Vol. 6: What a big night it was on Sunday when rookie forward Oren Shtrom of the Medicine Hat Tigers scored his first Western Hockey League goal in overtime as the hosts won 5-4 over the Lethbridge Hurricanes. And what great timing by photographer Ryan McCracken to capture the historic tally! Alas, amidst the positivity associated with the tremendous effort to make its return to play a success, the Western Hockey League, unfortunately, endured its own bit of bad press on a couple of fronts. Indeed, interesting times in the hockey world on and off the ice this past week.
1. The Medicine Hat Tigers (7-3) played three games in three nights against the Lethbridge Hurricanes (3-6-2) and came away with three victories. On Friday in the Gas City, I was particularly impressed with veteran forward Brett Kemp. The Yorkton-native, who celebrated his 21st birthday last week, is a high-end talent in the WHL and had a ‘Player of the Week’ kind of weekend. Saturday in Lethbridge, Kemp was dominant, providing this highlight reel tally to give the Tigers some breathing room heading into the third period. He looks tremendously patient and confident with the puck, a quick decision-maker in the attacking zone and he demonstrates great anticipation. With five goals and 10 assists in 10 games, he is among the league scoring leaders during this unique campaign and collected his 200th career point on the weekend. It’s hard to say where he will land on the professional landscape – the New York Rangers gave him a look a couple of years ago – but I like his chances in terms of pay-for-play at some level in the very near future.
2. I enjoyed watching Lukas Svejkovsky in his return to the lineup after a brief two-game stint on the sidelines with an upper-body injury. The bye weekend and ensuing 11-day break also helped Svejkovsky to mend prior to the three-game set with Lethbridge. His presence adds pure offensive puck skills to the lineups and I find his offensive zone instincts impressive. Svejkovsky, who has a point in 13 of his last 15 games, can give opponents fits. His early third period tally against a game Lethbridge Hurricanes group on Friday was simply a goal scorer’s goal. When he came over from the Vancouver Giants in a big swap on Dec. 6, 2019, I asked head coach and general manager Willie Desjardins about chemistry in the dressing room when these trades are made. Of Svejkovsky in particular, Desjardins said, “it took a while, but then everybody began to see what he can do.” The Pittsburgh Penguins also took note, making him their fourth-round selection, 108th overall, at the 2020 NHL Draft.
3. If the current 24-game regular season is being touted as all about player development, look no further than one of the Tigers’ pairings on defence this past weekend. Rookie rearguards Reid Andresen and Rhett Parsons took a regular shift together Friday and did not look out of place. The 17-year-old Parsons is the Tigers fifth-round pick from the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft and he checks in at 6-foot-2, 201 pounds. He’s a load, with an active stick, good mobility, and a gritty persona. Andresen, who will celebrate his 16th birthday on April 29, is generously measured at 5-foot-8 and tips the scales at 146 pounds – these are not typos! In his debut, he showed enough confidence in the attacking zone to shoot the puck from the top of the circle late in the game, an occasion when many youngsters in the WHL seem to think “pass first”. When Svejkovsky tucked in the rebound, Andresen had his first career point. The Tigers pointed to Andresen’s puck-moving capabilities on draft day and by this measure, the player has arrived “as advertised”. On the development side, I like that the coaching staff had Parsons and Andresen on the ice during the final minute of play Friday, doing their thing to help Garin Bjorklund secure his second career shutout.
4. A tip of the hat to a pair of Tigers who achieved milestones Saturday in Lethbridge. Defenceman Cole Clayton, one of the overage players in Medicine Hat, played in his 200th career regular-season game. Clayton, who has found some scoring magic this season, leads all defencemen in the WHL in scoring with six goals and 12 assists in 10 games. Fellow rearguard Daniel Baker, who was paired with Clayton for much of the 2019-20 campaign, appeared in his 150th career game. Both players hit their stride last season, contributing 30-plus points on an offensively skilled Tigers team. And consider for a moment had things run smoothly over the past calendar year, Clayton and Baker may have been celebrating games number 250 and 200 respectively.
5. The Edmonton Oil Kings (9-1) won nine straight games before dropping a 2-1 verdict to the Calgary Hitmen (5-5-1) Sunday. It hasn’t really been close so far, as the Oil Kings, despite their first loss, have outscored Central Division opponents, 44-16. Dylan Guenther, the first overall pick at the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft, is getting much of the press to date, as he leads the league in scoring with 18 points. And St. Louis Blues prospect Jake Neighbours with 16 points, has the ability to dominate. But this really is a deep roster and I like that the organization is giving the older group the opportunity to flourish during this 24-game season. Matt Robertson anchors the blueline and I wouldn’t be surprised if goaltender Sebastian Cossa receives consideration from NHL teams as a first-round pick at the 2021 NHL Draft. But the move I really liked occurred April 20, 2020, when Edmonton added overage forward Kaid Oliver. I think he’s a tough customer, who cut his teeth in the WHL playing 249 games as a member of the Victoria Royals. I remember Oliver as a gritty, take-no-prisoners rookie at 16-years-old, particularly a dust-up during the 2016-17 season with then veteran Riley Stadel of the Kelowna Rockets. He’s battled the injury-bug, but I think his WHL career has been a success story.
6. I’m stoked the US Division and BC Division teams are back on the ice. At some point, this might also begin to feel like a real regular season, but as one WHL team executive put it the other day, “just let the players develop, and let’s get ready for 2021-22.” Such is life in this crazy world these days and we’re all faced with taking the bad with the good. Five games were played to kick start play in the BC Division’s double-hubble. With 22 teams and approximately 550 players able to focus on playing hockey for these next few weeks, there is plenty to be thankful for.
7. The Seattle Thunderbirds chose to jettison two players after investigating allegations of racial slurs and taunting directed toward a teammate. What’s done is done at this point and the team will move forward. That’s generally sufficient for me. But upon reflection, I’ve really noticed a divide and difference of opinion in terms of how people want to approach covering a story like this – and it frustrates me. I prefer to put on my “parenting cap” when assessing these situations. It’s an approach that generally pulls me in an opposite direction from taking a hasty, accusatory stance. I doubt my approach is being taught in our institutions of higher learning these days, where I think “book smart” and “dumb ass” can often inhabit the mind of the same individual. I also understand how the moral compass brigade in our society enjoys its supposed safe haven when raging on social media, and too many keyboard warriors just can’t wait to bury the two players identified as the offenders. “It’s about creating awareness,” goes the self-righteous chirp. Well, I’m comfortable applauding the player who felt victimized for bringing forward his concerns and I’m also fine with how Bil La Forge and the organization chose to handle things. And I also believe it’s worthy of some contemplation – the plight of the two young people now residing in junior hockey career purgatory, returning home to potentially confused and bewildered families with a measure of shame and frustration. I know my approach won’t ensure I’m correct 100-percent of the time, but rather than piling on, I’ll stick to 58 years of life experience to serve as my guide.
8. As a long-time fan and booster for the WHL, it’s not very often I get frustrated with anything that emanates from the league office in Calgary. A few weeks ago I wrote that I was unconcerned about the technical glitches associated with WHL Live on CHL TV streaming telecasts because I’m only into the subscription for about a buck a game. I know that Paul Figler of DUBNetwork.ca has been a sounding board for junior hockey fans across the country since the inception of the website in 2016. Many WHL supporters have shared their frustration with the current streaming service and subsequently, Figler penned this editorial on the weekend. My concern with the service at this point is I don’t think we have heard enough from the provider, Verizon, about trouble-shooting tips or suggestions. There are some subscribers who have enjoyed success watching the productions, but I think it would be good business for the service provider to become a little more engaged publicly with the WHL fanbase. There is a problem with consistency and it requires a solution. In fairness, I had much better success with the feeds Sunday, watching portions of games from Everett, Regina, and Medicine Hat. And in a pinch, this season, the highlight packages on the WHL website have been readily available any time I’ve chosen to explore.
9. The decision by the NHL to remove veteran referee Tim Peel from its roster of active officials got the ball rolling with all kinds of opinion last week. The situation is poignant, as it brings into question the approach and deportment of the hockey officials fraternity. I am very comfortable in my vocal support of referees, having been “the guy” at times in the past. I know I watch WHL games through a different lens than many of my media colleagues and while I work in my current freelance role, the on-ice officials will always have an ally. My support for officials does not absolve any of them from the reality they will make mistakes. And yes, occasionally their mistakes will have a direct impact on the outcome of a game. But the men and women who lace ‘em up as referees and linesmen take their responsibilities seriously and strive to produce an error-free performance every time they step on the ice, even though it is not humanly possible. Meanwhile, the average hockey fan seems content with the players doing everything in their power to win, like taking liberties with the rules to gain an advantage – even the divers. In many cases, the players have at some point along the way been coached to do so. Maybe a player’s effort and skills should be the reason he gains an advantage?
10. Just like a bad penalty or an unfortunate injury, it was bound to happen at some point, wasn’t it? A positive test emerged a couple of weeks ago in Kelowna as the Rockets began to convene in anticipation of puck drop in the BC Division. The details were announced by the WHL soon afterward, contained in the release you can read by clicking right here. Having said this, the regular COVID-19 testing undertaken by the WHL has proven the teams are taking the pandemic seriously. By and large, the stakeholders have done a terrific job keeping everyone safe, healthy, and productive. So yes, in a world of incredible uncertainty these days where we all have to take the bad with the good, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to give the WHL props for the success of its return to play.
Bonus Round. A final thought regarding officiating and a little quiz for the knowledgeable hockey fans of the world. Firstly, consider doing some research on “positioning” and “sight lines”. Some may disagree, but I think this is the most important aspect associated with officiating. And the quiz? Here’s a couple of skill-testing questions: When the play is approaching the attacking zone and you’re the linesman, would you position yourself outside the blueline, inside the blueline, or straddling the blueline? While the puck is in the attacking zone, where would you position yourself, relative to the blueline? If you’re bored, feel free to explain your answers to me on Twitter @glenerickson51.
(Glen Erickson is a long-time freelance writer with ties to the WHL over the past 35 years and has published over 200 articles on the DUBNetwork website since 2016. He covered the WHL extensively in Kelowna between 2005 and 2019, in addition to four CHL Top Prospects Games and a pair of IIHF World Junior Championships. Erickson provided coverage of Rockets home games for the Kelowna Daily Courier during the 2018-19 season, before relocating to Medicine Hat.)
