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.
3 comments:
hey alan can you give some insight on why and when Prince George moved from Victoria anyway? I thought Chilliwack received a franchise because the wanted to relocate from the Tri=Cities but the WHL refused the relocation so rewarded a new franchise to Chilliwack. Correct or way off base or somewhere in the middle? Also what would you like to see? I would love to see a franchise in Victoria and again in New Westminister but I like the old days better. Thanks again
Brian in Sherwood
Brian - best as I can recall, the Cougars left Victoria over declining attendance and financial issues. The team only averaged 13 wins a season over its last five years there so you can imagine why many of the fans abandoned the team after a few years of that.
The ancient rink they played in is gone now and there's a brand new (5 years old anyway) facility so maybe that will help with attendance and profitability now.
And you're correct on the Chilliwack/Tri-City story - Darryl Porter owned the Ams and tried to move them to Chilliwack. The league blocked the move and arranged for Porter to sell the Ams to new owners in exchange for getting an expansion team in Chilliwack.
I like Victoria as a location for a team, it is one of the largest markets in Western Canada currently unserved by the WHL. There's always going to be cost and logistical issues with a team on the Island but that can be worked out.
What I don't like is the way the fans and people of Chilliwack have been treated in this matter. It's completely different if the team moving was one that had struggled for years in its current location, but the Bruins have only been in existence for 5 years and were an expansion team, so of course the on-ice product wasn't the greatest for the first few years. I don't think the people of Chilliwack have been given a fair chance at all. The league bent over backwards to give the people of Tri-Cities another chance when their team tried to move, but all we see today is the league bending over backwards to accommodate Victoria into the league instead.
I'm shocked other WHL teams haven't gotten involved to stop some of these moves. Chilliwack is in a great location for all U.S. and B.C. (outside of P.G.) teams to travel to, seems Victoria would be a hassle for some. I remember Seattle, Spokane and Portland getting heavily involved in the Tri-City situation to keep that team there, granted the Americans were more established but still like Alan said Chilliwack never got a chance to establish anything. I support having a team or two on the island someday but not like this.
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