Showing posts with label Tyler Soy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tyler Soy. Show all posts

Saturday, April 8, 2017

King Carl still unbeaten ... Rockets go up 2-0 ... Estephan fills hat as 'Canes tie series


Scattershoot

 An interesting note from Regan Bartel, the radio voice of the Kelowna Rockets, following Game 1 of their series with the visiting Portland Winterhawks:
“The paid attendance at (Friday) night's game was slightly over 5,000. That said, visually there was nowhere near that many fans in the stands. It is a little surprising at this time of the year and with an arch-playoff-rival in town, shouldn't close to a sellout be realized? Before we throw the baby out with the bath water, let's see what type of crowd shows up for (Saturday’s) rematch.”
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The announced attendance at Friday’s game in Kelowna was 5,002. That number on Saturday night was 5,009. The Rockets won 4-2 on Friday and 5-2, with two empty-netters, on Sunday. . . . According to the WHL’s 2015-16 Guide, the most recent one available, Kelowna’s Prospera Place has 6,007 seats and room for 500 standees.
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If you are interested in how coaches think and game plan, give this a listen. It’s the afore-mentioned Regan Bartel’s interview with Mike Johnston, the Portland Winterhawks’ head coach, prior to Game 1 in Kelowna on Friday night, and it’s good stuff:


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On Saturday afternoon, catcher Gary Sanchez of the New York Yankees left a game against the Orioles in Baltimore with an injury. Shortly thereafter, the Yankees announced that he had a right biceps strain. The world didn’t end.
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Headline at SportsPickle.com: Cubs admit feeling pressure to win a World Series every 108 years now.
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If this few seconds of video doesn’t make you smile, you need to put a mirror in front of your nose and see if it fogs up. BTW, Dave Tippett, the Phoenix Coyotes’ executive vice-president of hockey operations and head coach, told reporters Saturday that the NHL team is looking to have Craig Cunningham somewhere in its organization.


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The Toronto Maple Leafs clinched a playoff spot Saturday night and I thought Twitter was going to break. What would happen were the Leafs to win a Stanley Cup?
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What a Pandora’s Box was opened when sports leagues began using video review. I am almost of the belief that they all were better off without it. Managers, coaches and players all make errors that can’t be undone. Maybe it’s time to put the officiating errors back into the games and life with them.
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There was a time this season when the Regina Pats’ top three centres were Adam Brooks, Sam Steel and Jake Leschyshyn. We won’t find out until Monday night, but it could be that Steel is the last man standing. . . . Leschyshyn, 17, hasn’t played since undergoing knee surgery in February. . . . Brooks, with 250 points over the past two regular seasons, went down with a leg injury during the first period of Regina’s 6-2 victory over the visiting Swift Current Broncos on Friday night. . . . Steel, of course, won this season’s WHL scoring championship, finishing a point ahead of Brooks, who won that title last season. . . . Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post has more right here on the Pats with, and without, Brooks.
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MORE ON THE MOVE: F Tyler Soy of the Victoria Royals has joined the San Diego Gulls, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks. Soy was a seventh-round pick of the Ducks in the NHL’s 2016 draft, but has yet to sign. At 20, he is eligible to return for one more WHL season. . . . D Micheal Zipp of the Calgary Hitmen will finish the season with the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings. Zipp finished his WHL career this season with the Calgary Hitmen. He played 299 regular-season WHL games, totalling 77 points, 18 of them goals.
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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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SATURDAY’S GAMES:



At Everett, G Carl Stankowski stopped 20 shots to maintain his perfect playoff record as the
CARL STANKOWSKI
SeattleThunderbirds got past the Silvertips, 4-3. . . . The Thunderbirds lead the series, 2-0, with Games 3 and 4 in Kent, Wash., on Tuesday and Friday nights. . . . Seattle had won Friday’s opener, 3-2. . . . Last night, the Thunderbirds faced a 2-1 first-period deficit, the first time they trailed in these playoffs. They had swept the Tri-City Americans from an opening-round series. . . . F Scott Eansor (3) have Seattle a 1-0 lead at 7:05 of the first period. . . . Everett went out front on goals from F Bryce Kindopp (1), at 7:56, and F Connor Dewar (1), at 12:52. . . . The Thunderbirds took control with three goals in a span of 5:22 in the second period. . . . F Zack Andrusiak (1) tied it at 11:12 and F Sami Moilanen (2) put Seattle out front just 18 seconds later. . . . D Ethan Bear upped the lead to 4-2 with his third goal, on a PP, at 16:34. . . . The Silvertips cut the gap to a goal at 12:33 of the third period when F Eetu Tuulola scored his fourth goal. . . . Bear added an assist to his goal. . . . Seattle has dressed 19 skaters in these playoffs and 15 of them have at least one goal. . . . Stankowski, who has started all six of Seattle’s playoff games in the absence of the injury Rylan Toth, now is 6-0, 2.17, .921. Stankowski turned 17 on March 9. He was 3-0-1, 2.18, .910 in seven regular-season appearances. . . . Everett G Carter Hart stopped 11 shots. By period, Seattle was credited with nine, five and one shot. . . . Seattle was 1-3 on the PP; Everett was 0-3. . . . The Thunderbirds continue to play without F Ryan Gropp, who was injured in Game 2 against the Americans. . . . Announced attendance: 5,129.
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At Kelowna, F Nick Merkley scored two goals, both empty-netters, and added an assist as the Rockets
JAMES HILSENDAGER
posted a 5-2 victory over the Portland Winterhawks. . . . The Rockets lead the series, 2-0, with the teams now heading for Portland’s Memorial Coliseum and games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . The Rockets had opened the series with a 4-2 victory on Friday. . . . Last night, Kelowna took a 2-0 lead on second-period goals from F Kole Lind (3), at 7:33, and F Tomas Soustal (2), on a PP, at 9:56. . . . F Joachim Blichfeld got Portland to within one with his third goal, at 18:50. . . . D James Hilsendager, an under-rated but key guy on Kelowna’s back end, got what proved to be the winner at 14:07 of the third period. That was his first goal of the playoffs. Hilsendager, who turned 20 on March 20, was acquired from the Regina Pats in December. . . . Merkley upped the lead to 4-1 with an empty-netter at 18:40. . . . Portland F Ryan Hughes (3) scored at 19:20. . . . Merkley added another empty-netter at 19:33. Those were Merkley’s first two goals of the playoffs. . . . F Dillon Dube and F Reid Gardiner each had two assists for the Rockets. . . . Kelowna G Michael Herringer stopped 23 shots, while Portland’s Cole Kehler turned aside 38. . . . Kelowna was 1-7 on the PP; Portland was 0-3. . . . Kelowna D Devante Stephens was in the lineup despite having left Game 2 in the second period with what appeared to be an injured wrist. . . . Announced attendance: 5,009.
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At Medicine Hat, F Giorgio Estephan scored three times and added an assist to lead the Lethbridge Hurricanes to a 7-4 victory over the Tigers. . . . The series is tied 1-1 as it heads to Lethbridge for games
GIORGIO ESTEPHAN
on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . The host Tigers won the opener, 4-0, on Friday. . . . The teams combined for more goals — six — in last night’s first period than were scored in Game 1. . . . Last night, the Hurricanes erased a 4-3 deficit with the game’s last four goals, the final two both empty-netters. . . . D Dylan Cozens pulled the Hurricanes into a 4-4 tie at 8:37 of the second period with his first WHL playoff goal. . . . Cozens, who turned 16 on Feb. 9, is from Whitehorse. He was the 18th overall selection in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft. He had one goal in three regular-season games with Lethbridge. Cozens played the past two seasons at the Yale Hockey Academy in Abbotsford, B.C. . . . Estephan snapped the tie with his second goal of the game, on a PP, at 12:51 of the third period. That was the first time in these playoffs that the Tigers had trailed. They swept the defending-champion Brandon Wheat Kings from the first round and didn’t trail even once in the four games. . . . Estephan completed his hat trick with an empty-netter at 18:35 and F Tanner Nagel added a shorthanded empty-netter at 19:12. . . . Estephan has five goals in these playoffs; Nagel has two. . . . The Tigers had taken a quick 2-0 lead on two first-period goals from F Zach Fischer, at 0:20 and 2:23. He’s got six goals. . . . Lethbridge tied it when Estephan scored at 8:16 and F Alec Baer (3) counted at 8:43. . . . Medicine Hat went back out front when F Ryan Jevne (2) scored, on a PP, at 11:10. . . . F Tyler Wong pulled the Hurricanes even with his sixth goal of the playoffs, at 17:33. . . . F James Hamblin (1) put Medicine Hat back out front at 6:03 of the second period. . . . Wong also had an assist for the winners, while F Steve Owre had two for the Tigers. . . . G Stuart Skinner stopped 26 shots for the Hurricanes. . . . Medicine Hat got 19 stops from G Michael Bullion, who lost for the first time in six playoff starts. . . . Each team was 1-5 on the PP. . . . Lethbridge was without F Matt Alfaro and D Calen Addison for a second straight game, while F Zak Zborosky, who played Friday, was scratched last night. . . . The Tigers remain without D Brad Forrest. . . . Announced attendance: 4,513.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.
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MONDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina at Swift Current, 7 p.m. (Series tied, 1-1)

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:18 PM
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Saturday, March 25, 2017

Rebels shock Hurricanes . . . Warriors, Royals even series . . . Barzal sighting, but not on ice

Scattershoot

 The defending-champion Brandon Wheat Kings were without F Nolan Patrick for a second straight game against the host Medicine Hat Tigers on Saturday. The Wheat Kings, 7-2 losers in the opener, also added a pair of 15-year-olds — D Braden Schneider and F Ben McCartney — while taking out F Baron Thompson and F Cole Reinhardt. Schneider was the 11th overall selection in the 2016 WHL bantam draft, while McCartney was taken in the second round.
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The Tigers, meanwhile, added veteran D Ty Schultz, while scratching D Brad Forrest. Schultz hadn’t played since Jan. 13 when he suffered a broken leg while blocking a shot.
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The Red Deer Rebels and the Hurricanes got their series started last night in Lethbridge. The Hurricanes had F Matt Alfaro and F Zak Zborosky back after both had played just one game since March 4. Both were acquired from the Kootenay Ice near the trade deadline in the hopes they could provide some offence.
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The Tri-City Americans added F Vladislav Lukin to their scratches prior to Game 2 against the host Seattle Thunderbirds on Saturday. He joined F Nolan Yaremko and F Michael Rasmussen. With Rasmussen’s season likely over thanks to a broken scaphoid, losing Lukin is a blow. Lukin finished the regular season with 58 points, including 26 goals, in 63 games. He missed some time late in the regular season, too.
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The Thunderbirds, 4-2 winners in Game 1, scratched F Mathew Barzal and G Rylan Toth for a second straight playoff game. Barzal (mumps) last played on March 7, while Toth (undisclosed injury) last saw action on March 11. Barzal, the Western Conference’s outstanding player, put up 79 points, 69 of them assists, in 41 games. Toth led all goaltenders with 36 regular-season victories. He made 58 appearances. . . . Barzal was seen exiting the dressing room after last night’s game. As Tim Pigulski of 710 ESPN Seattle tweeted: “That is the first we’ve seen of Barzal since he left the blue line during the anthem two weeks ago. No longer in isolation.”
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After losing Game 1, 4-0, to the Rockets in Kelowna, the Kamloops Blazers inserted D Devan Harrison and F Brodi Stuart, while taking out D Dan Gatenby and F Jackson Shepard.
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The Regina Pats, who beat the visiting Calgary Hitmen, 5-2, in Friday’s opener, got F Nick Henry back from a one-game WHL suspension. Henry was one of the Pats’ five 80-point men, finishing his first regular season with 81 points, including 35 goals. . . . In order to get Henry in, the Pats took out F Kjell Kjemhus, a 15-year-old from Grande Prairie, Alta., who was a fourth-round selection in the 2016 WHL bantam draft.
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In Everett, the Victoria Royals, 4-2 losers to the Silvertips on Friday, scratched D Scott Walford and F Blake Bargar, adding D Mitchell Prowse and D Jeremy Masella.
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It’s a big hockey day in Prince George today (Sunday). The Cougars are at home to the Portland Winterhawks for Game 2 of their series at 5 p.m. Earlier in the day, at 9:45 a.m., the Cariboo Cougars and Greater Vancouver Canadians will decide the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League championship. The Canadians won Game 1, 3-2, in double OT on Friday, with the Cougars. behind 19 saves from G Marcus Allen, tying the best-of-three final with a 2-0 victory on Saturday afternoon.
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When the Winterhawks and Cougars met Friday, it was a Mega Jackpot for the 50/50 draw and Jenny Plouffe, who is from Prince George, went home with more than $42,000. Proceeds from the draw went to Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Prince George.
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F Ty Ronning of the Vancouver Giants is with the Hartford Wolf Pack, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers, on an ATO. He picked up is first professional point on Friday, in a 3-1 loss to the visiting Providence Bruins, then got his first goal Saturday in a 4-3 victory over the visiting Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
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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.
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SATURDAY GAMES (all series best-of-seven):


At Lethbridge, the Red Deer Rebels erased a 2-0 deficit en route to a 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes. . . .
MICHAEL SPACEK
This was Game 1, with Game 2 scheduled for today, 6 p.m., in Lethbridge. . . . The Hurricanes finished second in the Central Division, 14 victories and 22 points ahead of the Rebels. . . . The Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead when F Tyler Wong struck at 13:51 of the first period. . . . F Ryan Vandervlis made it 2-0 at 3:14 of the second period. . . . F Michael Spacek got Red Deer on the scoreboard at 18:42, the late-period goal maybe the most important of the game. . . . F Cameron Hausinger tied the score at 1:55 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Brandon Hagel snapped the tie, on a PP, at 18:03. . . . F Lane Zablocki added an empty-netter, on a PP, at 19:56. . . . The Rebels to two assists from F Evan Polei and one from Spacek. . . . Red Deer G Riley Lamb stopped 25 shots. . . . Lethbridge got 29 saves from G Stuart Skinner. . . . Red Deer was 2-5 on the PP; Lethbridge was 0-6. . . . Announced attendance: 4,118.
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At Moose Jaw, F Brayden Burke broke a 2-2 tie at 15:49 of the third period as the Warriors beat the Swift
LUKA BURZAN
Current Broncos, 3-2. . . . The series is tied 1-1. . . . The Broncos had won Game 1, 2-0, on Friday night. . . . They’ll play Games 3 and 4 in Swift Current on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . F MacKenzie Wight had given the visitors a 1-0 lead at 8:36 of the first period. . . . The Warriors tied it on F Branden Klatt’s goal at 13:52 of the second period. . . . Broncos F Tyler Steenbergen scored his second goal of the series at 16:53 for a 2-1 lead. . . . The Warriors pulled even at 5:07 of the third period as F Thomas Foster scored on a wrap-around. . . . The Warriors got two assists from F Luka Burzan. He had the primary assist on Moose Jaw’s first and last goals. . . . G Zach Sawchenko earned the victory with 34 saves. . . . G Jordan Papirny stopped 31 shots for the Broncos. . . . Moose Jaw was 0-3 on the PP; Swift Current was 0-5. . . . Announced attendance: 3,610.
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At Medicine Hat, the Tigers built a 3-0 lead and hung on for a 5-3 lead over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . .
ZACH FISCHER
. The Tigers won Game 1, 7-2, on Friday. . . . The scene now shifts to Dauphin, Man., for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday. With the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair having taken over Brandon’s Keystone Centre complex, the Wheat Kings will play their opening-round games in Dauphin. . . . F Zach Fischer gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead with 11.1 seconds left in the first period. . . . F Max Gerlach made it 2-0 at 12:22 of the second period. . . . Fischer increased that to 3-0 with his third goal in two games, at 4:27 of the third period. . . . The Wheat Kings got on the scoreboard when F Connor Gutenberg scored at 7:45. . . . Medicine Hat got that one back just nine seconds later as F John Dahlstrom scored. . . . The Wheat Kings cut the deficit to one on goals from F Reid Duke, at 11:08, and F Tyler Coulter, at 18:09. . . . Dahlstrom iced it with an empty-netter at 19:44. . . . F Mason Shaw had two assists for the Tigers. . . . The Wheat Kings got two assists from F Ty Lewis, with Coulter adding one. . . . Medicine Hat G Michael Bullion made 20 saves. . . . Brandon starter Logan Thompson allowed four goals on 42 shots in 53:12. He left in the third period, favouring a leg, after Tigers F Max Gerlach was pushed on top of him. Travis Child finished up, stopping the only shot he faced in 5:42. That was Child’s WHL playoff debut. . . . Medicine Hat was 1-5 on the PP; Brandon was 0-4. . . . Announced attendance: 3,791.
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At Regina, F Sam Steel scored one goal and drew four assists to lead the Pats to a 5-1 victory over the
SAM STEEL
Calgary Hitmen. . . . The Pats had posted a 5-2 victory in Game 1 on Friday. . . . They’ll resume the series in Calgary with games scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday. . . . Last night, Steel, who won the WHL’s regular-season scoring title, drew the primary assist on each of Regina’s first four goals. . . . F Dawson Leedahl gave Regina a 1-0 lead at 11:44 of the first period. . . . Calgary tied it on F Andrew Fyten’s goal at 2:16 of the second period. . . . F Adam Brooks scored his third goal in two games, this one via a 5-on-3 PP, to put the Pats back out front, at 4:17. . . . Leedahl scored again, at 9:38, and F Nick Henry counted at 7:26 of the third period. Henry had sat out Game 1 with a WHL suspension. . . . Steel got the empty-netter at 17:00. . . . Leedahl also had an assist, for a three-point night, while D Connor Hobbs had two assists. . . . Regina G Tyler Brown stopped 26 shots, eight fewer than Calgary’s Cody Porter. . . . Regina was 1-3 on the PP; Calgary was 0-4. . . . Announced attendance: 6,484.
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DILLON DUBE
At Kelowna, F Dillon Dube scored two third-period goals for the Rockets as they skated to a 3-2 victory over the Kamloops Blazers. . . . The Rockets blanked the Blazers, 4-0, in Game 1 on Friday. . . . The series resumes with games in Kamloops on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . Dube, who signed an NHL contract on Friday, scored shorthanded at 11:55 for a 2-0 lead, then made it 3-0, on a PP, at 13:24. . . . D Cal Foote, who also had an assist, had given Kelowna a 1-0 edge at 2:53 of the first period. . . . F Quinn Benjafield scored the Blazers’ first goal of the series at 13:59, and D Ondrej Vala added a PP goal at 16:30 to make for an interesting finish. . . . The Rockets got 33 saves from G Michael Herringer, while Connor Ingram of Kamloops stopped 34. . . . The Blazers had 15 shots in all of Game 1. In Game 2, they held a 16-13 edge after one period. . . . Announced attendance: 5,647.
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At Everett, F Vladimir Bobylev broke a tie at 15:01 of the third period to give the Victoria Royals a 4-3
TYLER SOY
victory over the Silvertips. . . . Bobylev scored from behind the Everett net, banking the winning goal off G Carter Hart. . . . The Silvertips won, 4-2, on Friday. . . . The teams will resume hostilities in Victoria with games on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . Last night, Everett took a 1-0 lead on a PP goal from F Matt Fonteyne at 7:53 of the first period. . . . Victoria F Matt Phillips tied it, on a PP, at 12:45. . . . Everett went back out front 49 seconds into the second period as F Patrick Bajkov scored his second goal of the series, on a PP. . . . F Tyler Soy shot the Royals out front with two goals, the first one at 1:40, the second, on a PP, at 7:30. . . . F Brandson Hein pulled Everett even at 7:49 of the third period. . . . F Jack Walker and D Chaz Reddekopp each had two assists for the Royals. . . . Everett got two assists from F Dominic Zwerger and one from Bajkov. . . . Walker set franchise records for career playoff assists (18) and points (31). He had tied F Brandon Magee for both marks on Friday. . . . Soy set a franchise career record for playoff goals (14) with his second goal. The first one tied Walker and Magee. . . . G Griffen Outhouse earned the victory with 18 saves. . . . Hart finished up with 26 saves. . . . Each team was 2-3 on the PP. . . . Announced attendance: 4,196.
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At Kent, Wash., the Seattle Thunderbirds scored the game’s last three goals and beat the Tri-City
SCOTT EANSOR
Americans, 5-2. . . . The Thunderbirds had posted a 4-2 victory on Friday. . . . The series will resume with games in Kennewick, Wash., on Wednesday and Friday. . . . Last night, Seattle took a 2-0 lead on first-period goals from F Nolan Volcan, on a PP, at 8:55, and F Scott Eansor, at 17:14. . . . Eansor scored his first goal since Dec. 31 after missing most of the second half with injuries. . . . The Americans pulled even on goals from F Parker AuCoin, at 16:21 of the second period, and F Max James, on a PP, at 6:52 of the third. . . . Seattle F Matthew Wedman snapped the 2-2 tie at 15:03 of the third period. . . . F Donovan Neuls added insurance, on a PP, at 15:29, and D Aaron Hyman scored another PP goal at 19:42. . . . Seattle got two assists each from D Austin Strand and D Jarret Tyszka, with Hyman adding one. . . . Seattle G Carl Stankowski, making his second straight start in the absence of the injured Rylan Toth, stopped 28 shots. . . . The Americans got 36 stops from G rylan Parenteau. . . . Seattle was 3-4 on the PP; Tri-City was 1-5. . . . Announced attendance: 4,502.
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SUNDAY GAMES (all times local):

Red Deer at Lethbridge, 6 p.m. (Red Deer leads, 1-0)
Portland at Prince George, 5 p.m. (Portland leads, 1-0)
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MONDAY GAMES (all times local):

No Games Scheduled.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:37 PM
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Sunday, January 29, 2017

Gervais shows improvement ... Milestones for Daum, Thibodeau ... Four-spots for Duke, Soy


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BREVIN GERVAIS
There was some good news on Sunday from the bedside of Brevin Gervais, the 17-year-old defenceman from the junior B 100 Mile House Wranglers, who underwent emergency surgery for a brain aneurysm in Kamloops on Friday.
Mateo Albinati, who started the gofundme site with proceeds to Brevin’s family, posted that “Brevin has slowly begun breathing on his own. Although it is minimal, it is a step in the right direction, and he now has opened his eyes on command and squeezed hands. His blood pressure has increased, which also is a very good sign.”
Friends and folks in the hockey community responded in such a fashion that Albinati shut down the gofundme site on Sunday evening, by which time donations had totalled $20,350. His original goal was $16,000.
Well done and thank you! Please keep Brevin and his family in your thoughts and prayers as this chapter of their lives has just begun.
A native of Prince George, Brevin was a fourth-round selection by the Calgary Hitmen in the 2015 bantam draft.
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The Everett Silvertips have added F Cal Babych, who turned 20 on Jan. 18, to their roster. While he was listed earlier this season by Everett, he had been with the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express. Everett will be Babych’s fifth WHL stop. He split 152 career games between the Calgary Hitmen, Prince George Cougars, Prince Albert Raiders and Vancouver Giants, putting up 35 points, including 15 goals. With the Express, he had seven goals and 21 assists in 33 games. . . . He made his Everett debut in Sunday’s 5-1 loss to the visiting Kamloops Blazers.
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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.
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Concussion Report

 When Mary Lois Nittmo went looking for the ex-husband who ran out on her and their four children 12 years ago, Tim Graham of the Buffalo News accompanied her. They found Bjorn Nittmo, a Swede who is a former NFL and CFL kicker, but what they discovered wasn’t pretty. . . . Graham’s story is right here.
Meanwhile, in Houston, the site of Sunday’s Super Bowl game, a news conference is to be held today by a support group that calls itself Faces of CTE. In attendance will be co-founders Cyndy Feaser and Kimberly Archie. Feaser, whose ex-husband Grant Feasel was an offensive lineman who was diagnosed with Stage 3 CTE after his death, has written the book After the Cheering Stops: An NFL Wife’s Story of Concussions, Loss and the Faith That Saw Her Through.
Archie’s son Paul was 24 when he died from the effects of CTE caused by playing football.
The brain bank at Boston University has confirmed CTE in the brains of 91 of 95 deceased NFLers. Dr. Ann McKee, who has been in the forefront of all of this, admits she has stopped watching NFL games despite having been an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers.
“I, for one, don’t watch football anymore because I can’t,” she told Jeff Caplan of the Kansas City Star. “I can no longer sort of reconcile what I’m seeing at my work and watching the game on television. It’s been a long road, and it’s depressing. It’s very depressing.” . . . Caplan’s complete story is right here. Yes, it’s depressing.
Meanwhile, in the world of hockey, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman continues to deny a link between repeated blows to the head and CTE.
And in the WHL the powers-that-be continue to allow teenagers to punch each other in the face with no apparent thought given to the consequences.
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JUST NOTES:

A note from a reader informs us that the Red Deer Rebels had some special moments on Saturday night as they honoured three people who have been with them for 25 years, or since Day 1.
Judy Seher, the Rebels’ billet co-ordinator, and off-ice officials Carl Purves and Jim Hollman were saluted at centre ice prior to the game. They were presented with 25-year watches . . . first-class people honoured by a solid organization.
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Coaching

 Rob Daum of EHC Linz has become the winningest head coach in Austria’s Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL). Daum put up victory No. 235 on Sunday, as the Black Wings beat the visiting Vienna Capitals, 5-3, allowing him to move out of a tie with Pierre Pagé. Daum, in his sixth season with EHC Linz, is a former WHL coach, having worked with the Prince Albert Raiders, Swift Current Broncos and Lethbridge Hurricanes (1989-95).
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Gord Thibodeau, the head coach of the Whitecourt Wolverines, has tied the AJHL record for most regular-season coaching victories. When the Wolverines beat the host Bonnyville Pontiacs, 4-3, on Sunday, it gave Thibodeau 832 victories, tying him with Don Phelps, the long-time (1979-2011) head coach of the Calgary Canucks. . . . Thibodeau has been an AJHL head coach since 1997 and also has worked with the Lloydminster Blazers, St. Albert Saints, Fort McMurray Oil Barons and Lloydminster Bobcats. He is in his first season with the Wolverines.
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The AJHL’s Drumheller Dragons fired general manager and head coach Brian Curran on Sunday. He was in the fifth year of a contract that was to expire after this season. A former AJHL coach of the year, Curran took the Dragons to the South Division championship in 2013-14. . . . Assistant coach Darryl Olsen has stepped in as interim head coach. . . . The Dragons (20-23-4) are sixth in the six-team South Division, 11 points out of fifth.
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:

At Calgary, F Reid Duke scored four times to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 6-1 victory over the Hitmen. . . . Duke, a Calgarian who has 30 goals, scored the game’s first three goals, recording his fifth
REID DUKE
career hat trick and his second against the Hitmen this season. . . . He scored at 2:55 and 8:23 of the first period, 11:02 of the second and nine seconds into the third. Duke’s first goal came via the PP, while the third one was shorthanded. . . . F Tyler Coulter earned assists on three of Duke’s goals. . . . F Connor Gutenberg also had three assists. . . . F Beck Malenstyn scored for Calgary, his PP goal at 11:24 of the second period cutting the deficit to 3-1. He’s got 21 goals. . . . D James Shearer (6), who also had an assist, and D Dmitry Osipov (2) also scored for Brandon, which lost D Kale Clague to a charging major and game misconduct at 10:06 of the second period. That was for a hit on Malenstyn. . . . G Travis Child stopped 31 shots for Brandon. . . . Calgary starter Trevor Martin allowed four goals on 14 shots through two periods. Kyle Dumba played the third period, stopped six of eight shots. . . . Each team was 1-6 on the PP. . . . The Wheat Kings (24-19-5) had lost their previous two games. They hold down the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot but the defending champions are just five points behind the Swift Current Broncos in the East Division. . . . The Hitmen (18-22-9) had points in each of their previous four games (1-0-3). This was their third game in fewer than 48 hours; they went 1-1-1. Calgary is one point behind the Saskatoon Blades, who are in possession of the conference’s second wild-card spot. . . . Announced attendance: 6,913.
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At Edmonton, G Ty Edmonds turned aside 26 shots to help the Prince George Cougars to a 3-1 victory
TY EDMONDS
over the Oil Kings. . . . The Cougars had won, 11-3, in Edmonton on Saturday night. . . . Edmonds now has 95 career regular-season victories, tying the Prince George franchise record that was held by Scott Myers (1996-2000). . . . This was Edmonds’ 26th victory this season. . . . F Aaron Boyd (7) gave the visitors a 1-0 lead at 3:33 of the first period. . . . Edmonton tied it when F Davis Koch scored his 13th goal — it was his 100th career point — at 14:49. . . . Prince George F Jansen Harkins broke the tie with his 16th goal at 4:50 of the second period. . . . D Brendan Guhle added insurance with his 12th goal just 15 seconds later. . . . Guhle and Boyd each added an assist. . . . The Oil Kings got 34 saves from G Patrick Dea. . . . Each team was 0-4 on the PP. . . . The Cougars (36-14-3) have won two in a row. They are alone atop the overall standings, two points ahead of the Regina Pats, who hold six games in hand. . . . The Oil Kings (18-28-4) have lost 11 straight games and are six points out of a playoff spot. . . . Both teams were playing for the third time in fewer than 48 hours. The Cougars went 2-1-0; the Oil Kings went 0-3-0. . . . Announced attendance: 6,827.
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At Everett, G Dylan Ferguson stopped 37 shots and F Lane Bauer had two goals as the Kamloops
LANE BAUER
Blazers skated to a 5-1 victory over the Everett Silvertips. . . . Bauer, who has 29 shots. broke a 1-1 tie 25 seconds into the second period as the Blazers took control with three goals in a span of 4:27. . . . F Deven Sideroff (28) had given Kamloops a 1-0 lead at 10:34 of the first period. . . . Everett F Connor Dewar (10) tied it 11 seconds into the second period. . . . Bauer broke that tie just 14 seconds later. . . . F Nick Chyzowski’s 14th goal upped the Blazers’ lead to 3-1 at 3:54 and Bauer made it 4-1, while shorthanded, at 4:52. . . . Kamloops F Quinn Benjafield added more insurance with an empty-net goal at 11:37 of the third period. Yes, Everett head coach Kevin Constantine had his goaltender on the bench for the extra attacker with more than eight minutes to play. . . . F Garrett Pilon had two assists for the Blazers. . . . Bauer has 13 points, including four goals, in 10 games with Kamloops since coming over in a deal with the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . Everett G Mario Petit was beaten three times on 17 shots in 23:54. Carter Hart came off the bench to stop 10 of 11 shots in 35:25. . . . Kamloops was 0-2 on the PP; Everett was 0-4. . . . Kamloops (31-17-3) has won two in a row. It is second in the B.C. Division, three points ahead of the Victoria Royals. . . . The Silvertips (30-9-9) have lost four in a row (0-3-1). They lead the U.S. Division by six points over the Tri-City Americans. Everett has five games in hand. . . . Announced attendance: 4,089.
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At Kent, Wash., F Ryan Gropp and F Keegan Kolesar each enjoyed four-point outings as the Seattle Thunderbirds dumped the Tri-City Americans, 5-1. . . . The hosts scored the game’s first four goals to
RYAN GROPP
lead 4-0 before the second period was six minutes old. . . . Gropp, who finished with two goals and two assists, got it started 29 seconds into the first period. . . . Kolesar, who had a goal and three assists, made it 2-0 with No. 10 at 5:12. . . . F Mathew Barzal got his seventh goal at 4:17 of the second period and F Alexander True made it 4-0, on a PP, at 5:39. He’s got 16 goals. . . . Tri-City F Tyler Sandhu scored his 14th goal, on a PP, at 10:16. . . . Gropp scored his 13th goal into an empty net at 16:52 of the third period. . . . Seattle got two assists from D Austin Strand, while Barzal had one helper. . . . Americans D Parker Wotherspoon recorded one assist, the 133rd of his career. That gave him the franchise’s career record for most assists by a defenceman, with one more than Tyler Schmidt (2006-11). . . . Seattle G Rylan Toth stopped 19 shots, 15 fewer than Tri-City’s Beck Warm. . . . Seattle was 1-3 on the PP; Tri-City was 1-4. . . . The Thunderbirds (29-15-4) have won five in a row. They are third in the U.S. Division, one point behind Tri-City and with five games in hand. . . . The Americans (30-20-3) are six points behind the Everett Silvertips. . . . Each team was playing for the third time in fewer than 48 hours. That included Seattle’s 4-3 victory over host Tri-City on Friday. Seattle went 3-0-0 in the triple header weekend; the Americans were 1-2-0. . . . Announced attendance: 4,098.
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At Swift Current, the Prince Albert Raiders scored three PP goals to beat the Broncos, 3-2. . . . The third
MAX MARTIN
of those goals, from D Max Martin, snapped a 2-2 tie with 6.7 seconds left in the third period. Martin has six goals. . . . F Cavin Leth gave the Raiders a 1-0 lead with his 16th goal at 3:13 of the first period. . . . Leth is a Cy Young candidate with 16 goals and three assists in 44 games with Prince Albert since moving over from the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . He has goals in four of his last five games, including four in his last three outings. . . . F Kaden Elder (10) scored on a PP at 11:53 to get the Broncos even, and F Arthur Miller (6) counted at 11:46 of the second period for a 2-1 lead. . . . The Raiders tied it on F Curtis Miske’s 11th goal at 9:07 of the third period. . . . Martin and Miske also had an assist each. . . . G Nic Sanders stopped 27 shots to earn the victory over Jordan Papirny, who made 29 saves. . . . The Raiders were 3-7 on the PP; the Broncos were 1-3. . . . F Logan Barlage, the fourth overall selection in the 2016 bantam draft, played his second game of the season with the Broncos. He turned 16 on Jan. 7. . . . While the Raiders were playing their third game in fewer than 48 hours — they went 2-1-0 — the Broncos hadn’t played since the previous Sunday when they dropped a 6-3 decision to the host Saskatoon Blades. . . . Prince Albert (13-35-5) has won two straight. The Raiders remain in the WHL cellar but now are just one point behind the Kootenay Ice. . . . The Broncos (25-17-8) have dropped four in a row and remain third in the East Division. . . . Announced attendance: 2,106.
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At Victoria, F Tyler Soy scored four times and added an assist to lead the Royals to a 6-3 victory over the Vancouver Giants. . . . The Royals swept the triple header weekend from the Giants, having won 3-1 in
TYLER SOY
Langley, B.C., on Friday and 7-1 in Victoria on Saturday. . . . F Jack Flaman’s 12th goal 49 seconds into the game gave the Giants a 1-0 lead on Sunday. . . . The Royals took a 2-1 lead on goals from D Scott Walford (5) at 6:07 and Soy at 14:01. . . . Walford has goals in four straight games. . . . Vancouver tied it at 3:50 of the second period as F James Malm scored. . . . Soy, who has 24 goals, then scored three straight goals as the Royals took control. All three came via the PP — at 6:03 and 17:12 of the second period and 16 seconds into the third. . . . Victoria F Carter Folk added his fifth goal, on a PP, at 7:32 of the third period. . . . Malm closed out the scoring with his 17th goal, on a PP, at 10:39. . . . Soy, a 19-year-old from Cloverdale, B.C., has 50 points in 37 games. In his past eight games, he has scored seven times and added 10 assists. He is the third player in Royals history with a four-goal game, joining F Kevin Sundher (Oct. 29, 2011) and F Brandon Magee (Jan. 25, 2013). . . . F Matt Phillips, F Dante Hannoun, D Chaz Reddekopp and F Vladimir Bobylev each had two assists for Victoria. . . . The Giants got two assists from F Calvin Spencer. . . . D Ryan Gagnon, the Royals’ captain, played in his 300th regular-season game. . . . The Royals got 22 saves from Dylan Myskiw, who picked up his first career victory. Myskiw, who was injured before Christmas, was making his first appearance since Dec. 17 and only his second since Nov. 30. . . . G Griffen Outhouse had started the Royals’ previous 23 games as he set a franchise record. . . . Vancouver G Ryan Kubic stopped 36 shots. . . . Victoria was 4-10 on the PP; Vancouver was 1-4. . . . The Royals (29-19-4) have won three straight games. They are third in the B.C. Division, four points ahead of the Kelowna Rockets. . . . The Giants (17-30-4) have lost five in a row (0-4-1). . . . Announced attendance: 5,866.
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MONDAY’S GAME (all times local):

Regina at Saskatoon, 11:30 a.m.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 9:54 PM
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Thursday, January 19, 2017

CHL releases financial figures ... SPHL team in bus crash ... Phillips burns Oil Kings again


While one WHL team had pre-tax net income of $9,074,157 from 2012 through 2016, another lost $6,278,354 from 2012 through 2015.
The figures are part of a summary of financial information prepared by KPMG and dated Dec. 22, 2016, as ordered by a Calgary judge last year. 
The Canadian Hockey League, the OHL and WHL are facing a potential class-action lawsuit in which more than 370 former and present major junior players are asking to be paid minimum wage and such things as holiday pay and overtime.
Teams were ordered by a Calgary judge to compile and submit financial information, including tax statements, from 2011 through 2016. Twenty WHL teams prepared the information through 2016, while two — the Portland Winterhawks and Prince George Cougars — filed through 2015. All of this was audited by KPMG, which also prepared affidavits for the court.
Teams in the report aren’t identified; rather, they are numbered 1 through 22.
Team 8 averaged a net pre-tax income of $1,814,831 for the five years, while Team 18 lost an average of $1,569,589 in the first four of those years.
According to a five-year summary, the WHL had 11 teams show a profit over that period, with the other 11 losing money.
Team 8 was far and away the most profitable of the teams, with Team 15 next in line, showing an average net income of $509,593 for the five years, boosted by a net income of $1,238,831 in 2016.
The report shows just how volatile the major junior market can be. For example, Team 11 claimed a net loss of $807,627 in 2013, a net income of $193,133 for 2014 and $849,128 for 2015. In 2016, that figure was $349,318. Meanwhile, Team 13 followed four straight profitable years with a loss of $890 for 2016.
Five of the 22 teams showed a profit in each of the five years, while three others lost money each year.
While Team 8 showed a seven-figure profit in four of the five years, only one other team had such a single-year profit. Team 15 showed a net income of $1,238,831 for 2016. 
The report shows that the WHL had five-year total revenues of $375,718,507, with operating expenses of $347,047,705, meaning that its five-year operating profit was $1,670,802.
Factoring in other income and expenses, defined by KPMG as “income and expenses resulting from transactions that are outside of regular operations,” the WHL as an entity showed a pre-tax loss of $1,065,792 over the period in question.
There are enough figures in all of this to choke a horse, but of interest . . . 
In 2012, each WHL team received $76,400 — a total of $1,680,800 — from the World Junior Championship that was held in Calgary and Edmonton.
In 2013, each WHL team received $148,913 — a total of $3,276,088 — from the Memorial Cup that was held in Saskatoon.
In 2015, each of the 22 teams got $43,043 — a total of $946,946 — from the WJC that was held in Montreal and Toronto.
In 2016, each team got $118,477 — a total of $2,606,494 — from the Memorial Cup that was held in Red Deer.
The report also shows that WHL teams have paid out $9,675,219 in education money over the five years, an annual average of $1,935,044. That includes $2,195,925 in 2016.
Interestingly, all of this information was turned over to the court after which TSN’s Rick Westhead reported that “the CHL has asked a judge to seal those records, which will be used to establish the profitability of the teams and major junior leagues.” The CHL issued a news release Thursday night that included all of the information.
That news release is right here.
It is believed that the parties are to appear in court in Calgary on Jan. 24.
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The Portland Winterhawks Booster Club is rolling this week with 43 members riding a bus as it follows the team on a four-game B.C. Division swing. Club members had a great time in Prince George on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, will be in Kamloops for a game tonight and in Kelowna on Saturday night. . . . Included on the trip is ‘Rowdy’ Ardyce Moore, who, according to Ted Clarke of the Prince George Citizen, “considers herself the troublemaker of the bunch.” Ardyce is 91 years of age and has been attending games since the Winterhawks relocated from Edmonton in 1976. . . . Clarke’s story is right here.
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The City of Nanaimo is expected to hold a referendum on March 11 that will involve the potential building of an events centre that will include a hockey arena. Before then, however, there are a lot of questions to be answered, including: Exactly what will be the referendum question?
Kendall Hanson of CHEK News has more right here.
Meanwhile, the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers are wondering what might be in their future. “We’re in a precarious situation,” David LeNeveu, who owns a piece o the franchise and is its president and governor, told Mario Annicchiarico of the Victoria Times Colonist. “Obviously, if a WHL team comes to Nanaimo, that could displace the Clippers. There’s been no decision made on that side. We’ve been working with the league to protect the league and protect ourselves and everyone involved, but there’s not much to say until March 11 happens. Everything is up in the air until that vote goes one way or another.”
That story is right here.
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G Brandon Jaeger of the SPHL’s Columbus Cottonmouths was in hospital being treated for what is believed to be a broken leg on Thursday night after the team bus rolled as it made its way to Peoria, Ill., for a Friday night game. . . . Jaeger, 26, is from Champlin, Minn., who played two seasons with the Wenatchee Wild when that franchise was in the NAHL. He is in his second season with the Cottonmouths. . . . Originally, all 24 people on board the bus were taken to hospital. That included Jerome Bechard, the general manager and head coach. Bechard, from Regina, played four seasons (1986-90) with the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . Allan Dawlford of Smiths Station, Ala., the 74-year-old bus driver, also remains in hospital in fair condition. He is to be charged with failure to reduce speed in order to avoid a crash. . . . The Columbus roster includes at least two former WHLers — D Spencer Galbraith (Brandon, Lethbridge, Calgary, 2010-14) and D Petr Senkerik (Kootenay, Prince George, 2009-10). . . . David Eminian of the Peoria Journal Store has more right here.
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THURSDAY’S GAME:

At Edmonton, F Matt Phillips scored three times and F Tyler Soy had four assists as the Victoria Royals
MATT PHILLIPS
doubled the Oil Kings, 6-3. . . . Phillips, who has 32 goals, put up his fourth career hat trick. Three of those, including two this season, have come against Edmonton. . . . D Will Warm (7) gave Edmonton a 1-0 lead at 8:41 of the first period. . . . Phillips tied it, on a PP, at 12:16. . . . F Trey Fix-Wolansky scored his 13th goal, on a PP, at 15:07 to give the home side a 2-1 edge. . . . Victoria tied it when F Jack Walker scored No. 22, on a PP, at 16:48. . . . Edmonton went in front again at 1:57 of the second period when F Artyom Baltruk scored his second goal of the season. . . . D Chaz Reddekopp (8) pulled the Royals back into a tie, with a shorthanded score, at 5:38. . . . Phillips broke the tie at 17:33. . . . F Jared Dmytriw added insurance with his ninth goal, at 6:42 of the third period, and Phillips completed his hat trick at 15:07. . . . Soy drew the primary assist on each of Phillips’ goals and also set up Reddekopp’s shorthanded goal. . . . Victoria D Marsel Ibragimov had two assists, with Walker and Reddekopp adding one each. . . . Fix-Wolansky also had an assist. . . . G Griffen Outhouse stopped 18 shots for the Royals, while Edmonton’s Patrick Dea blocked 36. . . . Victoria was 2-8 on the PP; Edmonton was 1-4. . . . The Royals (25-18-4) have won three in a row. They hold down the Western Conference’s first wild-card spot and are two points behind the third-place Kelowna Rockets in the B.C. Division. . . . The Oil Kings (18-23-4) have lost six straight and are two points out of a playoff spot. . . . Announced attendance: 6,389.
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FRIDAY’S GAMES (all times local):

Victoria at Calgary, 7 p.m.
Seattle at Everett, 7:35 p.m.
Portland at Kamloops, 7 p.m.
Moose Jaw at Prince George, 7 p.m.
Prince Albert at Red Deer, 7 p.m.
Medicine Hat at Regina, 7 p.m.
Brandon at Saskatoon, 7:05 p.m.
Kootenay vs. Tri-City, at Kennewick, Wash., 7:05 p.m.
Kelowna at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.

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Posted by Gregg Drinnan at 10:43 PM
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