John Chidley Hill.com A blog about reading, writing, pop culture and sports.

13Oct/102

My weekend in junior hockey Oct. 8-10

Saturday's victory might be one of the few times I'll have a reason to mention the Kelowna Rockets this season.

One of the hardest things about writing junior hockey copy night after night is choosing what story should be at the top of the league round up. What merits consideration?

If I based it solely on the performance of a team people would get sick of hearing about the top 10 clubs all the time.

What about if I wrote based off of population size or team popularity? Then the Halifax Mooseheads, Montreal Junior, Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors, Ottawa 67’s, Edmonton Oil Kings, Calgary Hitmen and Vancouver Giants would dominate the stories.

Instead, I try to pick the game situations that are the most unique.

That’s why Nicolas Chouinard’s five-goal night led the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League round up on Friday night. The sock trick (as it’s called in lacrosse circles) is a rare occurrence at all levels of hockey.

The dominant play of Vancouver’s special teams also caught my eye on Friday. It’s not often tthat a team can kill nine penalties while going 50-50 on the power play. It just had to be given top billing.

Saturday night had three different unique or special games, one in each league.

In the QMJHL, goaltender Olivier Roy was given a shutout by official scorers, despite the fact that he let a goal in during the shootout.

In the Ontario Hockey League, the once-dominant Barrie Colts continued to struggle, particularly at home. Worse yet, it was on the same night that they raised last year’s Eastern Conference championship banner to the rafters.

Out west, the Kelowna Rockets finally won a game, the last Canadian Hockey League team to accomplish this rather basic feat this season.

I’m sure that these stories aren’t the most significant in terms of the final standings, and they’re certainly not a showcase for prospective National Hockey League draftees. But they are interesting or quirky stories, and I think that that is what draws the most people in, week after week.

Friday October 8th 2010
QMJHL: CHOUINARD'S FIVE-GOAL NIGHT LEADS JUNIOR PAST MOOSEHEADS
Captain Nicolas Chouinard decided to lead by example on Friday night.

Chouinard scored five times as the Montreal Junior downed the Halifax Mooseheads 6-3 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

OHL: ANDERSON SLAMS THE DOOR AS MAJORS SHUT OUT PETES
The Mississauga St. Michael's Majors got down to business in the third period Friday night.

Casey Cizikas and Joe Cramarossa scored 32 seconds apart early in the final period and goaltender JP Anderson had his first shutout of the season as the Majors blanked the struggling Peterborough Petes 3-0 in the Ontario Hockey League play.

WHL: GIANTS WINNING THANKS TO SPECIAL TEAMS, DOWN ROCKETS
The Vancouver Giants are relying on their special teams to get wins this season.

Vancouver reeled off three unanswered power-play goals to snuff the Kelowna Rockets 4-1 in Western Hockey League play Friday night.

Saturday October 9th 2010
QMJHL: ROY EARNS SHUTOUT AS ACADIE-BATHURST WINS IN SHOOTOUT
Even though he let the puck into the net on Saturday night, goaltender Olivier Roy earned a shutout.

Roy made 32 saves as the Acadie-Bathurst Titan downed the Drummondville Voltigeurs 1-0 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play.

OHL: ICE DOGS ADD TO COLTS HOME WOES
Last season playing against the Colts in Barrie was one of the toughest draws in the Ontario Hockey League, but no longer.

Andrew Agozzino scored the game-winning goal 6:10 into the third period as the Niagara IceDogs defeated Barrie 4-1 in OHL action Saturday night.

WHL: BULMER'S OT GOAL GIVES ROCKETS FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON
It took an extra period but the Kelowna Rockets finally won a game.

Brett Bulmer scored the overtime winner for Kelowna, as the Rockets beat the Prince Albert Raiders 3-2 in Western Hockey League action Saturday night.

Sunday, October 10th 2010
QMJHL: VICTORIAVILLE DOUBLES MAINEIACS
Philip-Michael Devos' small output was just enough to make him the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's top scorer.

Devos had two assists as the Victoriaville Tigres beat the Lewiston Maineiacs 4-2 in QMJHL play Sunday afternoon.

OHL: CZARNIK LIFTS WHALERS PAST FRONTENACS IN OT
Robbie Czarnik scored twice, including the overtime winner, as the Plymouth Whalers toppled the Kingston Frontenacs 6-5 in Ontario Hockey League action Sunday afternoon.

Stefan Noesen had two goals and one assist for Plymouth (3-4-1), while Scott Wedgewood made 32 saves. Tyler Brown and Austin Levi added singles for the Whalers. Czarnik also had two assists.

4Oct/102

My weekend in junior hockey Oct. 1-3

The Saulnier brothers have been a pleasant surprise this season.

One of the nice things about the start of any sports season is seeing the developing storylines.

Every year there’s a new star, a team that emerges as an upstart and, of course, there are those franchises or players that disappoint or underperform.

That’s especially true in amateur or collegiate leagues like the Canadian Hockey League where there is massive turnover from year-to-year and the players themselves are still maturing and developing.

This past week is a great example of that turnover.

Whereas last year the CHL was dominated by the Calgary Hitmen, Moncton Wildcats, Saint John Sea Dogs, Barrie Colts and Windsor Spitfires, new powers like the Drummondville Voltigeurs, Owen Sound Attack and Oshawa Generals have stepped forward.

In terms of hot new prospects, all the buzz surrounded Tyler Seguin and Taylor Hall. New stars like Alain and Alex Saulier, Alex Aleardi and Jonathan Audy- Marchessault have already started to make some noise just weeks in to the new season.

Perhaps most refreshing is some signs of parity in the league. Teams that really struggled last season like the Halifax Mooseheads and Prince George Cougars are already doing better, guaranteeing more exciting and competitive hockey.

As long-time readers of this blog know, I’m pretty awful at predictions. Therefore, I won’t make myself foolish and try to make any kind of prognostication about the rest of the junior hockey year. What I will say is that I’m enjoying the new directions this season has already started to go in.

Friday, Oct. 1st 2010

QMJHL: GATINEAU OLYMPIQUES STUN DRUMMONDVILLE VOLTIGEURS
It was an unlikely victory for the Gatineau Olympiques on Friday night.

Maxime Clermont made 23 saves to stun the Drummondville Voltigeurs and lead Gatineau to a 3-0 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

OHL: ATTACK TURN THE TABLES ON KNIGHTS WITH WIN
The Owen Sound Attack got a monkey off their backs Friday night.

Joey Hishon scored twice for Owen Sound as the Attack earned a 4-2 victory over the London Knights in Ontario Hockey League play.

WHL:OIL KINGS PREVAIL OVER PATS IN PHYSICAL AFFAIR
The Edmonton Oil Kings pounded the Regina Pats in every sense of the word Friday night.

Cameron Abney scored twice and added an assist to help the Edmonton Oil Kings handle the Regina Pats 7-3 in Western Hockey League action.

Saturday, Oct. 2nd 2010
QMJHL: HYNES SCORES TWICE, VICTORIAVILLE EDGE GATINEAU IN OT
Brandon Hynes took charge of the Victoriaville Tigres' game Saturday night.

The 18-year-old winger scored twice, including the overtime winner, as Victoriaville snuck by the Gatineau Olympiques 3-2 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

OHL: MCKEGG LEADS OTTERS TO WIN OVER KNIGHTS
After surrendering 12 goals in their last two games, the Erie Otters looked a lot more confident Saturday night.

Greg McKegg scored two short-handed goals as the Otters stymied the London Knights to snap a three-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory in Ontario Hockey League play.

WHL:BEACH SCORES WINNER AS HITMEN EARN FIRST WIN OF SEASON
Last year's Western Hockey League champions are finally shaking off a slow start to the new season.

Cody Beach scored the winner and added an assist as the Calgary Hitmen beat the Moose Jaw Warriors 6-2 for their first win of the 2010-11 season Saturday night.

Sunday, Oct. 3rd 2010
QMJHL: ACADIE-BATHURST EDGES DRAKKAR IN SHOOTOUT
It took all kinds of extra time for the Acadie-Bathurst Titan to come out on top Sunday afternoon.

Zach O'Brien, Gabriel Levesque and Bryce Milson scored in the shootout as the Titan sunk the Baie-Comeau Drakkar 4-3 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action.

OHL: GRAOVAC FINDING PLACE AS OTTAWA BEATS MISSISSAUGA
Tyler Graovac is gaining confidence as a key part of the Ottawa 67's attack.

Graovac had a hat trick as the Ottawa 67's stomped the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors 7-2 in Ontario Hockey League action Sunday afternoon. 

WHL: WINTERHAWKS OVERPOWER HURRICANES
Sven Bartschi scored twice and Ty Rattie, Taylor Aronson and Ryan Johansen all had a pair of assists to lead the Portland Winterhawks over the Lethbridge Hurricanes 6-2 in Western Hockey League play on Sunday night.

Bartschi scored the first goal of the game and his first of the season and then scored on the power play in the third period.

8Sep/100

Research makes perfect

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a rookie at this professional writing game. Indeed, if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my past year with the Canadian Press, it’s that I don’t know how much I don’t know.

Sure, as a young Canadian male I’d watched more hockey than the average person. But there’s no way I’ve seen as much hockey as some of the big name experts like TSN’s Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger of the CBC’s Scott Morrison, Don Cherry and Ron MacLean.

No, I definitely still have a lot to learn about the game and the sports journalism business in general.

The only acceptable recourse is to keep striving by working at my craft and doing research to broaden my knowledge base.

This is actually a personal belief that I’ve held for a long time. In fact, last month I was asked to speak to the current cohort at Centennial College, my sports journalism alma mater, and I made a point of talking about the importance of continuing the learning process even after school is done.

After all, sports journalists are required to interview athletes and coaches who have dedicated their whole lives to their sport. They know it inside and out. If we want to engage them and extract thoughtful quotes from them, we need to know what we’re talking about.

That’s one of the many reasons I decided to go to the World Hockey Summit. It was the ideal place to meet with hockey people at the grassroots level and learn about the issues facing the sport today. As you can tell from my four-day diary of the conference, it was an incredibly educational experience.

As I announced yesterday on my Twitter feed the Canadian Press has brought me back for another year as their junior hockey editorial assistant, and so I’m getting down to some serious research.

I’ve begun an email-writing campaign, introducing myself to all the media relations people of the Canadian Hockey League.

Whether it’s the head office here in Toronto, the regional offices of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Western Hockey League or the teams from Sydney, Nova Scotia to Prince George, British Columbia, everyone has or will hear from me.

The idea is to discover the stories behind each organization. Many of them have already sent me their media guides or are putting me on their mailing lists. Hopefully, these contacts and these press kits will help me come up with more and better feature stories and add further colour to my game stories.

Already I’ve benefitted from this initiative – this morning I was invited to listen in on the QMJHL’s season-opening press conference.

Amongst other pieces of news, league president Gilles Courteau explained that there is a gentleman’s agreement between the AHL and the Quebec-based association to not spread into New England. I was live Tweeting the call and when I mentioned that tidbit I got a big reaction from many followers.

I’m sure that all this work, all this research, will bear more fruit, I’m just not sure how. After all, I don’t know how much I don’t know. But that’s why I’m doing all this research – to try and improve myself as a journalist.

1Sep/100

It’s time for a Women’s National Hockey League

During the final day of the World Hockey Summit it became abundantly clear that Hockey Canada, USA Hockey and especially the National Hockey League need to become more proactive in the growth of women’s hockey.

It’s something that has been at the back of my mind since the Winter Olympics in Vancouver last February – how can an exciting game like women’s hockey only really be seen on TV every four years? What can be done?

Outside of the collegiate game in the United States and Canada there is no forum for elite women’s hockey. Even at the amateur level there are many municipalities that don’t have leagues for female players, and at the World Hockey Summit there were stories of towns that won’t let women use the arenas, period.

Further, there is no junior hockey for ladies - although women are allowed to play in the three leagues that comprise the Canadian Hockey League.

At the professional level there have been several attempts at running leagues, including the Canadian Women’s Hockey League  that has teams in Montreal, Mississauga, Burlington, Brampton, Vaughn and Ottawa. 

The CWHL competes for the Clarkson Cup against teams from the Western Women’s Hockey League. The WWHL has franchises in Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Strathmore and Minnesota.

Although I admire these leagues ambitions, they’re unstable with teams folding or relocating constantly. Other leagues like them have collapsed under the financial and administrative strains of running a professional association.

This is where the NHL needs to step in, and form a WNHL, much like the National Basketball Association’s WNBA, to market and promote a high-calibre female version of hockey.

Like the WNBA model, all the teams could be owned by the NHL or its franchises at first, and as they become more solvent be sold to third parties. Every team would be associated with an NHL or American Hockey League franchise to guarantee cheaper access to facilities and to enable cross promotion.

It would be an easy sell to have a NHL/WNHL double-bill in several traditional hockey markets like the Original Six, in the six Canadian NHL cities and a few other hotbeds like Minneapolis.

Further, when I threw it out to my Twitter followers last week, reader @katylalonde pointed out that there are several locations begging for hockey like Winnipeg, Kitchener, Hamilton and Quebec City. It would be a smart move for all four municipalities to invite a WNHL franchise to their rinks and prove that their arenas are viable venues for professional hockey.

Of course, such an initiative would have to be supported at the amateur level. Hockey Canada, USA Hockey and regional associations would need to do more to promote the women’s game at the amateur level. But with professionals serving as role models, it shouldn’t be too hard.

This is the kind of program that is prime for implementation - all it would takes is a motivated NHL willing to capture the interest of a whole new market of hockey fans.

25Aug/100

World Hockey Summit: Day 2

After nine hours of panels, group work, questions and answer periods as well as informal discussions over food, one thing is clear at the 2010 World Hockey Summit: the amateur hockey system has to change.

Whether it was cautions from Dr. Steve Norris or Dr. Mark Aubry on the overly demanding training in youth hockey during the morning’s Player Skills Development session or the dire warnings of Czech National Program Director Slavomir Lerner of the talent drain from Europe to North America, it was plain as day that things need to change.

Although it’s difficult to sum up nearly six hours of presentations, the general consensus was that minor hockey associations are too focused on turning young players into National Hockey League superstars, sapping the game of its fun and making it excessively dangerous.

As panellist Brendan Shanahan said “How come I don’t hear about kids playing shinny anymore?”

The speakers spoke of multiple concussions to eight and ten year-olds, massive dropout rates in children’s hockey (44% of American hockey players have stopped playing by the age of nine) and a dwindling European junior system robbed of its best talent by the superior Canadian Hockey League.

During question and answer periods as well as in break-out discussion groups the delegates and officials in attendance at the WHS brainstormed ideas that could make amateur hockey fun again for the casual player, while creating a more practical Long Term Athlete Development plan for adolescents and teenagers who want to become professionals.

The idea that was most popular – garnering a round of applause from the Air Canada Centre’s floor when it was suggested – was raising draft eligibility from 18 to 19.

Many groups of delegates had come up with similar concepts including raising the draft age to 20 or forcing players to stay in midget for a minimum of two years and junior for three. A freeze on all international movement at the junior level was also a common theme.

One radical suggestion was to raise draft eligibility to 19, but allow NHL teams to take 18-year-old players at the cost of two draft picks. So a Sidney Crosby-type player would have cost the Pittsburgh Penguins their first and second-round draft picks.

It was an informative and exciting day of hockey talks, and I’d strongly recommend that you follow the above links to see video of the panel discussions. Also, if you want up-to-date quotes from the day’s events follow me on Twitter.

Today’s discussions will start with an evaluation of hockey’s role at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, then a Q and A with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and then finish off with an afternoon session on Establishing a Long-Term Global Event Agenda.

10May/100

My weekend in junior hockey, May 7th-10th 2010

Nicholas PetersonIt’s getting harder and harder to actually call these posts “My weekend in junior hockey”.

After all, the Ontario Hockey League and Western Hockey League didn’t have any games on Saturday or Sunday after the Windsor Spitfires swept the Barrie Colts out of the playoffs and the Calgary Hitmen took out the Tri-City Americans in five games.

The Spitfires wrapped up their series last Tuesday with a decisive 6-2 victory over a rattled Barrie. Calgary finished off the Americans on Friday with an equally strong 6-1 showing.

This leaves just the Moncton Wildcats and the Saint John Sea Dogs to settle the outcome of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s President’s Cup.

Moncton has a 3-2 edge on the series, but it would be foolhardy to count the Sea Dogs out just yet. After all, Saint John skated to the regular season championship with a 53-12-3 record, five points ahead of the second place Drummondville Voltigeurs and seven points beyond the Wildcats.

Their regular season match-ups were very close, with a 4-3-1 record tilting in favour of the Sea Dogs. That said, five of those games went to extra time, so this is a decidedly close pairing.

For one of these teams to prevail and face the Brandon Wheat Kings, Hitmen or Windsor in the Memorial Cup tournament they’ll need their defence to step up.

In their five games, the lowest shot count was Saint John’s 26 in Game 1. Since then, totals have routinely been above 30, with some games seeing as many as 44 shots on net.

Both teams from New Brunswick need to bear down and slow down the game’s pace if they want to survive.

For Moncton to achieve this they’ll need defencemen Mark Barberio, David Savard and Brandon Gormley to continue to lock down the Sea Dogs’ best forwards.

Saint John will look to winger Nicholas Petersen as well as rearguards Nathan Beaulieu and Yann Sauve to be lights out in their own end.

3May/100

My weekend in junior hockey, April 30th – May 2nd

Taylor Hall

Taylor Hall and the Windsor Spitfires have a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Barrie Colts.

In any playoff final there is the expectation that the teams will be pretty evenly matched. After all, they’ve survived the regular season and the first few rounds of the post-season.

This year though, the Canadian Hockey League finals across the nation are all well in hand. In fact, they could all end up as four-game sweeps.

Here in Ontario, the focus has been on the Windsor Spitfires’ dominance of the Barrie Colts.

The defending Memorial Cup champions looked to be dead in the water after falling behind the Mississauga  St. Michael’s Majors 3-0 in their Ontario Hockey League semifinal match-up. But the Spitfires rallied to win that series 4-3 and now they are up on the Colts 3-0.

I covered the second game of that series for the Canadian Press and it was clear from the action what the problem is: Windsor absolutely owns the neutral zone. Several of their goals came from turnovers between the blue-lines and Barrie could barely get the puck over half.

Out in New Brunswick, the Moncton Wildcats have also quickly established a 2-0 lead over the Saint John Sea Dogs in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League final, including a 9-3 thumping in Game 2.

Things are even more lopsided in the Western Hockey League, as the Calgary Hitmen opened their series against the Tri-City Americans with a resounding 7-0 victory. They followed that up with a 4-1 victory to take a two-game lead in the series.

As a fan, I’m disappointed that these series are going by so quickly. Ideally, all series would be close with lots of back-and-forth between the two teams.

That said, good for the Moncton Wildcats, Windsor Spitfires and Calgary Hitmen. They should be proud of themselves for coming out so strong in the crucial step to the Memorial Cup. It's too bad that it comes at the expense of some high drama.

26Apr/100

My weekend in junior hockey, April 23-25

Cam Fowler and the Windsor Spitfires are in tough against the Barrie Colts in the Ontario Hockey League final.

Don’t call it a comeback, the Windsor Spitfires have been here for years.

The Spitfires reeled off four-straight wins to rally from a 3-0 series deficit and dump the Kitchener Rangers on Sunday afternoon and move on to the Ontario Hockey League championship.

They’ll be meeting the Barrie Colts for the John Ross Robertson Cup and the chance to repeat as the Memorial Cup champions.

There is a blend of confidence and desperation surrounding the Spitfires, as they have one of the most loaded rosters in junior hockey, but most of their key personnel like Taylor Hall and Cam Fowler are going to graduate to the National Hockey League.

Windsor was also supposed to easily dispose of Kitchener but struggled mightily against the surprising Rangers. This combination of hope and fear will make them a determined squad when they meet Barrie on Friday.

The Western Hockey League also followed the script, with the top-seeded Tri-City Americans besting the Vancouver Giants in six games and the Calgary Hitmen topping the Brandon Wheat Kings in five games.

It’s worth noting that Wheat Kings fans shouldn’t despair – as Brandon is hosting the Canadian Hockey League’s top tournament they’ll still get a shot at the Memorial Cup.

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is the only CHL division that hasn’t sorted out its final, with the Saint John Sea Dogs and Victoriaville Tigres still engaged in their semifinal series.

Whoever wins that team will go on to face the Moncton Wildcats for the QMJHL’s President’s Cup.

Moncton should be fresh after dealing with the Drummondville Voltigeurs in just five games.

Longtime readers will know that this is something of a disappointment to me. I had a great deal of faith in Drummondville and their goaltender Jake Allen, picking them to advance to the Memorial Cup.

Aside from that hiccup, everything else is playing out correctly in my early predictions. I’m pleased to say that the remaining teams really are the cream of the CHL crop. When action picks up again on Friday it should make for some exciting hockey.

19Apr/100

My weekend in junior hockey, April 16-18

Now things get interesting.

I made some predictions in this space last Wednesday, and, well, as far as prognostication goes I guess I shouldn’t quit my day job.

The biggest shock is that the Windsor Spitfires, favoured by me to win the Ontario Hockey League’s Western Conference, looks dead on arrival, already trailing the Kitchener Rangers 3-0 in their semifinal match-up.

Most shocking of all is that the third loss came on a heartbreaking goal when Kitchener’s Gabriel Landeskog dumped the puck into Windsor’s end where it bounced past Troy Passingham to stand as the winner.

(Check out of 3:54 of this video to see for yourself.)

It’s shocking to see last year’s Memorial Cup Champions, featuring a host of all-star talent including Taylor Hall and Cam Fowler, struggling like this. They're a stocked roster that most liked to win the John Ross Robertson cup.

If anything, this just opens the door for an easy Barrie Colts victory in the final, as they will surely finish off the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors.

Similarly, the Drummondville Voltigeurs, my favourites to win the Quebec Major Junior hockey League, are down 2-0 in their series with the Moncton Wildcats.

It gets worse for Drummondville too: the next two games of the season will be in New Brunswick, with Moncton having home ice advantage.

I thought that the stellar play of goaltender Jake Allen would be enough to sustain the Voltigeurs, but it looks like an all-New Brunswick final is the QMJHL’s destiny, with both Moncton and the Saint John Sea Dogs looking strong.

Meanwhile, both series in the Western Hockey League are all tied up at 1-1. The Calgary Hitmen and Brandon Wheat Kings will meet again on Tuesday night in Manitoba, while the Tri-City Americans and Vancouver Giants will hook up in British Columbia the same night.

I should note that I have some good news and some bad news. The Good: I have been moved to the pagination department for the duration of the summer and will return to the junior hockey beat in September. The Bad: This means that I will not be writing or editing Canadian Hockey League copy for the rest of the playoffs.

Fear not dear reader! I will still write about the goings-on in Canadian junior hockey every Monday. It's a drug; I'm addicted.

6Apr/100

My weekend in junior hockey April 2-4

Brendan Shinnimin and the Tri-City Americans need to re-discover their disciplined play if they're going to move on in the Western Hockey League playoffs.Generally, things are unfolding as they should in the second round of the Canadian Hockey League playoffs.

By and large, the favourites are dominating. The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is a perfect example of this: the Victoriaville Tigres are out to a 3-0 lead in their series with the Quebec Remparts, while the Saint John Sea Dogs, Moncton Wildcats and Drummondville Voltigeurs are all up 2-0.

Not surprisingly, the Windsor Spitfires and Barrie Colts are continuing their dominance in the Ontario Hockey League, quickly establishing 3-0 leads in their match-ups. The Ottawa 67’s are up on the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors 2-1. The London Knights have a similar lead over the Kitchener Rangers.

The Western Hockey League is no different: the Vancouver Giants, Brandon Wheat Kings and Calgary Hitmen all have solid 2-0 leads.

No, there is only one team that has been a disappointment this post-season: the Tri-City Americans.

Although Tri-City finished the regular season at the top of the Western Conference’s standings, they really stumbled to the end of the year, going 5-5 in their final 10 games.

If it wasn’t for the Spokane Chiefs beating the Everett Silvertips 3-2 in literally the last game of the WHL season, the Americans would have finished in third in their conference and had a much tougher pairing in the opening round of the playoffs.

Surprisingly, Tri-City struggled in that opening pairing against the Chilliwack Bruins, eking out a 4-2 series win.

The Americans game, at its height, is marked by a balanced approach with and without the puck. Although they had the third-best offence in the league their best scorer, Brendan Shinnimin, was only 14th overall.

Similarly, Tri-City had the least number of penalty minutes (986) in the entire league. A real accomplishment, considering the rough-and-tumble style of the WHL.

That kind of discipline has disappeared in the past month of Americans’ play, and it is hurting their chances of contending for a WHL championship.

 Friday, April 2nd 2010
QMJHL – Couturier helps Voltigeurs slip by Rimouski in overtime
Sean Couturier made sure his Drummondville Voltigeurs started their second-round Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoff match-up on the right foot.

Couturier forced overtime with two minutes left in regulation and then scored the winner 24 seconds into the extra period as the Voltigeurs eked out a 5-4 win over the Rimouski Oceanic on Friday night. (See more...)

OHL-  67's cruise to win over Majors to tie series
Anthony Nigro and the Ottawa 67's made a statement in the second game of their Ontario Hockey League playoff match-up Friday night.

Nigro had two goals and two assists as the 67's crushed the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors 7-2. (See more...)

WHL – Hitmen gain playoff momentum, down Medicine Hat Tigers
Kris Foucault kept the Calgary Hitmen's post-season roll going on Friday night.

Foucault scored twice to lead Calgary to a 5-2 win over the Medicine Hat Tigers in their Western Hockey League Eastern Conference semifinal opener. (See more...)

Saturday, April 3rd 2010
QMJHL – Huberdeau scores twice as Sea Dogs beat Gatineau
The Saint John Sea Dogs are rolling through the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoffs and don't seem ready to let up.

Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice as Saint John routed the Gatineau Olympiques 7-2 in the QMJHL quarter-finals Saturday night. (See more...)

WHL – Giants beat out Winterhawks in physical playoff game
The Vancouver Giants and Portland Winterhawks opened their Western Hockey League playoff series with a bang on Saturday night.

Brendan Gallagher had four goals and an assist as the Giants out-paced the Winterhawks 9-6 in an unruly opening to their second round match-up. (See more...)

Sunday, April 4th 2010
OHL – Colts slip by Battalion in OT; take 2-0 series lead
Luke Pither's impeccable sense of timing has the Barrie Colts in control of their Ontario Hockey League Eastern Conference semifinal.

Pither was the overtime hero as the Colts eked out a 3-2 win over the Brampton Battalion in OHL playoff action Sunday afternoon. (See more...)