Blades for a
MASON McCARTY
second-round selection in Thursday’s bantam draft.
The Blades still have at least five 20-year-olds on their roster — D Evan Fiala, G Logan Flodell, G Brock Hamm, F Cameron Hebig and F Braylon Shmyr.
McCarty, a fourth-round pick by the Rebels in the 2012 bantam draft, had been dealt to the Blades on Dec. 14, 2014, as part of a deal that brought D Nelson Nogier to Red Deer.
In 2015-16, McCarty had 18 goals and 10 assists in 64 games. This season, he put up 21 goals and 16 assists in 45 games.
The Rebels now have three 20-year-olds on their roster, the others being G Lasse Petersen and F Grayson Pawlenchuk.
“We have an overage spot available,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ general manager and head coach, told Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com, “and we’re still undecided about what we’re going to do about the goaltending situation. That might not be decided until September or October.”
The Blades used Red Deer’s second-round pick to select F Braden Plaschewsky of Calgary.
Meachem’s story is right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks have signed F Mason Mannek, 17, who is from Herriman, Utah. This season, Mannek captained the midget AAA Colorado Thunderbirds, putting up 16 goals and 27 assists in 32 games. He was fourth in scoring in the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League. . . . F Jake Gricius of the Winterhawks also is out of the Thunderbirds program, as are ex-Winterhawks F Dominic Turgeon and F Alex Overhardt.
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The host Saint John Sea Dogs opened the QMJHL final with a 6-3 victory over the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada on Friday night before an announced crowd of 5,883. They’ll play Game 2 today in Saint John. . . . The Sea Dogs got two goals and an assist from each of F Julien Gauthier and F Matthew Highmore. . . . 
In the OHL, the host Erie Otters opened the championship final with a 2-1 victory over the Mississauga Steelheads on Thursday night. They’ll play Game 2 in Erie on Sunday afternoon.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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FRIDAY’S GAME:




At Regina, F Donovan Neuls scored 14 seconds in OT as the Seattle Thunderbirds opened the WHL’s championship final for the Ed Chynoweth Cup with a 2-1 victory over the Pats. . . . They’ll play Game 2 in Regina tonight. . . . Seattle F Mathew Barzal, who finished with two assists, took a shot from the left side and the rebound went almost to the blue line from where D Ethan Bear took a shot that hit the cross-bar
DONOVAN NEULS
behind Regina G Tyler Brown. Neuls, from off the right post, banged in the rebound for the victory. . . . The Brandon Wheat Kings won the 2016 WHL title, beating the Thunderbirds in five games. In that series, the first three games went to OT, with Brandon winning each of them by a 3-2 score. . . . Regina now has lost the first game of three straight playoff series. . . . Neuls is from Grenfell, Sask., which is 90 minutes east of Regina. . . . Both regulation-time goals came via 4-on-3 PPs. . . . Regina D Connor Hobbs tied the score at 12:11 of the third period, pinching in and scoring off something of a backdoor play from the lower left faceoff circle. That was his fifth goal of these playoffs. . . . Bear had given Seattle a 1-0 lead as he returned from a three-game absence thanks to a hand injury. He showed no ill effects in slapping home a shot from the top of the left circle at 4:55 of the second period. Bear’s shot may have changed direction after hitting Regina D Josh Mahura’s stick. . . . Bear is from the Ochapowace First Nation, which is located not quite two hours east of Regina, so he had lots of fans in the building. . . . Bear hadn’t played since April 25 when he suffered an injury to his left hand late in Game 3 of the Western Conference final against the Kelowna Rockets. Since then, he had been spotted with a soft cast on the hand and a splint protecting two fingers. . . . The Thunderbirds were without F Keegan Kolesar, their leading scorer in these playoffs, as he served a one-game WHL suspension. . . . Regina lost F Adam Brooks, one of their top scorers, 3:37 into the second period when he left the game after absorbing a hit from Seattle D Turner Ottenbreit. It was the second time in these playoffs that Brooks, who put up 250 points over the past two regular seasons, left a game with an injury. He suffered a knee injury in Game 2 of a second-round series with the Swift Current Broncos and didn’t play in the last five games, although he dressed and was on the bench for the last three of those. . . . Following the game, John Paddock, Regina’s general manager and head coach, wouldn’t comment on Brooks’ status, but he was bleeding from the left side of his face as he exited. . . . Bear gave Seattle its first lead just 1:18 after Brooks left the game. . . . Seattle G Carl Stankowski continued his kingly playoff run with 31 saves. He now is 13-2, 2.39, .917 in these playoffs. His night’s work included a third-period save on Regina F Austin Wagner, who broke in alone while killing a penalty. . . . At the other end, Brown stopped 24 shots. . . . The Pats were 1-3 on the PP; the Thunderbirds were 1-4. . . . F Riley Krane, an eighth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft from Dawson Creek, B.C., made his playoff debut with the Pats. . . . Regina’s scratches: G Max Paddock, D Owen Williams, F Jake Leschyshyn (knee), F Duncan Pierce, F Kjell Kjemhus and D Dawson Davidson (undisclosed injury). Leschyshyn and Davidson are regulars but aren’t expected to play in this series. . . . Seattle’s scratches: G Rylan Toth, who has yet to dress in these playoffs due to an undisclosed injury, F Elijah Brown, D Jake Lee, F Tyler Carpendale, Kolesar (one-game suspension) and F Dillon Hamaliuk. . . . If you were wondering, the record for the fastest OT goal in a WHL playoff game is held by F Gord Williams of the Lethbridge Broncos. He scored nine seconds in for a 7-6 victory over the visiting Calgary Wranglers on April 11, 1979. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484.
Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here.
Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle has a game story right here.
Darren Steinke, the Travellin’ Blogger, posted this piece right here.
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SATURDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Seattle at Regina, 7 p.m. (Seattle leads, 1-0)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:37 PM
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Friday, April 21, 2017

T-Birds, 'Canes win openers ... Estephan, Bear opening-night stars ... CTE found in ex-juniors

Scattershoot
The Kelowna Rockets opened the Western Conference final against the host Seattle Thunderbirds in Kent, Wash., last night without D Cal Foote, who will be a first-round selection in the NHL’s 2017 draft. He was completing a three-game WHL suspension. . . . The Rockets also were missing D Braydyn Chizen, who is out with a leg injury suffered in the previous round against the Portland Winterhawks. . . . Minus those two veterans, the Rockets had two young defencemen in the lineup — Kaedan Korczak, who turned 16 on Jan. 29, and Konrad Belcourt, who will be 17 on May 4. . . . F Erik Gardiner, who also was injured against Portland, was back in Kelowna’s lineup.
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 As expected, G Carl Stankowski, who turned 17 on March 9, made his ninth straight start for the Thunderbirds. He has played every one of Seattle’s playoff games with G Rylan Toth, 20, out with an undisclosed injury.
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 Just a thought: If the Thunderbirds play in Kent, shouldn’t they be the Kent Thunderbirds? Or will the Thunderbirds move back to Seattle if/when the big city gets an NHL-type facility?
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 Doug Weight, the head coach of the NHL’s New York Islanders, was in attendance at the game in Kent. The Islanders selected Seattle F Mathew Barzal in the first round of the 2015 NHL draft. Barzal started this season with the Islanders before eventually being returned to Seattle.
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 In Regina, the Lethbridge Hurricanes had two of their five injured regulars back for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference against the host Pats. F Zak Zborosky and F Zane Franklin returned, but F Matt Alfaro, F Ryan Vandervlis and D Calen Addison remain out.
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The Pats were without D Dawson Davidson, who was acquired from the Kamloops Blazers in January. He was injured in Game 7 against the Swift Current Broncos. John Paddock, the team’s GM/head coach, has said Davidson will be out for a while. . . . Regina had F Adam Brooks, its captain, in the lineup and he played after missing the previous five games. He suffered a knee injury in Game 2 against the Broncos. He was in uniform for the last three games of that serious, but never got on the ice. Last night, Brooks took his first shift shortly after the Pats had taken an early 1-0 lead. Yes, the crowd roared when Brooks left the bench.
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 Randy Turner of the Winnipeg Free Press points out that “this is the kind of (NHL) playoffs where the winner of the office pool will be the guy who thought PK Subban still played for the Canadiens.” . . . Yeah, or the guy who tried to select Wayne Gretzky in the fourth round.








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F Brad Moran (Calgary, 1995-2000) announced his retirement through the website of the Nottingham Panthers (England, UK Elite). The team captain, he had 11 goals and 28 assists in 51 games this season. . . . F Devin Setoguchi (Saskatoon, Prince George, 2003-07) has signed a two-year contract with Adler Mannheim (Germany, DEL). This season, he had four goals and eight assists in 45 games with the Los Angeles Kings (NHL), and three assists in nine games with the Ontario Reign (AHL). . . . D Dominik Bittner (Everett, 2011-12) has signed a two-year contract with the Schwenninger Wild Wings (Germany, DEL). This season, he had a goal and four assists in 36 games with Adler Mannheim (Germany, DEL). . . . F Justin Kirsch (Calgary, Moose Jaw, 2009-13) has signed a one-year extension with the Heilbronner Falken (Germany, DEL2). This season, he had 18 goals and 21 assists in 52 games.
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  Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post wrote a column this week that marked his 30th anniversary — or, rather, one of them — at his favourite newspaper. The reasons I mention this isn’t because I was the assistant sports editor there at the time, but because it is amazing to read this and realize just how many people worked in that sports department. Yes, those were the days, my friends. . . . Vanstone’s piece is right here.
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 The finalists will be decided today at the IIHF’s U-17 World Championship in Poprad, Slovakia. It’s Finland against Russia in the first semifinal, with Team USA and Sweden meeting in the second game. . . . The winners will play in Sunday’s final in Poprad. . . . Meanwhile, in Spisska Nova Ves, Slovakia, Latvia beat Belarus, 3-2, on Friday in Game 2 of the best-of-three relegation series. It’s tied 1-1 and will be decided on Sunday. D Vladislav Yeryomenko of the Calgary Hitmen had an assist for Belarus.
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 If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there. If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com. If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.
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  Concussion Report
“A researcher at Boston University says she has diagnosed chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, in the brains of four former junior hockey players,” writes Rick Westhead, a senior reporter at TSN. “Neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee made the diagnoses over the past two years. Each of the four former junior players – none of whom advanced to the National Hockey League – committed suicide before the age of 30, she said. . . . Only one of the players has been identified. Drew Mulligan, who was 22 when he committed suicide, played for the Springfield, Mass., Pics of the Empire Junior Hockey League. . . . Westhead’s story is right here.
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  Coaching<
USA Hockey will go into the 2018 World Junior Championship with the same coaching staff that guided it to a gold medal earlier this year in Toronto and Montreal. . . . Bob Motzko, the head coach at St. Cloud State, is back for a second go-round as Team USA’s head coach. Also returning are assistant coaches Greg Brown (Boston College), Kris Mayotte (Providence), Steve Miller (Air Force) and Grant Potulny (Northern Michigan). . . . The 2018 tournament is to be held in Buffalo, Dec. 26, 2017, through Jan. 5, and will feature an outdoor game between Team Canada and the Americans on Dec. 29.
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 The ECHL’s Rapid City Rush fired head coach Mark DeSantis on Friday. The announcement was made by general manager Joe Ferras, who had been the head coach before DeSantis was moved up from his post as an assistant. The Rush was 38-47-11 under DeSantis.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES (all times local):


At Kent, Wash., D Ethan Bear broke a 4-4 tie with a PP goal with 11.2 seconds left in the third period to give the Seattle Thunderbirds a 5-4 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . They’ll play Game 2 of the
ETHAN BEAR
Western Conference final tonight in Kent. . . . Seattle was on only its second PP of the game — it finished 1-2 — when there was a face-off in Kelowna’s zone. The puck came to Bear and he hammered home a slap shot from the top of the left circle for his fourth goal of these playoffs. . . . Just 35 seconds earlier, Seattle G Carl Stankowski had stopped Kelowna D Devante Stephens on a shorthanded breakaway. . . . The Rockets, who were 3-6 on the PP, had tied the game 4-4 with a pair of third-period PP scores. . . . F Tomas Soustal (3) cut Kelowna to within a goal at 5:53 and F Calvin Thurkauf (6) tied it at 15:00. . . . Earlier, the Thunderbirds scored first for a ninth straight playoff game when F Ryan Gropp got his second goal at 10:00 of the first period. . . . The Rockets took a 2-1 lead on goals from F Kole Lind (4), on a PP, with 6.2 seconds left in the first period, and F Reid Gardiner, his WHL-leading 13th, at 1:09 of the second. . . . The Thunderbirds pulled even when F Alexander True (5) scored with 2.6 left in the second. . . . Seattle then scored two goals three minutes apart to start the third period. . . . D Turner Ottenbreit (1) counted at 0:52 and F Sami Moilanen (3) added another goal at 3:52. . . . Moilanen added two assists to his goal, while Gropp had one. . . . The Rockets got two assists from Gardiner, with Thurkauf adding one. . . . Stankowski stopped 29 shots in running his record to 9-0. . . . Kelowna G Michael Herringer turned aside 20 shots. . . . The Thunderbirds had their big line — Mathew Barzal between Keegan Kolesar and Gropp — together to start a game for the first time in a while. . . . As a result of Gropp rejoining that line, F Donovan Neuls moved back to play on a line with True and Tyler Adams. . . . Announced attendance: 4,001. ——
At Regina, F Giorgio Estephan scored twice, the second into an empty net, to help the Lethbridge
GIORGIO ESTEPHAN
Hurricanes to a 3-1 victory over the Pats. . . . They’ll play Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final tonight in Regina. . . . Last night, F Austin Wagner’s 11th goal gave the Pats a 1-0 lead at 1:10 of the first period. . . . The Hurricanes, who have won four straight road games, tied it on Estephan’s first goal of the game, at 13:23 of the second period. . . . The Hurricanes took their first lead at 1:59 of the third period when F Jordy Bellerive scored his fifth goal, on a PP. . . . The Pats thought they had tied it at 8:21 of the third when Wagner got the puck into the Lethbridge net. However, the goal was disallowed after a video review during which it was ascertained that the net was off its moorings before the puck entered the net. . . . Estephan iced it with his 10th goal, into an empty net, at 18:38. . . . D Igor Merezhko had two assists for Lethbridge. . . . The Hurricanes got 36 saves from G Stuart Skinner, while Regina’s Tyler Brown stopped 22 shots. . . . Lethbridge was 1-3 on the PP; Regina was 0-2. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484. . . . Darren Steinke, the Travellin’ Blogger, was in attendance and posted his game piece right here.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Kelowna vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m. (Seattle leads, 1-0) Lethbridge at Regina, 7 p.m. (Lethbridge leads, 1-0)
There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 11:16 PM
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Thursday, March 30, 2017

Mumps still hanging around WHL? . . . Tigers sweep defending champs . . . Polei OT hero in Red Deer


F Jamie Lundmark (Moose Jaw, Seattle, 1998-2001) has signed a one-year extension with Klagenfurt (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, in 51 games, he had 26 goals and 25 assists. He led the team in goals and points, while serving as an alternate captain.
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 The mumps may not yet be through with the WHL.
Jon Keen, the voice of the Kamloops Blazers on Radio NL, wasn’t available for Game 4 of a series with the Kelowna Rockets on Wednesday night.
Jeremy Bosch, who usually rides shotgun with Keen on home games, handled the play-by-play with Marty Hastings of Kamloops This Week providing the analysis.
During the game, Taking Note was told by three sources that Keen has shown symptoms of mumps and has been placed in isolation awaiting test results.
Keen later told Taking Note that his situation is “very premature at this point.”
Keen is in his 14th season as a play-by-play voice in the WHL. Keen began his WHL career with the Swift Current Broncos before moving to Kamloops. He called his 1,000th game on March 8.
With the playoffs here, the Blazers, like other teams, have shut down the information highway, so it’s not known if there is anyone else in the organization with symptoms.
It could be that the Blazers are at least the sixth WHL team to be hit by the mumps, following the Brandon Wheat Kings, Medicine Hat Tigers, Seattle Thunderbirds, Swift Current Broncos and Victoria Royals.
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The WHL’s defending champions bowed out last night in Dauphin, Man. The Medicine Hat Tigers beat the Brandon Wheat Kings, 3-2, to sweep the holders of the Ed Chynoweth Cup from the first round. . . . The Wheat Kings played all four games without F Nolan Patrick, who was injured in the second-last game of the regular season. . . . Brandon also was without veteran F Tanner Kaspick. . . . Patrick ended up playing only 33 games this season, putting up 46 points, including 20 goals. He underwent sports hernia surgery in July and missed almost all of training camp. He returned for the season’s first five games, then didn’t play again until Jan. 14. . . . He has been projected as the consensus No. 1 selection for the NHL’s 2017 draft through the entire season. It will be interesting to see if that holds up on June 23 in Chicago.
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The Tri-City Americans were without D Dalton Yorke, 20, for Game 3 of their series with the Seattle Thunderbirds on Wednesday night. Yorke drew a TBD suspension for a hit he delivered during the Game 2’s third period in Kent, Wash., on Saturday night. Yorke took a charging minor at 15:10 for a hit on F Ryan Gropp, who was scratched last night. The suspension came under supplemental discipline, meaning the Thunderbirds sent video to the league and asked for a review. When it comes to supplemental discipline, the injury factor carries a lot of weight. . . . While Yorke was scratched last night, F Vladislav Lukin returned to the Americans after missing Game 2. Tri-City also had F Nolan Yaremko back for this one. He missed the end of the regular season and the first two games of this series after being injured in practice.
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The Thunderbirds, meanwhile, again were without F Mathew Barzal and G Rylan Toth as they took a 2-0 edge into Game 3 last night. Barzal (mumps) hasn’t played since March 7. Barzal, the Western Conference’s player of the year, took the warmup prior to a March 10 game, then left for the dressing room before the anthem. Barzal hasn’t played since then. . . . Toth, who led WHL goaltenders with 36 victories in the regular season, was taken out of a game in Portland on March 11. At the time, it was said to have been for precautionary reasons. He hasn’t played since then. . . . F Ryan Gropp, who apparently was injured in Game 2 on a hit from Tri-City D Dalton Yorke, led the Thunderbirds in goals (35) and points (84) in the regular season.
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Regan Bartel, the play-by-play voice of the Kelowna Rockets, put this note on his blog Wednesday morning:
“The Rockets had their fair share of scoring chances in (Game 3 on Wednesday), but according to the Kelowna Rockets analytics team, the shot clock wasn't exactly true. The Rockets had 23 shots on net, not the 38 that were shining brightly on the Sandman Centre shot clock. If that indeed is true, 23 shots on net won't win you too many games against elite goaltending.”
Ahh, the games inside the playoff games!
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The playoffs are here so when a coach says that an injured player is OK and “he’ll be fine,” well, you take it with a grain of salt. . . . On Sunday, F Giorgio Estephan of the host Lethbridge Hurricanes left in the second period after taking a high-stick from F Michael Spacek of the Red Deer Rebels. Lethbridge head coach Brent Kisio told Dale Woodard of the Lethbridge Herald: “He’s fine. He’s good to go.” . . . Estephan was scratched from Game 3 in Red Deer last night.
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One player who was in the lineup last night in Red Deer was Rebels captain Adam Musil. He hadn’t played since March 4. The next day, he suffered an undisclosed injury in an off-ice incident — he later was seen with a walking boot on an ankle — and was listed as being out week-to-week.
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The Vancouver Giants didn’t make the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t hard at work. On Wednesday, they announced the signing of F Cyle McNabb, a list player from Winnipeg. McNabb, who will turn 17 on Sept. 15, spent this season with the Rink Hockey Academy’s prep team, putting up nine goals and 16 assists in 29 games.
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If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.
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——
F Travis Jost has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche, which selected him 10th overall in the NHL’s 2016 draft. This means Jost, who played two seasons with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, will leave the U of North Dakota Fighting Hawks after just one season. The Regina Pats hold his WHL rights, having acquired them from the Everett Silvertips. The Pats will be the host team for the 2018 Memorial Cup. Hmmm . . .
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It was a tough day for hockey at North Dakota. Earlier in the day, word got out that the school is axing its women’s program. The team was practising at the time that word leaked. . . . Brad E. Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald, who covers UND hockey like sand covers a beach, reported that the women’s team had a recruit on campus at the time. Lauren Hennessey had left Boston at 5 a.m., for her UND visit. . . . The announcement came one day after USA Hockey reached an agreement with its women’s national team that averted a boycott of the IIHF World Championship that is to begin Friday in Plymouth, Mich. . . . UND also will be dropping men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams.
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Coaching

 The junior B Mission City Outlaws of the 10-team Pacific Junior Hockey League announced Wednesday that co-coaches Mike Drouillard and Brad Veitch have retired. Veitch spent five years with the Outlaws; Drouillard was there for four seasons. . . . The Outlaws then named Mike Renner as their new head coach. Earlier in the day, the PJHL’s Port Moody Panthers had announced that Renner, the team’s interim head coach, wouldn’t be returning. That was announced by Peter Zerbinos, who took over as general manager on March 16. The Panthers finished 16-27-1 this season, putting them fifth in the five-team Tom Shaw Conference. . . . Mission was 18-22-4, which left it fourth in the Harold Brittain Conference.
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WEDNESDAY GAMES:

In Red Deer, F Evan Polei scored 48 seconds into the second OT period to give the Rebels a 4-3 victory
EVAN POLEI
over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . The Rebels hold a 2-1 lead in the series with Game 4 scheduled for tonight in Red Deer. . . . The Rebels scored the game’s last three goals, winning it on Polei’s second of the series. This was the first OT game of these WHL playoffs. . . . F Lane Zablocki had given Red Deer a 1-0 lead with a PP goal at 2:44 of the first period. . . . The Hurricanes stormed back with three straight goals. . . . F Tyler Wong (2) scored on a PP at 8:51. . . . D Brennan Menell (1) gave the visitors the lead at 18:57 of the second period. . . . F Zak Zborosky (1) upped the lead to 3-1 at 3:10 of the third period. . . . F Brandon Hagel (2) scored on a PP at 16:53, getting the Rebels to within one goal. . . . Red Deer tied it when Zablocki scored his third goal of the series with 19.6 seconds left in the third period. . . . The Rebels got three assists from D Jared Freadrich and two from Polei. . . . Wong had two assists for Lethbridge, with Menell and Zborosky adding one each. . . . G Riley Lamb stopped 49 shots for the Rebels, four more than Lethbridge’s Stuart Skinner. . . . Red Deer was 2-5 on the PP. . . . The Hurricanes were 1-2 on the PP. They had been 0-12 before Wong scored. . . . Announced attendance: 5,017.
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At Kennewick, Wash., D Ethan Bear and F Donovan Neuls each had five points as the Seattle Thunderbirds whipped the Tri-City Americans, 9-2. . . . The Thunderbirds hold a 3-0 lead in the series
DONOVAN NEULS
and can end it Friday in Kennewick. . . . The Americans switched goaltenders, going from Rylan Parenteau, who had started the first two games (0-2, 4.65, .875), and bringing Evan Sarthou off the bench. But Sarthou was lifted before the game was 11 minutes old, having allowed three goals on seven shots. . . . Bear, who finished with two goals and three assists, opened the scoring at 2:55. . . . F Scott Eansor (2) made it 2-0 at 7:48 and D Jarret Tyszka (1) upped it to 3-0 at 10:16. . . . Neuls, who scored his second goal and added four helpers, made it 4-0 at 12:03, with D Austin Strand (2) increasing the lead to 5-0 at 17:08. . . . Seattle also got goals from F Keegan Kolesar (3) and F Alexander True (1), with Bear later adding his second of the game and second of the series and Strand scoring his third. . . . F Austyn Playfair (2) and F Morgan Geekie (1) scored for the Americans. . . . True and Kolesar added three assists each. . . . Seattle G Carl Stankowski stopped 21 shots in running his record to 3-0 in relief of injured starter Rylan Toth. . . . Parenteau allowed six goals on 29 shots in 49:44. . . . Seattle was 3-7 on the PP; Tri-City was 0-4. . . . Announced attendance: 2,632.

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At Portland, F Jansen Harkins scored once and added four assists to lead the Prince George Cougars to
JANSEN HARKINS
a 6-1 victory over the Winterhawks. . . . The Cougars lead the series, 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled for tonight in Portland. They’ll be back in Prince George for Game 5 on Saturday. . . . F Skyler McKenzie (2) gave the Winterhawks a 1-0 lead just 14 seconds into the first period. Who knew the home side wouldn’t score again? . . . Harkins (2) tied it at 8:26 and F Kody McDonald (1) put the Cougars out front, on a PP, at 12:36. . . . F Colby McAuley (1) scored at 17:42 for a 3-0 lead. . . . D Tate Olson (1), F Brogan O’Brien and McAuley (2) added Prince George’s other goals. . . . D Brendan Guhle and F Nikita Popugaev each had two assists for the winners, with McAuley getting one. . . . The Cougars got 37 stops from G Ty Edmonds. . . . Portland starter Cole Kehler allowed six goals on 38 shots in 47:35. Shane Farkas finished up by stopping all seven shots he faced in 12:25. . . . Prince George was 2-5 on the PP; Portland was 0-6. . . . Announced attendance: 4,585.
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At Dauphin, Man., the Medicine Hat Tigers ended a goal-less game with two scores in the first two
DAVID QUENNEVILLE
minutes of the third period en route to a 3-2 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . The Tigers swept the best-of-seven series and eliminated the defending champions. . . . Medicine Hat had a 37-15 edge in shots through two periods but couldn’t get the puck past Brandon G Logan Thompson. . . . D Clayton Kirichenko finally solved Thompson, scoring his third goal of the series 24 seconds into the third period. . . . D David Quenneville made it 2-0 at 1:31. . . . F Reid Duke got Brandon to within a goal, on a PP, at 3:11. . . . Quenneville replied with his third goal of the series, on a PP, at 12:09. . . . The Wheat Kings got another PP goal, this one from D Kale Clague (1), at 15:48. . . . The Tigers got 23 saves from G Michael Bullion, who went the distance in all four games. . . . Thompson finished with 51 saves. . . . Brandon was 2-4 on the PP; Medicine Hat 1-5. . . . The Wheat Kings took their first-round home games to Credit Union Place in Dauphin because the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair has taken over the Keystone Centre complex. . . . Announced attendance: 1,825.
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At Kamloops, G Michael Herringer stopped 24 shots to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 1-0 victory over
MICHAEL HERRINGER
the Blazers. . . . The Rockets lead the series, 3-1, with a chance to end it at home on Friday night. . . . Exactly on year earlier, on March 29, 2016, Herringer stopped 40 shots in a 1-0 victory in Kamloops. . . . Last night, Herringer saved the victory with a terrific push across save on Kamloops F Collin Shirley late in the third period. Herringer was trying to smother the puck on the right side of his crease, when it squirted loose. Shirley corralled it behind the net and came out the other side. Herringer somehow got his left pad to the post and stopped the stuff attempt. . . . Herringer now has two shutouts in this series — the Rockets won the opener, 4-0 — and four in his post-season career. . . . Dillon Dube, the best forward on the ice in this one, scored the game’s only goal, at 2:37 of the second period. He’s got three goals in the four games. . . . Kamloops G Connor Ingram put on quite a show, stopping 48 shots. The Rockets held a 40-14 edge in shots after two periods. . . . Steve Yzerman, the general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning, was in the house. The Lightning selected Ingram in the third round of the NHL’s 2016 draft. . . . Kelowna was 0-3 on the PP; Kamloops was 0-7. . . . The Blazers, who beat the visiting Rockets 4-1 on Tuesday night, now are 1-20 on the PP in the four games. . . . The Blazers remain without F Luc Smith, who was hurt in the second-last game of the regular season. . . . Announced attendance: 4,297.
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At Victoria, G Griffen Outhouse turned aside 30 shots as the Royals beat the Everett Silvertips, 2-1. . . .
GRIFFEN OUTHOUSE
That series is 2-2 as it heads back to Everett for Game 5 on Friday. Game 6 is scheduled for Victoria on Sunday. . . . Last night, F Regan Nagy (1) gave Victoria a 1-0 lead at 5:03 of the first period and F Dante Hannoun (1) made it 2-0 at 19:16 of the second. . . . Everett got within a goal when F Patrick Bajkov scored his fourth goal of the series, on a PP, at 16:05 of the third period. . . . Everett held a 10-7 edge in shots in the first period and 11-7 in the second. . . . The Silvertips got 18 saves from G Carter Hart. . . . Everett was 1-4 on the PP; Victoria was 0-3. . . . The Royals again played without F Jack Walker and D Scott Walford, both of whom have undisclosed injuries. . . . The Silvertips continue to be without F Riley Sutter and F Devon Skolenski, who also have undisclosed injuries. Sutter is believed to be close to returning. . . . Announced attendance: 4,637.
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At Swift Current, F Ryley Lindgren scored three times to lead the Broncos to a 5-2 victory over the Moose
RYLEY LINDGREN
Jaw Warriors. . . . The series is tied 2-2 as it heads back to Moose Jaw for Game 5 on Friday night. They’ll be back in Swift Current for Game 6 on Saturday. . . . The Broncos took control with three goals in the first nine minutes of the first period. . . . Lindgren scored twice, at 0:59 and 2:03, with F Tyler Steenbergen making it 3-0 at 8:57. . . . The Warriors made it interesting with a pair of early second-period PP goals, F Brett Howden (1) counting at 1:16 and D Josh Brook (1) finding the range at 2:25. . . . Steenbergen added his fourth goal of the series, on a PP, at 18:57 of the third period. . . . Lindgren iced it with his third goal of the game, and fourth of the series, on a PP, at 19:45. . . . The Warriors got two assists from each of F Jayden Halbgewachs and F Brayden Burke. . . . Swift Current got 30 stops from G Jordan Papirny, while Moose Jaw’s Zach Sawchenko turned aside 20. . . . The Broncos were 2-3 on the PP; the Warriors were 2-6. . . . Announced attendance: 2,890. . . . Darren Steinke, the travelling blogger, was on hand for this one. His blog is right here.

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THURSDAY GAMES (all times local):

Lethbridge at Red Deer, 7 p.m. (Red Deer leads, 2-1)
Regina at Calgary, 7 p.m. (Regina leads, 3-0)
Prince George at Portland, 7 p.m. (Prince George leads, 2-1)

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Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Porter: Seven injuries on one play . . . Rockets close on Cougars . . . T-Birds back on top in wild West


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 F Alex Leavitt (Swift Current, Everett, 2003-05) has announced his retirement. This season, he had 19 goals and 41 assists in 46 games with the Braehead Clan Glasgow (Scotland, UK Elite). . . .
F Andrew Clark (Brandon, 2005-09) has signed a one-year extension with Innsbruck (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). This season, he had 23 goals and 34 assists in 49 games.
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 Les Lazaruk was busy on Tuesday night, calling the play of the Saskatoon Blades’ game in Red Deer against the Rebels.
But during some down-time earlier in the day, he compiled standings showing the WHL’s 22 teams before the Jan. 10 trade deadline, after the deadline, and going into last night’s games.
Here you go (figures in parentheses are post-deadline) . . . 
—
B.C DIVISION
Prince George 28-11-2 (14-9-3) 42-20-5
Kelowna 24-15-3 (16-6-2) 40-21-5
Kamloops 25-15-3 (13-8-3) 38-23-6
Victoria 22-16-4 (15-7-1) 37-23-5
Vancouver 16-23-3 (3-18-3) 19-41-6
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U.S. DIVISION
Everett 25-5-7 (14-9-4) 39-14-11
Seattle 21-14-4 (20-5-2) 41-19-6
Tri-City 24-17-3 (14-8-0) 38-25-3
Portland 21-18-1 (14-8-3) 35-26-4
Spokane 17-17-7 (9-11-3) 26-28-10
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EAST DIVISION
Regina 27-4-7 (18-8-1) 45-12-8
Moose Jaw 25-9-7 (16-8-1) 41-17-8
Swift Current 23-12-7 (11-8-3) 34-20-10
Brandon 20-16-4 (9-11-6) 29-27-10
Saskatoon 15-22-6 (10-9-3) 25-31-9
Prince Albert 8-31-3 (10-10-4) 18-41-7
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CENTRAL DIVISION
Medicine Hat 29-12-1 (17-7-0) 46-19-1
Lethbridge 22-15-5 (20-2-2) 42-17-7
Red Deer 18-17-6 (8-11-5) 26-28-11
Calgary 14-19-5 (11-11-5) 25-30-10
Edmonton 18-20-4 (2-20-1) 20-40-5
Kootenay 10-24-8 (4-17-2) 14-41-10
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The Calgary Hitmen were playing the Pats in Regina on Jan. 6 when G Cody Porter went down. Oh, did he! . . . “I had seven injuries on the one play,” Porter said in a story posted at hitmenhockey.com. “It was a third-degree separated shoulder, third-degree dislocated shoulder, third-degree broken collarbone, torn labrum, torn AC joint, torn rotator cuff and a torn Bankart lesion. So it was a pretty serious injury off a play that didn’t seem very serious at the time.” . . . After all that, you have to wonder if his nickname isn’t Doc. . . . Anyway, Porter worked amazingly hard at rehab and is back, at least in a backup role, and it’s just in time because G Trevor Martin is out day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. . . . Porter’s story is right here.
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When the Kamloops Blazers awoke on Friday morning, they were in Prince George, preparing for a game with the Cougars that evening. At the time, the Blazers were second in the B.C. Division, three points behind Prince George.
When the Blazers boarded their bus late Saturday night and headed for home, having lost both ends of a
doubleheader (8-4, 6-1), they were third in the division, seven points behind the Cougars and one behind the surging Kelowna Rockets.
Tonight, the Blazers open a Wednesday/Friday doubleheader against the visiting Victoria Royals. On Tuesday night, the Royals opened a five-game trek with a 4-3 loss in Kelowna.
The Royals went into that game having won six straight games, but all of those were against non-playoff teams (Kootenay, Vancouver and Spokane). Victoria will play in Kelowna again on Saturday.
A Victoria sweep of the Blazers would move the Royals past the Blazers, knocking Kamloops into fourth place in the division.
Such is life in the B.C. Division where four of the WHL’s most competitive teams reside.
The Blazers will have F Jermaine Loewen back for tonight’s game after he served a one-game suspension incurred after he took a cross-checking major and game misconduct on Friday night.
The Royals remain without D Chaz Reddekopp, who has been out since Feb. 15, and F Ryan Peckford, who hasn’t played since Feb. 7, both of whom remain week-to-week. There is a chance that F Tyler Soy, who last played on Feb. 11, could return Friday in Kamloops.
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Mike Fraser, the writing scout, has been out on the playoff trail of late. Just the other day, he was at a bantam game in Alberta when he glanced at the players’ benches and counted the coaches — one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. . . . In his latest column for the Brandon-based Westman Journal Fraser wonders: What’s up with that? . . . It’s all right here.
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If you haven’t seen it already, former WHL/NHL D Brent Sopel opened up his heart and soul with a piece headlined Lost in My Mind that was posted at The Players’ Tribune on Tuesday. . . . This is a heart-wrenching piece about a man who came to believe he was stupid but now knows that he is learning disabled. . . . Former players like Corey Hirsch, who had a piece there earlier, and Sopel are proving that hockey players are people, too. . . . Sopel’s piece is right here.
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JUST NOTES:

The Kamloops Blazers have a pair of 2016 bantam draft picks — F Connor Zary of Saskatoon and D Quinn Schmiemann of Wilcox, Sask. — practising with them this week. Zary, a second-round selection, had 45 points, including 27 goals, with the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts this season. Schmiemann played with the midget AAA Notre Dame Hounds, who play out of Wilcox. He had 11 goals and 15 assists in 42 games. . . . Both players are scheduled to return to their homes on Sunday. . . . 
F Keyvan Mokhtari of the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies has committed to Colorado College, starting with the 2018-19 season. A native of Burnaby, B.C., he had 36 points, including 19 goals, in 47 games with the Grizzlies this season. . . . Mokhtari, who will turn 19 on May 4, was a seventh-round selection by the Everett Silvertips in the 2013 WHL bantam draft.
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If the WHL playoffs began today . . . 

Eastern Conference
Regina vs. Saskatoon
Medicine Hat vs. Brandon
Moose Jaw vs. Swift Current
Lethbridge vs. Red Deer
—
Western Conference
Seattle vs. Portland
Prince George vs. Victoria
Kelowna vs. Kamloops
Everett vs. Tri-City
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TUESDAY’S GAMES:


At Kelowna, the Rockets built a 4-0 lead and hung on for a 4-3 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . F
NOLAN FOOTE
Nolan Foote got the Rockets started with his 17th goal — he’s 16 years of age — at 9:31 of the first period. . . . Kelowna went ahead 2-0 on F Carsen Twarynski’s 16 goal, at 4:33 of the second period. . . . F Calvin Thurkauf scored No. 33 just 22 seconds later. . . . F Leif Mattson (7) upped the lead to 4-0 at 5:19 of the third period. . . . The Royals made things interesting with three goals in the second-half of the third period. . . . F Jack Walker scored his 29th goal at 12:40. F Jared Dmytriw, who now has 15 goals, added scores at 12:58 and 18:45. . . . Walker also had an assist. . . . The Rockets got two assists from D James Hilsendager. . . . G Michael Herringer stopped 30 shots to earn the victory. . . . Victoria starter Giffen Outhouse was beaten three times on 22 shots in 24:55. Dylan Myskiw came off the bench to stop 15 of 16 shots in 34:48. . . . Kelowna was 0-2 on the PP; Victoria was 0-4. . . . The Rockets (41-21-5) have won five in a row to close with two points of the B.C. Division-leading Prince George Cougars. . . . The Royals (37-24-5) had points in their previous seven games (6-0-1). They are fourth in the B.C. Division, three points behind the Kamloops Blazers. The Royals play in Kamloops on Wednesday and Friday nights. . . . Announced attendance: 4,507.
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At Medicine Hat, F Chad Butcher scored 36 seconds into OT to give the Tigers a 4-3 victory over the Kootenay Ice. . . . Butcher, who has 25 goals, had drawn the primary assist on F John Dahlstrom’s game-
CHAD BUTCHER
tying goal, at 16:11 of the third period. He’s got 28 goals. . . . The Tigers got out to a 2-0 lead on goals from F Mark Rassell (34), who was playing in his 200th regular-season game, at 8:17 of the first period, and D Clayton Kirichenko (12), at 4:47 of the second. . . . The Ice took the lead on three third-period goals. F Brett Davis got his 18th at 1:44. F Colton Kroeker scored No. 17 at 6:40. F Vince Loschiavo, with assists on the first two goals, put the visitors out front with his 25th goal at 8:08. . . . Medicine Hat G Michael Bullion actually made a glove save on Loschiavo’s shot, but it turned out that the glove was over the goal line. . . . D David Quenneville had two assists for Medicine Hat. . . . Kroeker and Davis had one each for the Ice. . . . The Tigers had anticipated starting G Nick Schneider, but he came up ill during the warmup, so Bullion made his fifth straight start. He earned the victory with 24 saves. . . . G Payton Lee blocked 30 shots for Kootenay. . . . The Ice was 0-2 on the PP; the Tigers were 0-3. . . . The Ice went 1-3-1 on a five-game road trip. . . . Medicine Hat (47-19-1) leads the Central Division, by four points over Lethbridge and is second in the overall standings, three points behind Regina. . . . The Ice (14-41-11) has lost four in a row. . . . Announced attendance: 3,030.
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TYLER STEENBERGEN
At Prince Albert, F Tyler Steenbergen broke a 2-2 tie with 57.9 seconds left in the third period as the Swift Current Broncos beat the Raiders, 4-2. . . . Steenbergen has 47 goals, one off the WHL lead that is held by F Tyler Wong of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. Steenbergen does lead the WHL in game-winners, with 11. . . . The Broncos iced it with an empty-netter from F Ryley Lindgren (23), at 19:42. . . . F Parker Kelly had given the Raiders a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 8:57 of the first period. . . . The Broncos tied it when F Lane Pederson got No. 20 at 13:55. . . . It stayed that way well into the third period when F Kaden Elder put the visitors ahead with his 15th goal, at 10:25. . . . Kelly tied it with his second of the game and 18th of the season at 13:07. He’s got four goals and two assists over his past two games. . . . The Broncos got two assists from D Artyom Minulin. . . . G Jordan Papirny earned the victory with 33 saves. . . . G Ian Scott was beaten three times on 33 shots in 55:15, with G Nic Sanders stopping both shots he faced in 4:16. Sanders came on while Scott had an equipment issue. . . . The Raiders were 1-3 on the PP; the Broncos were 0-2. . . . Swift Current (35-20-10) has won five in a row, the last three of those on the road, and appears headed to a third-place finish in the East Division. . . . Prince Albert now is 18-42-7. . . . Announced attendance: 1,886. . . . Darren Steinke, the wandering blogger, was in the house and posted this right here.
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At Red Deer, F Jesse Shynkaruk scored with 16.5 seconds left in OT to give the Saskatoon Blades a 2-1
JESSE SHYNKARUK
victory over the Rebels. . . . It was Shynkaruk’s second goal of the game, his fourth OT goal this season and his 10th game-winner of the season. . . . F Deven Sideroff of the Kamloops Blazers has five OT goals this season, tying the WHL record (F Eric Fehr, Brandon Wheat Kings, 2004-05). . . . Shynkaruk, 20, was a walk-on to the Blades’ training camp as he hoped to extend his WHL career. When this season began, Shynkaruk had 23 goals and 25 assists in 196 career regular-season games. This season, he has put up 51 points, including 30 goals, in 52 games. . . . Shynkaruk had opened the scoring, on a PP, at 1:12 of the first period. . . . The Rebels tied it at 12:10 of the second on F Evan Polei’s 29th goal of the season. . . . The Blades got 35 saves from G Logan Flodell. . . . At the other end, Riley Lamb also stopped 35 shots. . . . Saskatoon was 1-3 on the PP; Red Deer was 0-4. . . . The Calgary Hitmen didn’t want to see this game turn into a three-pointer, but it did. Saskatoon (26-31-9), which plays in Calgary tonight, moved into the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot, one point ahead of the Hitmen. Red Deer (26-28-12) is third in the Central Division, four points ahead of Calgary. . . . Announced attendance: 4,029. . . . Greg Meachem of reddeerrebels.com has a game story right here. It’s worth a click to see the photo by Rob Wallator that features Red Deer’s Matt Campese and Saskatoon’s Jackson Caller.
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At Kent, Wash., the Seattle Thunderbirds moved back atop the Western Conference standings with a 5-2
KEEGAN KOLESAR
victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Thunderbirds (42-19-6) lead the conference by one point over the Prince George Cougars. Seattle also leads the U.S. Division, by a point over the Everett Silvertips. . . . F Hudson Elynuik (26) gave the Chiefs a 1-0 lead at 5:55 of the first period, but the Thunderbirds roared back to score the next five goals. . . . F Alexander True (21) tied it, on a PP, at 9:08, and D Turner Ottenbreit (6) shot Seattle into the lead at 10:45. . . . D Anthony Bishop gave Seattle a 3-1 lead with his second goal of the season at 19:30. . . . F Keegan Kolesar (26) and F Donovan Neuls (14) added third-period goals for the winners. . . . F Kailer Yamamoto scored Spokane’s final goal, his 37th, on a penalty shot at 19:07 of the third period. . . . Seattle got two assists from each of F Mathew Barzal and F Ryan Gropp, with Kolesar adding one. Kolesar is riding a 15-game point streak. . . . Seattle D Ethan Bear had an assist in his return to the lineup, running his point streak to 13 games. . . . Seattle got 26 saves from Rylan Toth, who  leads the WHL with 35 victories. . . . Spokane starter Jayden Sittler allowed five goals on 28 shots in 46:28. Donovan Buskey finished up, stopping all five shots he faced in 13:32 in the second appearance of his WHL career. . . . Seattle was 1-2 on the PP; Spokane was 0-3. . . . The Chiefs (26-29-10) have lost three in a row (0-2-1). They are 12 points out of a playoff spot with seven games remaining. . . . Announced attendance: 5,807.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Saskatoon at Calgary, 7 p.m.
Victoria at Kamloops, 7 p.m.
Edmonton at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Prince George at Portland 7 p.m.
Everett at Spokane, 7:05 p.m.
Regina at Swift Current, 7 p.m.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:19 PM
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