Think about the future.

The WHL had their bantam draft today. As far as how the Chiefs did, I guess they did well. Honestly, I don't follow the players much before they hit the junior level. But considering how well the Chiefs have drafted over the past five years I trust their judgement. I won't cover all of the players here but they drafted Reid Gow with their first round pick. Gow is a 5' 11" defensemen from Killarney, Manitoba. Spokane also drafted a local player Dillan Bogart. Head to the Chiefs website to see the rest. Overall, it looked like a well balanced draft. I'm looking forward to seeing what they can do on the WHL level.

Round 2 of the NHL playoffs have started. My Flyers are out but I'm still intrigued. I'm pulling for the Wings, 'Nucks, 'Canes, and the 'Caps. Especially the 'Caps since they are not only playing the Pens, but they put the Rangers out of my misery.

I also noticed that the AHL is putting a team in Abbotsville, B.C. next season. Very cool! If I remember correctly Abbotsville is between Vancouver and Chilliwack. This now has the makings of one incredible road trip. You could spend a week and go to an NHL game (Vancouver), an AHL game (Abbotsville), an ECHL game (Victoria), a WHL game (either Vancouver or Chilliwack). Throw in a BCHL game (Surrey) and have a fun week of hockey! I love the fact that Canada is so close! This might have to happen.

And then there were two.

First off, the NHL playoffs haven't been going as well as I'd like them to. My Flyers were bounced in six games. Not unexpected, but disappointing anyway. I know the Pens have been looking good lately but I was still hoping. It will help if the Caps can knock off the Rangers. I couldn't stand to see them in the second round.

Second, the WHL finals are set. The Calgary Hitmen will face off against the Kelowna Rockets, who just finished off Vancouver. I figure Calgry is going to win the series, but what I am wondering is will Kelowna win a game? Calgary is a perfect 12-0 in the playoffs so far and have looked rather flawless. My opinion is Kelowna will win one game, possibly two. But Calgary is just too well balanced to let this one go. All the other teams that make it to the Memorial Cup better take notice of Calgary. It's very possible that the WHL could be the home to the last three Memorial Cup champs. That would actually be pretty cool.

In case you missed it....

Is anyone else out there going through hockey withdrawals? I'm checking the Vancouver vs. Kelowna score and it made me sad to think that the game would have been played here in Spokane had the Chiefs won game seven against the Giants. Oh, well.

Anyway, I know this happened a few days ago but Trevor Glass was signed by the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL to an amateur tryout agreement. He's on the roster as they play Worcester in the AHL playoffs. I'm glad that Glass has a shot. He certainly deserves it. But did he have to go to the AHL affiliate of the New York Rangers? Seriously, anywhere else but Hartford would have been preferred. Even though he's in Hartford, I hope he does well enough to get a contract next year. Go get 'em, Glass!

Good for them, bad for us.

Can't say this was a surprise.

As if the bitter taste of losing to Vancouver wasn't bad enough, the bad but not unexpected news comes out of the local television stations that Dustin Tokarski and Ondrej Roman will get the call up to their respected organizations (Tampa Bay and Dallas) and won't be back in Spokane for their 20 year old seasons. Also, in case you missed it, Drayson Bowman was called up to the Carolina Hurricanes and will also be missing his 20 year old season as well.

Nothing shocking there. Tokarski doesn't have anything left to prove on the junior level, and anyone who thought Bowman would be back next year was a fool. Besides, both of them signed entry level contracts with their teams during last season. I was a little hopeful about Roman, however. Maybe even a little cautiously optimistic. But apparently the Dallas Stars have plans for Ondrej which will put him the the AHL or the ECHL next season. On the bright side the ECHL affiliate of the Dallas Stars is the Idaho Steelheads, which might mean a road trip to Boise for me if Ondrej ends up there. As for Bowman and Tokarski, they will likely be in the AHL next season so bookmark the Albany River Rats (Bowman) and the Norfolk Admirals (Tokarski) if I'm not mistaken.

Well, that leaves the Chiefs with four 20 year old players, so one of them still has to go. Jared Spurgeon and Brett Bartman are defensemen so they will likely be back. That means the odd man out will be either Dustin Donaghy or Ryan Letts. My guess is they'll keep Donaghy and they will release Letts. Time will tell on that one.

Crap.

48 Teams. That's how many junior hockey teams make the playoffs. 16 teams from the WHL, 16 teams from the OHL, and 16 teams from the QMJHL. All 48 teams have one goal in common: Win the Memorial Cup. For 47 of those teams the season ends in disappointment.

Tuesday was the day of disappointment for the Spokane Chiefs.

Spokane lost 1-0 in overtime to the Vancouver Giants on Tuesday. Both Tokarski and Sexsmith were stellar in net. I had a hunch that this game was headed for overtime but I didn't think it would be 0-0 after three periods. It didn't take very long for the dreaded event to happen. I'm so bummed that all I remember was a shot that looked like it bounced off of Tokarski's pad and found the net. Game over. Just like that. Vancouver takes the series 4-3 and will face the Kelowna Rockets in the western conference finals. The eastern conference finals will be the Calgary Hitmen and the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Even though I'm bummed right now I must say that was one of the best 7 game series that I have witnessed. You can even argue that it was better than the Spokane vs. Tri-City series from last year. I'm glad this series lived up to the hype.

So that's it, then. The season is over for the Chiefs. Now it's on to the offseason.

First off, even though I have been going to Chiefs games for well over a decade now this was the first year I had season tickets. It was a great time had by me and everyone else in our section. This was a great experience for me and I look forward to coming back next season. For the people who I have gotten to know in section 104 that won't be returning next season, you will be missed. It won't be the same without you there. for those who are returning, I can't wait for September!

As for Justin McCrae and Trevor Glass: I will miss them. They were acquired in a trade last season and played important parts in the Chiefs memorial cup run. I enjoyed watching them during the year and a half they were in Spokane. As for Brady Calla, he was only a few short months but his time was memorable. I had to get over the fact Seth Compton was traded for him but he filled in wonderfully. Trade well made. His time in Spokane was short but memorable. He did get a Gordie Howe hat trick in one of his first games as a Chief. I'll always have that.

I will also be on pins and needles to see who else won't be coming back next season. You can only have three 20 year olds on the team. With this roster the Chiefs will have seven (Bowman, Tokarski, Roman, Spurgeon, Bartman, Donaghy, and Letts). If you do the math you realize some of them will have to go. I have my predictions which I will share at a later date. However, I will predict that Jared Spurgeon will be captain next season. I do think he will be back.

In the meantime I have to find other things to do. The NHL playoffs are starting but I have a sinking feeling that my Flyers won't be around long. Baseball started up, which will help. I am a hopeless Mariner fan and will be going to see them play this Summer. I usually catch a few Spokane Indians games as well. I do like soccer and follow Chelsea in the English Premier League. I watched them advance to the next round of the UEFA champions league (suck on that, Liverpool)! I'm going to start following the Seattle Sounders. Maybe catch a game this Summer as well. There's always movies. I'll catch several movies in the coming months (Star Trek better not stink). Actually, with the price of movies anymore none of the movies I see better stink.

Anyway, back to hockey. Thanks to the Spokane Chiefs for a great season. There were highs and lows but the time spent in the Spokane Arena was well worth it. I'll be back next season, loud and rowdy as ever! I would also like to thank everyone who has read my blog. I appreciate it. This has been fun for me. I will still be posting during the offseason so stay tuned and until next season...

GO CHIEFS GO!

My Extreme Distaste

I know this is late but game 6 left me bummed. Chiefs lost 3-2 in double OT. Series is tied 3-3 with game 7 in Vancouver tonight. I am now disliking Evander Kane even more now. Not for the game winner he scored in double OT, but for the blatant and obvious slash on Tokarski in the first overtime after the whistle! I know he was penalized for that shot but you don't mess with the goalie!

Anyway, the Chiefs two goals came from Tyler Johnson in the first period from the right side of the net. By the way, that was the third time Johnson scored in this series, and all three goals came from basically the same spot. The Chiefs ties it up in the third with less than 90 seconds in the game when Stefan Ulmer shot from near the blue line and went pinball wizard off a Vancouver defensemen. The fans nearly blew the roof off the building with that goal. Too bad that feeling didn't last.

As I said, game 7 is tonight. Win and we face Kelowna in the conference finals. Lose....well, I'd rather not think about losing. As long as we have Tokarski and Bowman, and Johnson finds his spot, we can win this one.

Go Chiefs!

7,565 seconds

That was how long game five lasted. To break it down, a hockey game that doesn't go into overtime is 3,600 seconds. This game was obviously longer. Much, much longer. Regulation was not long enough. Neither were three full overtime periods. This game was settled in the fourth overtime. The game did not end on Friday. It ended Saturday morning around 12:40 a.m. and around three and a half hours after the Tri-City vs. Kelowna game ended. It turned out to be the longest game in the Spokane Chiefs history and the second longest game in the history of the WHL. I don't think the word 'epic' does the game enough justice.

Vancouver got out early with a 1-0 lead. Tyler Johnson countered on the power play to tie it at 1. Vancouver scored again to take a 2-1 lead at the end of the first period. No one scored in the second period. Drayson Bowman scored in the third to tie the game at 2. Then the overtime periods game. No one scored in the first OT. Scoreless in the second OT. Ditto in the third OT. By now it was after midnight and I was starting to feel the effects of the game, and I was sitting on the couch. Someone had to end this up and fast. I was looking to the usual suspects: Bowman, Wahl, Johnson, Koper, Roman, Calla. One of them had to come through, right? Nope. The game was ended with the Chiefs rookie line. Stefan Ulmer sent the puck up to 16 year old Blake Gal who went the rest of the way and put the puck past Sexsmith to give the Chiefs a 3-2 victory on Friday....er.....Saturday morning. I wasn't even sure that it happened right away. I was already fighting sleep. But sure enough, Chiefs win!

Once again Tokarski was absolutely solid in net, stopping 62 shots on net and was rock solid in the overtime periods. What a job he has done in the playoffs. In the last two games alone he has stopped 103 shots while letting in only two goals, and both of those goals came on the power play. Golden goalie? Absolutely! I think he needs a new nickname. He has played a few levels above golden lately. Anyone out there still think he's not the best goalie in the WHL? I submit that there is not!

Then there's rookie Blake Gal. This kid is going to be something special. He has had a terrific rookie season. The line he shares with Kenton Miller and Steve Kuhn (also both rookies) has gotten better as the season has moved on. This line is going to be spectacular in the coming years and I expect great things from them in future. Good on them!

I also have to put in a good word for the defense. The Chiefs have played this series with just five defensemen. These guys have really stepped up their game and played great. Jared Spurgeon, Trevor Glass, Stefan Ulmer, Mike Reddington, and Bret Bartman should all be commended for their contributions in this series. They are a big reason why the Chiefs can hang with, and beat, anybody in the WHL.

With the win the Chiefs now have a 3-2 series and can wrap the series up with a win on Easter Sunday. Hopefully there's a good turnout. I would love it if the arena was full and ridiculously crazy!

Go Chiefs!

Happy Happy Joy Joy!

Ladies and gentlemen: We have a series!!

This game had almost everything you could hope for. Except goals. There was only one goal. Thankfully that goal was Tyler Johnson's in the first period that squeaked past Sexsmith to give the Chiefs a 1-0 victory to tie the series at 2. And when I mean squeaked past it was exactly that. No one saw it right away. I didn't see it at all right away. The only reason I started cheering was because Koper started celebrating. He saw it even before the goal judge did. Eventually the ref found it so all was happy.

As for Tokarski, I think calling him the Golden Goalie might be a bit of an understatement. He stopped 41 shots. 41 shots! 18 of them came in the third period! That had to be the first time this season that Vancouver put up that many shots without scoring a goal. I suppose I could also call Tokarski 'Fonzie', because he's cool. He also remained cool during a 5 on 3 penalty kill that lasted 34 seconds that was very intense. Best goalie in the WHL! It also helped that the crowd was insane last night. There were less than 5,000 at the game but is was just one big bowl of crazy.

I also want to mention Trevor Glass. He was very 'Terminator' like on defense as he stood people up, hit them hard, got players off the puck, and had a whole 'don't touch my goalie' attitude going. One of the best games he's had all season. I'll miss him next year.

I also have to give props to the Shaw TV announcers at the game over the past two nights. They set up their booth just behind my left shoulder. They love the atmosphere that the fans bring to the arena. They'll also talk hockey to you all you want when they're not working. Cool people. Wish we got Shaw here locally.

Game 5 is Friday in Vancouver and game 6 is Sunday (Easter) in Spokane. What would you wear to a hockey game on Easter Sunday?

Go Chiefs!

Goliath Lost

Insert sign of relief here.

The Chiefs got back to being the Chiefs in a role reversal and got back to swaggering, beating the Vancouver Giants 5-2 in game 3 of this series. The defense really stepped up giving up only 18 shots in the game. 18 shots! To Vancouver! The best part was Vancouver had only 2 shots in the third period! I don't know where Jared Cowen was but he had to be smiling ear to ear. The defense played well. All of them. Spurgeon, Glass, Ulmer, Reddington, Even Bret Bartman. I know I pick on Bartman at the game a lot but I give him props in this game.

The offense also got back on track. It was another episode of Bowman being Bowman with a goal and two assists (+4 on the night). Levko Koper scored in the first. Jared Spurgeon scored in the second. The third period goals went to Bowman, Justin McCrae, and Ondrej Roman's empty netter. All of Bowman's points came in the third.

This was the Chiefs team I was dying to see in the playoffs. They held their ground on defense, they started forechecking more, the passing was better, they started breaking in the attack zone, and they didn't let Vancouver push them around. Best game of the playoffs so far.

In other games My adopted OHL team, the Saginaw Spirit, was swept out of the second round by the London Knights (London, Ontario) 4-0. But my Philadelphia Flyers clinched a playoff spot. Bummed about Saginaw, but they did have a pretty good season. They're also a young team and should be better next year.

The Chiefs play game 4 tonight. Win that one and we have a series again!

Go Chiefs!

Ugliness

One thing I have learned about myself is that I really don't like blogging when the Chiefs don't play well. Lately, they haven't. They lost game 1 to Vancouver 3-1 and game 2 4-1 to trail 2-0 in the best of seven series. Things like that make me put this off.

Okay, game 1 wasn't too bad. Spokane tied the game at 1 in the third period on Mitch Wahl's pinball action goal off a defender and Vancouver's third goal was an empty netter. Not a bad effort, but Spokane has played better and needs to play better in this series. The Chiefs were never really in game 2. They consistently played back on their heels and gave Vancouver chance after chance. As good as Tokarski is in goal it helps if we get the puck in the attack zone and keep it there. We're not going to get a lot of scoring chances playing in our own end.

I hope playing at home is going to turn things around. I want this to be a good series and the Chiefs are more than capable than making that happen. Game 3 is here tonight and game 4 tomorrow. It's go time!

Go Chiefs!

How do you slay a Giant?

Well, it's game time. Almost. Game 1 against the Vancouver Giants is less than 24 hours away. Yes, that Vancouver. The team that led the western conference with 119 points. The team that flat out smoked us in the two games we played against them. The team that basically had the western conference title in their pocket since around Valentine's Day. The team that lost only ten games all season. The Chiefs task? Not to figure out how to beat them, but how to beat them four times.

It does sound daunting enough, but it actually might not be as bad as it sounds. True, Vancouver only lost ten games all season and has yet to lose a playoff game. But this team is not invincible. Six of those ten losses came in the last six weeks of the season. And if you think they had nothing to play for they were in a battle with Calgary for the best record in the WHL (a battle they did not win, I might add). We didn't beat them in two attempts, but Seattle did. So did Tri. Kelowna beat them twice. Heck, even Everett beat them in Vancouver on the last game of the season. Beatable? They certainly are!

So what do the Chiefs have going for them? First off, Tokarski needs to show up LARGE in this series. With Jared Cowen and Cory Baldwin still out the Chiefs are still short on defense. Vancouver is going to throw everything they have at him. So can he come up big in this series? You bet your Memorial Cup trophy he can! And I think he will. He's the best goalie in the WHL! He needs to being his best, and I think he's going to deliver whether we win the series or not.

Next up, spread the scoring around. Drayson Bowman, as great as he is, isn't going to carry the Chiefs by himself. Vancouver is going to know where he is at all times, probably from the moment he crossed the border. Mitch Wahl, Brady Calla, Ondrej Roman, Levko Koper, and Tyler Johnson need to be the offensive threats I know they can be. And when we're in the attacking zone please but someone in front of the net. Make them play defense and don't give them any breaks.

Third, for the love of all things good in hockey DON'T STAND AROUND WITH THE PUCK!!!! Vancouver is extremely fast and they will come after whoever has the puck. Pass the puck often and with precision, and move around with it when setting up a play. They are great at getting teams to play on their heels. Keep that from happening and happy stuff will happen.

I know that Vancouver is favored to win this series. Most people believe they will take it in 5 or 6 games. But I think if the Chiefs play their game and stick to it, they have a real chance to win this series. I really do. It's going to be hard, but it's possible.


The first two games are in Vancouver on Friday and Saturday. Games 3 and 4 are here next week.

Bring your 'A' game and Go Chiefs Go!