The Canadian Press has a release out, stating that Calgary Hitmen defenceman Karl Alzner is a double-winner in today's WHL awards. He beat out Americans defenceman T.J. Fast for the Defenceman Of The Year award, and Americans forward Colton Yellow Horn for the Player Of The Year award. This is the second year in a row that the same player has won both these awards - last year Medicine Hat Tigers defenceman Kris Russell won them both.
Alzner will now compete in those categories for the CHL awards which will be announced during the Memorial Cup. For CHL Defenceman Of The Year he'll be up against Drew Doughty (OHL) and Marc-Andre Bourdon (QMJHL), and for CHL Player Of The Year he's up against Justin Azevedo (OHL) and Francis Pare (QMJHL).
I'm not sure why CP has this out and yet the WHL doesn't have it up on their website.
Other WHL award winners today:
Rookie of the Year: Brayden Schenn, Brandon.
Goaltender of the Year: Chet Pickard, Tri-City.
Most Sportsmanlike Player: Tyler Ennis, Medicine Hat.
Coach of the Year: Dan Nachbaur, Tri-City.
Executive of the Year: Bob Tory, Tri-City.
Scholastic Player of the Year: Jordan Eberle, Regina.
Humanitarian of the Year: Ashton Hewson, Prince Albert.
Comparing the actual results to my predictions, I got Ennis and Nachbaur wrong. Oh well.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Draft talk heats up
The draft goes tomorrow and so draft stories are starting to appear in the various WHL city newspapers. Here's some links.....beware though, if you are allergic to cliches and platitudes, you will need to take your antihistamines before clicking. I mean, as far as I can tell, every team in the league plans to take "the best player available" and "hope he develops" into "a contributor at 16 or 17".
Kelowna hopes things go as well for them as the 2001 draft did. And a few local Kelowna kids are hopeful of being picked.
In Lethbridge, Ray Stasiuk is torn between following the Hurricanes and prepping for the draft. And in Raider-land, Prince Albert plans to go big at the draft.
Portland plans to attend the draft on Saturday. Everyone else will be there on Thursday though. By the time Portland picks on Saturday, the only undrafted 14 year old at the Saddledome might be the Flames' stickboy.
Regina is looking to hit for average and not for power, if you pardon the baseball analogy.
In the Calgary, Edmonton, Seattle and Vancouver papers, a draft is what happens when you leave a window open.
Lorne Molleken doesn't know what the Blades are going to do at #3. Come on, Lorne....you're going to pick the best player available! Did you forget to pack your copy of Draft Cliches for Dummies?
Actually, I would be very surprised (and afraid, if I were a Blades fan) if the Blades don't know what they are going to do in the first round. I mean, they pick at #3 and #6. All they need is a piece of paper with six names on it and they know they'll be able get two of those names.
But the Blades fans shouldn't be the only ones to fret: Red Deer doesn't know who they're picking either. And they pick #1, so they are the only team in the league who KNOWS they're going to get the guy they want.
Actually, while I'm just poking fun at the Rebels, Blades, etc, I think the fact that they don't know yet who they're going to pick is more proof of just how close this draft is at the top. There are probably a half-dozen legitimate candidates for #1 overall and the fact that the day before the draft the team with the #1 pick still hasn't decided who that #1 player is, is proof of how divided scouts are on this issue. Which is very, very good news for the Blades, because if there's six possible #1 candidates, then unless the Blades scouting staff are a bunch of chimps, the Blades are going to get two of those six candidates.
A bit of background on some of the best players in the draft, and a mock draft, both from the Saskatoon paper and courtesy of ISS. Good stuff, although somehow I don't think Mark McNeill is going to last until the #12 spot though, not after his performance at Alberta Cup.
Kelowna hopes things go as well for them as the 2001 draft did. And a few local Kelowna kids are hopeful of being picked.
In Lethbridge, Ray Stasiuk is torn between following the Hurricanes and prepping for the draft. And in Raider-land, Prince Albert plans to go big at the draft.
Portland plans to attend the draft on Saturday. Everyone else will be there on Thursday though. By the time Portland picks on Saturday, the only undrafted 14 year old at the Saddledome might be the Flames' stickboy.
Regina is looking to hit for average and not for power, if you pardon the baseball analogy.
In the Calgary, Edmonton, Seattle and Vancouver papers, a draft is what happens when you leave a window open.
Lorne Molleken doesn't know what the Blades are going to do at #3. Come on, Lorne....you're going to pick the best player available! Did you forget to pack your copy of Draft Cliches for Dummies?
Actually, I would be very surprised (and afraid, if I were a Blades fan) if the Blades don't know what they are going to do in the first round. I mean, they pick at #3 and #6. All they need is a piece of paper with six names on it and they know they'll be able get two of those names.
But the Blades fans shouldn't be the only ones to fret: Red Deer doesn't know who they're picking either. And they pick #1, so they are the only team in the league who KNOWS they're going to get the guy they want.
Actually, while I'm just poking fun at the Rebels, Blades, etc, I think the fact that they don't know yet who they're going to pick is more proof of just how close this draft is at the top. There are probably a half-dozen legitimate candidates for #1 overall and the fact that the day before the draft the team with the #1 pick still hasn't decided who that #1 player is, is proof of how divided scouts are on this issue. Which is very, very good news for the Blades, because if there's six possible #1 candidates, then unless the Blades scouting staff are a bunch of chimps, the Blades are going to get two of those six candidates.
A bit of background on some of the best players in the draft, and a mock draft, both from the Saskatoon paper and courtesy of ISS. Good stuff, although somehow I don't think Mark McNeill is going to last until the #12 spot though, not after his performance at Alberta Cup.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Playoff picture update
Spokane has defeated Tri-Cities 4-1 tonight in game seven of the Western Conference final, so it's Spokane vs Lethbridge for the WHL title and a trip to the Memorial Cup.
The full final schedule is already out....it's a 2-3-2 format, which could benefit Lethbridge greatly if they're able to take one of the first two games in Spokane. Shaw will televise the entire series in Canada.....not sure if the games will be available south of the border.
I'm not going to put out a regular season-based "preview" of the Final. The two teams only played once (Lethbridge won 2-1) so it's kind of pointless. You can see the summary if you want to know how that game went, etc.
Championship series dates:
Fri May 2: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 1)
Sat May 3: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 2)
Tue May 6: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 3)
Wed May 7: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 4)
Fri May 9: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 5 - if necessary)
Sun May 11: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 6 - if necessary)
Mon May 12: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 7 - if necessary)
The full final schedule is already out....it's a 2-3-2 format, which could benefit Lethbridge greatly if they're able to take one of the first two games in Spokane. Shaw will televise the entire series in Canada.....not sure if the games will be available south of the border.
I'm not going to put out a regular season-based "preview" of the Final. The two teams only played once (Lethbridge won 2-1) so it's kind of pointless. You can see the summary if you want to know how that game went, etc.
Championship series dates:
Fri May 2: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 1)
Sat May 3: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 2)
Tue May 6: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 3)
Wed May 7: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 4)
Fri May 9: Spokane at Lethbridge (game 5 - if necessary)
Sun May 11: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 6 - if necessary)
Mon May 12: Lethbridge at Spokane (game 7 - if necessary)
Tuesday notes
Tri-City beat Spokane last night in (what else) overtime, forcing a game seven in their Western Conference final series. That's five out of six games that have gone to OT now. Game seven will be played tonight in Kennewick....I'm not sure that home ice is particularly what the Ams want, since the visiting team has won four of the six games so far, and the winners have been alternating all series too - Spokane won games 1, 3, and 5, while Tri-City has won games 2, 4, and 6. Continuing that pattern, Spokane should win tonight's game seven. But, you play all year in order to have home ice in a critical game like this, and now the Ams have it.
I'm not sure if the league has a record for most OT games in a 7-game series, but this series has to be closing in on that record, if it hasn't set it already. I mean, five games of OT in a seven-game series? And if it goes to OT tonight too, it'll be six OT games out of a possible seven. Things just don't get any closer than they have been in this series.
Meanwhile, Lethbridge has the bus gassed up and ready to go.....the Hurricanes will leave tomorrow morning for the winning city in tonight's game. Game one of the WHL final goes Friday.
Travel-wise, this series is probably about as good as there can ever be for a WHL final. About the only closer possible series is anything involving Kootenay on the East's side. Lethbridge is a seven hour drive from Spokane and nine hours from Kennewick. Not a quick jaunt but only Kootenay is closer amongst all the East teams.
Just checked a few things.....Edmonton to Prince George would be just six hours. But we'll wait for the Cougars and Oil Kings to meet in the WHL final first.
And one other note from that series, Ams forward Drew Hoff was injured in game five on a hit from Spokane forward Judd Blackwater. You can see the hit courtesy of YouTube. On a few message boards, etc, I've seen much controversy about the hit, with a lot of Ams fans (mostly) calling it an elbow, saying Blackwater left his feet, etc. Watch the video. There is no elbow (note how Blackwater tucks his arm in before the hit to prevent leading with the elbow) and it's very obvious that he stayed on his feet and was gliding at the time of the hit - so no charging either. This is a beautiful clean hit on a player who unfortunately had his head down in a very bad part of the ice to have your head down in. That's my unbiased opinion as a fan of neither team.
In other WHL news, there could be another player loss in the works next year for the Everett Silvertips, one they probably weren't expecting. According to Everett Herald scribe Nick Patterson, defenceman (and team captain) Jonathan Harty is leaning towards going to university next year rather than return to the 'Tips to play his overage season.
Players passing up their last year in the WHL to play university isn't rare (Jason Lynch did it this year, turning down playing as an O/A in Red Deer to instead play at UBC) but it's certainly not a frequent occurrence either. This might bear some investigating by the 'Tips....maybe Harty is just unhappy in Everett for some reason and could benefit from a change of scenery. He still wouldn't be in an Everett uniform next year but at least they could get something for him in trade in that case.
Assuming Zach Hamill and Leland Irving turn pro next year (which they almost certainly will since they have signed NHL contracts), Everett's overage choices for next year without Harty are: Taylor Ellington, Eric English, and Graham Poteur. Ummm....
Less than 48 hours to the bantam draft (aka the single most-important event of the year to every team in the WHL) now, which means we're starting to see news stories about it. Kelowna head scout Lorne Frey says he's targeting a forward with his team's first pick (10th overall), and figures that 7 of the first 8 or 9 picks will be forwards, but that overall the draft is deeper in defencemen so we'll see more d-men picked later in the draft. And in Regina, Pats G.M. Brent Parker is ready to make a deal, looking to pick up a few more picks in this year's draft by potentially unloading a goaltender, or perhaps one or more of his team's surplus of overagers for next year. Interesting thought.....perhaps Parker will be willing to deal the reigning Eastern Conference goalie of the year, Linden Rowat. With the Pats facing a bit of a rebuilding year next year, it might make more sense to go with Jeff Bosch (who'll be 18) as the starter and break in either Damien Ketlo (17) or Derek Tendler (16) as the backup, rather than keep the 19 year old Rowat. Rowat might fetch a nice price from a team that fancies itself a good goalie away from being a contender next year.
And, the WHL says they will once again be posting the results of the draft in real-time on WHL.ca as they have in the past. Good to hear.....and as the WHL site posts the results, I will also be posting, here on the blog, the info I have on many of the players such as height/weight, 07-08 stats, etc.
I'm not sure if the league has a record for most OT games in a 7-game series, but this series has to be closing in on that record, if it hasn't set it already. I mean, five games of OT in a seven-game series? And if it goes to OT tonight too, it'll be six OT games out of a possible seven. Things just don't get any closer than they have been in this series.
Meanwhile, Lethbridge has the bus gassed up and ready to go.....the Hurricanes will leave tomorrow morning for the winning city in tonight's game. Game one of the WHL final goes Friday.
Travel-wise, this series is probably about as good as there can ever be for a WHL final. About the only closer possible series is anything involving Kootenay on the East's side. Lethbridge is a seven hour drive from Spokane and nine hours from Kennewick. Not a quick jaunt but only Kootenay is closer amongst all the East teams.
Just checked a few things.....Edmonton to Prince George would be just six hours. But we'll wait for the Cougars and Oil Kings to meet in the WHL final first.
And one other note from that series, Ams forward Drew Hoff was injured in game five on a hit from Spokane forward Judd Blackwater. You can see the hit courtesy of YouTube. On a few message boards, etc, I've seen much controversy about the hit, with a lot of Ams fans (mostly) calling it an elbow, saying Blackwater left his feet, etc. Watch the video. There is no elbow (note how Blackwater tucks his arm in before the hit to prevent leading with the elbow) and it's very obvious that he stayed on his feet and was gliding at the time of the hit - so no charging either. This is a beautiful clean hit on a player who unfortunately had his head down in a very bad part of the ice to have your head down in. That's my unbiased opinion as a fan of neither team.
In other WHL news, there could be another player loss in the works next year for the Everett Silvertips, one they probably weren't expecting. According to Everett Herald scribe Nick Patterson, defenceman (and team captain) Jonathan Harty is leaning towards going to university next year rather than return to the 'Tips to play his overage season.
Players passing up their last year in the WHL to play university isn't rare (Jason Lynch did it this year, turning down playing as an O/A in Red Deer to instead play at UBC) but it's certainly not a frequent occurrence either. This might bear some investigating by the 'Tips....maybe Harty is just unhappy in Everett for some reason and could benefit from a change of scenery. He still wouldn't be in an Everett uniform next year but at least they could get something for him in trade in that case.
Assuming Zach Hamill and Leland Irving turn pro next year (which they almost certainly will since they have signed NHL contracts), Everett's overage choices for next year without Harty are: Taylor Ellington, Eric English, and Graham Poteur. Ummm....
Less than 48 hours to the bantam draft (aka the single most-important event of the year to every team in the WHL) now, which means we're starting to see news stories about it. Kelowna head scout Lorne Frey says he's targeting a forward with his team's first pick (10th overall), and figures that 7 of the first 8 or 9 picks will be forwards, but that overall the draft is deeper in defencemen so we'll see more d-men picked later in the draft. And in Regina, Pats G.M. Brent Parker is ready to make a deal, looking to pick up a few more picks in this year's draft by potentially unloading a goaltender, or perhaps one or more of his team's surplus of overagers for next year. Interesting thought.....perhaps Parker will be willing to deal the reigning Eastern Conference goalie of the year, Linden Rowat. With the Pats facing a bit of a rebuilding year next year, it might make more sense to go with Jeff Bosch (who'll be 18) as the starter and break in either Damien Ketlo (17) or Derek Tendler (16) as the backup, rather than keep the 19 year old Rowat. Rowat might fetch a nice price from a team that fancies itself a good goalie away from being a contender next year.
And, the WHL says they will once again be posting the results of the draft in real-time on WHL.ca as they have in the past. Good to hear.....and as the WHL site posts the results, I will also be posting, here on the blog, the info I have on many of the players such as height/weight, 07-08 stats, etc.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Monday notes
The Winnipeg Thrashers picked a really bad time to suffer their second loss of the season yesterday. They lost 6-4 to the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves in the final of the Telus Cup, which means Sudbury is national AAA midget champions and Winnipeg is just a team with a 58-2 record. After that kind of season, I can only imagine the kind of hurt must be involved with losing the last and most important game.
The other western team also lost, with the Calgary Buffaloes dropping the bronze medal game 7-4 to the Quebec reps, so the Buffs finish 4th. Look for a bunch of players from the Thrashers and Buffaloes to be in the WHL next year.
Spokane now leads the WHL final 3 games to 2 after a double-OT win over Tri-City on Saturday night. In five games of that series, three of them have gone to double-OT now. That's more than one whole extra game these teams have played. Meanwhile, Lethbridge sits at home and rests up for their championship series against the winner. Games six and seven (if necessary) will be played tonight and tomorrow night, with the championship series likely getting underway on Friday/Saturday/Sunday. Lethbridge has already scheduled games three and four to be on May 6 and 7 - next Tuesday and Wednesday.
The first trade in the WHL since the trade deadline happened over the weekend: Kamloops traded two of their four 2008 4th round bantam picks to Moose Jaw in exchange for the Warriors' 2009 3rd and 5th round picks. That's Craig Bonner's first deal as the Blazers G.M. and in making the deal, he has now replaced the 2009 3rd rounder that the Blazers had to give up in order to get him out of Vancouver.
It's actually a brilliant deal for the Warriors too; they owed Saskatoon a 2008 4th round pick to complete the Brett Ward deal from earlier this season, and they didn't have one. The terms of that trade stipulated that if Moose Jaw did not have a 2008 4th round pick to give the Blades, then the Blades got Moose Jaw's 2009 3rd round instead. (So the Warriors will now give the Blades one of their newly-acquired 4th round picks and complete the Ward trade). But they were going to lose that 2009 3rd either way, and this way they also basically got to trade a 2009 5th for a second 2008 4th, which is a good deal for the Jaw.
The last bantam showcase of the year, the Alberta Cup, wrapped up yesterday, so the bantam season is now officially over and many WHL scouting teams will now spend the next three days tweaking their player rankings to come up with their teams' final draft lists before the draft on Thursday. I did not see any of the Alberta Cup (which pitted 160 of the best Alberta '93s against each other in an 8-team tournament), but from what I hear (and the stats), Edmonton South Side Athletic Club forward Mark McNeill was extremely impressive at the showcase, recording 9 goals and 12 points in 5 games against the best players Alberta has to offer in his age group. Don't be surprised if McNeill has just made himself a legit candidate for #1 overall....I think he was in the #5 to #10 range on a lot of lists before, but he outshone others like Rattie, Siemens, Topping, etc at Alberta Cup.
The other western team also lost, with the Calgary Buffaloes dropping the bronze medal game 7-4 to the Quebec reps, so the Buffs finish 4th. Look for a bunch of players from the Thrashers and Buffaloes to be in the WHL next year.
Spokane now leads the WHL final 3 games to 2 after a double-OT win over Tri-City on Saturday night. In five games of that series, three of them have gone to double-OT now. That's more than one whole extra game these teams have played. Meanwhile, Lethbridge sits at home and rests up for their championship series against the winner. Games six and seven (if necessary) will be played tonight and tomorrow night, with the championship series likely getting underway on Friday/Saturday/Sunday. Lethbridge has already scheduled games three and four to be on May 6 and 7 - next Tuesday and Wednesday.
The first trade in the WHL since the trade deadline happened over the weekend: Kamloops traded two of their four 2008 4th round bantam picks to Moose Jaw in exchange for the Warriors' 2009 3rd and 5th round picks. That's Craig Bonner's first deal as the Blazers G.M. and in making the deal, he has now replaced the 2009 3rd rounder that the Blazers had to give up in order to get him out of Vancouver.
It's actually a brilliant deal for the Warriors too; they owed Saskatoon a 2008 4th round pick to complete the Brett Ward deal from earlier this season, and they didn't have one. The terms of that trade stipulated that if Moose Jaw did not have a 2008 4th round pick to give the Blades, then the Blades got Moose Jaw's 2009 3rd round instead. (So the Warriors will now give the Blades one of their newly-acquired 4th round picks and complete the Ward trade). But they were going to lose that 2009 3rd either way, and this way they also basically got to trade a 2009 5th for a second 2008 4th, which is a good deal for the Jaw.
The last bantam showcase of the year, the Alberta Cup, wrapped up yesterday, so the bantam season is now officially over and many WHL scouting teams will now spend the next three days tweaking their player rankings to come up with their teams' final draft lists before the draft on Thursday. I did not see any of the Alberta Cup (which pitted 160 of the best Alberta '93s against each other in an 8-team tournament), but from what I hear (and the stats), Edmonton South Side Athletic Club forward Mark McNeill was extremely impressive at the showcase, recording 9 goals and 12 points in 5 games against the best players Alberta has to offer in his age group. Don't be surprised if McNeill has just made himself a legit candidate for #1 overall....I think he was in the #5 to #10 range on a lot of lists before, but he outshone others like Rattie, Siemens, Topping, etc at Alberta Cup.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Friday bits
The Chiefs and Americans played a couple double-OT games back-to-back earlier this week, but that was nothing compared to what the AHL's Philadelphia Phantoms and Albany River Rats did last night. They played a playoff game that went 3 minutes into the FIFTH OVERTIME before Philadelphia won it. The game is the longest in AHL history and only three NHL games have been longer.
Former WHLers in the game included Tristan Grant and Boyd Kane for the winning Phantoms, and Brett Carson, Kiel McLeod, and Brandon Sutter for the losing Rats. Sutter's actually a "current" WHLer since he played for Red Deer this year and will have to play for Red Deer again next year if he isn't in the NHL.
At the Telus Cup, both western teams won; the Winnipeg Thrashers beat the host Ottawa Valley 6-3, while the Calgary Buffaloes beat the Quebec reps 1-0. Both western teams have now clinched spots in the semifinals tomorrow. Winnipeg closes out their round-robin by playing Sudbury today with the winner of that game getting first place. Calgary finishes up against Cole Harbour this morning but will finish either 2nd or 3rd regardless of whether they win or lose, and thus will play the loser of the Winnipeg-Sudbury game in one semifinal tomorrow. Cole Harbour, Ottawa Valley, and St-Francois can all finish no better than 4th, and one of them will do that (and play the Winnipeg-Sudbury winner in a semifinal) while the other two will not make the playoffs.
Former WHLers in the game included Tristan Grant and Boyd Kane for the winning Phantoms, and Brett Carson, Kiel McLeod, and Brandon Sutter for the losing Rats. Sutter's actually a "current" WHLer since he played for Red Deer this year and will have to play for Red Deer again next year if he isn't in the NHL.
At the Telus Cup, both western teams won; the Winnipeg Thrashers beat the host Ottawa Valley 6-3, while the Calgary Buffaloes beat the Quebec reps 1-0. Both western teams have now clinched spots in the semifinals tomorrow. Winnipeg closes out their round-robin by playing Sudbury today with the winner of that game getting first place. Calgary finishes up against Cole Harbour this morning but will finish either 2nd or 3rd regardless of whether they win or lose, and thus will play the loser of the Winnipeg-Sudbury game in one semifinal tomorrow. Cole Harbour, Ottawa Valley, and St-Francois can all finish no better than 4th, and one of them will do that (and play the Winnipeg-Sudbury winner in a semifinal) while the other two will not make the playoffs.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Thursday notes
And then there were three.....Lethbridge completed the sweep of the Hitmen last night, advancing the Hurricanes to the WHL final for the first time since they won it in 1997. In fact, I think this year has represented the first time that franchise has even won a playoff round since 1997. And what a roll they are on....many people thought they would beat the Hitmen but I don't think very many people thought it would be in four games. This is also the first time in Hitmen franchise history (including 11 straight trips to the playoffs) that the Hitmen have been swept in a playoff series.
The OHL reps for the Memorial Cup were also determined last night. Kitchener is the host so they're guaranteed a spot, but the Rangers continued their quest to go in the front door by advancing to the OHL final last night. Their opponent in the final was also determined last night and it will be the Belleville Bulls. And because of that, Belleville will get to play in the Memorial Cup regardless of which of those two teams wins the OHL. Belleville has appeared in the Memorial Cup once before, in 1999, where they finished 3rd. Kitchener has appeared in the Cup five times before, most recently in 2003 when they won it.
Both western teams won yesterday at the Telus Cup; the Winnipeg Thrashers are now 3-0 after beating Cole Harbour 4-3, and the Calgary Buffaloes improve to 1-1-1 after beating host Ottawa Valley 5-1. Today Winnipeg plays Ottawa Valley, while Calgary takes on the Quebec rep, Seminaire St-Francois. The top four teams after the round-robin make the playoffs, with #1 playing #4 and #2 playing #3 in the semifinals Saturday. Right now Winnipeg is in first place and Calgary is in third, so both western teams are in good shape for the playoffs so far.
The OHL reps for the Memorial Cup were also determined last night. Kitchener is the host so they're guaranteed a spot, but the Rangers continued their quest to go in the front door by advancing to the OHL final last night. Their opponent in the final was also determined last night and it will be the Belleville Bulls. And because of that, Belleville will get to play in the Memorial Cup regardless of which of those two teams wins the OHL. Belleville has appeared in the Memorial Cup once before, in 1999, where they finished 3rd. Kitchener has appeared in the Cup five times before, most recently in 2003 when they won it.
Both western teams won yesterday at the Telus Cup; the Winnipeg Thrashers are now 3-0 after beating Cole Harbour 4-3, and the Calgary Buffaloes improve to 1-1-1 after beating host Ottawa Valley 5-1. Today Winnipeg plays Ottawa Valley, while Calgary takes on the Quebec rep, Seminaire St-Francois. The top four teams after the round-robin make the playoffs, with #1 playing #4 and #2 playing #3 in the semifinals Saturday. Right now Winnipeg is in first place and Calgary is in third, so both western teams are in good shape for the playoffs so far.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Chynoweth obit
Ed Chynoweth's obituary is in today's Calgary Herald. You can read it here, and there is also a guestbook there if anyone wants to send a note to the family.
Funeral is in Calgary on May 5....expect almost everyone who's anyone in the WHL to attend. Most will already be in Calgary for the draft and league meetings May 1st & 2nd anyway.
Funeral is in Calgary on May 5....expect almost everyone who's anyone in the WHL to attend. Most will already be in Calgary for the draft and league meetings May 1st & 2nd anyway.
Top bantam draft prospects
The WHL bantam draft goes just one week from tomorrow. The Red Deer Rebels will have the #1 overall pick, followed by Portland at #2 and Saskatoon at #3. As usual, trying to predict the outcome of the draft is a crapshoot, with no clear-cut #1 overall pick this year.
Here's stats on 10 players though who are all pretty good bets to go in the first round....players are listed alphabetically so nothing should be read into the ordering.....
Everything I have seen and heard so far leans towards Nugent-Hopkins, Rattie, and St. Croix being the leading contenders for #1 overall. Benson is another possible candidate, and Siemens and/or Topping have a chance to get into that top grouping if somebody up there wants a defenceman badly enough. Brossoit seems to be a popular choice as the best goalie available but whether he goes in the first round or not is a really hard call....goalies don't go in the first round of the bantam draft very often although there were two last year.
Here's stats on 10 players though who are all pretty good bets to go in the first round....players are listed alphabetically so nothing should be read into the ordering.....
| Brent Benson | |||||
| Center - 5'11", 171 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Weyburn Wings (SSMHL AA bantam) | 26 | 37 | 37 | 74 | 39 |
| Moose Jaw Warriors (SMHL AAA midget) | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Moose Jaw Warriors (Macs Midget Tournament) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Laurent Brossoit | |||||
| Goaltender - 5'11", 150 lbs | GP | W | L | T | GAA |
| Cloverdale Colts (KIBIHT) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
| Brendan Hurley | |||||
| Forward - 6'0", 170 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Fort Saskatchewan Rangers (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 31 | 51 | 32 | 83 | 141 |
| Fort Saskatchewan Rangers (AMBHL playoffs) | 9 | 16 | 4 | 20 | 46 |
| Fort Saskatchewan Rangers (REM midget 15 y.o.) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Fort Saskatchewan Rangers (Edmonton AAA tournament) | 3 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 8 |
| Mark McNeill | |||||
| Forward - 6'0", 172 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Edmonton SSAC (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 33 | 41 | 28 | 69 | 28 |
| Edmonton SSAC (AMBHL playoffs) | 4 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 |
| Edmonton SSAC (St. Albert AAA tournament) | 5 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 18 |
| Ryan Nugent-Hopkins | |||||
| Forward - 5'10", 145 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Burnaby Winter Club Bruins (Western championships) | 5 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 4 |
| Ty Rattie | |||||
| Forward - 6'0", 159 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Airdrie Xtreme (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 33 | 75 | 56 | 131 | 101 |
| Airdrie Xtreme (AMBHL playoffs) | 10 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 16 |
| Airdrie Xtreme (Western championships) | 5 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 4 |
| Duncan Siemens | |||||
| Defence - 6'2", 183 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 32 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 54 |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (AMBHL playoffs) | 12 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 32 |
| Sherwood Park Squires (REM midget 15 y.o.) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (Western championships) | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 18 |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (St. Albert AAA tournament) | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 16 |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (Edmonton AAA tournament) | 5 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 27 |
| Colin Smith | |||||
| Forward - 5'8", 132 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Edmonton CAC (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 33 | 36 | 70 | 106 | 28 |
| Edmonton CAC (AMBHL playoffs) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Edmonton CAC (St. Albert AAA tournament) | 6 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 16 |
| Edmonton CAC (Edmonton AAA tournament) | 5 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 4 |
| Michael St. Croix | |||||
| Forward - 5'10", 152 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Winnipeg Monarchs (WMHA AAA bantam) | 25 | 51 | 45 | 96 | 20 |
| Winnipeg Monarchs (Western championships) | 5 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 4 |
| Winnipeg Monarchs (St. Albert AAA tournament) | 7 | 16 | 7 | 23 | 4 |
| Winnipeg White (Directors Cup) | 4 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 4 |
| Mitch Topping | |||||
| Defence - 6'1", 165 lbs | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
| Red Deer Rebels White (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 33 | 14 | 26 | 40 | 100 |
| Red Deer Rebels White (AMBHL playoffs) | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
Everything I have seen and heard so far leans towards Nugent-Hopkins, Rattie, and St. Croix being the leading contenders for #1 overall. Benson is another possible candidate, and Siemens and/or Topping have a chance to get into that top grouping if somebody up there wants a defenceman badly enough. Brossoit seems to be a popular choice as the best goalie available but whether he goes in the first round or not is a really hard call....goalies don't go in the first round of the bantam draft very often although there were two last year.
Wednesday stuff
Firstoff today, Gregg Drinnan has an awesome piece on Ed Chynoweth in the Kamloops paper today and on his blog. If you haven't read it already, you owe it to yourself to click that link and go read it, especially if maybe you're slightly fuzzy on just what big Ed did for the WHL.
I love Gregg's last line: Ed Chynoweth also is survived by a hockey league. How very true, because even though Ed didn't found or "father" the league, he certainly raised it. Without his leadership over the years, we might not have a WHL today.....or we might have one that looks a lot worse than what we have today.
Moving on.....last night's games saw the Americans knot the Western conference series 2-2, while the Eastern conference series saw the Hurricanes eliminate the Hitmen in game three. Not an official elimination of course, but nobody comes back from down 3-0 after looking as bad in the first three games as the Hitmen have. I can believe a team might win four straight if they only lost three close ones to start the series, but this series has not been close. Don't rule out the Hurricanes finishing off a sweep tonight.
It really looks like Hitmen GM Kelly Kisio's decision not to acquire a goaltender at the trade deadline is biting him in the ass right now. Both his goaltenders have collectively shit the bed this series and can't even make routine saves now.....combine that with the stellar play of Juha Metsola at the other end and goaltending is really deciding this series.
Personally, I'll be surprised if Dan Spence ever plays for the Hitmen again. He wasn't a sure thing to be in their overage trio next year anyway and I don't know how you can keep a goalie as an overage now after repeatedly having to pull him in the playoffs the year before.
Bantam draft is only 8 days away....I have a quick list of some of the top prospects that I'm getting ready to post. Look for it later today.
The Canadian U-18 team, with its 7 WHLers, goes for gold this morning against Russia at the World U-18 championships in Kazan, Russia. The game starts at 9am MDT and will be shown live on TSN. It may (don't know for sure) also be streamed live on TSN.ca if you want to watch the game that way.....or you can follow it live at the IIHF website. UPDATE: Canada walloped Russia 8-0 to win the gold....good day for the 'dub kids, with four of the eight goals coming from WHL products. Jordan Eberle with two, and Brayden Schenn and Brandon McMillan added singles.
Earlier this morning, USA won the bronze by beating Sweden 6-3.
At the Telus Cup, the Winnipeg Thrashers won again to improve to 2-0 at the tournament, giving them sole possession of first place already after playing just two of the five round-robin games. Meanwhile, the Calgary Buffaloes tied Sudbury to sit in a three-way tie for fourth place. The Buffaloes really have to win some games now if they want to qualify for the playoffs. Today the Buffaloes play the Atlantic rep, the Cole Harbour McCains, while the Thrashers play the host Ottawa Valley Titans. Link to the Telus Cup is here. And if you want to watch the Telus Cup games live, they are being streamed at www.telushockeycanada.com. If anyone actually watches a game there, let me know if it's any good.....
I love Gregg's last line: Ed Chynoweth also is survived by a hockey league. How very true, because even though Ed didn't found or "father" the league, he certainly raised it. Without his leadership over the years, we might not have a WHL today.....or we might have one that looks a lot worse than what we have today.
Moving on.....last night's games saw the Americans knot the Western conference series 2-2, while the Eastern conference series saw the Hurricanes eliminate the Hitmen in game three. Not an official elimination of course, but nobody comes back from down 3-0 after looking as bad in the first three games as the Hitmen have. I can believe a team might win four straight if they only lost three close ones to start the series, but this series has not been close. Don't rule out the Hurricanes finishing off a sweep tonight.
It really looks like Hitmen GM Kelly Kisio's decision not to acquire a goaltender at the trade deadline is biting him in the ass right now. Both his goaltenders have collectively shit the bed this series and can't even make routine saves now.....combine that with the stellar play of Juha Metsola at the other end and goaltending is really deciding this series.
Personally, I'll be surprised if Dan Spence ever plays for the Hitmen again. He wasn't a sure thing to be in their overage trio next year anyway and I don't know how you can keep a goalie as an overage now after repeatedly having to pull him in the playoffs the year before.
Bantam draft is only 8 days away....I have a quick list of some of the top prospects that I'm getting ready to post. Look for it later today.
The Canadian U-18 team, with its 7 WHLers, goes for gold this morning against Russia at the World U-18 championships in Kazan, Russia. The game starts at 9am MDT and will be shown live on TSN. It may (don't know for sure) also be streamed live on TSN.ca if you want to watch the game that way.....or you can follow it live at the IIHF website. UPDATE: Canada walloped Russia 8-0 to win the gold....good day for the 'dub kids, with four of the eight goals coming from WHL products. Jordan Eberle with two, and Brayden Schenn and Brandon McMillan added singles.
Earlier this morning, USA won the bronze by beating Sweden 6-3.
At the Telus Cup, the Winnipeg Thrashers won again to improve to 2-0 at the tournament, giving them sole possession of first place already after playing just two of the five round-robin games. Meanwhile, the Calgary Buffaloes tied Sudbury to sit in a three-way tie for fourth place. The Buffaloes really have to win some games now if they want to qualify for the playoffs. Today the Buffaloes play the Atlantic rep, the Cole Harbour McCains, while the Thrashers play the host Ottawa Valley Titans. Link to the Telus Cup is here. And if you want to watch the Telus Cup games live, they are being streamed at www.telushockeycanada.com. If anyone actually watches a game there, let me know if it's any good.....
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Bonner compensation
The press conference in Kamloops is over, and revealed that the Blazers will send the Giants their 2008 and 2009 3rd round bantam picks as compensation for Craig Bonner.
Chynoweth
Some sad, sad news for the WHL and Canadian major junior hockey everywhere really....Ed Chynoweth has passed away from kidney cancer this morning. WHL site has a release as well, here.
Chynoweth was the owner of the Kootenay Ice, but more importantly was the president of the WHL for almost a quarter-century and served as commissioner of the CHL for most of those years as well. Few people were as dedicated to or cared as much about junior hockey as big Ed. If not for his leadership of the league through its earlier years when it was full of owners and GMs and coaches with.....let's say "strong personalities"....who knows where the WHL would be today.
As a longtime WHL fan, I cannot count the number of times I went to games at the Saddledome and saw Ed sitting in the second-deck stands watching....not up in the press box or in a club seat or suite like some other bigwigs might be, but in the cheap seats visiting with old friends and NHL scouts, and he would chat with anyone who approached him. I'm sure many of you have similar stories of seeing Ed in your local rinks too, mingling with the common fans, because that's the kind of guy he was. Sad, sad day for us common fans....I'm sure there will be moments of silence before tonight's games. Take that moment to thank Ed for his contributions to the league we all love.
Chynoweth was the owner of the Kootenay Ice, but more importantly was the president of the WHL for almost a quarter-century and served as commissioner of the CHL for most of those years as well. Few people were as dedicated to or cared as much about junior hockey as big Ed. If not for his leadership of the league through its earlier years when it was full of owners and GMs and coaches with.....let's say "strong personalities"....who knows where the WHL would be today.
As a longtime WHL fan, I cannot count the number of times I went to games at the Saddledome and saw Ed sitting in the second-deck stands watching....not up in the press box or in a club seat or suite like some other bigwigs might be, but in the cheap seats visiting with old friends and NHL scouts, and he would chat with anyone who approached him. I'm sure many of you have similar stories of seeing Ed in your local rinks too, mingling with the common fans, because that's the kind of guy he was. Sad, sad day for us common fans....I'm sure there will be moments of silence before tonight's games. Take that moment to thank Ed for his contributions to the league we all love.
Tuesday notes
So Spokane takes a 2-1 series lead with a 2-0 win in the middle game of their 3-in-3 with Tri-City last night in Spokane.
Am I the only one who is surprised with the low amount of scoring going on in that series? I mean, it has been fantastic entertainment (from what I hear, since I haven't seen any of it) but only four goals have been scored in what amounts to 11 1/2 periods of hockey. These were the #1 (Tri-City) and #4 (Spokane) highest-scoring teams in the league in the regular season and yet combined they're averaging not much more than one goal per 60 minutes. Tri-City alone has only one goal total in the three games....this after averaging 3.6 goals per game in the regular season. That's playoff-style hockey for though you I guess.
Speaking of high-scoring regular season teams who are having trouble putting the puck in the net in the playoffs, the Hitmen were the #2 highest-scoring team in the regular season but have just five goals in a little over two games of their series against the Hurricanes. Of particular concern to the Hitmen is the lack of scoring from their big guns, to the point where coach/GM Kelly Kisio said on Sunday that the team didn't need more secondary scoring but rather more "first-ary" (his word) scoring. Brock Nixon and Ryan White combined for 15 goals and 34 points in 12 games against Moose Jaw and Swift Current but combined they have one assist and a -10 through the first two games against Lethbridge.
Tonight's game three in Lethbridge is pretty much a must-win for the Hitmen since losing means going down 3-0 in the series and nobody ever comes back from that. Calgary has been a very good road team this year (2nd-best road record in the league in the regular season and 5-1 so far in the playoffs) so that's in their favour but they've been outplayed by Lethbridge in five of the seven periods the two teams have played this series....and I think the Hurricanes are in Calgary's heads just a little bit, with that 7-1 record against them this year. I mean, at some point players have to be asking themselves, "can we even beat these guys or not?"
And still with that series, game five of the Hitmen-Hurricanes series - only necessary if the Hitmen win either tonight or tomorrow night though - has been scheduled for Friday night in Calgary. Still no scheduling of either game six or seven though, but I would expect Lethbridge will probably want to play game six on either Saturday or Sunday to take advantage of the usually larger weekend crowds.
And a tidbit which spells bad news for the Tri-City Americans and the loser of tonight's Calgary-Lethbridge game: the winner of game three has won 11 of the 12 WHL playoff series so far this year. The only exception was Regina beating Swift Current in game three of their first round series.
Moving on but still in the WHL: there's a press conference in Kamloops today in which the Blazers will officially introduce Craig Bonner as their new G.M., and likely we'll find out what they had to give the Giants to free him up too.
Bonner's hiring means there will be two sets of brothers holding G.M. posts in the league. Of course, Bonner's older brother Scott is the Giants' G.M., and the Chynoweth brothers, Dean and Jeff, are the G.M.s in Swift Current and Kootenay respectively.
The Winnipeg AAA midget Thrashers ran their season record to 53-1 with a 3-0 win over the Calgary Buffaloes yesterday in the opening game of the Telus Cup for both teams. Three WHL prospects - Cole Pruden (Tri-City), Jesse Hall (Brandon) and Mark Stone (Brandon) - scored for the Thrashers, who will meet the Quebec representative (and last year's 3rd-place finisher), the Seminaire St-Francois Blizzard, today in their 2nd game. The Buffaloes take on the Ontario reps, the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves, today.
And lastly, to the NHL, the Montreal Canadiens hockey fans are amongst the most passionate around, but why are there always some drunken losers who have to give everyone else a bad name?
Three game sevens this year in the NHL's opening round though.....compare that to the WHL, where we only had one 7th game in the first round (and none in the second round!). I don't care if you support either team involved or not, if you're a fan you can't help but enjoy watching game sevens. The knowledge that somebody's going to the next round and somebody else is going home for good based on the outcome of the game adds just a little extra thrill to every chance, every goal, every save. And if you're not watching the Hitmen-Hurricanes tonight on Shaw, there are two more NHL game sevens tonight: Philadelphia at Washington (where the Caps will try to complete a comeback from a 3-1 series hole), and Calgary at San Jose (where the Sharks will try to avoid blowing a 3-2 series lead and thus extending their recent tradition of strong regular seasons followed by playoff chokes).
Am I the only one who is surprised with the low amount of scoring going on in that series? I mean, it has been fantastic entertainment (from what I hear, since I haven't seen any of it) but only four goals have been scored in what amounts to 11 1/2 periods of hockey. These were the #1 (Tri-City) and #4 (Spokane) highest-scoring teams in the league in the regular season and yet combined they're averaging not much more than one goal per 60 minutes. Tri-City alone has only one goal total in the three games....this after averaging 3.6 goals per game in the regular season. That's playoff-style hockey for though you I guess.
Speaking of high-scoring regular season teams who are having trouble putting the puck in the net in the playoffs, the Hitmen were the #2 highest-scoring team in the regular season but have just five goals in a little over two games of their series against the Hurricanes. Of particular concern to the Hitmen is the lack of scoring from their big guns, to the point where coach/GM Kelly Kisio said on Sunday that the team didn't need more secondary scoring but rather more "first-ary" (his word) scoring. Brock Nixon and Ryan White combined for 15 goals and 34 points in 12 games against Moose Jaw and Swift Current but combined they have one assist and a -10 through the first two games against Lethbridge.
Tonight's game three in Lethbridge is pretty much a must-win for the Hitmen since losing means going down 3-0 in the series and nobody ever comes back from that. Calgary has been a very good road team this year (2nd-best road record in the league in the regular season and 5-1 so far in the playoffs) so that's in their favour but they've been outplayed by Lethbridge in five of the seven periods the two teams have played this series....and I think the Hurricanes are in Calgary's heads just a little bit, with that 7-1 record against them this year. I mean, at some point players have to be asking themselves, "can we even beat these guys or not?"
And still with that series, game five of the Hitmen-Hurricanes series - only necessary if the Hitmen win either tonight or tomorrow night though - has been scheduled for Friday night in Calgary. Still no scheduling of either game six or seven though, but I would expect Lethbridge will probably want to play game six on either Saturday or Sunday to take advantage of the usually larger weekend crowds.
And a tidbit which spells bad news for the Tri-City Americans and the loser of tonight's Calgary-Lethbridge game: the winner of game three has won 11 of the 12 WHL playoff series so far this year. The only exception was Regina beating Swift Current in game three of their first round series.
Moving on but still in the WHL: there's a press conference in Kamloops today in which the Blazers will officially introduce Craig Bonner as their new G.M., and likely we'll find out what they had to give the Giants to free him up too.
Bonner's hiring means there will be two sets of brothers holding G.M. posts in the league. Of course, Bonner's older brother Scott is the Giants' G.M., and the Chynoweth brothers, Dean and Jeff, are the G.M.s in Swift Current and Kootenay respectively.
The Winnipeg AAA midget Thrashers ran their season record to 53-1 with a 3-0 win over the Calgary Buffaloes yesterday in the opening game of the Telus Cup for both teams. Three WHL prospects - Cole Pruden (Tri-City), Jesse Hall (Brandon) and Mark Stone (Brandon) - scored for the Thrashers, who will meet the Quebec representative (and last year's 3rd-place finisher), the Seminaire St-Francois Blizzard, today in their 2nd game. The Buffaloes take on the Ontario reps, the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves, today.
And lastly, to the NHL, the Montreal Canadiens hockey fans are amongst the most passionate around, but why are there always some drunken losers who have to give everyone else a bad name?
Three game sevens this year in the NHL's opening round though.....compare that to the WHL, where we only had one 7th game in the first round (and none in the second round!). I don't care if you support either team involved or not, if you're a fan you can't help but enjoy watching game sevens. The knowledge that somebody's going to the next round and somebody else is going home for good based on the outcome of the game adds just a little extra thrill to every chance, every goal, every save. And if you're not watching the Hitmen-Hurricanes tonight on Shaw, there are two more NHL game sevens tonight: Philadelphia at Washington (where the Caps will try to complete a comeback from a 3-1 series hole), and Calgary at San Jose (where the Sharks will try to avoid blowing a 3-2 series lead and thus extending their recent tradition of strong regular seasons followed by playoff chokes).
Monday, April 21, 2008
Monday news
Big news of the day, and taken from Gregg Drinnan, is that the Blazers have apparently gotten their man. Vancouver Giants assistant coach/assistant G.M. Craig Bonner has apparently agreed to a five-year contract to be Kamloops' new General Manager.
Five years is a serious commitment so the Blazers owners must be very confident that Bonner's the guy to lead that franchise out of the woods it has been in for the past few seasons. And since he was really the only candidate they ever even pursued, that should have been apparent anyway.
Getting Bonner out of his job in Vancouver will cost the Blazers two bantam draft picks, one in next week's 2008 draft and one in 2009. No word yet on what round those picks are but I would think they are probably 2nd/3rd/4th round type picks. I know the Blazers have at least one extra 2008 2nd round pick (from Calgary in the Brock Nixon deal), so it could be a 2nd rounder this year and a later-round pick next year, for example. Just guessing though and we'll have to wait for the press conference (which could be today or tomorrow) to find out exactly what compensation the Giants will get.
At the World U-18's, Canada defeated Sweden in the semi-final this morning and thus will get to play for the gold medal on Wednesday morning against Russia, who defeated the USA in the other semi-final. WHLers Jordan Eberle, Travis Hamonic, Tyler Myers, Brandon McMillan, Colby Robak, Brayden Schenn, and Colten Teubert are on this team.
The Telus Cup, the Canadian AAA midget championship, also gets underway today in Arnprior, Ontario. Representing the B.C./Alberta region are the Calgary Buffaloes, and representing the Saskatchewan/Manitoba region are the Winnipeg Thrashers. The Thrashers are the team I've mentioned on this blog before, who went undefeated all season. They did lose one game in the SK/MB/Northern Ontario playoff tournament but they're still some freaky record like 52-1 this year. Anyone interested can follow the Telus Cup here. Telus is also offering live free webcasts of all the games in the tournament.....there's a link to those at the tournament site link I posted there.
WHL-affiliated players on the Buffaloes and Thrashers:
Buffaloes:
D Erik Bonsor (Calgary 2006 4th round)
C Chris Collins (Chilliwack 2007 4th round)
D Cole Grbavac (Kamloops list player - was 2006 3rd round of Portland but dropped by them)
LW Joel Lowry (Red Deer list player)
RW Riley Reinbolt (Moose Jaw 2006 6th round)
D Hayden Rintoul (Kootenay 2006 4th round)
C Brody Sutter (Saskatoon list player)
LW Blair Wentworth (Chilliwack 2007 7th round)
Thrashers:
D Cory Baldwin (Spokane 2007 4th round)
RW David Conrad (Spokane 2006 3rd round)
C Matt Glowa (Prince Albert 2007 7th round)
C Jesse Hall (Brandon 2007 6th round)
C Mike Hay (Swift Current 2007 4th round)
LW Rob Lazo (Tri-City list player)
G Brett Martyniuk (Tri-City list player)
RW Kyle Mulder (Regina 2006 8th round)
D Jesse Pearson (Edmonton list player)
C Cole Pruden (Tri-City list player)
RW Mark Stone (Brandon 2007 5th round)
D Jeff Weselake (Kamloops 2006 10th round)
Five years is a serious commitment so the Blazers owners must be very confident that Bonner's the guy to lead that franchise out of the woods it has been in for the past few seasons. And since he was really the only candidate they ever even pursued, that should have been apparent anyway.
Getting Bonner out of his job in Vancouver will cost the Blazers two bantam draft picks, one in next week's 2008 draft and one in 2009. No word yet on what round those picks are but I would think they are probably 2nd/3rd/4th round type picks. I know the Blazers have at least one extra 2008 2nd round pick (from Calgary in the Brock Nixon deal), so it could be a 2nd rounder this year and a later-round pick next year, for example. Just guessing though and we'll have to wait for the press conference (which could be today or tomorrow) to find out exactly what compensation the Giants will get.
At the World U-18's, Canada defeated Sweden in the semi-final this morning and thus will get to play for the gold medal on Wednesday morning against Russia, who defeated the USA in the other semi-final. WHLers Jordan Eberle, Travis Hamonic, Tyler Myers, Brandon McMillan, Colby Robak, Brayden Schenn, and Colten Teubert are on this team.
The Telus Cup, the Canadian AAA midget championship, also gets underway today in Arnprior, Ontario. Representing the B.C./Alberta region are the Calgary Buffaloes, and representing the Saskatchewan/Manitoba region are the Winnipeg Thrashers. The Thrashers are the team I've mentioned on this blog before, who went undefeated all season. They did lose one game in the SK/MB/Northern Ontario playoff tournament but they're still some freaky record like 52-1 this year. Anyone interested can follow the Telus Cup here. Telus is also offering live free webcasts of all the games in the tournament.....there's a link to those at the tournament site link I posted there.
WHL-affiliated players on the Buffaloes and Thrashers:
Buffaloes:
D Erik Bonsor (Calgary 2006 4th round)
C Chris Collins (Chilliwack 2007 4th round)
D Cole Grbavac (Kamloops list player - was 2006 3rd round of Portland but dropped by them)
LW Joel Lowry (Red Deer list player)
RW Riley Reinbolt (Moose Jaw 2006 6th round)
D Hayden Rintoul (Kootenay 2006 4th round)
C Brody Sutter (Saskatoon list player)
LW Blair Wentworth (Chilliwack 2007 7th round)
Thrashers:
D Cory Baldwin (Spokane 2007 4th round)
RW David Conrad (Spokane 2006 3rd round)
C Matt Glowa (Prince Albert 2007 7th round)
C Jesse Hall (Brandon 2007 6th round)
C Mike Hay (Swift Current 2007 4th round)
LW Rob Lazo (Tri-City list player)
G Brett Martyniuk (Tri-City list player)
RW Kyle Mulder (Regina 2006 8th round)
D Jesse Pearson (Edmonton list player)
C Cole Pruden (Tri-City list player)
RW Mark Stone (Brandon 2007 5th round)
D Jeff Weselake (Kamloops 2006 10th round)
Friday, April 18, 2008
Friday notes
The Eastern Conference final started last night with the Lethbridge Hurricanes claiming a 5-2 victory over the Calgary Hitmen, taking home ice advantage away from Calgary in the process. I thought 5-on-5 the teams matched up reasonably well but the Hitmen were done in by some bad penalties which lead to three powerplay goals by the Canes.
Calgary started Martin Jones in net and he was.....ordinary, giving up four goals on 19 shots. He was ordinary in game six against the Broncos too although he won that one. No big-time goal-preventing stops from him in either game, just the routine saves. I would look for the Hitmen to go back to Dan Spence tonight for game two. It's way too early to ever call a game two of a seven game series a must-win, but if the Hitmen lose tonight as well they will be down 2-0 with the next two games in Lethbridge. So tonight is probably about as close to a must-win for the Hitmen as a game two can ever be.
(And, I gotta correct the Calgary Herald's John Down, who states in his lead to today's game story that the Hitmen are trailing a series for the first time this year. Uh, they lost game one against Swift Current just two weeks ago too)
Speaking of scheduling, they still haven't announced the schedule for games 5, 6, and 7 of the Hitmen/Hurricanes series because Calgary's building availability depends on the Flames' playoff schedule. After the Flames-Sharks game last night, I believe that after Sunday, the Hitmen won't have to worry about the Flames anymore. But, the Saddledome is wide-open all week anyway (see the schedule) and it is impossible for the Flames to have home ice even if they did make the second round, so why can't a date be picked for game 5 on Friday or Saturday? C'mon already.
On another arena note, I'm not much of a basketball fan so I haven't been following the saga of the NBA's Seattle Sonics moving to Oklahoma City very closely. So, I was a little surprised to learn today that the move may be occurring already this summer. Which makes me think....the Sonics will likely leave soon, and we know the Thunderbirds are leaving Seattle for Kent around midway through the next WHL season. What is the city of Seattle going to do with KeyArena? Won't the only big tenant left in that building be the WNBA - if you can ever call the WNBA "big"?
The WHL Western Conference final starts tonight with game one in Kennewick. These two teams are longtime rivals and finished 1-2 overall in the league, so this should be a heckuva series with the winner likely being the favourite to win the WHL title over whoever wins the Calgary/Lethbridge series.
The WHL has announced Colton Yellow Horn as the Western conference finalist for Player of the Year.....so here's my picks for who I think will win the various individual awards this year:
Player of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Karl Alzner, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – Colton Yellow Horn, Tri-City Americans
My pick: this is a pretty tough call as these are both dominant players at their respective positions. I do think though that Alzner really has no peers as far as defencemen in the league go, while Yellow Horn does have a number of other forwards in the league who are in his area code. Alzner is also a year younger and plays the more difficult position, plus he also captained Canada to a World Junior gold medal. So, Alzner gets this one.
Goaltender of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Linden Rowat, Regina Pats
Western Conference – Chet Pickard, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Maybe the easiest pick of all these.....nothing against Rowat but Pickard wins this award hands down. It could be argued that Rowat wasn't even the best goalie in the Eastern conference this year, let alone the league.
Defenceman of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Karl Alzner, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – T.J. Fast, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Maybe the 2nd-easiest pick. Nothing against Fast either but Alzner is the best all-around defenceman the WHL has had in a few years. He is dominant and will be in the NHL by Christmastime next year, if not earlier.
Rookie of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Brayden Schenn, Brandon Wheat Kings
Western Conference – Evander Kane, Vancouver Giants
My pick: Kane is going to be a really good player in a year or two but he was a supporting player offensively on the Giants this year. Schenn wins the award because he was the offensive go-to guy and leading scorer on the Wheat Kings. As a 16 year old, that is really saying something. By the time he is 19 (if he's not in the NHL by then), Schenn is going to be nearly impossible to defend in this league.
Nice, too, to see the league settle on two 16 year olds for this category instead of picking some of the 18 and 19 year old "rookies" they could have gone with, like Jamie Benn, T.J. Galiardi, Jim O'Brien, etc.
Most Sportsmanlike Player:
Eastern Conference – Tyler Ennis, Medicine Hat Tigers
Western Conference – Colin Long, Kelowna Rockets
My pick: The point totals are close, the PIM totals are closer. So, let's go to the PIM stats, 'cause I'm a stats geek. They each got two 10-minute misconducts, they each had four roughing minors, and they each had one unsportsmanlike conduct minor. Long had one fight while Ennis had none, which might put Ennis ahead, but Ennis had a double-minor for spearing which isn't very sportsmanlike either. Boy, this is tough. I think in the end I have to pick Long - several more points and one less PIM.
Funny though how the most sportsmanlike player candidates always seem to be a couple guys with really high point totals and somewhat smaller PIM totals. I mean, I think you could make a case that the league's most sportsmanlike player is actually Justin Dowling of Swift Current, who played 71 games and got only 4 PIM while recording 27 points. Or, for that matter, Alzner is another good candidate here as he picked up only 15 PIM despite playing 25-30 minutes a game against everyone's top line.
Coach of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Michael Dyck, Lethbridge Hurricanes
Western Conference – Don Nachbaur, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Oh, this is a hard one....they are both deserving of this award, really. These are both teams that few observers would have picked for top-five status at the start of the year, but they both ended up there in the end. Dyck's team underwent a lot more mid-season changes though which requires more work from the coaching staff to get everyone on the same page, so I think I'm going to give this one to Dyck, but by the smallest of margins.
Executive of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Kelly Kisio, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – Bob Tory, Tri-City Americans
My pick: No question in my mind here, Bob Tory. What he has done there with taking a struggling team that almost moved and turning them into a #1 overall team is amazing. Kisio's teams have been perpetually strong for a few years now but have not yet won anything to show for it.
Calgary started Martin Jones in net and he was.....ordinary, giving up four goals on 19 shots. He was ordinary in game six against the Broncos too although he won that one. No big-time goal-preventing stops from him in either game, just the routine saves. I would look for the Hitmen to go back to Dan Spence tonight for game two. It's way too early to ever call a game two of a seven game series a must-win, but if the Hitmen lose tonight as well they will be down 2-0 with the next two games in Lethbridge. So tonight is probably about as close to a must-win for the Hitmen as a game two can ever be.
(And, I gotta correct the Calgary Herald's John Down, who states in his lead to today's game story that the Hitmen are trailing a series for the first time this year. Uh, they lost game one against Swift Current just two weeks ago too)
Speaking of scheduling, they still haven't announced the schedule for games 5, 6, and 7 of the Hitmen/Hurricanes series because Calgary's building availability depends on the Flames' playoff schedule. After the Flames-Sharks game last night, I believe that after Sunday, the Hitmen won't have to worry about the Flames anymore. But, the Saddledome is wide-open all week anyway (see the schedule) and it is impossible for the Flames to have home ice even if they did make the second round, so why can't a date be picked for game 5 on Friday or Saturday? C'mon already.
On another arena note, I'm not much of a basketball fan so I haven't been following the saga of the NBA's Seattle Sonics moving to Oklahoma City very closely. So, I was a little surprised to learn today that the move may be occurring already this summer. Which makes me think....the Sonics will likely leave soon, and we know the Thunderbirds are leaving Seattle for Kent around midway through the next WHL season. What is the city of Seattle going to do with KeyArena? Won't the only big tenant left in that building be the WNBA - if you can ever call the WNBA "big"?
The WHL Western Conference final starts tonight with game one in Kennewick. These two teams are longtime rivals and finished 1-2 overall in the league, so this should be a heckuva series with the winner likely being the favourite to win the WHL title over whoever wins the Calgary/Lethbridge series.
The WHL has announced Colton Yellow Horn as the Western conference finalist for Player of the Year.....so here's my picks for who I think will win the various individual awards this year:
Player of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Karl Alzner, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – Colton Yellow Horn, Tri-City Americans
My pick: this is a pretty tough call as these are both dominant players at their respective positions. I do think though that Alzner really has no peers as far as defencemen in the league go, while Yellow Horn does have a number of other forwards in the league who are in his area code. Alzner is also a year younger and plays the more difficult position, plus he also captained Canada to a World Junior gold medal. So, Alzner gets this one.
Goaltender of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Linden Rowat, Regina Pats
Western Conference – Chet Pickard, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Maybe the easiest pick of all these.....nothing against Rowat but Pickard wins this award hands down. It could be argued that Rowat wasn't even the best goalie in the Eastern conference this year, let alone the league.
Defenceman of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Karl Alzner, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – T.J. Fast, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Maybe the 2nd-easiest pick. Nothing against Fast either but Alzner is the best all-around defenceman the WHL has had in a few years. He is dominant and will be in the NHL by Christmastime next year, if not earlier.
Rookie of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Brayden Schenn, Brandon Wheat Kings
Western Conference – Evander Kane, Vancouver Giants
My pick: Kane is going to be a really good player in a year or two but he was a supporting player offensively on the Giants this year. Schenn wins the award because he was the offensive go-to guy and leading scorer on the Wheat Kings. As a 16 year old, that is really saying something. By the time he is 19 (if he's not in the NHL by then), Schenn is going to be nearly impossible to defend in this league.
Nice, too, to see the league settle on two 16 year olds for this category instead of picking some of the 18 and 19 year old "rookies" they could have gone with, like Jamie Benn, T.J. Galiardi, Jim O'Brien, etc.
Most Sportsmanlike Player:
Eastern Conference – Tyler Ennis, Medicine Hat Tigers
Western Conference – Colin Long, Kelowna Rockets
My pick: The point totals are close, the PIM totals are closer. So, let's go to the PIM stats, 'cause I'm a stats geek. They each got two 10-minute misconducts, they each had four roughing minors, and they each had one unsportsmanlike conduct minor. Long had one fight while Ennis had none, which might put Ennis ahead, but Ennis had a double-minor for spearing which isn't very sportsmanlike either. Boy, this is tough. I think in the end I have to pick Long - several more points and one less PIM.
Funny though how the most sportsmanlike player candidates always seem to be a couple guys with really high point totals and somewhat smaller PIM totals. I mean, I think you could make a case that the league's most sportsmanlike player is actually Justin Dowling of Swift Current, who played 71 games and got only 4 PIM while recording 27 points. Or, for that matter, Alzner is another good candidate here as he picked up only 15 PIM despite playing 25-30 minutes a game against everyone's top line.
Coach of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Michael Dyck, Lethbridge Hurricanes
Western Conference – Don Nachbaur, Tri-City Americans
My pick: Oh, this is a hard one....they are both deserving of this award, really. These are both teams that few observers would have picked for top-five status at the start of the year, but they both ended up there in the end. Dyck's team underwent a lot more mid-season changes though which requires more work from the coaching staff to get everyone on the same page, so I think I'm going to give this one to Dyck, but by the smallest of margins.
Executive of the Year:
Eastern Conference – Kelly Kisio, Calgary Hitmen
Western Conference – Bob Tory, Tri-City Americans
My pick: No question in my mind here, Bob Tory. What he has done there with taking a struggling team that almost moved and turning them into a #1 overall team is amazing. Kisio's teams have been perpetually strong for a few years now but have not yet won anything to show for it.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Wednesday notes
Finally saw the complete schedule for the Chiefs-Americans series and I have to say it is very disappointing. Games 2, 3, and 4 will be played on consecutive nights....3-in-3's are common in the regular season but this is the playoffs and is this what we really want to see in a crucial playoff game: two tired teams?
Regular season also has no potentially lengthy overtime requirement....what if game two or game three (or both!) go deep into OT....how much gas will either team have in the tank for that game four? I don't think this is how a crucial playoff series should be settled, by two exhausted teams. It's a ripoff for everyone involved, from players to fans.
I guess this is the downside of teams playing in populous areas with multi-use facilities; the people who run the arenas want to keep the building in use every day because idle facilities don't make money. So come playoff time, when the dates often have to be arranged on a few days' notice, the pickings are sometimes slim. WHL teams can't afford to do what NHL teams do, which means paying a fee to reserve their arenas for potential playoff dates well ahead of time, so they're stuck trying to fit playoff games into available timeslots. It stinks but there is also probably very little that can be done to improve the situation, unfortunately. So this is what we sometimes get: three-in-threes in the playoffs.
One other note today, both the Kamloops and Vancouver media (see Gregg Drinnan and Steve Ewen's blogs on the left if you haven't already) are reporting that Vancouver Giants assistant coach/assistant G.M. Craig Bonner will very likely be the next G.M. of the Blazers, perhaps as early as the next week once he agrees on a contract with the Blazers - who Bonner admits he has spoken to about their opening. The two teams have apparently already worked out the compensation for him changing teams, should that happen.
If Bonner is the guy, then it continues the new ownership's pattern of hiring former Blazers. Bonner played four years for the Blazers in the early 90's, including appearing in two Memorial Cups and winning one. He was a 3-year teammate of Blazers part-owner Darryl Sydor and a one-year teammate of part-owner Shane Doan.
Regular season also has no potentially lengthy overtime requirement....what if game two or game three (or both!) go deep into OT....how much gas will either team have in the tank for that game four? I don't think this is how a crucial playoff series should be settled, by two exhausted teams. It's a ripoff for everyone involved, from players to fans.
I guess this is the downside of teams playing in populous areas with multi-use facilities; the people who run the arenas want to keep the building in use every day because idle facilities don't make money. So come playoff time, when the dates often have to be arranged on a few days' notice, the pickings are sometimes slim. WHL teams can't afford to do what NHL teams do, which means paying a fee to reserve their arenas for potential playoff dates well ahead of time, so they're stuck trying to fit playoff games into available timeslots. It stinks but there is also probably very little that can be done to improve the situation, unfortunately. So this is what we sometimes get: three-in-threes in the playoffs.
One other note today, both the Kamloops and Vancouver media (see Gregg Drinnan and Steve Ewen's blogs on the left if you haven't already) are reporting that Vancouver Giants assistant coach/assistant G.M. Craig Bonner will very likely be the next G.M. of the Blazers, perhaps as early as the next week once he agrees on a contract with the Blazers - who Bonner admits he has spoken to about their opening. The two teams have apparently already worked out the compensation for him changing teams, should that happen.
If Bonner is the guy, then it continues the new ownership's pattern of hiring former Blazers. Bonner played four years for the Blazers in the early 90's, including appearing in two Memorial Cups and winning one. He was a 3-year teammate of Blazers part-owner Darryl Sydor and a one-year teammate of part-owner Shane Doan.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
3rd round preview: Calgary vs Lethbridge
Regular season results:
Oct 25: Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 0
Dec 12: Calgary 1 at Lethbridge 5
Dec 27: Calgary 3 at Lethbridge 1
Dec 28: Lethbridge 5 at Calgary 4
Feb 15: Calgary 0 at Lethbridge 1
Mar 9: Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 3
(Lethbridge wins season series 10 points to 2; Lethbridge outscored Calgary 20-11)
Hitmen head-to-head statistics vs Lethbridge:
Hurricanes head-to-head statistics vs Calgary:
Oct 25: Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 0
Dec 12: Calgary 1 at Lethbridge 5
Dec 27: Calgary 3 at Lethbridge 1
Dec 28: Lethbridge 5 at Calgary 4
Feb 15: Calgary 0 at Lethbridge 1
Mar 9: Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 3
(Lethbridge wins season series 10 points to 2; Lethbridge outscored Calgary 20-11)
Hitmen head-to-head statistics vs Lethbridge:
| GP | G | A | PT | PIM | F | |
| Brandon Kozun | 6 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Keith Seabrook | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Kyle Bortis | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 0 |
| T.J. Galiardi | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| Brendan Rowinski | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Ian Schultz | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 2 |
| Bostjan Golicic | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Paul Postma | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| Brock Nixon | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Devon Kalinski | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 1 |
| Eric Frere | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Karl Alzner | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan White | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| Ian Duval | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Stone | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Brett Sonne | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Martin Stepan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Mackenzie | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Plante | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chase Schaber | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan Fox | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Ryan Gillen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Dan Mercer | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| Carson McMillan | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| Dan Spence | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Martin Jones | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GP | Min | GA | Shot | W | L | OTL | GAA | SV% | |
| Martin Jones | 2 | 118.8 | 6 | 52 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.03 | 0.885 |
| Dan Spence | 4 | 238.93 | 14 | 83 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3.52 | 0.831 |
Hurricanes head-to-head statistics vs Calgary:
| GP | G | A | PT | PIM | F | |
| Mitch Fadden | 6 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 0 |
| Dwight King | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 0 |
| Ben Wright | 6 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Colton Sceviour | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| Mike Wuchterl | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 13 | 1 |
| Zach Boychuk | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Carter Bancks | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Nicholas Hotson | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Adam Chorneyko | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 0 |
| Mitch Versteeg | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 22 | 2 |
| Carter Ashton | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Jesse Craige | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Travis Bobbee | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff May | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Lucas Alexiuk | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Luke Wiens | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Paul MacDonald | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Cam Braes | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 1 |
| Dan Iwanski | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Cam Stevens | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jacob Dietrich | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Josh Gionfriddo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Ryan Kerr | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Brennan Yadlowski | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Brock Sutherland | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Luca Sbisa | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Craig Orfino | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Juha Metsola | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Maniago | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| GP | Min | GA | Shot | W | L | OTL | GAA | SV% | |
| Michael Maniago | 5 | 298 | 8 | 125 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1.61 | 0.936 |
| Juha Metsola | 1 | 60 | 3 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 | 0.893 |
3rd round preview: Tri-City vs Spokane
Regular season results:
Oct 5: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 4 (OT)
Oct 6: Tri-City 2 at Spokane 1 (SO)
Nov 24: Spokane 5 at Tri-City 3
Dec 15: Tri-City 4 at Spokane 1
Dec 31: Spokane 1 at Tri-City 4
Jan 5: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 0
Jan 12: Tri-City 3 at Spokane 2 (SO)
Feb 9: Tri-City 7 at Spokane 2
Feb 16: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 1
Feb 23: Tri-City 3 at Spokane 6
Mar 7: Tri-City 0 at Spokane 4
Mar 15: Spokane 1 at Tri-City 2
(Tri-City wins season series 14 points to 13 ; Spokane outscored Tri-City 32-31)
Americans head-to-head statistics vs Spokane:
Chiefs head-to-head statistics vs Tri-City:
Oct 5: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 4 (OT)
Oct 6: Tri-City 2 at Spokane 1 (SO)
Nov 24: Spokane 5 at Tri-City 3
Dec 15: Tri-City 4 at Spokane 1
Dec 31: Spokane 1 at Tri-City 4
Jan 5: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 0
Jan 12: Tri-City 3 at Spokane 2 (SO)
Feb 9: Tri-City 7 at Spokane 2
Feb 16: Spokane 3 at Tri-City 1
Feb 23: Tri-City 3 at Spokane 6
Mar 7: Tri-City 0 at Spokane 4
Mar 15: Spokane 1 at Tri-City 2
(Tri-City wins season series 14 points to 13 ; Spokane outscored Tri-City 32-31)
Americans head-to-head statistics vs Spokane:
| GP | G | A | PT | PIM | F | |
| Colton Yellow Horn | 12 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 17 | 1 |
| Shaun Vey | 12 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 0 |
| Kruise Reddick | 12 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 1 |
| T.J. Fast | 12 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 16 | 0 |
| Jason Reese | 12 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 0 |
| Adam Hughesman | 10 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 0 |
| Taylor Procyshen | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| Johnny Lazo | 12 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Blair Macaulay | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 0 |
| Petr Stoklasa | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 0 |
| Mitch McColm | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 29 | 3 |
| Jarrett Toll | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| Lane Werbowski | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Radek Meidl | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jason Gardiner | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyler Schmidt | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| Brendan Shinnimin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Travis Gorman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Colan Jackson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kevin Kraus | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mason Wilgosh | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Joel Ridgeway | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brett Plouffe | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 |
| Chet Pickard | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Drew Hoff | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Eric Mestery | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Kyle Birch | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GP | Min | GA | Shot | W | L | OTL | GAA | SV% | |
| Kyle Birch | 1 | 16.17 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 |
| Chet Pickard | 12 | 708.9 | 30 | 353 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2.54 | 0.915 |
Chiefs head-to-head statistics vs Tri-City:
| GP | G | A | PT | PIM | F | |
| David Rutherford | 11 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 22 | 1 |
| Chris Bruton | 11 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 25 | 0 |
| Mitch Wahl | 11 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| Judd Blackwater | 12 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 33 | 1 |
| Drayson Bowman | 12 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 0 |
| Tyler Johnson | 11 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| Ondrej Roman | 12 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 0 |
| Justin Falk | 12 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 0 |
| Seth Compton | 12 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| Justin McCrae | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| Jared Cowen | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| Levko Koper | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 1 |
| Stefan Ulmer | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Trevor Glass | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| Curtis Kelner | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 0 |
| Brett Bartman | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Ryan Letts | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 1 |
| Jace Coyle | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dustin Tokarski | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Jared Spurgeon | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 0 |
| Mike Reddington | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| Luke Betts | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Patrick Kozyra | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cody Esposito | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Chris Langkow | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Dustin Donaghy | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 2 |
| Kevin Armstrong | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GP | Min | GA | Shot | W | L | OTL | GAA | SV% | |
| Dustin Tokarski | 10 | 566.25 | 19 | 275 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2.01 | 0.931 |
| Kevin Armstrong | 4 | 163.07 | 12 | 100 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4.42 | 0.880 |
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