| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009 10:51 am |
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 Live blog: Everett at Tri-City The Tips take on the top team in the Western Conference tonight. Also looking forward to listening to Craig West for the first time this season. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
One observer's assessment of Everett's situation, plus live blogging update First off, I want to say thanks to everyone who contributed to this week's reader question. A lot of good thoughts there. As I mentioned, I planned on posting an essay with my own thoughts on the subject, so here it is. What do I think about the current state of the Tips? I think Everett has a good team. It has a good foundation to work from in goaltender Thomas Heemskerk. The forward group is pretty deep with players who can contribute in one way or another. And the defense is better than advertised, thanks in large part to the stellar play of newcomer Radko Gudas. New coach Craig Hartsburg seems to have the players working toward a common goal, and the Tips haven't gotten gassed in the third period the way they did last season. Overall we're seeing a much stronger Everett team than in 2008-09. However, I think that's where is ends. Everett is a good team. I'm not sure the Tips are a championship team. I can see this Everett team competing in the playoffs, but I'm not sure I see it winning four consecutive series. The Tips have a real solid group of players, but don't have that elite, transcendent talent who can dictate a game all by himself. So what should the Tips do? Conventional wisdom says the Tips should wait until next season to make a run at the league title. Major-junior teams live and die by their 19-year-olds. The strength of Everett's team is its 18-year-olds, suggesting next season will be the special one in Everett. However, I'm becoming more and more convinced that this is the season the Tips should go for it. There are several reasons why I think the Tips should try and make a run sooner rather than later: - Everett has terrific overagers this season in Shane Harper, Zack Dailey and Chris Langkow. Those three will be difficult to replace next season. - The Tips have quality goaltending with a solid 19-year-old in Heemskerk and a talented 17-year-old in Kent Simpson. - I suspect the Tips will lose Gudas and Heemskerk to the pros after the season. Simpson should capably slide into Heemskerk's spot, but Gudas' presence will be nearly impossible to replace. And unless those two return Everett's potential overagers for next season don't project as high-impact players. - This looks like a good season to make a play. The league as a whole appears to be a down a little bit, and there doesn't appear to be a team that is head and shoulders above the rest. Admittedly, I haven't seen Tri-City or Saskatoon, but I have yet to see a team the Tips would be afraid of come playoff time. So what would the Tips need to do to make themselves a front runner? In my opinion the Tips need to add two players to become a legitimate title threat. The first potential move is obvious: Everett needs a scoring winger to complement Harper and Langkow. The Tips have churned through players in that spot searching for a solution. Newcomer Scott MacDonald currently occupies the position and has done a passable job. However, imagine how good that line would be with an elite 19-year-old playing on the left. That would give Everett two scoring lines that could rival anyone in the league. The second potential move is more speculative because it involves the defense. I think the Tips could use a boost on defense, but I also think the resources may already be on hand to provide that boost. Ryan Murray will be a boon when he returns from his thumb injury (he participated in practice today, though he was still wearing a yellow no-contact jersey). I think Rasmus Rissanen has the ability to provide more, and I think that may happen once the Finn settles into his new surroundings. And Alex Theriau has made great strides since last season. I also think it's going to be difficult finding quality defensemen available, meaning teams might not be able to upgrade even if they want to (today's trade where Tri-City had to part with a second-round pick to reacquire nondescript defenseman Eric Mestery is a good illustration of that). But think about how formidable this defense would be with another top-pairing guy on the blue line. Now here's the rub. Adding two players of that quality won't come cheap. Let's say, hypothetically, the Tips targeted the Regina duo of Jordan Eberle and Colten Teubert (disclaimer: I have no idea whether those two are available, and I have no idea if the Tips are looking at them, this is merely for illustrative purposes). Add those two and Everett immediately becomes the league favorite. But at what cost? Consider the package Everett received for Kyle Beach last season. If we agree that Dan IWanski and Mike-Alexander-turned-into-a-fifth-round-pick cancel one another out, then Beach cost Theriau (at the time a 16-year-old first-round bantam pick) and a future first rounder. Eberle and Teubert are Beach-equivalent players. Getting the two wouldn't cost double what Beach cost because they're both gone after this season, whereas Beach still had a year-and-a-half left in the league when acquired. But it would require more than what Lethbridge relenquished for Beach for the Tips to get Eberle and Teubert. Prices are also likely to be inflated because Memorial Cup host Brandon will probably be bidding for top players, too. And that would be a huge gamble for Everett as I'm not convinced the Tips have the depth of talent in the system to compensate for selling off top assets. If the Tips did indeed shell out for two impact players, it would certainly put a huge dent in Everett's future. The wild card here, as it is for every WHL team, is the NCAA. Every season college or college-bound players wind up in the WHL somewhere along the line. We know one (Jordan Schroeder) who has repeatedly been rumored to be headed to Everett. Personally, I think Schroeder has made it clear he won't be playing here this season. However, I'm sure the Tips have a few other irons in the NCAA or NCAA-bound fire. Land one of those and suddenly the upgrading price tag comes down. How the Tips should approach their current situation is not clear-cut. Seeing what this group can accomplish as-is and then going hard next season is a choice that makes a lot of sense (I definitely wouldn't sell this season, however). But opportunity appears to be beckoning, and one can never be sure when opportunity will present itself again. I guess we'll just have to wait and see whether the Tips decide to grab for it this season, --- One last unrelated note. The live blog is on again for tomorrow's game at Tri-City. Whether I'll be able to get the internet video feed is now on a game-by-game basis, but I will be watching tomorrow. Be here 15 minutes before the puck drop to join in the conversation. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Everett 4, Kamloops 3 (SO) TALKING POINTS The Tips did it the hard way tonight. Three times Everett fell behind, and three times the Tips tied it back up. Everett even fell behind in the shootout before winning it 2-1. The Tips had some jump tonight, beating the Blazers to loose pucks more often than not. However, Everett squandered early power plays, and Kamloops received a strong game from goaltender Jon Groenheyde. The Tips also came up with a key penalty kill late in the game (see below). And Everett continues to be money in shootouts. Kellan Tochkin made his tally in the shootout look way too easy, and Shane Harper did well to avoid Groenheyde's poke check and score while tumbling to the ice. Finally, a word about Radko Gudas. He continues to blow opponents up on a regular basis (see below), but almost every time he dishes out one of these LEGAL open-ice hits he gets jumped. He doesn't really fight back, just kind of holds on, and ends up sitting in the box for five minutes. Is this right? But it was a precious moment after the fight when the video-screen camera panned to Gudas in the box and the crowd started cheering, bringing a smile to Gudas' face. TURNING POINT With the score tied 3-3 late in the third period, Everett's Alex Theriau and Gudas were whistled for penalties 1:19 apart, giving the Blazers a five-on-three. Kamloops had chances, but the Tips survived thanks to some timely saves by Thomas Heemskerk and some pucks sliding wide. That kill is what got the game to overtime and the shootout. RADKO GUDAS HIT OF THE DAY Midway through the third period Gudas lined up Brendan Ranford and nailed him with a shoulder as Ranford skated into the neutral zone. The hit of the year any other year, but just another night on the job for Gudas. NON-RADKO GUDAS HIT OF THE DAY Harper, of all people, put a nice lick on Brett Lyon with a shoulder charge in the corner, drawing a retaliatory cross check from Lyon. THREE STARS First star: Tyler Maxwell, Everett. Two goals, and could have had more of not for Groenheyde. Second star: Groenheyde. 40 saves, a couple of which were highway robbery. Third star: Byron Froese, Everett. Two assists and had chances in close. The Herald's honorable mention: Jimmy Bubnick, Kamloops. Two goals on a pair of nice wrist shots. BOX SCORE Everett 4, Kamloops 3 (SO) ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Everett vs. Kamloops: lineup notes EVERETT Forward lines: Maxwell-Froese-Tochkin MacDonald-Langkow-Harper Iwanski-Dailey-Abney Elynuik-Winquist-Hunt Defensive pairings: Theriau-Gudas Rissanen-de la Lande McDermott-Sohor Starting goalie: Heemskerk Scratches: Minville, McGrath, McCrea, Murray. Notes: Defenseman Ryan Murray remains sidelined with his broken thumb. He's skating again, but he hasn't rejoined practices yet. The only changes from Saturday's 4-0 loss to Seattle are Campbell Elynuik and Josh Winquist come in for Markus McCrea and D.Jay McGrath. KAMLOOPS Forward lines: Bene-Trask-Willick Ranford-Stretch-Shattock Wiebe-Smith-Bubnick Lyon-Hall-Lipon Defensive pairings: Caron-Stebner Saip-Maschmeyer Nyren-Kulchar Starting goalie: Groenheyde Scratches: Hansen, Underwood, Bortnak, Hanes. Notes: Only one injury for the Blazers as center Dalibor Bortnak still has yet to play this season because of a spleen injury. The Jake Trask line is listed first because it's starting, but would probably be more accurately described as Kamloops' third line, I suspect. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment New links; no Tips on Team Pacific (updated with food drive) First off, I've added a pair of links to the left -- they should be popping up shortly. The first is the Portland Winterhawks fan blog on OregonLive written by Dylan Bumbarger. When I first started providing links I limited them to blogs written either by media members, broadcasters or individuals named Alan Caldwell. But what I've found is that oftentimes the best blogs are those written by people who are doing it out of love of the game rather than as an obligation, as evidenced by Alan, Tyler Hunnex, the guys at U.S.S. Mariner, etc. Dylan belongs in this group as I enjoy the work he's doing with the Winterhawks. The second is the Massey Ratings. These are statistical analyses of various sports leagues for the purpose of ranking teams. One of the leagues included happens to be the WHL. It includes the disclaimer that the rankings are based on what the teams have done to that point, rather than predicting what will happen in the future. But it's an illuminating resource for you statheads out there. Finally, Team Pacific (B.C. and Alberta) for the U-17 World Hockey Challenge was announced today, and no Silvertips or Tips prospects made the cut. Current Tip Josh Winquist and prospect Manraj Hayer had been candidates. Looking at Team Pacific and Team West (Saskatchewan and Manitoba), I'd have to say Team Pacific looks far stronger. Most of Team Pacific is made up of WHL players, while only a handful of WHLers are on Team West. In fact, many of Team West's players are still playing midget hockey. I've got to think that's a huge advantage for Team Pacific. --- UPDATE, 2 p.m. First off, thank you to Michael Sheehan for correcting my dyslexic moment. It's been changed. Secondly, the Tips announced the results of last Saturday's emergency food drive. A total of 4,460 pounds of food were collected for the Volunteers of America food bank, which was a record. I was in the office yesterday when Tips general manager Doug Soetaert returned breathless from dropping off the food. They needed to make extra trips and get multiple extra boxes just to haul everything to the food bank. Good work Silvertips fans. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Three Tips ranked by Central Scouting The NHL Central Scouting Bureau released its preliminary rankings for the 2010 NHL draft today, and three Silvertips were on the list. Defenseman Radko Gudas, a 19-year-old who's already been passed over twice in the NHL draft, was ranked 21st among WHL skaters, with fellow defenseman Alex Theriau ranked 23rd. Goaltender Kent Simpson was ranked second among WHL netminders. Prince George forward Brett Connolly and Seattle goaltender Calvin Pickard were the top-rated WHL players. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Reader question: state of the Tips Well, we're 20 games into the season now (OK, it's actualy 19, but the round number serves today's purpose better), so I think we've got a pretty good idea of what this Everett team has and where it stands in relation to the other teams in the league (with the exception of having yet to play Tri-City). Here's the specifics. The Tips are 12-6-1-0. Their 25 points puts them tied for third in the U.S. Division and tied for fourth in the Western Conference. Everett's .658 winning percentage ranks second in the division and third in the conference. I've been working on an essay in my mind which I plan on posting later this week, one looking at the remainder of the season and speculating on what the Tips should try and do. I thought I'd give you all the opportunity to share your thoughts, too. So it's time to dust off that keyboard instead of just clicking on a poll. It's reader feedback time! In the comments section I want to hear what you think of this team, and subsequently what management should do from this point forward. Is this a season to go for it, and if so what needs to be done (if anything) to accomplish that? Should this season be used as a warm-up for making a run next season? Should the Tips cash in and sell at the trade deadline? What do you think? ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Seattle 4, Everett 0 TALKING POINTS Well, obviously there was one moment that stood out above all tonight. The game was tied 0-0 early in the second period, Everett wasn't playing particularly well, but the Tips were on the power play. The puck was cleared down the ice, Everett goaltender Kent Simpson went into the corner to play it, he tried to pass to teammate Rasmus Rissanen on the other side of the net, but he pass went astray and wound up in his own net. Seattle went on to win handily from there. There are several things worth mentioning about this incident: - A canvas of the people in the press area found that no one had ever seen a goalie score directly into his own net before. They'd seen defensemen accidentally score past their own goaltender and fluky bounces result in own goals, but nothing like this. - Simpson had actually played well to that point and was probably the only reason why the game was scoreless. - Seattle's Prab Rai seems to find himself involved in unusual plays like this. He was the closest Seattle player to Simpson on the play (probably around 25 feet and veering away from the play), and he was the closest player on a similar play during the 2007 playoffs when a Tri-City defender trying to wrap the puck around the boards ended up scoring on his own goaltender. - I have to give Simpson credit for coming out to talk to me after the game. Not sure how many 17-year-olds would have been willing to come out of the locker room and talk to the press after a moment like that. The Tips skated around in a daze for the next 10 minutes, during which Seattle scored twice more on the power play. But while that first goal may have been the turning point for the T-birds, it wasn't for the Tips as they weren't playing well before and didn't play well after. Seattle outworked Everett throughout, the Tips took bad penalties for the second straight night, and the T-birds were deserving of the win. TURNING POINT See above. RADKO GUDAS HIT OF THE DAY Yep, he was at it again. Late in the second period Rai started streaking into the Everett zone when Gudas dipped low and upended Rai with a hip check, sending Rai flipping specdtacularly head over heels through the air. THREE STARS First star: Rai. Actually ended up with no points as the first goal was changed from Rai to Brendan Rouse, but he was the most dangerous player on the ice. Second star: Calvin Pickard, Seattle. 29 saves for the shutout, but wasn't overly challenged. Third star: Gudas. Probably got this simply for his hit. The Herald's honorable mention: Sena Acolatse, Seattle. A goal and an assist, his shot from the point on the power play is a frightening weapon. BOX SCORE Seattle 4, Everett 0 ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Everett vs. Seattle: lineup notes EVERETT Forward lines: Maxwell-Froese-Tochkin MacDonald-Langkow-Harper Iwanski-Dailey-Abney McCrea-McGrath-Hunt Defensive pairings: Theriau-Gudas Rissanen-de la Lande McDermott-Sohor Minville? Starting goalie: Simpson Scratches: Winquist, Elynuik, Murray. Notes: Only one roster change from Friday as D.Jay McGrath comes in for Josh Winquist. Right wing Cameron Abney moves up in the world to play with Zack Dailey and Dan Iwanski. Defenseman Gabe Minville is listed as a question mark, but no one else is, so I'm guessing he's going to take the warmup, but be a scratch. SEATTLE Forward lines: Rai-Nielsen-Wells Haber-Lockhart-Parker Acolatse-Rouse-Jacobs Lund-Alos-Tutt Defensive pairings: Schappert-Warg Ramsay-Dillon Chaffin-Fleming Starting goalie: Pickard Scratches: Silvester, Sentyurin, Elliot, Muth. Notes: The only injury for the T-birds is center Brenden Silvester, who's out with a back injury. Defenseman Brad Haber continues to skate as a forward. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Everett 4, Kelowna 2 TALKING POINTS Well, it was nice to see some live hockey again. Watching on the three-inch screen on my computer isn't quite the same. And the Tips treated the home fans to a victory after being gone for nearly three weeks. It wasn't the cleanest game Everett's played recently, but it was enough to get the job done. Especially with goaltender Thomas Heemskerk still in the zone. Everett jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two periods, thanks to two carbon-copy second-period goals on the power play by the artists formerly known as the Kid Line. Vintage stuff, with Byron Froese whipping a cross-crease pass to Tyler Maxwell on both occasions. But the Tips got into serious penalty trouble in the third to let the Rockets back in the game. The first three penalties all could have been easily avoided, so the Tips need to clean up there. Winger Scott MacDonald made his Comcast Arena debut tonight and tallied a pair of assists. He now has five points in six games since joining the Tips and seems to be complementing Chris Langkow and Shane Harper well. TURNING POINT Not sure I would call it a turn, but the game was won because of those two power-play goals in the second period. It was good to see the artists digging up some of their old material as we haven't seen much of that play on the power play this season. HIT OF THE DAY Once again it was Radko Gudas. This time the Tips defenseman rocked Max Adolph with an open-ice hit near the Kelowna blue line, prompting Curt Gogol to instigate a fight with Gudas (this is happening alarmingly often to Gudas, and always on what are deemed clean hits). Anyway, I might have to change this to, "HIT OF THE DAY BY SOMEONE OTHER THAN RADKO GUDAS," just to get some variety. THREE STARS First star: Maxwell. Two goals from his favorite spot on the ice. Second star: Heemskerk. 37 saves, the Rockets could only beat him on the power play. Third star: Harper. Two goals, both on goal-mouth scrambles. The Herald's honorable mention: Brandon McMillan, Kelowna. Two assists, I imagine he's happy to be playing forward again. BOX SCORE Everett 4, Kelowna 2 ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Everett vs. Kelowna: lineup notes (updated) EVERETT Forward lines: Maxwell-Froese-Tochkin Harper-Langkow-MacDonald Iwanski-Dailey-Hunt McCrea-Winquist-Abney Defensive pairings: Theriau-Gudas Rissanen-de la Lande McDermott-Sohor Starting goalie: Heemskerk Scratches: Minville, Elynuik, McGrath, Murray. Notes: No surprises tonight. Defenseman Ryan Murray is still out with his broken thumb, but he began skating again this week. BRANDON Forward lines: L.Bloodoff-McMillan-Novotny Chikie-McColgan-Callahan Gogol-Adolph-Bulmer Astles-Ito-Matheson Defensive pairings: Jobke-Barrie Chapman-Bowman Corbin-Verdino Starting goalie: Brown Scratches: E.Bloodoff, Main, Johnston, St. Denis, Guggenberger. Notes: The notable absence for Kelowna is right wing Kyle St. Denis, who's tied for the team lead in goals with 12. He isn't listed on the injury report and he played Wednesday, so I don't know why he's out. Left wing Evan Bloodoff (knee) and goaltender Mark Guggenberger (pelvis) remain long-term casualties. --- UPDATE, 6:55 p.m. OK, found out about St. Denis. It turns out the flu bug is running through the Rockets, so St. Denis, center Spencer Main and defenseman MacKenzie Johnston are all out because of the flu. No healthy scratches for Kelowna tonight. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Tyler Parker joins Pats; Ryan Murray and Evan Morden make Team West A couple of Everett-related tidbits picked up from Greg Harder's Slap Shots blog from the Regina Leader-Post. First off, the Regina Pats have brought former Everett left wing Tyler Parker in for a look. Parker, who appeared in 44 games for Everett last season as a 16-year-old rookie, was reassigned by the Tips just before the season began. He originally remained on Everett's protected list, but apparently he was dropped sometime in the interim. Parker, who had been playing for the Wenatchee Wild of the NAHL, now gets another shot at the WHL, and I suppose we can eliminate his name from Everett's prospects list. Secondly, Harder posted Team West's roster for the U-17 World Hockey Challenge, which was released today. One Everett player and one Everett prospect were named to the team, which consists of the best 1993-born players from Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Tips defenseman Ryan Murray, who hails from White City, Saskatchewan, was pretty much a lock to make the team. Everett prospect Evan Morden, a defenseman from Swan River, Manitoba, also made the cut. Morden, who is playing for the Swan Valley Stampeders in the MJHL, has already signed an education contract with the Tips, so we'll likely be seeing him suit up for Everett next season. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Can't get enough of that Silvertips goaltending? I've been writing a fair amount about Everett's goaltending this week. Well, check out who cropped up at No. 1 on this week's WHL Plays of the Week. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Jordan Schroeder squashes rumors Remember during the preseason when University of Minnesota star center Jordan Schroeder was rumored to be leaving school to join the Silvertips, who own his major junior rights? Well those rumors have surfaced again in the wake of his slow start to the season, as well as the decision of Minnesota teammate Sam Lofquist choosing to leave for the OHL. However, Schroeder and the school felt the need Wednesday to issue a press release denying those rumors. This is the story that just won't go away. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Emergency food drive Saturday The Volunteers of America food bank of Snohomish County's supplies have run dangerously low, so the Silvertips are holding an emergency food drive during Saturday's home game against the Seattle Thunderbirds. Fans are asked to bring non-perishable food items for donation to the food bank, which currently has less than a week's worth of supply. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Honoring Jordan Mistelbacher (updated) The WHL released its list of alumni attending college using their WHL scholarships today. As usual, there's a fair number former Silvertips taking advantage of their scholarships, as well as a handful of former Tips who are on scholarship from other WHL teams they played for. But there was one name on the list that stood out to me: Utah State University – Logan UT, (1) Tyler Mistelbacher – Winnipeg, MB – Everett Silvertips Tyler Mistelbacher never played for Everett. Indeed, he never played in the WHL. However, the Tips have granted the scholarship of former player Jordan Mistelbacher, who passed away last January, to his older brother. I was happy to see this. --- UPDATE, 4:50 p.m. Tips general manager Doug Soetaert passed along some information regarding this. The ability to confer the scholarship of a deceased player to a sibling was agreed upon by the league's board of governors during the summer. In the wake of Jordan Mistelbacher's death, the Tips brought the issue to the board's attention, and the board voted unanimously to implement the idea. Kudos to the board of governors for making this possible. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blog: Everett at Spokane First meeting of the season between Everett and Spokane, as well as the first time the Tips face former Everett star Kyle Beach as a member of the Chiefs. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Tips on TV? Hmmm. This is interesting. Last winter the WHL and Fox Sports Northwest came together to broadcast a handful of games involving U.S. Division teams from January onward. It was generally believed that FSN would broadcast more games this season once the new year began, though there has yet to be any kind of official announcement regarding that. Well, the league media guides finally arrived while the Tips were on their road trip, and I picked up my copy this afternoon. This evening I was thumbing through it when I cam across a full-page advertising the WHL on FSN, and lo and behold it included a broadcast schedule. Ten games were listed -- nine on Friday and one on Wednesday. Here's the schedule as it was listed: Jan. 8, Everett at Seattle Jan. 13, Portland at Kamloops Jan. 15, Everett at Chilliwack Jan. 22, Everett at Portland Jan. 29, Seattle at Spokane Feb. 5, Seattle at Portland Feb. 12, Spokane at Everett Feb. 19, Everett at Tri-City Mar. 5, Seattle at Kelowna Mar. 12, Tri-City at Spokane Again, there's been no announcement of this, so I can't confirm whether any WHL games are going to be broadcast by FSN, and if they are I can't confirm this schedule is accurate (though you'd think that if it's in the league's media guide it should be legit, even if it is an ad). But if it is accurate, it's quite the treat for Tips fans. Everett is involved in five of the 10 games, and four of those are on the road. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blogging update Just thought I'd pass along that I've been given the go-ahead to purchase the video feed for tomorrow's game at Spokane. No guarantees beyond that, but at least for one more game the live blog will be at full force. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Reader poll: goaltending tandems A tip of the hat to reader Jeff Camp for suggesting this week's poll question. The Tips are home again following their road trip through the Central Division. Everett went 4-1-1-0 against the Central, and much of that success was due to the goaltending of Thomas Heemskerk and Kent Simpson as the Tips allowed just nine goals in those six games. Those performances lifted both Heemskerk and Simpson into the top seven in the WHL's goaltending rankings. But highly-ranked goaltending is nothing new for the Tips. Often in Everett's history, particularly during the Kevin Constantine years, the Tips had two goaltenders among the league's leaders in goals against average, and being able to call upon two quality netminders was a big advantage for Everett. So that leads to this week's poll: ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Former Tip Shaun Heshka headed to the NHL The next Everett Silvertips alumni is set to join the ranks of the NHL as defeseman Shaun Heshka was called up by the Phoenix Coyotes today. Now let's see if I get this right. Heshka, when he gets into a game, will become the fifth (?) former Silvertip to crack the NHL, joining Peter Mueller, Michael Wall, Ivan Baranka and Riley Armstrong. Only Mueller has managed to hold down a regular place so far. Please correct me if I'm forgetting someone. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blog: Everett at Calgary The Tips finish up their swing through the Central Division tonight against the Central's top team. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Live blog: Everett at Lethbridge Tips try to make it five-for-five on their road trip tonight in Lethbridge. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Live blog: Everett at Medicine Hat Tips try to make it four straight to start off the road trip tonight. Be here to find out if they can do it against the highest-scoring team in the league. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Reader poll: road tripping (part 2) This week's poll is a follow-up (OK, maybe cop-out is a more appropriate term) on last week's poll. However, I think Everett's road trip against the Central Division teams needs to be reassessed now that the Tips have started out 3-0. So: ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Nicholas Walters, Alberta prevail at U-16 tournament Everett prospect Nicholas Walters' Team Alberta won the championship at the Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup today. Alberta avenged its round-robin defeat, beating Manitoba 6-4 in today's title game. Walters, Everett's first-round pick in this year's bantam draft, is right behind Alberta captain Matt Dumba in the team photo. Tips prospect Kohl Bauml scored in the bronze-medal game as Saskatchewan beat B.C. 4-2. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blog: Everett at Edmonton Don't forget that today is an afternoon game. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
U-16 Western Challenge: day three; plus early live blogging tomorrow The final day of the round robin at the Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup took place today. Everett prospect Jordyn Boyd scored again for Manitoba. He finished with two goals and three assists as Manitoba went 3-0 in the round robin (apparently one of Boyd's earlier goals was changed to an assist). Saskatchewan's Kohl Bauml also got on the scoreboard for the first time. That means three of Everett's four participating prospects (Boyd, Bauml, Jari Erricson for B.C.) have scored. The only one who hasn't is Alberta's Nicholas Walters, who as a stay-at-home defenseman isn't expected to score anyway. The championship and third-place games are tomorrow. As for the Tips themselves, a reminder that tomorrow's game in Edmonton is a 1 p.m. start. I will be live blogging again, so take a moment away from the NFL to check in. Don't forget that clocks are set back an hour tonight, too. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blog: Everett at Red Deer I'll be providing the blow-by-blow via the video feed again, and as always the first 25 contestants receive the opportunity to provide comments unmoderated. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
U-16 Western Challenge: day two; plus live blogging The day two results are in from the Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup. Among Everett's prospects both Jari Erricson (B.C.) and Jordyn Boyd (Manitoba) had a goal and an assist. Alberta's Nicholas Walters and Saskatchewan's Kohl Bauml were held pointless. And don't forget, I'll be live blogging during tomorrow night's Tips game at Red Deer, so tune in. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment U-16 Western Challenge: day one The first day of the Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup was completed Thursday. Jordyn Boyd was the first Everett prospect to hit the scoresheet, tallying for Manitoba. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Tips add forward Just received word that the Tips have found replacement for the departed Paul Van de Velde, calling up Scott MacDonald to provide forward depth. MacDonald, an 18-year-old left wing from Surrey, B.C., played for Chilliwack last season, registering four goals, eight assists and 25 penalty minutes in 63 games. He wasn't retained by the Bruins and has been plying his trade for the Westside Warriors of the BCHL, where in 15 games he had eight goals, 12 assists and two penalty minutes. On Westside's roster he's listed at 6-foot-1 and 196 pounds. Doubt this is a difference-changing move for the Tips, given he was unable to crack Chilliwack's roster this season. Nevertheless, he was off to a good start for Westside, ranking third in scoring on a team with a good record. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Byron Froese summoned again Everett center Byron Froese got the call by Canada again today, being selected to represent Team WHL at this year's Canada-Russia Super Series. The 18-year-old Froese will be a part of the Team WHL squad that takes on a Russian all-star team on Nov. 25 in Victoria, B.C. This is a follow up on Froese's hugely successful stint playing for Team Canada at the U-18 World Championships last April. Froese was the only Silvertip chosen to participate this year. The only players eligible to play are those eligible for Canada's team for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships. Everett happens to play on Nov. 25, hosting the Spokane Chiefs, so the Tips will be minus a top player for that contest. Spokane will be missing two players as left wing Levko Koper and defenseman Jared Cowen were selected for that game, too. Noticeably absent from the roster for either of Team WHL's games is current Chief and former Silvertip Kyle Beach, who apparently remains on Hockey Canada's black list. At least it means Beach's return to Comcast Arena remains on schedule. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment U-16 Western Challenge With a little break in Everett's road trip, it gives us the opportunity to check in with the inaugural Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup, which kicks off today in Blackfalds, Alberta. This tournament pits 1994-born all-star teams from each of the four western provinces (B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba) against one another in a round-robin format. To be honest, I'm not exactly sure of the purpose behind this tournament, other than to let everyone get a look at many of the picks from the past bantam draft together in one location. But Everett has one prospect on each team -- center Jari Erricson for B.C., defenseman Nicholas Walters for Alberta, center Kohl Bauml for Saskatchewan, left wing Jordyn Boyd for Manitoba. The Prince George Citizen did a nice story on Erricson in advance of the tournament, but I can't seem to find it anywhere on its website. Perhaps it will pop up later today. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Live blog: Everett at Kootenay I'll be watching the video feed tonight, so I'll have a better idea what's happening. As always, the first 25 commenters who provide a user name become unmoderated. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Paul Van de Velde update: traded Left winger Paul Van de Velde, who was reassigned yesterday, has been traded to the Brandon Wheat Kings in exchange for a conditional ninth-round bantam draft pick. This reinforces the idea that Van de Velde, who wasn't getting a lot of ice time with the Tips, asked to be moved. The conditional nature probably involves playing a certain number of games with Brandon. This is a pretty good deal for Van de Velde, provided he can crack Brandon's lineup. This puts him close to home and with the team hosting the Memorial Cup. Good luck to Paul, hope he can make things work out with the Wheat Kings. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Live blogging back in full force, at least for now Good news on the live blogging front as I will be allowed to purchase the video feeds for the games during Everett's road trip through the Central Division. Where it goes from there is yet to be determined, but at least for the next six games I'll be able to provide a running commentary and analysis of the action. Hope to see you Wednesday night for the Kootenay game. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Van de Velde reassigned The Tips announced this evening that left wing Paul Van de Velde has been reassigned to Waywayseecappo of the MJHL. This is an interesting move. On the one hand Van de Velde is a 19-year-old who was playing limited minutes on the fourth line. I'm sure he'd like to play more, and I'm sure the Tips would like young forwards Campbell Elynuik, D.Jay McGrath and Josh Winquist to get more playing time in order to develop. In that sense I can see why this happened. However, the timing of the move is curious. Everett's just about to head out on its eastern road trip, which is always a grind. Reassigning Van de Velde means the Tips have 13 forwards on the roster, just one more than usually dress for a game. Plus, left wing Dan Iwanski and center Chris Langkow have been out injured (though both practiced today and the Tips hope both will be ready Wednesday), while right wing Kellan Tochkin is out sick. With defenseman Ryan Murray (broken thumb) definitely out for the road trip and with defenseman Alex Theriau also missing practice today because of illness, one has to wonder whether the Tips will have enough healthy bodies to make it through the trip. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment We have our first casualty ... If you haven't heard yet, the first coach firing of the season happened today when Kamloops axed Barry Smith just five weeks into the season. Could this be the first time in history -- any sport, any league -- that a coach has been fired before the media guides had arrived? Just asking. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Reader poll: road tripping The Tips hit the road this week for their longest road trip of the season. The team departs Tuesday for its swing through the Central Division, six games in 10 days beginning Wednesday at Kootenay. A pretty standard schedule this year, with the exception of the quick turnaround this weekend, when the Tips play Saturday night at Red Deer followed by a Sunday afternoon game at Edmonton. So this week's poll question is pretty simple. And feel free to predict what the specific results will be in the comments section: ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Brandon 5, Everett 2 TALKING POINTS Well, the third period, which has been so kind to Everett so far this season, pulled the rug out from under the Tips tonight. Just a brutal third period played by Everett as the Tips imploded to the tune of four unanswered Brandon goals. And those wounds were self-inflicted, too, as the tying and go-ahead goals were scored straight off bad Everett turnovers, and the insurance goal was scored on a power play that resulted from a bad penalty. Rasmus Rissanen and Alex Theriau were the culprits on those plays, but it was a team effort (or non-effort) in the third period for the Tips. After tonight I think we can put talk of Everett being a third-period team on hold for a while. Can't fault Tips goaltender Kent Simpson for Brandon's goals in this one. I thought Simpson played well, making some big-time saves. But special teams once again weren't so special for the Tips. Everett allowed two power-play goals and a shortie, and the Tips didn't come close to capitalizing when Brandon took three penalties in a span of 1:12 late in the first period. The Tips played without overage center Chris Langkow, who sustained an upper-body injury Friday night in Vancouver. Langkow took the warm-up, but did not play. As for Brandon, I'm not sure I saw a Memorial Cup-caliber team out there tonight. What I did see were two dynamite lines that are definitely Memorial Cup worthy. The big question for the Wheat Kings is whether they can develop the necessary depth to be a Cup contender. TURNING POINT Despite Everett's bad play in the third period, the Tips had a golden opportunity to tie it back up at 3-3 with six minutes remaining. However, Tips leading goal scorer Tyler Maxwell somehow missed an open net when set up by Paul Sohor in transition. HIT OF THE DAY Late in the first period Brandon's Matt Calvert lined up Radko Gudas and hammered him into the wall, prompting Theriau to instigate a fight with Calvert. THREE STARS First star: Calvert. One goal and was an absolute fireball. On a team with lots of offensive stars, he was head and shoulders above the rest tonight. Second star: Gudas. One assist and laid out so many big hits the Wheat Kings were targeting him the entire game. Third star: Jay Fehr, Brandon. Two goals and an assist as he was in on all three of Brandon's special-teams goals. The Herald's honorable mention: Aaron Lewadniuk, Brandon. Two assists and played feisty. BOX SCORE Brandon 5, Everett 2 ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment Everett vs. Brandon: lineup notes EVERETT Forward lines: Maxwell-Froese-Tochkin Harper-Dailey-Hunt McCrea-Winquist-Abney Elynuik?-McGrath-Van de Velde Langkow? Defensive pairings: Theriau-Gudas Rissanen-de la Lande McDermott-Sohor Starting goalie: Simpson Scratches: Minville, Iwanski, Elynuik/Langkow, Murray. Notes: The big news is that center Chris Langkow is a question mark tonight. Langkow left Friday night's 4-2 loss at Vancouver early with what was described as an "upper-body" injury. He's out there for the warm-up, so we'll see, but that Shane Harper is listed on a line with Zack Dailey and Dale Hunt makes me skeptical that Langkow's going to play. Left wing Dan Iwanski (knee) and defenseman Ryan Murray (thumb) are out injured. BRANDON Forward lines: Calvert-Schenn-Glennie Rajala-Fehr-Lewadniuk Hale-Ciarelli-Wilson Ferland-King-Walker Defensive pairings: Urbom-Robak Bestland-Melnychuk Schneider-Miller Starting goalie: Hayes Scratches: Ehrhardt, Stone, DePape, Sinatynski, Hall Notes: The eye-opener here is that Brayden Schenn and Scott Glennie are listed on a line together. The two Brandon stars were playing on separate lines earlier this season, and I don't know whether they've been reunited for a while now. Right wing Mark Stone (thumb) and center Jordan DePape (foot) are injured. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Live blog: Everett at Vancouver Remember, 25 readers can comment without moderation, so first come, first serve. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment |
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