Friday, April 29, 2011

Friday stuff

Few things today....day or two late on some of them, I know....

First, the Kootenay Ice are into the WHL final after sweeping Medicine Hat in the Eastern conference final. The Ice have now won 11 straight playoff games (that's one game off the WHL record, held by five teams) and includes four straight wins over the #1 (Saskatoon) and #3 (Medicine Hat) teams in the East, plus 3 straight wins over the #5 team (Moose Jaw). Considering that the Ice themselves are #4, the only team in the top five that they haven't plowed over in the last five weeks is Red Deer.

Spokane and Portland may have finished higher in the overall league standings than the Ice did, but the Ice are playing awesome hockey right now and I sure wouldn't want to play them in the league final if I had a choice. The Chiefs/Hawks winner isn't going to have a choice, however.

Speaking of league finals, the OHL's final is all set with the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors taking on the Owen Sound Attack. And since the Majors are hosting the Memorial Cup this year, the Attack are now guaranteed a berth in the Cup regardless of which team wins the OHL title.

Owen Sound also accomplished another feat in getting to the OHL final - they eliminated the Windsor Spitfires in the semifinal. That's the first time Windsor has been eliminated in three years. Of course, they were the back-to-back Memorial Cup champs, but there won't be a three-peat.

In the QMJHL, the Saint John Sea Dogs have advanced to the final, where they are now awaiting the winner of the other semifinal between Quebec and Gatineau.

Another interesting factoid about that QMJHL final - former Seattle Thunderbirds and Brandon Wheat Kings goalie Jacob DeSerres plays for the Sea Dogs. Should the Sea Dogs win the QMJHL (and they will be favored to do so), DeSerres will play in the Memorial Cup for a 2nd straight year, but in a different league. Now, I do not have the kind of stats library I need to look this stuff up, but I would venture a guess that there haven't been very many players in CHL history who can say they played in the Memorial Cup with entries from two different leagues. Different teams, there's dozens and dozens of those players, I'm sure. But different leagues.....maybe that has never happened before?

Back to the WHL now, but still with the Ice and with the Memorial Cup - the longtime coach of the Ice, the man who coached them to their Memorial Cup win in 2002, Ryan McGill, is out of work today after the NHL's Calgary Flames declined the option on his assistant coach contract for 2011-12. McGill may have other pro offers coming to him, but if he wants to return to the WHL I am positive there will be teams with vacancies who will be interested. He made the Ice into a perennial contender in his years there.

Lastly, an interesting bit of news out of the WHL office yesterday when they announced that for the first time ever, the bantam draft this year will be streamed live on the league website, and free of charge to boot. I'm not sure how interesting it will be to watch, as opposed to just following the results page, but it'll certainly be worth checking out at least. It's unlikely any of the players being picked will be there - maybe Calgary might have the #1 pick there for a photo op, but since they are the only team that knows ahead of the draft who they are picking, it'll be hard for other teams to bring players in. So probably all you'll get is a video shot of the lectern where you can see scouts/GMs for the teams going up there and making the announcements. Not terribly exciting stuff but I'll probably check it out anyway for fun.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

2011 draft order

I've had some additional information supplied to me about some missing trades, etc, and I now have what I believe is pretty much the official 2011 bantam draft order as it stands now, with info on all traded picks, etc.

I'm only listing the first 10 rounds....questions/comments welcome as always....

First round:

OverallPickFromTrade details
1Calgary
2Swift Current
3LethbridgeReginafirst Carter Ashton deal, Dec 9/09
4Kamloops
5Lethbridge
6Seattle
7Everett
8Prince Albert
9Edmonton
10Prince George
11Brandon
12Victoria
13Swift CurrentVAN via KTNin Cody Eakin deal, Jan 9/11. KTN had acquired from VAN for David Musil, Jun 24/09
14Moose Jaw
15Kelowna
16ReginaTri-Cityin second Carter Ashton deal, Dec 10/10
17Kootenay
18Medicine Hat
19Spokane
20VancouverPortlandin Craig Cunningham deal, Dec 28/10
21Red Deer
22BrandonSaskatoonin Brayden Schenn deal, Jan 10/11


Second round:

23Calgary
24Swift Current
25Regina
26Lethbridge
27Seattle
28VancouverKamloopsfor J.T. Barnett, Jul 30/10
29LethbridgeEverettin Brennan Yadlowski deal, Oct 5/10
30VancouverPrince Albertfor Jamie Tucker, Jan 6/10
31Edmonton
32BrandonPG via SASin Brayden Schenn deal, Jan 10/11. SAS had acquired from PG for Charles Inglis, Sept 6/10
33Moose JawBrandonin Erhardt/Hamonic deal, Jan 10/10
34Victoria
35Vancouver
36Moose Jaw
37Kelowna
38VancouverTri-Cityswap of 2010 first round picks, Apr 29/10
39Swift CurrentKootenayin Cody Eakin deal, Jan 9/11.
40EverettMedicine Hatin Tochkin deal, Jan 10/11
41Spokane
42Portland
43Red Deer
44Moose JawSaskatoonfor Connor Cox, Nov 11/10


Third round:

45Calgary
46Swift Current
47Regina
48Lethbridge
49Seattle
50Kamloops
51KelownaEVT via SASfor Curt Gogol, Jan 10/10 (SAS acquired from EVT in Chris Langkow deal Sep 22/09; SAS also sent this pick to PG in Marek Viedensky deal, and PG returned it to SAS for Sena Acolatse)
52Prince Albert
53Prince AlbertEdmontonfor Jordan Hickmott, Jun 28/10
54BrandonPrince GeorgeBRN sends James Priestner to PG for 2011 3rd rounder and rights to Aaron Ness, Aug 21, 09
55VictoriaBrandonfor 2011 8th rounder & 2009 first round import pick, June 30, 2009.
56Victoria
57EdmontonVancouverin Vincour deal, Jan 10/10
58Prince AlbertMoose Jawin Svendsen/Hlinka deal, Jan 10/11
59Prince GeorgeKelownain Jackson/Halliday deal, Jan 10/10
60CalgaryTri-Cityfor Zak Stebner, Oct 14/10
61Kootenay
62Medicine Hat
63Spokane
64Portland
65VancouverRed Deerfor Simon Witt, Sep 15/09
66Saskatoon


Fourth round:

67VictoriaCalgaryfor Carter Berg, Nov 12/09
68EdmontonSwift Currentfor Graham Black, Dec 22/10
69Medicine HatReginafor Cody Carlson, Oct 18/09
70KootenayLethbridgefor Cason Machacek, Dec 7/09
71SaskatoonSeattlefor Travis Toomey, Sept 17/10
72Kamloops
73Everett
74Prince Albert
75Tri-CityEdmontonfor Lane Werbowki, Nov 18/09
76Prince George
77Brandon
78Prince AlbertVIC via TRIfor a 2010 first round import pick (Nikita Nesterov), June 29, 2010. (TRI had acquired from VIC for Mitch McColm, Apr 30, 2009)
79Medicine HatVancouverfor Matt Mackay, Jun 18/10
80ReginaMoose Jawin Thomas Frazee deal, Sep 24/10
81Tri-CityKelownain Zak Stebner deal, Dec 8/10
82Tri-City
83Kootenay
84SeattleMedicine Hatfor Scott Ramsay, Jan 7/11. Conditions on this pick - SEA can take this pick and give MH a 2013 6th rounder in return, or they can leave this pick with MH and take MH's 2012 5th rounder instead. 
85Spokane
86Portland
87Red Deer
88Prince AlbertSaskatoonSteven Stanford deal, Oct 5/09


Fifth round:

89Calgary
90KelownaSwift Currentfor Kyle Verdino, Jan 10/10
91SaskatoonREG via VANfor Randy McNaught, Sep 24/10 (VAN acquired from REG in Derek Tendler/Cass Mappin deal, Dec 9/09)
92PortlandLethbridgein Sbisa deal, Jan 10/10
93CalgarySeattlefor Erik Bonsor, Dec 2/09
94BrandonKamloopsfor Jesse Sinatynski, Oct 14/10
95KamloopsEverettfor Curtis Kulchar, Dec 12/09
96BrandonPrince Albertfor Dalyn Flette, Oct 4/09
97Edmonton
98KootenayPrince Georgefor Petr Senkerik, Jan 10/10
99Brandon
100Victoria
101LethbridgeVancouverfor Brent Henke, Jan 10/10
102KelownaMoose Jawin Riley Grantham deal, Jan 7, 2009
103Kelowna
104Swift CurrentTri-Cityfor Mike Brown, Jan 10/10
105Kootenay
106Moose JawMedicine Hatfor Matt Mackay, Sept 29/09
107Spokane
108Portland
109Red Deer
110Saskatoon


Sixth round:

111Calgary
112VancouverSwift Currentfor Derek Tendler, Oct 7/10
113Regina
114Lethbridge
115SaskatoonSEA via LTHfor Tyler Kiziuk, Dec 11/10 (LTH had acquired from SEA for Austin Baecker, Feb 2/10)
116Prince AlbertKAM via MJin Svendsen/Hlinka deal, Jan 10/11 (MJ had acquired from KAM for Jeff Bosch, Sep 17/10)
117Everett
118SaskatoonPrince Albertin Steven Stanford deal, Oct 5.09
119Edmonton
120KamloopsPrince Georgefor Kurt Torbohm, Sep 13/09
121KootenayBrandonfor 2010 first round import pick (Mark Mieritz), June 29, 2010
122Victoria
123EdmontonVAN via POR and VICfor Robin Soudek, Apr 29/10. (VIC acquired from POR in swap of picks at 2010 bantam draft; POR acquired from VAN in Craig Cunningham deal, Dec 28/10)
124Medicine HatMoose Jawfor Mike Forsyth, Sept 29/09
125Kelowna
126Tri-City
127Kootenay
128Medicine Hat
129Spokane
130Moose JawPortlandin swap of 2009 first round import picks, June 30/09
131Red Deer
132Prince GeorgeSaskatoonfor Tyler Kiziuk, Sep 15/09



Seventh round:

133VancouverCalgaryfor Mikhail Fisenko, June 29, 2009
134Swift Current
135Regina
136EverettLethbridgefor Drew McDermott, Jan 7/10
137Swift CurrentSeattlefor Scott Ramsay, Oct 8, 2009
138Kamloops
139KootenayEverettswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
140Prince Albert
141Edmonton
142Prince George
143SeattleBrandonfor 2010 8th, 9th, 10th round picks
144Victoria
145Vancouver
146Moose Jaw
147Prince AlbertKelownafor Brendan Wall, Aug 10/10
148KelownaTri-Cityin Zak Stebner deal, Dec 8/10
149Kootenay
150Medicine Hat
151Spokane
152Portland
153Red Deer
154Saskatoon


Eighth round:

155Prince GeorgeCalgaryfor Del Cowan, Nov 3/09
156Swift Current
157Regina
158Lethbridge
159Seattle
160Kamloops
161Everett
162Prince Albert
163Edmonton
164Prince George
165Brandon
166BrandonVictoriaBRN sends 2011 3rd rounder to CHI for 2011 8th rounder and 2009 first round import pick, June 30, 2009.
167Vancouver
168Moose Jaw
169Kelowna
170Tri-City
171Kootenay
172Medicine Hat
173LethbridgeSpokanefor Michael Tadjdeh, Oct 9/09
174Portland
175Red Deer
176VictoriaSaskatoonin Collins/Gogol deal, Nov 2/10


Ninth round:

177Calgary
178Swift Current
179Regina
180Lethbridge
181Seattle
182Kamloops
183Everett
184Prince Albert
185Edmonton
186Prince George
187Brandon
188Victoria
189KamloopsVancouverswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
190Moose Jaw
191Moose JawKelownaswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
192Tri-City
193Kootenay
194Medicine Hat
195KamloopsSpokaneswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
196Portland
197Red Deer
198Saskatoon


Tenth round:

199Calgary
200Swift Current
201KamloopsReginaswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
202Lethbridge
203Seattle
204Kamloops
205Everett
206Prince Albert
207Edmonton
208Prince George
209Brandon
210Victoria
211Vancouver
212Moose Jaw
213Swift CurrentKelownaswap of picks at 2010 bantam draft, Apr 29/10
214Tri-City
215Kootenay
216Medicine Hat
217Spokane
218Portland
219Red Deer
220KamloopsSaskatoonswap of picks at 2009 bantam draft



Friday, April 22, 2011

Round three predictions

Third round of the playoffs starts tonight so I guess I better get these predictions done ASAP here....


Eastern Conference Final:

This should be a good matchup between a couple of evenly matched teams both featuring currently hot goaltenders. The Tigers have home ice, but the Ice had a handy edge in the head-to-head play this year. Plus, I bet against Kootenay beating Saskatoon.....I won't make that mistake again. Kootenay in six.

Western Conference Final:

Man, this one is a tough call. It's easy to see either one of these teams winning this series, but I think I like Spokane just a little more. But it'll be very close - Chiefs in seven.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Wednesday notes

Big news today is that the WHL has a press conference at Victoria's Save-On Foods Centre at 11:30am local time. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that this isn't an announcement about the league playing one of the Subway Super Series games against the Russians in Victoria next year, or anything like that. We all know what this announcement is going to be about.

I just hope the media at the press conference will ask the tough questions, while they've got Rob Robison on the spot: What does the future hold for the WHL in Chilliwack? Who is the other WHL team supposedly negotiating a move to Chilliwack, as per Brian Burke's comments? Why was there NO serious attempt made to keep the Bruins in Chilliwack with new owners? Is the WHL fast-tracking this move to Victoria in a pre-emptive effort to keep the AHL out of Victoria if the Manitoba Moose have to move? If so, why? Are there plans for a 2nd team on the Island in the near future? Where? What is the league and/or the Victoria team going to do about the big increase in travel costs that teams will now incur in travelling to the Island?

And how about: "Is Darryl Porter still one of the owners of the Victoria franchise or has he sold all of his interest to Graham Lee's group? If he still owns part of the team, should fans in Victoria be careful of getting too attached to the team?"

Moving on here.....the WHL semifinals are set after the last 2nd round series ended last night with Spokane's 5-4 OT win over Tri-City. Spokane will now visit Portland in the Western conference final, while in the Eastern conference the Kootenay Ice will visit the Medicine Hat Tigers. I'll make my predictions later this week. I did OK in the 2nd round, picking Portland in six correctly and being only 1 game off in my picks of Spokane in 7 and Medicine Hat in 6. I was just a teeny-tiny bit off in my pick of Saskatoon over Kootenay in 5 games, however.....

At the World U-18 championships in Germany, Canada (with its 6 WHLers) opened with wins over the Czechs, Finns, and Norwegians before losing their last round-robin game to Sweden yesterday. Canada finished 2nd in their pool and will play Germany tomorrow in a quarterfinal, with the winner facing USA in a semifinal.

Think that's it for today.....still accepting any bantam/midget stats (see below) if you have 'em....

Monday, April 18, 2011

Call for stats

The bantam draft is fast approaching, just over two weeks away now. As a result, I've been gathering the stats I could find on the players who are likely to be selected in the draft, so I can post the stats here on the blog on draft day.

I've pretty much collected all the stats I usually collect, but a number of teams/leagues do not post their player statistics and/or don't make it easy to gather this info (it's 2011 already, British Columbia!). So, in the interest of having as much info as possible to post on draft day, here's a request to any readers of this blog who may have some of this info and may be able to share.

What I already have:
B.C. major midget AAA league
Alberta bantam AAA (AMBHL)
Alberta minor midget AAA (AMMHL)
Calgary & Edmonton bantam & midget AA
South Central Alberta bantam & midget (SCAHL)
South Saskatchewan minor hockey league (SSMHL) AA bantam
Centre Four AA bantam (CFHL)
Saskatchewan midget AAA (SMAAAHL)
Manitoba major midget AAA (MMHL)
Winnipeg AAA bantam & city midget
Zone4, Westman, and Winnipeg high school leagues
Provincial camps - Alberta Cup and Manitoba P.O.E.; for SaskFirst I have rosters, no stats. Have B.C. Cup rosters, tournament is next weekend.

Also have Tier 1 Elite league bantam & midget AAA stats from the U.S., plus Minnesota high school league stats.

What I'm mostly missing:
B.C. AAA (and AA) bantam team stats. Have a couple teams but only a couple.
Alberta AAA midget league (they usually make this available but so far this spring have not)
Greater Saskatoon League team stats. Have rosters, few stats.
Anything from the top U.S. teams - California, Texas, Arizona teams, etc. If they compete in the Tier 1 Elite league I have them, otherwise not. Have a couple rosters, almost no stats.
Stats from SaskFirst bantam if anyone has them. Have rosters, no stats.
Rural Manitoba AA & A team stats - have a couple teams but not many

Anything is welcome....from simple rosters (names, maybe ht/wt) to complete season stats for players.

If you have any of this stuff and want to share, my email address is over there on the side, or you can add it as a comment to this post if you like. Or maybe you just know of a link to some of this stuff which I have missed, that is definitely welcome too. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

The harder they fall....

Both Saskatoon and Red Deer lost their game three's last night to go down 3-0 to Kootenay and Medicine Hat. Game four for both series is tonight as the top two overall teams in the league try to save their seasons from ending in the 2nd round.

Unfortunately, past years indicate that it's probably a lost cause. In the history of the WHL, only one time has a team successfully come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win the series - 1995-96 when Spokane came back to beat Portland in the first round. There's still hope for the Blades and Rebels obviously, but it's such a huge longshot that either of them can pull off the comeback.

The obvious question now is what will the repercussions be of these upsets? Red Deer still has a good young core group and if they get Ryan Nugent-Hopkins back from the NHL next year, there's no reason why they can't have another season like this one and take another shot at it.

For Saskatoon though, this is the end of their run - they will lose guys like Schenn, Hamilton, Elliott, Zahn, Viedensky, and Stanford after this season and those are significant losses. More importantly for the Blades, they surrendered their 2010, 2011, and 2012 first round bantam picks, 2010 and 2011 second round bantam picks, and 2012 first round import pick for what is likely going to amount to about 40 games from Brayden Schenn. A few years from now that could very well be regarded as one of the most one-sided deals in WHL history. Will coming up so short on such a huge gamble cost Blades coach/G.M. Lorne Molleken his job?

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Tuesday notes

All four WHL 2nd round series play their Game Threes tonight, and while the Western series are (not all that surprisingly) knotted at 1-1 apiece, it's gut-check time for the two Eastern conference favourites tonight.

#1 Saskatoon and #2 Red Deer both lost the first two games on home ice on the weekend, to #4 Kootenay and #3 Medicine Hat respectively, and now both favourites face what is pretty much a must-win situation tonight on the road. Lose tonight and they go down 3-0, a situation from which nobody ever recovers.

What an upset it would be to see the #1 and #2 overall teams in the league both fail to advance out of the second round.

Two other notes today:

First, NHL Central Scouting has released their final rankings for the 2011 NHL draft. You can find those final rankings here. Most noteworthy from the WHL perspective is that Red Deer's Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has vaulted from #3 in the midterm rankings to #1 in the final rankings of North American skaters. The QMJHL's Sean Couturier, who was considered a contender for #1 for most of the season, has dropped to #6 among N.A. skaters in the final rankings. Nugent-Hopkins' main competition for #1 overall is probably the #1 player on the European list, Swedish defenceman Adam Larsson.

Which NHL team has the coveted #1 overall pick will be determined tonight, as the NHL holds its draft lottery for the non-playoff teams.

Secondly, another big signing in as many weeks for the Tri-City Americans. Last week they inked 2010 first round bantam pick Eric Comrie to a contract; yesterday they signed up 2010 8th round pick Brian Williams. Williams, you may recall, was considered one of the top 1995-born players eligible for the 2010 bantam draft but dropped to the 8th round due to concerns teams had about his NCAA aspirations. Apparently Williams has settled on the WHL and as a result, the Americans have picked up a first-round talent with an 8th round pick.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Thursday notes

The WHL's second off-season coaching vacancy (Seattle was the first) opened up today with the news that Moose Jaw has decided not to renew the contract of coach Dave Hunchak.

This move kind of surprises me a little bit, I thought after a 40 win season that Hunchak would get another season behind the Warriors bench. You almost have to think the Warriors have somebody in mind already if they're going to let go of a guy who got a .600 season out of the league's 2nd-youngest lineup.

Second note today, the hosting privileges for the 2012 Memorial Cup have been awarded by the QMJHL to the Shawinigan Cataractes. The Cataractes finished 7th overall in the QMJHL this year with a team composed heavily of 17 & 18 year olds, so they are ideally positioned to have a strong season next year and be deserving hosts on the ice as well as off. They have a brand new (2 years old) 5,200 seat rink to host the tournament as well.

Lastly today, the 2nd round of the WHL playoffs starts tonight so I guess it's time for some predictions. I managed to go a perfect 8-for-8 in my first round picks and also managed to get the # of game correct on four of the series, so let's try to keep this roll going here....

Eastern Conference:

Saskatoon vs Kootenay: I think this is the 2nd round matchup that Kootenay was hoping that acquiring Cody Eakin would bump them up the standings enough to avoid. Obviously, that didn't work. Despite being given a rougher time of it in the first round than many expected, the Blades are still the team to beat in this conference and Kootenay just doesn't stack up that well against them. Blades in five.

Red Deer vs Medicine Hat: this one is the hardest series in the first round to pick, IMO. The Rebels finished as the higher seed but the Tigers won the season series 5-1, including a perfect 3-0 at the Centrium in Red Deer. But I'm concerned about the Tigers' injured stars, Bunz and Pitlick....especially Bunz. I think I'm going to gamble on this one......Tigers in six.

Western Conference:

Portland vs Kelowna: despite their sweep of Prince George in the first round, I still feel Kelowna is the "thing not like the others" in the West's top four. I don't think the Hawks will have this one as easy as they did with Everett in the first round, but I don't think Kelowna is going to win this battle either. Portland in six.

Spokane vs Tri-Cities: if Rebels-Tigers isn't the hardest series to pick, then it's this one. These two rivals were quite evenly matched in the regular season and it is easy to see this series going either way. Spokane has home ice advantage but the series is going to follow a 2-3-2 format and I can't help but wonder if that helps the Ams more than you might think. I'm going with the Chiefs but I can see it going either way. Spokane in seven.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Canadian U-18 team named

Hockey Canada has named the 22 players who will represent the country at the World U-18 Championships starting next week in Germany.

The team, which is made up of CHLers whose teams either missed the playoffs or were eliminated in the first round, has only six WHLers amongst the 22 players - defencemen Ryan Murray (Everett), Morgan Rielly (Moose Jaw), and Reece Scarlett (Swift Current), plus forwards Travis Ewanyk (Edmonton), Mark McNeill (Prince Albert), and Colin Smith (Kamloops).

Rielly is one of three underage (1994-born) players on the team. The other 19 players are 1993-born.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Bruins sold

To the WHL's credit, they (finally!) issued a statement on the Chilliwack situation today.

Basically, it's bad news for Bruins fans - the league says it has conditionally approved the sale of the franchise to an unnamed buyer. Note that they do NOT state that they have approved the franchise moving, which is another story altogether. But I think we can assume that a move is part and parcel of the deal here.

I'm glad they have broken their silence. But there is more to be explained yet - like Brian Burke's suggestion that the league (THE LEAGUE!!!!) is working to move another existing team to Chilliwack.

I do realize there are legal issues in what people can and cannot say on some matters. But in the meantime, WHL fans in 2, 3, 4, 5 or more cities twist in the wind, not knowing if their team is moving, whether they'll have WHL hockey next fall, or anything else really. The league really does need to make some more statements in the next few days and clarify what is going on as best as they can.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Monday notes

All but one of the WHL's first-round playoff series have wrapped up now, including all four of the Western conference series:

 - Portland swept Everett 4-0
 - Tri-City swept Vancouver 4-0
 - Kelowna swept Prince George 4-0
 - Spokane took five games to eliminate Chilliwack 4-1

I think the Western conference has unfolded pretty much the way most observers expected - no upsets and while the underdogs winning only one game in total across the four series (and that was an OT win, to boot) was probably a little less competitive than most people expected, certainly the winners of the series were no surprises.

After re-seeding by regular season points, we have our 2nd round matchups in the West now:

#1 Portland vs #4 Kelowna
#2 Spokane vs #3 Tri-City

Those two series get underway on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

In the East, only one series remains to be resolved:

Red Deer swept Edmonton 4-0
Kootenay beat Moose Jaw 4-2
Saskatoon beat Prince Albert 4-2
Medicine Hat leads Brandon 3-2 (the Tigers and Wheat Kings play their game six tonight in Winnipeg)

On a nostalgic note, the elimination of the Warriors brings to an end the tenure of the "Crushed Can" as a WHL arena. The Warriors will have a brand new home rink when they start play again in the fall.

The East's 2nd round matchups are dependant on the outcome of the Tigers-Wheaties series, but it breaks down like this:

Saskatoon will host Kootenay if the Tigers win, or host Brandon if the Wheaties win
Red Deer will host Medicine Hat if the Tigers win, or host Kootenay if the Wheaties win

Last note today, now that the Chilliwack Bruins' season is over, it would be nice if the league and/or the parties involved could provide some clarity to fans regarding what the future holds for that franchise. I get that it's the middle of the playoffs and the league doesn't want anything to detract attention from the on-ice product at this most critical point of the year, but we have thousands of fans who are feeling betrayed and/or jerked around by their owners and the league and they're not getting any reliable information from anyone about which way this thing is going to go. This is a P.R. problem for the league.

Wild-assed rumors abound about multiple franchises moving, one team on the Island, two teams on the Island, no teams on the Island, the league is expanding, the league isn't expanding, Prince George and/or Kootenay are moving too, Prince George and/or Kootenay are not moving too, etc, etc. And the league is quiet on all this....how about some leadership from the WHL office and make a statement to clarify what is and isn't going on. Like I said, I know they don't want to take away from the focus on the playoffs, but anything is preferable to the current rumor-filled situation. The league shouldn't have to look very far to see that many fans' focus has already been shifted from the playoffs to the Chilliwack situation.

I mean, today an article has surfaced by Jim Mullin of Vancouver radio station CKNW, in which he quotes from a letter he received from Bruins part-owner Brian Burke (or from Burke's lawyers anyway) in which Burke states that it was "...the WHL's and Mr. Lee's desire to have an established team in Victoria rather than an expansion team. This will not leave Chilliwack without a WHL team. The WHL is in the process of negotiating the movement of another WHL team to Chilliwack..."

So the WHL wants an established team to move to Victoria? And the WHL is in the process of arranging for another established team to move to Chilliwack to replace the Bruins?

Yes, I think the WHL owes its fans some answers. Preferably right now.

Friday, April 1, 2011

2011 bantam draft order

By request, I've tried to figure out which teams have which exact picks in this year's bantam draft. I think this is pretty complete, although in a few cases it was impossible to determine which picks had been traded when a team had more than one pick in a round and traded one of them.

If anyone has any details on which exact picks were traded in the deals I'm not sure about (broken down after each round's listings), please let me know and I can make the changes and keep this list as accurate as possible.

Details of missed trades are welcome too! I scoured for all the trades I could find but there are no doubt going to be 1 or 2 (or 3 or 4 or 5) that I missed.



First Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
1Calgary
2Swift Current
3LethbridgeReginafirst Carter Ashton deal, Dec 9/09
4Kamloops
5Lethbridge
6Seattle
7Everett
8Prince Albert
9Edmonton
10Prince George
11Brandon
12Chilliwack
13Swift CurrentVAN via KTNCody Eakin deal, Jan 9/11 (KTN had acquired from VAN for David Musil, Jul 10/09)
14Moose Jaw
15Kelowna
16ReginaTri-Citysecond Carter Ashton deal, Dec 10/10
17Kootenay
18Medicine Hat
19Spokane
20VancouverPortlandCraig Cunningham deal, Dec 28/10
21Red Deer
22BrandonSaskatoonBrayden Schenn deal, Jan 10/11


Second Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
23Calgary
24Swift Current
25Moose JawReginaThomas Frazee deal, Sep 24/10
26Lethbridge
27Seattle
28VancouverKamloopsJ.T. Barnett, Jul 30/10
29LethbridgeEverettBrennan Yadlowski deal, Oct 5/10
30VancouverPrince AlbertJamie Tucker, Jan 6/10
31Edmonton
32BrandonPG via SASBrayden Schenn deal, Jan 10/11 (SAS had acquired from PG for Charles Inglis, Sept 6/10)
33Moose JawBrandonErhardt/Hamonic deal, Jan 10/10
34Chilliwack
35Vancouver
36Moose Jaw
37Kelowna
38VancouverTri-Cityswap of 2010 first round bantam picks, Apr 29/10
39Swift CurrentKootenayCody Eakin deal, Jan 9/11
40EverettMedicine HatKellan Tochkin deal, Jan 10/11
41Spokane
42Portland
43Red Deer
44Moose JawSaskatoonConnor Cox, Nov 11/10 (could be PG's pick instead)

Second round trade notes:
 - SAS acquired PG's pick for Inglis. They traded a 2nd rounder to MJ for Cox; I have assumed this was SAS's own pick traded for Cox but it could have been PG's pick as well.
 - SAS then traded another 2nd round pick to BRN in the Schenn deal. I have assumed that was PG's pick but it could have been SAS's own pick instead.

Third Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
45Calgary
46Swift Current
47Regina
48Lethbridge
49Seattle
50Kamloops
51KelownaEVT via SASCurt Gogol, Jan 10/10 (SAS had acquired from EVT in Chris Langkow deal Sep 22/09)
52Prince Albert
53Prince AlbertEdmontonJordan Hickmott, Jun 28/10 (could be RDR's or VAN's pick)
54BrandonPrince GeorgeJames Priestner deal, Aug 21/09
55ChilliwackBrandonfor 2009 first round import pick, June 30/09
56Chilliwack
57EdmontonVancouverVincour deal, Jan 10/10. Could be RDR's pick
58Prince AlbertMoose JawSvendsen/Hlinka deal, Jan 10/11
59Prince GeorgeKelownaJackson/Halliday deal, Jan 10/10
60CalgaryTri-CityZak Stebner, Oct 14/10
61Kootenay
62Medicine Hat
63Spokane
64Portland
65VancouverRed DeerSimon Witt, Sep 15/09
66SaskatoonSAS sent this pick to PG in Marek Viedensky deal; PG returned it to SAS for Sena Acolatse, Oct 3/10

Third round trade notes:
 - VAN acquired RDR's pick for Witt. VAN then sent a pick to EDM in the Vincour deal. I have assumed the Vincour pick was VAN's own but it could have been RDR's pick.
 - EDM then sent a pick to PA for Hickmott. I have assumed this was EDM's own pick but it could have been RDR's or VAN's pick instead, depending on which of those EDM got for Vincour.

Fourth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
67ChilliwackCalgaryCarter Berg, Nov 12/09
68Swift Current
69Regina
70KootenayLethbridgeCason Machacek, Dec 7/09
71SaskatoonSeattleTravis Toomey, Sept 17/10
72Kamloops
73Everett
74Prince Albert
75Tri-CityEdmontonLane Werbowki, Nov 18/09
76Prince George
77Brandon
78Tri-CityChilliwackMitch McColm, May 1/09
79Medicine HatVancouverMatt Mackay, Jun 18/10
80ReginaMoose JawThomas Frazee deal, Sep 24/10
81Tri-CityKelownaZak Stebner deal, Dec 8/10
82Prince AlbertTri-Cityfor a 2010 first round import pick, June 29, 2010 (may also be EDM or CHI's picks)
83Kootenay
84SeattleMedicine HatScott Ramsay, Jan 7/11. Could be VAN's pick.
85Spokane
86Portland
87Red Deer
88Prince AlbertSaskatoonSteven Stanford deal, Oct 5/09

Fourth round trade notes:
 - MH acquired VAN's pick for Matt MacKay. MH then traded a pick to SEA for Scott Ramsay; I have assumed the Ramsay pick was MH's own but it could have been VAN's pick instead.
 - TRI first acquired CHI's pick for Mitch McColm and EDM's pick for Lane Werbowski. TRI then traded a pick to PA for a 2010 import pick; I have assumed the pick sent to PA was TRI's own but it could have been CHI's or EDM's pick instead.

Fifth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
89Calgary
90KelownaSwift CurrentKyle Verdino, Jan 10/10. Could be TRI's pick instead
91VancouverReginaDerek Tendler/Cass Mappin deal, Dec 9/09
92PortlandLethbridgeSbisa deal, Jan 10/10
93Seattle
94BrandonKamloopsJesse Sinatynski, Oct 14/10 (could be EVT's pick instead)
95KamloopsEverettCurtis Kulchar, Dec 12/09
96BrandonPrince AlbertDalyn Flette
97Edmonton
98KootenayPrince GeorgePetr Senkerik, Jan 10/10
99Brandon
100Chilliwack
101LethbridgeVancouverBrent Henke, Jan 10/10. Could be REG's pick instead
102KelownaMoose JawRiley Grantham deal, Jan 7/09
103Kelowna
104Swift CurrentTri-CityMike Brown, Jan 10/10
105Kootenay
106Medicine Hat
107Spokane
108Portland
109Red Deer
110Saskatoon

Fifth round trade notes:
 - SC acquired TRI's pick for Mike Brown. SC then traded a pick to KEL for Kyle Verdino. I have assumed the Verdino pick was SC's own but it could have been TRI's pick instead.
 - KAM acquired EVT's pick for Curtis Kulchar. KAM then sent a pick to BRN for Jesse Sinatynski. I have assumed the Sinatynski pick was KAM's own but it could have been EVT's pick instead.
 - VAN acquired REG's pick in the Tendler/Mappin deal. VAN then sent a pick to LTH for Brent Henke. I have assumed the Henke pick was VAN's own but it could have been REG's pick instead.

Sixth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
111Calgary
112VancouverSwift CurrentDerek Tendler, Oct 7/10
113Regina
114SaskatoonLethbridgeTyler Kizuik, Dec 11/10 (could be SEA's pick instead)
115LethbridgeSeattleAustin Baecker, Feb 2/10
116Moose JawKamloopsJeff Bosch, Sep 17/10. Could be PG's pick instead.
117Everett
118SaskatoonPrince AlbertSteven Stanford deal, Oct 5/09
119Edmonton
120KamloopsPrince GeorgeKurt Torbohm, Sep 13/09
121KootenayBrandonfor 2010 first round import pick (Mark Mieritz), June 29/10
122Chilliwack
123KelownaVAN via PORfor a 2009 7th round pick (POR acquired from VAN in the Craig Cunningham deal, Dec 28/10. Could be SC's pick instead)
124Prince AlbertMoose JawSvendsen/Hlinka deal, Jan 10/11. Could be KAM, PG, POR pick instead
125Kelowna
126Tri-City
127Kootenay
128Medicine Hat
129Prince GeorgeSpokaneBruin McDonald, Aug 17/10
130Moose JawPortlandswap of 2009 first round import picks, June 30/09
131Red Deer
132Prince GeorgeSaskatoonTyler Kiziuk, Sep 15/09

Sixth round trade notes:
 - LTH acquired SEA's pick for Austin Baecker. LTH then sent a pick to SAS for Tyler Kizuik. I have assumed the Kizuik pick was LTH's own but it could have been SEA's pick instead
 - KAM acquired PG's pick for Kurt Torbohm. KAM then traded a pick to MJ for Jeff Bosch. I have assumed the Bosch pick was KAM's own but it could have been PG's pick instead
 - VAN acquired SC's pick for Derek Tendler. VAN then sent a pick to POR in the Cunningham deal; I have assumed the Cunningham pick was VAN's own but it could have been SC's pick instead.
 - MJ acquired POR's pick in the 2009 import pick swap. MJ also acquired either KAM's pick or PG's pick from KAM for Bosch. MJ then traded a pick to PA in the Svendsen deal; I have assumed the Svendsen pick was MJ's own but it could have been POR's, KAM's, or PG's instead.

Seventh Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
133VancouverCalgaryMikhail Fisenko, June 29/09
134Swift Current
135Regina
136EverettLethbridgeDrew McDermott, Jan 7/10 - conditional pick, probably cancelled?
137Seattle
138Kamloops
139Everett
140Prince Albert
141Edmonton
142Swift CurrentPrince GeorgeMorgan Clark, Aug 9/10
143SeattleBrandonfor 2010 8th, 9th, 10th round picks
144Chilliwack
145Vancouver
146Moose Jaw
147Prince AlbertKelownaBrendan Wall, Aug 10/10
148KelownaTri-CityZak Stebner, Dec 8/10
149Kootenay
150Medicine Hat
151Spokane
152Portland
153Red Deer
154Saskatoon


Eighth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
155Prince GeorgeCalgaryDel Cowan, Nov 3/09
156EdmontonSwift CurrentGraham Black, Dec 22/10
157Regina
158Lethbridge
159Seattle
160Kamloops
161Everett
162Prince Albert
163Edmonton
164Prince George
165Brandon
166BrandonChilliwackin deal for CHI's 2009 first round import pick, June 30/09
167Vancouver
168Moose Jaw
169Kelowna
170Tri-City
171Kootenay
172Medicine Hat
173LethbridgeSpokaneMichael Tadjdeh, Oct 9/09
174Portland
175Red Deer
176ChilliwackSaskatoonCollins/Gogol deal, Nov 2/10


Ninth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
177Calgary
178Swift Current
179Regina
180Lethbridge
181Seattle
182Kamloops
183Everett
184Prince Albert
185Edmonton
186Prince George
187Brandon
188Chilliwack
189Vancouver
190Moose Jaw
191Kelowna
192Tri-City
193Kootenay
194Medicine Hat
195Spokane
196Portland
197Red Deer
198Saskatoon



Tenth Round:

OverallTeamFromTrade Details
199Calgary
200Swift Current
201Regina
202Lethbridge
203Seattle
204Kamloops
205Everett
206Prince Albert
207Edmonton
208Prince George
209Brandon
210Chilliwack
211Vancouver
212Moose Jaw
213Kelowna
214Tri-City
215Kootenay
216Medicine Hat
217Spokane
218Portland
219Red Deer
220Saskatoon


One unknown traded pick - Portland traded Killian Hutt to Regina for a conditional 2011 pick on Sept 28, 2009. The exact round of that pick has never been announced, as far as I can tell. But one of Regina's picks above does instead belong to Portland from that deal.

Two other later round picks traded: Chilliwack traded their 12th round pick to Prince Albert for Marc MacKenzie and their 13th round pick to Moose Jaw for Mike Forsyth. I can find no mention of other picks later than the 10th round having been traded.