One To Watch: Chicago Blackhawks

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One of the great NHL stories of the last decade, in my opinion, has been the return to prominence of the Chicago Blackhawks. One of the Original Six, a franchise deep in history and legends had become a bottom feeder in the league without a glimmer of hope for fans to cling to. That changed in the early 2000's and resulted in a Stanley Cup win in 2010. 

The Hawks steady climb back to the top was done mostly from within as the club built through the draft. Strong drafting has continued and so the Hawks remain a franchise to be feared and respected.

Goaltending at the NHL level has become a question mark for Chicago and the Hawks have used a number of draft picks in recent years to stockpile at that position. Chicago has drafted five goalies in the last three years, almost all of them very late in the draft. Brandon Whitney and Matt Tomkins are the two most recent and they join Kent Simpson, Mac Carruth and Swede Johan Mattson in the organization. 

Defencemen have been a particular success story in Chicago going back to Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith. More recently, Dylan Olsen (who played 28 games last year), Joe Gleason, Nick Mattson, Adam Clendening, Michael Paliotta and Dillon Fournier have deepened the waiting pool even more.

Fans have their fingers crossed that 2012 1st round pick Teuvo Teravainen becomes the steal many of them believe he could be. 2011 1st rounder Mark McNeill is looking to finish his WHL career in playoff fashion with Prince Albert. Some forwards have already played some NHL games like Brandon Pirri, Brandon Saad and Jeremy Morin. 

The guy I settled on for this series has yet to play a NHL game although he was selected five drafts ago. Injuries and perhaps salaries have combined to delay his arrival but maybe that will change this year. 

Rookie Watch: Chicago Blackhawks

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Each Day until September 15th TPS will take a look at one team from the East and one team from the West and spotlight a few rookies to watch for this season. Today in the West it’s the Chicago Blackhawks.

This n' That

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I've been sick for the last handful of days and so I've been stuck at home (skipped a pretty entertaining Edmonton vs Saskatoon game yesterday) spending most of my time reading or watching things online. When that happens I find all sorts of things that get my mind going.

Here's a few thoughts that I've had bouncing around inside my cranium the last few days.

Blackhawks Prospect Snap Shot

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The Chicago Blackhawks are one of the "original six" teams in the NHL having joined the league in 1926. Like the New York Rangers, the Hawks have 3 Stanley Cup Championships to their credit - fewest among original six franchises. It has been 39 years since Chicago has captured hockey's top prize, their last Cup victory coming in the 1960-61 season.

From 1997-98 until 2007-08, the Hawks qualified for the playoffs just once, a first round exit in 2002 at the hands of a top rival, St. Louis. Years of futility and aggressive rebuilding strategy allowed the organization to acquire a ton of draft picks over the last decade. In 2004, Chicago made 17 draft day selection including 5 in the first two rounds. The team has become much more North American flavored through the draft than during the 1990's and some would argue that it's a major reason why the club has enjoyed a major turnaround the last two years.

with an extremely talented and young leadership core the Blackhawks are poised for success over the next several seasons. And there is plenty more top recruits Coming Down the Pipe... here is a look at some of the best prospects in Chicago's system.

One on One: Kyle Beach

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Recently the Spokane Chiefs rolled through town and with them this year is one of the most divisive players in the WHL. Kyle Beach is a player with followers in one of two camps: haters and believers. Every season Beach comes to Edmonton and he's wearing a different jersey and each time I make a point of speaking a few minutes with him. This trip through was no different and I was able to catch up with Beach for about 10 minutes prior to the game against the Oil Kings.

The photo above was taken during this very conversation; that would be Beach on the left (mustache is for 'Movember', a charity tradition to raise money for cancer research) and my ugly mug on the right. The picture was snapped by Gary Peterson who was along on the Chiefs' trip through Alberta and is compiling the photos he took into a keepsake collector's photo journal that will be a must-have for Spokane fans. Keep your eyes out for it!

As for Beach, I've been able to carve out a decent enough rapport with him over the last few years that I'm sure he knows to expect to see me at the rink for our regular pre-game chat. His first time through Edmonton was with Everett and he scored one of those classic "scoop from behind the net and tuck in under the cross bar" goals. We turned that interview into a feature on the radio show combining comments from his Silvertips coach of the time, John Becanic. You can Hear that one by clicking HERE.

His next visit to Rexall Place was with the Lethbridge Hurricanes after a WHL trade deadline deal took him to the Alberta city. We chatted about that and also about his reputation that was continuing to dog him. You can hear that March 2009 interview by clicking HERE.

And that brings us to this year. I started this conversation off by asking him about fitting in with a dressing room full of guys who used to have a first rate hate-on for him when he was with the arch-rival Silvertips. I was going to use Mitch Wahl by name but I think Beach knew where I was headed and decided to tackle that answer on his own.

"It's definitely been interesting... me and [Wahl] always had a battle within the game and now him and I are pretty much best friends. You can look at Ryan Letts who jumped me a couple of times and every time I was on the ice he was all over me... we're great buddies now, I mean we've even had a couple sleep overs!"

I'll admit i was struggling to keep a straight face when he said that and you'll here him chuckle a bit too, I think because he realized how awkward that statement sounded.

I was interested to hear how he would respond to my next question which was why he felt he was on his 3rd WHL team in less than a year. As I expected, he saw the positives of his situation and understood the way his former teams viewed his worth. Here is just a brief excerpt of what he told me:

"I think teams have tried to add me as a piece of the puzzle to make a run and unfortunately that didn't quite work out in Lethbridge but... we already have a great team here but if we can add one of two more pieces we'll be golden. Everett kind of rebuilt last year, got rid of me and got some great prospects. Lethbridge now rebuilding this year, traded me and got two very good defencemen, you look at what they've done and they've helped that team a ton."

I decided to lighten things up a bit by pointing out another difference so far this year: that he hasn't been suspended yet.

"[laughing] no, not yet... it's been a nice surprise actually!"

The interview always eventually gets to his past reputation but Beach says things are different now and listed a few reasons why that is, including having a guy like Ryan Letts on his team and simple maturity on his part.

"I'm growing up. I'm 19 now so there's no excuses. chicago's given me pretty strict guidelines... changing and maturing happens with age and now I just have to keep working on that and hopefully I'll win a couple more refs over."

Since he mentioned Chicago, the team that drafted him, I figured it was time to take the conversation in that direction.

Some of you will recall that Beach joined Chicago's AHL affiliate after the Hurricanes were eliminated from the playoffs last Spring. His stay in Rockford was a short one as both he and fellow Hawks prospect Akim Alui were sent home for disciplinary reasons. Shortly after, former Lethbrdige GM Roy Stasiuk revealed on our show that the Blackhawks had sent the pair home for... a food fight. I asked Beach when the last time he had gotten into a food fight was, hoping for at least a small comment on the incident. Instead... I pretty much got a play-by-play account of the scene.

"It was a weird situation; there were three of us... Logan Stephenson, Tyler Mosienko and myself plus Akim Alui were all sitting there and we were debating which league was better: the OHL or the WHL. It was 3 against 1 and Aliu wasn't too happy so he dipped a napkin in teriyaki sauce and threw it on me. I grabbed one of those mini corn on the cob, threw it back at him and it escalated from there... and I got a full plate of food covering me head to toe in teriyaki sauce. I think we almost fought in the parking lot too..."

Naturally my follow us was to ask what the relationship is now with Alui especially after coming together again at training camp in the fall. I don't want to spoil it here so I'll let you hear what Beach said in regards to Aliu, his full account on the food fight and how things stand with Chicago these days. You can here the entire interview with Kyle Beach by clicking HERE and believe me... I highly recommend listening to this one, it still seems almost unbelievable to me.

I also talked to Spokane head coach Hardy Sauter about Beach and how he's fit in. Sauter admitted he had some concern ealry on considering Beach's history and reputation but made a point of stating that the player has been anything but a problem in their room or on the team. I asked the coach if he felt that Beach has been unfairly labeled as a delinquent and subsequently black balled by organizations like Hockey Canada (who haven't even called to ask the coach about Beach this year!). Sauter told me that he felt the criticisms directed at Beach early on in his WHL career were "fair" but again pointed out that the player has matured and there hasn't been a problem with him whatsoever this year.

I also asked Mitch Wahl who confirmed that he and Beach have become friends. Wahl described Beach as a person and player who every team in the league (and their fans) might hate but all of them would love to have him on their roster... once they got to know him.

The Pipeline Show has always been willing to give Beach the benefit of the doubt; both Dean and I feel that Hockey Canada has been hypocritical in their obvious disdain for Beach while at the same time have opened their team to a player like Steve Downie. Both of us have taken some heat and ridicule for our support of Beach but honestly, we don't care. We see a player who as a youngster, possibly crossed the line of good sportsmanship [Lucic], wasn't afraid to stand up (with others) for his beliefs while with Hockey Canada [U17], plays on the edge with an intent to drive opposing players bananas and has a boat load of ability to play the game.

Beach currently has 19 goals in 22 games, the second best scoring per game ratio in the league behind Swift Current sniper Cody Eakin. He is second on team scoring behind Mitch Wahl who has a single point more than Beach but with 2 games more under his belt.

The fact that he was not invited to play in the Subway Super Series is an obvious declaration from Hockey Canada that despite his talent and value, Beach shouldn't expect a call for the December evaluation camp. And that is just a shame.

Maybe Hockey Canada should follow Beach's example and show some growth and maturity of their own.

(Photos credits: Gary Peterson, the WHL, The Everett Silvertips, NHL.com)

Beach Traded.... AGAIN.

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It's going to be a very long season for Lethbridge Hurricane fans. The club that has lost a ton of talent from last year decided to deal away one of the few offensive pieces they had remaining on their roster. Kyle Beach is on the move again and headed back to the US Division where he will pull on the sweater of the Spokane Chiefs.

Here are the details from Spokane.

Beach had 66 points in 54 games last year split between Everett and Lethbridge and now joins a team he once considered THE ENEMY. The rivalry between Spokane and Everett is certainly well documented and Beach was a central figure in that dispute when he wore green.



Some of the players from that clip are no longer be there, like Chris Bruton, but Mitch Wahl is. You have to wonder how this move will go over with the Chiefs and whether or not it will affect the chemistry in the room. Dean and I have been supporters of Beach over the last few years but I can tell you quite honestly that judging by conversations I have had with people throughout the WHL... we're in the minority. Beach isn't the most well-liked guy out there and so I can foresee some issues this year in Spokane.

Definitely a powder keg scenario but... will it blow?

Dave Barr Wild About Minnesota

The Pipeline Show, on the TEAM 1260 in Edmonton, has learned that Dave Barr (pictured right standing beside Tony Granato) will be joining the Minnesota Wild as an Assistant Coach. The Wild hired Todd Richards as their new bench boss just 12 days ago. Barr was a victim of the Colorado Avalanche house cleaning this off season, when the Avs finally got around to relieving Tony Granto after letting him drift in the wind for weeks. Before his gig with the Avalanche, Barr was the head man for the Guelph Storm of the OHL over a 4 season span, winning coach of the year honours in 2006. He was also Canada's Head Coach for the 2007 Ivan Hlinka U-18 tournament. This you might remember was when Kyle Beach ensured he would never play for Canada as a junior aged player, by covering the maple leaf with an OHL logo, as the Blackhawk prospect thought OHL players were getting preferential treatment.

As for Barr, it seemed like he was destined to return to junior hockey. Word is Barr was offered the Head Coach and G.M. position with the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL recently, but turned it down to stay in the NHL as an assistant coach.

That still leaves two openings for the Hurricanes. While Rich Sutter's name keeps coming up as G.M. TPS has even heard that Michael Dyck could return as Head Coach and even Perry Pearn's (pictured) name has surfaced. I saw Pearn in the airport on Saturday, he was returning from the NHL draft in Montreal where he participated in a coaching clinic. I asked him if he had any irons in the fire and he said he was talking to a few people. I think he would make a great fit in Lethbridge until another NHL job comes up.

This n' That

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While the NHL and AHL playoffs inch closer and closer to the finals and the Memorial Cup will be decided on Sunday, there are some things going on that may have gone unnoticed.

Summer Camp with the Oil Kings

For example, the Edmonton Oil Kings are in the middle of their annual get-to-know-ya summer camp. The WHL club has all of their '93 and '94 born players skating at NAIT right now so it's basically the 2008 and 2009 drafted players with a few listed players thrown in for good measure. Speaking of measure... 16-yer-old goalie Laurent Brossoit strode onto the ice and several of us standing rinkside were commenting on how big he is. He's isted a 6'2 but I swear he looked a lot bigger than that.

I had a chance to talk with Brossoit before today's on-ice session and was struck by how well spoken he is already. Keep in mind he's only 16 and is fresh out of Midget hockey. You can hear that conversation HERE.

Dean Millard and I also spoke with 2009 1st round pick Griffin Reinhart. This guy is going to be a player. Dean said he's heard people compare Reinhart to a 15-year-old Karl Alzner... the Oil Kings will be mighty happy if things turn out that well. You can hear our conversation with Griffin Reinhart HERE.

The third Oil Kings player we spoke with is the guy most will be looking to for this coming season - 2008 1st round pick Michael St. Croix. The Winnipeg kid is visibly bigger than a year ago and is a bit more comfortable in front of a microphone too. He had a special season in Midget leading Manitoba in scoring and also appearing at the World U17 challenge as the youngest player on Team West. Hear what St. Croix had to say HERE.

Interesting note: The Oil Kings have listed Henrik Samuelsson (credit A.J. Jakubec for the tip). Samuelsson is the younger brother of defenceman Philip Samuelsson who Edmonton drafted in the 2007 Bantam Draft. The older brother has signed a letter of intent with Boston College although he's not expected to play much there as a freshman in 2009-10. I was told today that Henrik will definitely be in town for training camp in August. Might we eventually see both brothers wearing Oil Kings jerseys? Philip played for the Chicago Steel of the USHL but whoever drafts him (if he gets drafted) might steer him to the WHL over a smaller role with Boston College. Samuelsson played for USA at the World U18s in Fargo but didn't get great reviews. They are the sons of Phoenix Coyotes assistant coach Ulf Samuelsson who played in the NHL for several teams including Hartford, the Rangers and the Penguins.

Oiler Defenceman Re-Hab continues

He missed most of the 2008-09 campaign with a seriously injured knee but blueliner Jordan Bendfeld was on the ice with the Oil Kings bench staff helping run drills and shoot on the two netminders. I had a chance to speak with Bendfeld during the practice session and got a full report on how the injury happened, the re-hab process, what life was like in Stockton and obviously how key this off-season is for him as he looks ahead to Oiler camp in September. Hear what Bendfeld had to say by clicking HERE.

More signings

The Chicago Blackhawks signed Kyle Beach, their 2st round pick in 2008, to a 3-year entry level contract. The controversial forward will either stick with the Hawks next season or be returned to the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL. The Canes are still looking for a new GM and a new head coach as well with Rich Sutter leading the rumors for the bigger job according to Pat Siedlecki, the voice of the Canes.

Anton Gustafsson was signed by the Washington Capitals. He was their 1st round pick (21st overall) and officially joins the club that his dad was a part of during his NHL career. Gustafsson is a big center who played at a lower level that the SEL in Sweden this past year. Here is more from Elite Prospects.

The Oilers officially announced the signing of Swede Johan Motin that we told you about earlier in May.

The New York Rangers signed Finnish defenceman Ilkka Heikkinen last week. The 6'2 rearguard will turn 25 this November and has played 6 years in the SM-Liiga with Lukko Rauma and HIFK Helsinki. Heikkinen was never drafted.

Matthew Pistilli's QMJHL days are behind him. The 6'2 and 220 lb forward had 93 points with Gatineau in 2007-08 and followed that up with 45 goals and 86 points for Shawinigan this past year. The forward was never drafted.

Finally, Dwight King of the Lethbridge Hurricanes has signed his 3-year entry level contract with the Los Angeles Kings. the 4th round pick in 2007 had 60 points in 64 games with the Hurricanes in 2008-09.

STILL unsigned

The Oilers have 8 days left to get both Milan Kytnar and Alex Plante under contract or they will be up for grabs and returned to the pool for the 2009 Entry Draft. I was told yesterday that there was nothing new to report since I reported that the team and Plante were "a little ways apart" - that was on May 14th.

Other players of note still without a contract include Oil Kings goalie Torrie Jung, Carloina forward Justin McCrae and Chris Terry, a trio of Blackhawks made up of Colin Greenop, Maxime Tanguay and goalie Josh Unice, Ondrej Roman of the Dallas Stars, Florida's Corey Syvret, goalie Linden Rowat of the L.A. Kings and both Maxim Gratchev and Simon Lacroix for the Islanders.

it's possibly I missed one of the above being signed so if I did, please leave a comment and a link.

Hurricanes decision blows

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Wow. That's all I could say when my Global Sports colleague John Sexsmith broke the news to me about Roy Stasiuk being let go in Lethbridge. I was on the golf course at Sturgeon Valley all day and zipped straight to a charity bowling function where John told me. I've had some time to digest it and read some comments from the organization and now I feel like spewing my opinion.

The guy on the left might summarize it with this. "Worst decision ever."

First of all I think this is a big mistake, and the board is blowing smoke up you know where with some of their comments.

“We had very high expectations going into this season,” Lethbridge president Brian McNaughton told the gathering. “We believed we had a very strong group of 1989-born players and coming off of last season our expectations were quite high. Those expectations were not met."

HUH?????

This is a team that started the season without 2008 first round draft picks Zack Boychuk (Carolina 14th overall) and Luca Sbisa (Philadelphia 19th overall) and while both came back Boychuk was still getting over a wrist injury while Sbisa played only 18 regular season games. How did the team not meet expectations??? After Stasiuk made a ballsy deal to bring in Kyle Beach, the poster child for bad reputations notched 33 points in 24 games. He did struggle with offence and discipline in the post season, but he was reportedly good in the dressing room. The Canes also knocked off the 2nd ranked Saskatoon Blades, then lost to Calgary who didn't lose a game until the WHL final. So to me the board is full of BS with those comments.

"We’ve gone through an extensive evaluation period here for the last several weeks and came to this decision in the middle of last week.”

Brilliant comment here. Why then did you let Roy tie the can to Michael Dyck? And why would you let him run your bantam draft? This is just my opinion, but I think something happened from the time Dyck was cut loose and today. Maybe it was how out spoken Stasiuk was, maybe it was a "backroom deal" he spoke about after getting fired. But I don't think the board is being honest about when they made this decision.

One thing I'm sure of, Rodeo Roy will get back in the saddle again. He was a key cog in building the Kootenay Ice when they were winning league and Memorial Cup titles, and has a great eye for talent. He also took the Hurricanes to the WHL final just last year, so the 'Canes decision today could be very premature and might come back to bite them in the....

Wednesday Re-Set

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Tuesday night was an all-WHL show as the league's awards banquet and the 2009 Bantam Draft are all in Edmonton this week. That gave us the unique opportunity to have one in-studio guest that we would otherwise not have had plus we spoke with a slew of other people in and around the league as well.

First up was the Commissioner, Ron Robison. We began with a discussion revolving around the league's stance towards the decision by the Calgary Flames to bring their AHL affiliate into very close proximity to one of their WHL partners - the Chilliwack Bruins.

We also talked about a variety of other topics including the reason behind bringing this week's events to Edmonton. Then Dean hit the Commish with a series of "If I were King for a Day" ideas to make the league even better.

From the commish we moved on to Randy Hansch who is the Assistant GM of the Edmonton Oil Kings and the guy who will pretty much be calling the shots for the local 'Dub club at the draft table on Thursday. Are the Oil Kings looking for a specific type of player, is there a position they need to address and who are some of the names to watch for... all talked about with Mr. Hansch.

From Edmonton we went south to Lethbridge and were joined by TPS regular, 'Rodeo' Roy Stasiuk, the GM of the Hurricanes. We talked about the year the 'Canes had including the highs and the lows and the trades - especially Kyle Beach and what he was like after coming over from Everett. Also... if you haven't heard WHY Beach and Akim Aliu were sent home by the Chicago Blackhawks from their AHL affiliate (Rockford), you won't believe it.


At the top of the second hour we were joined in studio by Prince George Cougars forward Brett Connolly. The rookie ended up collecting some hardware on Wednesday as he was named the league's top freshman player. We also discussed his role with Canada's entry at the U18s in Fargo. This is a guy to keep an eye on... he's the real deal.

Bad Ass Trivia was focused on the WHL draft and the awards and while some were stumped, Bart Hunter called in to say he could answer the question regarding the trophy named after his father, the legendary Bill Hunter.

Finally, Everett Silvertips forward Byron Froese joined us from his home in Winkler, MB. We talked about the year in Everett and also his time in Fargo at the World U18 Championship where he skated on a line with Brett Connolly. He wasn't on the 2009 list for Central Scouting or ISS before the tournament but he's in the top 100 for both agencies now. On the rise and a guy who might surprise with how early he goes... I'm thinking late 2nd round candidate.

If you missed any of these excellent interview, you know what to do: Click the Archive... HERE.

One on One: Zach Boychuk

When it comes to Zach Boychuk and the NHL one thing is for sure, it won’t be hard for him to get used to saying the name of the team he plays for.

The star forward of the Lethbridge Hurricanes was chosen 14th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2008 and stuck around with the team for a few games at the end of training camp.
The Aidrie, AB native had an exceptional draft year beginning with the Canada-Russia Super Series followed by the 2008 World Junior Championship. At the end of the WHL regular season he had amassed 33 goals and 72 points in 61 games with the ‘Canes but it was in the playoffs that he took his game to another level.

Boychuk led the Hurricanes in postseason scoring with 21 points in 18 games including a whopping 13 goals – 8 more than the next highest shooter on his team. Lethbridge was the Eastern Conference champions but could not get passed the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL finals.

This year began slightly late for Boychuk who missed time early on with an wrist injury. He did get the chance to play in a couple NHL games with Carolina before returning to Lethbridge for the rest of the season. As the 2008-09 regular season schedule came to a close, Boychuk was fourth in team scoring with 57 points but only appeared in 43 games. His +16 rating sticks out like a sore thumb – but in a good way.

Recently the Hurricanes blew into Edmonton for a late regular season game against the Oil Kings and I had the chance to speak with Boychuk about a myriad of issues. We went back to the fall and he spoke at length about training camp in Carolina and getting a chance to wet his appetite at the NHL level.

We also spoke about the 2009 World Junior Championship in Ottawa and how winning at home compared to winning for the first time a year earlier. He was to play a much bigger role in 2009 than he did in Prague but was slowed by injuries... was it still everything he hoped it would be?

I asked Boychuk for a scouting report on 2009 eligible prospect Carter Ashton. Having just gone through the draft year experience, it was interesting to get Boychuk’s impression of the Hurricanes top prospect this year. We also compared how Ashton’s draft ranking differs from his from last year!

Lethbridge was a busy team at the WHL trade deadline and added controversial forward Kyle Beach from the Everett Silvertips. It was a move that many suggested would either vault the ‘Canes into legit contender status or have the complete opposite effect and destroy the room. I asked Boychuk about the addition of Beach and how the WHL’s bad boy has meshed with the rest of his new team.

Finally, with the playoffs looming I asked Boychuk if he felt that with a line up consisting of himself, Beach, Ashton, Colton Sceviour, Carter Bancks, Dwight King, Ben Wright, Juha Metsola and Luca Sbisa fresh from Philadephia in the NHL… if he felt the Hurricanes were the team that could potentially eliminate the top clubs like Calgary and Saskatoon.

We now know that Saskatoon will be the first round opponent of the Lethbridge Hurricanes and if you want to know how Boychuk feels his club matches up, plus the answers to the rest of the topics I mentioned above… CLICK HERE.

There are a few different reasons that Lethbridge is being considered the team that no one wants to face this year in the WHL playoffs and the biggest of them might be Zach Boychuk.

Beach Weather In Lethbridge

The first big domino has toppled when it comes to trades in the WHL, as the Lethbridge Hurricanes picked up power forward Kyle Beach from Everett. The Canes also grabbed 19 year old D-man Mark Alexander in the deal, but gave up a first round pick in next year's bantam draft, as well as former 6th overall selection Alex Theriau whom Lethbridge drafted in 2007. The Silvertips also get 18 year old Dan Iwanski.

This is an interesting trade from a couple of perspectives. As of Tuesday, Everett was in 5th place in the western conference, but obviously they don't think they have the horses to contend with Vancouver, Spokane or Tri City come playoff time. They also don't think Kyle Beach will be back in the WHL next year, or they didn't want the 2008 Chicago Blackhawk 1st rounder back.

Another theory that was brought up on The Pipeline Show Tuesday night was that Beach wanted out of Everett. That was brought to us by PGTV sports director Allan Bristowe. From a Lethbridge angle they get a dominant combination of size and skill, but Kyle Beach does come with baggage. TPS is a fan of his on ice product, but we have spoken to people across the league who say he's a 'buyer beware' type of player.

He taped OHL over the Canadian logo at a Hockey Canada camp a few years ago, in a loud protest over Ontario Hockey League players getting more ice time. He also allegedly ridiculed Milan Lucic, shrugging his shoulders in a hunch backed manor, despite the fact that Lucic has a medical condition which cause his upper back to curve up.

If Beach hits Lethbridge and fits in, the currently tied for 8th place Canes could find themselves movin' on up like George Jefferson. If not it could wreck the room and their playoff chances. Hopefully the 18 year old works out in Lethbridge and it's the start to repairing his damaged reputation. It would also help the Canes if Beach returns next year.

The Kelowna Rockets appear to be a whole lot better without making a move yet. With Michael Backlund set to join the Rockets it give them even more offence to the 4th place club, that has scored the 4th most goals in the west. Backlund was terrific for Sweden in the WJC leading all Sweden forwards in scoring. He was especially good against Slovakia. Backlund was the player that got things going for the Swedes and allowed them to avoid the same fate as the U.S.A one game earlier.

The Flames want their 2007 1st round pick in North America and with his playing time being cut drastically in Sweden it seemed a perfect fit, especially if the Rockets go on a lengthy run. I did read some disgruntled Kelowna fans who were upset their team didn't get in on the Kyle Beach bidding, but they could be getting someone soon in a trade. According to Allan Bristowe on TPS Tuesday, Kelowna is eyeing up St. Albert product Jesse Dudas. The 6'1", 226 pound blueliner is currently with Swift Current, but according to Bristowe didn't report to Speedy Creek and has been told he'll be traded. It will be the Columbus Blue Jacket's 4th WHL team if the deal happens.

Other names being bandied about right now, Defenceman Nick Ross out of Kamloops, a Phoenix Coyotes 1st rounder from 2007. I would be shocked if Joel Broda isn't dealt by Moose Jaw. The Capitals 5th round pick from 2008 has 35 goals in 38 games (as of Tuesday) and in my opinion would look great with Saskatoon. The Blades could use some scoring to compliment their great goaltending and solid blueline. It's been a long time since the Blades made a push at the deadline and this might be the year to do it.


I'm also wondering out loud if Kelly McCrimmon tries to get something for 19 year giant blueliner Keith Aulie. He's 6'6", 222 pounds and proved he could keep up with fleet footed stars at the WJC. He would solidify a few team's back end. Does Aulie return for a 20 year old season in Brandon next year? I doubt it. I think the Flames will have him in the AHL with Quad City. While the Wheat Kings are 3rd in the eastern conference right now thanks to a 8-0-1 run lately, you know they'll want to load up for next year when they host the Memorial Cup. And in Regina Brent Parker has to ask himself the same question when it comes to studs Jordan Eberle (Oilers 22nd overall 2008) and Colten Tuebert (Kings 13th overall 2008) will they be back next year, or does he get a ton of young prospects and draft picks in return for them this year?

The WHL's trade deadline is January 10th, and it should be an interesting one, stay tune and feel free to give us your thoughts on upcoming trades or ones that have already happened.

Canada Camp Almost Perfect

Hockey Canada revealed the 38-name list of players who will be trying out for the 2009 World Junior squad that seeks the nation's 5th consecutive gold medal. You can find the official release here.

Dean and I discussed the list earlier today, each of us seeing a couple of areas where players we would have invited were not and also a couple of interesting additions that caught us a bit by surprise.

The four goalies invited are the same four who were involved in the summer sessions - Dustin Tokarski, Chet Pickard, Jake Allen and Tyson Sexsmith. Hard to say that any of the four don't deserve the recognition to be invited but my first thought was that Mike Murphy probably deserved to be there too. You can only invite four but Murphy has the best stats in the entire OHL with a .944 save percentage and as of this minute, with a 1.98 GAA he's one of only three starting goalies in the CHL with a sub-2.00 GAA (Interesting to note that the other two also didn't get an invite).

Murphy would have been on my invite list, probably at the expense of Tyson Sexsmith, but right now Tokarski and Pickard are my two goalies so in the end it doesn;t change the final roster for me.

On the blueline it was Millard that pointed out right away that 2009 eligible Jared Cowen, a consensus top-4 pick, is not on the list. Ryan Ellis is thanks to a blazing hot offensive start to the season, but the top North American defensive defenceman in the draft didn't even garner an invite to camp. Cowen's Spokane teammate Jared Spurgeon got a nod but at 5'8 he's not a defensive force and with just 12 points it's not like Spurgeon is racking up the numbers. I would have taken Cowen (pictured) ahead of Spurgeon but I assume that with Keith Aulie, Tyler Myers, Colten Teubert and Patrik Wiercioch all filling the rough-and-tough job description, Hockey Canada felt they had it covered. Cowen is only 17 so you know his time will come very soon.

I am a fan of the choice to invite Denver Pioneers rearguard Patrick Wiercioch who has 13 points in 13 NCAA games this year. He was drafted by Ottawa in the 2nd round last June but I get the impression that everyone is very much pleasantly surprised at how far he's developed in a very short time. It will be interesting to see how he matches up at the short camp - a darkhorse for now but an interesting one to watch for.

Up front the first name both Dean and I looked for we couldn't find and both of us just snickered a bit that once again, Kyle Beach doesn't rate an invite from Hockey Canada. I guess the ADT Canada-Russia Challenge isn't as big of a deal as most thought because clearly his game winning marker in game 6 didn't help his cause and more than his 22 points in 22 WHL games this year.

The Pipeline Show officially gives Hockey Canada two thumbs down for not inviting Beach to the tryout camp (not that you have to put him on the final roster, but just an invite). Had Dean been writing this blog entry, it may have not have been thumbs that were used to signify our opinion. Suffice to say, Millard's going to rant about this one on Tuesday's show!

Dean, a well known Brandon Wheat Kings supporter, said he found it a bit interesting that both Matt Calvert and Brayden Schenn were invited yet Scott Glennie was not despite having outperformed his two teammates for most of the year. Glennie leads the Wheaties with 32 points, a slight lead over Schenn.

All eyes on Angelo Esposito who is back for yet another kick at the can; is this finally the year he makes the team? It's his last chance but Dean and I differ on our prediction here - Millard votes 'Yay' but I can't see who he beats out so it's a 'Nay' for me.

Patrice Cormier gets a ticket to camp yet might not even be the best player on his team - Oiler prospect Philippe Cornet leads Rimouski in scoring by a fair margin while Cormier is in third.

Obviously being here in Edmonton The Pipeline Show is pleased to see both Jordan Eberle (pictured) and Riley Nash on the list. Back on November 23rd Jim Matheson wrote in the Edmonton Journal:

"Word is Oilers first-round draft Jordan Eberle, even if he has 18 goals with the Regina Pats, will need two strong games in the Western Hockey League vs. Russia Selects series this week to ensure an invite to the national junior camp. Riley Nash, who has played almost no games at Cornell University, will be scouted against U of North Dakota shortly. If he doesn't light it up, he probably won't get an invite."

Eberle did shine against the Russians and Nash also played well against North Dakota. I tend to think both can be solid additions in different roles - Eberle as a scoring winger and Nash as a 3rd line center who could play more of a defensive role than he is asked to at Cornell.

The name that jumped out at me from the list that did make it was Stefan Della Rovere, a winger with the Barrie Colts with stats that don't blow you away but appears to be in the mold of a Jordan Tootoo (Dean's suggestion) as someone the team has invited to play a specific checking role.

Camp gets underway on December 11th and concludes on the 15th. Join us on December 9th and the 16th for our pre and post-camp coverage.

(photos courtesy: Spokane Chiefs, the WHL, Regina Pats, the NHL, TSN, CP)

Not Kicking Sand In Beach's Face

Well, well, well a surprise surfaced when the WHL announced it's rosters for the upcoming Canada/Russia ADT challenge, and it's the only reason I disagree with Guy's idea below.

After getting snubbed by Team Canada for last year's WJC and this summer's training camp, Kyle Beach - the 11th overall selection in last June's drafty by Chicago - was named to team WHL, which is widely recognized as a chance for Hockey Canada to take a peak at it's possible team.

Beach of the Everett Silvertips, has had off ice issues, and was a problem child at the U-18's a couple of years ago, when he taped "TEAM OHL" over the Team Canada logo on his jersey, implying that head coach Dave Barr was giving preferential treatment to those from the Ontario Hockey League.

Has Hockey Canada punished him enough? I say yes, as he is exactly the type of player that can help them drive for 5 in Ottawa. Invite him to camp, if he's acting up, send him home, if he's not keep him and let him start repairing his damaged reputation. That's what HC did with Steve Downie in 2006.

Rumblings, Bumblings and Stuff...

It's funny how the off-season often produces some of the best stories out there but I guess when you consider that it's during the summer that most changes in the hockey world take place... it shouldn't be that surprising.

There are bunch of things circulating, some no more than speculation while others are pretty sound. One such item that appears to be pretty solid has to do with Springfield where the AHL Falcons have called a press conference for Tuesday afternoon. I'm still looking for official Oiler confirmation but a source out East has indicated to me that it is regarding the coaching position. If that is the case (and not another season ticket sales update) then expect Jeff Truitt to be formally announced that day as the new bench boss on the farm. I do know that Kevin Prendergast will be in Springfield for the presser so it certainly appears to be lining up that way.



Wondering what is going to happen with Rob Daum since it's but a formality that Kelly Buchberger moves up to the NHL for next season? I ran into Daum at Oilers prospect camp last week, a pleasant surprise to see a him there despite the way he's been cast aside. I also talked with him on Tuesday during the TEAM 1260 golf tournament. He's obviously pretty tight-lipped about what he and the Oilers are talking about but I can confirm that the position offered to Daum is that of a pro scout. I'm also hearing that he'd have the greenlight to pursue a coaching opportunity elsewhere if one came his way and if you've been listening to Total Sports with Bob Stauffer... doesn't Detroit make sense with Mike Babcock now in need of a new assistant?



Regan Bartel is one of the most respected guys around the WHL so when he speculates on something, it's probably more than just idle chit-chat. On May 26th he blogged an interesting tidbit on Kelowna Rockets' forward Milan Kytnar suggesting he might be in tough for a spot on the roster next season. Here's the original post by Bartel who you should know is also the voice of the Rockets on their broadcasts. I wonder if there is a WHL team that would has room for an import, a need to upgrade penalty killing and their ability to keep goals against down? The Edmonton Oil Kings fit the bill but with a high pick in the CHL Import Draft later this month they might have their eyes on a more offensive player to help in that department. The fact that Kytnar is also an Oiler prospect makes it even more interesting but far from a sure thing.



It was a good month for Alex Plante who impressed the brass at prospect camp after a 3-week stint of training in California with Chad Moreau. Plante needs to improve his mobility and his strength and while the former will be a longer process it is simple to see how the 19-year-old has matured physically. Thicker in the neck, through his upper body and defnitely stronger in his legs, Plante has dedicated himself to getting back on the right track after a tough year in Calgary.

And speaking of Plante and the Hitmen, rumors are swirling that the 19-year-old might be available this summer as Calgary heads towards a rebuild. One source told me that Plante's camp were disappointed with the way he'd lost his spot last year due to injury and another source described the situation to me by saying "he became a whipping boy for [head coach Kelly] Kisio". IF the rumor is true that Plante is available, expect his hometown Brandon Wheat Kings to be front runners in trying to nab him from Calgary.

Draft tidbits

As Dean mentioned on our last show, the Toronto Maple Leafs seem to be extremely interested in Kyle Beach of the Everett Silvertips. Would a team in such disarray really roll the dice on a player who some believe is a ticking timebomb? Well both Millard and I are believers that Beach's upside outweighs his troubled past and we both have him going in the top 11 in our mock draft although neither of us have him going to the Leafs...



Another interesting one, and you might have to file this under 'C' for 'Conspiracy Theory'... Zac Dalpe was drafted as an overager by the Plymouth Whalers in the OHL. But why? He's already publicly committed to the NCAA program with the Ohio State Buckeyes right? Well, and here's the conspiracy theory, what would happen if the Carolina Hurricanes drafted him with the 14th overall pick (or moved down and did it)? Some have suggested that Dalpe would then bolt for the OHL and play with Plymouth. What's the connection? Peter Karmanos owns the Hurricanes and the Whalers. Things that make you go Hmmmmmmm...

Two players who seem to be getting some momentum as the draft gets closer are Colin Wilson and John Carlson. Wilson wowed the NHL onlookers at the combines where his dedication to personal training paid off. His team interviews also went well as TPS expected after he was a homerun interview on our show a couple weeks back. He's got the bloodline going for him, a great attitude and is considered one of the guys who could be closest to NHL ready. He'll be gone in the top 12.

Carlson's stock went up when he made it public that he was jumping ship from the NCAA to the OHL; instead of playing at UMass next year he's headed for the London Knights. Now I've had plenty of hockey people express concern about the way players develop in London (stellar junior success, not so much on the preperation for the next level) but it's seen as a step up from the Hockey East program which takes a back seat to Maine, Boston College, Boston Univesity and New Hampshire in that conference. Carlson was considered a late first rounder before but looks more like a mid round pick now.

One last one... in case you haven't heard yet, Nikita Filatov granted The Pipeline Show with the first North American radio interview of his career. Dean and I spoke with the future star for about 12 minutes and you'll be able to hear that interview in its entirety on Tuesday's show. Who does he think will draft him? How much are teams in Russia's new Kontinental Hockey League trying to keep him at home? Would he play in the CHL next year? Hear it from the man himself next week.

Beach's Chance KO'd

Every draft year there is a player who wears the "Problem Child" label and like Steve Downie or Akim Aliu before him, 2008's Kyle Beach has his supporters and his detractors with very few people straddling the fence.

There is no question about his hockey sense, his skill set, his physical talents or his desire but there are questions abound in regards to his character and his quality as a human being.

Beach was a guest on The Pipeline Show when we ran a produced feature after speaking with both him and Everett head coach John Becanic. (archived audio). In that clip you'll hear the details of the butting of heads he had in the summer with Team Canada U17 coach Dave Barr so I won't go into that again.

Since then there have been, and I stress, uncomfirmed reports of off ice issues including a possible motor vehicle/alcohol incident. In speaking with some people around the WHL this season about Beach, I've been told from one General Manager that he instructed his scouts to "not even bother looking at him" during his Bantam draft year because his reputation had been sullied even back then. Another source alledges that in a game against the Vancouver Giants, Beach verbally harrassed Milan Lucic about everything from his posture to his speech impediment.

Now again, these are unsubstantiated stories I'm talking about here and my plan was to talk to Beach this week at the Top Prospects Game here in Edmonton to get his side of all of this. However, thanks to a brutal sucker punch last week, Beach is unable to attend the showcase event. Like the ADT Canada-Russia challenge snubbing and the missing invite to Canada's WJ tryout camp, this is another blow for Beach who will now miss all of the premier events during his NHL draft year.

For those of you that haven't heard about the punch, haven't seen it or don't even know what I'm talking about... here's the video.



Beach grabs little Mitch Wahl which he didn't need to do, face washes him, gets seperated, lightly pokes at Bruton and then from out of nowhere takes a right hook to the chin and drops like a sack of hammers. Reaction to that punch has split the hockey world in half.

Kepp in mind that the Chiefs and the Silvertips are arch rivals and post game dustups are in their history already, take this brawl from the playoffs last year.

Now Beach is an aggravating player to go against and I'm sure tempers were high in the game on both teams but saying that Beach deserved that KO for what he did to Wahl or Bruton in that instance is completely ridiculous. The end result is a concussion for Beach who will be forced to sit out of the Top Prospects Game... and for a facewash???

Last week we had EJ McGuire from Central Scouting on the show who said Kyle Beach "has NHL skills exuding out of him..." and went on to say "If the maturity light comes on with Kyle he's going to be far and above anything on our list."

Better than Steve Stamkos. Better than Drew Doughty or Luke Schenn or Zack Boychuk.

But now scouts and media and fans alike will be robbed of seeing Beach in a game with the rest of his draft class where he can be guaged and graded against his peers.

All for a facewash? You might think Beach is a jerk or a problem child but you should not be happy to see a player get injured, let alone lose an opportunity like the Top Prospects Game. An especially not for his part of the mess at the end of the game last week.

Silvertip Shutout!

Shutouts involving the Everett Silvertips aren't really news and the talented WHL club has usually been on the positive end... but not this time.

If you had asked me in September to pick Canada's WJC roster there would have been 3 Silvertips on the club. Certainly goaltender Leland Irving would have been there as well as 2006-07 WHL leading scorer Zack Hamill. I also would have thrown Kyle Beach's name in the mix, he was the WHL rookie of the year last year and is pretty much a concensus top 5 pick in 2008.

All pretty reasonable candidates but low and behold, as the invites to Calgary camp were issued, Beach wasn't even asked to come out and then both Hamill and Irving were cut when the week ended.

Now this isn't a article of outrage that Hockey Canada has made a horrendous mistake, it's more to express my shock that 3 highly touted players had spots likely to lose... and lost them!

Anyone who knows me knows that Zack Hamill is one my personal favorite prospects, I even made sure to draft him in my keeper league. But when the defending scoring champ doesn't even rank in the top 25 the next season (as of Dec 14th anyway) then clearly something is up. My theory is that Hamill benefitted hugely from Peter Mueller and the attention teams had to pay him last year.

Irving has struggled right from the get-go this season. One has to wonder if the massive contract signed by Miikka Kiprusoff and the overall depth of the Flames goaltending (one of the best in the NHL in my opinion) is weighing on him. That plus a less than stellar performance during the Super Series seems to have knocked Irving back down to mere mortal status. (Another shot to my fantasy keeper squad...)

Lastly, Beach, for all his on ice talents obviously has some issues to overcome. I've met him, talked to him and was impressed with the way he'd owned up to some of his past mistakes and his candor in regards to trying to get himself on the right path. Since then there have been more incidents (off ice) and the more NHL people I talk to, the more often I am hearing that he's a bad apple. He's going to get drafted and very high, hopefully by a team that has solid leadership that can help mold a still maturing 17-year-old into a better adult.

Now, on the show I picked Everett to win the division. Sure doesn't look like that's going to happen but I wonder if this 0-3 loss to Hockey Canada might provide some extra motivation for the trio of 'Tips players.

I hope so, because if Millard's Wheaties end up winning their division and Everett fails... I'll never hear the end of it.