Friday Notes

[Scout]

Courtesy Alan Caldwell:

Friday, December 14, 2007
Friday notes
A short while back, I took a shot at the Prince George Cougars for their habit of issuing ridiculously short press releases - basically a statement of a fact, with no accompanying information for anyone reading.

Well, the Cougars have some company in this category now. The Kamloops Blazers have relieved assistant coach Andrew Milne of his duties, and this is the release they issued to announce it: "Andrew Milne has left the Kamloops Blazers effective immediately. No further comment will be made at this time."

More news.....Red Deer has acquired 17 year old prospect goaltender Darcy Kuemper from Spokane for a conditional 2009 7th round bantam pick. The pick is conditional, which means whether Spokane gets anything probably hinges on whether Kuemper makes Red Deer's roster before then.

A curious move on Red Deer's part IMO.....they already have two goalies on their roster and last month they picked up 18 year old David Aime from Prince Albert in a trade for defenceman Zac Stebner. They must be setting up for a trade of starter James Reimer to a contender.

The Blades made two roster moves yesterday as well, assigning 18 year old defenceman Colton MacPherson to Junior A, and adding 16 year old defenceman Mitch Berg from midget. Berg was the Blades' 2006 1st round bantam pick but didn't make the team out of training camp. Sounds like he is there to stay now though.

[HURRICANE'S ROCK]

Do you know if Aime is with Red Deer? Wasn't he pretty good the year he played? He played one game in Lethbridge I think and was good.

[hobster]

lol David Aime has never been good the guy is a joke

[Rattlesnake]

You got that right. Aime is in Port Alberni, with a 0-6-0 record, GAA=5.86 and SV%=.860.

As I suggested in this thread,

http://www.whlfans.ca/showthread.php...856#post102856

Rolheiser may be in Red Deer. We will see - Rebels @ Hitmen tonight.

[Rattlesnake]

Indeed he is.

Off the WHL site:

12/14/2007 Travis Rolheiser (G) Red Deer ADD Signed to

[Arthur Fonzerelli]

You got that right. Aime is in Port Alberni, with a 0-6-0 record, GAA=5.86 and SV%=.860.

As I suggested in this thread,



Rolheiser may be in Red Deer. We will see - Rebels @ Hitmen tonight.

Not fair to hang that on Aime. Port Alberni's record would be almost as bad if they had Luongo. Last year's inexperienced management and the criminal actions of some players are having serious affects this year. With new ownership at the helm this year they have gotten rid of the problems and are building for the future with younger players.

[hobster]

Not fair to hang that on Aime. Port Alberni's record would be almost as bad if they had Luongo. Last year's inexperienced management and the criminal actions of some players are having serious affects this year. With new ownership at the helm this year they have gotten rid of the problems and are building for the future with younger players.

Almost as bad if they has lunongo haha ya right luongo could dominate even on a bad team like that the guy is a machine

[Triton]

What Aime did in Midget AAA, he has yet to apply in a league above that. Everyone that follows the Raiders pegged Aime as a superstar and were guaranteeing things already about him. I stated what you do in AAA doesn't exactly translate into WHL success, and Aime proved that. It really doesn't help that Aime's confidence was shattered while in PA, but that doesn't make a good enough excuse to stink in every other league either.

[hobster]

What Aime did in Midget AAA, he has yet to apply in a league above that. Everyone that follows the Raiders pegged Aime as a superstar and were guaranteeing things already about him. I stated what you do in AAA doesn't exactly translate into WHL success, and Aime proved that. It really doesn't help that Aime's confidence was shattered while in PA, but that doesn't make a good enough excuse to stink in every other league either.

You were bang on with that one

[Scout]

with Gregg Drinnan

Friday, December 14, 2007
Friday's highlights. . . .

The CHL Mosaik MasterCard Top 10 rankings for Week 12, as selected by a panel of NHL scouts:

Rank Team Last Week Weeks in Rankings
1 Kitchener Rangers (25-4-1-2) 1 10
2 Spokane Chiefs (25-5-1-2) 2 7
3 Tri-City Americans (23-7-1-0) 4 12
4 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (22-8-1-1) 5 12
5 Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (23-10-2-1) 7 7
6 Vancouver Giants (22-7-1-3) 8 9
7 Windsor Spitfires (21-6-3-3) 6 11
8 Halifax Mooseheads (21-9-0-4) 3 10
9 Lethbridge Hurricanes (23-10-1-1) - 1
10 Gatineau Olympiques (22-11-2-2) 9 3

FRIDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS
In Chilliwack. F Evander Kane had two goals and an assist as the Vancouver Giants bounced the Bruins, 5-1. . . . The Giants (23-7-1-3) have won five in a row and have outscored the opposition 31-6 in those games. . . . The Bruins (17-14-3-1) have lost three straight. . . . The Bruins won the first two games in the season series but the Giants have won the last four. . . . Kane has 12 goals this season. . . . C Mark Santorelli, the WHL scoring leader, had an assist. . . .

In Brandon, the Wheat Kings blanked the Saskatoon Blades 6-0 on Teddy Bear Night. . . . Brandon (22-10-0-1) has won eight of its last nine games. . . . The Blades (12-20-1-0) have been blanked twice this season. . . . Brandon F Cale Jefferies got the Teddy Bear goal at 1:32 of the first period. It was his third goal of the season. Jefferies is from Glenboro, a small community south east of Brandon. . . . G Andrew Hayes earned the shutout with 22 saves. It was his second career shutout, both of them coming against the Blades. . . . The Blades dressed just 16 skaters, two under the maximum. . . . Saskatoon was 0-for-3 on the PP; Brandon, the WHL’s least-penalized team, was 4-for-12. . . . Brandon got three assists from LW Jay Fehr. . . . Two of the Wheat Kings – C Brayden Schenn and LW Matt Calvert – are on eight-game points streaks. Schenn has 16 points and Calvert 12 over that time. . . .

In Calgary, F T.J. Galiardi scored twice to lead the Hitmen to a 5-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . The Hitmen (22-11-1-2) halted a three-game losing slide. They are 4-0 versus Red Deer this season, outscoring the Rebels 14-4 in the process. . . . The Rebels (9-23-4-1) have lost five of six. . . . The game featured 177 penalty minutes, 94 to Red Deer. . . . The Rebels were 1-for-8 on the PP; the Hitmen were 2-for-7. . . .

In Edmonton, Medicine Hat G Ryan Holfeld stopped 22 shots to help the Tigers to a 2-0 victory over the Oil Kings. . . . The Tigers (20-12-3-1) have won four straight, all on the road. . . . The Oil Kings (12-18-2-3) have lost five of six. . . . D Trevor Glass, at 9:06 of the second, and F Tyler Ennis added an empty-netter with 17 seconds left in the third. . . . G Alex Archibald made 29 saves for Edmonton. . . . Holfeld has two shutouts this season, both against Edmonton. He blanked the Oil Kings 1-0 in OT on Oct. 24. . . . The Oil Kings have been blanked four times this season. . . .

In Lethbridge, the Kootenay Ice overcame 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to beat the Hurricanes 4-3. . . . Lethbridge (23-11-1-1) has won six of its last eight games. . . . Kootenay (20-12-3-0) got a goal from F Dustin Sylvester midway through the third to go up 4-2 and hung on for the victory. . . . The Ice now has beaten the Hurricanes twice this season in as many meetings. . . . F Dwight King had two goals and an assist for the home side. . . . C Tylan Stephens had a big goal for the Ice, scoring shorthanded in the second period to forge a 2-2 tie. . . . F Andrew Bailey scored shortly thereafter to give the Ice a 3-2 lead. . . . Earlier in the day, the Hurricanes found out they were ranked ninth in the CHL poll, the first time all season they have been in the top 10. . . . The teams meet Saturday in Cranbrook. . . .

In Portland, G Kurtis Mucha stopped 30 shots as the Winter Hawks dumped the Swift Current Broncos, 3-1. . . . D Travis Bobbee, on the PP 57 seconds into the third period, LW Kevin Undershute, at 13:08 of the second, and LW Viktor Sjodin, on the PP at 14:31 of the third, scored for the Winter Hawks (7-26-0-1), who had lost their previous eight games. . . . F Eric Felde scored for the Broncos (18-13-05) at 7:50 of the third. . . . The Broncos were 0-for-5 on the PP; the Winter Hawks were 2-for-8. . . . Undershute, who has just returned from a lengthy absence with a shoulder injury, also had two assists, as did C Tyler Swystun. . . .

In Prince Albert, F Brady Leavold scored twice to lead the Kelowna Rockets to a 3-2 victory over the Raiders. . . . The Rockets (19-11-2-4) have won two straight and are 2-1-0-2 on their Prairie swing that ends Saturday in Saskatoon. . . . The Raiders (11-19-3-2) have lost six of seven. . . . Leavold has eight goals this season. . . . C Colin Long had his 19th goal for the Rockets. . . . F Ryan McDonald scored both of P.A.’s goals. . . . G Torrie Jung stopped 19 shots for the Rockets; Steven Stanford made 32 saves for the home side. . . . The Raiders took five penalties in the game’s first 10 minutes. . . . The Rockets were 2-for-8 on the PP; the Raiders were 0-for-2. . . . Kelowna captain James McEwan was taken to hospital after taking a hard check. The Rockets fear he may have a chest injury. . . . Prince Albert C Mike Small, who goes 5-foot-8, suffered an apparent shoulder injury after a hit from 6-foot-7 D Tyler Myers. . . .

In Prince George, the Kamloops Blazers erased a 2-1 deficit with three second-period goals and went on to a 7-2 victory over the Cougars. . . . The Blazers (16-16-1-1), who had lost three straight, are eighth in the Western Conference, 11 points ahead of the Cougars (11-23-1-0), who have lost six straight. . . . Prince George has two wins in its last 17 games. . . . C Scott Wasden scored three times for the Blazers and now has seven goals in eight games since being acquired from the Medicine Hat Tigers for whom he had scored twice in 26 games. Wasden also added an assist and was plus-4. . . . Kamloops G Justin Leclerc stopped 29 shots, five more than P.G.’s Tommy Tartaglione. . . .

In Regina, F Cody Gross scored in the shootout to give the Pats a 3-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . G Joey Perricone made 34 stops for the Warriors (17-9-4-3), who had won six straight. . . . Each team now has won twice in the season series. . . . The Pats (22-13-1-1) drew 5,459 fans to the game. . . . Gross and C Tim Kraus scored for Regina in regulation. . . . Moose Jaw F Joel Broda’s second PP goal of the game, at 14:29 of the third, forced OT. . . . Kraus ended an 18-game drought with his goal. . . . G Linden Rowat stopped 24 shots as well as three of four in the circus. . . . The teams meet again Saturday in the Crushed Can. . . . Regina was without LW Jared Jagow (ankle) for a second straight game. . . .

In Spokane, G Dustin Tokarski stopped 21 shots to lead the Chiefs to a 1-0 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . The Chiefs (26-5-1-2) have won four in a row and have the WHL’s best record. . . . They are 14-1-0-2 at home and are 4-0 against Seattle this season. They also have shut out the Thunderbirds three times. . . . Seattle (14-11-5-1) had won three in a row. . . . Tokarski, who now has a 1.76 GAA, tied the Chiefs’ franchise record for shutouts in a season (4). Three of those are against Seattle. . . . C Chris Bruton had the game’s only goal, his 12th, at 7:46 of the first period. . . . It was the 12th time in Spokane’s regular-season history that it had won a game 1-0. . . . Tokarski shares the single-season shutout record with Scott Bailey (1990-91), David Lemanowicz (1995-96) and Jim Watt (2003-04 and 2004-05). . . . The Chiefs have put up five shutouts this season; the Thunderbirds have been blanked four times. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., RW Drew Hoff’s goal with 2:59 left in the third period broke a 1-1 tie as the the Tri-City Americans dumped the Everett Silvertips, 3-1. . . . The Americans (24-7-1-0) have won three in a row. . . . The Silvertips (16-16-0-2) have won three of four in the season series. . . . Tri-City LW Colton Yellow Horn ran his point streak to 16 games with an empty-netter with 33 seconds left. That is the longest streak in the WHL this season. . . . Tri-City G Chet Pickard stopped 23 shots as he posted his 20th victory of the season. . . . G Leland Irving, cut by Canada’s junior team Thursday, stopped 27 shots for the Silvertips.