OffSides (The Official Magazine of the WHL) -------------------------------------------------------- Editors Note ----------------- Welcome to what promises to be the best WHL season ever. Over the course of the season I will attempt to bring the news of the WHL to you, the general managers, in a timely manner. I am always accepting contributions for the weekly from other GMs so feel free to send me anything. The weekly will appear roughly every five games or so. So good luck to everyone and let the games begin. Team News --------------- The Kingston Corinthians Now that the training camping camp is done, the management of the Kingston Corinthians has confirmed the rumour that all of the teams coaching staff has been signed to a 3 years contract prolongation. The terms have not been issued to the press. That means that Marc Hebert will keep both the position of GM and coach of the team. Assisting him with the defensive aspect of the game is former WHLer Brad McCrimmon, in his second season in this role. Rich Sutter will still be coaching the Quebec City Blizzard. Dan Sager who was assisting him last season will not be back this year. It is rumored the Sager might get promoted to a head coach position in the WFHL, possibly with the Des Moines Dominators WFHL affiliate. Kevin Lowe who was player/coach with the Blizzard is now moving on to a new step in his career, hanging up his skates. He will now be taking full time duty as Rich Sutters assistant, replacing Sager in this position. He will be expected to take special care of defensemen Mathieu Biron and Stephen Peat, 2 of the best defensive prospects in the Corinthians organisation, along with working with the Blizzards goaltending prospects Jose Theodore, J.F. Damphousse, Tyler Moss, Martin Biron and Philippe de Rouville. The coaching staff has also confirmed Keith Tkachuk in his captaincy, and Sylvain Lefebvre and Mats Sundin in the assistant roles. The Blizzards captain will be last minute cut Stephane Morin. The assistants will be Stephen Leach and Patrick Poulin. Around the League ------------------------ As the WHL begins their fourth season of play it is important to note that there were three franchise shifts during the off-season. After two disappointing seasons sandwiching one playoff appearance, Kevin Beilner sold the Fort Saskatchewan Fury to Chris Kordyback and King Kong Bundy Entertainment. The club relocated to Hartford where they were christened the Dropkicks. Jon Lemoine purchased the Minneapolis Monarchs from Andreas Larsson and moved them to hockey-mad Missisauga which is already home to the Vipers. The Icedogs will have to compete with not only the Vipers but perennial Cyber Cup favourites the Toronto Stallions for the hockey dollar in southern Ontario. Throw in the Hamilton Steelcats and the Kingston Corinthians and you can expect fierce rivalries based on geography alone. Brad Schott purchased the Oakland Roses from the elusive Eric VT just a short week before the start of the season and has moved them to Southampton where they will be called the Seagulls. Alot of big names changed teams over the summer including WHL2 MVP Eric Lindros who was traded twice, first to the Voodoo in a deal that saw Brian Leetch and Ziggy Palffy head to Albany and then to Edmonton with Brendan Shanahan and Niklas Lidstrom moving to Vancouver and rejoining the Voodoo organization. Kris Pongratz moved Pavel Bure from the Cyber Cup champion Surrey Strangers with Peter Bondra among a handful of bodies joining the champs. Alex Mogilny left the Toronto Stallions and is now suiting up for the Spokane Chiefs. Those are only a few of the many deals that dominated the WHL headlines during the off-season. 48 trades were made during the WHL off-season and several will have an impact on the final standings. The Calder Watch ----------------------- Rookies have always made big splashes in the WHL and this year promises to be no different. Defenceman Nick Boynton was traded to the Kingston Corinthians last winter after being selected 25th overall by the Vikings in the WHL3 Entry Draft. He has bulked up considerably and looks like he will play alot of minutes for a very talented Corinthian team. Boyd Devereaux has also appeared to make the Corinthians and will kill penalties and play a defensive role. Dont expect alot of points from the Boyd Wonder but he could prove to be among the most effective rookies in the league. The Voodoo will regularly dress tough defenceman Brad Ference who will be expected to replace Vlad Konstantinovs physical presence on the Vancouver blueline. Roberto Luongo will split the minutes with Corey Hirsch in Vancouver but could be #1 sooner than expected. The Steelcats will once again boast one of the youngest teams in the league and centers Josh Holden and Olli Jokinen as well as right-winger Cameron Mann will all play a major role with the club. Furthermore defencemen Derek Morris and Daniil Markov will be regulars after being selected in the WHL4 Entry Draft. It will probably be a long season in Hartford but the Dropkicks are very pleased with the progress Tom Poti has shown in his first pro training camp. Look for big numbers from this defencemen before too long. Mike Johnson is expected to replace Owen Nolan for the Seagulls in Sothampton and will be a more than effective two-way player. The Boston Agents are counting on 3rd overall selection and former Hobey-Baker Recipient Brendan Morrison to play a major role in their rebuilding this season. Game of the Week ------------------------ Day 3, Strangers at Lunatics. A rematch of last years thrilling Cyber Cup Finals will give both teams an early indication of where they are at competetively in regards to one another. Both are again among the Cyber Cup favourites and will be looking to assert some dominance early in the season. Teams on the Rise ----------------------- 1) The Hamilton Steelcats. Their young players keep improving and they are backstopped by Martin Brodeur. Although not quite ready to make a run at the Cup, they will be an exciting team to watch and could make some noise in the playoffs. 2) The Edmonton Vikings. At least they should be, predicted to be among the leagues best a year ago the Vikings fell flat on their faces and missed the playoffs altogether. By bringing in Eric Lindros and Owen Nolan among others, the Vikes once again boast a 1st line that is among the leagues best and very good depth. Barring a dressing room revolt this team should be right up there with the Strangers and Voodoo in the very tough Smythe Division. 3) The Spokane Chiefs. The Chiefs have a nice balance of youth and experience and skill at every position. Adam Oates is among the leagues best playmakers and he seems to be comfortable in Spokane. This team could be hurt by having to play Vancouver, Surrey, Edmonton and Penticton 4 times a piece but have the ability to hurt those teams as well. Teams on the Decline --------------------------- 1) The Albany Mallrats. This team will go into the season without #66 and #88, Leetch and Palffy are good but without the supporting cast they had in Vancouver wont be enough to get the Rats into the playoffs. 2) The Philadelphia Freeze. The Freeze have won the Norris Division 2 years running with good coaching and solid contributions from 20 players night in and night out. Eventually the lack of talent on their roster will have to catch up to them. The Norris does remain the weakest division in the WHL though so their drop-off may not be as noticeable during the regular season. 3) The Vancouver Voodoo. Huh? The Voodoo are still among the leagues best but Patrick Marleau isnt Doug Weight yet and the Voodoo will not have a regular season like they did a year ago.