The biggest news in the WHL this week concerned Greg Chase. The Edmonton Oilers prospect and 35-goal scorer last season had been sent home two weeks ago by the Calgary Hitmen and asked to be traded.
Speculation soon began about where he would end up. Last week rumors swirled that B.C. Division rivals Victoria and Kelowna were the two lead teams vying for his services. Ironically they played each other twice early last week and while they split on the ice, Victoria won off it.
The Royals landed Chase and fifth- and eighth-round draft picks in exchange for rugged defenceman Keegan Kanzig and a second-round draft draft pick. This deal could end up being a big one for the Royals, who sit third in the Western Conference, but are just five points out of eighth and every team has games in hand on them. Victoria is 15 points behind Kelowna in the B.C. Division, but the teams have developed some pretty good hate for each other their contest contest this week ended in some bad blood.
Chase played for Victoria this weekend and picked up an assist in two victories. Will he be enough for the Royals to work their way up in the standings?
Glass shattering performance
OK, let’s get to the funnest play of the week. Sunday night the Spokane Chiefs beat the Kamloops Blazers 2-1 in overtime. But the best action came in the form of a glass-shattering check thrown by Spokane’s Evan Fiala. Not sure what’s better, the hit, the call, or the fan reaction.
Is Portland back?
Fans around the WHL eagerly kicked dirt on the Portland Winterhawks to start the season. After dominating the U.S. Division and Western Conference the past few years, it’s easy to understand why there was such delight in Portland’s slow start. Those fans might want to check their rear view mirrors now, because the Winterhawks don’t look to be finished just yet.
Portland has won six out of their past 10 and this weekend went into Kelowna and beat the Rockets on back-to-back nights. The losses were the first two at home for a Rockets team and could end up sparking the Winterhawks.
In Friday’s game, the Winterhawks over came an early 3-0 hole to win 4-3 in overtime on an Alex Schoenborn goal. Portland dominated Kelowna over the final two periods and threw a whopping 52 shots at goalie Jackson Whistle. The next night it was Portland who jumped out to a three-goal lead, only they were able to hold on to it and won by the same 4-3 score.
Does this mean the Winterhawks are back? Maybe. While this weekend they looked like the team we all have known for years, there still are some questions. The wins at Kelowna are certainly impressive, but came two nights after Portland was handled by Kamloops 4-1. Defence and goaltending have been inconsistent for the Winterhawks, both will have to be improved on if they want to make a run at their fifth straight conference title.
Is the East up for grabs?
The Eastern Conference leaders kept up the pace this past week, but there some teams on the move. The Brandon Wheat Kings bounced back from a tough loss to Swift Current by sweeping a two-game mini-series with the Edmonton Oil Kings and still are the lead horse in the conference.
Medicine Hat dropped a couple games and is starting to feel the heat from a couple of teams breathing down their necks in the Central Division. The Calgary Hitmen and Red Deer Rebels have been playing well of late and both have pulled to within five points of the Tigers for the division lead. The Hitmen have won six of 10 and are a team to watch now that they no longer have the Chase distraction to deal with. Calgary has a talented roster and finally seems to be playing up to their potential.
Perhaps the hottest team in the East is the Kootenay Ice who suddenly have won eight out of their past 10 and earned three straight victories over the weekend. Sam Reinhart has quickly reminded us all just how good he is. Since being returned to junior by the Buffalo Sabres he has led the Ice’s resurgence with 18 points in his eight games he has suited up for Kootenay and piled on six assists in the Ice’s mini win streak.
Nikita Scherbak injured
The Everett Silvertips had a big scare Saturday night when leading scorer Nikita Scherbak went down late in the second period against the Seattle Thunderbirds. After being hit along the boards by Seattle’s Keegan Kolesar, Scherbak lay on the ice for more 10 minutes as the team trainers secured him to a stretcher and he was transported to a local hospital.
Reports from the Silvertips Sunday indicated that Scherbak escaped any major back or neck injuries and did not have to be admitted to the hospital. It’s unclear yet how many—if any—games the Montreal Canadiens prospect will have to miss. The Silvertips are next in action Wednesday, when they host Kamloops. Scherbak has been a huge pick up for Everett, scoring 28 points, and a big reason why the team leads the U.S. Division.
Update on @nikscherbak: movement in all his extremities and his head/neck are okay. Undergoing tests for a potential back injury.
— Everett Silvertips (@WHLsilvertips) November 23, 2014
Player of week
Reid Gardiner, RW, Prince Albert Raiders The Raiders have won three games in a row and the 2015 NHL Draft eligible Gardiner has been on a goal scoring binge. He picked up three this weekend to extend his goal-scoring streak to four games. Over that stretch he has six goals and nine points.
Crazy game of the week
Swift Current was in Saskatoon Saturday night and when they took a 5-3 lead into the third period it looked like an easy Broncos win. They did get the two points, but Saskatoon made it interesting. The teams combined for six third period goals—four by Saskatoon—and the game had to be decided in overtime. Coda Gordon ended it to give the Broncos a nutty 8-7 victory. There were 11 different goal scorers, including the first career hat trick for Swift Current’s Brett Lernout. Saskatoon’s Luke Gingras has to be feeling blue after picking up a minus-5—no other player on either team was more than a minus-2.
BANG! @CocaCoda28 ends an 8-7 game in overtime! Assists to @Cavemn10 and @dmh_2. #OldTimeHockey
— SC Broncos (@SCBroncos) November 23, 2014
NHL Draft tracker
Keegan Kolesar, RW, Seattle Thunderbirds The big winger from Winnipeg went from unrated to a ‘B’ prospect on the NHL Central Scouting draft watch list this week. After only picking up two goals and eight points last year, Kolesar is off to a seven-goal and 13-point start.
Paul Bittner, LW, Portland Winterhawks Has had an up and down start to the year, but after a seven-game goalless streak now has potted five goals and nine points in his last 10 contests.
Jansen Harkins, C, Prince George Cougars Six points in his past four games and continues to pile on the assists. He now has 22 helpers to go along with seven goals and is two apples away from equaling last year’s total of 24.
Jordan Papirny, G, Brandon Wheat Kings Picked up two wins this week against Edmonton and continues to shoulder the bulk of the load for the East leaders. He has a 16-4-1-0 record with a save percentage of .909.