Showing posts with label Steve Ewen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Steve Ewen. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Giants' radio voice off to NHL? ... Poole moves to Edge School ... Ex-WHLer head coach in RMJHL


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 F Rhett Rachinski (Edmonton, 2007-12) has signed a one-year contract with the Guildford Flames (England, UK Elite). Last season, with the U of Alberta (Canada West), he had three goals and nine assists in 28 games. . . .
KHL News: The exhibition season began Tuesday night. The regular season starts Aug. 21. There won’t be any games from Jan 29 to Feb. 25 as the KHL takes its Olympics break. The last regular-season game is March 1. Each team plays 56 games.
F Mark Derlago (Brandon, 2003-07) has signed a one-year contract with the Nottingham Panthers (England, UK Elite). Last season, with the Nikko Icebucks (Japan, Asia HL), he had 26 goals and 32 assists in 48 games. He led the Icebucks in goals, assists and points, and was seven in the league’s scoring race. . . . Nottingham opens its exhibition schedule on Aug. 12.
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 Steve Ewen of Postmedia reported Tuesday night that Brendan Batchelor has left the Vancouver Giants after four seasons as their radio voice. . . . According to Ewen, “Various sources suggest” that Batchelor will be the next radio play-by-play man for the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. . . . TSN 1040 has had the Canucks’ radio rights, but Sportsnet 650 now has the contract and is putting together its on-air team. . . . “According to various sources,” Ewen reports, Batchelor “resigned from the WHL club on Monday and is refusing to say where he’s going, other than to admit he starts his new gig in August.” . . . Ewen’s story is right here.
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Shawn Martin has signed on with the AJHL’s Whitecourt Wolverines, as assistant general manager and associate coach. Martin, who is from Wainwright, Alta., was in his fourth season as GM/head coach of the SJHL’s La Ronge Ice Wolves when he was fired on Oct. 24. . . . Martin, 40, has been in the AJHL before, as an assistant coach with the Grande Prairie Storm, St. Albert Steel and Sherwood Park Crusaders. . . . In Whitecourt, Martin will work alongside veteran junior A GM/head coach Gord Thibodeau.
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James Poole is the new head coach of the midget prep team at Edge school in Calgary. Poole had been the general manager and head coach of the AJHL’s Calgary Canucks before leaving the organization over the weekend. . . . The Canucks were 37-19-4 under Poole last season, his only one with the organization. He spent five seasons with the AJHL’s Okotoks Oilers before joining the Canucks.
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Pat Bingham has signed on as the head coach of the Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League’s Colorado Rampage. . . . Bingham has been with the Rampage organization for five years, serving as president, hockey director and the head coach of the 16-year-old AAA team. . . . A native of Vancouver, Bingham played in the WHL with the Kamloops Blazes and New Westminster Bruins (1985-89). . . . He has coached in the defunct Central and United leagues, as well as the AHL and ECHL.
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If you would like to contact Taking Note with information, have a question or just feel like commenting on something, feel free to send an email to greggdrinnan@gmail.com. I’m also on Twitter (@gdrinnan).
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:15 PM
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Sunday, March 26, 2017

Hurricanes, Cougars tie up series . . . Things are Rocky in Windsor . . . Block story amazing




Steve Ewen of Postmedia continues to keep tabs on the Vancouver Giants while he kicks cancer’s butt for a second time. In his most recent piece, Ewen looks at five things the Giants need to address before another season gets here. That piece is right here.
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Rocky Thompson, the head coach of the Windsor Spitfires, can expect a call from the OHL office early this week. Someone from the league office will be calling to lighten Thompson’s wallet.
Why?
Because Thompson officially got the playoffs underway on Sunday by ripping into the referees following a 5-2 loss to the defending Memorial Cup-champion Knights in London. The head officials were Mike Cairns, a veteran of eight OHL seasons, and Scott Oakman, an 18-year man.
Among the Thompson quotes in the Windsor Star:
“These are two veteran referees who are well respected around the league and it was just ridiculous. You’re not only playing a very tough and good opponent, you’re playing the referees as well.”
“It’s unreal to think of what happened on the ice. It’s obvious they didn’t want us to win this game and we played well enough after the first period to deserve it.”
“This is the worst I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen it this bad since I’ve been here.”
I’m thinking Thompson should get out front of this one and just send OHL commissioner David Branch a cheque for a grand to cover this one.
BTW, the series is 1-1 and the teams head to Windsor for games on Tuesday and Thursday.
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Cam Hutchinson, in the Saskatoon Express: “Would homers in the Toronto media please quit comparing Matthews and Marner to Toews and Kane. You’re embarrassing yourselves by thinking Matthews will ever bring the intangibles to the rink that Toews does.”
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Patrick O’Sullivan, a former NHLer, made the statement that Connor “McDavid is the most explosive and dynamic skater in the history of hockey. That’s not a stretch at this point, I think it’s a fact.” . . . To which Hutchinson added: “Of course everyone at TSN, especially knucklehead Jeff O’Neill, knows the greatest skater of all-time is Auston Matthews.”
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The Prince George-based Cariboo Cougars won the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League championship on Sunday, riding G Marcus Allen to a 4-0 victory over the visiting Greater Vancouver Canadians. Allen stopped 22 shots in posting his second straight shutout. It was a best-of-three final, with the Canadians winning the opener Friday, 3-2 in 2OT, and the Cougars winning 2-0 on Saturday. . . . The Cougars will be the host team for the Telus Cup, which is scheduled for April 24-30. . . . In Saskatchewan, the Regina Pat Canadians, who enjoyed a 36-6-2 regular season, won the midget AAA title with a 7-0 playoff run.
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Kieran Block played four seasons with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers. At 22, he was soon to join the U of Alberta Golden Bears, when he was involved in a cliff-diving incident in which he shattered both legs. He would spend almost a year in a wheelchair and later played for Canada’s national sledge hockey team. Block is 31 years of age now and, after numerous surgical procedures, he played senior AAA hockey this season. What an amazing story this is and Jason Hills of the Edmotnton Journal has it all right here.
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After the first weekend of WHL playoffs, a lot of people are talking about two goaltenders.
Carl Stankowski, a 16-year-old from Calgary, has stepped in for the Seattle Thunderbirds, taking over the starting role, at least on a short-term basis, for the injured Rylan Toth and has put up two victories over the Tri-City Americans.
“I can’t even imagine,” Seattle F Scott Eansor told Andy Eide of 710 ESPN Seattle after Stankowski stopped 28 shots in a 5-2 victory in Game 2 on Saturday.“My first year in playoffs I was a little starstruck. I can’t even imagine him, being alone in the net. He’s been mentally strong and you can tell right now that he’s continuing to do that on the ice, I’m really proud of him.”
Stankowski was a second-round pick by Seattle in the WHL’s 2014 bantam draft. He got into seven regular-season games, going 3-0-1, 2.18, .910.
Meanwhile, Michael Herringer, a 20-year-old from Comox, B.C., followed a 4-0 shutout over the Kamloops Blazers on Friday with a 3-2 victory on Saturday. While Herringer faced only 15 shots in Game 1, he was a whole lot busier in Game 2 when he stopped 33 shots.
His night’s work included what may have been a game-saver off the stick of Kamloops F Collin Shirley.

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SUNDAY GAMES:


At Lethbridge, F Egor Babenko scored three times to lead the Hurricanes to a 5-2 victory over the Red
EGOR BABENKO
Deer Rebels. . . . Red Deer had posted a 4-2 victory in Lethbridge on Saturday. . . . Games 3 and 4 are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday in Red Deer. . . . Babenko, from Tyumen, Russia, is in his third season with Lethbridge. Last season, he had 69 points, including 29 goals, in 67 games. This season, he scored 24 goals and added 31 assists in 66 games. . . . He was scoreless in five games in last season’s playoffs, so these were his first post-season goals. . . . The Hurricanes took control by scoring the game’s first five goals. . . . F Ryan Bowen got things started at 6:56 of the first period. . . . Babenko made it 2-0 at 1:17 of the second period. . . . It moved to 3-0 as F Tanner Nagel scored, shorthanded, at 11:57. . . . Babenko added two more goals, at 17:17 of the second and 2:18 of the third. . . . Red Deer got two third-period PP goals, from F Michael Spacek, at 5:59, and F Evan Polei, at 11:46. . . . Lethbridge got two assists from each of Alec Baer and Jordy Bellerive. . . . F Lane Zablocki drew two assists for Red Deer, and Spacek had one. . . . The Hurricanes got 24 saves from G Stuart Skinner. . . . Red Deer starter Riley Lamb was beaten five times on 25 shots in 42:18. Lasse Petersen finished up, stopping the four shots he faced in 17:42. . . . Red Deer was 2-5 on the PP; Lethbridge was 0-6. . . . The Hurricanes made one lineup change, inserting D Ty Prefontaine for D Kyle Yewchuk. . . . Announced attendance: 3,380.
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At Prince George, the Cougars scored the game’s first five goals en route to a 5-1 victory over the
TY EDMONDS
Portland Winterhawks. . . . Portland had won Game 1, 4-2, in Prince George on Friday. . . . The series will resume in Portland with games on Wednesday and Thursday. . . . This series has a 2-2-1-1-1 format, so they’ll be back in Prince George for Game 5 on Saturday. . . . The Cougars had F Brad Morrison back in their lineup and he scored the game’s first goal, at 15:57 of the first period. Morrison, who has had three straight 20-goal seasons, hadn’t played since Feb. 24 — he missed 10 games — when he suffered an ankle injury during a fight. . . . F Aaron Boyd upped the lead to 3-0 with goals at 8:32 and 18:35 of the second period. . . . D Shane Collins made it 4-0 just 22 seconds into the third period and F Radovan Bondra added a PP goal 35 seconds later. . . . Portland got a PP goal from F Cody Glass at 12:53 of the third. . . . D Brendan Guhle had two assists for the Cougars. . . . The Cougars got a big game from G Ty Edmonds, who finished with 40 saves. This is his third playoff season; he had one victory in 10 decisions going into this game. . . . Cole Kehler started for Portland, and stopped 19 of 24 shots in 40:57. Shane Farkas came on in relief and stopped all 12 shots he faced in 19:03. . . . Each team was 1-4 on the PP. . . . Announced attendance: 4,141.
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MONDAY GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.
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TUESDAY GAMES (all times local):

Moose Jaw at Swift Current, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)
Medicine Hat vs. Brandon, at Dauphin, Man., 7:30 p.m. (Medicine Hat leads, 2-0)
Regina at Calgary, 7 p.m. (Regina leads, 2-0)
Kelowna at Kamloops, 7 p.m. (Kelowna leads, 2-0)
Everett at Victoria, 7:05 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:46 PM
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Monday, March 20, 2017

No coaching changes appear imminent . . . Blades staff back for sure . . . Lawsuit moves to Toronto




F Jakub Rumpel (Medicine Hat, 2006-07) has signed a one-year extension with Preussen Berlin (Germany, Oberliga). This season, he had eight goals and 15 assists in 12 games. He started the season on a tryout with Schönheide (Germany, Oberliga). He had a goal and two assists in four games, then was released on Nov. 23. He signed with Preussen on Jan. 20. . . .
F Jan Eberle (Seattle, 2006-08) has signed a one-year extension with Olomouc (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He had seven goals and 10 assists in 51 games this season.
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Here’s a look at the 22 WHL head coaches who have more than 300 regular-season victories to their credit (following 2016-17):
1. Ken Hodge (Edmonton, Portland), 742
2. Don Hay (Kamloops, Tri-City, Vancouver) 720
3. Don Nachbaur (Seattle, Tri-City, Spokane) 692
4. Lorne Molleken (Moose Jaw, Saskatoon, Regina) 626
5. Ernie McLean (Estevan, New Westminster) 548
6. Mike Williamson (Portland, Calgary, Tri-City) 534
7. Pat Ginnell (Flin Flon, Victoria, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, New Westminster) 518
8. Peter Anholt (Prince Albert, Seattle, Red Deer, Kelowna, Lethbridge) 466
    Jack Shupe (Medicine Hat, Victoria) 466
10. Dean Clark (Calgary, Brandon, Kamloops, Prince George) 465
11. Kelly McCrimmon (Brandon) 456
12. Bob Lowes (Seattle, Brandon, Regina) 453
13. Brent Sutter (Red Deer) 441
14. Marc Habscheid (Kamloops, Kelowna, Chilliwack, Victoria, Prince Albert) 424
15. Doug Sauter (Calgary, Medicine Hat, Regina, Brandon) 417
16. Marcel Comeau (Calgary, Saskatoon, Tacoma, Kelowna) 411
17. Bryan Maxwell (Medicine Hat, Spokane, Lethbridge) 397
18. Graham James (Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Calgary) 349
19. Bob Loucks (Lethbridge, Tri-City, Medicine Hat) 340
20. Willie Desjardins (Saskatoon, Medicine Hat) 333
21. Kevin Constantine (Everett) 326
22. Shaun Clouston, Medicine Hat 320
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Colin Priestner, the general manager of the Saskatoon Blades, says the team’s coaching staff will be back for another go-round next season.
When Taking Note queried Priestner on that subject, he quickly responded: “For sure. They did an
unbelievable job.”
Dean Brockman was in his first season as head coach, after spending two seasons working with Bob Woods, the previous head coach, who now is an assistant with the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. Bryce Thoma and Ryan Keller completed their first seasons as Saskatoon’s assistant coaches. Of course, Jerome Engele, the other assistant coach, is a Blades lifer.
The Blades have yet to appear in the postseason during the Priestner era. Mike Priestner, who is based in Edmonton, purchased the team prior to the 2013-14 season. The Blades had been the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup tournament.
This season, they dealt with a number of long-term injuries, but were in the playoff chase right to the final weekend.
Meanwhile, Steve Ewen of Postmedia points out that “Jason McKee is the longest-serving (head) coach that the Vancouver Giants have had among the past four bench bosses. He’s lasted an entire season.”
The Giants missed the playoffs in McKee’s first season behind their bench, but they went all-in for the future at the trade deadline and also paid the price when F Tyler Benson and D Darian Skeoch, two key performers, had their seasons cut short by injuries.
Vancouver is on the outside looking in for a third straight season, and the fourth time in five springs, 
Still, as Ewen writes, “By all accounts, owner Ron Toigo is bringing back McKee, 37, and general manager Glen Hanlon, 60, for a second season. There’s a calm. They need to capitalize on that.”
Ewen’s piece is right here.
McKee has two seasons left on his contract.
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If you have some information you would like to share or just a general comment, feel free to email me at greggdrinnan@gmail.com.
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The Spokane Chiefs joined the Vancouver Giants as the other Western Conference team not to make the playoffs. Don Nachbaur, the Chiefs’ head coach and the third-winningest coach in WHL regular-season history, has one season left on his contract.
In the Eastern Conference, the other non-playoff teams are the Edmonton Oil Kings, Kootenay Ice and Prince Albert Raiders.
Steve Hamilton, the Oil Kings’ head coach, signed what was announced as a “multi-year” deal in July 2014, and you would think he isn’t going anywhere. He spent four seasons as an assistant under Derek Laxdal and moved up when Laxdal left for a job with the AHL’s Texas Stars. Hamilton has Oil Kings bloodlines — his father, Al, is a former team captain who also captained the Oilers. The Oil Kings committed to a rebuild when they dealt D Aaron Irving and F Lane Bauer, two key 20-year-olds, at the deadline.
The future of Luke Pierce, who has completed two seasons as head coach of the Kootenay Ice, may hinge on what appears to be the impending sale of the franchise. Pierce signed a three-year contract, so has a year left on his deal. The Ice went young two seasons ago and has paid a steep price, going 26-99-19 during Pierce’s stint in Cranbrook.
In Prince Albert, veteran WHL coach Marc Habscheid has a contract that runs through 2018-19. He took over from the fired Cory Clouston on Nov. 1, 2014.
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Rick Westhead, a senior reporter with TSN, has filed his latest piece on the proposed class-action lawsuits that more than 400 present and former major junior players have filed. The lawyers were in a Calgary courtroom last month and, while there hasn’t been a decision rendered from there just yet, the scene now has shifted to Toronto.
“The Ontario Hockey League says its teams may have to pare back their drug education, anti-doping, concussion management, and medical and dental programs if the league loses a minimum-wage lawsuit, according to a new court filing,” Westhead writes.
“The OHL made the claims days before it appears in Ontario Superior Court on Tuesday to begin a hearing into whether a lawsuit filed against the league by former players should be certified as a class action.”
According to a rebuttal filed by the plaintiffs: “. . . The vast majority of the benefits which the defendants claim are threatened are not true player benefits. It would be impossible for the league to operate without coaches, away games, billeting, equipment, etc. Accordingly, the likelihood of these ‘benefits’ being cut is virtually nil.”
Westhead’s latest story is right here.
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MONDAY-THURSDAY GAMES:

No Games Scheduled.
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FRIDAY GAMES (all times local):

(Game 1, best-of-seven series)
Swift Current at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at Regina, 7 p.m.
Kamloops at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Victoria at Everett, 7:35 p.m.
Tri-City vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:35 p.m.
Portland at Prince George, 7 p.m.
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SATURDAY GAMES (all times local):

(Game 2, best-of-seven series)
Red Deer at Lethbridge, 7 p.m.
Swift Current at Moose Jaw, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Medicine Hat, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at Regina, 7 p.m.
Kamloops at Kelowna, 7:05 p.m.
Victoria at Everett, 7:05 p.m.
Tri-City vs. Seattle, at Kent, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Portland at Prince George, 7 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.
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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:21 PM
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Sunday, March 12, 2017

Nanaimo votes NO! . . . Tigers own Central pennant . . . Cougars set a record . . . Steenbergen gets 50



While the Kootenay Ice was losing 6-1 to the Rebels in Red Deer on Saturday night, the franchise’s immediate future was being decided in Nanaimo.
Voters there went to the polls in a referendum through which the City asked for the OK to borrow $80 million that would go towards the construction of an events centre that would include a 5,700-seat arena.
The WHL had entered into a memorandum of understanding under which Nanaimo was to get a franchise in time for next season and a 20-year lease agreement in a new facility if Saturday’s vote was YES.
Scratch that idea.
Unofficial results show that 23,885 people voted, with 19,179, or 80.3 per cent, of those saying NO, and 4,706 saying YES.
Karl Yu of the Nanaimo News Bulletin posted a brief interview with Bill McKay, Nanaimo’s mayor, on Instagram.
“I have to say that I expected to see that based on the conversations I’ve been having with members of the community,” McKay told Yu. “I didn’t believe it was going to be this high. They have made their position very clear on this particular project at this time.”
McKay added that the city is working on five other major projects, but that this one “happened to be the one at the forefront.”  
The News Bulletin reported in a story that is right here that there were “slightly more” than 66,000 eligible voters, so turnout was about 37 per cent.
The result is expected to made official at a city council meeting on Monday.
So . . . what’s next for the WHL and the Ice?
Well, keep in mind that this wasn’t a vote against the WHL; it was a vote against borrowing $80 million
that was to go to a project that would include an arena. The WHL, then, could choose to leave the Ice where it is, be patient, see how things develop in Nanaimo, and try again.
Of course, it’s hard to see the Ice as a profitable enterprise if the status quo is maintained. Fans in Cranbrook and area know that the WHL would prefer to be somewhere else and that the present ownership, the Chynoweth family, wants out and has been trying to get out for a while now.
Taking Note was told last week that a local group has had an offer on the table for about a month, but that it was told everything was on hold pending the Nanaimo referendum.
Well, we know how that turned out, something that just might give the Cranbrook group some leverage.
If the Ice isn’t in Nanaimo and it isn’t in Cranbrook, where then?
You can forget Winnipeg, which is home to the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets and the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. You can forget Wenatchee, Wash., where the ownership of the Wild is said to be thrilled with the way things have turned out in the BCHL. You can forget Abbotsford, B.C., which has an arena without a hockey team but is in the Vancouver Giants’ footprint. You can forget Penticton, B.C., which is in the Kelowna Rockets’ footprint.
Where then?
Well, everything seems to point to Cranbrook, a city that not that long ago built an arena to house a WHL team. Sound familiar?
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Steve Ewen, who covers the Vancouver Giants for Postmedia, is working to kick cancer’s butt for a second time. As a result, he has his blog — Crush the Tumour with Humour — up and running. In this latest entry, he writes about everything that sucks, although he does admit “I married well.” . . . Give him a read right here.
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The ECHL’s Missouri Mavericks aren’t going anywhere; they’re just changing their name. Starting on June 1, they will be the Kansas City Mavericks. The change was name official during the Mavericks’ awards celebrations on Saturday. The Mavericks, who are completing their eighth season, play out of Independence, a city that is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area.
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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.
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If the WHL playoffs began today . . . 
Eastern Conference
Regina vs. Calgary
Medicine Hat vs. Brandon
Moose Jaw vs. Swift Current
Lethbridge vs. Red Deer
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Western Conference
Seattle vs. Portland
Prince George vs. Victoria
Kelowna vs. Kamloops
Everett vs. Tri-City
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:


At Brandon, the Wheat Kings erased a 2-0 first-period deficit with five straight goals en route to a 5-3 victory over the Prince Albert Raiders. . . . One night earlier, the Raiders had beaten the visiting Wheat
KALE CLAGUE
Kings, 3-1. . . . Last night, the visitors got early goals from F Parker Kelly (19), at 2:39, and F Cole Fonstad (11), on a PP, at 10:03 of the first period. . . . Brandon tied it on PP goals from F Stelio Mattheos, his 26th, at 13:10 of the first and F Reid Duke, his 36th, at 9:32 of the second period. . . . F Connor Gutenberg’s 12th goal gave the Wheat Kings the lead at 10:06 and F nolan Patrick made it 4-2 at 14:33. . . . D James Shearer (8) added insurance at 3:41 of the third period. . . . F Kolten Olynek got the Raiders’ last goal, at 14:01. . . . Brandon got two assists from D Kale Clague and one each from Patrick, Mattheos and Duke. . . . G Logan Thompson stopped 26 shots for the victory. . . . The Raiders got 37 saves from G Ian Scott. . . . Brandon was 2-8 on the PP; Prince Albert was 1-7. . . . F Nikita Krivokrasov, who signed earlier in the week, made his WHL debut with the Raiders. He is the son of former NHL F Sergei Krivokrasov. . . . The defending-champion Wheat Kings (30-28-10) clinched a playoff spot. They are in possession of the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot and seem likely to finish there. . . . Prince Albert is 19-43-7. . . . Announced attendance: 4,339. . . . Prior to the game, the Wheat Kings added six more players to their 50th anniversary Dream Team. Ron Chipperfield (1970-74), Brayden Schenn (2007-10) and Laurie Boschman (1976-79) were selected to the second forward line, with Ryan Pulock (2010-14) and Wade Redden (1993-96) named as the second defence pairing. Glen Hanlon (1974-77) was the first of two goaltenders to be named.
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At Edmonton, G Michael Bullion stopped 28 shots to lead the Medicine Hat Tigers to a 4-0 victory over
MICHAEL BULLION
the Oil Kings. . . . The Tigers will finish atop the Central Division for the first time since the spring of 2007. . . . Medicine Hat had beaten the visiting Oil Kings, 9-3, on Friday. . . . Bullion has posted the first three shutouts of his career in his last 11 appearances. He is 15-5-0, 2.81, .904 with the Tigers, who acquired him from Portland in January. . . . The Tigers scored once shorthanded and three times on the PP. . . . F Max Gerlach got it started with his 32nd goal, on a PP, at 18:57 of the first period. . . . F James Hamblin (18) added a shorthanded goal at 1:12 of the second period, with F John Dahlstrom (29) scoring on the PP at 9:05. . . . The game’s final goal came from Hamblin, on a PP, at 3:34. . . . Dahlstrom also had an assist. . . . The Oil Kings got 45 saves from G Patrick Dea. . . . Medicine Hat was 3-5 on the PP; Edmonton was 0-5. . . . The Oil Kings were without D Brayden Gorda, who drew a one-game suspension for a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct in Friday’s game. Tigers F Ryan Chyzowski, the victim on that hit, was in the lineup last night. . . . F Zach Fisher was among the Tigers’ scratches. . . . Medicine Hat (49-19-1) has won three in a row. It is second in the overall standings, five points behind Regina. . . . The Oil Kings (20-42-6) have lost 11 in a row (0-9-2). . . . Corey Graham, the voice of the Oil Kings on TSN 1260, called his 500th WHL game. . . . Announced attendance: 15,235.
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At Kamloops, F Rudolfs Balcers scored with 5.1 seconds left in the third period to give the Blazers a 4-3
DYLAN FERGUSON
victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . Balcers’ 40th goal of the season finished a game in which Kamloops overcame a 3-0 deficit to win for the third time in four nights at home. . . . Balcers scored the game’s last two goals. . . . The Blazers trailed 3-1 going into the third period. . . . F Quinn Benjafield (16) got the home team to within a goal at 1:00 and Balcers tied it 27 seconds later. . . . F Deven Sideroff, back after serving a one-game WHL suspension, had the Blazers’ other goal, his 36th, at 13:58 of the second period. . . . F Calvin Spencer (15) had given Vancouver a 1-0 lead with 2.3 seconds left in the first period. . . . F Jack Flaman made it 2-0 with No. 15 at 1:17 of the second period and F Bartek Bison (7) upped it to 3-0 at 3:29. . . . Kamloops got two assists from each of Sideroff, D Ondrej Vala and F Lane Bauer. . . . G Dylan Ferguson stopped 42 shots to earn the victory. . . . The Giants got 29 stops from G Ryan Kubic. . . . Kamloops was 0-2 on the PP; Vancouver was 0-4. . . . The Blazers (41-23-6) have won three straight. They have clinched at least third place in the B.C. Division. They are eight points ahead of Victoria, which has three games left, and three in arrears of Kelowna. . . . The Giants (19-43-6) have lost eight straight (0-7-1). . . . Announced attendance: 3,870.
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At Kelowna, F Dillon Dube scored his second goal of the game on a PP in OT to give the Rockets a 4-3 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . Dube’s 19th goal came 19 seconds into extra time. . . . F Reid
DILLON DUBE
Gardiner had given Kelowna a 1-0 lead, on a PP, at 5:08 of the first period. . . . Victoria F Regan Nagy (18) tied it at 7:53. . . . F Dante Hannoun gave the Royals a 2-1 lead, at 1:48 of the second period. . . . Dube, who also had two assists, tied it at 14:51. Dube had two goals and an assist in an 8-1 victory over the visiting Vancouver Giants on Friday. . . . F Rod Southam put the Rockets back out front with his 17th goal, on another PP, at 18:15. . . . Hannoun tied it with his 25th goal, on a PP, at 12:50 of the third period. . . . F Calvin Thurkauf had two assists for Kelowna, as did D Cal Foote. Gardiner added an assist to his goal as he ran his point streak to 15 games. . . . G Michael Herringer earned the victory with 24 saves, seven fewer than Victoria’s Dylan Myskiw. . . . Kelowna was 3-7 on the PP; Victoria was 1-6. . . . The Rockets (43-21-5) have won a season-high seven straight games. With three games remaining, they are two points behind B.C. Division-leading Prince George and three ahead of Kamloops. . . . The Royals (37-26-6) have lost four in a row (0-3-1), all in the last five nights on the road. They hold down the Western Conference’s first wild-card spot and can finish no higher. . . . Victoria was without head coach Dave Lowry for the second night in a row He and one player have been isolated from the rest of the team after showing symptoms of mumps. They are awaiting results of tests to determine if it is indeed mumps. . . . With Lowry gone, assistant coaches Dan Price and Doug Bodger ran the Victoria bench. One night earlier, Price and general manager Cam Hope were behind the bench for a 6-2 loss in Kamloops. . . . Announced attendance: 5,526.
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At Lethbridge, F Mark Kastelic celebrated his 18th birthday with a pair of goals to help the Calgary
MARK KASTELIC
Hitmen to a 5-2 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . One night earlier, the Hitmen beat the visiting Hurricanes, 4-3. . . . Calgary (27-31-10) jumped into the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot, one point ahead of Saskatoon. The Hitmen can stretch that to three points as they play host to Edmonton this afternoon. . . . Kastelic, a second-round selection in the 2014 WHL bantam draft, is from Phoenix. He had five goals and five assists in 59 games as a freshman last season. This season, he has 13 goals and 19 helpers in 63 games. . . . The teams came out of the first period tied, 2-2. . . . F Tyler Mrkonjic (6) gave Calgary a 1-0 lead at 8:57, with Lethbridge D Calen Addison (7) tying it at 13:52. . . . The Hitmen went back out front on F Jakob Stukel’s 23rd goal, at 15:03, and Lethbridge tied it when F Jordy Bellerive got his 26th, at 17:07. . . . The Hitmen won it with the last three goals. . . . F Beck Malenstyn broke the tie with No. 27, at 14:08 of the second period. . . . Kastelic then scored twice, getting his 12th at 14:42 of the third period and adding an empty-netter at 17:00. . . . Stukel also had an assist. . . . Calgary G Kyle Dumba stopped 32 shots, 10 more than Lethbridge’s Stuart Skinner. . . . Lethbridge was 0-1 on the PP; Calgary was 0-2. . . . The Hurricanes were without F Matt Alfaro and F Zak Zborosky for a third straight game. . . . Calgary had F Matt Dorsey in the lineup for the first time since Jan. 6. . . . Lethbridge (43-19-7) is second in the Central Division but can’t catch first-place Medicine Hat. . . . Jason Monnery, Calgary’s equipment manager, worked his 500th WHL game. . . . Announced attendance: 5,178, the Hurricanes’ largest crowd this season.
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At Moose Jaw, F Adam Brooks scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Regina Pats to a 4-3 victory over the Warriors. . . . The Pats had blanked the visiting Warriors, 5-0, on Friday. . . . On Saturday,
ADAM BROOKS
Regina got off to a 3-0 lead. The Pats got two first-period goals, from F Braydon Buziak (10), at 14:09, and Brooks, on a PP, at 16:36. . . . F Filip Ahl got it to 3-0 with his 25th goal at 1:48 of the second period. . . . The Warriors got second-period goals from F Brayden Burke (19), at 9:13, and F Thomas Foster (21), at 10:59, and it was a one-goal game. . . . Brooks stretched the lead to two with his 39th goal, at 11:45 of the third period. . . . F Brett Howden’s 35th goal, at 14:50, pulled the Warriors back to within one. . . . Brooks, the WHL’s defending scoring champ, set a single-season career best in goals. He had 38 last season when he won the scoring title with 120 points in 62 games. This season, he has 117 points in 62 games. . . . Pats F Sam Steel, who leads the WHL scoring race, was held pointless in his 200th regular-season game. He has 123 points. . . . D Connor Hobbs had two assists for Regina. He leads all WHL defencemen in goals (28) and points (80). . . . Burke added two assists to his goal, while Foster also had an assist. . . . Moose Jaw F Jayden Halbgewachs had one assist in his 200th game. . . . G Tyler Brown stopped 32 shots for Regina, while Moose Jaw’s Zach Sawchenko turned aside 18. . . . Regina was 1-2 on the PP; Moose Jaw was 0-4. . . . Moose Jaw thought it had tied the game late, but the potential goal was waved off for goaltender interference. . . . The Pats (48-12-8) have won four in a row. They lead the overall standings by five points over Medicine Hat. . . . The Warriors (41-19-8) have lost two straight. They are second in the East Division, six points ahead of Swift Current with each team having four games remaining. . . . Regina went 5-3-0 in the season series; Moose Jaw was 3-4-1. . . . Announced attendance: 4,729.
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At Portland, the Seattle Thunderbirds struck for a pair of shorthanded goals and two on the PP to beat the Winterhawks, 6-3. . . . Seattle went up 1-0 when F Matthew Wedman (5) scored at 2:38 of the second
TYLER CARPENDALE
period. . . . Portland tied it on F Skyler McKenzie’s 40th goal, at 3:25. . . . The Thunderbirds’ special teams then went to work in taking a 3-1 lead. F Nolan Volcan’s 14th goal, at 10:56, came while shorthanded, and F Ryan Gropp got No. 32, on a PP, four minutes later. . . . Portland D Shaun Dosanjh got his guys to within a goal with his second score this season, at 18:01. That was his fourth goal in 169 career games. . . . F Alexander True (23) got the second shorthanded goal, 48 seconds into the third period. . . . F Keegan Iverson (23) followed for Portland at 3:01. . . . Seattle put it away with the game’s last two goals. F Sami Moilanen got No. 21 on a penalty shot at 14:48, and D Ethan Bear scored his 28th goal, tops among WHL defencemen, on a PP, at 18:59. . . . That also ran Bear’s points streak to 15 games. . . . Seattle got two assists from F Donovan Neuls and F Keegan Kolesar, with Gropp and True each adding one. . . . D Caleb Jones had two helpers for Portland. McKenzie had one. . . . Seattle G Rylan Toth was scheduled to start, but also was marked as questionable before the game. He got through the first period, stopping all 11 shots he faced, but then left as a precaution because of issues with a lower-body issue. This close to the playoffs, no one is going to fool around with something like that. . . . Toth was replaced by Matt Berlin, who turned aside 17 shots over the last two periods. . . . Shane Farkas made 30 saves for Portland. . . . Seattle was 2-6 on the PP; Portland was 1-6. . . . Seattle F Mathew Barzal, who left after the warmup prior to Friday’s 3-2 victory over visiting Everett, was among the scratches. Seattle continues to be without D Jarret Tyszka, F Scott Eansor and D Reece Harsch. . . . F Tyler Carpendale, who signed earlier in the day, made his WHL debut with Seattle. A sixth-round pick in the 2015 bantam draft, he turned 17 on Jan. 26. From Powell River, B.C., he had eight goals and eight assists in 34 games with the junior B Westshore Wolves of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League. . . . Seattle (44-19-6) has won three in a row. It leads the Western Conference by one point over Prince George and Everett. . . . The Winterhawks (37-27-4) had a five-game winning streak end. They hold down the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot, two points behind Victoria. Portland also is fourth in the U.S. Division, a point behind Tri-City. . . . Announced attendance: 7,235.
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At Red Deer, F Lane Zablocki scored once and added three assists to lead the Rebels to a 6-1 victory
LANE ZABLOCKI
over the Kootenay Ice. . . . The Rebels beat the Ice, 4-1, in Cranbrook on Friday. . . . Last night, the Rebels responded to a 1-0 deficit by scoring four times before the first period came to an end. . . . F Vince Loschiavo (28) gave the visitors the lead at 4:49. . . . Zablock then drew the primary assist on three straight goals, with D Ethan Sakowich (3) scoring at 5:25, F Evan Polei (31) at 14:45, and F Brandon Hagel (25) at 17:31. The latter two goals came via the PP. . . . F Austin Pratt got No. 16 at 18:12. . . . The Rebels closed it out as Zablocki got his 26th goal, at 10:43 of the second period, and F Dawson Martin (9) scored, on a PP, at 13:22. . . . Red Deer got three assists from F Austin Glover and two from D Jared Freadrich. . . . Red Deer had planned to start G Riley Lamb, but apparently had a vision problem in the warmup, meaning Lasse Petersen got the start and made 15 saves. . . . At the other end, Payton Lee turned aside 31 shots. . . . Red Deer was 3-6 on the PP; Kootenay was 0-3. . . . The Rebels (28-28-12) have points in five straight (3-0-2). They are third in the Central Division, four points ahead of Calgary. Each team has four games remaining. . . . The Ice (14-43-11) has lost six in a row (0-5-1). . . . Announced attendance: 5,072.
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At Spokane, the Prince George Cougars built a 3-0 first-period lead and went on to beat the Chiefs, 4-3. .
TANNER WISHNOWSKI
. . The Cougars (44-21-5) set a Prince George franchise record for victories in one season. Prince George had twice won 43 games, in 1997-98 and 1999-2000. The Victoria Cougars won 60 games in 1980-81. . . . F Josh Curtis (9), F Jared Bethune (22) and F Nikita Popugaev, on a PP, scored for the Cougars in the opening period. . . . After a goal-less second period, F Jared Anderson-Dolan scored for the Chiefs, on a PP, 57 seconds into the third. . . . The Cougars got that one back as D Josh Anderson (3) counted at 10:59. . . . Spokane made it interesting with two late goals, as F Kailer Yamamoto got No. 39, on a PP, at 13:39 and F Hudson Elynuik scored his 27th, at 18:47. . . . F Tanner Wishnowski, who moved from Spokane to Prince George in January, played only his third game since Nov. 19. He has an assist in each of his past two games now. . . . Yamamoto also had two assists, with Anderson-Dolan getting one. . . . The Cougars got 27 saves from G Nick McBride. . . . G Jayden Sittler turned aside 36 shots for Spokane. . . . The Cougars were 1-2 on the PP; the Chiefs were 2-6. . . . Prince George leads the B.C. Division by two points over Kelowna. . . . The Chiefs (26-32-10) have lost six straight (0-5-1). . . . Announced attendance: 8,233.
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At Swift Current, F Ryley Lindgren’s second goal, at 19:02 of the third period, gave the Broncos a 3-2
RYLEY LINDGREN
victory over the Saskatoon Blades. . . . Broncos F Tyler Steenbergen had tied the game 2-2 at 14:11 of the first period as he became the first WHLer to reach 50 goals this season. . . . Steenbergen, who turned 19 on Jan. 7, has 86 points in 68 games, after putting up 46 points, 20 of them goals, in 67 games as a freshman last season. . . . Steenbergen is the first Swift Current skater with 50 goals since F Jeremy Williams put in 52 in 68 games in 2003-04. . . . Lindgren, who has 25 goals, gave the Broncos a 1-0 lead at 6:10 of the first period. . . . The Blades took a 2-1 lead on goals from F Mason McCarty (20), at 11:08, and F Logan Christensen (11), at 11:39. . . . D Max Lajoie drew two assists for the Broncos, with Steenbergen and Lindgren getting one each. . . . G Taz Burman stopped 35 shots for the Broncos. . . . The Blades got 27 stops from G Logan Flodell. . . . Swift Current was 0-4 on the PP; Saskatoon was 0-6. . . . The Broncos had beaten the host Blades, 5-3, on Friday. . . . Swift Current (37-21-10) appears likely to finish third in the East Division. . . . The Blades (27-33-9) now are one point out of a playoff spot. . . . Announced attendance: 2,476, the largest crowd this season in Swift Current.
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At Kennewick, Wash., G Mario Petit stopped 22 shots in helping the Everett Silvertips to a 5-1 victory
MARIO PETIT
over the Tri-City Americans. . . . Petit lost his shutout bid at 8:41 of the third period when F Tyler Sandhu scored his 21st goal. . . . Petit, who caddies for starter Carter Hart, is 11-5-3, 2.77, .899 in 21 appearances this season. . . . Everett took a 2-0 first-period lead on goals from F Dominic Zwerger, his 26th, at 2:55, and D Lucas Skrumeda (4), at 16:14. . . . D Kevin Davis scored his seventh goal, on a PP, at 1:00 of the third period for a 3-0 lead. . . . The Silvertips closed it out with late third-period goals from F Patrick Bajkov (28) and F Sean Richards (8), both via the PP. . . . Everett got two assists from Zwerger, F Riley Sutter and D Noah Juulsen, with Davis adding one. . . . G Evan Sarthou stopped 34 shots for the Americans. . . . Everett was 3-6 on the PP; Tri-City was 0-3. . . . Everett D Aaron Irving missed his second game in as many nights. . . . According to the online scoresheet, Tri-City D Dakota Krebs took a high-sticking major at 19:30 of the third period. . . . Everett (41-15-11) is second in the U.S. Division, one point behind Seattle. . . . Tri-City (38-27-3) has lost four in a row. It is third in the U.S. Division, one point ahead of Portland. Each team has four games remaining. . . . Announced attendance: 4,793.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Edmonton at Calgary, 4 p.m.
Everett at Portland, 5 p.m.

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