Sheesh, if you had arrived fresh on the Twitterverse on Thursday afternoon you might have thought Seattle had an NHL franchise and that it was going to begin play in September.
Fresh out of cities to use as leverage (thank you, Winnipeg), could it be that the NHL has turned its lonely eyes to Seattle?
You remember Seattle? It used to be home to a WHL franchise that now is located in Kent, Wash., even though it still calls itself the Seattle Thunderbirds.
The Thunderbirds, you may recall, vacated the KeyArena and moved into new digs in Kent. The KeyArena, you will remember, also at one time was home to an NBA franchise, one that now is the Oklahoma City Thunder.
So why would the NHL be interested in moving into a city where there obviously isn’t an arena that would meet its standards, and where there isn’t a plan anywhere in sight for a new building? After all, even though baseball’s Mariners and football’s Seahawks have new homes, no one stepped up to build a new facility and save the SuperSonics.
“We’ve had discussions with a group in Seattle,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told Seattle TV station KING5. “Certainly (there are) people who are interested in having NHL hockey in Seattle. I would rather not get into specifics to be fair to that group, or the process.”
In speaking with the TV station, Daly also questioned whether KeyArena would be a proper venue for an NHL franchise, pointing out that there are “obstructed view” seats for hockey.
But that didn’t stop people from jumping all over this story and running with it. Part of that is likely because a Seattle franchise presumably would have some kind of rivalry with the Vancouver Canucks and, these days, the Canucks are kind of a hot topic on the West Coast.
Of course, a skeptic might suggest that with the Phoenix Coyotes staying put, at least for now, and with the Atlanta Thrashers’ move to Winnipeg to be finalized whenever TSN and Rogers Sportsnet quit fighting over the date of the official announcement, the NHL simply is searching for another lever. So that the next time it is suggested that a particular team is struggling financially, well, Seattle will be in the conversation as an option.
Nah . . .
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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Daniel Vorab (Saskatoon, 2001-03) signed a one-year contract with the Basingstoke Bison (England, Premier). He had eight goals and 15 assists in 44 games for Hradec Kralove (Czech Republic 1.Liga) this season. Bison director of ice hockey Steve Moria: "I am obviously very happy to sign a player of this calibre. This is a player who could have been playing in the NHL right now if things went differently seven or eight years ago. His excellent overall game will suit us perfectly. His vision and awareness wil create scoring opportunities for his wingers."
F Igor Revenko (Prince Albert, 2008-11) signed a one-year contract with Yunost Minsk (Belarus, Open). He had 23 goals and 28 assists in 57 games for the Raiders this season. . . .
F Kyle Wanvig (Edmonton/Kootenay, Red Deer, 1997-2001) signed a one-year contract with Villach (Austria, Erste Bank Liga). He had five goals and 10 assists in 37 games for Augsburger Panther (Germany, DEL) and two goals and two assists in five games for Poprad (Slovakia, Extraliga) this season.
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John MacNeil of the Brandon Sun has written extensively this week on concussions and their impact on people. Right here is a look at Jace Miller, a 14-year-old minor hockey player, and what he and his family went through.
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A note from a sidebar written by MacNeil is worth posting here:
Hockey Brandon is polling its members for input on a gameplan to tackle and manage concussions.
"We've taken a proactive approach to offer a non-contact division for peewee-aged and older children who don't want to play (contact hockey)," said Hockey Brandon third vice-president Don Wilson. "A lot of larger centres are going to that, with very good success and their numbers are going up and kids are staying involved in the sport. We've sent out an email to all families to see if that is something they'd at all be interested in, just to get a gauge on interest."
Brandon will host an open concussion symposium June 8 at the Victoria Inn at 7 p.m.
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D Victor Bartley, who played in Europe this season, signed a two-year deal with the NHL’s Nashville Predators earlier this week. According to capgeek.com, Bartley, 23, will get US$67,500 in the AHL and $537,5000 in the NHL. He got a $25,000 signing bonus over two years. . . . The Minnesota Wild has signed Red Deer Rebels G Darcy Kuemper to a three-year contract. Kuemper, who played out his junior eligibility this season, was a sixth-round selection in the 2009 NHL draft. He is coming off a season in which he was the WHL’s player and goaltender of the year. Capgeek.com reports that Kuemper’s AHL salary will be US$67,500 for each of the three seasons, with NHL salaries of $690,000, $740,000 annd $900,000. He got a $270,000 signing bonus over three years. . . .
As expected, Don Hay, the head coach of the Vancouver Giants, has been named head coach of Canada’s national junior team. Assistant coaches will be George Burnett (Belleville Bulls), Ryan Huska (Kelowna Rockets) and Pascal Vincent (Montreal Juniors). The 2012 World Junior Championship is scheduled to open in Calgary and Edmonton on Dec. 26. . . . Steve Spott of the Kitchener Rangers was named head coach of the Canadian U-18 team that will play in the Ivan Hlinka Memmorial tournament in Czech Republic and Slovakia, Aug. 8-13. His assistants will be Don Nachbaur (Spokane Chiefs) and Mario Duhamel (Drummondville Voltigeurs).
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The Saskatoon Blades aren’t going anywhere.
According to saskatoonhomepage.com, the Blades have signed a three-year lease with Credit Union Centre. The lease gives them hockey exclusivity, meaning you can forget about the AHL (hello, there, Manitoba Moose) showing up in ‘Toontown.
The Blades will celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2013-14 and this lease takes them through there.
The Blades also are hoping to serve as the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup. Of course, at this point, so are the Kelowna Rockets, Lethbridge Hurricanes, Prince George Cougars and Red Deer Rebels.
With five of the WHL’s most-successful franchises located in the U.S. Division, when does the Memorial Cup go south again?
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There really weren’t any surprises out of the news conference held Thursday by the Victoria ?????, who used to be the Chilliwack Bruins. Marc Habscheid has relocated and remains the GM/head coach. Pat Conacher also has made the move and is the assistant GM/assistant coach. . . . No, they didn’t announce a nickname. . . . Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist was at the newser. His story is right here.
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TWEET OF THE DAY, Part 1:
Comedian and TV host Bill Maher: “Looks like Palin is running! Thank u Jesus!”
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TWEET OF THE DAY, Part 2:
Comedian, actor and banjo picker Steve Martin: “I’ve decided I want to get to know Cher on a first-name basis.”
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The Kootenay Ice has lived to play another day.
The Ice won its second straight elimination game at the MasterCard Memorial Cup on Thursday, beating the OHL-champion Owen Sound Attack, 7-3.
The Ice, which trailed 2-0 after one period, got two goals from each of F Matt Fraser and F Cody Eakin. The Ice also got key shorthanded goals from F Joe Antilla and F Max Reinhart.
The Attack, which had beaten the Ice 5-0 in the round-robin, was without captain Garrett Wilson and leading scorer Joey Hishon, both of whom suffered concussions during the tournament.
Attendance was 4,916, the first game of the tournament’s first seven that wasn’t sold out.
And so it’s on to the semifinal for the Ice, which will play the host Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors tonight. When they met in the round-robin, the Majors beat the Ice 2-1. That was on Sunday, before the Ice rediscovered its scoring touch.
The semifinal winner will meet the QMJHL-champion Saint John Sea Dogs in Sunday’s final.
On Tueday, the Ice completed its portion of the round-robin with a 5-4 victory over the Sea Dogs. A loss would have eliminated the Ice, which had lost its first two games.
The only team to have won the Memorial Cup after starting the tournament 0-2 was the 2009 Windsor Spitfires.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Wednesday . . .

One of the great traditions in sports — the Tri-City Americans and
Vancouver Giants shake hands after going hard at each other for four games.
The Americans completed a series sweep on Wednesday night.
(Photo by CJ Relke)

If you believe in the theory that where there’s smoke, there’s fire, well, you’ve got to think the Chilliwack Bruins will be in Victoria when another season gets here.
Tyler Olsen of the Chilliwack Times has the latest right here. It’s interesting that there aren’t any denials and that some people seem to be ducking and running from the media.
Take that for whatever you want.
Of course, the Bruins could extend the suspense, and perhaps even delay a press conference or two, by continuing their playoff run, couldn't they?
———JUST NOTES: F Hunter Shinkaruk won’t play tonight for the Medicine Hat Tigers as they try to even their series with the Brandon Wheat Kings. Shinkaruk has been suspended for one game by the WHL for a hit on Brandon F Brenden Walker in Game 3. Tonight’s game will be played at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg. . . . The Wheat Kings are out of their home arena because of the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair. . . . The Tigers remain without G Tyler Bunz (concussion) and F Tyler Pitlick (ankle). . . . Former Wheat Kings F Mark Derlago set a franchise record Wednesday by scoring three times to lead the Idaho Steelheads to a 7-2 ECHL victory over the Utah Grizzlies in Boise, Idaho. Derlago finished the regular season with 43 goals, one more than the record he established last season.
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WEDNESDAY’S PLAYOFF GAMES:
In Prince Albert, the Raiders got two goals from each of F Igor Revenko and F Brandon Herrod in beating the Saskatoon Blades, 6-3. . . . The Blades lead the series 2-1 with Game 4 in Prince Albert tonight. . . . The Raiders, who lost the first two games in Saskatoon, went back to G Jamie Tucker for this one and he came up with 37 saves. . . . Saskatoon G Steven Stanford stopped 44 shots. . . . Attendance was 2,868. . . . The 50/50 was worth $7872.50. . . .
In Moose Jaw, G Nathan Lieuwen stopped 25 shots to lead the Kootenay Ice to a 5-0 victory over the Warriors. . . . That series is 2-2 with Game 5 in Cranbrook on Friday. . . . Three of the first four games have ended in shutouts, with the Warriors twice winning by 4-0 scores. . . . A gem from Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald: “The Civic Centre crowd and the Warriors bench were howling for offside before the opening goal went in. The crowd sarcastically cheered every offside call against the Ice the rest of the evening.” . . . Attendance was 2,744. . . . And here is Gourlie’s injury report: “The Warriors gave defenceman Travis Brown his WHL playoff debut. Matt Franczyk sat in his place. Dallas Ehrhardt (upper body), Cody Beach (knee), Brayden Cuthbert (concussion) along with Matt Grant, Torrin White and Tanner Eberle were all scratched. The Ice only dressed 19 skaters. Drew Czerwonka had his left arm in a sling after taking a big hit in Game 3. Fellow forward Jesse Ismond (upper body) was also out for the second game in a row, along with defenceman Luke Paulsen (shoulder).” . . . The Warriors took 59 of 94 penalty minutes. Gee, do you think this one is starting to heat up? . . .
In Prince George, F Shane McColgan had two goals as the Kelowna Rockets doubled the Cougars 4-2 to sweep that series. . . . The Rockets got off to a 2-0 lead at 3:27 of the second period and were never headed. . . . Kelowna F Mitchell (Dirty Harry) Callahan had two assists. . . . The Cougars were again without F Brett Connolly (separated shoulder). . . . Attendance was 2,346. . . . Kelowna G Adam Brown stopped 33 shots, four more than Prince George’s Ty Rimmer. . . .
In Everett, the Portland Winterhawks erased a 3-2 deficit with two goals 13 seconds apart and went on to beat the Silvertips, 5-4. . . . The Winterhawks lead the series 30 with Game 4 in Everett tonight. . . . Everett D Rasmus Rissanen gave his side a 3-2 lead at 9:40 of the second period, via the PP. . . . But F Nino Niederreiter (17:14) and F Ty Rattie (17:27) erased that lead and sent the Winterhawks on their way. . . . Rissanen had two goals for Everett, while F Landon Ferraro had three assists. . . . Attendance was 2,331 and that is not a typo. . . . Everett G Luke Siemens, playing in place of the injuried Kent Simpson (ankle), stopped 45 shots, including a third-period penalty shot attempt by F Sven Bartschi. . . .
In Spokane, the Chilliwack Bruins scored the game’s last four goals and beat the Chiefs 4-3 in OT. . . . F Kevin Sundher got the winner at 3:20 of extra time after G Lucas Gore had made 54 saves. . . . The Chiefs take a 2-1 series lead into tonight’s fourth game in Spokane. . . . The Bruins, down 3-0, tied it with three third-period goals, from F Ryan Howse (3:04), F Robin Soudek (9:22, PP) and Sundher (11:44). . . . Sundher also had an assist. . . . Spokane G James Reid made 21 saves. . . . Attendance was 4,737. . . . Chilliwack D Tyler Stahl may be looking at a suspension after taking an elbowing major and game misconduct at 15:19 of the second period. . . .
In Vancouver, F Mason Wilgosh had two goals and an assist as the Tri-City Americans beat the Giants 5-1 to sweep the first-round series. . . . Last year, the Americans took out the Giants in the Western Conference final. . . . Vancouver head coach Don Hay hadn’t been swept from a playoff series since 1999-2000 when he was coaching the Americans. . . . Hay and former Portland head coach Ken Hodge remain tied for the most playoff victories (101) in WHL history. . . . Tri-City outshot the home side, 28-18. . . . Attendance was 7,064. . . .
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WEDNESDAY’S CFB COUNT:
Three minors:
Portland F Brad Ross
Spokane F Brady Brassart (double minor)

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
     
Taking Note on Twitter

Saturday . . .

The exodus of WHL players to the pro ranks has begun now that some teams have had their seasons come to an end.
G Brandon Anderson of the Lethbridge Hurricanes has been recalled by the NHL’s Washington Capitals and assigned to the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
Anderson, 18, was an undrafted free agent when he attended Washington’s training camp last fall. By the time his stint there ended, he had signed a three-year contract with the Capitals.
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The Capitals added another WHLer to their stable on Saturday when they announced the signing of F Garrett Mitchell of the Regina Pats.
Mitchell, 19, was a sixth-round pick in the 2009 NHL draft. He played in his 264^th regular-season game with the Pats on Saturday night in Saskatoon.
Mitchell finished this season with career highs in goals (18), assists (34) and points (52) in 70 games.
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F Max Domi, the son of former Toronto Maple Leafs toughie Tie Domi, has told OHL teams not to bother drafting him because he is headed south. Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun reports that Max, 15, will play next season in the USHL. He was expected to be an earlier selection in the OHL’s 2011 draft.
“I played junior but (Max’s mother) Leanne and I want our kid to go to college,” Tie Domi told Simmons. “It wasn’t an easy decision to make, but for us, it was the right decision.”
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There are four regular-season games remaining.
Here’s what is left to be decided:
1. Who will finish fifth and sixth in the Western Conference? The Chilliwack Bruins are fifth and are out of games. The Vancouver Giants, with one game left, are one point behind the Bruins. The Giants are at home to the Everett Silvertips tonight. . . . The fifth-place finisher plays the No. 4 Tri-City Americans in the first round; the sixth-place finisher draws the No. 5 Spokane Chiefs. . . . Whichever team gets Spokane will open with two games at home as the Chiefs’ home arena isn’t available next weekend.
2. Who will finish ninth and 10^th in the Western Conference? The Kamloops Blazers are out of games and have 64 points. The Seattle Thunderbirds are a point back with one game left. They are at home to the Tri-City Americans tonight. The Americans are 8-0-0 against Seattle this season.
Here are the matchups that have been decided:
EASTERN CONFERENCE:
1. The Saskatoon Blades, who finished on top of the WHL’s overall standings, will face the Prince Albert Raiders, who wound up eighth in the conference. The Blades are 9-0-1 in their last 10; the Raiders have won three straight, including a weekend sweep of the 11^th-place Swift Current Broncos.
2. The Red Deer Rebels finished atop the Central Division so are the conference’s No. 2 seed. They get the Edmonton Oil Kings in the first round. The Rebels took two from the Oil Kings on the weekend, winning 4-3 on the road Friday and 3-1 at home Saturday.
3. The Medicine Hat Tigers have one game left but have clinched the conference’s third seed. They will play the Brandon Wheat Kings in the first round. . . . Brandon finished strong, going 7-2-1 in its last 10, but will have to play its first-round home games in the MTS Centre in Winnipeg as the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair takes over the Keystone Centre. . . . The Tigers finish up this afternoon in Calgary. . . . Medicine Hat F Linden Vey goes into the final day leading the scoring race by two points over Spokane F Tyler Johnson.
4. The Kootenay Ice will finish fourth in the conference, which means a first-round matchup with the Moose Jaw Warriors. The Ice has been red hot, going 6-0-1 in its last seven.
WESTERN CONFERENCE:
1. The Portland Winterhawks clinched first place in the U.S. Division and the conference last night as they ran their winning streak to five. They will meet the Everett Silvertips in the first round.
2. The Kelowna Rockets finished atop the B.C. Division so are the No. 2 seed for the first round. Remember that the survivors are reseeded by points after the first round. The Rockets will go up against the No. 7 Prince George Cougars in the first round.
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It’s worth noting that two key players were ejected with major fouls on Saturday night, and their cases will be on the desk of Richard Doerksen, the WHL’s disciplinarian, in the morning.
F Shayne Wiebe of the Brandon Wheat Kings took a boarding major during an 8-4 victory over the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors. Before leaving, Wiebe scored his 44^th goal.
In Kelowna, Rockets F Evan Bloodoff, one of their heart-and-soul guys, was tossed with a charging major during a 4-3 loss to the Vancouver Giants.
Neither Brandon nor Kelowna has any regular-season games remaining, so any suspensions would mean playoff games lost. A suspension to either of those players could turn into a key factor in a first-round series.
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In Brandon last night, F David Toews had two goals and two assists as the Wheat Kings doubled the Moose Jaw Warriors, 8-4. . . . G Hampus Gustafsson had four assists for Brandon. . . . The Wheat Kings lost F Shayne Wiebe, their captain and a 44-goal man, with a boarding major and game misconduct at 19-01 of the first period. . . . Toews reached the 20-goal mark with his two scores. . . .
In Cranbrook, F Cody Eakin scored two goals and set up another as the Kootenay Ice dropped the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes, 7-1. . . .
In Swift Current, F Igor Revenko’s 23^rd goal at 19:54 of the third period broke a 3-3 tie and gave the Prince Albert Raiders a 4-3 victory over the Broncos. . . .
In Saskatoon, F Marek Viedensky had a goal and an assist, leading the Blades to a 4-2 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . Blades G Steven Stanford picked up the victory to finish at 40-5-0. . . .
In Medicine Hat, G Deven Dubyk stopped 27 shots to help the Tigers to a 1-0 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . F Curtis Valk scored the game’s only goal, his eighth, at 3:14 of the first period. . . . That was Dubyks’ first career shutout. . . . G Mike Snider stopped 30 shots for the Hitmen. . . . F Linden Vey drew an assist on Valk’s goal, giving him 115 points this season. He leads the WHL scoring race by two points over F Tyler Johnson of the Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Tigers are in Calgary today, while the Chiefs play in Portland. . . .
In Red Deer, F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored twice as his Rebels got past the Edmonton Oil Kings, 3-1. . . . Nugent-Hopkins finished with 31 goals. . . .
In Chilliwack, the Lucas Gore Show continued its run as the Bruins goaltender stopped 37 shots in a 3-0 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . Earlier in the week, Gore established WHL records with 72 saves through three periods and 77 saves through OT in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . He has five shutouts this season and 10 in his career. . . . Everett has been blanked nine times this season. . . . F Kevin Sundher scored twice for the Bruins -- he has 24 -- and added an assist. . . .
In Prince George, D Sena Acolatse had a goal and three assists as the Cougars dumped the Kamloops Blazers, 5-1. . . . Cougars F Brett Connolly added a goal, his 46^th, and two assists. . . . The Blazers, who were eliminated from playoff contention on Friday night when they lost 3-2 in a shootout to the visiting Cougars, finished the season on an eight-game losing streak (0-6-2). . . . Kamloops had Cam Lanigan in goal, ending Jeff Bosch’s run of 23 straight starts. . . . Attendance was 4,770. . . .
In Kelowna, the Vancouver Giants snapped their eight-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over the Rockets. . . . F Andrej Stastny won it with his 10^th goal, breaking a 3-3 tie at 10:48 of the third period. . . . Stastny also had two assists. . . . The Rockets lost F Evan Bloodoff at 10:22 of the first period when he was ejected with a charging major and game misconduct. . . . Bloodoff’s hit was on D Joel Rogers, who recently returned from a concussion. Rogers was taken off the ice on a stretcher and checked out at hospital. . . . Doyle Potenteau has lots more on that game right here at DubNation. . . .
In Kent, Wash., the Portland Winterhawks overcame a 3-2 deficit with three straight goals and then hung on to beat the host Seattle Thunderbirds, 5-4. . . . Seattle G Calvin Pickard stopped 48 shots. . . . The Winterhawks will meet the Everett Silvertips in the first round. Portland won nine of 10 games from Everett in the regular season. . . . F Pearce Eviston scored for Portland in his WHL debut. Eviston, 18, signed with the Winterhawks after putting up 38 points in 44 games with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. . . .
In Kennewick, Wash., F Kruise Reddick and F Brendan Shinnimin each had two goals and two assists to lead the host Tri-City Americans to a 6-4 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Americans had lost five straight games to the Chiefs. . . . F Tyler Johnson had a goal and an assist for the Chiefs, giving him 113 points, two off the league lead. Medicine Hat F Linden Vey has 115 points. . . . Spokane had a nine-game winning streak end. . . . Johnson and the Chiefs are in Portland tonight; Vey and the Tigers finish up in Calgary. Johnson has a WHL-high 52 goals.
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SATURDAY’S CFB COUNT
Six minors:
Moose Jaw F Antonin Honejsek
Kootenay D Joey Leach
Calgary D Alex Roach
Everett F Ryan Harrison
Portland F Brendan Leipsic
Tri-City F Jordan Messier

SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM SUNDAY’S GAMES:
In Prince George, F Taylor Stefishen and F Charles Inglis each scored twice as the Cougars stopped the Moose Jaw Warriors, 5-2. The Warriors had won their last three road games, including stops in Vancouver and Chilliwack. . . . Stefishen has nine goals; Inglis has 18. . . . Prince George D Martin Marincin, who played for Slovakia at the World Junior Championship in Buffalo, was in the building but didn’t play. . . .
In Edmonton, G Nathan Lieuwen stopped 23 shots to lead the Kootenay Ice to a 2-1 victory over the Oil Kings. . . . D Brayden McNabb and F Matt Fraser gave the Ice a 2-0 lead. . . . F Michael St. Croix, with his 21st, scored for Edmonton at 19:20 of the third period with G Jon Groenheyde on the bench for the extra attacker. . . .
In Regina, the Pats scored two third-period goals to force OT and then beat the Calgary Hitmen 4-3 in a shootout with goals from F Jordan Weal and F Colin Reddin. . . . D Tyler Bortsmayer got Regina to within 3-2 with his first goal of the season at 5:01 of the third and Weal tied it, with his 19th, at 14:44. . . . F Justin Kirsch scored his 18th of the season and added two assists for Calgary. . . . F Lyndon Martell scored his second goal in as many games for Regina. He joined the Pats after the Christmas break from the BCHL’s Prince George Spruce Kings. . . . The victory moved the Pats into 10th place in the 12-team Eastern Conference and got them to within two points of a playoff spot. . . .
In Prince Albert, F Sebastian Svendsen had two goals and an assist and F Justin Maylan had three assists to help the Raiders to a 5-4 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . Svendsen has 17 goals. . . . F Igor Revenko scored the Raiders’ fifth goal, into an empty net at 19:34 of the third period, to give his side a 5-3 lead. . . . The Raiders had lost three in a row. . . .
In Swift Current, the Broncos, who hadn’t played at home since Dec. 3, beat the Saskatoon Blades, 4-2. . . . F Trevor Cameron, who joined the Broncos from the SJHL’s Notre Dame Hounds after the Christmas break, scored the home team’s first two goals. . . . The Blades cut a 3-0 deficit to 3-2 but F Adam Lowry iced it for the Broncos with an empty-netter. . . .
In Chilliwack, F Spencer Bennett broke a 2-2 at 17:47 of the second period and the Vancouver Giants went on to a 6-2 victory over the Bruins. . . . Bennett has 15 goals, and has scored three times in three games since joining the Giants in a deal with Portland last week. . . . The Giants got two goals from each of F Dalton Sward and F Nathan Burns. F Teal Burns, who came from Portland with Bennett, had three assists. . . . F Dylen McKinlay had a goal and an assist for the Bruins, the goal coming on a second-period penalty shot. . . .
In Kamloops, F Brendan Ranford scored his WHL-leading 30th goal as the Blazers dropped the Kelowna Rockets, 5-1. . . . Ranford, who leads the WHL with 62 points, also had two assists. Linemate Jordan DePape added three assists.

Ex-WHLer gets AHL head-coaching job

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Duncan Milroy (Swift Current, Kootenay, 1998-2003) signed a contract (one year with a club option for another year) with the Krefeld Pinguine (Germany DEL) after obtaining his release from Mlada Boleslav (Czech Republic Extraliga). He had three goals and three assists in 20 games for Mlada Boleslav this season. Last season, Milroy had 12 goals and 24 assists in 74 games for Houston Aeros (AHL). . . .
G Ian Gordon (Swift Current, Saskatoon, 1992-95) signed a one-year contract extension with Ingolstadt (Germany DEL). He has a 2.49 GAA and a .924 save percentage in 16 games with Ingolstadt this season. This is Gordon's 11th season in the DEL.
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The Tri-City Americans have sold more than 2,500 season tickets for what is believed to be the first time in franchise history. The shut off season-ticket sales last week with the total at 2,525, which is up five per cent over last season. . . . Records kept by some of the team’s previous owners are a bit sketchy, but it’s believed that this constitutes a new high. . . . “Our staff has done a tremendous job developing a solid season-ticket base,” Americans’ governor/general manager Bob Tory said in a news release. “Credit also needs to go to our fans who have jumped on board and helped us enjoy some tremendous hockey.  And to our players, who have given more than just a solid on-ice effort, but have been actively involved in the community to add to the quality of life in the Tri-Cities.” . . . The Americans are in their 23rd season in the Tri-Cities. They are owned by Tory, Stu Barnes, Olaf Kolzig and Dennis Loman. . . . Last season, the team averaged 4,480 fans, its highest number since 1990-91. . . . The Americans meet the Bruins in Chilliwack on Friday, then hurry home to meet the Spokane Chiefs on Saturday and the Everett Silvertips on Sunday.
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The Calgary Hitmen have lost 12 straight games to equal a franchise record. In 1995-96, the Hitmen endured two 12-game losing streaks but that was their first season in the WHL. . . . The Hitmen next play Friday when they visit the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . When Calgary lost 6-2 to the visiting Kootenay Ice on Sunday, it was without F Tyler Fiddler (upper body), D Jaynen Rissling (lower body) and D Alex Roach (leg). During the game, the Hitmen lost D Matt MacKenzie (flu) and D Peter Kosterman (injury), so moved F Cody Sylvester back to defence. . . .
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On Monday, the Regina Pats dealt G Dawson Guhle, 18, to the Red Deer Rebels for LW Lane Scheidl, 18. . . . Scheidl, from Saskatoon, was acquired by Red Deer from the Vancouver Giants. He has six points in 20 games this season with the Rebels. . . . Guhle was 1-1-1, 6.25, .825 with the Pats, who are going with Damien Ketlo, 19, and freshman Matt Hewitt, who turns 18 on Dec. 11. . . . The Pats actually issued a press release last week saying they had assigned Guhle to the SJHL’s Melville Millionaires, but it was pulled back a couple of hours later. Could be this deal has been in the works since then. . . . With Red Deer, Guhle will back up veteran Darcy Kuemper as the Rebels have assigned Bolton Pouliot, 16, to the midget AAA Calgary Royals. . . .
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The Kamloops Blazers swept the WHL’s player-of-the-week awards. . . . LW Brendan Ranford was named player of the week after picking up six points, including three goals, in two games. He became the first skater to 20 goals this season when he scored once in Sunday’s 3-1 victory over the visiting Everett Silvertips. . . . Kamloops G Jeff Bosch is the WHL nominee as the CHL’s goaltender of the week. He was 2-0-0 with a 0.50 GAA and a .984 save percentage last week.
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Pat Bingham (Kamloops, New Westminster, 1985-89) is the new head coach of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s New York Islanders. The Islanders fired head coach Scott Gordon on Monday, replacing him with Bridgeport head coach Jack Capuano. . . . Bingham, who is from Vancouver, has been an assistant coach with the Sound Tigers since 2007-08. He has been in the Islanders organization since 2005. He also has coached in the Central and United leagues and in the ECHL.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors were without two key performers when they dropped a 6-3 decision to the visiting Portland Winterhawks on Monday night. . . . F Quinton Howden sat out a one-game suspension for a cross-checking major he incurred in Saturday’s 3-0 victory over the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . The Warriors filled that spot with F Carter Hansen, the 10th overall pick in the 2010 bantam draft. He playes for the midget AAA Moose Jaw Generals. . . . The Warriors also were without D Dylan McIlrath, who suffered a right knee injury on Saturday. McIlrath was selected 10th overall by the New York Rangers in the 2010 NHL draft and the Rangers are flying him into the Big Apple on Wednesday where he is scheduled to undergo an MRI. . . . “I remember battling in the faceoff circle for the puck,” McIlrath told Matthew Gourlie of the Moose Jaw Times-Herald. “I watched the video and it looked like the guy fell on the outside of my right knee.” . . . .According to Gourlie, “When McIlrath went down he was in obvious distress and his pained scream could be heard all the way to the Civic Centre rafters.” . . . “I heard a noise you shouldn’t hear and went down in a lot of pain,” said McIlrath. “I knew right away it was pretty serious. I’m not the one to lay on the ice if it wasn’t serious.” . . . McIlrath actually is walking better and swelling has gone down, so he is thinking the injury may not be as bad as first feared. The MRI will reveal whether that is wishful thinking.
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As expected, the WHL doled out some suspensions Monday.
D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen of the Vancouver Giants got hit with seven games for that hit from behind on F Robin Soudek of the host Chilliwack Bruins on Thursday. The Bruins have yet to update the world on Soudek’s condition. . . . This was a nasty, nasty hit but, for whatever reason, was worth five games less than what F Brendan Shinnimin of the Tri-City Americans got for his hit on F Josh Nicholls of the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Shinnimin is eligible to return Saturday when the Americans play the Chiefs in Spokane. . . . Vannieuwenhuizen will be eligible to return Dec. 7 when the Giants are at home to the Kamloops Blazers.
Meanwhile, D Adrian Van de Mosselaer of the Edmonton Oil Kings got a two-game sentence for a kneeing major in Saturday’s 1-0 loss to the host Kootenay Ice; Moose Jaw Warriors F Quinton Howden got hit with one game for a cross-checking major in a 3-0 victory over the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday; and, F Brad Ross of the Portland Winterhawks got two games for a game misconduct he picked up during a 5-4 loss to the Blades in Saskatoon on Friday. . . . It isn’t true that Ross got tossed so that he could go and sit with Shannon Tweed and Gene Simmons.
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F Igor Revenko of the Prince Albert Raiders is in Edmonton today to undergo an MRI. He felt a pop in his groin area in a recent game and tried to play through it, but with no luck. Revenko, 20, had 55 points, including 27 goals, last season and you can bet the struggling Raiders are feeling his absence. . . . Raiders D Nathan Deck also is said to be at least a week away from returning. . . . Revenko and Deck are two of the Raiders’ three 20-year-olds. . . . The Portland Winterhawks have their Teddy Bear Toss scheduled for Dec. 11 when the Prince George Cougars are in town. The Winterhawks say they already have sold nearly 8,000 tickets for that game. . . . The Spokane Chiefs have added D Tim Krzyzaniak, 18, to their roster. He has played two WHL games in his career — one in each of the last two seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings. He is from Neepawa, Man., which is just north of Brandon. He had three points in 12 games with the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings this season. The Chiefs are with D Garrett Leedahl, who is hurt, and anticipate losing D Jared Cowen to Canada’s national junior team so have been looking for some depth. . . . The Chiefs are in for quite a weekend as they go on the road to play Seattle, Tri-City and Portland, in that order, starting Friday. . . . Cowen has been named captain of Team WHL for Wednesday’s Super Series game in Kamloops. F Chase Schaber of the Kamloops Blazers and F Curtis Hamilton of the Saskatoon Blades will serve as alternates. Calgary D Matt MacKenzie was to have been an alternate for both games, but he has the flu and has been replaced by D Alex Petrovic of the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The WHL also announced that Kamloops F Brendan Ranford will replace F Brendan Gallagher of the Vancouver Giants for the game in Kamloops. Gallagher will play in Prince George on Thursday. . . . F Cody Eakin of the Swift Current Broncos will wear the ‘C’ for Team WHL on Thursday in Prince George, with D Tyson Barrie of the Kelowna Rockets and F Brett Connolly of the hometown Cougars as the alternates. . . .
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In Moose Jaw, F Ty Rattie had two goals and two assists to lead the Portland Winterhawks to a 6-3 victory over the Warriors. . . . Rattie has 14 goals. He also has 38 points, just two behind Vancouver Giants F Craig Cunningham, who leads the league. . . . The Winterhawks scored three times in the second period after the teams played to a 2-2 draw in the opening 20 minutes. . . . Portland F Sven Bartschi had his 17th goal and an assist to run his points streak to 16 games. He has 33 points on the season. . . . Portland lost F Tayler Jordan to a charging major and game misconduct at 6:10 of the third period. . . . Portland is 4-1-0 on its East Division swing, which wraps up tonight in Brandon. Immediately after the game, most of the Winterhawks will start the 24-hour bus ride back to Portland. F Ryan Johansen, D Brett Ponich, Rattie and F Brad Ross, however, will miss the bus ride. Altogether now . . . awwwwww! They will fly to Prince George where they will play for Team WHL in Wednesday’s final game of the Subway Super Series. . . . Ross didn’t play last night in Moose Jaw. He drew a two-game suspension for receiving a game misconduct during Friday’s 5-4 loss to the Blades in Saskatoon. He served the first game of that suspension Saturday as the Winterhawks won 8-2 in Prince Albert.
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In Regina, F Hampus Gustafsson had a goal and two assists to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 5-2 victory over the Pats. . . . Brandon acquired Gustafsson from the Pats earlier this season. . . . The Wheat Kings also got a goal and assist from F Jason Swyripa. . . . Brandon has won three straight and became the 17th of 22 teams to get to the .500 mark. . . . If you’re a Wheat Kings fan on the Brayden Schenn, well, the Los Angeles Kings made him a healthy scratch for a fifth straight game last night. . . . Jason Clermont, who caught the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ winning TD in Sunday’s thrilling victory over the B.C. Lions, and teammate Chris Getzlaf took part in the ceremonial faceoff prior to the game. . . . The Pats now head into the B.C. Division for a five-game tour that opens Friday in Vancouver.
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MONDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Zero.
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WHL teams at .500 or better: 17-of-22 (.773).

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
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