Saturday Morning Special - July 16th

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This morning on TPS we spoke with 5 guests and pushed our charity auction total to over $5000 as we raised more funds to help the victims of the fire and flooding in Slave Lake. It was the third opportunity for fans and listeners to get in on the action, to help out some folks in need and to come out of it with some pretty neat stuff.


As for the guest list... we were joined by one of the top prospects of the Tampa Bay Lightning, forward Brett Connolly. Are his days as a member of the Prince George Cougars and the WHL behind him? Is he ready for the next level? How has this summer's regiment differed from the last few years? Is the 2012 World Junior Championship on his mind at all or is he 100% focused on the NHL?

Les Lazaruk is the voice of the WHL's Saskatoon Blades and he was up next. We began by asking him what fans in Edmonton and Calgary should expect as host cities for the 2012 World Juniors. Of course Saskatoon played the role in 2010 so Les had some great insight. We also asked him how will the 2011-12 edition of the Blades look without Schenn, Hamilton, Elliot and Stanford? Can the powerhouse club remain a contender? And, with the cyclical nature of junior hockey a top team has to make a push when they are within the possibility of winning... but now that they didn't, do the Blades regret the Brayden Schenn deal?


A former Blade who got his first taste of the NHL last year, goaltender Braden Holtby of the Washington Capitals was next. What did the trade of Semyon Varlamov mean for him and more importantly, the signing of Tomas Vokoun? If he's destined to return tot he AHL this year... how would that sit with him? And speaking of the AHL, what kind of a teammate was Sheldon Souray last year in Hershey?

It's official, the NCHC Conference will begin play in 2013-14 along with the Big Ten. What will the ramifications mean for NCAA hockey and what happens to the CCHA and WCHA Conferences now? Paula Weston from USCHO.com joined us at the start of the second hour and gave us her perspective on current events. Also, what's the significance of verbal and signed letters of intent if in the end they don't guarantee a player will play for the program that he gave one to?

We then hoped to speak with Canada's coach for the U20 WJC but Don Hay was actually on the ice during the time he was scheduled to join us. Instead, we'll attempt to speak with him on Tuesday.

Finally, one of the members of Edmonton's growing "Ryan Club", Ryan O'Marra talked to us about signing another contract with the Oilers on Friday. Is the 2011-12 version of the team the one he's got the most realistic chance of cracking out of camp? And just what is with all the Ryan's in the organization these days? We count about 7 and is it a coincidence that guys like O'Marra, Ryan Smyth and Ryan Jones are sporting noteworthy head lettuce?

This coming Tuesday we are taking The Pipeline Show on the road for the very first time. We'll be in beautiful Jasper, Alberta broadcasting live from the world famous Jasper Park Lodge. Please take note that the post show archive will not be available on our site until Friday night but you'll still be able to catch the podcast at the theTEAM1260.com website.

Speaking of archives, if you missed today's show... you can find it HERE.