THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Dustin Friesen (Swift Current, 2000-04) signed a one-year contract extension with Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (Germany, 2.Bundesliga). He had 12 goals and 20 assists in 47 games for the Pinguins this season. . . .

Linköping (Sweden, Elitserien) announced that it won’t offer contracts for next season to F Robin Figren (Calgary, Edmonton, 2006-08) and F Lee Goren (Saskatoon, 1995-96). Figren had nine goals and four assists in 55 games and Goren had two goals and four assists in 24 games for Linköping this season. Goren started the season with Pelicans Lahti (Finland, SM-Liiga), getting four goals and eight assists in 13 games before joining Linköping.
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There is a move afoot to build a downtown arena in Fort McMurray, Alta.
MyMcMurray.com has listed the names “of the four companies that have been shortlisted to build Fort McMurray’s proposed downtown arena.”
According to MyMcMurray.com, “One of those companies, Global Entertainment Corporation and Western Asset Management made a joint submission — it specifically says it could immediately negotiate the establishment of a WHL team in Fort McMurray.”
Global Entertainment has an operating subsidiary in International Coliseums Company (ICC). Its president is Rick Kozuback, a former WHL coach (Tri-City Americans, 1989-91).
According to its website, ICC “develops first class multi-purpose event centers for mid-sized cities.”
Also from ICC’s website: “Since 2003, ICC has developed 10 Event Centers; no other entity has done more than 1 in that time frame.”
According to MyMcMurray.com, Global has said the window to acquire an existing WHL franchise “will close soon if there are delays in starting the project.”
“What we do know is that there is an immediate opportunity to negotiate for a WHL franchise,” reads part of its submission, according to MyMcMurray.com.
All of this is most interesting indeed, if only because at least one WHL owner, within the last few years, looked into moving his franchise to Fort McMurray.
This owner went so far as to begin putting together a private partnership — one that included at least two prominent hockey people — that would have financed the building of an arena.
This owner has told me that the WHL office quickly informed him that the league, citing geographic reasons, wasn’t the least bit interested in having a franchise in Fort McMurray.
Fort McMurray is a 440-kilometre (274-mile) drive from Edmonton.
UPDATE: In the wee hours of this morning, Tyler King, the radio voice of the AJHL’s Fort McMurray Oil Barons, tweeted: “A defining moment in Fort McMurray’s history as (city) council approves expropriation for a downtown arena.”
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“Three days have been set aside in June to deal with six charges against Tom Gaglardi and his father, Robert, and one charge against the Gaglardi family business, Northland Properties Corporation,” writes Dale Bass of Kamloops This Week. "The charges stem from an incident last year on lakefront property Tom Gaglardi owns in Savona, where the Crown alleges the pair and their company contravened federal legislation by 'first clearing and then filling land, actions that resulted in the harmful alternation, disruption or destruction of fish habitat, the foreshore of Kamloops Lake.' "
Tom Gaglardi owns the NHL’s Dallas Stars and is the majority owner of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers.
That story is right here.
———



F Hunter Shinkaruk of the Medicine Hat Tigers “is officially at his wits end about the officials,” writes Sean Rooney of the Medicine Hat News. . . . That story is right here. . . .
According to a source, Calgary Hitmen D Kenton Helgesen has undergone surgery to repair a broken finger that was injured in the first-round series against the Swift Current Broncos. He apparently won’t play again this season unless the Hitmen reach the Memorial Cup.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Tim Whitehead no longer is the head coach of the U of Maine Black Bears. The school announced Tuesday that Whitehead had been fired after 12 years as head coach. He had one year left on his contract, at $190,000. Maine was 11-19-8 overall this season, including 7-12-8 in Hockey East. The Black Bears were swept from a best-of-three quarterfinal by UMass Lowell. . . . Whitehead took over the Black Bears in 2001 after the death of Shawn Walsh. . . . Larry Mahoney of the Bangor Daily News has more right here.
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The WHL’s playoff situation:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
SECOND ROUND
Edmonton (1) vs. Medicine Hat (7)
(Edmonton leads, 3-0; Game 4, tonight, in Medicine Hat)
Calgary (3) vs. Red Deer (4)
(Calgary leads, 3-1; Game 5, Thursday, in Calgary)
———
WESTERN CONFERENCE
SECOND ROUND
Portland (1) vs. Spokane (4)
(Portland leads 3-0; Game 4, tonight, in Spokane)
Kelowna (2) vs. Kamloops (3)
(Kamloops leads 3-0; Game 4, tonight, in Kamloops; all games on Shaw TV)
———
TUESDAY’S GAMES:
In Red Deer, F Cody Sylvester scored at 5:10 of OT to give the Calgary Hitmen a 3-2 victory over the Rebels. . . . Sylvester, Calgary’s captain, has four goals in these playoffs. . . . “We call him Captain Clutch in the dressing room,” Calgary G Chris Driedger told reporters, “and he definitely lived up to his name.” . . . Calgary F Jake Virtanen scored the game’s first goal and drew an assist on the winner. . . . The Hitmen have scored first in eight of their nine playoff games. . . . F Brooks Macek gave Calgary a 2-0 lead at 13:00 of the first. . . . Red Deer tied it on second-period PP goals by F Dominik Volek and F Conner Bleackley. . . . This was the fourth straight road game in which Calgary went to OT. . . . Driedger stopped 37 shots, nine more than Red Deer’s Patrik Bartosak. . . . Red Deer F Matt Bellerive has completed his two-game suspension for a kneeing major in Game 2. . . .

In Medicine Hat, F Henrik Samuelsson gave the Edmonton Oil Kings an early 2-0 lead and they went on to beat the Tigers, 9-2. . . . Samuelsson scored at 1:39 and 12:25 of the first, the latter on the PP. . . . D Martin Gernat added another PP goal, just 2:10 later, and Edmonton was never caught. . . . F Michael St. Croix and Gernat had two goals each. . . . D Cody Corbett added a goal and two assists for the Oil Kings, who have outscored their opponents 40-7 in eight games. . . . Edmonton D David Musil who turned 20 on Tuesday, had two assists and was plus-4. . . . Edmonton G Laurent Brossoit stopped 25 shots. In these playoffs, he is 7-1, 0.85, .966. He has three shutouts in eight games. . . . Edmonton was 3-for-7 on the PP. . . . Last season, the Tigers swept the Saskatoon Blades from the first round and then were swept by the Moose Jaw Warriors. This season, the Tigers swept the Blades again, and now are down 0-3 to the Oil Kings. . . .

In Kamloops, F JC Lipon scored at 3:43 of OT to give the Blazers a 5-4 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The teams combined for five goals in the first period and three in the second before playing a scoreless third. . . . Lipon, who leads all scorers with 19 points, is the only WHL player with at least a point in each of his team’s playoff games. . . . F Dylan Willick scored twice and added an assist for Kamloops. . . . Blazers F Brendan Ranford had a goal and an assist, giving him six points in the three games of this series. . . . F JT Barnett, who hadn’t played since Game 1 of the first round, had two goals for Kelowna. . . . Rockets F Nick Merkley, 15, had two assists in a strong outing. . . . Kamloops G Cole Cheveldave stopped 33 shots. . . . Blazers F Kale Kessy scored his ninth goal of these playoffs. . . . Kelowna F Ryan Olsen, a 32-goal man in the regular season, got his first goal in 10 playoff games. . . . The Blazers hadn’t won an OT game at home since April 6, 1996 when Jarome Iginla scored on the PP at 13:23 for a 4-3 victory over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Between then and now, the Blazers had lost seven straight OT decisions on home ice. . . . Kelowna F Tyson Baillie sat out Game 2 of a two-game suspension. The Rockets’ leading playoff scorer is eligible to return for Game 4 tonight. . . .He was suspended for a hit on Kamloops F Colin Smith in Game 1. Smith (suspected concussion) and F Tim Bozon (hand) are both missing from the Blazers’ lineup. . . .

In Spokane, G Mac Carruth stopped 25 shots as the Portland Winterhawks beat the Chiefs, 3-1. . . . Carruth has a WHL-record 40 playoff victories. . . . Portland F Ty Rattie scored his WHL-leading 10th goal at 19:13 of the first. . . . F Nic Petan made it 2-0 at 8:01 of the second. . . . Spokane F Blake Gal scored at 16:24 of the second, on a PP. . . . Portland F Taylor Leier iced it with an empty-netter at 19:45 of the third. . . . Spokane G Eric Williams stopped 33 shots. . . . Paul Buker of The Oregonian was there and his story is right here.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT (15):
None
CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT (5):
None
———


From Regan Bartel (@Reganrant), the radio voice of the Kelowna Rockets: “Ok, now I know where I sit in the pecking order. @DanRussellCKNW gets premium parking at ISC. I’m asked to park three blocks away. #bigdog”


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If you are in the United States and would like a copy of Sudden Death: The Incredible Saga of the 1986 Swift Current Broncos, it is available through amazon.com.
I am told that the books ships one or two days after an order is received.
At least one WHL fan in the Seattle area has received his copy and has ordered another.
If you are in Canada and can’t find it in your favourite bookstore, please check with a store manager as to availability.
Thank you!
———
THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Lee Goren (Saskatoon, two games in 1995-96) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Linköping (Sweden, Elitserien). He had four goals and eight assists in 13 games with the Pelicans Lahti (Finland, SM-Liiga) earlier this season. Goren played in Elitserien last season with Skellefteå, getting 11 goals and 18 assists in 51 games.
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The Swift Current Broncos have brought in F Denis Bosc, 17, from the MJHL’s Steinbach Pistons. He has 16 points, eight of them goals, and 10 penalty minutes in 18 games with Steinbach. Last season, he had 21 points in 52 games with the Pistons. He was a sixth-round selection by the Broncos in the WHL’s 2010 bantam draft. Bosc should be in the lineup tonight in Edmonton. . . .
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The Swift Current Broncos also have signed F Jake DeBrusk, a seventh-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. DeBrusk, a 5-foot-6, 130-pounder from Edmonton, has 18 points, including nine goals, in 14 games with the SSAC Athletics of the Alberta Midget Hockey League this season. He is the son of former NHLer Louie DeBrusk. . . .
———
The OHL’s board of governors has voted unanimously to allow the Brampton Battalion to move to North Bay, Ont., in time for next season. The folks in North Bay already have purchased more than 2,100 season-ticket packages.
———
D Troy Rutkowski of the Portland Winterhawks has closed to within 25 games of the franchise record for regular-season games played. Rutkowski has played in 301 games, putting him fifth on the list, 25 in arrears of D Kevin Haupt (1994-99). Rutkowski also has played in 190 consecutive games. Portland’s record in that category is held by D Andrew Ference (221 games, Feb. 18, 1995 to Oct. 11, 1998). Rutkowski missed one game since the 2009-10 season began, and that was to playin the Top Prospects Game in January 2010. . . . During his time with Portland, he has played in 357 of a combined 366 regular-season and playoff games.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors have released Russian F Nikita Zagryadskiy, 17. A 6-foot-3, 193-pounder, he had gotten into only three games and was pointless. . . . This leaves the Warriors without any imports on their roster. They selected Zagryadskiy in the 2012 CHL import draft in which they also selected German F Frederik Tiffels, 17. He is with the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks.
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From former WHLer David Rutherford (@Rutherford91): “At Lincoln the movie and am pretty sure most of the people here are as old as Lincoln #Boom”

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Ned Lukacevic (Spokane, Swift Current, 2001-06) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Banska Bystrica (Slovakia, Extraliga). He was pointless in two games on try-out with Eispiraten Crimmitschau (Germany, 2. Bundesliga) earlier this season. . . .
F Jordan Knackstedt (Red Deer, Moose Jaw, 2004-08) signed a contract for the rest of this season with Milan Rossoblu (Italy, Serie A). He had one assist in 11 games with Tingsryd (Sweden, Allsvenskan) to start the season. Knackstedt was on a two-month contract with Tingsryd that expired Thursday. This is a return to Italy for Knackstedt, who had 18 goals and 35 assists in 42 games with Bolzano in Serie A last season. . . .
F Lee Goren, who played two games with Saskatoon in 1995-96 before heading off to the University of North Dakota, was released by Pelicans Lahti (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had four goals and eight assists in 13 games this season.
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The Portland Winterhawks, the WHL’s hottest team at present, are in Vancouver to meet the Giants tonight. . . . Vancouver is expected to be without F Cain Franson, who is believed to have a concussion. He has missed the club’s last six games. . . . The Winterhawks (13-3-1) have won nine in a row; the Giants are 5-12-0. . . . This game is available on Shaw TV, with Dan Russell calling the play. . . . Meanwhile, Steve Ewen of the Vancouver Province reports that the Gaints “are changing up their play-by-play situation again.” . . . According to Ewen, Morley Scott is returning to do some road games, while Blake Price, who has been doing some home games, also will be going on the road. . . . “Team officials confirmed Thursday that they had let go Alex Grebenyuk,” Ewen writes. . . . Grebenyuk had taken over from Dan Elliott, who was dropped after two years on the job and now is doing media relations at UBC. . . . Ewen’s report is right here.
———
The Prince George Cougars will be without sophomore F Jake Mykitiuk for the immediate future. Mykitiuk, who turns 17 on Nov. 21, has been diagnosed with mononucleosis. He already has missed four games.
———
The Everett Silvertips have signed F Kyle Raymond to a WHL contract. Raymond, 16, as a seventh-round selection in the 2011 WHL bantam draft. He is playing with the junior B Princeton Posse of the Kootenay International Junior League. In 17 games, the 6-foot-4, 185-pound Raymond has 12 points and 22 penalty minutes. . . . Raymond, from Langley, B.C., is with the Silvertips for tonight’s game against the host Tri-City Americans. He will return to the Posse after the weekend. . . . At the same time, the Silvertips returned F Brandon Bruce, 19, to the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials. Bruce was pointless in four games with the Silvertips.
———
D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen, 20, the captain of the Vancouver Giants, took a puck to the mouth on Sunday night during a 9-1 loss to the Tri-City Americans in Kennewick, Wash. It cost him three teeth. “That's the way she goes,” he told Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun. “My mom told me it was bound to happen because I had so many problems with my front teeth before. I think I've had them chipped about four or five times already.” . . . Vannieuwenhuzien also has a four-stitch cut on his lower lip and a fractured upper palate. He will play tonight wearing a full cage. . . . Pap’s complete story is right here.
———
Former Vancouver Giants F Casey Pierro-Zabotel scored two goals last night, leading the ECHL’s Gwinnett Gladiators to a 4-3 victory over the host Orlando SolarBears. . . . Pierro-Zabotel, who has six goals, recovered from being drilled from behind by Orlando’s Mike Liambas in the first period to help the Gladiators win their sixth straight game. . . . With 19 points, Pierro-Zabotel leads the ECHL scoring race. He won the WHL’s 2008-09 scoring title, with 115 points in 72 games.
———
G Logan Flodell, who signed with the Seattle Thunderbirds on Wednesday, stopped 18 shots last night to help the Regina Pat Canadians to a 5-1 victory over the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask. . . . The Pat Canadians got three goals from F Mitch Lipon, the younger brother of Kamloops Blazers F JC Lipon, who is leading the WHL scoring race. . . . Mitch has eight points, including five goals, in his last two games. . . . The Pat Canadians (8-2-2), who have won four straight, are tied for first place with the Tisdale Trojans (8-3-2). . . . The most amazing number, however, falls under goals-against -- the Pat Canadians have surrendered 17 goals in 12 games. The Prince Albert Mintos (7-3-2) are No. 2, having allowed 27 goals.
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Edmonton broadcaster (630 CHED) Dan Tencer (@dantencer): “Oil Kings head coach Derek Laxdal says Oilers draft pick Mitch Moroz has upper body injury and might not play for Team WHL in Super Series.”


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THE MacBETH REPORT:
G Garrett Zemlak (Saskatoon, Prince Albert, 2006-10) signed a one-year contract with the Braehead Clan (Scotland, UK Elite). He had a 4.33 GAA and a .890 save percentage in 54 games with the Fife Flyers (Scotland, UK Elite) last season. With the Flyers, Zemlak won UK Elite League Fans Favourite Award, Fife Flyers Mirror of Merit Award, Players Player, and Player of the Year.
The Clan, who play out of Glasgow, recently named F Jordan Krestanovich (Calgary, 1997-2001) as player/head coach. Krestanovich, who was captain of the Clan last season, had with 29 goals and 40 assists in 50 games. . . .
F Lee Goren (Saskatoon, 1995-96) signed a one-year contract with Pelicans Lahti (Finland, SM-Liiga). He had 11 goals and 28 assists in 51 games for Skellefteå (Sweden, Elitserien) last season.
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Renaud Lavoie, who works for RDS, which is the French-Canadian equivalent of TSN, got the ball rolling Friday night when he was the first person to report parts of the offer the NHL has made to the NHLPA as negotiations on a new CBA get serious.
The most contentious issues, it seems, will revolve around the percentage of hockey-related revenues that will go to the players, as well as the definition of hockey-related revenues, or HRR as they are referred to in many instances.
The CBA that is in force now, the one that was negotiated as the NHL sat out the 2004-05 season, gives the players 56 per cent, with the owners getting 44.
According to Lavoie, the NHL has suggest that change to 46 for the players and 54 for the owners.
That’s right. From 57-43 players, to 54-46 owners.
Sure, it’s only the beginning of negotiations, but you have to think the owners were delivering some kind of a message with that.
According to Lavoie, the NHL offer also would make players eligible for unrestricted free agency after 10 seasons; right now, it’s seven seasons or 27 years of age. The NHL also wants five-year entry-level contracts; they now are three years in length. And the NHL wants to get rid of arbitration.
Lavoie also reported that the NHL offer would put a maximum length of five years on contracts. In other words, no more 13-year deals for the likes of defenceman Ryan Suter and forward Zach Parise.
Larry Brooks of the New York Post later reported that the NHL also wants to get rid of signing bonuses.
Yes, it’s early. Yes, the CBA doesn’t expire until Sept. 15 which, you should know, is only two months away.
But if the NHL is at all serious about taking a healthy chunk out of the 57-43 advantage the players now have when it comes to the shares of HRR, numbers that were negotiated by the players, well, you can forget about training camps opening in mid-September.
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Chris Wallace was a quarterback. He now is a writer.
Here are three paragraphs from an essay he wrote for the Paris Review:
My second serious concussion came in my junior year at Weber State University, during a home game against Humboldt State. We were up big in the fourth quarter, but, instead of “protecting myself” as I’d been coached, I went full-Elway in a scramble toward the end zone, diving over a defender just as I was hit from the side and helicoptering down to the one-inch line. I handed the ball off to our fullback the next play, and, after he scored, walked to the sideline where the trainers flocked to check me out. Of course I was all right, I said, “Thith game ith outh to looth.”
I didn’t notice the slur or the daze, but I did see the look of recognition in the eyes of the head trainer. I spent the weekend with the trainers (being “monitored”), but I don’t remember getting a CAT scan. As in high school, after the North Torrance game, I sat out practice until a doctor had cleared me for contact. I was still a “game-time decision,” meaning the doctor would have to clear me further, for violent combat, essentially. He did, and we went on to beat the stuffing out of Idaho State, I think it was.
But a year later, having pulled a Kerouac and quit the team to become an artist, I was in Austin, Texas, and romancing the idea of suicide.
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Wallace’s complete essay is right here.
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And right here is another good read. Rick Reilly of ESPN really brings it on Joe Paterno and the Penn State mess.

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Chilliwack Tigers? Nah, never happen!

THE MacBETH REPORT:
Lee Goren (Saskatoon, 1995-96) signed a one-year contract with Skellefteå (Sweden, Elitserien). He had 12 goals and 26 assists in 34 games with the Straubing Tigers (Germany, DEL) and one assist in one game with Bern (Switzerland, NLA) last season.
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The Chilliwack Tigers?
Kind of just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?
Following Medicine Hat city council’s decision Monday to defeat a funding proposal for a $94.5-million sports complex, WHL commissioner Ron Robison expressed the WHL’s disappointment in a not-so-subtle threat.
According to CHAT-TV, Robison said the Tigers are the lone WHL franchise playing in a facility that doesn’t meet league standards.
Furthermore, Robison said, the construction of a new arena and event centre is necessary for the Tigers' future in Medicine Hat.
Medicine Hat lose the Tigers? Not a chance, you’re thinking. Well, geez, the good folks of Chilliwack never thought they’d lose their Bruins, either, although the franchise had only been there through five seasons. The Bruins, of course, now are the Victoria Royals.
But before anyone goes off the rails here, the commissioner apparently wants to meet with Medicine Hat city officials.
Graham Kelly, one of the aldermen who voted against the funding proposal (the vote was 6-3), has said he will bring forth a plan by Labour Day that will involve spending about $35 million on a new facility.
One of the aldermen who voted in favour of the proposal  was Jeremy Thompson, who played for the Tigers in 1993-94.
In a news release posted on the Tigers’ website, Dave Andjelic, the club’s director of marketing and public relations, said:
“We are extremely disappointed with the outcome of city council’s six to three vote against building the Regional Events Centre.”
The new release continues:
“After countless hours of work and (more than) $500,000 spent on designing and preparing an events centre model that fits the Medicine Hat community and with the dissolution of the steering committee, the city is right back at the place it started in 2004. The regional events centre project has effectively been shelved.”
Andjelic continued: “I don’t think certain aldermen can keep saying they are in favour of this project but continue to vote against it. I seriously doubt the public will buy this any longer and will regard this as a tactic to deflect criticism that is sure to follow. We sense the public is very disappointed with the result.”
———

JON ROSEN

Not only are the Everett Silvertips in the market for a head coach, they also need a new director of public relations and broadcasting following the resignation of Jon Rosen.
Rosen, who is suffering through the trials and tribulations of his Los Angeles Dodgers, has been the radio voice of the Silvertips. He will stay with the team through the end of July.
Rosen, 29, spent four seasons with the Silvertips. He said he doesn’t have any “definitive plans” but wants to pursue other broadcast opportunities.
The Silvertips also are needing a head coach, following the resignation earlier this month of Craig Hartsburg, who now is an associate coach with the NHL’s Calgary Flames.
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Brad Whelen has left the Calgary Hitmen. Whelen, the club’s assistant general manager and head scout, has joined the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning as western Canadian scout. Whelen spent 15 seasons with the Hitmen, the first five as a regional scout and the last 10 as head scout. He added AGM to his title last summer. . . . The Lightning has hired five scouts over the last few days.
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The Vancouver Giants are set to announce the addition of Glen Hanlon to their coaching staff. Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun tweeted the news Tuesday afternoon. A news conference is likely to be held Thursday.
Hanlon, 54, was a goaltender with the Brandon Wheat Kings (1974-77) and was a third-round pick by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1977 NHL draft. He played in the NHL with the Canucks, St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings.
As a coach, he has worked as an assistant with the Canucks and Washington Capitals, and as a head coach with the AHL’s Portland Pirates and with the Capitals. He also has extensive international experience, most recently as head coach of the Slovakian national team.
Hanlon is a key hire for the Giants who were in dire need of an experienced coach to work as head coach Don Hay’s assistant. That’s because Hay will miss about a month of the regular season as he tends to his duties as head coach of Canada’s national junior team.
The Giants also are in the process of shuffling their support staff, a situation that apparently started in February when a trainer missed the flight back from Whitehorse after a game against the Kamloops Blazers. The Giants also have chosen to replace veteran equipment manager Grant (Granny) Ferguson and have filled that spot by moving in former player/assistant coach Chad Scharff.
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On the night that the Portland Winterhawks’ 2010-11 season came to an end, columnist Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune reported that general manager/head coach Mike Johnston and others in the front office had agreed to multi-year contract extensions.
The Winterhawks issued that news release on Tuesday.
Johnston and Travis Green, the assistant GM/assistant coach, have signed four-year extensions.
Kyle Gustafson, the other assistant coach, Garry Davidson, the director of player personnel, Matt Bardsley, the director of hockey operations, Rich Campbell, the athletic trainer/strength and conditioning coach, and equipment manager Rob Gagne all signed what the Winterhawks called “multi-year contract extensions.”
“The job Mike, Travis and the entire hockey operations staff have done to transform a last-place team into the Western Conference champion in less than three years is nothing short of remarkable,” said Winterhawks owner Bill Gallacher in the release. “The stability these extensions will provide the organization will be incredibly valuable as Mike and Travis continue to pursue the goal of bringing the Memorial Cup back to Portland.”
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The WHL won’t release its 2011-12 regular-season schedule until next week at the earliest, but the Brandon Sun has reported that the first game will be played Sept. 22 with the Wheat Kings visiting the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . That will be the first regular-season game to be played in Moose Jaw’s new facility. . . . G Graeme Gordon, who won two straight RBC Cup championships with the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers, has committed to attending Simon Fraser University and playing hockey there. Gordon, who is from North Vancouver, played last season with the UBC Thunderbirds. . . . The ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones have added former NHLer Andrew Cassels as an assistant coach. Cassels, 41, will work alongside head coach Jarrod Skalde. . . . You may recall during last season’s playoffs when the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies ended up with majority owner Len Barrie helping out head coach Victor Gervais behind the bench. Well, Cleve Dheensaw of the Victoria Times Colonist reports that Barrie may not going to coach in 2011-12, but there will be a new head coach. Gervais has been moved to an assistant position. Dheensaw’s story is right here.
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Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com has today’s good read. It’s about former New York Jets running back Emerson Boozer and his relationship with The Big Man, Clarence Clemons, who died Saturday. Boozer and Clemons were college football teammates at Maryland; in fact, Cimini writes that perhaps only a car accident kept Clemons from a career in the NFL.
That story is right here.

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

THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Lee Goren (Saskatoon, 1995-96) was released by the Straubing Tigers (Germany DEL). He had 12 goals and 25 assists in 33 games for the Tigers this season. According to the club, Goren was released after he came to Tigers management with an offer from Bern (Switzerland NL A). There is no announcement from Bern at present. To replace Goren, Straubing has signed F Adrian Foster (Saskatoon, Brandon, 1999-2002). Foster had no points in seven games earlier this season on a tryout with Örebro (Sweden Allsvenskan).
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They’re having a bobblehead night Friday in Kennewick, Wash., as the Tri-City Americans play host to the Spokane Chiefs. Yes, there are lots of bobblehead nights in sports these days. But this one will be special. That’s because it’s Jimmy Butcher Bobblehead Night. . . . And how is Jimmy Butcher? . . . Jacques Von Lunen of the Tri-City Herald has the story right here.
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Just because Louis Dumont never made it to the NHL doesn’t mean he isn’t living a dream. Paul Hunter of the Toronto Star takes a look at Dumont and his career right here.
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JUST NOTES: The Edmonton Oil Kings have lost D Griffin Reinhart, 16, for the rest of the season. He suffered a broken wrist during a 5-4 OT loss to the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers on Saturday night. . . . Reinhart has 25 points and is plus-10 in 44 games with the Oil Kings. . . . On Sunday night, F Jonathan Parker scored four times to lead the Prince Albert Raiders to a 5-1 victory over the host Calgary Hitmen. Attendance was 11,740. . . . Parker’s first career four-goal game left him with 33 goals. . . . In Kent, Wash., F Ryan Harrison broke a 1-1 tie at 17:15 of the second period to give the Everett Silvertips a 2-1 victory over the host Seattle Thunderbirds. Harrison wasn’t around for the finish, though, as he was tossed with a checking-from-behind major at 5:16 of the third period. . Attendance was 4,091.