I’m glad to have everyone back in the OSN fold after a short hiatus, and there’s a lot of news to catch up on!
People headed to the VMC this year may not notice massive changes, but they will next year. As part of an upgrade, the VMC will see its electrical and plumbing done so one night and find bathrooms more congenial. Next year, they will work on cosmetics such as seating, etc. With the Coliseum’s only major ice facility in Portland and the Moda Center not functioning, all ice events are at the VMC. Disney on Ice, the Winterhawks, and other events needing a large ice surface will flock there and have over the past couple of years.
The Hawks have an extended time away with preseason and training camp outside the VMC. The Portland Winterhawks will again be doing the Neely Cup with a difference. Though dates haven’t been announced, the cup will most likely be August 29-31. The event will take place at Sherwood Ice Arena and only over three days, not four as has been the case in the past. Most likely, the camp will be longer on Saturday, with both regular and semi-final and finals that day.
The Hawks will then take to the road. They will have just four preseason games this year, two in Everett and two in Kennewick. They will play Saturday and Sunday as they play Spokane Saturday at 2pm and then Seattle at noon the following day. Those will be September 7 and 8. They will be in Tri-Cities the following week, playing Friday versus Tri-Cities at 7pm and Saturday against Wenatchee at 2pm. The regular season starts. There is a change on Sunday games start times as they will be 4pm instead of 5.
Three games will start differently due to the holidays: Friday, November 29, at 1pm (Black Friday), Tuesday, December 31(New Year’s Eve) at 5pm, and Monday, February 17 (Presidents Day) at 3pm.
The Hawks are on the Eastern Swing this year from Friday, January 10, through Saturday, January 19.
Mike Johnston, who has a range of titles with the Hawks, and Clayton Johns, the equipment manager, will be at the IIHF World Juniors representing Canada from December 26, 2024, to January 5, 2025. Both will miss six games, three at the end of December and three at the start of January. The trade deadline is January 10, the night they are in Brandon, so that week leading up to that game will be busy.
In the trade of Marcus Nguyen to Brandon for the rights to Reed Brown, it didn’t take the Hawks long to get his name on a standard WHL contract. One person not under contract is Morgan Stickney. After being drafted last year as the first female goaltender, she played at St. Mary’s last year and has committed to NCAA Penn State for the upcoming year. While some people think she’ll never play WHL as she’s committed to Penn State, others have gone the original NCAA route only to go to the WHL Hawks later. Seth and Celeb Jones, Tyson Juggnauth, and William Wrenn, among others for the Hawks, started University Hockey only to go the WHL route after they turned 18. Will we see Morgan follow suit? Time will only tell. Mike Johnston has a habit of older goaltenders as they mature later, and with Morgan now just 16, her playing time might be limited, and this opportunity may be a couple of years down the road. The Hawks scout talent in other leagues as prospects, seeing if they are fit or ready for the jump. University hockey averages 36-40 games, whereas a WHL schedule is 68 plus playoffs.
The WHL and Hockey Canada have created a hybrid alliance that is the first of its kind. While still separating the leagues with college route (Hockey Canada) with the WHL as (Major Junior), the rulebooks will almost be identical and could provide a more level field for both leagues as players are relocated from the WHL roster to leagues in BC, Alberta Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The changes will see all uniform except three provisions, which are:
- All participating Western Junior A leagues will adopt the WHL Rule Book, except for Section 1 – Playing Area, Section 3 – Equipment, Rule 34.6 – Television, Rule 38 – Video Goal Judge and Rule 46.14 – Major Penalty.
- Fighting in the Western Junior A leagues will continue to follow the existing Hockey Canada Rule 7.10.
- As part of the pilot, players 18 years of age or older as of December 31 of the current season may choose to wear half-face protection, while those under the age of 18 must continue to wear full-face protection, in line with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Rule 202.
Currently, all 15-year-old players in the WHL wear a full cage and a full face shield at 16. With new WHL Commissioner Dan Near at the helm, the changes will be a pilot program for the year, to be revisited and tweaked in subsequent years. They may allow more parity as both leagues attempt to put out the best product.
Pat McLaughlin, COO and executive vice president of Hockey Canada, also posted this information.
To increase flexibility in the development pathway for 15- and 16-year-old players in Western Canada, a number of changes will be implemented, including:
- All 15-year-old affiliate players will be eligible to play up to 10 games with their WHL Club, the same as 16-year-old affiliate players.
- Instead of rostering a maximum of five 15-year-old affiliate players in a season, WHL Clubs will be allowed to name up to nine by January 10.
- If a WHL Club cannot dress a full roster of 20 players for a game, the team will now be eligible to dress two 15-year-old affiliate players.
- WHL Clubs will be able to designate one 16-year-old player, who upon being returned to a Junior A, Canadian Sport School Hockey League or U18 team, will be allowed to play up to 15 games in the WHL.
- If one of the four Members participating in the pilot has granted a 12-, 13- or 14-year-old player special status to play in an advanced age category, any such player must be evaluated to ensure they currently meet and are deemed to continue with special player status in their 15-year-old year to qualify and continue to be eligible to play up to 34 games in the WHL.
This will assist as well when it comes to shortages of players due to injuries, tournaments etc, that some teams have experienced over the past few years. It will be interesting to see how these simple rule changes will streamline everything going forward.
The biggest news on draft situations is that of Landon DuPont. Landon, who was granted exceptional status and drafted by Everett Silvertips, has remained unsigned. The Tips are still writing to announce a coach and GM for the team, and that is apparently the sticking point in the signing. However, with a month to go before the camps start and nothing has yet been announced is of great concern for Tips faithful. Only Connor Bedard has been granted the exceptional status until now, and the delay is something Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald noted in his column on June 11, 2024. The fact that this has gone on another month should be concerning to all when you’re trying to sell people tickets and advertising with limited time to go.
Great Information, Stuart!
Thank you