Wednesday Re-Set

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On yesterday's edition of The Pipeline Show we wrapped up the Memorial Cup, interviewed another top prospect for the 2009 NHL Draft, covered the AHL playoffs in Manitoba, spoke with a player who has suited up for new Oiler head coach Pat Quinn twice in the last year and we also raised $900 for charity.

We got things started with some discussion on the topics of the day including the news that Edmonton double dipped into the free agent coach pool signing both Quinn and Tom Renney. We announced the charity auction for the last two spots in the annual TEAM 1260 golf tournament and immediately bids went from $150 to $200 t0 $500!

Interesting question posed by Dean last night: If Jordan Eberle doesn't scored with 4 seconds left in the WJC game against Russia and Canada goes on to lose that game (and doesn't win gold)... does Pat Quinn still get hired yesterday? If he fails to win gold with Canada at the WJC in Ottawa, does he get saddled as a guy who is too old and couldn't lead a favorite to a gold medal? Definitely an interesting question.

We also talked a bit about the possibility of Medicine Hat Tigers head coach Willie Desjardins as being the final piece to Edmonton's coaching puzzle. Pat Quinn mentioned yesterday that they might still be adding someone but he would have to be someone who has less experience and maybe comes from a lower level of hockey. Certainly the fact that Desjardins ran the defence for Quinn at the WJC lends credibility to the theory.

We also mentioned that TPS Guest Player blogger Mike Lee of the Fargo Force was named as the top junior goalie in the United States. Congrats to Mike from The Pipeline Show... I'm sure we'll hear about his thoughts on the award in his next blog entry here at Coming Down the Pipe!


In Segment #2 we spoke with Peter Loubardias of Rogers Sportsnet who called the Memorial Cup. Peter is a regular on our show and his passion for junior hockey is obvious to anyone who ever listens to him call a CHL game. Peter explained why he felt this past tournament was his favorite in memory. We also talked about individual performances of note, we disagreed about the quality of goaltending in the event but agreed on the disappointing performances of Mikael Backlund and Keven Veilleux in particular. Always a great time speaking with Peter about the CHL.

We played some Bad Ass Trivia to end hour #1.

The second hour of the show began with Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun guiding us through the AHL playoffs from the perspective of the Manitoba Moose. We talked about who was helping the Moose get it done including goalie Cory Schneider. The city of Winnipeg breathed a sigh of relief when the Oilers announced their new coaches because they left Scott Arniel alone - for now. We suspect Arniel will be snapped up by someone this summer. A lot of people are watching the scenario play out in Phoenix with great interest as well and Mr. Wiebe commented on all of that as well.

Every week we interview a prospect available for the 2009 NHL Draft and this week it was Drew Shore's turn. The center has committed to Denver next year but we had an emailer want to know if he'd consider going to Chilliwack, the WHL team that owns his CHL rights. Shore talked about his season, looked ahead to the combine and to next season as well.

Finally, Jordan Eberle joined us to talk about his experience playing for Pat Quinn at the Ivan Hlinka U18 tournament and also at the 2009 WJC in Ottawa. It was interesting to hear a player's perspective on what it was like to play for a veteran NHL coach at such a young age. Eberle also commented on the current situation in Regina with Dale Derkatch being replaced by the same coach that he had stepped in for a year ago... Curtis Hunt.

The show wrapped up with a back-and-forth bidding war that saw the golf tournament bid jump from $500 to $600, then to $650 and up to $800 before finally settling at $900! We were thrilled to bring in that much cash for the charity tournament.

Notes: The month of June will be pretty much 100% dedicated to the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Our projected guest list is rapidly coming together and will, quite frankly, blow your socks off... Follow us of Facebook and on Twitter... our daily team-by-team draft previews started coming out last Sunday so keep checking back here first thing every morning to see who we think your favorite team will select on June 26th...

Windsor Wins 2009 Memorial Cup

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The Windsor Spitfires haev captured their first Memorial Cup win their franchise's history on the strength of an early first period onslaught that powered them to a 4-1 win over Kelowna.

No team had ever lost their first two games at the tournament and gone on to win the Memorial Cup but that is what Windsor managed to do on Sunday. The Rockets had a chance to eliminate the Spitfires from the tournament on Tuesday but couldn't get it done and it came back to haunt them. Windsor defeated Rimouski in the tie breaker and then Drummondville in the semi-final before taking it to the WHL champs in the title game.

The first period was about as bad as it gets if you're on the side of the Kelowna Rockets. First, Mikael Backlund's lackadaisical breakout was broken up by fellow Flames prospect Greg Nemisz who stripped the Swede and fed Adam Henrique who wired a shot past Mark Guggenberger.

A minute and a half later, Dale Mitchell's routine shot from the sideboards somehow eluded Guggenberger up high on the short side and suddenly Windsor was up 2-0.

Kelowna coach Ryan Huska immediately called a time out to try and calm down his troops and slow the momentum of the Spitfires. It didn't work.

With Kyle St. Denis in the box for a knee on Mark Cundari, Windsor would strike again. Rob Kwiet converted on an opportunity with Andrei Loktionov and Henrique picking up assists on the goal.

Mark Guggenberger was given the hook after allowing 3 goals on 3 shots and in came 17-year-old Adam Brown who hadn't started a game since March 14th and that was the his only action in that month. Brown (pictured above) was immediately tested as Mitchell barreled in alone on a breakaway but the youngster made two saves to get his first feel of the game. Brown saw 6 shots in the period and stopped them all.

Kelown'a bad luck wasn't limited to their poor goaltending; three key players went down to injury and although all of them returned to play they were clearly a little worse for wear. Jamie Benn went down hard after missing Taylor Hall with what would have been a huge hit. Hall was able to duck under Benn who collided into the boards hurting his tailbone.

Tyler Myers bloked a shot on his the inside of his knee and skated off awkwardly and missed his next shift. Captain Colin Long was taken out by an aggressive Lane MacDermid right at the end of the 1st period and had to be helped off the ice.

Windsor outshot Kelowna 9-5 in the first period although scoring chances may actually have been in favor of the Rockets.

However, the Rockets burst out of the gate to start the second period and scored just 8 second in as Long made good on the power play. Kelowna had a bunch of momentum at that point and had several more scoring chances but couldn't beat Andrew Engelage.

The momentum wouldn't last forever though and when Ryan Ellis hammered a point blast off the post and behind Brown, the Spitfires appeared to assume complete control.

There was one scary moment as Jamie Benn slashed Mark Cundari in the mouth and received a double-minor for the high stick. Windsor failed to capitalize on the 4-minute man advantage but they did carry the 4-1 lead into the final period.

There was no scoring in the final frame as Windsor sunk into defensive mode and a deflated looking Rockets squad couldn't muster any offence.

The final shots in the game were 28-22 in favor of the new CHL champs. Adam Henrique, a New jersey Devils 3rd round pick in 2008, and Jamie Benn of the Rockets led the tournament in scoring with 9 points each. Taylor Hall of the Spitfires was chosen as the tournament MVP.

The image of seeing the team posing for the traditional photo with Mickey Renaud's #18 jersey draped around the trophy... fans of any team would have to admit that it was a great moment.

It was the first time since 2002 that the host league was not represented in the Memorial Cup final. It was also the first time since 2003 that the host team was not playing in the final game either.

Next year the Brandon Wheat Kings will host the tournament.

Wednesday Re-Set

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Brent Sutter - Owner, President and GM of the Red Deer Rebels as well as coach of the New Jersey Devils. Many have wondered if he'll return to the NHL next season and if so, whether it will be with the Devils or a team closer to his home. A lot of Oilers fans have Sutter atop their 'New Coach Wish List' and many Flames fans would like to see him join Darryl Sutter in Cowtown.

Last night we had an exclusive and extended talk with Brent Sutter about his past with the Rebels and Hockey Canada; many of the players dominating the NHL these days have Sutter's fingerprints on them. We also talked about Sutter's present with the Devils and playing against former players like Cam Ward of the Carolina Hurricanes. Of course we also talked about what the future might bring and although he obviously can't say too much while under contract, Sutter did open up about what his off-season decision making will entail and gave some insight into his situation with Lou Lamoriello as well. (SUTTER HERE)

Also on the program, we caught up with 2009 eligible prospect Mike Cichy of the USHL's Indiana Ice. The forward set a new record for points in the playoffs en route to being named post season MVP as he led the ICE to the Clark Cup. Cichy also picked up the MVP award from the 2008 WJAC in Camrose back in November. Next season he'll be a member of the North Dakota whatever-they-will-be-calleds in the NCAA. (CICHY HERE)

We talked a lot about the ongoing Memorial Cup too. Our planned interview with Peter Loubardias fell through thanks to a wonky cell phone but that didn't stop us from covering as much ground on the tournament as possible. (Memorial Cup discussion HERE)


We ended the show with ISS head scout Mike Oke who broke down the latest rankings, the last monthly release before the ISS Draft Guide hits the street. Magnus Paarjarvi-Svensson, Louis Leblanc (pictured), Mike Cichy and Oliver Ekmund-Larsson were the players under the microscope this week. (ISS Draft Countdown for May HERE)

All that plus more on The Pipeline Show last night. If you haven't heard already, you can now follow us on Twitter and also join our Facebook Group as well. Just two more ways to stay connected to TPS so we can update you on the happenings in the world of hockey prospects.

(Photos Courtsey: NHL.com, USHL, Hockey Canada)

'Big Benn' Puts Kelowna in Final

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The Kelowna Rockets have advanced to Sunday's Memorial Cup Final after a 5-point performance from forward Jamie Benn.

Kudos to Sportsnet voice Peter Loubardias for the title of this blog entry but it sure is fitting - 4 goals and an assist for Dallas Stars prospect Jamie Benn were more than Drummondville could handle on Monday night. It's incredible to think that Benn was a 5th round draft pick considering the growth in his development over the last two years since joining the Rockets in the WHL.

Kelowna also received a 2-goal performance from Cody Almond which means the Rockets scored six times but only had two goal scorers... that's something you don't see everyday.

Benn got things going in the first period when he broke up a play in the neutral zone, went in alone and tucked the puck beneath Drummondville goalie Marco Cousineau (ANH) just before his own momentum knocked the net off its moorings. The goal was a double whammy for the Voltigeurs who had carried most of the play to that point but more so because they were on the power play.

For the next several minutes the Rockets took over the game as the goal seemed to deflate Drummondville. However, the deadliest of the Voltigeurs got going after being held off the score sheet again st Windsor on Saturday. Yannick Riendeau scored at 14:27 with a harmless looking shot from a ridiculously bad angle catching Kelowna goalie Mark Guggenberger by surprise.

Riendeau, recently signed by Boston, picked up an assist on a late goal by Marc-Olivier Vachon and the Q-league champs carried a 2-1 lead into the second period.

Almond scored his first of the game to tie the game but the Voltigeurs answered back right away and re-established their lead. Benn went back to work and scored with just over a minute left in the period which set up a great third period with both teams knotted up at 3 goals apiece. It was one of the prettiest goals on the tournament so far with Tyler Myers (BUF) starting a tic-tac-toe play as he feathered a pass to the front of the net for Colin Long (PHX) who chose not to shoot as expected but passed to Benn who snapped it in from a sharp angle.

Drummondville took the lead again for the third and final time as Vachon netted his second of the night, it was Riendeau's 4th point of the contest and 33 in his last 15 games.

Kelowna would reply on the power play with Benn picking up the hat trick. Two minutes later Benn would score a rather weak goal that put Kelowna ahead to stay. The red-hot Rocket eluded a pair of defenders then sent a hope and a prayer towards Cousineau who somehow let it slip under his left pad and into the net.

Drummondville put up a good fight at the end but even with the extra pressure Cody Almond was able to snipe another goal through a defenceman and Cousineau's legs making the final score 6-4.

Benn nearly equaled a Memorial Cup record of 5-goals in a single game when he fired the puck from his own end in the dying second only to see it clank off the iron of Drummondville's empty net.

The players of the game were pretty obvious tonight; Benn's 5 points and Riendeau's goal and three helpers in the loss showed that each team's best players were on their game. Kelowna defenceman Tyson Barrie continued his strong tournament with a 3-assist game and captain Colin Long also had 3 assists on the night.

Neither goalie was tremendously impressive to me as both allowed an absolute stinker of a goal. In the end, Kelowna outshot Drummondville 23-22, much closer than it appeared in my opinion. The Voltigeurs were better than Rimouski was on opening night, it would have been hard to have been worse, but I also didn't think Kelowna played as well either. (Outside of Benn who was obviously Jame Bond - could do nothing wrong.)

Kelowna's win vaults them directly into the Memorial Cup title game on Sunday even though they'll still play 0-2 Windsor tomorrow night.

Drummondville and Rimouski now sit a 1-1 with a head-to-head match on Wednesday.

Rockets Sink Rimouski

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The 2009 Memorial Cup got underway on Friday and featured a convincing 4-1 Kelowna victory over their hosts from Rimouski.

The Oceanic, well rested but obviously rusty, were never in this game as right from the opening faceoff they were out-hustled, outplayed and outscored by the Rockets. If not for the play of netminder Maxim Gougeon, the score could have easily been 5-0 after the first period alone.

Kelowna struck for their first goal of the night at the 6:33 mark when Tyler Myers (BUF) fired a wrist shot from the high slot that beat Gougeon high to the blocker side. That was a popular target for Kelowna shooters who looked to expose the 5'10 netminder and it worked early on.

The Oceanic were outshot 17-8 in the first period and blew a glorious extended 5-on-3 opportunity in the process.

Jamie Benn (DAL), the WHL's leading playoff scorer, got on the board in the second when he was Johnny-on-the-spot standing to the side of the Rimouski goal in perfect position for the rebound of a Mikael Backlund (CGY) shot. Gougeon could do nothing on the play.

The Rockets kept coming and again it was Backlund picking up an assist. The Swede broke up a neutral zone play and lifted a pass to a streaking Ian Duval who had got behind Rimouski's defence. Duval was able to knock the puck down and went in alone to put the Rockets up 3-0 just 6 minutes into the middle frame.

Rimouski blew away another 5-on-3 chance by not getting a single shot on goal and the Rockets carried the 3-goal lead with them into the third period. Kelowna outshot Rimouski by a 15-4 margin in the second.

1:29 into the final period Kelowna struck again. Lucas Bloodoff potted his first of the tournament and the route appeared to be on.

At times in the later stages of the game it seemed to me that the Rockets had taken their foot off the pedal, a dangerous plan in a tournament where goals for and against can come in to play. For example, Jamie Benn and Tyler Myers had a 2-on-2 where the sniper tried to force a pass across to the big blueliner instead of taking the clear shot.

The Rimouski fans finally got something to cheer about when Philippe Cornet (EDM) snapped a shot that beat Mark Guggenberger and erased his shutout bid.

Overall I was fairly disappointed with the Oceanic. For a team that boasts as many recognizable names as they do, they had absolutely nothing going on. Keven Veilleux (PGH) was invisible. I don't know if I even heard Peter Loubardias mention Logan MacMillan's (ANH) name. Patrice Cormier (NJ)? Jordan Caron?

The only Rimouski forward that impressed me at all was #97, Swiss product Luca Cunti (TBY) who has terrific speed.

I'll accept the argument that they were rusty but holy cow... show some life.

It's not going to get any easier for Rimouski. The loss to Kelowna means they pretty much have to beat Windsor, the #2 ranked team in the country, and Drummondville, the club that swept them in 4-straight games during the QMJHL playoffs.

Say good-bye to Rimouski.

Kelowna looked great as they dominated from start to finish. I wasn't overly impressed with Guggenberger who always seemed to take forever to get to his feet after going into his butterfly (which is all the time). He looked both injured and exhausted and I'm sure he was neither so...

Tyson Barrie was very impressive. I noticed him a lot more tonight than I did during the WHL final against Calgary. Sam Cosentino wondered out loud if he might still be there when Tampa Bay picks early in the second round... he might not be if he keeps playing like this but I have to admit to have been envisioning the same thing. Could Barrie end up playing for his dad's team in the Sunshine State?

The Rockets are back in action on Monday when they take on Drummondville. Rimouski is off until Sunday when they will play Windsor.

The next game of the tournament goes tomorrow afternoon (Saturday) at 2:30 PM Mountain time when the OHL champion Windsor Spitfires collide with the QMJHL winners from Drummondville. All games can be seen in Canada on Rogers Sportsnet and in the United States on the NHL Network.

Memorial Cup Head-to-Head: Goalies

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I had originally planned on doing a series that would give in-depth previews of each of the four Memorial Cup qualifiers but I noticed earlier today that Patrick King has done an excellent job of that already. I highly recommend his team profiles that can be found at Sportsnet.ca.

Because King did those breakdowns for us I'm going to drawn on them as a basis for looking at some head to head matchups beginning with the pipemen.

It's interesting to note that the four starting netminders are all undrafted and really, none have much notoriety outside of their own league and arguably, not even there.

Tale of the Tape

Maxim Gougeon (RIM): 5'8 and 158 lbs
Marco Cousineau (DRU): 6' and 200 lbs
Andrew Engelage (WSR): 6'5 and 206 lbs
Mark Guggenberger (KEL): 6'2 and 208 lbs

If size matters, and in net it often does, then the height advantage here has to go to Windsor with the wookie-like Engelage. That said, last year Dustin Tokarski helped to steal the show for Spokane and he checks in at a paltry 5'11, 185 lbs so size isn't the be-all end-all category to look at. For now though... Edge: Windsor.

Regular Season Stats

Gougeon (RIM): 51 Games, 34-16-0... 2.93 GAA... .892 sv%
Cousineau (DRU): 50 Games, 21-29-0... 3.24 GAA... .893 sv%
Engelage (WSR): 54 Games, 46-4-1... 2.35 GAA... .914 sv%
Guggenberger (KEL): 49 Games, 29-14-1... 2.41 GAA... .915sv%

Just going by these numbers, it doesn't look good for the two Quebec League goalies, but we're comparing three different leagues so it might not be fair to just make assumptions. Rather than compare the goalies against each other than, I'm going to compare their regular season numbers to how they made out in the playoffs when it really matters.

Playoff Stats

Gougeon (RIM): 13 Games, 8-5... 3.08 GAA... .896 sv%
Cousineau (DRU): 17 Games, 13-3... 2.44 GAA... .910 sv%
Engelage (WSR): 20 Games, 14-3... 2.86 GAA... .908sv%
Guggenberger (KEL): 22 Games, 16-6... 2.36 GAA... .907 sv%

Here we see Gougeon actually did worse in the playoffs and I attribute much of that to the 4 straight losses to Drummondville. Cousineau certainly appears to have gotten better but we know from speaking with media that covers the Q that Drummondville's first two round opponents were extremely weak in comparison. It's interesting to see that both Engelage and Guggenberger's numbers are weaker in the playoffs (aside from the Kelowna goalie's GAA).

I don't know who should get the edge out of this but I think it's safe to say that both Windsor and Kelowna appear to be stronger in net than their QMJHL opponents. Edge: Windsor & Kelowna

Who's Hotter?

We heard coach Clem Jodoin talk about the play of Gougeon in the second half of the season after he was told that, unlike each of the previous three years, he would not be traded at the deadline. Accoding to Jodoin, Gougeon became "a new man" and a check at the record in 2009 proves that statement. Gougeon went 16-4 leading up to the playoffs and lost only once in the playoffs before the collapse in the third round.

The Voltigeurs goalie, Marco Cousineau, began the year with Baie-Comeau and only came to his current team at the deadline. He went from one of the worst teams to the best club so a positive jump in his record and performance should be expected - and there was one. He appeared in 16 games for his new club and won 12 of them, he was 9-25 before the trade. Cousineau, like the team in front of him, was tough to beat during the first three rounds of the playoffs but once they ran into Shawinigan, a Memorial Cup caliber club... that wasn't the case. The Cataractes were able to score 4 or more goals in three games. Cousineau was a 3rd round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2008.

Windsor's starting netminder had a ridiculously good regular season. His record in 2009 was a perfect 19-0 with a couple games thrown in where he took neither the win nor the loss. Engelage only had 4 regulation time losses during the 68-game season and the last came a week before Christmas. In the playoffs, GM Warren Rychel suggested that Engelage got off to a slow start; he was puled twice in the opening round series against Owen Sound. After that though he's been pretty strong again and in the final he held an offensively talented Brampton club to a single goal in three of their five meetings.

Like Cousineau, Mark Guggenberger didn't start the season with the same team that he's with at the Memorial Cup. Guggenberger was with Swift Current until the trade deadline and he had a 12-11 record at the time of the deal. With Kelowna he improved to 17-3, but unlike Cousineau this wasn't a case of going from a bottom feeder to a power house. Swift Current ended the year with 86 points compared to Kelowna's 98 but play in a conference with much more parity. In the playoffs Guggenberger has been either exceptional or simply good; he's had four +4-goal games in the last two series including a pair of meetings with Calgary who put 6 behind him. He also has 3 shutouts in that same time span.

Clearly Engelage has been the better performer for a longer period of time this year and goes into the Memorial Cup playing the hottest of the four goalies. Edge: Windsor

Summary

It's no exact science and anyone who knows me knows that I don't claim to be a stats expert - far from it so I'll let one of the corsi/qualcomp/ipsofacto experts chime in and tell me if they agree with my summation.

Gougeon's biggest downfall might be his size although Patrick King (Sportsnet) points out that he can be his own worst enemy if he gives up quick goals. He may also be lacking in rebound control and he's got a tiny frame... not a good combination against the elite CHL teams he'll be facing.

King suggests that consistency is the weakness for Cousineau. I wonder how sheltered he was playing on a strong team after the trade deadline. His pre-trade numbers are pretty bad but on a better team last year he performed well enough to attract Anaheim in the 3rd round of the draft.

It's very interesting to me that King lists netminding as the first weakness for Windsor in his report. Perhaps this is the goalie that is actually more of a product of the team than a major reason for the team's success? I've spoken with some other people who would know and they aren't 100% sold on Engelage just yet... but it's hard to deny the stats and the natural size.

Guggenberger doesn't have a ton of experience as a starter (only since coming to Kelowna) so who knows how he'll perform under the brightest spotlight he's seen in his career. Like I said before, he was very good and average in the WHL playoffs but leaning more often to the postive side.

In my opinion, the team with the best goaltending heading into the Memorial Cup is the Windsor Spitfires followed closely by the Kelowna Rockets.

Wednesday Re-Set

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Our 4th Annual Memorial Cup Coach's Show was last night and although we weren't able to speak with all four coaches, due to the late Game 7 in the Q, it was a great preview for the upcoming tournament.

We began the program talking about a few different things: Could Kelowna hope to match the offensive prowess of a team like Windsor? Will they have to follow Spokane's successful plan of smothering defensive play with an effective counter attack? Are we disappointed not to see the Calgary vs Windsor dream match up? Who are the 2009 eligible players in the tournament that we'll be watching for?

Our first coach of the night was the host, Clement Jodoin of the Rimouski Oceanic. It was Jodoin's second time on our program after leading Lewiston to the 2007 QMJHL title and joining us before the tournament in Vancouver that year.

Jodoin answered questions about Logan MacMillan and his lack of offence, Philippe Cornet, what his team has been doing for the last three weeks, if the layoff is a positive because they are well rested or a negative because they'll be rusty and what being swept by Drummondville meant for his team. Coach Jodoin was also asked if his goaltending was good enough and that produced one of his most memorable answers of the night and generated a nice story as well.

We then played some Bad Ass Trivia with an obvious focus on the Memorial Cup.

At the top of the second hour we welcomed in the GM of the Windsor Spitfires, Warren Rychel. Coach Bob Boughner was unable to join us so the GM stepped in to take his place, perhaps not wanting to chance the bad karma.

Rychel discussed a number of his players including Taylor Hall, Andrei Laktionov, Greg Nemisz, Ryan Ellis and others. we asked him to tell us if it was an easy decision to not play Josh Unice in net, a goalie with Memorial Cup experience, and go with an undrafted overager in Andrew Engelage instead. Engelage had a fantastic regular season though and Rychel quickly put any goalie controversy to rest.

After a bit of phone tag we then hooked up with Kelowna Rockets coach Ryan Huska (who is in this picture but currently sports a shaved head and glasses). The big hit on Mikael Backlund and his impressive fortitude to recover and stay in the game was an early subject. Coach Huska's recounting of the hit and Backlund's version of it was memorable. We also talked about netminder Mark Guggenberger's sudden rise to fame, how Kelowna's offence is underrated and then we got into some specific players like Tyler Myers, Cody Almond, Colin Long and Tyson Barrie.

Our final coach of the night couldn't make it as Guy Boucher and the Voltigeurs had finally finished off the resilient Shawinigan Cataractes in Game 7 about 40 minutes before the end of our show. Dean and I did our best to talk about some of the key players the Volts will showcase in Rimouski like Yannick Riendeau, Chris Didomenico and Dmitri Kulikov.

At the end of each coach interview Dean asked: "If your team is successful and you win, try not to break (or 'Spokane') the trophy". It was a joke comment that drew different reactions from our guests. Two openly chuckled but one took it quite seriously and showed that he's already got his game face on.

The Memorial Cup gets going on Friday with Rimouski taking on Kelowna, Drummondville and Windsor square off on Saturday. All games can be seen on Rogers Sportsnet with our pals Peter Loubardias and Sam Cosentino painting the audio pictures.

If you missed it live, click the archive... HERE!

Kelowna Captures WHL Title

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Tyson Barrie's power play marker at 8:13 of the first overtime period of Game 6 was the goal that sealed the deal and made Kelowna the 2009 WHL Champions.

In what was one of the most entertaining games I've seen all year in any league, the Rockets put an end to the resurgent Calgary Hitmen with a complete effort from start to finish . The Hitmen deserve a lot of credit for staging a late comeback to force the extra session and netminder Martin Jones had the game of his life (as Dean Millard said on Global TV tonight) but it wasn't enough.

It might be a cliché but tonight it was true; this game had everything.

Huge hits including one that won't soon be forgotten by anyone who saw it. Calgary Flames prospect Mikael Backlund was absolutely crushed by Hitmen defender Michael Stone (PHX) with a devastating open ice hit that sent chucks of the Swede flying in all directions. Backlund's helmet, stick, glove and mouthpiece all ended up scattered across the ice surface but give the import credit, not only did he get up and make his way to the bench but he'd be back in the game soon after and looked no worse for wear.

The Bloodoff brothers (Evan and Lucas) went to work shortly after and started hammering Hitmen left and right. Alex Plante and Curt Gogol exchanged body checks and there was just a constant snarl to every play for most of the second half of the game.

Maybe it's goaltending you like? Mark Guggenberger was really strong in the first few games of the series and Martin Jones has been much better as the series has gone on. Both were on top of their game on Saturday making some 12-bell saves and at critical times in the game.

The first goal of the night went to Bostjan Golicic who had just stepped out of the penalty box to accept a breakaway pass from the Calgary end. He went in and beat Guggenberger and the pressure was squarely on Kelowna. It was a costly turnover in the offensive zone by Tyler Myers (BUF) that Kyle Bortis converted into the pass to Golicic.

The 1st period goal held up until the mid point of the middle frame when Colin Long (pictured) evened the score. Just minutes after a Rockets goal was disallowed because the net was bumped off its mooring, Long deftly wired a shot from the circle to Jones' right that found its way through several pairs of legs and into the back of the net.

Two minutes later the Rockets would get a flukey one to take the lead. Jamie Benn's behind the back blind pass to the slot bounced off the leg of Lucas Bloodoff and careened past a helpless Jones. It was the type of goal that you just pitied the netminder for because it was a broken play that inexplicably ended up behind him.

Kelowna dominated Calgary in shots, it was 31-18 after two periods, so you know the Hitmen were desperate just to get rubber at Guggenberger in the third. Calgary's power play finally clicked when Brett Sonne's centering pass was intercepted but fumbled by Myers (not a great night for him) and ended up on the stick of 53-goal man Joel Broda who promptly fired it into the twine.

Game tied and headed to overtime with neither team really having momentum over the other and the outcome very much in doubt.

Calgary had an opportunity when Bostjan Golicic tried to catch a bouncing puck at the side of Kelowna's net, mishandled it, the puck bounced to another Hitmen forward behind the net (I think it was Broda) who banked it in off of Guggenberger and in for the win... only to see the referee wave it off because of a glove pass. It was hardly a pass but it did hit Golicic's glove so it was the right call.

Unfortunately for Calgary the next referee call would also go against them. Former Hitmen Ian Duval and Alex Plante jostled behind Calgary's net for a loose puck and the Oilers prospect hauled the smaller forward down. Whether Duval embellished it or not, it was a play that would be called at any point in regulation time but probably not in overtime but wasn't ignored by the officials tonight.

With Plante in the box the Rockets called a time out then proceeded to set up the eventual Tyson Barrie goal that will send them to Rimouski to play for the Memorial Cup.

The shots ended up 50-26 in favor of Kelowna who deserved to win the game and the series with the way they played. I don't know if the Hitmen deserved a 7th game but WHL fans who were fortunate enough to have been watching this series live in person or on Shaw TV definitely did.

The Rockets received two inspired performances from Jamie Benn and Kyle St. Denis, both returning to the line up after missing the last few games. St. Denis was a catalyst using his speed to create offensive chances. Benn is a constant threat who was instrumental in setting up the winning goal but also woke up his team when he jumped Michael Stone after he leveled Mikael Backlund. Cody Almond (pictured) was one of the Rockets I noticed a lot in this series, not as much tonight, but at times I thought he was one of their best players.

The 2009 Memorial Cup starts on Friday May 15th and will feature the host Rimouski Oceanic taking on the Kelowna Rockets. The OHL champion Windsor Spitfires will play their first game of the tournament on the 16th against the QMJHL champion which is yet to be determined. The Shawinigan Cataractes and the Drummondville Voltigeurs are headed to Game 6 with the Volts up 3-2.

The 2009 Memorial Cup Coach's Show airs this Tuesday night on The Pipeline Show from 7-9 PM Mountain time (9-11 PM Eastern time) and can be heard on the TEAM 1260 or via the web at www.thepipelineshow.com

Wednesday Re-Set

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We were all over the map last night on The Pipeline Show as we checked in on the playoffs in all 3 Major Junior leagues in Canada, the USHL and the AHL as well. We also chatted with an Oiler prospect who is getting ready for the biggest week of his hockey life.

Dean and I began the program by discussing the big news of the day, that being the firing of the entire Regina Pats coaching staff. Dale Derkatch was shown the door after a single year, albeit a very disappointing one, but it caught both of us by surprise. Who would be solid candidates to take over the role? (see Dean's Top 5 Tuesday post from yesterday).

We then shifted focus to the Kelowna/Calgary series and we both offered up our opinions of why the Rockets have been able to get out to a dominating 3-0 lead over the #1 ranked team in the country. The much vaunted Hitmen offence has managed just 3 goals in 3 games which is a testament to how well the Rockets have been playing. Can Kelowna goalie Mark Guggenberger be this year's Mike Murphy... the over-age goalie who finally gets drafted now that he's got a chance in the spotlight and is making the most of it.

The OHL final featuring Brampton and Windsor was next on the agenda and we talked about their epic meeting including what I consider to be the story so far - that goalies Thomas McCollum and Andrew Engelage rank 14th and 15th in save percentage in the OHL postseason... and they're in the finals!?

Dean and I then talked about the interesting case of John Moore, the USHL defenceman who was just drafted by the Kitchener Rangers last weekend despite having a NCAA commitment to Colorado College. Dean asked me what my gut feeling was in regards to where he'll end up and we touched on how we feel about that.

We continued the opening segment by explaining the Johan Motin news that he and the Oilers have verbally reached an agreement and that a contract is expected to be signed any minute now.

Dean also touched on the success that young players are having at the World Hockey Championships like Steven Stamkos and Drew Doughty. We also pointed out that Jonas Gustavsson's stats in the tournament are... not so great so far.

In segment #2 we welcomed Rimouski Oceanic forward Philippe Cornet to the program for the first time. Edmonton's 5th round pick outlined what he and his team have been doing since being eliminated from the QMJHL playoffs knowing that they'll be back on the ice in ten days at the Memorial Cup. Cornet talked about several key players on the team, why he feels that Drummondville (the team that beat them) would be a better fit for them than Shawinigan and also his thoughts on Oiler camp and his chemistry with Jordan Eberle.

Segment #3 was dedicated to the USHL playoffs as we talked to Kerry Collins of the Fargo Forum. The Fargo Force are an interesting story this year - an expansion team that has reached the championship series and are two wins away from taking the Clark Cup. Its a team made up largely of league castoffs with a few notable draft eligible players springled in like goalie Mike Lee and forward Josh Birkholz. On the other side is the Indiana Ice led by future North Dakota Fighting Sioux forward Mike Cichy. We got the low-down on the series and a prediction from Kerry as well.

We stayed south of the border for Segment #4 by speaking with NHL.com writer Lindsay Kramer who covers the AHL. The upsets, the players of note, the goalies standing out and what is keeping the star career minor leaguers out of the NHL. Lindsay also gave his opinion on why the Springfield Falcons failed to live up to expectations.

Bad Ass Trivia this week centered on the WHL playoffs and the Memorial Cup and produced a few winners making me think I'm getting too soft with my questions.

Finally, closing out this week's edition of TPS was the GM of the Regina Pats Brent Parker. It was a tough day for Parker who let go his friend Dale Derkatch as well as the rest of the coaching staff in Regina. Parker talked about what went wrong this year, Dean's list of candidates, he touched on Colten Teubert's tough year, the plans for the WHL's Outdoor Game (news Dean broke on last week's show) at Taylor Field and the Bantam Draft last week as well.

It was a big, big show but next week is going to be even bigger. It's our 4th Annual Memorial Cup Coach's Show where we'll speak with the four bench bosses leading their team to the tournament to crown Canada's top CHL club. Rimouski head coach Clement Jodoin will be making his second appearance after his debut in 2007 while behind the bench in Lewiston.

Past CHL coaches who have been a part of our Memorial Cup Coach's Show include 2006's Ted Nolan (Moncton), Patrick Roy (Quebec), Don Hay (Vancouver)... 2007's Mike Vellucci (Plymouth), Willie Desjardins (Medicine Hat), Clem Jodoin (Lewiston) and Don Hay again... 2008's Peter DeBoer (Kitchener), Bill Peters (Spokane) and George Burnett (Belleville). Interesting to note that the two coaches who failed to appear on the show (Peterborough's Dick Todd in 2006 and Benoit Groulx of Gatineau in 2008) both finished dead last at the Memorial Cup.

Karma???