Brown backstops Pats to Game 3 win ... Holmes scores winner ... Seattle stymied on late PP

F Waltteri Hopponen (Everett, 2013-14) has signed a one-year contract with Espoo United (Finland, Mestis). This season, with HPK Hämeenlinna (Finland SM-Liiga), he had one assist in 21 games. On loan to LeKi Lempäälä (Finland, Mestis), he had six goals and eight assists in 23 games.

———

There was never any chance that F Keegan Kolesar of the Seattle Thunderbirds would be suspended after he took a minor penalty for kneeing in OT during Game 2 of the WHL’s championship final for the Ed Chynoweth Cup on Saturday in Regina.

During a scrum, Kolesar issued a post-whistle knee to Pats D Connor Hobbs. The Pats scored on the ensuing PP, to record a 4-3 victory and tie the series, 1-1.

Hobbs went down after the knee struck him, but wasn’t injured.

 “A team cannot request supplemental discipline for a minor penalty unless there’s an injury that will keep the player out of at least one game,” Richard Doerksen, the WHL’s vice-president, hockey, told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post. Doerksen looks after discipline for the WHL.

Had Kolesar been slapped with a major and game misconduct, Doerksen would have given the play an automatic review.

Interestingly, Kolesar missed Game 1 of the championship series as he served a one-game suspension handed down after he took a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct in the last game of the Western Conference final with the Kelowna Rockets.

Harder’s story is right here.

——

GM Joe Sakic on Denver radio : “There’s going to be a lot of turnover,” said Sakic. “We’re going to get some younger guys in here."

— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) May 9, 2017

The Regina Pats are to be the host team for the 2018 Memorial Cup. As such, they have at least some hope of luring F Tyson Jost into their lineup for the 2017-18 WHL season.

Jost played this season at the U of North Dakota, then finished up with the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, which had taken him 10th overall in the 2016 NHL draft.

Jost, who turned 19 on March 14, had 35 points, including 16 goals, in 33 games at UND, then added one goal in six NHL games. He also played for Canada at the World Junior Championship, putting up a goal and three assists in seven games.

The Pats acquired Jost’s rights from the Everett Silvertips, who had selected him with the seventh overall pick in the 2013 WHL bantam draft.

However, judging from the above quote from Joe Sakic, the Avalanche’s GM, it could be that Jost is ticketed for the NHL team next season.

——

The Prince George Cougars have signed D Jack Sander, 17, of Beaumont, Alta., to a WHL contract. Sander played the past two seasons with the midget AAA Leduc, Alta., Oil Kings. This season, he had three goals and eight assists in 34 regular-season games, then added two goals and five assists in 14 playoff games. The Cougars got a good look at him during the recent Telus Cup national championship in Prince George, where he had a goal and an assist in five games.

——

The Everett Silvertips announced Tuesday that they have signed Bil La Forge, their director of player personnel, to a “multi-year contract extension.” Jesse Gelenyse of the Everett Herald reports that it is a two-year extension. . . . La Forge, who turned 43 on Tuesday, has completed three seasons as Everett’s director of player personnel. From Edmonton, he signed on with the organization as a scout in 2008 and was promoted to head scout for the 2011-12 season. In the WHL, he also has worked with the Tri-City Americans and Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . La Forge’s late father, Bill, did a turn as head coach of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks and also coached the WHL’s Regina Pats and Kamloops Junior Oilers.

——

F Colby McAuley, who played out his junior eligibility with the Prince George Cougars this season, has signed a two-year contract with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. . . . The Barracuda is the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. . . . In 191 regular-season games with the Cougars, McAuley had 44 goals and 52 assists. This season, he had 26 goals and 29 assists, both single-season highs, in 68 games. . . . After the season, he signed an ATO with the Barracuda and recorded two assists in four games.

——

Mike Fraser, the Writing Scout, completed his 12th season as a WHL scout with the end of Thursday’s bantam draft. In this week’s column for the Brandon-based Westman Journal, Fraser lets us in on a scout’s feelings as another long season draws to its conclusion. That column is right here.

——

In the QMJHL, the visiting Saint John Sea Dogs beat the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, 2-0, on Tuesday night and now lead the championship series, 3-0. They’ll play Game 4 in Blainville-Boisbriand tonight. . . . G Callum Booth earned the shutout with 22 saves. F Samuel Dove-McFalls (5) scored both goals, the first at 12:28 of the second period and the second at 19:44 of the third. . . . Announced attendance was 3,500. . . . The OHL final also resumes tonight. The visiting Erie Otters hold a 2-1 lead over the Mississauga Steelheads.

——

If you enjoy stopping off here and would care to make a donation to the cause, please feel free to do so by clicking on the DONATE button and going from there.

If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.

If interested, you also are able to follow me on Twitter at @gdrinnan.

———

Sam Waterfield is the new head coach of the junior B Saanich Braves of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League. Cook replaces Brad Cook, who remains with the organization as vice-president of hockey operations. Waterfield is a former Braves defenceman who has been attending NAIT in Edmonton. . . . Mackenzie Valentine, who also played for the Braves, will be staying on as an assistant coach. . . . This season, the Braves finished second in the five-team South Division, at 29-15-1-3. In the playoffs, they dropped a first-round series to the third-place Kerry Park Islanders in six games.

——

Former WHL/NHL F Mike Sillinger has joined the staff of the Okanagan Hockey Academy as a skills coach. Sillinger, 45, worked with the Edmonton Oilers as their director of player development (2008-15), and also has been an assistant coach with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians (2013-17).

———

Amy, Lukas, and I: thrilled to add a 4th pair of shoes.

Proud to announce Baby Benton #2 is on the way.

Due date: 11/28! pic.twitter.com/WyJ3llY2WL

— Mike Benton (@Benton_Mike) May 10, 2017

———

TUESDAY’S GAME:

Thunderbirds are being asked "what went wrong?"-style questions right now. It's pretty simple. They faced a goalie who stole a game.

— Rob Vanstone (@robvanstone) May 10, 2017

At Kent, Wash., the Regina Pats, with some terrific play from G Tyler Brown, held off a late Seattle power play to beat the Thunderbirds, 3-2. . . . Regina now leads the championship final for the Ed Chynoweth

TYLER BROWN

Cup, 2-1, with Game 3 scheduled for Kent tonight. . . . All three games have been decided by one goal. In Regina, Seattle won Game 1, 2-1, in OT, with Regina taking Game 2, 4-3, in OT. . . . Last night, Regina F Austin Wagner was hit with a cross-checking minor at 18:33 of the third period. Seattle pulled G Carl Stankowski for the extra attacker, giving the hosts a 6-on-4 advantage. . . . However, Brown, who finished with 35 saves, held the fort. . . . Stankowski stopped 25 shots. That included stopping Regina F Sam Steel, the WHL’s scoring champion, on a penalty shot at 12:45 of the third period. Steel decked to the backhand, but Stankowski stayed with him to make the save. . . . The winning goal came from F Robbie Holmes (3), who scored off the rush from the left wing. He had two goals in 54 regular-season games. . . . The first period featured five PPs and four goals, three of them coming with the man advantage. . . . D Connor Hobbs (6) got Regina on the scoreboard first, pounding home a slapshot while on the PP, at 3:27. . . . The Thunderbirds tied it at 7:18, on a PP, with F Alexander True (10) scoring off a pass from F Mathew Barzal, who now has a 13-game playoff point streak. . . . The Pats went back out front at 7:33, on another PP, as D Chase Harrison scored his first goal of these

ROBBIE HOLMES

playoffs on a wrist shot through traffic. At that point, eight of the 13 goals scored in the series had come from defencemen. . . . Seattle tied it at 14:48 as F Sami Moilanen (5) scored the only even-strength goal of the period, this one coming off a rebound. . . . Regina was 2-4 on the PP; Seattle was 1-4. . . . Seattle’s chances on its final PP weren’t helped when Barzal was hit with an embellishment minor, with Regina F Wyatt Sloboshan taking a hooking minor on the same play. . . . Seattle head coach Steve Konowalchuk didn’t like that call one bit, telling reporters: “If a guy throws his hands up and loses his stick, it’s a sure sign of penalty.” . . . True’s 10th goal of these playoffs set a single-playoff franchise record, breaking the mark set by F Torrey DiRoberto in 1997. (Stick tap to TBird Tidbits). . . . Regina scratches: F Adam Brooks, D Dawson Davidson and F Jake Leschyshyn, all with injuries, G Max Paddock, F Duncan Pierce and F Owen Williams. . . . Seattle’s scratches: G Rylan Toth (injured), F Elijah Brown, F Tyler Carpendale, F Dillon Hamaliuk, D Jake Lee and F Luke Ormsby. . . . Announced attendance: 6,178. . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post has a game story right here. . . . Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle has a game story right here.

——

WEDNESDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m. (Regina leads, 2-1)

——

THURSDAY’S GAME:

No Game Scheduled.

——

FRIDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.

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.

A tip of the cap to the Regina Pats and their alumni, who have raised a healthy amount of cash to benefit former captain Kyle Deck, who is battling kidney disease.
A news release from the Pats notes that “through the Knight Archer Bobblehead night and the Prairie Mobile Skills Competition/Alumni Game, the Regina Pats, Shooting Stars Foundation and Pats Alumni raised $24,500 dollars to help Kyle . . .
“Through donations from the Clark Gillies Bobblehead Night, the Pats and their fans raised $4,500. Half of those funds went towards supporting Kyle while the other half was donated to the Regina Kidney Foundation.
“Pats fans gave generously at the Skills Competition and Alumni Game, making donations at the doors and participating in a silent auction of the Alumni’s game worn jerseys. Founding members of the Shooting Stars Foundation, Mike Sillinger, Jamie Heward and Jordan Eberle, matched the donations from the jersey auction and the night raised $21,000.”
If you haven’t already, please consider becoming an organ donor.
———
The Brandon Sun reports that the MJHL’s Dauphin Kings “have officially added 19-year-old right-winger Daulton Siwak to the roster for the rest of the season.”
Earlier this year, the Kings were hit with a $2,500 fine following a investigation into tampering allegations that were levelled by the WHL’s Prince George Cougars. Siwak left the Cougars on Jan. 6 and was suspended through Sunday.
———
The matchups if the playoffs opened today:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Edmonton vs. Medicine Hat
Prince Albert vs. Lethbridge
Calgary vs. Swift Current
Saskatoon vs Red Deer

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Portland vs. Seattle
Kelowna vs. Everett
Kamloops vs. Tri-City
Victoria vs. Spokane
———
MONDAY’S GAME:
In Vancouver, F Ty Rattie had four goals and an assist as the Portland Winterhawks beat the Giants, 8-3. . . . The victory, its third in a row, lifted Portland eight points ahead of the idle Edmonton Oil Kings atop the overall standings. The Kelowna Rockets are nine points back. . . . While Portland won for the ninth time in 10 games, the Giants lost for the fourth time in five outings. . . . Rattie, who has nine points over his last two games, has a pair of four-goal games this season. He also has 86 points, good for fourth spot in the scoring race. . . . That race now is led by Portland F Brendan Leipsic, who had a goal and three assists, giving him 101 points. . . . Portland F Nic Petan, who had two assists, has 100 points. . . . Leipsic has points in 11 straight games, including seven consecutive multi-point games. . . . The Winterhawks last had two 100-point skaters in 1993-94 (F Lonny Bohonos, 152; F Colin Foley, 107). . . . Portland D Seth Jones had three assists. He’s got 45 points, tying him for the WHL lead among freshmen. Seattle F Roberts Lipsbergs also has 45 points. Jones leads all freshmen with 36 assists. . . . Rattie now has 324 regular-season points in 255 career games. . . . Portland D Josh Hanson scored his first goal this season; it came in his 57th game. In his career, he has two goals in 172 games. An 18-year-old from Eagle River, Alaska, Hanson scored his first goal in his second career game, a 7-2 victory over the visiting Giants on Sept. 27, 2010.
———
CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Dalton Sward, Vancouver.

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None.
———






From Portland Winterhawks D Josh Hanson (@HansoloCup4): “The floodgates have been opened . . . . . #FirstOfMany #Hopefully #ProbablyNot”
———
From Seattle Thunderbirds G Danny Mumaugh (@DannyMumaugh): “Hope the person who broke into my car has fun with my backpack and all that chemistry homework. #goodsteal”

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.

Russ Parker (left) and the Regina Pats saluted Mike Sillinger
prior to a Friday night WHL game in Regina. (Regina Pats photo)

As you perhaps are aware, two OHL players have drawn eight-game suspensions for testing positive for a banned drug. Neate Sager of Yahoo! Sports wonders if it isn’t an over-reaction and I, for one, am inclined to agree with him. Sager’s piece is right here.
------
F Gasper Kopitar began this season with the Portland Winterhawks and now is with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers. Mark Emmert of the Des Moines Register checks in with Kopitar right here.
------
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM SATURDAY GAMES:
In Spokane, the Chiefs exploded for six second-period goals and beat the Kootenay Ice 11-2 in the first outdoor game in WHL history. . . . The game, played at Avista Stadium, which is home to a minor pro baseball team, drew 7,075 fans. . . . D Tyler Vanscourt and F Blake Gal each scored twice for the Chiefs. . . . Spokane F Tyler Johnson scored his WHL-leading 33rd goal and added an assist. Strangely, Johnson, who is recognized as one of the WHL’s top defensive centres, finished minus-1. . . . F Matt Marantz added a goal and three assists for the Chiefs, with F Brady Brassart and F Anthony Bardaro each setting up three goals. . . . The Chiefs were 3-for-5 on the PP. . . . The Ice had beaten the Chiefs 6-2 in Cranbrook on Friday night, ending Spokane’s seven-game winning streak. . . . F Cody Eakin (hand) didn’t play for the Ice. . . .
------
In Prince Albert, F Brett Lyon scored his first two goals of the season to help the Warriors to a 7-2 victory over the Raiders, who had won three in a row. . . . Lyon, who was acquired from the Vancouver Giants on Jan. 4, went into the game with three goals in 132 regular-season games. He began his career with the Kamloops Blazers. . . . Lyon, 19, scored at 3:36 of the first period and added a second goal at 5:50. . . . F Quinton Howden also scored twice for the Warriors. he has 25. . . . Moose Jaw D Dallas Ehrhardt, 18, scored his first WHL goal. It was his 29th game this season and the 54th of his career. . . . Warriors F Dylan Hood scored the game’s first goal, his 20th of the season. . . . Attendance was 2,357. . . . The Raiders had beaten the Warriors 4-2 in Moose Jaw on Friday night. . . .
------
In Regina, G Darcy Kuemper earned his WHL-leading eighth shutout of the season as the Red Deer Rebels beat the Pats, 6-0. . . . Kuemper stopped 24 shots in posting his 14th career shutout. He set franchise records for shutouts in a season and a career earlier in the season. . . . F Byron Froese scored twice for Red Deer and has 19 goals this season. . . . F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had his 12th goal and two assists. . . . Attendance was 3,303. . . . Red Deer F Andrej Kudrna had a goal and an assist, and was plus-4. . . .
------
In Saskatoon, F Taylor Vause’s late second-period goal stood up as the winner as the Swift Current Broncos beat the Blades, 3-2. . . . Vause got his 13^th goal on a PP at 19:55 of the second to give his side a 3-1 lead. . . . The Blades had won 11 in a row at home. At 18-2-1, they boast the WHL’s best home record. . . . F Brayden Schenn (shoulder) didn’t play for Saskatoon. It is anticipated that he will make his debut with the Blades on Saturday against the visiting Calgary Hitmen. . . . Saskatoon D Dalton Thrower (concussion) also may return Saturday. . . . Attendance was 8,487. . . . Swift Current G Mark Friesen stopped 29 shots. . . .
------
In Brandon, G Laurent Brossoit stopped 25 shots to help the Edmonton Oil Kings to a 9-0 victory over the Wheat Kings. . . . No, that isn’t a typo. . . . Brossoit has two shutouts this season and in his career. . . . F Dylan Wruck and F T.J. Foster each had two goals and two assists for the Oil Kings, who got two assists from each of F Jordan Hickmott and F Travis Ewanyk. . . . The first period was scoreless. . . . With a 1-0 lead, the Oil Kings exploded for five goals in a span of one minute 55 seconds. They scored at 11:24, 11:38, 12:14, 12:25 and 13:19. . . . The WHL record for fastest five goals is 76 seconds and was set by the Saskatoon Blades on Nov. 9, 1982. . . . Edmonton was 2-for-2 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 3,751. . . . From Wheat Kings play-by-play man Bruce Luebke: “The last time Brandon gave up nine goals on home ice in a regular-season game was Feb. 5, 1999 in a 9-4 loss to Moose Jaw. . . . Brandon captain Shayne Wiebe left the game after the second period with a suspected shoulder injury, while Wheat Kings' F Brenden Walker left in the third with what appeared to be a hand injury.” . . . Edmonton head coach Derek Laxdal played three seasons with the Wheat Kings in the 1980s. . . .
------
In Kamloops, the Portland Winterhawks erased a 1-0 deficit with three second-period goals and went on to beat the Blazers, 5-2. . . . Portland F Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist, and was plus-3. . . . Portland F Oliver Gabriel drew two assists. . . . Kamloops was with F Chase Schaber (groin), F Jordan DePape (leg) and F Bernhard Keil (shoulder), and lost two more forwards in the game’s first five minutes. Logan McVeigh left with a leg injury, while Thomas Frazee departed with a knee problem. . . . Kamloops F Ryan Hanes was assessed a slashing major for a hack at Portland G Mac Carruth as time ran out in the third period. The resulting skirmish resulted in 107 penalty minutes. . . . Attendance was 4,344. . . . D William Wrenn picked up his first WHL point, an assist, in his fifth game since leaving the Denver Pioneers over the Christmas break. . . .
------
In Prince George, the Chilliwack Bruins scored two shorthanded goals en route to a 3-1 victory over the Cougars. . . . F Ryan Howse, who is from Prince George, opened t he scoring with a shorthanded goal at 4:52 of the first period. It was his 29^th goal this season. . . . F Roman Horak finished the scoring, shorthanded, at 9:38 of the third. . . . Chilliwack G Lucas Gore stopped 46 shots. . . . Attendance was 2,176. . . . The Cougars had beaten the Bruins 7-3 on Friday night. . . .
------
In Everett, the Silvertips took a 3-0 first-period lead and never trailed as they edged the Seattle Thunderbirds, 6-5. . . . Everett F Tyler Maxwell scored four times and set up another. His fourth goal, at 8:21 of the third, was his 29^th and gave his mates a 6-4 lead. . . . The four goals in one game tied the Everett franchise record (Moises Gutierrez, Jan. 24, 2007). . . . F Ryan Harrison, acquired Monday from the Medicine Hat Tigers, had two goals and two assists for Everett, while F Landon Ferraro had three assists. . . . Seattle got two goals from F Travis Toomey and a goal and two helpers from F Burke Galliimore. . . . Attendance was 8,344. . . .
------
In Kelowna, F Linden Vey had two goals and two assists to lead the Medicine Hat Tigers to a 5-2 victory over the Rockets. . . . Vey now leads the WHL with 72 points, four more than Kamloops F Brendan Ranford and five more than F Tyler Johnson of Spokane. . . . F Kellan Tochkin, who came over from Everett on Monday, had two assists, as did D Thomas Carr. . . . Tigers G Tyler Bunz stopped 25 shots. . . . Medicine Hat was 3-for-7 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 6,103. . . .
------
In Kennewick, Wash., the host Tri-City Americans scored the game’s first five goals as they beat the Vancouver Giants, 5-2, to win their 11^th straight home game. . . . F Brendan Shinnimin had two goals and an assist for the winners, while D Matt MacKenzie and F Carter Ashton each had two assists. . . . Shinnimin has 19 goals now, while linemate Adam Hughesman netted his 27^th and added an assist. Ashton is the third member of that line. . . . F Spencer Bennett got his 19^th goal of the season for Vancouver. . . . Attendance was 5,239. . . . The Giants had won five of their last six games.
------
SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
Three minors:
Red Deer F Turner Elson
Seattle D Ryan Button
Vancouver F Dalton Sward

The Medicine Hat Tigers were on their way to a 5-2 victory over the host Kamloops Blazers on Wednesday night when the visitors were awarded what would be their only full power play of the game.
Head coach Shaun Clouston responded by sending out five forwards. A member of the Tigers’ entourage said it was the first time the team had done that this season.
The move involved having Linden Vey, Wacey Hamilton, Tyler Pitlick and Emerson Etem on the ice, along with newcomer Kellan Tochkin, who had just arrived via trade from the Everett Silvertips.
Those forwards, all with great skill and good speed, basically moved the puck around the outside, looking for the long pass to set up a one-timer, with the odd foray in the direction of Kamloops goaltender Jeff Bosch.
The Tigers didn’t score, but it was an intriguing couple of minutes and it will be interesting to see how often Clouston goes with that PP alignment.
Of course, it is the acquisition of Tochkin that allows Clouston to do that. Tochkin is a highly skilled player who should fit right in -- he played his first game with the Tigers on a line with Vey and Etem, two of the WHL’s premier performers.
The Tigers acquired Tochkin, 19, and defenceman Alex Theriau, 18, from Everett for forward Ryan Harrison, 18, and a 2011 second-round bantam pick.
Tochkin has signed an NHL contract, as a free agent, with the Vancouver Canucks. Theriau, who was taken sixth overall by the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 2007 bantam draft, was selected by the Dallas Stars in the fourth round of the NHL’s 2010 draft. Theriau (ankle) won’t play for a couple of weeks.
Brad McEwan, now the Tigers’ general manager, was running the Lethbridge draft table when the Hurricanes selected Theriau.
“We believe he has a lot of upside,” Clouston said earlier this week. “This is a bit of an off season for him, but last season was pretty good for him.”
Clouston is excited with the new additions because, as he put it, “One is signed and one is drafted.”
“You always want guys excited about the future,” he added, “and pushing and working and trying to get better every day. We’ve added two guys who can help us right now.”
As for how the deal went down, Clouston explained: “Both sides were interested in the other guys. Everett was definitely interested in a (1992-born) forward. With Harrison leaving, getting Tochkin in to fill that position for right now made a lot of sense. I think the deal made sense for both sides.”
Theriau is only the second 1992-born defenceman on the Tigers’ roster. The other is Scott McKay, who spent most of Wednesday’s game on a forward line.
“Yes,” Clouston said, “looking to next season on the back end, we’ve definitely got some room with the ’92 defencemen. It helps us in that area next season.”
As for this season, the Tigers would appear poised to make a run.
They’ve got two forward lines -- Vey between Etem and Tochkin, Hamilton with Pitlick and 16-year-old Hunter Shinkaruk -- that can score. They’ve got a beef line, in Dylan Bredo with Cole Grbavac and Kale Kessy. And the acquisition of Scott Ramsay from the Seattle Thunderbirds at the deadline will help them in their zone. He’s a solid 6-foot-4 defender with some sandpaper in his game, who will fit in well alongside the likes of 6-foot-4 Sebastian Owuya and 6-foot-3 Matthew Konan.
Yes, indeed, the Arena just may be rocking well into April or early May this spring.
---
The Prince George Cougars’ chances of finishing atop the B.C. Division, thus earning the second seed in the Western Conference, took a hit Wednesday when F Brett Connolly went down with a knee injury during a 5-2 loss to the Bruins in Chilliwack.
He has been diagnosed with a sprained right knee and is expected to be out from three to six weeks.
Connolly, recently returned from helping Team Canada to a silver medal at the World Junior Championship in Buffalo, was injured late in the first period when he went knee-to-knee with F Steve Oursov of the Bruins.
Oursov wasn’t penalized but has since been suspended by the WHL under its supplemental discipline rule. The length of the suspension has yet to be determined.
"He just came to hit (Connolly) and kind of stood in his path a little bit -- it ended up being knee-on-knee and (Oursov) didn't do a lot to get out of the way," Cougars head coach Dean Clark told Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen. "He tried to turn his body but left his knee there and there was no call on the play, which was really disappointing. The league has the video of it now. . . . Regardless of who's getting hit, we just can't go knee-on-knee, it's too dangerous. We want to take that right out of hockey, whether it's our level, minor hockey or the NHL."
Connolly, 18, was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning with the sixth overall pick of the 2010 NHL draft. Hip problems limited him to 16 games last season. This season, he has 40 points, including 25 goals.
The Cougars (21-18-3) were beaten 5-2 by the Bruins, who are in Prince George for games tonight and Saturday.
Prince George and the Vancouver Giants (20-18-5) are tied atop the B.C. Division, with the Kelowna Rockets (22-19-0) just one point back. The Kamloops Blazers (20-22-2) are three points off the pace, with the Bruins (19-18-3) in fifth, one point behind the Blazers.
The Cougars also lost F Charles Inglis on Wednesday. He took a high stick to the face, left for repairs and then finished the game. But he didn’t practise Thursday and may not play tonight. . . . Chilliwack D Brandon Manning (groin) took Wednesday’s pregame warmup but didn’t play. Manning, 20, isn’t expected to play this weekend.
---
The Regina Pats will honour Mike Sillinger tonight. He is a Regina native who lived a dream by excelling for his hometown team for four seasons (1987-91). . . . Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post talks with Sillinger right here.
---
Craig Stancher of nhl.com takes a look at former Portland Winterhawks F Luke Walker, who now is with the AHL’s Lake Erie Monsters, an affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche. That story is right here.
---
The 2012 World Junior Championship, which will be held in Calgary and Edmonton, already is sold out. But, boy, are there some unhappy people, none of whom are scalpers! There is a story right here from CBC News.

MIKE SILLINGER
(REGINA PATS PHOTO)

The Regina Pats will celebrate the career of Mike Sillinger by retiring his No. 16 on Jan. 14 prior to a game with the Edmonton Oil Kings.
“It's truly an honor to have my jersey hanging up in a place where I have had some of my greatest memories,” Sillinger said in a news release. “I was lucky to play my entire junior career here with the Pats and was always so proud to represent a great organization. As a hometown boy, wearing that Pats jersey was a dream come true and I will cherish those days forever.”
Sillinger, who is from Regina, played with the Pats from 1987-91. He is third on the franchise list in goals (178), third in assists (241) and second in points (419).
The 1990-91 season was a fantastic cap to his WHL career as that winter, he put on the Red and White of Team Canada and helped the squad to a gold medal at the World Junior Hockey Championships in Saskatoon, later that season, he was named a WHL Eastern Conference all-star.
Sillinger was selected by the Detroit Red Wings with the 11th pick of the NHL’s 1989 draft and went to a 16-year professional career during which he played for 12 teams.
Sillinger will become the eighth Pats player to have had his number retired, following Ed Staniowski (1), Brad Hornung (8), Clark Gillies (9), Doug Wickenheiser (12) and Dennis Sobchuk (14), Dale Derkatch (16) and Bill Hicke (17). Builders to have been honoured by the Pats are Lorne Davis, Al Ritchie, Gord Staseson, Graham Tuer, Bob Turner and Del Wilson.
———
THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Codey Burki (Brandon, 2002-07) has been assigned on loan from Lugano (Switzerland NLA) to Thurgau (Switzerland NL B). Burki has not played in a game yet with Lugano but played one game on loan to Sierre (Switzerland NLB) earlier this season. He was pointless in that game. . . .
D Tomas Slovak (Kelowna, 2001-03) was released by Avtomobilist Ekaterinberg (Russia KHL). He had three assists and was -6 in 21 games this season for Avtomobilist.
———
D Bruin McDonald, 18, who started this season with the Spokane Chiefs, has been released by the QMJHL’s Gatineau Olympiques. In five games with the Olympiques, McDonald didn’t have a point, but was plus-1 with nine penalty minutes.
The Olympiques had signed McDonald to a contract that covered this season and next, but, of course, those contracts don’t guarantee roster spots.
As someone familiar with the situation put it, “Obviously, what (the family) was told and promised was not worth the air they were spoken with. But that is the business . . .”
So, at least for now, McDonald has decided to get on with his life and is sounding as though he won’t play hockey again this season.
The Chiefs had acquired McDonald’s rights from the Prince George Cougars. However, Spokane released him upon having D Jared Cowen reassigned by the NHL’s Ottawa Senators. McDonald then joined the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies, who dealt him to the Vernon Vipers. It was right after that trade occurred that the Olympiques came calling.
———
For the record, the WHL’s trade moratorium runs through Dec. 27. The WHL office will begin accepting trades on Tuesday, Dec. 28, at 12:01 a.m. MT. . . . That moratorium began Dec. 15. . . . WHL goaltenders are on schedule to put up 76 shutouts this season, which would be 12 fewer than last season. That also would be the lowest total since some time before 2003-04. (I don’t have season breakdowns prior to 2003-04.) The single-season record (141) was set in 2004-05. . . .
———
Bruce Eakin (Saskatoon, 1980-82) and his family are heading from Florida to the Buffalo area to watch nephew Cody play for Team Canada in the World Junior Championship. Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun has that story right here. Cody, of course, is the captain of the Swift Current Broncos.
———
After giving it a whole lot of thought, I have shut off the comments area of this blog.
I don’t mind a little give and take, but when a gutless stalker, obviously made bigger and braver by the mask of anonymity afforded by the Internet, continually makes unfounded accusations it’s time to say enough is enough and pull the plug.
So . . . as much as I enjoy the readers’ participation, I have had to cut it off. For that I apologize.
Still, those of you wishing to make an intelligent comment, point out errors or take part in reasonable discourse may continue to reach me at gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca.

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