Finley likes Winnipeg back in NHL

I spoke to Jeff Finley, a retired NHL player who makes his home in Kelowna, about the NHL coming back to Winnipeg.
Finley is a former assistant coach with the Kelowna Rockets and is now a scout with the NHL's Detroit Red Wings. Finley is a former Winnipeg Jets defenceman, suiting up for just one season during the 1995-96 campaign.
Finley had these thoughts about the NHL returning to the Manitoba capital.
"I was there for just one season but I enjoyed my time there. The people there are fantastic. They are die hard hockey fans. It is great for Canada to have another NHL team. It's called friendly Manitoba for a reason and their are truly great people there."

Finley remembers the sad faces in the Winnipeg Arena as the team said goodbye in their final home game.
"It was a story that carried on all year. The fans knew the team was going to move. It was inevitable at the end of the season. You definitely felt their pain. You knew how upset they were that they were losing their team. You really felt it in the playoffs. They had the famous white out there and we had a great six game series with the Detroit Red Wings and the fans were outstanding. I have, never to this day, been in a building that was that loud in Winnipeg."

Why will the NHL work in Winnipeg this time?
"I compare it to the situation in Minnesota. When I played in the league years ago, Minnesota had a team and their were often night's where we went in there and they couldn't have had more than four or five thousand people in the building. The team ended up moving to Dallas but years later they got an expansion franchise back in Minnesota, with a brand new building, and now you can't get a ticket."

Will players been enthused in playing in Winnipeg?

"It doesn't sound great. It was tough. I enjoyed it there but the winter's there are miserable. It's freezing cold like everybody knows. Players won't be overly excited about the weather but the opportunity to play back in Canada where its hockey everyday will get them excited. They are making lots of money..they will be fine going back to Winnipeg."

As for a new name for the team, Finley doesn't have a problem with them keeping it as is by calling them the 'Winnipeg Jets'.

Ice captain knew it was coming

Dustin Sylvester isn't surprised.

The 22 year-old knew the Ice had the potential of winning a Western Hockey League title.

Unfortunately for him, they did it a season after he graduated as one of three overage players.

The Kelowna resident was part of the process, but would have liked nothing more than enjoying the fruits of Kootenay's labour in winning the league crown this season. The Kelowna residents birth certificate proved to be the stumbling block as he watched the teams magic ride through the post season from afar.

Sylvester spent five seasons with the Kootenay Ice and captained the team in his 20 year-old season. Outside of just four players currently on the Ice' roster, Sylvester went to battle with all of them.

"Pretty much everyone was coming back from last year, so it is the luck of the draw that I was there for five years and this was their year to do it. I kinda missed out, but I have a lot of good friends on that team and am glad to see them go that far".

Sylvester led the Ice in scoring (35+58=93) in 2009-2010, but admits the organizations always preached work ethic over individual results.

"I think it shows how good of a team they were when you look at the stats. When you have four guys with 27 points in the playoffs, you can't complain with that".

Sylvester is one alumnus that would encourage other players concerned about playing in the CHL's second smallest centre to put those fears behind them.

"Kootenay hasn't missed the playoffs in what, ten or 11 years or something? I enjoyed playing there. It is a small team....it isn't a big city so the guys are really close. The furthest guy from you is about a five minute drive. That is one of the reasons alone why they have been so successful".

Sylvester played this past season in Europe but is contemplating whether to return or play North American hockey this fall.

Rockets look at hosting MC for second time

The Kelowna Rockets will bid to host the 2013 Memorial Cup.
The Rockets will join Red Deer, Prince George, Lethbridge and Saskatoon as teams that have confirmed they will make bid presentations to WHL governors in October.
The Rockets hosted the Memorial Cup in 2004 while Saskatoon previously hosted the event in 1989.
Lethbridge and Red Deer have never hosted the ten day tournament.

Rockets General Manager Bruce Hamilton (pictured), is in Mississauga representing the WHL as the Chairman of the Board.

Rockets part ways with imports

The Kelowna Rockets will make two selections in next months Canadian Hockey League import draft.
The Rockets have parted ways with 19 year-old Andreas Stene and 18 year-old Gal Koren.
Stene (pictured far right) scored just two goals in 55 regular season games despite captaining Norway at the World Junior Hockey Championships.
Stene participated in just four playoff games.
Koren saw limited ice time, playing in 33 regular season games where he scored just one goal.
Koren also played for Slovenia in Division 1 at the WJC.
Koren saw action is just three games in the post season.

Chartier is Rockets top pick

The Kelowna Rockets went to Saskatchewan for their first two picks in today's WHL bantam draft in Calgary.
In round one, 15th overall, the Rockets picked forward Rourke Chartier from Saskatoon.
I spoke to Chartier about how he heard the news he was drafted by the Rockets.
"Our teachers are all on strike so we didn't have school today. It worked out pretty good. Otherwise I would have been at school, so we just watched it on the webcast".
Oddly enough Chartier's parents are both teachers and were on the picket lines when the news came down that he was headed to Kelowna.
Chartier's father, Marc, is the head coach of the Saskatoon Contacts, the team Rourke will play with next season before hopefully earning a spot with the Rockets as a 16 year-old.
Marc Chartier played with the Saskatoon Blades and Billings Bighorns in the late 70's before spending time with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
In round two, the Rockets picked forward Austin Glover 37th overall.

Ward doesn't buy into playoff pressure

It was neat to see Kelowna resident Dixon Ward recieving some TV time during the Canucks opening round playoff series against Chicago.
Ward, who was originally drafted by the Canucks in 1988, was providing post game analyse on Rogers Sportsnet following the Canucks game seven win.
Ward spends the majority of his time in Kelowna as the Vice President of the Okanagan Hockey Schools and Academy.
I spoke to Ward last week about playoff pressure, and if in fact it does exist.
"To be honest with you, the players don't feel the same pressure as the people watching feel. It's hard for people to understand that. They (players) have played so many hockey games and so many important hockey games in their life before they even get to this level, so they are just focused on playing. They don't feel tremendous pressure. There is a lot of anxiety and you are anxious and excited but its a very enjoyable time of the year. It's always a favourite time of the year for many reasons. The number one reason is it is hockey all day every day and that's fun for a player. The rest of life gets pushed to the side for a couple of months and you are focused on one thing and one thing only. The people watching it have more anxiety because they have no control over it."

What's next for Evan?

With so many junior players signing NHL contracts, it makes you wonder when, or if, Evan Bloodoff will be signed by the Phoenix Coyotes. The Coyotes, who could possibly move to Winnipeg at seasons end, drafted the now 20 year-old in the 6th round of the 2009 NHL draft. The Coyotes have until June 1st to sign him or the pride of Castlegar becomes a free agent.

One last thought for Hawks fans

It isn't often that an opposing WHL radio play-by-play broadcaster has a chance to spend a significant amount of time in one city getting to know the organization and the fans that support their team.

Everyone assumes it is a bitter rivalry that extends far beyond what happens on the ice and that the visiting broadcaster is part of the 'evil empire'. But let me say what a pleasure it was to meet and talk with so many Hawks fans over my two visits to Portland during the series. I met so many of you and realized the passion and love you have for your team.

I also have a greater appreciation for the American hockey fan then ever before. You showed a great appreciation for the work I do and were not afraid to literally come up to my broadcast booth and introduce yourself. I was taken aback by that kindness because I am in an industry where you hear more about the bad things you do and are criticised for it. It is in these relationships, while trivial in the eyes of some, that make my job worth while. I don't think in the 16 years of calling games in this league have I ever had as much interaction with opposing fans like I did over the last ten days with the Hawks faithful.

This blog entry was prompted by a Facebook message I received earlier today from an individual who I met prior to the start of game five in Portland. I won't mention names as the message was likely intended for my eyes only, but I was flattered at what the simple conversation and introduction meant to this person. Much like that encounter, the kindness you showed towards me doesn't go unnoticed. I have the platform on this blog to express myself and won't hesitate to thank you.

Many of you stopped by this blog during the series and expressed your opinion and I appreciate the time you took to visit my little space in cyberspace.

For the record, my favourite fans outside of Kelowna now reside in the 'City of Roses'.

Have a great playoff.

Sincerely
Regan

Putting a scare into the bear

• Craig Cunningham finally left Prospera Place after a playoff series with a smile on his face. The Portland Winterhawks forward, who was a part of a Vancouver Giants team that lost a heart breaker in the 2009 Western Conference final against the Rockets, scored the game winning goal last night leading the Hawks to a 4-2 win. The Hawks eliminate the Rockets in six games and advance to the Western Conference final. The Rockets season is now over after 82 games.
• While the final score read 4-2, this was a one goal game until Hawks defenceman Joe Morrow scored into an empty net with three seconds remaining in regulation time. The Hawks built up a 3-0 lead, yet the Rockets pulled out all the stops with goals from Geordie Wudrick and Brett Bulmer to make the visitors sweat.
  
• In the end though, depth and skill prevailed. The Hawks are a good team and are built for a long playoff run. They were suppose to win. For the Rockets, to be essentially within a goal of sending the series to a game seven is pretty incredible.
• The series loss on home ice is rare. The last time the Rockets season came to an end at Prospera Place was April 27/2004 in a 2-1 overtime setback to Everett. That series went to a game seven.
  
• Geordie Wudrick's career came to an end where it started. Wudrick played 400 WHL games, which includes the regular season and the playoffs. The 21 year-old's first ever game was at Prospera Place as a member of the Swift Current Broncos.
• We also said goodbye to the junior careers of defenceman Zak Stebner and Evan Bloodoff. Stebner played with six teams over his career and you could tell in his voice on our post game show that it was an emotional time for him when the final buzzer sounded. I love that emotion because it really tells the listeners that these players care and wanted to win. Bloodoff admitted after the game that it hadn't sunk in that his time in Kelowna was over. Bloodoff was a five year player with the Rockets and is one of only nine to accomplish that feat.
  
• Tyson Barrie and Mitchell Callahan also say goodbye. While both players are 19, they have signed contracts with Colorado and Detroit respectively. More thoughts on those two players in a later post.
  
• Two Hawks impressed me in this series, and no, neither are a top end forward. Goaltender Mac Carruth was suppose to be the weak link in this series, yet the Hawks goaltender really came to play. He honestly surprised me at how good he was. Maybe he will get the Kelly Guard treatment because he plays behind such a good team? Guard put up big numbers in 2004 but played in front of a solid defensive core, and outside of Kelowna, may have never received the praise and respect that he deserved. The other Hawk that showed me something was Taylor Jordan. The tallest player on the ice used to be one dimensional. The big man showed in this series that he can take a regular shift and can do some good work on the penalty killing unit. It is always neat to see a player transform and improve his game.
• The one sour note from last night's game was the ending when Hawks forward Brad Ross used a golfing gesture with his stick towards the Rockets. It may sound comical to some, but I would be embarrassed if a Rockets player did the same. Winning with class and respect for your opponent is what 19 of the 20 players on the Hawks roster did. Too bad Ross can't follow the lead of the Johansen's and Niederreiter's. I will give him the benefit of the doubt that he too will learn to be gracious when it is all said and done.Stir the pot during the game but show you are above that when the buzzer sounds.
  
• The road team won five of the six games in this series. The Rockets failed to win three games on home ice while the Hawks were victims to two setbacks at the Rose Garden.
  
• I want to congratulate the Hawks organization for winning the series. It was a lot of fun. The Hawks players I spoke to in this series were excellent. I have a better appreciation of Johansen, Cunningham and Niederreiter after short interviews. All three are well spoken and are great ambassadors of the team. Coach Mike Johnston and I met up a couple of times for some good conversations. I wish all the best to this skilled team and look forward to the Western Conference final against either Spokane or Tri City.
• Fifteen year-old Madison Bowey made his playoff debut against the Hawks. The Rockets second round bantam pick saw limited ice time. I will say that this series against the Hawks was a great learning experience for the Rockets younger players.
• I hope you enjoyed the one hour post game show following the game. Thanks to Gord McGarva, we had interviews with all three 20 year-old's along with comments from Tyson Barrie, Mitchell Callahan and Adam Brown. We even had Hawks play-by-play man Andy Kemper on for a couple of quick minutes after the game concluded. Thanks to all talk radio, we have the freedom to give the Rockets the air time they deserve after a long season.
  

Rockets season comes to an end

Hawks eliminate Rockets with 4-2 win.
More later.

It is game day!

Tonight’s Preview: The Kelowna Rockets and Portland Winterhawks are meeting in game six of their best of seven Western Conference semi final series. The Hawks lead the series three games to two. The road team has won four of the five games in this series. The Hawks won games two, three and four while the Rockets have wins in game one and five. In the last game, Friday night in Portland, Jessey Astles scored in overtime lifting the Rockets to a 2-1 win. Adam Brown was the first star making several sensational saves. If a game seven is necessary it will be played Tuesday at the Rose Garden in Portland. The Rockets are coming off a four game sweep of Prince George in round one. The Rockets out-scored the Cougars 22-13 and averaged 4.4 goals per game.

The first five games in numbers: The Hawks have out-shot the Rockets 229-170 in the first five games, including 92-59 in the second period…The Rockets are 5 for 27 in the series on the power play (18.5%) while the Hawks are 7 for 22 (31.8%) with the extra man….The Rockets have opened the scoring in three of the first five games and have led or have been tied after the opening period in four of the five games.

Period scoring in series:

1 2 3 OT Total

Rockets: 6 4 5 1 16

Hawks: 4 8 5 0 17

By the numbers: The Rockets are now 11 for 48 (22.9%) on the power play in this year’s playoffs.

The Rockets have out-scored the opposition 17-7 in the third period in this year’s post season….Shane McColgan has a point in all nine playoff games. McColgan has 8+10=18 in those nine games…Tyson Barrie has a point in seven of nine playoff games. Barrie has 2+8=10. Zak Stebner’s assist was his first point in four playoff games. Adam Brown has a save percentage of .926 in this series and has made 212 of 229 saves in the five games. The Hawks have averaged 45.8 shots on goal in the five games. Brown has a better save percentage in this series than he did in round one.

Playoff Experience: Geordie Wudrick and Tyson Barrie lead the Rockets in playoff experience with 50 games apiece. Evan Bloodoff has 46 games under his belt.Overage d-man Zak Stebner has 36 games of playoff experience after playing in 23 games last season with the WHL champion Calgary Hitmen.

This and That: Colton Jobke has been suspended for one game after receiving a five minute major and game misconduct Friday night after a hit on Hawks forward Brad Ross. The Rockets have called up 15 year-old Madison Bowey. Bowey was the Rockets 2^nd round pick (1^st pick in the 2^nd round) in last summer’s bantam draft….The Rockets defensive core is a combined +3 in this series. Kevin Smith and MacKenzie Johnston lead the way at +3….Tyson Barrie has 1+4=5 in this series…Shane McColgan has eight goals in his last seven games….Mitchell Callahan has two points (one goal and one assists) in the first five games of the series….Zach Franko has missed the last four games after suffering a broken nose after a hit by Hawks forward Brad Ross in game one. Ross was suspended for three games by the WHL for the hit. Ross returned in game five...Shane McColgan became the first Rockets player to score three goals in a playoff game since Blake Comeau scored three times against the Kootenay Ice in 2004. McColgan scored three goals in a game one 5-1 victory…The Rockets are involved in the second round of the playoffs for a third straight season….The Rockets had 16 fewer points than the Hawks during the regular season….Jason Siebert is missing his 57^th straight game after undergoing surgery on his wrist….The Rockets allowed the fewest goals against on the road in the WHL this season (93 – tied with Red Deer)….The Rockets were involved in twenty-six (26) one goal games this season. The Rockets were 18-7-0-1 in those twenty-six (26) one goal games…Only three players dressed in all 72 regular season games this season. They were Zach Franko, Kevin Smith and Evan Bloodoff.…The Rockets received the second most power play chances of any team in the WHL this season (383). Tri City led the league with 385 opportunities…The Rockets have not lost in overtime this season. They were 6-0 in the regular season and 1-0 in the playoffs….The Rockets allowed the second (tied with Red Deer) fewest power play goals against in the WHL (51). Only Spokane allowed fewer goals against…The Rockets allowed 26 fewer goals against than Portland…Nineteen year-old Max Adolph is missing his 24^th straight game after suffering a concussion February 16^th…NHL Central Scouting has released the list of the top North American players eligible for the upcoming draft. Zach Franko is rated 123^rd while Shane McColgan is ranked 125^th. Jessey Astles is rated 160^th…Ryan Huska is coaching in his 51^st career WHL playoff game tonight. Huska is 30 and 20 as a coach in the playoffs. Huska has been to a game seven twice as a coach. Last season his team beat Everett in a seventh game in round one and in the 2008 playoffs the Rockets lost in seven games to Seattle…The Rockets overtime win on the road Friday night in Portland was the first extra time playoff win on opposition ice since 2009, when Cody Almond scored in overtime in a game three victory in Kamloops (3-2) in round one.

Astles scores in overtime!!

• 
• One of the quietest personalities on the Kelowna Rockets roster made the most noise Friday night. Seventeen year-old Jessey Astles scored the biggest goal of his career, a laser beam like snap shot over Hawks goaltender Mac Carruth's blocker side, in a 2-1 overtime win. Astles' goal came about seven minutes into the first overtime when he intercepted a Derrick Pouliot cross ice pass at the Rockets blue line and went in on the breakaway. It was Astles third goal of the playoffs and second breakaway goal in the series. Astles scored just three goals during the regular season.

• Any questions on why Adam Brown was named the Rockets MVP? Didn't think so. Brown played the best game of the series Friday night. If you think he was good in game one, he was even better in game five. Brown was spectacular in the second period when the Hawks managed just one goal on 21 shots. No question he was the games number one star. Someone give this guy a NHL tryout or offer him a contract!

• Rockets d-man Colton Jobke is handed a five minute major and game misconduct for boarding after hitting Hawks forward Brad Ross into the side boards. The Hawks then had the luxury of a 5 on 3 after Rockets d-man Kevin Smith fired the puck over the glass. While the Hawks kept the puck in the Rockets zone in an attempt to open the scoring, few quality shots were taken on that extended power play.

• This game had it all including a big hit when Evan Bloodoff ran into Hawks forward Ryan Johansen at the Portand blue line. Johansen received a pass and was decked by Bloodoff. The clean hit saw Johansen's helmet pop off his head. Surprisingly the 18 year-old stayed in the game but just didn't seem to be his dynamic self after it.

• What impressed me about the Hawks after the hit was no one engaged Bloodoff in a fight. It is common place in today's game where a player can't make a solid open ice hit without getting into a scrap. It was nice to see that after the hit happened, both players went their merry way.

• The officiating job by Andy Thiessen and Nathan Wieler was outstanding. This was WHL officiating at its finest. Well done gentleman. No, they don't read this blog but that doesn't mean I won't mention them and the excellent job they did. Putting the whistle away in the third period and letting the two teams play was the right decision. Awesome.

• Did you notice the "tweedy bird" flying around the arena during the game? It would often perch itself on the bottom of the score clock. Did anyone get pooped on? Maybe Sylvester finally caught it because I didn't see it in the third period.

• I can't say enough about the Hawks fans I've met in this series. Friday night a group of people came to the broadcast location during the intermission and had such nice things to say about our broadcast. They even presented me with a 'Hoser' golf towel. The "Hoser's", from what I've been told, are a group of fans that have been sitting with each other in the same section at Hawks home games for years.

• Members of the Hawks Booster Club have won me over in this series. I walk by their table in the concourse area of the arena and we trade friendly smack about our respective teams. This booster club presents every Hawks player at seasons end with a huge white binder that includes everything from photo's, articles to game sheets over the entire season. They even presented me with a Portland Winterhawks Booster Club pin before the game. These people are class acts all the way and the team should be proud of their good work.

• I received a visit from Dan Folwick before the game. Folwick is former public address announcer of the Hawks who would bellow out: "Here comes the Hawks" as they entered the ice. Man, I love that. It was nice to touch base with him and it appears that life is treating him well.
• See you at Prospera Sunday afternoon (5 p.m) for game six. Bring your vocal cords and make some noise. After a day off, I hope to be well tuned as well!
  

Look to Hitmen for hope

• It's a rainy day in Portland, but that hasn't dampened the spirits of the Kelowna Rockets heading into game five of their playoff series with the Hawks. The Rockets have dropped the last three games but two of those three could have gone either way. Again, it comes down to eliminating mistakes and scoring on key chances. It's just the way it is.
  
• I love Kevin Constantine's comment to the media when he was the head coach of the San Jose Sharks years ago. The quote that stands out is, "will beats skill". How true that is. If the Rockets want to win game five bad enough, more than the Hawks do, they can send this series back to Kelowna for game six on Sunday. All 18 skaters must play a factor in the game. In the playoffs, despite what some would believe because of some great individual efforts by the Hawks, it's teams that succeed in the post season not one or two players carrying the bulk of the load.
• Being down three games to one in a playoff series is never a good position to be in. But in saying that, ask the Calgary Hitmen how they got out of a similar situation in 2010. In an opening round series against Moose Jaw, the Hitmen found themselves in a huge hole. Yet, the Hitmen found a way to work themselves out of that predicament and eventually won the series in seven games. So to say it can't be done would be foolish. But to look at the big picture of winning three straight games against a quality team like Portland is daunting. So let's all say it together...."you have to take it one game at a time".
  
• A big, and I mean big crowd is expected at the Rose Garden tonight. Perfect! A big crowd means a tremendous atmosphere in the building. It should be rock'n. In my opinion this plays into the Rockets hands as much as it does the Hawks. The Rockets players love playing in the Rose Garden and the big crowd doesn't intimidate, it only motivates them.
• Hawks forward Brad Ross is back in the lineup tonight after serving a three game suspension for a hit on Rockets forward Zach Franko in game one. Franko suffered a broken nose and likely a concussion in the hit. Franko won't play tonight, and if the truth be known, he didn't even make the trip down to Portland.
• I've been told league disciplinarian Richard Doerksen will be at the game tonight in Portland. I will try to track him down for an interview in one of our intermissions.