Canes' Lose 7-4 in Seattle..@ Everett Tonight

(Above Comcast Arena in Everett, WA. Top pic is the view from the broadcast booth and on the bottom the outside of the bulding from where the players enter the rink. The top pic is of Everett fans lining the glass during warm-up all wearing Kyle Beach #12 jerseys. A bit of a welcome back from his supporters in Everett)

It was truly a playoff-like atmosphere in Seattle last night.

The fans at the new ShoWave Centre in Kent, WA got every penny’s worth watching the game between the Hurricanes and Thunderbirds. It was end-to-end hockey and it turned out be an offensive affair. Seattle scored 5 third period goals to win 7-4. Lethbridge had leads of 2-1, 3-2, and 4-3 before the T-birds staged a big rally in the final 10 minutes of the game. Both teams worked hard. The Canes’ put in a good effort, but came up short. Lethbridge got into some penalty trouble, but Seattle managed only one goal on the man advantage. Lethbridge went 2 for 3 on the power play. I thought the Thunderbirds got a few good bounces, one a bouncing puck that beat Juha Metsola in the 3rd period. But I guess those are the breaks. Zach Boychuk notched a pair for Lethbridge while Kyle Beach and Brody Sutter scored the others. Greg Scott was the star for Seattle. He tallied 4 times and was no question the game’s first star. I really enjoyed the charged up environment last night. It got everyone in the building, players included into the game from the drop of the puck. In fact you could feel the energy during the singing of the national anthems. It was one of the most energized crowds we’ve come across so far this year. Overall it was simply a very good junior game in front of just under 4200 fans.

Lethbridge failed to make up any ground on Medicine Hat or Swift Current in the Eastern Conference. They remain one point back of the Broncos and 3 behind the Tigers. The Canes’ sit tied with Kootenay at 59 points heading into action tonight.

This evening marks the return of Kyle Beach to Everett. The Silvertips dealt him to Lethbridge at the trade deadline a few weeks ago for Dan Iwanski and Alex Therieau. There’s been a lot of hype around Everett with Beach’s return. Don’t expect him to change his style playing against his former teammates. I expect Beach will be his feisty self as he hopes to pot a few goals against the Tips. I know he’s looking forward to this game. There’s no question though the Canes’ have some business to take care of too. Beach’s return is really a side-bar to this game. Both teams are jockeying for positioning in the East and West. Lethbridge will be hoping for the 2 points first and foremost. Kyle Beach will have to play his role and not get caught up in the moment of returning to Everett. Once the puck drops tonight, it’s business as usual. This should be a heck of a game though. I’ve been told Comcast Arena is maybe the loudest building in the WHL when it’s packed. It’s a great junior facility.

If tonight’s game has a similar feel to last night in Seattle, it should be another entertaining contest. After tonight, we’ll hop the bus and head to Kennewick, where the Canes’ will play the Tri-City Americans Sunday evening before returning home for games against Kamloops and Red Deer next week.

Tonight’s game in Everett is an 8 o’clock start (Alberta time). The pre-game show on CJOC at 7:30.

Hurricanes @ Seattle Tonight

(Image of the new ShoWare in Kent, WA from the broadcast booth. Sorry for the late photos.)

Tonight will be the first and only meeting this season between the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Seattle Thunderbirds.

The Canes' had a good day off yesterday, practiced at the Comcast Arena in Everett, WA and toured the Boeing Assembly Plant in the afternoon. What a experience that was! The hangers they build those planes in are so large they can fit 800 NHL sized ice sheets into one building! Amazing! Today, though it's back down to business. Lethbridge will now play 3 games in the next 3 days as they continue to make a push in the Eastern Conference standings. The Hurricanes have 17 games to go in the regular season and will have to keep a good pace down the stretch if they want to slip into the top 4 in the Eastern Conference.

The Hurricanes will have Carter Bancks back tonight. He missed Wednesday's game in Portland due a family funeral. As it stands now, Eric Mestery is the only scratch for the Hurricanes because of injury. He's feeling better, but still not given the green light to play. Other than that, Lethbridge is as healthy now that at any other point this season.

The Canes' will have to get off to a much better start in this game tonight. It was a slow first 40 minutes in Portland in which Lethbridge generated just 10 shots in the first two periods. They need to come out with more jump and set the tempo and make the T-birds play with them.

Lethbridge is 4 games above .500 and have won their past two games going into this one in Kent, WA, the new home of the Seattle Thunderbirds. The T-birds are 3-games below .500 and sit in 7th place in the Western Conference. They're led by Greg Scott and Prab Rai who have 45 points each. Defensively the Hurricanes will have to keep a close watch on Thomas Hickey, the captain of Team Canada's Gold Medal winning junior team.

Tonight's game is a later start. The pre-game show on CJOC at 8pm (Alberta Time). The puck drops at 8:30.

Canes' Beat Hawks in OT

Hi from Everett, Washington.


Well, it wasn't a pretty win, but the Canes' will surely take the two points. The first 40 minutes of last night's game in Portland was a bit disorganized to be perfectly honest. The Hurricanes finally turned things up in the 3rd and eventually went on to win it in overtime 4-3. Luca Sbisa scored the game winner and added two assists on his return to the Hurricanes line-up. After about his 4th shift, it seemed like he fit right back in and never missed a beat. It's great to have him back! Colton Sceviour also had a 3 point night against his former team (1G, 2A). The Canes' went 3 for 7 on the power play against the Winter Hawks. I thought Portland played a not too bad game, but again it was just sloppy hockey for the first 40 or so minutes. Lethbridge let two-one goal leads slip away and at one point in the 3rd, the Hawks took a 3-2 lead until the Canes' tied it up and eventually won the game late in OT. The other two Canes' goals were scored by Zach Boychuk and Austin Fyten.

The Hurricanes have today off. They practiced early this afternoon here in Everett, where we'll be staying for the next few nights. This afternoon we'll get a chance to tour the Boeing Assembly Plant just outside Everett. I'll post some pics of that later as well as some shots of the new rink (ShoWare Centre) in Kent, where the Canes' take on the Seattle Thunderbirds tomorrow.

I'll set that game up Friday morning.

Hurricanes @ Portland Tonight

(Above view of Portland Arena from Press Box and outside of Portland Memorial Colliseum)

The Hurricanes will play their first of this 4 game U.S. road swing tonight in Portland, Oregon.

This game will mark the return of Colton Sceviour to Portland since being dealt to the Canes' last season. I think he's looking forward to this game as are the rest of his teammates. Luca Sbisa arrived here in Portland late last night on a flight from Philadelphia. He spoke with head coach Michael Dyck before he took to the skies and from what I was told, he's very excited to be coming back to try and help the Hurricanes make a big push down the stretch and into the playoffs. I don't know how much we can expect from Luca in his first game back, given he travelled across the U.S. all day yesterday and he really hasn't played much for Philly in the last while as he has been a healthy scratch. It might take him a couple of games to get back into the swing of things in the WHL. One thing I do know is that he'll get a tonne of playing time with Lethbridge and will be relied upon to be a big piece of this team heading into playoff time. This is probably the best thing for Luca. For him to be a healthy scratch with the Flyers wasn't doing anything for his development as a player and having him back playing with the Canes' on a very regular basis will be a big benefit to both the Flyers and Lethbridge Hurricanes and will only make him a better player down the road.

Defenceman Eric Mestrey is very close to returning and could even be back tonight if all goes well. He's missed the last few weeks with a concussion. Dwight King and Kyle Beach are both back from suspension as well as Head Coach Michael Dyck. Carter Bancks will not play tonight as he's attending a family funeral. He'll be flown in before the Friday game and should be in the line-up when the Hurricanes play in Seattle. So for the first time in nearly 3 months, the Hurricanes have pretty much a healthy line-up! Let's hope for the Canes' sake it stays the way for the rest of this season.

Here in Portland, the Winterhawks play at 2 different arenas. The Rose Garden is where the NBA's Portland Trailblazers play and right next to it is the old Memorial Colliseum where tonight's game will be played. I'm sure if the walls could talk in the Colliseum, they would have many sports stories to tell from over the years. There's a lot of history in this old barn. The glass is very lively and shakes with every hit, while the neutral zone is quite small making for a lot more room for puck movement on the power play. The Canes' practiced there yesterday to get a feel for the ice and the very lively boards. It should be an interesting game.

After this game, the Hurricanes will hop the bus and head up to Everett where we'll set up shop until Saturday. Tomorrow Lethbridge has the day off and a little team building is planned. We'll be heading to the Boeing Assembly Plant in Seattle for a tour and to see how they build jets. I'm looking forward to that!

Tonight's game is an 8 o'clock start from Portland. The pre-game show on CJOC at 7:30.

Hello from Portland!

Well, that was quite the bus ride!

We left Lethbridge last night around 8pm and 14 hours later, we arrived in beautiful Portland, Oregon. Not a drop of snow and the temperature is around 10 degrees. We arrived at the Coliseum where tomorrow's game will be played. The Hurricanes will practice there this afternoon before heading out for a team meal tonight.

I can tell you there's an added excitement amongst this team with the return of Luca Sbisa. He arrives here in Portland tonight and will wear his old number 5 when he suits up for the Canes' tomorrow. It should be fun to watch given the return as well of Kyle Beach and Dwight King from injury. Carter Bancks will miss tomorrow's game as he's attending his grandmother's funeral. He should be back for the weekend when the Canes' play in Seattle Friday night.

That's all for now. I'll be back tomorrow to set up the game between the Hurricanes and Winterhawks!

Sbisa Coming Back to Hurricanes!

Story from the Philadelphia Flyers Website:

The Philadelphia Flyers announced that they have reassigned defenseman Luca Sbisa to the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League, according to club General Manager Paul Holmgren. “We feel that it is in the best interest of Luca and the Flyers organization that he gets back to playing on a regular basis,” said Holmgren in making the announcement. “Luca will join Lethbridge for its game in Portland, Oregon on Wednesday.” Sbisa, 19, recorded seven assists and 36 penalty minutes in 39 games this season with the Flyers. He became the fourth youngest Flyer and second youngest defenseman to ever play for the club at 18 years, 255 days, when he suited up against the New York Rangers on October 11, 2008, in the first game of the 2008-09 season. He recorded his first career point, an assist, vs. San Jose on October 22, 2008. Last season for Lethbridge, he recorded six goals and 27 assists for 33 points and 63 penalty minutes in 62 games. Sbisa won the Carl Trentini Memorial Award as the Hurricanes Rookie of the Year, and led all WHL defensemen in playoff scoring with 15 points (3g, 12a) in 19 games as Lethbridge advanced to the 2008 WHL Finals. Sbisa was selected to participate in the 2008 CHL Top Prospects Game and was a member of Team Switzerland at the 2008 World Junior Championship Tournament. The Ozieri, Italy native was drafted by the Flyers in the first round (19th overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. He signed an entry level contract with the club on October 1, 2008.

From the Hurricanes:
With his return, the Hurricanes now boast a lineup which includes three first round draft picks; Sbisa, the newly acquired Kyle Beach (Chicago – 11th overall) and Zach Boychuk (Carolina – 14th overall). Lethbridge now also has a total of seven drafted players on their current roster. The others include; Captain Ben Wright (4th round, 113 overall - Columbus 2006, now an overage free agent), Dwight King (4th round, 109th overall – Los Angeles 2007), Colton Sceviour (4th round, 112th overall – Dallas 2007) and Eric Mestery (2nd round, 57th overall – Washington 2008).

Canes' Getting Set to Hit the Road

It's off on the road for the Hurricanes with four games south of the 49th this week.

Lethbridge is coming off a 3-0 win in Red Deer this past Saturday. Both teams played well in that one. The Rebels I thought were a very determined bunch and made the Hurricanes work for that victory. Canes' goalie Michael Tadjdeh recorded his first ever WHL shutout stopping all 38 shots he faced. Ben Wright, Zach Boychuk, and Austin Fyten scored for Lethbridge which shutout the Rebels for the 3rd time in 4 meetings this season. The two teams will play again February 14th and March 4th in Lethbridge.

Later on tonight, the Hurricanes will pack up and head to the U.S. this week with games in Portland Wednesday (8pm), Seattle Friday (8:30pm), Everett Saturday (8pm), and Tri-City Sunday (6pm). All the start times are Alberta time.

Tonight "Hurricanes This Week" is back on CJOC tonight at 7pm. This show is pre-recorded as we are getting set to hit the road this evening for the 14 hour bus ride to Portland at the same time the show is scheduled to hit the air. Tonight's guests include Hurricanes Head Coach Michael Dyck, Hurricanes Public Relations Assistant Sabra Sutter, and Jon Rosen the Radio voice of the Everett Silvertips.