Junior / CIS / NCAA / ACHA/ ACAC

[hockeygod]

Small schools take spotlight at Frozen Four

TAMPA—Steve Kornacki, Globe and Mail, Apr. 04, 2012

The Frozen Four has gone to the dogs this year.

It’s the underdogs from Ferris State and Union College playing in Thursday’s first semi-final game at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

Then it’s the big dogs – Boston College and the University of Minnesota – going at it in the second game.

And, come Saturday night’s NCAA Division I championship game, there will be a top dog.

While Minnesota features no Canadians and Boston College has three from British Columbia (defencemen Mark Begert and Isaac MacLeod and forward Destry Straight), the two surprise teams are stocked with players from the country.

Ferris State has eight Canadians, including star goalie Taylor Nelson and leading scorer Jordie Johnston, both from Saskatchewan.

Union College has 13 players from five provinces. Six of Union’s top seven scorers are Canadians, led by forward Jeremy Welsh (27 goals, 16 assists) of Bayfield, Ont.

Rounding out the top point men for the Flying Dutchmen are Kelly Zajac (8 goals, 34 assists) of Winnipeg; Daniel Carr (19 goals, 20 assists) of Sherwood Park, Alta.; Josh Jooris (8 goals, 20 assists) of Burlington, Ont.; and East Paul, Man., brothers Kyle Bodie (6 goals, 24 assists), and Mat Bodie (8 goals, 21 assists).

“There has never been a game like this in the Frozen Four,” said Neil Koepke, who has covered 34 of the past 35 tournaments for the Ann Arbor News and Lansing State Journal in Michigan. “And it’s great for the game. It would never happen in football with two schools this small in a national semi-final. But it can happen in hockey if you find the right players for your system.

“Ferris has uncovered diamonds in the rough, many from Saskatchewan, to put together a team that has beaten Michigan State and Ohio State.”

Nelson, who has a 2.1 goals-against average and .923 save percentage, played for Humboldt and is from Regina.

Johnston, a forward from Rosetown, leads Ferris with 20 goals and 36 points.

They followed another Saskatchewan product, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Chris Kunitz, to Big Rapids.

Johnston said an aggressive coaching staff, which includes associate head coach Drew Famulak of Saskatchewan, made him feel “welcome and wanted” on his visit. He liked the “homey” aspects of the town and closeness of the team, too.

“And I kind of also liked the underdog kind of feel of the school,” Johnston added.

Nelson said having Johnston, Mike Trebish and Justin Menke – all from his native province – at Ferris opened the doors.

Union relies almost completely on Canadians to score.

Welsh, an undrafted shooter, will have his pick of NHL teams after this weekend. He played for the Oakville Blades of the Ontario Junior Hockey League.

“There’s people who like to score goals and the people who love to score goals,” said Flying Dutchmen coach Rick Bennett. “And I think he really loves to score goals by the way he shoots it. He puts everything he has into those shots, and he’s actually … killing our stick budget.

“He’s been a force. He’s a huge reason why we’re here. I’m not going to say he’s the only reason. But he’s a big reason.”

Ferris and Union are vying for a chance to slay a giant.

“No matter what happens Thursday night,” said Gary Thorne, who will call the game on ESPNU with Barry Melrose, “we are going to have a David-Goliath matchup. That’s guaranteed. And in sports, that is always interesting. You are waiting for the unusual as a fan, and this game will be that.”

The Golden Gophers have been to 19 Frozen Fours and won it all five times.

The Eagles have played in 23 Frozen Fours with four NCAA championships.

This is the first time either Ferris State or Union College has advanced to the sport’s Holy Grail game. Hockey fans will be scratching their heads when reading about the matchup between a team from Big Rapids, Mich., and Schenectady, N.Y.

Ferris State’s Bob Daniels, on Wednesday chosen the winner of the Spencer Penrose Award as the top Division I coach, said retired dean of the school of business Dick Hansen put the situation into perspective for him.

“He had an interesting take on small school versus big school,” Daniels said. “He said, ‘Say you end up running into a Minnesota in the finals.’” Daniels said Hansen used a 40,000 enrolment figure as an example. Minnesota, with more than 52,000 students, is the nation’s fourth-largest school.

Hansen told him, “The nice thing is you’re only playing 20 of their student-athletes. You don’t have to play all 40,000.”

Daniels continued, “So, size of school I don’t think makes much of a difference.”

Ferris lists its enrolment at 14,560, while Union has just 2,200.

These schools are big only in their dreams.

—–

Should be some exciting hockey to watch this weekend…! I hope I can find it on the satellite. Alwys neat to cheer for the underdog; especially when Union is such a small school. If memory serves me, I believe they started their hockey team as a Div 2 or 3 program?

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Bold move in world of college chess

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP), Apr 6, 2012

It was one of the most brazen moves in the chess world since the Najdorf Sicilian Defense, perhaps even the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit.

Fresh off her second straight national championship, the legendary chess coach at Texas Tech is jumping to another school and taking all the top members of the team with her. No one has ever seen anything like it in intercollegiate competition, not even among powerhouse basketball and football teams that are worth many millions of dollars.

Similar deals are not uncommon in academia, where a star professor recruited by another school may bring along a cadre of researchers, lab assistants and post-docs. But in the competitive realm, the practice is virtually unheard of.

"There's no equivalent," said Mike Hoffpauir, a Virginia consultant who helped organize the recent President's Cup chess tournament, the game's version of the Final Four, which was won by Texas Tech. "If the coach from Kentucky gets hired by UCLA this summer, the whole team's not going to go with him."

Susan Polgar, a home-schooled prodigy from Budapest and the world's top female player by the time she was 15, is taking her champions to private Webster University in suburban St. Louis, a city that is already home to the World Chess Hall of Fame and the U.S. national championships.

It also has a swanky new chess club and scholastic center bankrolled by a billionaire, the kind of place where students can immerse themselves in chess arcana, learning moves like the King's Indian Defense and others with mysterious names steeped in the game's 1,500-year history.

Webster lured the team with the promise of a greater financial investment.

"The program grew rapidly, and Texas Tech wasn't ready to grow with the speed of the program," said the coach, who founded the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence, known as SPICE, in 2007. "St. Louis today is the center of chess in America. It just seemed like a perfect fit."

The Webster program will be based on campus, but its top players will clearly spend plenty of time at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis, a 6,000-square-foot shrine to the game where the resident rock star is Hikaru Nakamura, the top-ranked U.S. player and No. 6 in the world. He, too, is a recent transplant to St. Louis. The club was bankrolled by businessman Rex Sinquefield, a retired financial executive and avid chess player who is also active in Missouri politics.

The Knight Raiders of Lubbock won their second straight President's Cup in Herndon, Va., last weekend, defeating chess powerhouses New York University, the University of Maryland Baltimore County and the University of Texas at Dallas.

There are no hard feelings in Lubbock, said Texas Tech spokesman Chris Cook. The school plans to continue its chess program despite the departure of Polgar and her all-star squad of seven chess grandmasters, the game's highest competitive ranking.

"What these kids have done in the short time they've been here is amazing," Cook said. "They've put us in some niches where we haven't been before. They've put us in some countries where we haven't been before."

The championship chess team has also helped elevate the Texas Tech brand, Cook said — though chess matches draw far less attention than Tech football under former coach Mike Leach or Red Raider basketball under the irascible Bobby Knight.

Polgar said she was recruited by a half-dozen top programs, though she declined to identify her unsuccessful suitors. In the end, she chose Webster, a former Catholic women's college in a leafy suburb that now has more than 100 campuses worldwide, including many near U.S. military bases, as well as residential programs in Vienna, Geneva and China.

Provost Julian Schuster, a native of the former Yugoslavia who calls himself "a very strong fan and casual player," helped broker the deal after learning of Polgar's interest through mutual friends. He envisions a broader academic focus revolving around chess, espousing a "dream of connecting chess as not only a game but as a didactic tool, to apply in a learning setting."

Neither Polgar nor Schuster would discuss the specifics of the financial commitment to attract the program.

The Texas Tech students transferring to Webster in the fall will receive scholarships. At Tech, the program had a $30,000 pot for the entire team, but Polgar noted that some top chess schools award individual students that amount.

The team members hail from around the world: Germany, Brazil, Iran, Hungary, Israel and Azerbaijan. In interviews, several said they had no qualms about the surprise relocation. Such is their faith in Polgar, who in 2005 set a Guinness World Record by playing 326 simultaneous games — and winning 309 of those matches, with 14 draws and just three losses. That feat also gave her another world record, with 1,131 consecutive games played.

"It was a very easy decision," said Georg Meier, a freshman from Trier, Germany. "When the program decided to move to St. Louis, I didn't have to think twice."

About 30 schools nationwide have competitive chess teams, from Yale and Princeton to Miami-Dade College and the University of West Indies. And while college chess remains a niche activity, Polgar's unprecedented move has given the game a brief moment in the spotlight.

Hoffpauir's consulting firm of Booz Allen Hamilton heavily recruits elite chess players for their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Some Wall Street firms do the same.

"These players that were here were the equivalent of Kansas and Kentucky, athletes at the top of their game," Hoffpauir said.

—–

This isn't hockey but I was blown away that chess is an NCAA 'sport' with scholarships. As the story says, when a 'normal' sport coach moves, it is unusual for most of his players to follow…

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

NCAA Frozen Four: Boston College, Ferris State prepare for David vs. Goliath final

Derek Berry, The Hockey News, 2012-04-06

Tampa, Fla – A look at some of the odds and ends of the NCAA Frozen Four college hockey championship, direct from the Sunshine State:

AND IT’S DOWN TO ONE GAME

Looking ahead to Saturday night’s championship here in warm and sunny Florida, the brackets couldn’t be more perfect. You have the David vs. Goliath matchup with the Ferris State Bulldogs from Big Rapids, Mich., and the heavyweight Boston College Eagles, who knocked out the difficult Minnesota Gophers.

Ferris State players say they believed in each other when many doubted them.

“I think kind of the way the season started, everyone told us we weren’t good enough,” said Kyle Bonis, who had two goals in the Bulldogs 3-1 semifinal win over Union College. “I think that what we have in that locker room, I don’t think there’s any 26 guys I’d rather go into a national championship with.”

Boston College head coach Jerry York, who has been at the helm for the Eagles since 1994 wondered about his team at the beginning of the season, but couldn’t be more confident now.

“Starting the year I wasn't quite sure where we were going to take this group of guys and they really have matured and become a real – they've become a real good team,” he said. “And I think that's a great tribute to the leadership and the captains of our team.”
KEYS TO SATURDAY NIGHT’S FINAL

You have Ferris State’s tight, swarming defense and their growing confidence going up against Boston College, which has far more NHL draft picks and loads of talent, along with their ability to get up and down the ice quickly.

But the Eagles have a strong defense, too, having given up only one goal the entire NCAA tournament and riding an 18-game winning streak.

An offensive struggle type of game would favor the Bulldogs and an all-out offensive fest would favor the Eagles. Either way, it should be interesting.

BONIS TURNS SOME HEADS

With two goals in the semifinal, Ferris State junior forward Kyle Bonis is sure to turn the heads of NHL scouts, particularly because he is an undrafted free agent. Bonis had a knack for scoring going back to his junior days with the Traverse City North Stars of the NAHL.

“It’s funny, no one recruited Kyle Bonis,” said Ferris State head coach Bob Daniels. “He’s always been a scorer. He scores. He’s had a history of scoring goals since he was 14, 15 years old.”

UNION’S WELSH HAS THE NHL TOOLS

NHL scouts also took notice of big-bodied Union College forward Jeremy Welsh, who had a fine NCAA tournament. At 6-foot-3 this undrafted free agent has a presence down the middle, possesses good hands and feet, wins a lot of faceoffs and isn’t afraid to mix it up. Ferris State held Welsh mostly in check in the semifinal, but other schools had problems with him.

So it was no surprise when Welsh signed a pro deal with the Carolina Hurricanes mere hours after the Dutchmen fell to Ferris State.

LOOK IN THE MIRROR

One of the fascinating elements of this Frozen Four is that each team in the semifinal resembled each other to some extent. Minnesota and Boston College each have a selection of skill players and both like to get up and down the ice.

Minnesota head coach Don Lucia downplayed any rivalry with Boston College, despite the fact both teams are very similar in style. He said it’s really more of a respect between two storied programs.

“Certainly look at what they’ve done in their history, very similar to Minnesota over the years,” said Lucia of Boston College. “Very elite players.”

Boston College head coach Jerry York agreed adding: “I think of all the teams in the country, when we look at them, we kind of look in the mirror. They like to play the game with high skill level. They play very tenacious defensive play. They wear the same uniform colors. But the tradition of both programs, there’s a lot of things that are similar with BC and Minnesota.”

Ferris State and Union College are very disciplined and rely on their goaltending and defense to a large extent (though Union’s power play ranked fourth in the nation).

Ferris State coach Bob Daniels and Union College coach Rick Bennett both had complimentary things to say to one another as well, prior to their semifinal matchup.

“I think we’re both very structured in our approach to the games,” said Daniels. “I think both teams play a really strong unit-of-five team game on the ice.”

Bennett, a one-time player for Providence College and the New York Rangers, said both teams have a workman-like approach to the game.

“That’s how we both (got here)” he said. “It’s two teams that pride themselves on working hard.”

FERRIS AND UNION A JV MATCHUP?

Players from both Ferris State and Union College bristled when asked about Twitter and blogosphere pundits calling their semifinal game a ‘JV matchup.’

Ferris State goaltender Taylor Nelson especially took exception to the analogy prior to the semifinal.

“I think that’s silly,” said Nelson. “First off, we’re in the Frozen Four last time I checked. And it’s a pretty big accomplishment for both teams. And you look at Union…that’s not a team to joke about. We’re here playing for the championship. The junior varsity thing, I just find that kind of funny.”

Welsh also found the Internet buzz about the game odd.

“I wouldn’t bat at an eye at it. Don’t read that stuff,” said Welsh. “Doesn’t really matter what other people think. We’re here at the national championship. We’re all in the same boat.”

OH LOOK IT’S YOU!

Players from Union and Minnesota in particular were giving their stars a lot of grief for the larger than life murals pasted on the front of the Tampa Times Forum.

Welsh said it was neat to see as the team bus came in.

“It’s not every day I see myself on the side of a building,” he said.

But Welsh’s Union teammate, forward Nolan Julseth-White, gave him the business for it.

“This morning I woke up, saw this beautiful sunrise, and then, wham, there’s Jeremy Welsh,” he said jokingly. “Living with him all summer and dealing with him all year, you think you could get away from him for just five minutes.”

The Minnesota Gophers players had some fun with the murals, too. Gophers forward Nate Schmidt said of teammate Taylor Matson’s pose: “It was kind of fun when we pulled up. Everyone obviously gave Taylor a little bit of grief. But he’s a well-deserving kid to be up there.”

BY THE NUMBERS

1 – number of times Ferris State and Union College have appeared in the NCAA Frozen Four each.

42 – number of times Minnesota and Boston College have appeared in the NCAA Frozen Four combined.

0 – number of NHL draft picks on Ferris State and Union College.

24 – number of NHL draft picks on the Minnesota and Boston College rosters combined.

0 – number of scholarship players on the Union College Dutchmen.

9 – years since a team from the ECAC appeared in the Frozen Four until Union did it this year. The last was Cornell in 2003.

10 – Appearance number for Boston College in the NCAA championship.

0 – number of previous appearances by Ferris State in the NCAA championship.

18 – current Boston College winning streak.

1 – goal allowed by Boston College so far in the NCAA hockey tournament.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Boston College claims NCAA hockey title

TAMPA, Fla. — The Associated Press, Apr. 07, 2012

Boston College is making winning NCAA hockey titles look easy.

Coach Jerry York and star goalie Parker Milner know how hard it really is.

“You can't buy one of these championships,” York said Saturday night after the Eagles beat Ferris State 4-1 for their fifth NCAA championship and third in five seasons.

“You have to earn them. And this team definitely earned it.”

Milner, the Frozen Four's Most Outstanding Player, made 27 of his 33 saves in the final two periods.

“It's hard to put it into words because everyone did their part and we came together as a team,” Milner said. “You don't do this without contributions from everyone and that's what we got.”

Steven Whitney scored twice to help Boston College (33-10-1) finish with a 19-game winning streak. The Eagles outscored their opponents 77-21 during that span.

“We knew Ferris State was going to be outstanding,” York said. “They might not have the name recognition, but we knew how good they were. We stayed patient through the first two periods. Parker was extremely strong in net. You can't be measured until you win that last trophy. Now this team can take its place among the other championship teams.”

Ferris State (26-12-5) was making its first Frozen Four appearance.

“You can't say enough about what Boston College has accomplished,” Ferris State coach Bob Daniels said. “I think that's a very special program. It's going to be hard to duplicate.”

Paul Carey broke a tie with a power-play goal midway through the first period, redirecting Brian Dumoulin's blast from left point to make it 2-1.

Johnny Gaudreau also scored for Boston College.

Garrett Thompson scored for Ferris State.

Whitney opened the scoring at 3:18 of the first period, stealing a pass and beating lunging goalie Taylor Nelson. Thompson tied it at 5:19, and Carey put the Eagles in front at 10:33.

Gaudreau weaved through the Ferris State defence to make it 3-1 with 3:02 left in the game. He carried over the blue line with two defenders between him and the net. The freshman star went around one defenceman, faked forehand on the other defender, then went to his backhand and flicked a shot from the edge of the right circle. It got past Nelson to the far post.

“That was a big-time goal by a big-time player,” York said.

Whitney added an empty-net goal with 1:03 to go.

Boston College also won national championships in 1949, 2001, 2008 and 2010. The Eagles are the first program to win three titles in five years since Denver accomplished the feat with wins in 1958, 1960 and 1961.

Daniels said he felt Ferris State represented itself well.

“I felt very comfortable coming out of the second period, but they just had too much,” Daniels said. “I have zero regrets about this. We did the best we could. I have zero regrets about how they played and how they performed.”

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

NCAA Frozen Four: Boston College takes down title for coach Jerry York.
With a 4-1 win over Ferris State, Boston College won its third title in five years.

Derek Berry, The Hockey News, 2012-04-08

TAMPA BAY – In the aftermath of the Boston College Eagles 4-1 NCAA tournament championship victory over the Ferris State Bulldogs, let’s look at just how successful this BC program really is. When you sit back and think about it, it’s truly astounding. And programs that are this good, don’t just grow on trees.

Boston College coach Jerry York said he learned from legendary long-time Wisconsin coach ‘Badger’ Bob Johnson to create a blueprint. York recalled the advice he got in analyzing how he did and how valuable it still is to him.

You can see the results not only with what he’s done with the BC program, which has won three national titles in the past five years, but also with the types of players he produces and the success they have at the next level.

Looking back at the Eagles, you could call them the team of the past decade and you could make a solid case for them being the premiere college hockey program right now. Consider the results over the past 15 seasons for BC in the NCAA tournament:

1998 – lost to Michigan in overtime thriller in Boston?

2000 – lost to North Dakota ?

2001 – beat North Dakota in overtime? for title

2006 – lost to Wisconsin in Milwaukee?

2007 – lost to Michigan State

2008 – beat Notre Dame? for title

2010 – beat Wisconsin? for title

2012 – beat Ferris State for title

York admitted the blueprint includes simply getting to the championship and playing well, even if you fall short. Although he noted, you do want to win a few, which the Eagles have done.

Through the years, the Boston College players have bought into what York has taught them. And this team has to play in Hockey East, one of the toughest conferences, if not the toughest in college hockey, on a regular basis. BC battles teams such as Boston University, their arch-rivals, Maine, New Hampshire and others.

Players who come to Boston College not only come to win, they come prepared to go to the next level. The Eagles program is a machine. And York has played a big part in that. He understands the professional game and NHL GMs love picking players from BC because they know they’re getting solid, quality talent and players with good heads on their shoulders.

After the Eagles basked in the glow of yet another championship, York brought the trophy out to the media interview room and placed it atop the table for all to see and for he and his team to admire. It is the trophy that you strive for, that you are expected to win at Boston College, by following York’s blueprint.

NOTES

AWARDS – The annual Hobey Baker Award, presented to college hockey’s most outstanding player, was presented to Jack Connolly, senior forward from Minnesota-Duluth. The Hockey Humanitarian Award was presented to Aleca Hughes, senior forward from Yale University’s women’s hockey team who started a foundation in honor of a teammate who passed away from leukemia.

TAMPA SETS RECORD – Two-day attendance at the Frozen Four, held at the Tampa Bay Times Forum broke a record for a first-time host city.

SEE YOU IN STEEL TOWN – Next year’s Frozen Four will take place in Pittsburgh at the Consol Energy Center, home to the Pittsburgh Penguins, April 11 and 13, 2013.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

JONES: Best-of-nine made history

Terry Jones, Edmonton Sun, April 15 2012

EDMONTON – If Bill Hunter was still alive and running the Edmonton Oil Kings, the series against the Moose Jaw Warriors would probably be beginning this weekend.

It would be a best-of-nine Might even go 10.

That’s the way it was the last time — the only time — Edmonton played Moose Jaw in a Western Hockey League playoff series.

And it almost did go 10!

Moose Jaw won it three games to two — with four games tied.

And Game 9 was a tie!

One of the wonderful things about the current Oil Kings magical 19-game winning streak and being eight wins away from the Memorial Cup, with Games 1 and 2 against Moose Jaw here Friday and Sunday, are the memories it brings back from the days when the juniors were king.

This series isn’t a first seed against a sixth or eighth seed; it’s between the top two teams in the Eastern Conference, both coming off sweeps.

The Oil Kings had a 107 point season and the Warriors put up 98.

The timing is right to remind Edmonton of what a real wild west junior playoff series can be like.

Even if it’s only a best-of-seven.

The last one, in 1967, was in the first year of the league, the year after the Oil Kings won their second Memorial Cup of the ’60s after playing in it seven consecutive years when it was a two-team East vs. West best-of-seven showdown.

The Oil Kings won the regular season title (as they did this year), but it was Moose Jaw, then called the Canucks, who won the series.

“It was unbelievable,” Billy Moores said of that Oil Kings squad. “We’d played the whole year in the Jasper Place Arena because they were renovating the Edmonton Gardens. The series started at JP and ended up in the Gardens.”

Teammate Ron Walters agrees, adding: “It was bizarre; it was Bill Hunter at his best.

“They changed the rules as we went along. It was a best-of-nine. And then it was going to go 10! I honestly think it was about gates.

“We beat them big in the first two games; it wasn’t even close. But back in Moose Jaw, it was a different story. I don’t know if our goalie, Smokey McLeod, had something to drink, but he couldn’t stop anything in one game. He let one in from the other blueline. That’s where they got their momentum.”

Both men agreed that the best guy to tell the story of that memorable series is Ken Brown.

He won it.

The kid who grew up a couple blocks from Jasper Place (now Bill Hunter) Arena, was brilliant in goal for Moose Jaw.

Brown, who went on to be Jacques Plante’s goaltending partner with the 1974-75 Edmonton Oilers when Brown was 25 and Plante was 46. (Yes, Virginia, the legendary Montreal Canadiens goaltender played his final year of pro as an Oiler in the WHA).

Brown worked for years as Rod Phillips color commentator on Oilers NHL broadcasts and is a former advertising manager of the Edmonton Sun.

Contacted Friday in San Antonio, Texas where he now enjoys watching his 10-year-old grandson grow up, the memories flooded back for Brown from the same spring the Toronto Maple Leafs won their last Stanley Cup.

“How much fun was that ’67 series? Oh my!

“The 66-67 season was the year we were an outlaw league from the CAHA, so Wild Bill wanted to stretch out the season because we couldn’t play for the Memorial Cup.

“As I recall, the Oil Kings were seeded first, and we were sixth. So the best-of-nine series would give the other four teams enough time to play their two series to determine the other finalist to face either Edmonton or Moose Jaw.

Stolen

“The series didn’t go to 10 games — if it had, we would have stolen home ice advantage, that’s why it was so cool to be able to win with a tie. It actually turned into a ‘whoever gets to 11 points first wins the series.’

“And going into Game 9 we were up 10-8 in points, so they need to win just to stay alive.

“We got killed in the first two games at Jasper Place Arena. I think we got shutout both times by Smokey McLeod. Something like 4-0 and 8-0. I remember him making one save by actually stepping on the puck. It was the damndest thing I’ve ever seen.

“We went back to Moose Jaw for games 3-4-5. I think we tied the first one, then won the next two to go back to Edmonton tied at five points each.

“God bless him — our people made sure that Ace Bailey had enough beer in his hotel room while staying in M.J.,” Brown recalled of the former Oiler who mentored Wayne Gretzky and died in the 9–11 terrorist attack on World Trade Centre.

“I think we had about a week off, then went back to Edmonton to open the Gardens after the renovations.

“That’s when Ross Perkins of the Oil Kings stick hit Ken Hodge in the eye. I chased Perky from my crease to their bench then dropped him with a two-hander. The referee, Jules Swick, said he never saw it. Babe MacAvoy was the linesman, and he says he never saw it either.

“Eventually we ended up in Edmonton for that final game. We needed a tie. The Oil Kings needed to win to go back to Moose Jaw for Game 10.

“I remember the headline in the paper that morning: ‘Oil Kings book 20 plane tickets to Moose Jaw.’ ”

These days neither team is allowed to fly, so even if Bob Green could convince the league to go to a best of nine with a chance to play a Game 10, there would be no headline like that to write.

“We flew flew to Edmonton for Game 9,” said Brown. “That day and that game were so exciting, because for most of our guys, it was their first plane ride.

“All we needed was a tie to win the series.

“At the start of the third period, I think we were down 4 -2. I remember Garry Gilbert coming up to me prior to the period, tapping me on the pads and saying, ‘Well Brownie boy, this is where they separate the bearshit from the buckwheat.’

“The game ended in a 4 – 4 tie. We won the best-of-nine series with a tie!

“One of our rookies, Jerry Miller, a Moose Jaw boy, got the third goal and I think Edmontonian Donnie Walker got the tying goal.

“But it was mayhem for the final 10 minutes — intense, scary … but so exciting.

“Because they had to win to play a Game 10, Bill Gadsby pulled Smokey with a couple minutes to go and they were all over us.

“I think Barry Long stopped as many shots as I did in that flurry,” Brown said of the defenceman who would later become an Oiler (and later head coach of the Winnipeg Jets).

Shaking

“I remember looking back at goal judge Ted McPhail, and he was just shaking his head.

“When it was all over, it was bedlam for us. We’d worked so hard and had so many ups and downs. With so many of us from Edmonton and area, our families were on the ice hugging us and just celebrating. That’s still a vivid memory today.

“I remember carrying my sister Sheila, who was 10, around the ice and the two of us were crying our eyes out. We went back to our rooms at the Beverly Crest Hotel and had one of those great evenings when you just couldn’t sleep and the party just went room to room , with everyone hugging and crying.

“When we got back to the airport in Regina on the Saturday afternoon there was a motorcade to escort us the 40 miles back to Moose Jaw, where the city had set up a parade. That was such a thrill!

“I remember the lead in the story in the paper on that Saturday: ‘They cancelled 20 air plane tickets to Moose jaw today: the Oil Kings aren’t going anywhere.’ ”

Yes, this Edmonton-Moose Jaw series could be good.

But there is NO chance it’ll be anything like that one.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Scouts galore descending on Moose Jaw

Terry Jones, Edmonton Sun, April 21, 2012

EDMONTON – Eighty scouts. That’s a lot of scouts.

That’s a lot of seats high in the corners of the stands. That’s a lot of hotel rooms in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

There are only 30 teams in the National Hockey League.

Eighty scouts equals 2.67 scouts per team.

And they’re all headed to Moose Jaw to watch 2.0 players.

They’re all coming from the about-to-be-completed U-18 world championships in the Czech Republic to Moose Jaw for Game 3-4 of the WHL Eastern Conference Final.

Morgan Rielly of the Warriors and Griffin Reinhart of the Edmonton Oil Kings are now two of the last few prized players eligible for the NHL Entry Draft still skating. And they’re in the same games for comparison including Game 2 Sunday.

In the case of Rielly, in Game 1 he played his first game after missing 63 due to injury after he tore up a knee Nov. 6 against Calgary.

“I think it’s safe to say this will be the largest gathering of scouts to ever come to Moose Jaw,” said Warriors head of hockey operations Alan Millar.

“Seventy or 80 for sure. Head scouts. Area scouts. General managers. Assistant general managers. Most of them are coming from teams picking in the top 10 or 12. Most of those teams are bringing contingents in.

“Obviously the big reason is because Morgan hasn’t played all year. But it’s also the head-to-head with Reinhart in a conference final playoff series. It’s intriguing viewing.

“We’ve already seen something like this happen this year. When Alex Galchenyuk came back from injury in mid-March, there were 64 scouts in Sarnia to watch him.

“It’s been one of those years. A lot of the top prospects got hurt and haven’t played many games. It’s now an important part of the year and there are only so many hockey games left to watch.”

The scouts, returning from watching Filip Forsberg, Mathew Dumba, etc. at the U-18, have had their last viewings of Nail Yakupov, Ryan Murray, Mikhail Grigorenko and Galchenyuk, the players ranked in the top four by Central Scouting. Rielly is rated No. 5. Reinhart was rated No. 10 but is said to be trending much higher than that with his play so far in the playoffs and the stock on players like Grigorenko, for one, said to have dropped dramatically with his play in the playoffs.

So what’s it like to be an 18-year-old kid to go to practice Saturday, after playing your first game back in Friday’s Game 1 loss to the Edmonton Oil Kings in the WHL Eastern Conference Final, to find out 80 scouts are going to be watching you back home in Moose Jaw?

“Pretty nerve-wracking, obviously,” said Rielly.

“It is kind of surprising to find out there are going to be that many scouts around. Right now I’m thinking that it’s good to have the opportunity to play a couple of games first,” said the Warrior’s puck-moving defenceman who averaged a point per game before his injury and returned to set up the only goal in the Moose Jaw loss.

“It was just a great feeling just to play in a game again. I’m just trying to keep it simple, play my game and try not to do everything.

“It’s been a pretty tough road to get back. I put a whole lot of work in giving myself a chance to get back to being part of the team in the playoffs. The toughest part was to watch the Prospects Game at home,” he said of the one game where 80 scouts is the norm.

For Reinhart, who grew up playing with Rielly on the West Coast, the news of having 80 scouts heading to Moose Jaw didn’t seem to have an effect on him — although if you watch him play, seldom does anything seem to have an effect on him. He’s an unflappable as 18-year-old defencemen come.

“I’ve been used to it all year,” he said.

The more the merrier, is his opinion.

“The further your team goes in the playoffs, the more I think it helps. I think it’s really helping me to play on a team like this. I think it’s been going really good for me in the playoffs so far. I’m not focusing on offence at all. I think I’ve been managing my own end really well,” said the six-foot-four, 202-pound player.

His dad Paul, the former Calgary Flames star who was the No. 12 draft pick in 1979, said times have changed.

“I was a first-round pick and I never knew there was a scout in the building. I never once talked to a scout. I didn’t even know I was drafted until I was at the Olympic camp and I was called off the ice to take a phone call from Cliff Fletcher,” he said watching practice Saturday.

“Now, if you are a GM or a head scout, you don’t want to make a mistake with a first-round pick or you’re going to pay for it.”

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Ailing father inspires Oil King

Jason Hills ,Edmonton Sun, April 25, 2012

We've witnessed Laurent Brossoit make some incredible saves during these 2012 Western Hockey League playoffs — battling and fighting to make that game-changing stop.

If you wonder where he gets it from, look no further than to his father John, who has spent the last five years battling multiple sclerosis.

In their own way, father and son are inspirations to one another.

When John has one of his "down" days, all he has to do is turn on his computer in Port Alberni, B.C., and watch Laurent and the Oil Kings in what has so far become a memorable playoff run.

For Laurent, just knowing what his dad has been through is inspiring in its own right.

"My dad has gone through a lot in his life, especially in the last few years. It's nice to see my dad fighting — he fights so hard, and he teaches me so much," said Brossoit.

"It teaches you to not take anything for granted and appreciate what you have.

"I was young when he was diagnosed, but you start to learn how to deal with it, and try and remain positive and understand where he's at and just try to keep him positive."

When his father suffers through one of his bad days, Brossoit makes sure to give his dad a call or send him a text with a little encouragement. John does the same after every one of Laurent's games.

Last year, Laurent and some of his family members raised $8,000 for his father to undergo a chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency treatment.

The treatment is only available in the U.S. and it's been known to erase some of the symptoms of those suffering from M.S.

John's not cured, but since receiving the treatment in Seattle, it's helped ease many of his symptoms.

"Before I had the treatment, I would get vertigo … it was pretty bad. I would get dizzy from any kind of activity. My brain was in a fog," said John.

"Physically, now I'm doing what I used to do. The only thing that I think hasn't got too much better is the cognitive side of things."

There are more good days than bad right now for John, as he's been able to watch the Oil Kings win 21 games in a row heading into Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final Wednesday in Moose Jaw.

He's one proud papa.

"Every game that I've been able to see him play (this year) has got me out of my doldrums. It really helps that the team is winning and the team is doing well," said John.

"We all gather at my brother's house on game nights. Even my mother, who isn't a big hockey fan, she's now hooked. We're so proud of him and the team."

Brossoit was given the reins to be the No. 1 guy in the Oil Kings crease this year, and he's entrenched himself as one of the best goaltenders in the WHL.

The 19-year-old, a fifth-round pick of the Calgary Flames in 2011 finished the regular season near the top of every statistical goaltending category. In the playoffs, he's been almost unbeatable with a sparkling 1.40 goals against average and 0.950 save percentage.

His 48-save performance in Game 2 of the Conference Final against the Moose Jaw Warriors were the most saves made by a winning goaltender in the Western Hockey League playoffs this year.

If he wasn't already on Hockey Canada's radar for the 2013 World Junior tournament, Brossoit is now.

His play in the playoffs has captivated Oil Kings fans, starting an 'LB' chant that could be heard all the way back to Port Alberni.

When Brossoit skates into his crease, he has the mentality that he owns it and it drives him to be the best.

"I knew I had to earn it," said Brossoit.

"But my whole focus is on the puck, I don't focus on where I am considered in people's eyes."

John has only been able to see four games in person this year. Not being able to work because of his illness has made it tough financially to see more games. But he may get an opportunity if the Oil Kings advance to the final.

"I have a good friend, who's son (Tyler Wotherspoon) plays for Portland," said John. "I've already been getting texts from him saying that if the Oil Kings play Portland, that he's bringing me with him."

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

How the Winterhawks ended up in Portland . . .

Gregg Drinnan, Taking Note, April 27 2012

This story, written by Dean (Scooter) Vrooman five or six years ago, appeared on this blog on March 30, 2008, and again on Nov. 4, 2008. Originally, it was to have been one chapter in a book about the Portland Winterhawks.

With the Winterhawks having advanced to the WHL final against the Edmonton Oil Kings, it’s worth another look. After all, the Winterhawks, who not that long ago were the Winter Hawks, started life as the Oil Kings.

Here then is Vrooman’s story of the Three Amigos and how the WHL ended up in Portland . . .

PORTLAND’S THREE AMIGOS

Written by DEAN (SCOOTER) VROOMAN
Edited by Gregg Drinnan

It was the summer of 1975 and Brian Shaw, Ken Hodge and Innes Mackie were unemployed. With nothing but time on their hands, they decided to go duck hunting in Stettler, Alta.

Shaw and Hodge had been fired by ‘Wild’ Bill Hunter, who owned the World Hockey Association’s Edmonton Oilers and the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. Mackie had just returned from Kimberley, B.C., where he had turned down a job offer at a mine. The offer Mackie had received included a chance to play a little hockey on the side.

Shaw was in the process of putting together a group of investors to buy the Oil Kings from Hunter. Shaw would run the show.
Hodge would coach. Mackie would be the trainer. They didn’t know it at the time but they were embarking on a 20-year relationship — relationships of hockey, business and friendship.

The Three Amigos became inseparable until Shaw passed away in the summer of 1994.

On this day in Stettler, the three men, who would become the three original members of the Winter Hawks’ front office, were solidifying the mutual respect and trust needed. The ducks weren't flying that day, at least not in the Stettler area, so the three erstwhile hunters headed for a local bar to shoot a little pool. Everyone was having fun, too, until a cowboy in a black hat came over and started yipping at Hodge for monopolizing the pool table. After an unflattering comment from Hodge regarding the cowboy’s hat, feathers started to fly — and it had nothing to do with ducks.

"He started to take his jean jacket off and when it got about half way down each arm, I smoked him," Hodge remembers. "It's Saturday night and the place is full. There were five of us — and two of them bailed out. Brian, who was always quick with the wit, was not ready to handle this type of negotiation. So that left Innes and I — and, needless to say, we had our hands full. There were probably eight of them involved by now. The pool cues are getting broken, I'm getting thumped in the back of the head and Innes got jumped. Finally, we hear sirens and red lights. The three of us were never so happy to see the RCMP."

That incident was neither the first nor the last for friendships that would last more than 20 years.

When he was 16 years of age, Hodge earned a job as a defenceman with the Jasper Place Mohawks — a high-profile team in Edmonton. Coincidentally, the general manager and head coach was Shaw, who was working in the first of what would be many dual roles. It didn't take Shaw long to earn his reputation as a slick team manager.

"The team was the talk of the town," Hodge says. "People in Edmonton were very envious. Brian started out with just one bantam team and ended up with the first true feeder system in the Edmonton area when he expanded to midgets and junior. The Jasper Place Mohawks were first class all the way. They paid all their bills, wore flashy uniforms and won lots of hockey games."

Hodge was one of four players from Jasper Place chosen by Shaw to play the next season with the Moose Jaw Canucks of the newly formed Western Canada Hockey League. Shaw was the general manager and head coach and Hodge was a key defenceman.

Other than the Canucks, the WCHL featured the Oil Kings, Estevan Bruins, Regina Pats, Saskatoon Blades, Weyburn Red Wings and Calgary Buffaloes. Moose Jaw finished fourth in a 56-game regular season, 16 points behind the first-place Oil Kings, but went on to win league’s first championship trophy by beating the Oil Kings — the Canucks won that series 3-2 with four games tied — and then Regina, winning the best-of-seven final, 4-1.

It was the pivotal season of Hodge’s career. In a regular-season game against Regina, Hodge was struck in an eye by a high stick. In the playoffs, he again was hit in the same eye. After a series of operations during the summer, doctors told him that they would know by early 1968 if his eye would ever recover.

On Nov. 15, 1967, Hodge received a call from Gordon Fashaway inviting him to Portland to play for the Buckaroos of the professional Western Hockey League. Hodge was excited about the offer and pushed the doctors for an answer. Unfortunately, the answer he received wasn’t the one he had hoped to hear. Hodge's playing career was over.

The next season, Shaw moved on to the St. Catharines Black Hawks of the Ontario Junior Hockey League. While Hodge was helping with training camp, he accepted an offer to coach the Sorel Eparviers of the Quebec Junior A Hockey League.

Hodge, at 21 likely the youngest head coach in the history of Canadian junior hockey, had quite a debut season. Sorel put up a 33-16-1 regular-season record and went all the way to the Eastern Canadian best-of-five final where it lost 3-1 to the Montreal Jr. Canadiens, who would go on to win the Memorial Cup. It’s worth noting that the Jr. Canadiens played in the OJHL, where they ousted Shaw’s Black Hawks from the best-of-seven championship final in five games.

Hodge’s impressive season in Sorel opened up an opportunity for him to coach in the International Hockey League, with a team in Flint, Mich. He would spend four seasons in Flint.

Meanwhile, Shaw returned to Edmonton where he coached the Oil Kings, winning the WCHL’s 1971-72 title in his first season. That put the Oil Kings into what was the first Memorial Cup to be decided in a tournament format — this one also featured the Peterborough Petes and Cornwall Royals, but no host team — in Ottawa. The Oil Kings were eliminated with a 5-0 loss to Cornwall during which Edmonton defenceman Keith Mackie, Innes’s brother, was struck in an eye by a deflected puck and suffered a torn iris. For the record, Cornwall edged Peterborough 2-1 in the final.

The next season, Hunter, the Oilers’ general manager who was most impressed with Shaw's championship season with the Oil Kings, offered him the head-coaching job with the WHA team. When Shaw accepted, Hunter hired Hodge to coach the Oil Kings.
"I jumped at the opportunity because the Oil Kings were a very prestigious team," Hodge remembers. "I wanted to get on with my career in hockey and I saw too many people stagnating in Flint."

As it turned out, Hodge made the wrong move at the wrong time. He got caught in a rebuilding program with the Oil Kings. Much of the talent from the previous season graduated and Hunter gave Hodge a little over a year to win. He didn't, so Hunter fired him.

Meanwhile, Shaw's Oilers got off to an amazing start — winning 18 straight games. Unfortunately for Shaw, the team was playing over its head and it didn't take long for reality to set in. Hunter enjoyed the winning streak and wanted it to continue. When the wins stopped coming, Hunter, never know for his patience or for a willingness to avoid headlines, fired Shaw.

Two months later brought Shaw, Hodge and Mackie to a pool room in Stettler.

Eventually, Shaw's group bought the Oil Kings from Hunter and 16 games into the 1975-76 WCHL season the three amigos became the WCHL club’s new management team. Shaw was the general manager, Hodge the head coach and Mackie the trainer.

However, things weren’t all coming up roses. Shaw's one year at the helm of the Oil Kings was less than successful. Edmonton hockey fans weren’t in any hurry to go to the old Memorial Gardens to watch the Oil Kings when they could watch the WHA’s Oilers in the brand new Northlands Coliseum.

"Brian and I felt we knew more about the game than anyone else," Hodge says. "We thought we would be able to turn the Edmonton Oil Kings into the premier franchise in the Western Hockey League and a very profitable venture. We found out very quickly that we weren't as smart as we thought we were. We thought we could compete with a major league team on a minor league budget, but we lost more money than any of us could afford to lose.”

Mackie had played on Shaw’s and Hodge's Oil Kings and, contrary to what you might have guessed, the relationship didn't begin on the best of terms. When Mackie was an 18-year-old defenceman playing for Shaw in Edmonton, he had been asked to go to Crosstown Motors, an Oil Kings sponsor, and pick up a new car for Shaw.

"Innes and Brian probably came to an understanding after Innes smacked up two of Brian's brand new cars," Hodge says with a laugh. "One of the accidents was just one of those things, but the other was pretty funny. Innes went to Crosstown Motors, picked up Brian's big Dodge, and only had to cross one busy two-way street. Smack! He couldn't have been more than 40 feet out of the parking lot when he's done and it's tow truck city."

As a player, Mackie quit the Oil Kings early in the 1973-74 season after being taken out of a game by Hodge.

"It's all water under the bridge now," Mackie says. "When I was 18, I played for Brian as a fifth or sixth defenceman. At that time they only used four defencemen and sometimes three. I wasn't getting very much ice time and I wasn't going to go through the same thing when I was 19. So, Hodgie sat me out one game and that was it. Goodbye.“

"Innes and I didn't see eye to eye as coach and player," Hodge agrees. "But I always enjoyed Innes as a person. His brother Keith and I were golfing buddies and Innes was the little brother who always tagged along."

Even through their trials and tribulations, Hodge had enough respect for Mackie to make him the Oil Kings trainer.

Since then, Mackie has always been more than just a trainer. He looks for statistics, quotes and any other information he can find out about every player in the league. One of his attributes is a near photographic memory, and Hodge and Shaw came to depend on that over the years. If there is ever a question about a player, Mackie is the first person asked.

"Innes sometimes confirmed my feelings about hockey players," Hodge says. "He has always been a very knowledgeable hockey person. Innes helped Brian and I on some of our decisions on who we would keep and who we would release or trade. He also had input on people from other teams that might help our franchise if we traded for them. The early years of the Winter Hawks was basically built through trades. Most of our trades were very positive for us and Innes had a role in many of them.”

Mackie also scours the rule book on the long bus rides. He knows the rules inside and out — and has a knack for memorizing them, no matter how obscure.

Mackie earned the nickname ‘Eagle Eye’ for his ability to spot illegal curves in the blades of opponents' hockey sticks. Players with illegal sticks were sent to the penalty box with minor penalties and several Portland victories were been earned as the result of subsequent power plays. In 18 seasons, he was wrong about one stick — and he still claims that the referee didn’t measure that one properly.

"When the game is on, I watch things differently," Mackie, who now is with the Tri-City Americans, points out. "I watch what's happening behind the play, on the other team's bench, and away from the puck. If I see something the coaches don't, I can help out once in awhile. Sometimes, I can relay information to the coaches if an opposing player misses a shift, or a guy is hurt."
All three of the amigos were involved in the move from Edmonton to Portland.

Originally, Shaw went to Vancouver to meet with Nat Bailey, who owned the Mounties of baseball’s Pacific Coast League. Bailey wanted to get involved in hockey and was going to underwrite all the costs of moving the Oil Kings to Vancouver. Bailey also was prepared to give Shaw plenty of working capital to get started. This dream move never happened, however, because the New Westminster Bruins, a nearby WCHL franchise, blocked the move.

At the time, Hodge wanted to move to Spokane. Shaw, though, wanted to check out Portland and arranged a meeting with Dick Reynolds, the general manager of Memorial Coliseum.

"I didn't have any idea where Portland was," Mackie says. "I had to get a map. All I knew was that the Edmonton Oil Kings were in the Western Canadian Hockey League — and Portland wasn't in Canada."

Shaw’s meeting with Reynolds and the Coliseum staff was very positive and soon the Oil Kings were to become the Portland Winter Hawks.

"It was one of the best decisions that Brian made," Hodge recalls. "At that time, we both had an equal vote. So, it was one vote for Spokane and one vote for Portland. Brian decided his vote was bigger than mine and he won."

The first three seasons were very difficult in Portland.

In spite of good, competitive teams, large crowds in 10,400-seat Memorial Coliseum were a rarity. The team was losing money and several of the original investors from Edmonton pulled out when the going got tough. But Shaw, Hodge and Mackie never doubted the potential of the Portland hockey market. The three amigos hung in there and waited for Portland fans to discover the excitement of junior hockey.

"We raised our level of communication — and we communicated without a lot of words," Hodge says. "We had a very good understanding of one another — and we went through some very difficult times in our early years in Portland. There were times when we didn't know if we had enough money to bring the bus home. We had a good, solid relationship. Relationships are built on trust — and we trusted one another."

That trust was only broken one time and that was in the early days of the Winter Hawks. On an off-night in Lethbridge during the 1977-78 season, Mackie went out to do the team laundry and ended up having a couple of beers with several players.

"At the time, I was about the same age as the players — and I had known them as friends and even played hockey with some of them,” Mackie recalls. “I should have been smart enough to know there is a fine line between being a staff member and getting too close to the players."

"I had to fire him," Hodge says. "I really didn't have any options there. I was told to do it because somebody else (Shaw) didn't want to. I can't remember if he was fired for two hours, four hours or a half-a-day, but during this other person's cooling-off period, I convinced him to rehire Innes. Eventually, that other person did the rehiring."

They stuck together in other times of strife, too. From 1987 to 1991, the Hawks had terrible teams — missing the playoffs three of four seasons. This did not set well with Portland fans who had become accustomed to the winning tradition established by the Buckaroos and the early seasons of the Winter Hawks. Hodge became an easy target for the fans. It even came to the point where petitions were being circulated among the Coliseum crowd to have him terminated as coach. Publicly, though, Shaw took most of the criticism for the Hawks' poor on-ice record and deflected as much blame as he could away from Hodge.

"I appreciated what Brian did, but I didn't really feel it was necessary," Hodge says. "My record spoke for itself through the good seasons and Brian knew a coaching change might have injected some short term life into the team, but it would not solve the problem long term.

"We didn't have a very good product on the ice. We had some very good people that were not necessarily very good athletes. Some of the problems with the product were Brian's fault and some were my fault. Brian did take a lot of the heat."

Shaw's passing in 1994 was clearly an emotional time for Hodge and Mackie. The three amigos had been through it all together. The highs and lows. The good times and the bad. They always stuck together even though many times they agreed to disagree.
"It's very obvious to anyone who has worked in this office or is in any way connected with the Portland Winter Hawks that Brian's sense of loyalty was tremendous," Hodge notes. "His sense of loyalty was unwavering and nothing got in the way. Not dollars. Not wins. Nothing gets in front of loyalty."

This is a sense of loyalty that has been ingrained from standing up for one another in a Stettler pool room to building a hockey franchise. Very few have achieved what these amigos have.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

WHL Draft Storylines

WCHBlog, May 3, 2012

Here's a look at some of the storylines from today's WHL Bantam Draft.

-The most direct impact on college hockey came early when Prince George moved up a couple spots in the first round by putting together a package that sent Michigan Tech recruit Jujhar Khaira's rights to Everett. Prince George seemed to have no chance at signing Khaira, and with Everett getting him in a trade, they have to think their odds are less-than-zero. Khaira was ranked 74th among NA skaters by NHL Central Scouting for this year's draft, and was invited to the NHL Draft Combine today, so he'd be a pretty big recruit for Michigan Tech. Khaira has a reputation as being pretty academic-minded, but there's always a chance he could be swayed after he is drafted by an NHL team.

-The second overall pick in the draft was forward Jansen Harkins of the North Shore Winter Club. Harkins is the son of Todd Harkins, who played three years of college hockey at Miami, before going on to a long pro career that included a couple stops in the NHL. Also, thanks to a retweet from Bob McKenzie, I had half of Canada inform me that Harkins also was on a reality show in Canada.

There's never a great amount of confidence for the NCAA any time a player is selected that high in a CHL draft, but on the positive side, he was picked by Prince George, which has a tough time drawing players due to location, and his dad has experience working in the BCHL, potentially giving him some place to play pre-college. And with the WHL drafting earlier than the other CHL leagues, a high draft pick doesn't mean as much. Luke Moffatt and Dan Bertram were both second overall draft picks and ended up playing college hockey. Jonathan Toews went first overall in his draft year. Perhaps there's a chance for the NCAA there.

Harkins also theoretically would have the option of playing for the NTDP, similar to the top prospect in the QMJHL draft this year, Daniel Audette. Although with the IIHF's goofy ruling on Stefan Matteau's eligibility, it seems Harkins would have to play in the US next year–I'm not sure if just playing in the Youth Olympic Games would count–in order to be eligible for the U18 world championships as a 17-year-old.

-The first player playing in the US to go in the draft was Los Angeles Selects defenseman Keoni Texeira, who was selected 26th overall by Everett. That's fairly high for an American, but lower than a player of his talent would usually go, depending on if you're glass half-empty or glass half-full.

-The younger brother of Seth Jones, Caleb, was taken at the end of the 3rd round by Portland. Caleb is reportedly a pretty good player in his own right, but probably more importantly, it gives Portland another bargaining chip in trying to woo Seth to play for the Winterhawks next year.

-The first Minnesotan to be selected was Osseo/Maple Grove forward Jesse Gabrielle. Benilde-Margaret's forward Chase Jungels was selected 133rd by Vancouver. He was overshadowed a bit as a very young kid on a very good Benilde team, but he definitely showed some talent, especially later in the year. Other Minnesotans to be drafted: Stillwater's Luke Osterman, Shattuck's Jordan Klehr and Rem Pitlick, and UMD recruit Blake Heinrich. Heinrich went in the 12th round to Portland, and seems like a complete shot in the dark.

-Kelowna traded away once-top prospect Shane McColgan for draft picks, so next time Bruce Hamilton runs his mouth about his team could get a player to the NHL faster than an NCAA school, know that by 'NHL' he really means 'Saskatoon'.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

NCAA set to scrap full shields

QMI Agency, May 4 2012

It might seem like a backward move, but the NCAA is poised to scrap full face shields in favour of three-quarter visors.

The NCAA hockey rules committee will recommend the change at a meeting in Indianapolis next month, according to College Hockey News.

The committee admits the move will result in more facial cuts and lost teeth but it thinks the game will be safer in other ways.

There is a belief that full shields impair peripheral and up-and-down vision, creating unsafe conditions, the publication reported. It is not uncommon for a player to lose sight of the puck at his feet and have to look down to locate it, leaving him open to a headshot.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Hawks and Oil Kings together on a plane? I'd buy a ticket to that

John Canzano, The Oregonian, May 06, 2012

An otherwise lovely Sunday evening ended with a thud in the opponent's end of the ice for Ty Rattie. He was face down. Two Edmonton Oil Kings were jabbing their sticks into the back of his neck, mushing his NHL-drafted grill into the ice, while he waited for the horn to sound ending the game.

It was Portland 4, Edmonton 3. The Winterhawks lead the best-of-seven WHL finals 2-1. And while I know there's Tuesday's Game 4 ahead, it's the chartered plane ride after that game that I'm already thinking about.

Turns out the WHL finals are a big deal. The pucks are brand new. The officials are said to be the best in the league. The Zamboni gets a tune-up. And also, it's the only road trip of the season that the teams utilize an airplane instead of a bus. Except, these are still tight economic times and the teams have agreed to share a single plane.

Sunday featured a pair of fights, two ejections, blood on the ice, and an Edmonton goal late that was being celebrated when Winterhawks captain William Wrenn was jabbed with a stick. Wrenn took exception. We know this because he immediately charged at the huddled, joyful Oil Kings and pile drove their little party into the boards.

The officials missed the whole thing. It so bothered Edmonton coach Derek Laxdal that he refused comment in the postgame news conference about the issue, but then stormed back toward the visiting locker room where he cornered the team video guy and asked him to pull up the exchange on his laptop.

The team huddled around just outside the locker room. The video guy fidgeted. Finally, on the computer screen, there it was — the goal, the Edmonton celebration, Wrenn turning whipping around toward it all, and then — nothing.

The Oil Kings camera man cut away.

"Are you (bleeping) kidding me?!?" Laxdal muttered. "Oh my (bleeping) God! What a (bleeping) joke!"

So yeah. These two teams are going to share an airplane on Tuesday night after Game4. The series is either going to be 3-1, Portland or tied, 2-2. And I'm thinking the poor pilots end up innocent bystanders if this series continues to heat up the way it currently is.

The post-game ritual here turned into a brain teaser. You remember that puzzle where a man has to figure out how to get a fox, a chicken and a sack of corn across a river? Well, the WHL people were faced with just that after the game, ushering Edmonton's players into the news conference while directing Portland's players around the back hallway, trying to limit the contact, presumably so nobody gets eaten.

Nobody did, far as we know.

The league has already informed Portland and Edmonton that there will be protocol for the shared plane ride, too. Edmonton will board first and take the back of the plane. Then, the league officials and media will board second and take the middle-plane seats. Then, Portland will board last and sit in the front section of the plane.

Fox. Chicken. Corn. All on one plane.

They took the same ride from Edmonton to Portland after the first two games of the series. Winterhawks media relations director Graham Kendrick reported after that uncomfortable flight: "Not a lot of socializing."

This was before the two teams starting trying to beat each other's brains in.

Heaven help that rig as it flies through the skies toward Edmonton. Let's hope, too, there are bathrooms in both cabins. Also, that the flight attendants have military training. Because Portland's Brad Ross and Edmonton's Joe Peddle, who fought and were ejected for game misconduct on Sunday, will be aboard. As will be Winterhawks defenseman Joe Morrow, who threw his gloves down as the Ross-Peddle fight broke out, shed a helpless official and whipped Edmonton's Keegan Lowe as if they were fighting in the Rose Garden Arena's back alley.

Explained Portland coach Mike Johnston: "The way Lowe came after Joe in Edmonton, I was happy how (Joe) stood up."

Explained Morrow: "I've got a short temper."

Not the ugliest hockey game in history. Not the most bitter rivalry, either. But man, get yourself a ticket for Game 4, and also, can someone with the E! Network get a production crew on that plane? I'd watch that show while waiting for Mayweather-Pacquiao.

Sunday was again the best-kept secret in the city. Despite another playoff sellout, the Winterhawks' front office refuses to open the 300-level and sell more tickets. And why should they? It would ruin the exclusivity and intimacy. On Sunday, there were 10,947 ticket holders who felt like they were in a monogamous relationship with the Winterhawks.

Wish there were seats on that airplane for them all.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

The Merchant of Portland…

Slightly Chilled – Where we let the puck and the beat drop, May 10, 2012

The father of National Team Development Program defenseman Seth Jones said Wednesday it was a “no-brainer” for his son to go to the WHL.

Former NBA forward Popeye Jones said there were a lot of items which helped his son decide if he wanted to spend next season with the Portland Winterhawks. Jones, 17, chose to play for the Winterhawks on Monday ending a tug-of-war for his services between the WHL’s premier franchise and the University of North Dakota.

“He put a lot of thought into it,” Popeye Jones said. “He did not want to choose a college early like a lot of kids do. We told him if you are not sure, to keep your options open. If a college is planning on you coming there, back it up. As parents, we felt it wouldn’t be a good thing to do and he didn’t think so either.”

Jones choosing Portland over North Dakota brought an end to one of the more publicized recruiting battles in recent hockey history. The 6-3, 205-pounder is projected to be the No. 1 or No. 2 overall pick in next season’s NHL Draft.

Popeye Jones said what made Portland stand out was the reputation of coach Mike Johnston, who has turned the team into one of Major Junior’s elite over the last few seasons.

Another thing, Popeye Jones said, that helped was the fact his son could continue his education while playing in the WHL.

“There is a great academic program there,” he said. “It was really important to us because he’s not playing in college. We want him to get a degree and get into a strong academic program. He’s a smart kid and skipped a year of high school and that in itself lets everyone know that as a family, we put education ahead of sports.”

Popeye Jones added his son wanted to stay in the United States and it is another reason why Portland made sense.

Jones’ rights were owned by the Everett Silvertips (Wash.) and were later traded to Portland further solidifying the chances he’d be staying in America.

Staying in the United States, playing for one of Major Junior’s elite franchises, having a 72-game regular season schedule coupled with producing four first-round draft picks since 2010 is what helped put Portland over North Dakota, Popeye Jones said.

“I think will all the success Portland has had,” Popeye Jones said. “And the guys they’ve developed, it was a no-brainer for him to go there.”

Popeye Jones did add that his son did enjoy his visits to North Dakota.

Though there is one question that remains for the Jones’ family. Will it be enough to convince Caleb Jones to follow his brother?

Caleb Jones was taken in the third round by Portland in last week’s WHL Bantam Draft.

Like his brother, he is a defenseman and is currently playing midget hockey in the Dallas Stars’ youth program. Popeye Jones said Caleb was a different player than his older brother describing him as “bigger and more physical.”

“He’s still trying to decide,” Popeye Jones said about Caleb’s future. “He’s a very mature kid also as is Seth and that is what he’s thinking about right now. One thing that he’d love to do, is playing in Ann Arbor. That is his goal right now.”

Should Caleb Jones follow his brother to the NTDP, which fosters what is considered to be the nation’s best talent, it appears it may not be a problem for Popeye Jones.

Popeye Jones said he was impressed and grateful for everything the NTDP did for his son’s development on the ice and way from it during his two-year stay.

He said the NTDP was everything Jones wanted it to be and more given the demands the program has on its players from an academic viewpoint as well as the mindset it takes with development.

“For me and Seth may say something different, but any kid that has the chance to go to Ann Arbor and go to the NTDP, it’s a great program,” Popeye Jones said. “It is everything as a player that Seth wanted and everything as parents we wanted. The education aspect, even the grind of it. I don’t mind the grind of it and for a young kid, that is important. Seth’s billet mother was wonderful and he also lived with Quentin Shore (Denver) and they’ve been good friends for a long time. All of that has been great for him. The gains he has made while he was there were great. He was around 170 pounds and is leaving at 205 and the strength training and hockey training of Coach (Danton) Cole, they ride kids pretty hard there and they are very disciplined there as well.”

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

From patsy to powerhouse: Winterhawks coach/GM keeps building on success

Kerry Eggers, The Portland Tribune, May 10, 2012

Portland Winterhawks coach-GM Mike Johnston says the best thing he and assistant Travis Green did when they joined the club was to take the time and effort to create an environment for success.

There are a lot of reasons for the Winterhawks' resurgence since hitting rock bottom as the Western Hockey League laughingstock in 2007-08.

None bigger, mind you, than the man who serves as general manager and head coach.

Mike Johnston brought a lot of things to the franchise when he arrived in Portland in November 2008, including instant cred.

Johnston had served nine years as associate coach for the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings of the NHL. That after six years with Team Canada, serving as head coach the final season.

The even-tempered, level-headed Johnston has been the most instrumental part of a remarkably dramatic swing by a franchise in four years — from worst to first if the Hawks are able to eliminate Edmonton and claim their first WHL championship since 1998.

It took a perfect storm to bring Johnston to Portland, a city he had never visited before taking over a woebegone team early in the 2008-09 season.

Johnston had been let go with Marc Crawford's Kings staff in June 2008. Interviewed by Kings ownership for the head coaching job, he learned in late July he would not be hired for the job.

The next day, he got a call from former NHL head coach Dave King, who was compiling a list of coaching candidates for the prospective new owner of the Winterhawks — a Calgary oil magnate named Bill Gallacher.

In November, Gallacher got the franchise, and Johnston became his general manager and coach. Johnston had been interviewed for three NHL head coaching jobs, but didn't get them. He had offers to be associate or assistant coach with several NHL teams.

"But I wanted to be a head coach again," he says.

And he liked the idea of a dual role as GM and coach.

"I'd been in situations where other people control your destiny," he says. "I wanted to control my own destiny in every way. I wanted to control the draft, the players, the player signings, my staff. I was going to sink or swim on my own. There would be no excuses."

There never have been for Johnston since his days growing up in Nova Scotia, through his playing career as a forward at Acadia (Nova Scotia) and Brandon (Manitoba) universities and professionally in Australia, and through a long coaching career that began at age 23 at the University of Alberta.

After five years as head coach of one of Canada's top programs at the University of New Brunswick, he began his half-dozen years with the Canadian national team, serving as GM and associate coach of the '97 team that won gold at the world championships.

Nine years into his NHL tenure with Vancouver and L.A., he made the career move that turned the Hawks from patsy to powerhouse in the WHL.

Gallacher had one request — that Johnston hire Travis Green, recently retired after a distinguished NHL playing career — as an assistant coach. Johnston and Green had worked together for three years with Team Canada, including the '97 world championship club.

"It was a fabulous fit," Johnston says.

Johnston and Green set about overhauling the entire program.

"The best thing we did was sit back, evaluate and take care of the environment," Johnston says. "I'm a big believer in creating the right environment for success. Those are the things that make your program work."

There was increased focus on the billets — the people who take the players into their homes as pseudo-parents. And on the players' schooling set-up. And on designing an off-ice and summer training program. And on partnering with some of the best medical people in Portland.

"We wanted to make sure we did everything so people felt comfortable with us," Johnston says. "That if you were a parent sending a player to us, you'd be really happy. We didn't have the players at that time, but when we went out recruiting the next May after having the team for six months, people were saying, 'We're hearing things are getting better.'

"Billets, education, medical — that's what Mom wants. Dad's thing is the hockey environment — 'Does my son have a chance to be a pro?' That took some selling. We had only 19 wins my first year. It slowly moved along, and we progressed from there."

Johnston has made shrewd trades and player acquisitions, but mostly he has developed through the draft.

"As easy as it is to get frustrated with a kid at 16, 17, 18 years old, usually when you make a trade, you're getting somebody else's problems," Johnston says. "It's best to deal with the issues you know and work with the guys you have. If they have some downfalls, you address it and push them to be better."

One of his mentors — legendary Canadian college coach Clare Drake — had offered advice that became a key component of Johnston's philosophy.

"Clare told me if you want to have a good program, the older players must set an example," he says. "The way they act, the way they dress, the way they practice, the way they train, the way they take care of teammates off the ice.

"You bring in good players, you're hard on your captains and top players, and when they're 18, 19, 20, they'll set the example for the younger group."

Johnston has become a hallowed figure among both his coaches and players.

"Right away, I knew he'd be a great guy to coach and learn under," Green says. "First and foremost, he is a good person. He is honest, which goes a long way. You look for a coach who isn't going to tell you one thing and do another. Players respect that.

"He has taught me a lot about patience. As a player, the fire is burning and you tend to react on things very quickly. As a coach, you have to take a step back sometimes and not overreact to situations.

"He speaks very well in front of a group — probably better than anyone I've been involved with at any level in delivering a message to a team. He is very articulate and can get his point across very well. That's a real art. And I've seen him develop. He has become a better coach over these four years."

Team President Doug Piper — hired the same week as Johnston — had worked previously in the front office of NHL clubs in Edmonton and Carolina.

"I compare Mike to guys I knew at the NHL level," Piper says. "The reason Mike is so effective, he is as much a teacher as he is a coach. He is not a screamer, not a Bobby Knight type. He gets his point across without doing that. He has this demeanor, if he is displeased, you know it.

"Mike is the central figure that got everybody on board with the program very quickly. The parents, the agents, the scouts, the billets — he displayed an air of confidence you buy into quickly. Plus, he's a real hands-on guy. He doesn't let his GM duties keep him from being right there with the team.

"By the second year here, he had really turned it around. He won over the kids who had been here before, and that's not easy to do. Kids really want to play for him."

The players verify that.

"He is consistent with the way he does things," defenseman Joe Morrow says. "You know what to expect from him. You can really respect a coach like that. He is easy to talk to, and he is an extremely smart man who can mix and match players and get them to where they're the most comfortable."

"He knows what buttons to push on different guys," goalie Mac Carruth says. "He's not going to call you out in front of the guys. He'll take you aside and let you know what you did wrong. We all look up to him. He is the leader in the locker room with how he carries himself in both wins and losses."

"He is the smartest Xs and Os guy, video guy, on-ice guy I've been around in hockey," right wing Ty Rattie says. "I've learned so much from him. My numbers would be nowhere without Mike Johnston. The plays he comes up with are second to none. I can tell you this right now — he'll be in the NHL before you know it."

That's right. This could be Johnston's final run with the Hawks.

"He is one of the guys talked about (as a prospective NHL head coach)," Green says. "He is a guy the NHL has to look at. I'd be shocked if there isn't an NHL (head-coaching) opportunity for Mike Johnston some day."

Johnston, 54, admits it is a goal.

"I would like to be (an NHL) head coach," he says.

But Johnston has gotten a great deal of satisfaction in working with major junior players.

"I enjoy this as much as any job I've ever had," he says. "It's a great environment. You can impact young kids so much, change how they are as people as well as hockey players.

"I had a dream of playing in the NHL. Every kid growing up playing hockey does. If you can help your kids get to that place, that's special. There's nothing more special than to get your kids drafted and signing an NHL contract."

Last summer, Johnston was offered a position as associate coach with a "high-profile" NHL team.

"Toughest call I've had to make," he says. "I never thought I'd turn them down, but I did. I enjoy what I do, and Bill is great owner to work for."

Johnston and his wife of 25 years, Myrna, have embraced the city of Portland. They live in a high-rise condo on the South Waterfront.

"I love it here," he says, "and the response by the city to our team has been super."

Piper signed Johnston to a four-year extension last summer that runs through 2015. Piper would love to keep his GM and coach. At some point — as soon as after this season — Johnston will probably take over an NHL team.

Until then, Winterhawks fans should enjoy watching a master at work.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

[hockeygod]

Edmonton 4, Portland 1: Winterhawks come up short in Game 7 of the WHL finals

Evan Daum, Edmonton Journal , May 13, 2012

EDMONTON, Alberta — With everything on the line, the Portland Winterhawks couldn't shake history in Game 7 of the Western Hockey League championship series.

Looking to become the first road squad in league history to win a seventh and deciding game — after visiting teams had come up short in the WHL's previous nine Game 7s in the finals — the Winterhawks fell 4-1 on Sunday night against the Edmonton Oil Kings at Rexall Place in front of a boisterous crowd of 12,514.

"I wasn't a big believer in home ice until this series. I think home ice was a huge advantage," Portland forward Ty Rattie said. "Both teams had amazing crowds, and their crowd took over tonight. They had a couple early goals to give them a little bit of juice, but we just couldn't respond."

The loss marked the second consecutive season that the Winterhawks fell short in the WHL finals. They lost in five games to the Kootenay Ice in 2011. It was the eighth time in 10 trips to the league finals that Portland failed to take home the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

"Not much I'm going to say, not much I have to say," Rattie said. "This is the worst feeling ever, but you can't really look at a positive side right now. I guess we had a good season, but give a lot of credit to Edmonton and good luck to them."

For Edmonton, the win was the latest benchmark in a season that's been a breakout one for the franchise, which in its fifth WHL season topped the regular-season standings, won its first playoff game, first playoff series and first league title.

"I thought I had enough chances tonight to get a couple in, but now it doesn't matter. It's too late and we can't change it anymore," said Portland's Sven Bartschi, who finished first in WHL playoff scoring with 34 points.

With only 20 hours between the end of Portland's thrilling 3-2 win at the Rose Garden on Saturday night and the puck drop for Game 7, the short turnaround didn't faze the home side. At 1:51 of the first period, Edmonton's Rhett Rachinski squeaked a shot past sprawling Portland goalie Mac Carruth to make it 1-0.

"I think, in Game 7, scoring early is always important. It's a key turning point," Winterhawks coach Mike Johnston said. "They scored on their second shift there. I thought the fans got into it and gave them lots of energy and lots of jump in their legs."

Despite falling behind early, it didn't take Portland long to push back and generate several scoring chances. But that newfound jump in a series that's been a yo-yo of momentum was soon derailed.

After watching Portland control the play for several minutes, Edmonton made the most of a momentum-zapping TV timeout just past the midway point of the first. With 18 seconds left in the period, Ty Maxwell took advantage of a slick passing play by Kristians Pelss to make it 2-0.

Second-period goals from Michael St. Croix and T.J. Foster stretched the Oil Kings' lead to 4-0, before Portland got on the scoreboard at 11:40 when Oliver Gabriel beat Edmonton goalie Laurent Brossoit.

The Hawks couldn't beat Brossoit in the third period, firing only four shots on goal as Edmonton stymied Portland's offense.

"Our first 20 minutes, we scored right off the hop, we scored at the end of the period and that put us up 2-0 and in the (second) we scored two more and they scored a goal, but our guys shut them down," Oil Kings coach Derek Laxdal said.

The Oil Kings head to the Memorial Cup tournament in Shawinigan, Quebec, where they'll be joined by the host Shawinigan Cataractes, the Quebec league champion and defending Cup holder Saint John Sea Dogs, and the Ontario league champion London Knights. Edmonton will open the 10-day tournament against Shawinigan on Friday.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
Game Intelligence Training
"Great education depends on great teaching."

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