Sportsnet gang loves P.G. . . . Hitmen, Blades make deal . . . No timetable for Patrick return

You can't make this stuff up. The winner of tonight's $38,000+ 50/50 jackpot! Congrats @SNFaulds and the @Sportsnet team! pic.twitter.com/WmaczrTH6x

— PG Cougars (@PGCougars) November 8, 2016

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The Calgary Hitmen have acquired the rights to D Jonathan Tychonick, 16, from the Saskatoon Blades,

JONATHAN TYCHONICK

giving up a third-round selection in the 2017 draft and a conditional first-rounder.

Tychonick, from Calgary, was the 12th overall selection in the 2015 WHL bantam draft. However, in late March he made a verbal commitment to attend the U of North Dakota starting in the fall of 2018. This season, he is with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees, and has seven points, two of them goals, in 14 games.

“At this time, getting a guaranteed third-round pick for Jonathan was in the best interest of our club,” Colin Priestner, the Blades’ general manager, said in a news release. “We feel he belongs in the WHL one day and, if he is, his hometown team with a great organization like the Hitmen would give us the best odds of that happening.

“If he signs with them at any juncture, we also will get a first-round pick back.”

Tychonick played for Canada White at the just-completed U-17 World Hockey Challenge, putting up four assists in six games.

In 2014-15, he had 58 points, including 20 goals, in 33 games with the Calgary Flames and was named the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League’s most valuable player and top defenceman.

Last season, he had five goals and 17 assists in 28 games with the midget AAA Calgary Flames.

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F Mathew Barzal was scratched again on Monday night as his New York Islanders played host to the Vancouver Canucks. Barzal, who is from Coquitlam, B.C., has played in just two of the Islanders’ first 13 games.

Barzal, 19, was the 16th overall selection in the 2015 NHL draft. Because he is 19 and was drafted from major junior, he is eligible this season to play with the Islanders or the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Barzal’s progress has been slowed at least a bit because he was fighting strep throat last week.

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Grant Armstrong, the general manager of the Brandon Wheat Kings, says there isn’t a timetable for the return of F Nolan Patrick. . . . The 18-year-old Patrick, the consensus No. 1 pick for the 2017 NHL draft, has missed the Wheat Kings’ past 11 games. Before going out, he put up four goals and five assists in six games. . . . After being name the WHL’s playoff MVP last spring when the Wheat Kings won the Ed Chynoweth Cup, Patrick underwent sports hernia surgery in July. . . . “I’m not saying anything about the injury, other than that it’s upper body, day-to-day,” Armstrong told Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province on Monday. “We’re not certain when we’re going to see him back in the lineup.” . . . Patrick had been named to the roster of the WHL team that opened a two-game series with a Russian side in Prince George on Monday night. However, he was dropped from the roster due to injury. . . . Now it’s a waiting game to see whether he will be invited to the Canadian national junior team’s selection camp. . . . Ewen’s story is right here.

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Hearing defenseman Tyler Brown has left the #WHLGiants, gm Glen Hanlon says no comment.

— NEWS 1130 Sports (@NEWS1130Sports) November 7, 2016

According to a report, D Tyler Brown has left the Vancouver Giants. . . . Brown, 19, is from East Olympia, Wash. He was a fifth-round pick by the Moose Jaw Warriors in the 2012 bantam draft and is in his fourth WHL season. . . . The Giants acquired him from the Warriors at last season’s trade deadline. The Giants acquired Brown, D Marcus Kichton and a 2017 second-round bantam draft pick for D Josh Thrower and a fifth-round pick in the 2017 draft. . . . In 167 regular-season WHL games, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Brown has three goals and 27 assists. This season, he has two assists in 16 games.

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At Prince George, F Denis Alexeyev scored 55 seconds into OT to give Team Russia a 3-2 victory over Team WHL in Game 1 of the CBC Canada-Russia series. . . . The play that led to the winner began with a faceoff in the Russian zone. Alexeyev took the draw, then picked up a loose puck along the boards and skated down the left wing and into the offensive zone. A right-hand shot, he fired a wrist shot from the top right of the face-off circle that appeared to glance off the stick of WHL D Cal Foote (Kelowna Rockets) before beating G Connor Ingram (Kamloops Blazers). . . . Alexeyev, 19, plays for HK Ryazan of the VHL, which is one level below the KHL. He has 10 points, six of them goals, in 20 games. . . . F Nikita Li gave Russia a 1-0 lead a 1:13 of the first period, with F Jansen Harkins, who plays for the Prince George Cougars, tying it at 9:48. . . . The Russians went back in front at 3:46 of the third period, on a goal by F Danila Kvartalnov. . . . F Sam Steel of the Regina Pats forced OT when he scored from a scramble at 9:34. . . . G Anton Krasotkin stopped 32 shots for the victory, while Ingram turned aside 18. . . . The WHL was 1-7 on the PP; Russia was 0-3. . . . Announced attendance: 5,802. . . . The series continues Tuesday night in Edmonton.

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MONDAY’S GAME:

No Games Scheduled.

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LEADERS

POINTS: F Sam Steel, Regina, F Mason Shaw, Medicine Hat, each 28; F Kailer Yamamoto, Spokane, 26; F Chad Butcher, Medicine Hat, 25; F Cody Glass, Portland, each 25.

GOALS: F Michael Rasmussen, Tri-City, 16; Steel, F Tyler Steenbergen, Swift Current, each 14; Yamamoto, F Zak Zborosky, Kootenay, each 13.

ASSISTS: Shaw, 23; F Brayden Burke, Lethbridge, Butcher, Glass, each 18; D Chase Harrison, Regina, F Steve Owre, Medicine Hat, F Aleksi Heponiemi, Swift Current, each 16.

VICTORIES: Nick Schneider, Medicine Hat, 11; Ty Edmonds, Prince George, Griffen Outhouse, Victoria, each 10; Carter Hart, Everett, Michael Herringer, Kelowna, each 9.

GAA: Hart, 1.89; Connor Ingram, Kamloops, 2.01; Ty Edmonds, Prince George, 2.29; Logan Flodell, Saskatoon, 2.34; Cody Porter, Calgary, 2.46.

SAVE %: Ingram, .937; Flodell, .932; Hart, .926; Edmonds, .921; Outhouse, Porter, Ian Scott, Prince Albert, each .920.

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TUESDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.

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Raiders show profit for 2015-16 . . . Wheaties get their GM . . . Ice adds coach . . . Veteran scouts on move

F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) has signed a one-year contract with Katowice (Poland, PHL). Last season, with the Coventry Blaze (England, UK Elite), he had four goals and nine assists in 21 games. He also had nine goals and 12 assists in 25 games with the Edinburgh Capitals (Scotland, UK Elite). . . .
D Kirill Vorobyev (Portland, 2012-13) has been assigned by CSKA Moscow (KHL, Russia) to Zvezda Chekhov (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). Last season, with CSKA Moscow, he had three assists in 28 games. He also had two goals and six assists in 16 games with Zvezda Chekhov . He had one assist in two games with Krasnaya Armiya Moscow (Russia, MHL). MHL (Molodezhnaya Liga) is Russia's top junior league.
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It isn’t much, but it’s a profit, and that’s important to the community-owned teams in the WHL. The Prince Albert Raiders held their annual meeting on Monday and reported a profit of $3,892 for the 2015-16 season. . . . The Raiders showed a profit despite that fact that their attendance dropped 62 fans per game from 2014-15, when the franchise reported a loss of $61,365. In 2015-16, the Raiders averaged 2,369 fans per game. . . . The Raiders definitely would appear to be headed in the right direction; after all, they reported a loss of more than $262,000 for the 2013-14 season.
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The Brandon Wheat Kings, the WHL’s defending champions, announced Tuesday that they have signed Grant Armstrong as their general manager. He replaces Kelly McCrimmon, the franchise’s owner and governor, who is joining the NHL’s Las Vegas franchise as assistant general manager. McCrimmon had been the GM since 1989, when he took over from Bill Shinske. . . . Guy Flaming of The Pipeline Show was the first to suggest that Armstrong could be headed to the Wheat Kings. . . . “I think it’s time,” Armstrong told Taking Note. “Hopefully, we’ll provide Kelly with a team he’s going to be proud of.” . . . . Armstrong, 54, from North Vancouver, had been with the Victoria Royals for four seasons, the past two as assistant GM, player personnel. Before that, he was the director of player personnel for two seasons. . . . Prior to that, Armstrong spent four seasons as the Portland Winterhawks’ head scout. . . . He has been a familiar face in Lower Mainland hockey circles, having coached the junior B North Delta Devils, while serving as the North Vancouver Minor Hockey Association’s director of hockey operations. He also has been involved with the North Delta Minor Hockey Association as a coach and development co-ordinator. He was honoured with the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association’s Coaching Development Award in 2003. . . . The Wheat Kings also announced that Mick McCrimmon, 30, will be the team’s assistant GM. McCrimmon, Kelly’s son, has a law degree, and will assist in hockey and business operations.
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The Kootenay Ice has signed Roman Vopat as an assistant coach. He spent the previous two seasons as an assistant coach with the Prince George Cougars. . . . Vopat played two seasons in the WHL, with the Moose Jaw Warriors and Prince Albert Raiders, before going on to a 16-year professional career that included 133 NHL games. A native of Litvinov, Czech Republic, Vopat and his family reside in Cranbrook. . . . With the Ice, he’ll join head coach Luke Pierce and fellow assistant Gordon Burnett behind the bench.
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With WHL training camps about to open, or in some cases having already started, Alan Caldwell has come through again. His annual numbers-filled look at WHL teams and their prospects is right here.
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Vaughn Karpan, a native of The Pas, Man., has joined the NHL’s Las Vegas franchise as its director of player personnel. He had been with the Montreal Canadiens since 2005, most recently as director of pro scouting. He also worked with the Winnipeg Jets/Phoenix Coyotes for 13 years, five as director of amateur scouting. . . . Karpan played for Canada’s national men’s team (1983-88), playing in two Olympic Winter Games. He captained the U of Manitoba Bisons while playing there and also played one season (1979-80) with the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Las Vegas also confirmed something that was reported here yesterday — former Prince Albert Raiders general manager Bruno Campese has been hired as an amateur scout.
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Bruce Franklin, a longtime scout with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks, has moved to the Anaheim Ducks to fill the new position of director of player evaluation. Franklin spent 23 years with Chicago, the last six as chief amateur scout. . . . He cut his scouting teeth in the WHL, where he was part of two Memorial Cup champions. He was a scout with the 1984-85 Prince Albert Raiders and the director of player personnel with the 1988-89 Swift Current Broncos.
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Scott Galbraith, a fan of the OHL’s London Knights, has filed a civil statement of claim asking for $100,000, including $80,000 for aggravated and punitive damages, after he says he purchased a game-used sweater but wasn’t given the one that he had bought. The suit also names the Canadian Hockey League and the Hockey Hall of Fame. . . . Robert Cribb of the Toronto Star has more right here.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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Billy Keane is the new head coach of the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues. He had been their assistant coach, so steps up to fill the spot created when Don MacGillivray joined the Brandon Wheat Kings as an assistant coach. . . . McGillivray had been the GM/head coach of the Blues for seven seasons. . . . Keane had been an assistant coach with the Blues for three seasons. He played for them for two seasons (1982-84). . . . Tim Schick will be the Blues’ director of hockey operations and head scout, with Wayne Bartley on board as assistant coach. . . . Keane is the brother of former NHL/WHL F Mike Keane.
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Often when I look at the list of trending topics on Twitter I am overwhelmed by a sense of dread for our species.

— Guy Flaming (@TPS_Guy) August 24, 2016

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One of these days, Kelly McCrimmon, the owner of the Brandon Wheat Kings, will get around to announcing a new general manager. That is expected to be Grant Armstrong, the Victoria Royals’ assistant GM, player personnel. . . . McCrimmon, who has signed on assistant GM with the NHL’s Las Vegas franchise, had been the Wheat Kings’ GM since 1989. The GM in Brandon prior to McCrimmon? Bill Shinske.

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In Spokane, Tim Speltz is leaving his post as GM to join the Toronto Maple Leafs as the NHL team’s head western scout. Speltz had been the Chiefs’ GM since 1990. The last Spokane GM before Speltz took over? Vic Fitzgerald, who owned the Chiefs before selling the franchise to Bobby Brett.

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With training camps about to open, it would seem that all of the post-Memorial Cup speculation involving Brent Sutter’s future as the head coach of the Red Deer Rebels was nothing but hot air. Thankfully.

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Let’s be honest. The star of the Rio Olympics was the Tongan flag bearer in the opening and closing ceremonies. . . . BTW, I realized the Olympics were over when I scanned the TV listings on Sunday evening and the World Poker Tour was on four of the Rogers Sportsnet channels.

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The Portland Timbers were in Seattle on Sunday evening for an MLS game with the Sounders. At one point, a Portland player went down, perhaps injured. According to a tweet from Paige Cornwell (@pgcornwell), Seattle fans chanted: “Let him die! Let him die!” . . . That’s like something out of a Monty Python skit, isn’t it? . . . We will hope that kind of stuff doesn’t reach the rivalry between Portland and Seattle WHL fans.

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The Medicine Hat News reported last week that Tigers F Matt Bradley suffered a separated shoulder in the first period of his first game at the Montreal Canadiens’ development camp in July. Bradley, 19, who had 23 goals and 28 assists with the Tigers last season, hasn’t yet been cleared for contact so may miss the start of training camp. Remind me again why these players need to be in camps during the summer months?

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Yes, it’s time for the WHL to get out in front of things by attaching an automatic game misconduct to a fighting major, so long as an opponent didn’t get an instigating minor. It’s the right thing to do if, that is, player safety really is paramount.

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Is there a bigger tire fire in the sporting world these days than the Saskatchewan Roughriders? They were 3-15 a year ago; today, their offence is bad, their defence is worse — for starters, they can’t pressure the QB because the secondary can’t cover — and they are taking their 1-7 record into Edmonton for a Friday date with the high-flying Eskimos.

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On Aug. 7, Drew Wilson, the radio voice of the Prince Albert Raiders, completed the Frank Dunn Triathlon at Waskesiu in Prince Albert National Park. On Aug. 14, he completed a 100-kilometre bike ride in Saskatoon. On Aug. 21, he completed Ryder Hesjedal’s Tour de Victoria, which covered 140 km. . . . Any question as to which WHL play-by-play guy is most ready for the grind of another season?

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D Ben Carroll, who played the past three seasons with the Edmonton Oil Kings, will attend the U of Alberta and play this season for the Golden Bears. From Sherwood Park, Alta., he played out his junior eligibility last season. . . . There also is speculation that the Golden Bears will get D Ryan Rehill (Kamloops Blazers), F Luke Philp (Kootenay Ice, Red Deer Rebels), F Tyson Baillie (Kelowna Rockets) and D Jason Fram (Spokane Chiefs) if they aren’t able to earn pro contracts at NHL camps. The latter four also played in the WHL as 20-year-olds last season. . . . That would be some kind of recruiting class should Alberta add those four to its roster.

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My wife, Dorothy, is to be one of the co-honourees — along with her friend Margaret Thompson — of the 2016 Kamloops Kidney Walk. Each year, the walk salutes someone who has worked to shine a light on kidney transplants and organ donorship. Dorothy, who had a kidney transplant almost three years ago, will take part in her third straight Kidney Walk on Sept. 25. If you would like to sponsor her, please click right here.

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To all my WHL friends. Travel safe to camp. Enjoy the experience. Good luck to you all. #scoutsfraternity #greatestsportintheworld

— Moults (@Moults_23) August 21, 2016

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.

Speltz leaving Chiefs after 26 years . . . Armstrong next GM in Brandon?

Not since the death of Ed Chynoweth on April 22, 2008 has the face of the WHL changed the way it has in the last few weeks.

After 26 seasons in Spokane, Tim Speltz is leaving the Chiefs. Speltz, the Chiefs’ general manager, is joining the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs as director of western area scouting. He will continue to live in Spokane, while scouting and overseeing a staff of four — two amateur and two pro scouts.

If you’re wondering, Speltz was a fan of the Maple Leafs when he was a youngster. “A little, yes,” he

Tim Speltz, the Spokane Chiefs' GM for 26 years, is leaving to
join the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs. (Spokane Chiefs graphic)

told Taking Note via email. “More Leafs than Habs, but always a Bobby Orr fan.” Yes, even then he was scouting individual talent.

Speltz’s departure follows the move of Kelly McCrimmon to the NHL’s expansion Las Vegas franchise. McCrimmon owns the reigning-champion Brandon Wheat Kings and also was the team’s general manager and head coach. McCrimmon has been with the Wheat Kings since 1988.

Not only are Speltz and McCrimmon the best of friends, they were three of the most powerful men in the WHL, the other being Bruce Hamilton, the chairman of the board of governors and the president/general manager of the Kelowna Rockets.

McCrimmon, as chairman, and Speltz both were on the WHL’s four-man competition committee.

Speltz, 57, is the only general manager the Chiefs have had since Bobby Brett, the organization’s managing partner, purchased the team in 1990 from Vic Fitzgerald for a price believed in the neighbourhood of Cdn$800,000.

Speltz had spent the previous two seasons as the GM of the Medicine Hat Tigers.

From a Chiefs’ news release:

“In the 26 years under his leadership, the organization has experienced success rivalled by very few in the Western Hockey League, winning two WHL championships and Memorial Cups in 1991 and 2008.

“With Speltz at the helm, the Chiefs won 961 regular-season games. They topped 40 wins 10 times, 50 wins twice and 100 points four times. They added 142 playoff wins, reaching the postseason in 23 of his 26 seasons, the Western Conference final seven times and the WHL final four times.”

Speltz twice was the WHL’s executive of the year (1995-96, 1999-2000); he was the CHL’s top executive in 1995-96. He also has been part of Hockey Canada’s program for the past three years, first with the U-18 team and, for the past two seasons, with the U-20 program.

Speltz will stay on with the Chiefs through training camp, which opens next week, and will help with the transition to a new GM.

“We don’t know how soon we will have a new guy on board,” Brett told a news conference.

Interestingly, Speltz hired only six head coaches during his 26 years with the Chiefs, and two of those now are NHL head coaches. When he took over, he inherited Bryan Maxwell, who stayed on for the next four seasons. Speltz hired Mike Babcock to replace Maxwell. Babcock was there through six seasons, with Perry Ganchar (2), Al Conroy (3), Bill Peters (3), Hardy Sauter (2) and Don Nachbaur, who is preparing for his seventh season in Spokane, following, in that order.

Babcock, of course, is heading into his second season as the Maple Leafs’ head coach, while Peters is preparing for his third season as head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes.

It can’t be easy trying to find a general manager at this late date. An obvious candidate would seem to be Matt Bardsley, who has been with the Portland Winterhawks for ages and is presently their assistant general manager. But one would have to think there might be some wheeling and dealing to make something like that happen.

There are a couple of names out there with experience in Lorne Molleken and Brent Parker, neither of whom is involved with the WHL at the moment.

And what about Bruno Campese, who didn’t get near enough credit for his stint as GM with the Prince Albert Raiders?

With McCrimmon and Speltz gone, it will be interesting to see how the WHL’s power base shifts.

Hamilton, of course, remains as the WHL’s most powerful individual; he likely is No. 2 in major junior hockey, behind only David Branch, who is the commissioner of the OHL and the president of the CHL.

It could be that long-time WHLers like Russ Farwell, the Seattle Thunderbirds’ governor and GM, Brent Sutter, the owner, general manager and head coach of the Red Deer Rebels, move into that upper echelon, along with Ron Toigo, the majority owner of the Vancouver Giants.

General manager Peter Anholt of the Lethbridge Hurricanes has been around the WHL for a long time and could end up with a louder voice at the table, especially if his club continues his climb out of a financial sewer.

Relative newcomers like Greg Pocock, the governor, managing partner and president of the Prince George Cougars, and general managers Cam Hope (Victoria Royals), Garry Davidson (Everett Silvertips) and John Paddock (Regina Pats) all have lots to contribute given the opportunity.

 Of course, Mike Johnston, vice-president, general manager and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks, has lots to contribute but it could be that some WHL people are unable to forgive or forget.

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A name coming to me as possible next GM of the Brandon Wheat Kings is Victoria Royals AGM/Director of Player Personnel Grant Armstrong. #WHL

— Guy Flaming (@TPS_Guy) August 17, 2016

Guy Flaming, from The Pipeline Show, broke the Tim Speltz move on Tuesday afternoon, and followed up with the above tweet.

Grant Armstrong, from North Vancouver, joined the Victoria Royals as director of player personnel on Aug. 1, 2012, and has since added assistant GM to his job description. He had spent the previous

four seasons as the Portland Winterhawks’ head scout.

The Wheat Kings, of course, need a general manager now that Kelly McCrimmon, their owner, GM and head coach, has signed on with the NHL’s expansion team in Las Vegas. He has just returned from scouting the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament in Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Should Armstrong end up with Brandon, it would be an interesting hire for McCrimmon. Armstrong left Portland about four months before the Winterhawks were slammed by the WHL for “violations related to player benefits.”

As Portland’s head scout when many of those violations occurred, I don’t have any idea how much, if any, knowledge Armstrong had of what was happening. But I do know that McCrimmon was a big believer in the way the WHL dealt with the Winterhawks.

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D Jared Hauf, who played out his junior eligibility with the Seattle Thunderbirds, will attend the U of Calgary and play for the Dinos. Hauf played in 343 regular-season games with the Thunderbirds, leaving him third on their all-time list, behind Glen Goodall (399) and Luke Lockhart (345). . . . Hauf had 11 goals and 47 assists with Seattle. He had two goals and four assists in 40 playoff games.

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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.

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Nate Bedford is the new general manager and head coach of the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars. Bedford, a 36-year-old native of Peterborough, Ont., had been the head coach at Keyano College in Fort McMurray, Alta., for the previous two seasons. All told, he spent four years there. . . . He takes over from Kevin Hasselberg, the SJHL’s reigning coach of the year who now is the GM and head coach of the SPHL’s Pensacola Ice Flyers. Hasselberg had been with the North Stars for five seasons. . . . Lucas Punkari of the Battlefords News-Optimist has more right here.

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The SJHL’s Weyburn Red Wings added two men to their front office on Tuesday, naming Tanner McCall general manager and head scout, with Wes Rudy coming on board as head coach. . . . They replace Bryce Thoma, who had been the GM and head coach before leaving to join the Saskatoon Blades as an assistant coach. . . . Rudy was an assistant coach with the Red Wings last season, after spending three seasons as their goaltending coach. . . . Last season, McCall was the Red Wings’ assistant GM and head scout. He also worked as an assistant coach alongside Thoma.

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The AJHL’s Spruce Grove Saints have added Eric Morrissette to their staff as an assistant coach and director of player development. He will work with Mike Ringrose, who is preparing for his first season as general manager and head coach. . . . Morrissette is a two-time midget AAA coach of the year in Alberta. . . . The Saints also added Chad Ziegler as an assistant coach and Geoff Wowk as head scout. . . . Ziegler, who is from Spruce Grove, played for the Saints before going on to spend four seasons as Yale. . . . Wowk has spent the past three seasons scouting for the WHL’s Vancouver Giants.

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Seriously??? https://t.co/IZrEwKGxTF

— Oren Koules (@OrenKoules) August 16, 2016

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.

The home of the Kootenay Ice now has a new name.

THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Travis Ehrhardt (Moose Jaw, Portland, 2004-09) signed a try-out contract with TPS Turku (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had one goal and six assists in 41 games with the Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) last season. The contract lasts until the start of the regular season (Sept. 13) and rolls into a one-year contract should Ehrhardt's try-out be a success. TPS play their first exhibition game on Friday. . . .
D Dustin Friesen (Swift Current, 2000-04) signed a one-year contract
with the Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (Germany, 2. Bundesliga). He had one goal and two assists in 19 games with the Chicago Wolves (AHL) and one assist in one game on loan to the Missouri Mavericks (CHL) last season. Friesen is due to arrive in Bremerhaven in the middle of next week to begin practices with the club. The Pinguins play their first exhibition game on Aug. 31 and begin their regular season on Sept. 21. . . .
F Justin Kelly (Prince Albert, Spokane, Saskatoon, 1997-2002) signed a one-year contract with Troja/Ljungby (Sweden, Allsvenskan), returning to the club after a 10-year absence. He had two assists in 14 games with Dusseldorf (Germany, DEL) during an injury-plagued 2011-12 season. The contract contains a clause in which either party can terminate the agreement at anytime prior to the end of September. Kelly is to arrive in Ljungby on Sunday and the team opens its exhibition season on Aug. 10. Sweden's Allsvenskan begins its regular season on Sept. 12. . . .
G Alexander Fomitchev (Calgary, Seattle, 1997-2000) signed a one-year contract with THK Tver (Russia, Vysshaya Liga). He had a 2.94 GAA and a .916 save percentage in nine games with Sarov (Russia, Vysshaya Liga) last season.
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The Cranbrook RecPlex is no more. Under a 10-year deal, the home of the Kootenay Ice will be called Western Financial Place. . . . According to a news release, “Western Financial Group, an insurance and financial services company based in Alberta, won naming rights for the next 10 years and plans to work with the City of Cranbrook, the facility operators, and the company's regional partner, Falkins Insurance Group, to build on the longstanding tradition of providing the residents of Cranbrook and surrounding areas a first-class destination for entertainment, recreation, and community involvement.” . . . The 10-year deal that includes naming rights and other sponsorship and usage commitments, is worth $750,000, “including an advance of $500,000.” . . . The facility opened Oct. 13, 2000, and also includes a lap and wave pool, and racquet ball/squash courts.
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Dan Mulhausen has had the ‘interim’ removed from his title as he has been named the Tri-City Americans’ vice-president of business operations and marketing communications. He had been in that role since the departure of Brian Sandy in December. . . . Mulhausen, 30, joined the Americans seven years ago as an account executive. For the last four seasons, he worked as the club’s director of marketing, media relations and game operations.
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The Everett Silvertips have signed D Kevin Davis, the 11th overall selection in the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft. Davis, from Kamloops, had 46 points in 49 games with the bantam AAA Jardine’s Blazers last season.
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D Paul Bonar (Moose Jaw, Everett, 2008-10) has committed to attend the U of Regina and play for the Cougars. Bonar, who is from Brandon, spent the last two seasons with the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues. He played 44 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors in 2008-09 and two with the Everett Silvertips in 2009-10.
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Grant Armstrong is the Victoria Royals’ new director of player personnel. Armstrong spent the last four seasons as the Portland Winterhawks’ head scout. Armstrong, 50, is from North Vancouver. For the last two seasons, he was head coach of the junior B North Delta Devils, who played in the Pacific International league. He also was the North Vancouver Minor Hockey Association’s director of hockey operations since 2010. . . . Armstrong’s signing doesn’t affect the status of Garry Pochipinski, who remains the Royals’ director of scouting.
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The Portland Winterhawks have had two recent departures from their scouting department, what with Garry Davidson having stepped down as director of player personnel to join the Everett Silvertips as general manager and now Grant Armstrong leaving for Victoria. . . . “With the departures of Grant and Garry we now have two key scouting positions to fill, and we will begin that process immediately,” Portland GM/head coach Mike Johnston said in a news release.
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The Lethbridge Hurricanes will be without D Adam Henry until at least January. According to the Hurricanes, Henry has been diagnosed with myocarditis, “a condition that’s an inflammation of the heart muscle and while there are various causes, it’s most often due to common virus infections.” . . . Henry, who will turn 18 on Nov. 24, had 21 points and 47 penalty minutes in 60 games as a freshman last season.
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THE COACHING GAME:
The Victoria Royals have confirmed that assistant coaches Enio Sacilotto, Ben Cooper and Brady Robinson will be back for another season, as will Jeff Compton, the strength and conditioning coach. Robinson works with their goaltenders. . . . They will be working with new head coach Dave Lowry. . . . The Royals’ staff also will include Geoff Grimwood, the head coach of the major midget South Island Royals. He will work with the WHL team when available. . . .
Jim Mollard (Brandon, Winnipeg Warriors, 1981-83) has signed a three-year deal as the new head coach of the MJHL’s OCN Blizzard. He actually signed a couple of weeks and I somehow missed this one. Mollard, 48, has been away from the game for 13 years, but he has coaching experience with the now-defunct Brandon U Bobcats and in Europe. He replaces Jomar Cruz, who resigned in May.

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