SATURDAY’S GAMES:
In Regina, F Adam Brooks broke a 2-2 tie in the third period to give the Pats a 3-2 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . The Pats, who won 4-2 on Friday, lead the series 2-0 as it heads to Swift Current for games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . Games 3 and 4 are scheduled to be televised by Shaw. . . . D Brett Lernout gave the Broncos a 1-0 lead at 5:00 of the first period. . . . Regina took the lead before the period ended, on goals by F Taylor Cooper, at 8:39, and F Jesse Gabrielle, at 14:24. . . . F Tyler Steenbergen pulled the Broncos even at 7:32 of the second. . . . Brooks scored the winner at 6:34 of the third. . . . It’s the first time the Pats have won back-to-back playoff games at home since the spring of 2001. . . . Regina G Daniel Wapple turned aside 29 shots, eight fewer than Landon Bow of the Broncos. . . . F Braden Christoffer had two assists for the Pats. . . . Regina was 0-for-4 on the PP; Swift Current was 0-for-2. The second of those started with 53 seconds left in the third period. . . . Attendance was 5,377.
In Medicine Hat, G Marek Langhamer stopped 30 shots to help the Tigers to a 2-1 victory over the Red Deer Rebels. . . . This was the series opener with Game 2 tonight in Medicine Hat. . . . Langhamer, a 20-year-old Czech, is the last European goaltender in the WHL. CHL teams no longer are allowed to use Euro goaltenders. . . . One goal was scored in each period of this game. . . . Tigers D Kyle Becker opened the scoring at 6:32 of the first. . . . F Cole Sanford, Medicine Hat’s 50-goal man, made it 2-0 at 14:29 of the second, on a PP. . . . Red Deer F Grayson Pawlenchuk got his guys to within a goal at 11:19 of the third. . . . F Trevor Cox had two assists for the Tigers. . . . Medicine Hat was 1-for-2 on the PP; Red Deer’s PP unit was never given even one opportunity. . . . Red Deer G Rylan Toth stopped 31 shots. . . . Attendance was 4,006. . . . The Tigers have added F James Hamblin to their roster, but he didn’t play last night. He was a first-round selection in the 2014 bantam draft. He played this season with the Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club.
In Victoria, F Brandon Magee scored two third-period goals to lead the Royals to a 5-4 victory over the Prince George Cougars. . . . On Friday, Magee had three goals in Victoria’s 5-3 victory. . . . The series now moves to Prince George for games on Tuesday and Wednesday. . . . F Greg Chase gave the Royals a 3-1 lead at 15:11 of the second period. . . . The Cougars tied it on goals by F Zach Pochiro, at 18:28 of the second, and D Tate Olson, his second of the game, at 5:02 of the third, via the PP. . . . Magee put the Royals back in front at 11:51, only to have Cougars F Chase Witala tie it at 13:49. . . . Magee then scored the winner at 15:47. . . . That goal was Magee’s 20th career playoff point, allowing him to tie the franchise record that had been held by F Stephen Hodges. . . . F Brad Morrison, F Jansen Harkins and D Joe Carvalho each had two assists for the Cougars. . . . Victoria G Coleman Vollrath stopped 30 shots, 10 more than Prince George’s Ty Edmonds. . . . The Cougars were 2-for-6 on the PP, giving them five PP goals in two games. The Royals were 0-for-2. . . . Attendance was 5,545.
In Kelowna, G Jackson Whistle turned aside 30 shots in posting his second straight shutout as the Rockets beat the Tri-City Americans, 3-0. . . . Whistle has made two career playoff starts and has yet to surrender even one goal. On Friday, the Rockets beat the Americans, 6-0, as Whistle made 18 saves. . . . The series now moves to Kennewick, Wash., for games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. . . . F Rodney Southam, who started this season with the Americans, opened the scoring for Kelowna at 7:42 of the second period. . . . F Leon Draisaitl added insurance at 15:54 of the third and F Tyson Baillie scored an empty-netter at 18:36. . . . Tri-City G Eric Comrie stopped 42 shots. . . . The Rockets held a 20-6 edge in shots after one period. . . . Each team was 0-for-3 on the PP. . . . Attendance was 5,639. . . . Craig West, the play-by-play voice of the Americans, called his 2,000th WHL game last night.
In Everett, the Spokane Chiefs scored four times in the first period en route to a 6-2 victory over the Silvertips. . . . The Chiefs, 5-1 losers in Game 1, will play host to Games 3 and 4 on Wednesday and Friday. . . . F Adam Helewka had two goals and an assist for Spokane, while F Dominic Zwerger also scored twice. . . . Chiefs F Keanu Yamamoto had two assists. . . . Spokane G Garret Hughson stopped 29 shots. He lost his shutout at 14:21 of the third period when D Cole MacDonald scored. . . . Spokane was 3-for-9 on the PP; Everett was 1-for-7. . . . The game featured 30 minor penalties, 16 of them to the Silvertips. Ten roughing minors were handed out at the final buzzer. . . . Everett D Ben Betker left in the first period with an apparent arm injury and didn’t return. . . . Attendance was 4,339.
In Portland, F Mathew Barzal opened and closed the scoring as the Seattle Thunderbirds beat the Winterhawks, 4-3. . . . Game 2 is scheduled for tonight in Portland. . . . Barzal’s second goal, at 17:18 of the third period, broke a 3-3 tie. . . . The Winterhawks went on the PP with 53.1 seconds left in the third period but weren’t able to equalize. . . . Seattle took a 2-0 lead in the first period when Barzal scored, at 1:01, and F Cory Millette added a PP goal, at 15:43. . . . Portland D Blake Heinrich got his guys on the board at 19:55. . . . The Winterhawks tied it when D Adam Henry scored a PP goal at 8:37 of the second and took the lead on F Evan Weinger’s goal at 6:27 of the third. . . . Seattle F Scott Eansor tied it at 11:41. . . . F Ryan Gropp drew an assist on both of Barzal’s goals. . . . Seattle G Taran Kozun stopped 34 shots, five more than Portland’s Adin Hill. . . . Gropp came up short on a third-period penalty shot with the score 2-2. . . . Weinger scored 10 seconds later. . . . Seattle was 1-for-2 on the PP; Portland was 1-for-3. . . . Portland F Alex Schoenborn returned after not playing since Jan. 31. He missed 19 games. . . . Attendance was 7,072.
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The third game of the series between the Medicine Hat Tigers and Rebels in Red Deer will begin at 7 p.m. The game, which is scheduled for Wednesday, originally was scheduled for 7 p.m., but then was shifted to TBD in order to accommodate a possible Sportsnet telecast. But the Brandon-Edmonton series will go at least five games, with the fifth game set for Wednesday. Sportsnet will televise that game, with an 8 p.m. start time, allowing Game 3 in Red Deer to begin at 7 p.m.
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F Beck Malenstyn of the Calgary Hitmen has a friend in Penticton who is battling cancer. Scott Fisher of the Calgary Sun reports that Kaylee Kozari-Bowland, 16, has “a rare, aggressive form of cancer” and “has exhausted all treatments available at the B.C. Children’s hospital, and now her desperate family is looking to a trial at the MD Cancer Center in Texas.” . . . Her family is looking at a bill of $200,000 or more, and Malenstyn wants to help. So he and the Hitmen are putting together a silent auction. . . . Fisher’s story is
right here.
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THE COACHING GAME:
Brett Hopfe has resigned as director of hockey operations and head coach of the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlys. Hopfe has filled both positions for more than three seasons. . . . Hopfe had signed a three-year contract extension on June 10. . . . The Grizzlys finished 24-27-9 this season, good for fifth place in the South Division. They were swept by the Drumheller Dragons in a best-of-five first-round playoff series.
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