WHL announces 2011 pre-season schedule

Press releases on the WHL's and Kelowna Rockets' pre-season schedules.

For Immediate Release - June 23, 2011

Calgary, Alta. - The WHL  announced its 2011 pre-season schedule on Thursday. 

The schedule includes 64 games beginning on Tuesday, August 30, and concluding on Sunday, Sept. 18.  The pre-season schedule also features three tournaments with the Edmonton Oil Kings and Everett Silvertips hosting tournaments on the September 2-5 weekend, and the Tri-City Americans hosting their annual tournament over the Sept. 8-10 weekend.

The Everett Silvertips Pre-season Classic runs September 2 -4, and will feature all five U.S. Division teams:  Everett plus the Portland Winterhawks, Seattle Thunderbirds, Spokane Chiefs and Tri-City Americans.  

The Edmonton Oil Kings’ fifth annual pre-season tournament begins Sunday, Sept. 4, and features six teams, including the Calgary Hitmen, Medicine Hat Tigers, Prince George Cougars, Red Deer Rebels and Swift Current Broncos.  The games will be played out of the Servus Credit Union Place in St. Albert. 

The Tri-City Americans’ pre-season tournament will again feature all five U.S. Division teams and the 2010-11 WHL champion Kootenay Ice, with games starting on Sept. 8.

The WHL's 2011 pre-season schedule also features games in 10 communities outside the league’s 22 markets, exposing the WHL to new fans across Western Canada. 

In Alberta, WHL fans will have the opportunity to watch pre-season action in the Crowsnest Pass, Innisfail, Jasper, Lacombe, St. Albert, Stettler and Taber. 

In B.C., the Vancouver Giants will host three games out of their practice facility in Ladner and the Victoria Royals will host a game in Maple Ridge.

In Saskatchewan, the residents of Shaunavon will have the chance to watch the Regina Pats and Medicine Hat Tigers square off, along with the Swift Current Broncos and Prince Albert Raiders.

The 792 game 2011-12 WHL Regular Season schedule will be released on Wed., June 29.

More on the WHL’s pre-season schedule can also be found at http://www.whl.ca/ .

Rockets to play six pre-season games

For Immediate Release - June 23, 2011

The Kelowna Rockets will play six exhibition games prior to the start of the WHL’s 2011-12 season.

The WHL released its pre-season schedule on Thursday, and the Rockets will play three of its B.C. division rivals to prepare for the 2011-12 WHL campaign.

Three of the six games will be at Prospera Place in Kelowna while three will be on the road.

Kelowna opens its pre-season schedule on Friday, Sept. 2 when the Rockets host the Vancouver Giants. The next night, Kelowna fans will get the first look at the Victoria Royals after the franchise moved from Chilliwack. Victoria will be in Kelowna on Saturday, Sept. 3

Kelowna will then play a home-and-home series with Kamloops, with the Rockets visiting Kamloops on Friday, Sept. 9, with the two teams playing at Prospera Place on Saturday, Sept. 10.

The Rockets close out its pre-season schedule the following weekend when the team plays in Victoria on Thursday, Sept. 16, then in Ladner, against the Vancouver Giants, on Sept. 17.

All games at Prospera Place will take place at 7:05 p.m. Information about ticket sales will be announced at a later date. 

The WHL will announce its regular season schedule on June 29.

Victoria Royals

Well, it’s finally official: The Victoria franchise, recently relocated from Chilliwack, where the team used to be called the Bruins, will now be known as the Royals.

More on that story here and here and here. Also, here is the team’s website.

Frankly, I like the name and logo — and, as someone said, it's better than the Victoria Political (insert insult here) — though I also liked the Bruins’ moniker and their logos (see shoulder logo below).

Blades, Rebels, Rockets bidding for Memorial Cup

And then there were three.

The WHL trimmed its list of 2013 Memorial Cup host applicants to three on Wednesday, and surviving the cut, in no particular order, were the Kelowna Rockets, Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades. Failing to make the list of finalists were the Lethbridge Hurricanes, whose home rink is undergoing renovations totalling $33 million, and the Prince George Cougars.

“We’re excited to be chosen as one of three teams vying to be the host of the 2013 Memorial Cup,” said Rockets president and general manager Bruce Hamilton, whose team played host to the 2004 Memorial Cup and won the annual four-team tournament. “We’d love to bring the Memorial Cup back to our city and fans.”

The WHL made the announcement at its AGM in Calgary. According to the league, the three finalists were selected based on facilities and amenities, 

projected rosters for 2012-13 and each team’s past history of hosting events. The WHL and an unnamed independent panel chose the three finalists.

From here, Kelowna, Red Deer and Saskatoon will now present more detailed bids to the WHL’s board of governors on Oct. 12.

For the Rockets, this is their fourth Memorial Cup bid, having thrown their hat into the bidding ring in 2001 (Regina), 2004 and 2010 (Brandon). For 2013, the early front runner appears to be Red Deer, as Alberta has never played host to a Memorial Cup.

“We are very excited to be included on the shortlist of teams for the Memorial Cup,” Rebels owner and president Brent Sutter said on his team’s website. “There is still plenty of work to do, but this is positive news. Our bid committee has been working hard and I’m confident they will put together a very competitive bid in October.”

Of the three shortlisted teams, Kelowna has the smallest rink — 6,007 seating at Prospera Place; Red Deer, 6,706; Saskatoon, 15,195 — but the Rockets have recent experience in hosting the Memorial Cup, which could come into play. Every tournament must meet or exceed a predetermined profit guarantee. In Brandon, the guarantee was $800,000, with all WHL teams receiving an equal slice of the money pie. According to the Brandon Sun, the tournament generated an estimated $13 million.

“The news means we’re going to have a busy summer putting together the bid package,” said Gavin Hamilton, the Rockets’ vice president of business operations. “It’ll be fun to do it again, but, admittedly, it will be more difficult to do. The guarantee keeps going up all the time, and when you’re limited to the number of seats that we have, it forces you to charge more (for tickets) than we did in 2004. But there’s also pressure on generating external sponsorship revenue because (during the tournament) pretty much everything inside the rink belongs to the CHL.”

One strike against Kelowna is Prospera Place, with its tiny visitor dressing rooms. For the 2004 tournament, two temporary dressing rooms had to be built. Further, a small press box also meant that a temporary structure had to be built along the mezzanine area — instead of temporary seating.

“Certainly a big part of our bid package is going to depend on what we can work out with the city and RG Properties on potential renovations to the building,” said Gavin Hamilton. “There are certainly some things that we would need to have done. Until we were shortlisted, they were potential things; now they’ve become a rather significant part of our bid package.”

In other news, at its AGM, the WHL has adopted a “seven-point plan” to reduce blows to the head and concussions. The plan includes the adoption of new rules; use of soft-cap elbow and shoulder pads; more severe suspensions for repeat offenders; a video on the risks of concussion; educating players; a seminar for coaches and GMs;  plus expanded research data and a review of all arena safety standards.

The rule changes include the adoption of a checking to the head penalty for lateral and blind-side hits to an unsuspecting opponent in open ice, where the head is targeted or is the principle point of contact. The league also said it is tightening its standard on late hits, as well  as charging and interference penalties. Further, there will be a new embellishment rule and introduced automatic suspensions for players who receive multiple penalties for checking to the head, checking from behind, embellishment and kneeing.

“The WHL is fully committed to addressing head blows and concussions in a comprehensive manner,"   WHL commissioner Ron Robison said in a press release.  “We believe the seven-point plan we have adopted will not only create a safer environment for our players, but will also enable us to better educate our players, coaches and officials as to what constitutes a legal hit.”

The WHL will also be releasing its 2011-12 preseason schedule on Thursday, June 23, and the regular-season schedule on Wednesday, June 29.

Rockets' Huska looking forward to second shot at WJHC

Below, a story on Kelowna Rockets head coach Ryan Huska on being named by Hockey Canada to the national junior team, again, as an assistant coach.

But first, a laugh about a grow-up bust, which can be found here.

By Larry Fisher

The Daily Courier

Ryan Huska and Don Hay go way back.

This coming winter, they’ll try to take Team Canada back to the top of the podium at the World Junior Hockey Championship.

Huska, the Kelowna Rockets’ head coach, played for Hay in the early 1990s, winning three Memorial Cups together — 1992, ’94 and ’95 — as part of the Kamloops Blazers’ dynasty. Since then, a lot has changed for both men, with Huska turning to coaching after a short minor-pro career highlighted by a one-game NHL stint with the Chicago Black-hawks in 1997-98.

Hay, meanwhile, moved on to a couple NHL coaching jobs in Calgary, Phoenix and Anaheim before returning to the WHL, where he’s headed up the Vancouver Giants since 2004.

Things came full circle late last month when Hockey Canada came calling, naming Hay, 57, head coach of the national junior team, with Huska on board as one of his three assistants.

“I’m thrilled to get an opportunity to work with Don Hay,” said Huska, who turns 36 in July. “I’m really excited about that. I consider him a mentor of mine. He’s a guy that I do call with questions, or when I have some issues I like to bounce things off Don because he’s been there and he’s got that experience.

“I was fortunate enough to play for him in junior hockey, and I think he was one of the biggest reasons why we won three Memorial Cups in my time there. I’m really looking forward to working with him for basically a month — day in and day out — and spending some quality time with him.”

Huska and George Burnett of the OHL’s Belleville Bulls are back after settling for silver in January at the 2011 tournament in Buffalo, N.Y., under former head coach Dave Cameron, while Pascal Vincent of the QMJHL’s Montreal Juniors is new to the coaching staff.

Hay last coached Canada 17 long years ago when his powerhouse team went undefeated en route to winning gold at the 1995 tournament in Red Deer, Alta.

With Canada coming off consecutive silver-medal showings, Hay will be looked upon to turn back time and duplicate his gold-medal feat. Interestingly, the 2012 event is also being staged in Alberta, split between Calgary and Edmonton.

For Huska, it’ll be unfinished business as he returns with a bitter taste left from Buffalo, where Canada collapsed in the third period of the championship game — blowing a 3-0 lead and losing 5-3 to Russia.

“It was a difficult end, for sure,” Huska said. “I think everybody that gets involved with Hockey Canada knows that the expectation is to win gold, and I think this year it’ll be even more intense because the tournament is being held within Canada.

“You go in every year wanting to win a gold and I can’t say that it’s anything more than me having the same feelings I had last year. You want to go in there and see the guys perform well and try to win that gold medal for your country.”

To accomplish that goal alongside Hay would make it all the more special, Huska added. Despite manning the benches of rival franchises in the WHL’s B.C. Division, they have maintained their friendship.

“It’s just like anything else, when the teams play against each other, both coaches want to win for sure,” Huska said. “But there’s always time after a game or a couple days later to talk, and that’s something I think I’ll always be able to do with Don.”

Hay certainly had an impact on Huska as a teenage prospect, and much of that has carried over to his coaching approach.

“I take a lot of the things that I learned from Don when I played for him and we do apply them here in Kelowna,” Huska said. “But as you move along, I picked up a lot of things from Marc Habscheid and a lot of things from Jeff Truitt, so you just try to combine a lot of different things and throw in some of your own stuff.”

In Buffalo, Huska had Rockets captain Tyson Barrie wearing the Maple Leaf logo for him, while Rocket teammate Mitchell Callahan played for the U.S. Canada beat the U.S. in the semifinals, 4-1. This time around, there’s potential for Brett Bulmer to be in the mix for Canada and Shane McColgan for Team U.S.A.

“You never know. It all depends on how the start of the season goes for these guys,” Huska said. “I’d like to see more of them invited and involved. It’s a terrific experience and I think it makes the players and coaches better for being a part of it.”

Huska can’t wait for his second chance.

“I’m thrilled and honoured again, to be a part of the Canadian team,” he said. “I’m very fortunate to have another crack at a gold medal. And I’m very thankful to (Rockets GM Bruce Hamilton) and the Hamilton family for allowing me again to take some time to try and win that gold.”

Rocket teammates rooting for AHL team

By Larry Fisher

The Okanagan Sunday

Colton Jobke could hardly wait to attend Game 2 of the Stanley Cup final in Vancouver on Saturday. Brett Bulmer, meanwhile, could have cared less how Vancouver fared against the Boston Bruins, but still planned on watching the Canucks on TV from his hometown of Prince George.

The Kelowna Rockets’ teammates were, however, rooting for the same franchise when it came to Game 5 of the AHL’s Calder Cup final last night. Bulmer, a second-round draft pick of the Minnesota Wild last summer, and Jobke, signed by Minnesota as an undrafted free agent in the fall, are fresh off stints on the farm with the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League. The Aeros fell 4-2 to the Binghamton Senators on Saturday, falling behind 3-2 in that best-of-seven set, which shifts to Houston for Game 6 on Tuesday and, if necessary, Game 7 on Thursday.

Both Bulmer and Jobke headed for Houston after the Rockets were eliminated in the second round of WHL playoffs by the Portland  Winterhawks on April 17.

Bulmer jumped right into the Aeros’ lineup, skating alongside Carson McMillan and Jarod Palmer in a fourth-line energy role, while Jobke spent almost four weeks on Houston’s practice squad without seeing any game action. Bulmer joined Jobke on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury in his eighth game — the opener of Houston’s conference final win over the Hamilton Bulldogs — and both recently returned to B.C.

Despite getting quite different perspectives, both saw their time with Houston as a valuable learning experience in terms of what it takes to be successful at the professional level.

“It was very exciting, obviously,” said Bulmer, 19. “The guys are so much smarter and more physical, so it definitely helped me out in improving my game, and I took a lot from it.”

The biggest difference, Jobke echoed, was “just size and the physical strength.

“To play with 16- to 20-year-olds in the WHL is one thing, but then to play with fully-grown men is a whole other ball-game,” Jobke said. “Just the maturity level of the hockey down there and just the speed and the pace, I think I learned a lot.

“I think I can bring that back to Kelowna and help myself and help my teammates next year.”

That, of course, is music to the ears of Rockets coach Ryan Huska.

“It’s similar to guys going to NHL camps, they always come back feeling better about themselves and they have a better idea of what it takes to play at the next level,” said Huska, who tracked their progress from afar and noted Bulmer will be fully recovered from his injury in time for the WHL’s 2011-12 campaign. “When you get an opportunity to see guys that are quite a bit older and quite a bit stronger, I think the players realize how much further they have to go and what they’re capable of. So when we push them, they have a better understanding of why we’re doing that.”

In Houston, Bulmer and Jobke took a watch-and-learn approach and leaned on key veterans for advice in making the adjustment. From former Rockets forward Cody Almond to former NHLer Jed Ortmeyer, Bulmer had ample help in making the transition.

“Cody I know from years past. He's a really good guy and he helps me whenever I come up and introduces me to all the new guys,” Bulmer said of Almond, who left Kelowna after the 2009 Memorial Cup run, just prior to Bulmer becoming a WHL regular. “Jed Ortmeyer was another guy who made it fun for me to be down there. He was really good, even in practice helping me out with all the drills. Whatever I needed to ask, I'd go to him and he'd help me.”

Bulmer had his share of questions, as his responsibility shifted from scoring to checking forward.

“You can't really go in and take the top guys' spots,” Bulmer said. “So you accept your role, whatever it may be.

“We were supposed to be an energy line and win our shifts and produce some scoring chances. And we did get some offensive chances, so it wasn't like I was just out there grinding. I got to show a little bit of offensive ability, too.”

Jobke, a 19-year-old defenceman from Delta, found comfort in another WHL alum, former Spokane Chiefs blue-liner Jared Spurgeon. The 21-year-old Spurgeon played 53 games with Minnesota this season, before being re-assigned to Houston for playoffs.

“I watched him a lot,” Jobke said. “He's not the biggest guy out there, but he plays with such composure and is just so smooth with the puck. He never panics and he sees the ice really well.”

Like Kelowna, Houston sticks to a strict system and counts on goalie Matt Hackett for big saves at crucial times.

“Just like with Adam (Brown of the Rockets), Hackett stole some games for us, for sure,” Jobke said.

As for the Canucks’ thrilling 3-2 overtime victory, Jobke almost called it. He predicted a 3-1 win prior to heading downtown with his dad, who has two season tickets for the family, which also includes Jobke’s mom and older brother, Tyson. Colton, though, seems to be the Canucks’ lucky charm, as he last attended their double-overtime win that clinched the San Jose series.

Bulmer, meanwhile, remained more worried about the Aeros’ bid for the Calder Cup.

“I definitely check every night to see how they did,” he said. “I’m still supporting them and hopefully the boys can win this final series. That would be really great for me and all the guys.”

When it comes to Vancouver, well . . .

“Everyone in my house and around here all my friends are cheering for the Canucks, but I’m not hopping on that bandwagon yet,” said Bulmer. “I’ve had a few different teams over the years. I liked Edmonton when I was really young, then I kind of liked Ottawa and Chicago, but now it’s all Minnesota for me.”

NHL: Combine camp snubs McColgan

By Larry Fisher
The Okanagan Saturday

Shane McColgan had a relaxing Friday — albeit not by choice.

The Kelowna Rockets’ leading scorer spent it by enjoying an afternoon of boating on Okanagan Lake with a skating coach, Aaron Konecsni. McColgan, however, had more strenuous plans in mind.

“I’d rather be in Toronto, for sure,” he said, referencing the NHL Central Scouting Combine that puts draft-eligible prospects through the paces of physical testing and extensive interviews. “I’d rather be working out and getting drafted a little higher than be here boating right now. . . . But the only reason I’d want to be there is so the NHL general managers could get to know me.
“They know how strong I am in the gym and stuff like that, but the main reason I wanted to go was so they could get to know my personality.”

Once touted as a top-10 pick and sure-fire first-rounder for this month’s NHL entry draft, McColgan fell out of favour with scouting agencies during this WHL season despite recording a team-high 66 points on 21 goals and 45 assists over 67 games in his sophomore campaign.
The 18-year-old from Manhattan Beach, Calif., who had 69 points in 71 games as a rookie, likely redeemed himself with a strong playoff showing this spring.

McColgan was leading the WHL in post-season scoring after the first round and finished with 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 10 games as Kelowna bowed out to Portland in the second round, losing in six games.

That surge, however, came too late to change his standing with Central Scouting, who ranked McColgan 125th among North American skaters based on regular-season performance. The top 102 prospects, including 61 from the Canadian Hockey League and 19 from the WHL, were invited to Toronto to take part in this weekend’s combine.

“It didn’t work out for me, but I’ve got a couple interviews here and there with a couple teams that seem interested in me,” said McColgan, who plans on returning home to California on Monday and watching the draft on television with family and friends rather than attend the two-day event in Minnesota, June 24-25. “I’m just excited to get drafted by whatever team wants me.”

Still, it was evident in his tone that McColgan felt he belonged at the combine. His on-ice play has done little to displace him, even starring in the CHL Top Prospects Game back in January where he was held pointless in helping Team Orr to a 7-1 win over Team Cherry. All but four of the 40 players in that showcase are in Toronto for the combine. McColgan was the only forward not on the list, along with defenceman Scott Harrington (London, OHL) plus goaltenders Liam Liston (Brandon, WHL) and David Honzik (Victoriaville, QMJHL).

“Looking at that, it was kind of disappointing and got me down a little bit,” McColgan admitted. “But at the end of the day, no matter what round you’re drafted in and no matter if you go to the combine or not, you still have to make the team. That’s my mindset going forward, and I’m just going to go to whatever NHL camp I go to in shape and ready to play.”

The knock on McColgan has long been his size — standing 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds — not his skill. The combine can work for or against prospects depending on their fitness level and mental fortitude, but McColgan’s confident he could have turned heads in a positive manner.

“I think it would have helped my stock for sure,” said McColgan, who has been in Kelowna since May 18 training under Rockets athletic therapist Jeff Thorburn. “At the Top Prospects Game, I tested pretty well in the testing that they do there. If I got invited to the combine, I could’ve shown my strength and stuff like that, and shown my approach to the teams that wanted to meet and interview me. I think that would’ve helped . . . hopefully my playoffs helped too.”

Another small forward, Rocco Grimaldi from the U.S. National Development Team by way of Auburn Hills, Mich., left his mark at the combine. Listed at 5-foot-6 and 160 pounds, Grimaldi was said to have one of the best vertical leaps and was among the leaders for push-ups with 39.

“I’m pretty good friends with him and I wished him the best of luck,” McColgan said of his fellow American. “We’ve known each other since we were 10 years old, so it’s cool seeing him on the positive end, and he’ll be a pretty high draft pick for sure.”