Looking back at WHL final . . . Hurricanes sign head scout . . . WHL involved in Tigers' lease talks

Eyes on the prize! @Kelowna_Rockets coaches already busy looking at game tape to prep for #MemorialCup #GoRockets! pic.twitter.com/CrFyveM7qY

— Lauren Pullen (@Lauren_Global) May 15, 2015

WHL PLAYOFF LEFTOVERS, AS OPPOSED TO TURNOVERS:

Depending on whether you are a fan of the Kelowna Rockets or Brandon Wheat Kings, you will say the WHL final was decided by timely, or untimely, goals. . . . The Rockets won Game 1, 4-3, in Brandon, erasing a 1-0 deficit with goals at 17:41 of the first period and at 0:52 and 1:19 of the second. . . . Kelowna won Game 2, 5-3, also in Brandon, scoring at 19:57 of the first period to a take a 2-1 lead and adding another goal just 27 seconds into the second. F Nick Merkley’s shorthanded goal at 10:16 of the third ended up as the winner. . . . In Game 3, the host Rockets won, 5-3. Kelowna F Leon Draisaitl scored shorthanded at 6:35 of the first period. Brandon tied it, but the Rockets scored just 59 seconds later. . . . In Game 4, on Wednesday night, the Rockets broke a scoreless tie with two shorthanded goals 19 seconds apart early in the third. . . . From Kelowna’s perspective, you will win a lot of games by scoring timely goals in that fashion. . . . From Brandon’s perspective, you can’t give up all those goals in those situations and hope to win, certainly not in a championship final. . . .
The Rockets, who won the WHL title on Wednesday night, played 19 playoff games, going 16-3. . . . They will ride a seven-game winning streak into the Memorial Cup in Quebec City next week. . . . The Rockets will open against the host Quebec Remparts one week from tonight (Friday, May 22). . . . The Rockets have played in a Memorial Cup in Quebec City on one previous occasion. They lost a semifinal game, 2-1, to the Hull Olympiques, who had won the QMJHL championship. The OHL-champion Kitchener Rangers beat the Olympiques, 6-3, in the final. . . . The Rockets also played in the 2009 Memorial Cup, which also was played in the province of Quebec. The Rockets lost the final of that one, 4-1, to the OHL-champion Windsor Spitfires. That was in Rimouski, Que. . . . Brett Iverson, one of the referees for Wednesday’s game in Kelowna, will be working his second straight Memorial Cup. . . .
Attendance in Kelowna on Wednesday was 6,428, the largest hockey crowd in Prospera Place since the final game of the 2004 Memorial Cup. . . . The Rockets beat the Gatineau Olympiques 2-1 on that occasion, before 6,636 fans. . . . Kelowna G Jackson Whistle’s father, Dave, played hockey for the Brandon U Bobcats. In fact, he was a team captain before going on to play in Europe. . . . “It’s awesome. I actually moved here from Europe the year they won the (Memorial Cup in 2004), and I’ve been coming to Rockets games every single year,” Jackson, who is from West Kelowna, told reporters after Wednesday’s game. “I wouldn’t want to do it anywhere else, it’s a great feeling and I’ve never been more excited in my life. Everybody wanted it so bad and it was just a great game.” . . .
Kelowna scored four shorthanded goals in the final series, and finished with nine in 19 playoff games. . . . The Rockets, however, are going to have to get their PP going if they are to have success in Quebec City. Kelowna had the WHL’s best regular-season PP, at 26.2 per cent, but it was only 1-for-13 in the final and 16-for-79 (20.3 per cent) overall. . . .
Rob Henderson, the Brandon Sun’s sports editor, has a final game story right here. . . .
Larry Fisher of the Kelowna Daily Courier has a final game story right here.
Thanks to Fisher, Henderson, Perry Bergson of the Brandon Sun and Doyle Potenteau of the Kelowna Daily Courier for all of their playoff coverage.
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I made an error here yesterday when I was recounting the players on the Kelowna Rockets’ roster and how they were acquired. . . . I referred to four players having been acquired from the Prince Albert Raiders. Actually, it was only three. . . . F Chance Braid was acquired from the Prince George Cougars. Braid, 20, played three seasons with the Raiders before being dealt to the Cougars prior to this season. He played 35 regular-season games with the Cougars and 30 with the Rockets.
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Rob MacLachlan has signed on as the Lethbridge Hurricanes’ head scout. The team didn’t reveal contract details, other than announcing that he had signed “a multi-year deal.” . . . At the same time, the Hurricanes named Todd Hassen assistant head scout. . . . MacLachlan, who is from Moose Jaw, worked for the Moose Jaw Warriors for the 14 years, the last 10 as head scout. MacLachlan, 57, was fired as Moose Jaw’s assistant GM and head scout on Jan. 23. . . . Hassen has been on the Hurricanes’ scouting staff. . . . MacLachlan replaces Blake Robson, who had been the head scout under his father, Brad, who was fired as the Hurricanes’ GM on Dec. 10. The Hurricanes didn’t announce it but Brad apparently quit shortly after his father was fired.
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Another day . . . another day without a lease for the Medicine Hat Tigers, who are expected to play out of the brand new Regional Event Centre (aka The House That Bob Ridley Built) in 2015-16. However, the Tigers have yet to complete lease negotiations with SMG, the management company that has been contracted by the City of Medicine Hat to operate the facility. . . . Jordan Kanygin of CHAT-TV reports that the WHL has been involved in the lease negotiations for the past month. . . . That story is right here.
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Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle spent part of this week in Memphis, watching, or trying to watch, the Golden State Warriors and the Grizzlies in an NBA playoff series. On Wednesday, Ostler went looking a place to watch the game. . . . “I drop into Club 521,” he writes. “A blues band is playing at Beale Street volume, which is 15 on a 1-to-10 loudness scale. Love to be an ear doctor in Memphis. A couple of TVs have the game on. Also: hockey and MMA. Based on about four joints I’ve dropped into, high-def TV is still in Tennessee’s future.” . . . The complete column is right here.
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Are there cheaters on your favourite professional team, or teams? If so, how do you deal with it as a fan? Howard Cole has written a piece for Rolling Stone that deals with that question, and it’s a terrific read. It’s right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Danny Flynn will be the next head coach of the QMJHL’s Saint John Sea Dogs, according to Stéphane Leroux of RDS. . . . The 57-year-old Flynn will replace Ross Yates, who resigned following the season. Flynn spent this season as an assistant coach under Ted Nolan with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. . . . Before that, he spent 2007-13 as GM/head coach of the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats. He also has been a head coach in the OHL, with the Belleville Bulls and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
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The BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies don’t have a lease at The Q Centre, their home in Colwood, and, according to Mario Annicchiarico of the Victoria Times Colonist, “vice-president of business operations Sonya Saujani made it clear that the team has one foot practically out the door.” . . . . Annicchiarico’s story is right here.
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Only been here a short time, but @Drat_29 has a street named after him. And the red light is on. #Draisaitl #MVP pic.twitter.com/u8t6nZfKpq

— Gord McGarva (@GordMcGarva) May 14, 2015

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.

Commish wants more support for Ice, new rink in P.A. . . . or else!

Nice to welcome @Kelowna_Rockets to Brandon to play our @bdnwheatkings Two great teams! And thanks for flying #YBR 😉 pic.twitter.com/JgW33wUCxy

— shannon (@ShannonMannall) May 6, 2015

WEDNESDAY’S GAME:

No Game Scheduled.

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The WHL’s championship final, for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, begins Friday in Brandon with the Wheat Kings meeting the Kelowna Rockets. . . .
Each team is 12-3 in these playoffs. . . . Brandon has won each of its series in five games; Kelowna has won in four, five and six games, which, if you are into omens, might indicate the Rockets will win the final in seven. . . . The Wheat Kings have scored 65 goals in their 15 games; the Rockets have scored 65. . . . Brandon has surrendered 34 goals; Kelowna 39. . . . Kelowna fell behind in five of the six games in its 4-2 Western Conference final victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . As for injuries, Brandon F Reid Duke, F Tanner Kaspick and D Kale Clague have been practising this week. Duke was injured in Game 5 of a second-round series. Kaspick and Clague went down in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. . . . The Rockets will be without F Tyrell Goulbourne, who underwent surgery last week to repair a skate cut to his left calf. F Rourke Chartier, a 48-goal scorer in the regular season, is day-to-day after missing the last three games against Portland. . . . Here’s an interesting tidbit from Brandon Sun sports editor Rob Henderson: “The combined 226 points that Brandon and Kelowna racked up this season are more than any other pair of finalists except 1979 when the Wheat Kings (with a league-record 125 points) topped the Portland Winterhawks (111) for the WHL title.”
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Last week, you will recall, Avenir Sports & Entertainment, purchased majority ownership of the Kloten Flyers, a team that players in the Switzerland’s NL A. Avenir is owned by Bill Gallacher, who also owns the Portland Winterhawks. Perhaps you are wondering that the move might mean to the Winterhawks. If so, here’s what Winterhawks president Doug Piper told Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune:
"When Bill bought the Winterhawks (in 2008), his intention was to also buy an NHL franchise. Those opportunities have come and gone, so we started thinking about the European market. We've always loved Swiss players — the three who have played for us have been fantastic. Switzerland is a great hockey market, almost Canadian-like in its appreciation with the game.
"The WHL allows each team only two imports, but the ones we've had have been impactful. Switzerland has a sophisticated youth program. We've always been tuned into Europe, but we feel this helps us get even more eyes over there and be in line to find more Niederreiter-like talent. The more we understand the world as a whole and start looking at it that way, we felt it was a wise thing to do for the future.”
The three Swiss players to have been with the Winterhawks are Nino Niederreiter, Sven Baertschi and Luca Sbisa.
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Ron Robison, the commissioner of the WHL, was in Lethbridge on Monday, where he met with shareholders of the Hurricanes and urged them to sell the franchise to private owners. . . . On Tuesday, he told Les Lazaruk, the radio voice of the Saskatoon Blades, that the Kootenay Ice and Prince Albert Raiders need help if they are to remain where they are in the long term.
Robison, on the Ice: “The attendance in (Cranbrook) is not where we need it to be. We're addressing that and hopeful that we can get some solution in place here very soon. But, the reality is that in order to continue to operate in markets such as Cranbrook, the Kootenay Ice have to draw more people . . . have to get better support in that community. Otherwise, we may have no alternative but to relocate the franchise.”
Robison, on the Raiders: “There's no question that in order for the Prince Albert Raiders to be viable long term, a new facility is required. I think the city acknowledges that. The Raiders certainly understand that moving forward and I think it would be a major asset to the community. They want to preserve their franchise and, certainly, discussions are underway in that regard.”
Lazaruk’s story is right here.
Brett Smith of the Prince Albert Daily Herald followed up on that story by talking with Raiders officials. That story is right here.
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The WHL bantam draft is scheduled to be held today in Calgary. When it comes to coverage, the day belongs to Alan Caldwell over at Small Thoughts at Large. So check out his blog for all the happenings. . . . If you click right here, you will find his spreadsheet that features all of the WHL trades that involved draft picks.
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Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post reports that Pats F Braden Christoffer, 20, has signed with the Oklahoma City Barons, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. According to Harder, Christoffer, the Pats’ captain, isn’t expected to join the Barons now; rather, he will report next season when the franchise has moved to Bakersfield, Calif. He also will play for the Oilers in a prospects tournament in Penticton, B.C., in September.
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The WHL held its awards luncheon in Calgary on Wednesday. For a look at all the winners, click right here.
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During the WHL’s awards luncheon, former Regina Pats owner Russ Parker was honoured with the 2014-15 Governors Award. Parker and his wife, Diane, purchased the Pats from the WHL in 1995. They sold the franchise prior to this season.
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THE COACHING GAME:

Moe Mantha, a former NHL defenceman, has signed on as the first GM/head coach of the French River Rapids, who will begin play in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League next season. The 54-year-old Mantha is a native of Sturgeon Falls, Ont., which is a short drive from Noelville, the home of the Rapids. Mantha had been working as the head coach of the NAHL’s Michigan Warriors. . . . Randy Russon of Sault This Week has more right here.
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Ryan Donald has signed on as assistant GM and assistant coach with the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters. He had been the head coach and assistant GM of the Woodstock Slammers of the junior A Maritime Hockey League. He is a graduate of Yale who captain the Bulldogs. He also played in the AJHL with the Fort Saskatchewan Traders and Camrose Kodiaks. In Trail, he will be working with GM/head coach Nick Deschenes and assistant coaches Craig Clare and Barry Zanier.
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Some 5'9" dude from Spokane is leading the #NHLPlayoffs in goals. Didn't see that coming when he was a @chiefshockey player

— Chad Balcom (@hawkeyblog) May 7, 2015

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Coulter OT hero in Brandon . . . Petan wins it for Portland . . . Johnston staying in Pittsburgh

F Milan Jurik (Prince Albert, 2006-07) has signed a one-year extension with Mulhouse (France, Division 1). This season, in 23 games, he had nine goals and 12 assists. . . .
F Michal Pšurný (Medicine Hat, Kootenay, 2005-06) has signed a one-year contract with Mulhouse (France, Division 1). This season, with the Manchester Phoenix (England, Premier), he had 19 goals and 34 assists in 41 games.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:

Tyler Coulter scores 51 secs into OT. @bdnwheatkings down Calgary 3-2 to take 2-0 lead in @TheWHL East Final. #bdnmb pic.twitter.com/BpuGMMpyAm
— Bruce Luebke (@wheatkingsvoice) April 26, 2015

In Brandon, F Tyler Coulter scored 51 seconds into OT to give the Wheat Kings a 3-2 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . The Wheat Kings won the opener, 9-4, on Friday. The teams now head for Calgary and games Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . Brandon scored nine times on 41 shots in Game 1; last night, it scored three times on 46 shots as Calgary G Brendan Burke was stellar. . . . Coulter, who is from Brandon, tipped in a point shot from D Ryan Pilon for the winner, his fourth goal of these playoffs. . . . Coulter told Rob Henderson, the sports editor of the Brandon Sun, that the goal pretty much came in

self-defence. The puck, Coulter said, “actually hit the shaft of my stick going in. I thought it was coming for my face, so I put (the stick) up to guard it and it just hit me and went in.” . . . The Hitmen now are 4-3 in OT in these playoffs. Seven OT games in one playoff year ties the franchise record from 2013 when they were 5-2. . . . Brandon is 4-0, with each winning score having been 3-2. . . . Calgary D Michael Zipp forced OT with his first playoff goal, at 6:51 of the third period. . . . For the second night in a row, Calgary erased a two-goal deficit. . . . Brandon F Jayce Hawryluk, who opened the scoring early in Game 1, got last night’s first goal at 3:49 of the first period. He’s got seven. . . . F Peter Quenneville upped it to 2-0, at 11:03, while Brandon enjoyed a 5-on-3 PP. He’s got goals in five straight games and six in the playoffs. . . . Calgary F Adam Tambellini got his guys on the board at 16:48 with his 10th goal. . . . The teams played a scoreless second period. . . . Burke, who came on in relief on Friday night, got the start for Calgary after Mack Shield had started six in a row. . . . Burke, who made 43 saves, had last started in Game 6 of Calgary’s first-round series. . . . Brandon G Jordan Papirny turned aside 22 shots as he ran his record to 10-2. . . . Brandon was 1-for-2 on the PP; Calgary was 0-for-1. . . . The referees were Derek Zalaski and Jeff Ingram. . . . Pilon and F Tim McGauley each had two assists for Brandon. . . . This was the sixth straight game in which Brandon had at least 40 shots at the opposing goaltender. . . . The Hitmen were without F Jake Virtanen, who is under a ‘tbd’ suspension for a headshot on Brandon F Tanner Kaspick early in the third period of Game 1. . . . Kaspick was scratched last night, perhaps with a concussion, while D Kale Clague, who left in the first period on Friday, also was out. . . . Brandon added F Mark Matsuba and F Stelio Mattheos for this one. . . . Calgary scratched F Chase Lang, who was injured in Game 1 when he crashed awkwardly into the end boards, and F Connor Rankin. Those two and Virtanen accounted for 187 points, including 78 goals, in the regular season. . . . Attendance was 5,004, down 24 from Friday night. . . . Brandon’s Kelly McCrimmon now has 62 career playoff victories, leaving him alone in ninth spot on the WHL’s all-time list. Next on the list? Don Nachbaur of the Spokane Chiefs, at 65. . . . Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun has a game story right here. . . . Laurence Heinen filed this game story for the Calgary Herald.

In Kelowna, F Nic Petan broke a 2-2 tie at 19:12 of the second period and the Portland Winterhawks went on to a 3-2 victory over the Rockets. . . . Kelowna had won the opener, erasing a 2-0 deficit for a 3-2 victory, on Friday night. . . . The scene now shifts to the Moda Center in Portland for games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . Game 5 is scheduled for Kelowna on Friday. . . . As it did in Game 1,

Portland opened a 2-0 lead, with F Paul Bittner getting his third goal, on a PP, at 16:33 of the first period and F Dominic Turgeon scoring his seventh goal at 11:46 of the second. . . . The Rockets erased that 2-0 deficit with a pair of second-period PP goals, F Rourke Chartier scoring his ninth goal at 13:29 and F Dillon Dube getting his second at 15:51. . . . Nic Petan ran his point streak to 13 games with his eighth goal, on a Serge/Denis Savard-ian spin-o-rama at 19:12 of the second. . . . Portland G Adin Hill stopped 38 shots, nine more than Kelowna’s Jackson Whistle. . . . Kelowna was 2-for-4 on the PP; Portland was 1-for-4. . . . The referees were Sean Raphael and Reagan Vetter. . . . F Nick Merkley had two assists for Kelowna. . . . In the third period, Larry Fisher of the Kelowna Daily Courier was speculating on Twitter that Rockets F Leon Draisaitl may be playing hurt. At one point, Fisher tweeted that “Draisaitl didn't look right on that shift. Rockets trainer Scott Hoyer went and talked to him on bench after he came off.” . . . Draisaitl had one assist on Friday and was pointless last night. In five games in the second round, he put up 11 points. . . . Kelowna inserted D/F Riley Stadel into the lineup, replacing F Gage Quinney, who apparently suffered an undisclosed injury on Friday. . . . Kelowna F Tomas Soustal struggled to get to the bench after going hard into the end boards in the third period. . . . The last nine times Portland has opened a series with a loss, it has come back to win Game 2. . . . Portland freelancer Scott Sepich reports that Portland now has played 19 straight series without falling behind 2-0. . . . Joe Sakic, the Colorado Avalanche’s executive vice-president and general manager, was in the house. He and Rockets’ head coach Dan Lambert were teammates for two seasons (1985-87) with the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Attendance was 5,681, down 190 from Friday.
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For whatever reason, there was recent speculation that Mike Johnston, the former GM and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks, was on the hot seat as his first season as head coach of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins wound down. Well, Pittsburgh was eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs by the New York Rangers on Friday night, and the Penguins quickly gave Johnston a vote of confidence. . . . Ron Cook of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has more right here.
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The U.S. beat Canada 7-2 in one semifinal game at the IIHF U-18 World championship in Zug, Switzerland, on Saturday. . . . Canada, which finished third a year ago, will play Switzerland for bronze today, while the U.S. will meet Finland in the championship game. . . . F Auston Matthews, whose WHL rights belong to the Everett Silvertips, had two goals for the U.S. Boston University F Jack Eichel, who is expected to be the second overall selection in the NHL’s 2015 draft in June, had 10 points, including five goals, in seven games at this tournament last season. Matthews has 14 points, eight of them goals, in six games this time around.
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The Telus Cup, for Canada’s midget AAA championship, will be decided today when the Grenadiers de Châteauguay meet the Toronto Young Nationals in the final in Riviere-du-Loup, Que. . . . Interestingly, the Grenadiers’ head coach is Steve Hartley, the son of Calgary Flames head coach Bob Hartley, who is busy with the Stanley Cup playoffs these days. Steve is in his first season with the Grendadiers. He was an assistant coach with the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads when they won the 2013 Memorial Cup. . . . F Owen Sillinger of the Regina Pat Canadians, who lost out in a semifinal, was the tournament’s leading scorer, top forward and MVP. He is the son of former NHLer/WHLer Mike Sillinger.
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Almost two years have gone by since Jordan Chartier of Saskatoon, who had yet to see his 24th birthday, jumped out of a speeding vehicle and died. Chartier’s family, along with friends, including Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock, are helping a mental-health program called the Neural Health Project that has been launched in Saskatoon. . . . Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has more right here.
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During his NHL career, Mike Peluso was an enforcer. As such, he suffered numerous concussions. . . . “At no time in my NHL career did anyone — a doctor, trainer, coach or league representative — ever tell me that I could be at risk for seizures or other long-term neurological diseases and disorders such as dementia or Alzheimer’s,” he writes in Saturday’s Globe and Mail. “I loved playing hockey, but wish someone had sat us all down to have an honest conversation about how our brains would feel years into the future.” . . . Peluso’s first-person piece is right here.
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Congrats @OBjorkstrand on player of the year! And a little #tbt of me getting 2 minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct😂 pic.twitter.com/WXntXN0BCE
— Brendan Leipsic (@28LEIP) April 23, 2015

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Papirny proving himself . . . Kompon talks 'Hawks-Rockets . . . A taco cannon? Seriously?

F Michal Řepík (Vancouver, 2005-08) signed a two-year contract with Liberec (Czech Republic, Extraliga). This season, with Pelicans Lahti (Finland, Liiga), he had nine goals and 22 assists in 49 games. He also played four games with Zug (Switzerland, NL A), picking up two goals and an assist.
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WEDNESDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.

Steve Montador was, as Daniel Carcillo puts it, his “best friend in hockey.” On Feb. 15, Montador, 35, was found dead in his home. He had battled addictions and post-concussion syndrome, the latter having forced a premature end to his hockey career. . . . On Wednesday, a piece written by Carcillo, who plays for the Chicago Blackhawks, was posted at The Players’ Tribune. . . . This is powerful stuff, especially the video at the end, and it's all right here.
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In the same vein, here is the link to a story that appeared on CKPG-TV in Prince George on Tuesday. It features Cooper Holick, a young man who, in a bid to help other young people, has opened up his mental health issues. He did it with the full support of his mother, Janet, and father, Mark, who is the head coach of the WHL’s Prince George Cougars.
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G Jordan Papirny of the Brandon Wheat Kings is eager to get the Eastern Conference final started. That series opens Friday night with the Calgary Hitmen in Brandon. Papirny goes into the final on quite a roll, too. As Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun reports: “Papirny hasn’t given up a goal after the second intermission in any of the Wheat Kings’ last six games and he has a remarkable .964 save percentage in third periods and overtime sessions in this year’s post-season.” . . . That story is right here.
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The Calgary Hitmen have played 12 playoff games this spring, and six of them have gone to overtime. Calgary won four of those games, so really doesn’t mind working overtime. Laurence Heinen covers that angle in this story for the Calgary Herald.
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Jamie Kompon is in his first season as the GM and head coach of the Portland Winterhawks. Really, they haven’t missed a beat as they are into the Western Conference final for the fifth straight season. They’ll open Friday against the host Kelowna Rockets. . . . In advance of the series, Kompon offered up some thoughts for Steve Brandon of the Portland Tribune.
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In Kelowna, the Rockets remember what happened a year ago when they met up with the Portland Winterhawks in the Western Conference final. Yes, Portland won. In five games. These are different teams, of course, especially on their back ends, and the Rockets are hoping that gives them an edge. Warren Henderson of Kelowna’s Capital News has that story right here.
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The Everett Silvertips finished atop the U.S. Division, but lost a second-round series in five games to the Portland Winterhawks, who had finished three points behind them. So how do the Silvertips look at their season? “I thought it was a great season,” head coach Kevin Constantine told Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald. . . . That story is right here.
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The WHL office has looked after a couple of items left over from the second round of the playoffs. . . . F Jared Dmytriw of the Victoria Royals was given a one-game suspension after he incurred a boarding major and game misconduct in Kelowna on Friday. He’ll sit out the first game of the 2015-16 season. . . . D Connor Hobbs of the Regina Pats drew a one-game suspension for a kneeing major and game misconduct he took on April 15 against visiting Brandon. Hobbs served the penalty when he missed Game 5 of that series on Friday.
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So . . . which WHL building will be the first to be home to a taco cannon? Seriously! There will be one at University of Nebraska Omaha games next season. . . . There’s more right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:

John Paddock isn’t going anywhere. Paddock, the Pats’ senior vice-president of hockey operations and head coach, has told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post that he has no plans to leave. “I hope this is my last job in hockey, but I hope it's not done anytime soon," Paddock said. "I didn't come here to use this to springboard anywhere. It would be hard to envision going anywhere else right now.” . . . Harder’s story is right here.
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This Winnipeg church is blessed with a humourous sign maker. #NHLJets #NHLDucks #GoJetsGo #PaintItOrange pic.twitter.com/wqAweDQTsU
— Judy Owen (@SportyCottager) April 22, 2015

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A good book . . . A baseball rant, and one in hockey . . . Coach wins title, gets sacked

BOOK REVIEW:

In recent weeks, my reading habits became dictated by author Ken Follett — a couple of his epics and a few shorter ones. I also discovered C.J. Box, who writes fiction about the life and times of game warden Joe Pickett and his Wyoming-based family.
In between, I found time to read a book that I had been saving since Christmas, the same way you

save the meat around the pork chop’s bone for the end of the meal.
That book is Hockey Confidential, which was written by Bob McKenzie, pro hockey’s original insider. It is subtitled Inside Stories from People Inside the Game, which is exactly what it is.
As the Internet age and advertising-dictated deadlines came to have an impact on the daily newspaper business and the way we wrote game stories, I would tell reporters who worked with me to write about people.
And that’s exactly what McKenzie has done in Hockey Confidential, a terrific, fun read.
This isn’t a book full of opinion or suggestions to improve the game of hockey or anything else of that ilk. Rather, it’s a book about people.
There are 11 chapters and each is a story onto itself.
In the chapter titled Recalculating, you may think that you are going to read about Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban and his hockey-playing brothers, Malcolm and Jordan. Instead, it’s almost completely about their remarkable father, Karl.
A couple of chapters later, you are into The Road to Redemption, and it’s another remarkable story. As a player, Sheldon Keefe once refused to shake hands with OHL commissioner David Branch. Today, Keefe is the head coach of the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. McKenzie tells Keefe’s story, warts and all.
Hockey Confidential also is ample evidence that if taken out of their natural environment hockey people are capable of loosening up and telling tales. McKenzie seems to have chatted with many of his subjects in coffee shops and the results are impressive.
Give this a read. You won’t be disappointed.
In fact, here’s hoping that McKenzie comes up with one of these in time for every Christmas.
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MONDAY’S GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.

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With no games scheduled until Friday, things were quiet on the WHL front on Monday.
In Brandon, two of the Wheat Kings’ four injured players were back on the ice, although one didn’t take part in the complete practice. Rob Henderson of the Brandon Sun reports: “D Colton Waltz and RW Rihards Bukarts, who were both injured in Game 2 of the Wheat Kings’ second-round victory over the Regina Pats, returned to practice on Monday, although Waltz only took part in the first half of the session. RW Jayce Hawryluk and RW Reid Duke, who were also hurt in the series, did not skate with their teammates.”
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D Ben Betker of the Everett Silvertips will finish his season with the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons. He was a sixth-round selection by the parent Edmonton Oilers in the NHL’s 2013 NHL draft. . . . Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald had that tidbit and more — Will F Nikita Scherbak be back with Everett? What about F Ivan Nikolishin? — in a notebook that is right here. . . . Patterson also touches on what will be one of the hottest stories around the WHL this summer — what will Auston Matthews do?
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Baseball, it seems, provides us with a good rant every once in a while. You’ve seen the one with then-Kansas City Royals manager Hal McRae, I’m sure, and you may have heard or seen then-Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda go off after he was asked about a three-run homer performance by Dave Kingman. If you haven’t seen either, I have a feeling they’re available on YouTube.
Yesterday, it was Bryan Price’s turn. Price is the manager of the Cincinnati Reds, and it seems that he has forgotten, if he ever was aware, that it isn’t the job of the media to sell tickets.
C. Trent Rosencrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer has the story, including an excerpt from the rant, right here. He reports that the five-minute 34-second rant includes “77 uses of the ‘F’ word or a variant and 11 uses of a vulgar term for feces (two bovine, one equine).”
Don’t say you weren’t warned.
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Later in the evening came word that Jim Rutherford, the general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins, had directed an expletive or three at Rob Rossi, a columnist with Trib Total Media. . . . Rossi, who has been critical of Rutherford’s moves for a lot of this season, responded with a column that is right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Over in Great Britain, the Sheffield Steelers won the Elite League championship under head coach Gerad Adams (Regina, Kelowna, 1995-99). So how did they reward him? They sacked him. . . . The Steelers said in a statement: “The decision comes after an end of season review by club ownership and management on the direction the Steelers need to take moving forward.” . . . Adams told Bob Westerdale of the Sheffield Star that he is “frustrated and disappointed.” Adams added: “I delivered a title that the organization had been after some time, so I leave with my head held high. I am very proud of what I achieved and will conduct myself now on a professional basis.” . . . Westerdale’s story is right here.
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I asked @Kelowna_Rockets Lucas Johansen who his brother @RyanJohansen19 would be cheering for. Rolling his eyes he said, "The other team".
— Regan Bartel (@Reganrant) April 20, 2015

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