Games Played, Games Postponed In The WHL

The games this weekend featured 18 games, but a few postponements that we will get into. 

Medicine Hat doubled up Red Deer Rebels 4-2 with the Hat 37-25 shot advantage and scoring 3-5 on the powerplay, The Rebels couldn’t convert on the 10 they had, 

Everett Silvertips dumped Seattle Thunderbirds 5-3  where Seattle edged in shots 37-36, but neither team scored with the man advantage Seattle 0-4, Everett 0-2 

Winnipeg Ice toppled Swift Current Broncos 5-4, though Swift Current bagged 44 shots to Winnipeg 28 and went 1-5 on the powerplay, not allowing Winnipeg and chances on the powerplay.  

Prince George Cougars manhandled Victoria Royals 5-2 but didn’t score on the 4 man advantage tries, with Victoria 1-3 on theirs. 41-21 were the shots in favor of the Cougars. 

Lethbridge’s Noah Boyko scored a hat trick in their 6-5 shootout win over the Edmonton Oil Kings. The Canes also got a 36-29 shot advantage in the game, going 2-5 on the powerplay and holding Edmonton to one goal on three chances. 

Medicine Hat once again dumped Red Deer 5-2, doubling up on shots 34-17 and scoring 2-4 on the powerplay, holding the Rebels to a goal on three tries.  

Brandon Wheat Kings took over Moose Jaw Warriors 4-1, getting a 34-20 shot advantage with neither team scoring on the powerplay with Brandon 0-2 and Moose Jaw 0-4. 

Swift Current Broncos edged Saskatoon Blades 3-2 with a 38-35 shot advantage and both teams going 0-2 on the powerplay. 

The TV game saw Portland Winterhawks snag a 3-1 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds. The Hawks did so in regulation after a scoreless first period. Seattle scored first in the second, with Keltie Jeri-Leon getting his 10th of the year, but less than 2 minutes later on the powerplay, Reece Newkirk tied it up. Nic Cicek, with a blast from the blue line and rookie Brody Tallman five minutes later in the third, salted it away for the Hawks very early in the game. Seattle took over the shots 29-21, but Portland scored once on their 4 tries on the powerplay, with Seattle 0-3 on theirs.  

The weekend series with Spokane vs Tri-City games were postponed (see below) 

Portland tried again vs. Everett Silvertips but was handed a 6-2 loss. The first period was scoreless, and the Hawks tried in the second, where they salvaged a tie midway through the period. Everett had other ideas breaking away with a goal in the second and three more in the third to take the game. Portland had the edge in shots at 39-34 but was unsuccessful in the four tries with the powerplay. Everett scored once on four tries. Portland will play again on Saturday, April 24, with a doubleheader versus Seattle. The 24th will be a televised game at 5 pm on CW 32; the other will be a webcast on the 25th. 

Edmonton Oil Kings faced Lethbridge Hurricanes where they won 5-3. Though neither team could capitalize on the man advantage with Edmonton 0-2 and Lethbridge 0-1, they did take the shots 32-19 in the game.  

Brandon Wheat Kings vs. Winnipeg Ice went to overtime to get Brandon a 5-4 win. Winnipeg outshot the Kings 34-31, but the Ice could snag 3-8 on the powerplay, with Brandon just 1-4.  

Regina Pats edged the Moose Jaw Warriors 4-3, where each team scored just once each on the powerplay. Regina at 1-4, Moose Jaw went 1-3 with the shots close at 32-31 for Regina. 

Vancouver Giants blanked the Kamloops Blazers 4-0. Kamloops was unable to score on their four tries, with Vancouver 2-5 on the man advantage. Vancouver held court with a 32-27 shot count. 

Four weeks remain in the schedule, and tests will continue weekly to ensure the games continue and teams and players remain COVID Free.  

Now there are three teams dealing with COVID and one is in the US Division. 

Tri-City has a positive COVID test and suspends activities. Press release below:

Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League announced today the Tri-City Americans have suspended all team activities as a result of a positive test for COVID-19. The positive COVID-19 test results belong to a player within the team cohort of the Tri-City Americans.

The WHL is working in consultation with the Washington State Department of Health regarding the matter concerning the Tri-City Americans. Pending determination of close contacts and further test results, the WHL will provide further information.

The Tri-City Americans last played on Tuesday, April 13 at Seattle. The Seattle Thunderbirds are not considered close contacts based on the time of the receipt of the positive test result for the Tri-City Americans.

As a result of the suspension of activities for the Tri-City Americans, the following WHL Regular Season games have been postponed:

The Tri-City Americans and WHL will not be providing comment or identifying individuals. The WHL will continue to provide regular updates on COVID-19 testing results.

Press release from the QMJHL  

With the reopening of the Atlantic bubble delayed until May 3rd, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League announced today that the regular season in the Maritimes Division will come to an end on Sunday, April 18th.

The Halifax Mooseheads and the Cape Breton Eagles seasons will officially come to an end on Sunday. They will not take part in the 2021 President Cup Playoffs. The three New Brunswick-based teams will play in a nine-game round-robin tournament with the winner facing off against the Charlottetown Islanders in the Maritimes Division final. The league will determine the format of the round-robin tournament and the schedule in the upcoming days.

The QMJHL President Cup semifinals will group three teams from Quebec and one team from the Maritimes in a single protected environment event. Teams will be seeded based on the 2020-2021 overall standings. The schedule and location of the event will be determined at a later date.

It appears that the OHL will not be able to field a season. With rising COVID tests in Ontario and being unable to have the border opened with three teams in the US as part of the OHL, time is rapidly running out for any season to get underway.