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D Travis Ehrhardt (Moose Jaw, Portland, 2004-09) has signed a one-year contract with Genève-Servette (Switzerland, NL A). Last season, with the Utica Comets (AHL), he had six goals and 19 assists in 64 games. . . .
F Sean Ringrose (Medicine Hat, 2007-09) has signed a one-year contract with Gap (France, Ligue Magnus). Last season, he had two goals and six assists in 22 games with the Colorado Eagles (ECHL).
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While chatting with an NHL scout at a recent exhibition game, it was mentioned that 2016-17 isn’t looking like a banner season for the WHL, at least not in terms of top-end NHL draft picks.
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| NOLAN PATRICK |
In fact, he suggested that the WHL might be home to only . . . maybe . . . three first-round selections. That includes F Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings, who is coming off sports hernia surgery but remains the consensus No. 1 selection.
Craig Button of TSN issued his first 2017 draft rankings yesterday and his list pretty much bears out what the scout suggested.
The second WHLer on Craig’s List is F Kailer Yamamoto of the Spokane Chiefs. He’s at No. 19, one spot ahead of Kelowna Rockets D Cal Foote.
D Henri Jokiharju of the Portland Winterhawks is at No. 22, with F Michael Rasmussen of the Tri-City Americans at No. 27.
Craig’s List also has 10 “players to watch” and it includes four WHLers — F Jaret Anderson-Dolan of Spokane, D Cale Fleury of the Kootenay Ice, G Ian Scott of the Prince Albert Raiders, G Stuart Skinner of the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
Craig’s List is right here.
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Whoops! Apologies to F Owen Seidel of the Seattle Thunderbirds, who, despite a report here yesterday, remains on their preseason roster. Seidel, 18, was acquired from the Swift Current Broncos last season and had a goal and two assists in 18 games with Seattle. He was pointless in seven games with the Broncos. . . . In 2013-14, he led the B.C. Major Midget League in scoring, putting up 67 points, including 50 points, with the Greater Vancouver Canadians. . . . His name was inadvertently dropped from the Thunderbirds’ online roster, which led to reports that he had been released. Seidel was back on that roster as of Tuesday afternoon.
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The Kootenay Ice appears to be down to three goaltenders after dropping Jesse Makaj, 15, from its roster. He is expected to join the Vancouver-North West Giants of the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League. Makaj, a Vancouver native, was a second-round selection in the 2016 bantam draft. . . . News of the move was tweeted by Dickson Liong, the director of communications for The Sports Corporation. . . . Goaltenders still with the Ice are Cranbrook native Payton Lee, 20, who was acquired from the Edmonton Oil Kings over the summer; Declan Hobbs, who backed up Wyatt Hoflin last season; and Jakob Walter, 17, of Langley, B.C., who was a second-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft.
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Veteran F Jesse Shynkaruk, 20, is in camp with the Saskatoon Blades on a tryout basis. He was released by the Moose Jaw Warriors over the summer. The 5-foot-9, 175-pounder is from Saskatoon and played a season there with the midget AAA Contacts. . . . He has three WHL seasons under his belt, having played 85 games with the Kamloops Blazers and 111 with the Warriors. In 196 regular-season games, he has 48 points, including 23 goals. . . . Shynkaruk is one of three 20-year-olds on the Blades’ roster at the moment, the others being F Ryan Graham and D Bryton Sayers.
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Got a tip or some information you feel could be useful to me, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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The ECHL’s Worcester Railers, who are to begin play in October 2017, have signed Jamie Russell as general manager and head coach. Russell, 50, is a native of Kamloops. Russell spent the past two seasons as GM and head coach of the ECHL’s Elmira Jackals. Prior to that, he was an assistant coach for three seasons at Providence College. He also was the head coach at Michigan Tech for eight seasons (2003-11).
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Former WHL D Sven Butenschon has been named the head coach of the UBC Thunderbirds. An assistant coach with the Thunderbirds last season, he was named interim head coach on Aug. 30 when the university announced that it had parted company with head coach Adam Shell after one season. Butenschon played three seasons (1993-96) with the Brandon Wheat Kings before going on to a professional career.
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Ryely McKinstry missed @WHLGiants practice today. GM Glen Hanlon admits it's more concussion concerns. D-man only played 11 games last year.— Steve Ewen (@SteveEwen) September 14, 2016
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Mark Lamb and the Swift Current Broncos have agreed to terms on a three-year contract extension. Lamb was entering the last year of a three-year deal. . . . According to a news release, “That year has been expunged in favour of this new contract.” That means he is signed through 2016-17. . . . Lamb spent seven seasons as an NHL assistant coach, one with the Edmonton Oilers and six with the Dallas Stars, before signing with the Broncos. He has been the GM/head coach since the summer of 2009. . . . The Broncos are 164-165-31 in five seasons under Lamb, including 38-25-9 last season when they finished fifth in the 12-team Eastern Conference. They have make the playoffs in three of his five seasons, but haven’t been able to get out of the first round. Last spring, they lost in six games to the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Lamb, one of the WHL’s straightest shooters, has brought stability to the Broncos organization. This season, led by a strong defence, they should be one of the conference’s top four teams.
The Kootenay Ice was short two veteran defencemen when training camp began earlier this week in Cranbrook. Landon Cross and Landon Peel, a pair of 20-year-olds, didn’t show up on Monday. . . . Cross, who was acquired from the Kamloops Blazers last season, had concussion issues. From Brandon, he has decided he would rather finish his junior career in the MJHL and hopes to play for the Steinbach Pistons. . . . “As a parent, not as a general manager, I was concerned about him and what he was going through,” Jeff Chynoweth, the Ice’s president and general manager, told Taylor Rocca of the Cranbrook Daily Townsman. Cross informed Chynoweth of his decision on June 9. . . . Peel, from Virden, Man., had been expected in camp. “He told me at the end of (last season) he was definitely coming back and wanted to compete for one of the 20-year-old spots,” Chynoweth said. “He caught us a little bit off-guard.” . . . Peel wants to play for the MJHL’s Portage Terriers, who will host the RBC Cup tournament next spring. . . . For now, Cross and Peel are on the Ice’s suspended list. . . . Rocca’s story is 
The Victoria Royals have signed D Scott Walford, the 18th overall selection in the 2014 bantam draft. He will play this season at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton, B.C. Walford, from Coquitlam, B.C., played with the OHA bantam prep team last season, putting up 48 points, including 12 goals, in 56 games. . . . The Royals also signed 1997-born G Evan Smith, who is from Parker, Colo. Smith played last season with the Pikes Peak Miners U18 team in the North American Prospects Hockey League. The 6-foot-5 Smith went 1.95/.921 in 13 appearances. The Royals had placed him on their protected list in July 2012. . . . The Royals also signed F Ryan Peckford, a second-round selection in the 2014 bantam draft. From Stony Plain, Alta., Peckford played last season for the Parkland Athletic Club Saints of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League. He had 60 points, 28 of them goals, in 33 games. . . . D Brayden Pachal, a second-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft, also signed with the Royals. From Estevan, Sask., he had 27 points, including 14 goals, in 31 games with the bantam AA Estevan Bruins last season. . . . Victoria also signed Slovakian F Kristian Ferletak, its first-round selection in the CHL‘s 2014 import draft. From Trstena, he played last season with the Slovakian U-18 team, putting up 32 points, including nine goals, in 44 games. At the IIHF World U-18 championship, he had two goals and an assist in five games.
The Kamloops Blazers have signed F Jesse Zaharichuk, 17, to a WHL contract. From Sherwood Park, Alta., the 5-foot-8, 150-pound Zaharichuk was placed on the Blazers’ protected list in September 2012. Last season, with the AJHL’s Drumheller Dragons, he had 14 points, four of them goals, in 48 games. He added nine points, five of them goals, in 15 playoff games. . . . He likely will see some playing time tonight against the visiting Vancouver Giants or Saturday against the Rockets in Kelowna.
The Everett Silvertips have signed D Jantzen Leslie, the 15th overall selection in the 2014 bantam draft. Last season, he captained the bantam AAA Lloydminster Heat, which won the provincial championship. He had 40 points, 15 of the goals, in 30 regular-season games. In 12 playoff games, he added two goals and 10 assists. . . . The Silvertips also have signed F Bryce Kindopp, a teammate of Leslie’s who was a third-round pick by Everett.
The Swift Current Broncos signed five players -- F Tyler Adams, 17; D Jaydan Gordon; D Matthew Parsons, 16; F Owen Seidel, 16; and D Colby Sissons, 16. . . . Adams, from Regina, had 50 points, 13 of them goals, in 58 games with the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians last season. . . . The 1997-born Gordon, from Cochrane, Alta., had 35 points, including 31 assists, in 36 games with the midget AA Bow Valley Timberwolves last season. He is the younger brother of Broncos F Coda Gordon. . . . Parsons, from Middle Lake, Sask., was a third-round pick in the 2013 bantam draft. He had a goal and 11 assists in 54 games with the midget AAA Prince Albert Mintos last season. . . . Seidel, from Richmond, B.C., was a seventh-round pick in the 2013 bantam draft. He had 36 points, 10 of them goals, in 40 games with the major midget Greater Vancouver Canadians last season. . . . Sissons, from Edmonton, had 31 points, including nine goals, in 37 games with the minor midget AAA Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club Bulldogs last season.
The Prince Albert Raiders have signed three players -- F Parker Kelly, F Sean Montgomery and D Curtis Roach. . . . Kelly, from Camrose, Alta., was a seventh-round selection in the 2014 bantam draft. Last season, he had 58 points, including 35 goals, in 31 games with the Camrose Red Wings of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League. . . . Montgomery, from Calgary, was taken in the sixth round of the 2013 bantam draft. He had 37 points, 19 of them goals, in 35 games with the Calgary Royals of the Alberta Midget Hockey League. . . . Roach, 
The Tri-City Americans have signed three players from the 2013 bantam draft -- D Mark Drohan, a third-round pick; F Jordan Roy, who was a fifth-round selection; and G Nicholas Sanders, who was taken in the sixth round. . . . Drohan, from Calgary, had 17 points, six of them goals, with the midget AAA Calgary Buffaloes last season. . . . From Kimberley, B.C., Roy will turn 16 on Sept. 9. The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder had six points, two of them goals, in 26 games with the midget AAA Lethbridge Hurricanes last season. . . . Sanders, from Calgary, was 3.65/.890 in 39 games with the minor midget Calgary Rangers last season.
The Seattle Thunderbirds have signed five players -- F Wyatt Bear, D Reece Harsch, F Nick Holowko, F Luke Osterman and F Mackenzie Wight. . . . Bear, from Hodgson, Man., was a fifth-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft. He had 51 points, 18 of them goals, in 33 games with the bantam Interlake Lightning last season. . . . Harsch, from Grande Prairie, Alta., was an eight-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft. He had 14 points, two of them goals, for a bantam team in Grande Prairie last season. . . . Holowko, from Burnaby, B.C., was added to Seattle’s list after its 2012 camp. He had two goals and nine assists in 33 games with the junior B Delta, B.C., Ice Hawks last season. . . . Osterman, from Stillwater, Minn., was an eighth-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft. He had 13 points, six of them goals, with a team from Omaha, Neb., that played in the NAPH16 League last season. . . . Seattle has seven of its 10 selections from the 2012 draft under contract. . . . Wight, from Burnaby, B.C., was a seventh-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft. He played for the bantam A1-T1 team at Burnaby Winter Club last season.
The Portland Winterhawks have signed F Cody Glass, a Winnipegger who was the 19th overall selection in the 2014 bantam draft. He had 77 points, 31 of them goals, in 32 games with the bantam AAA Winnipeg Hawks. He added 17 points in 11 playoff games.
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