Monday, October 15, 2007

The Latest...

Some league news first off. J.D Watt of the Red Deer Rebels has picked up a six game suspension for his hit to the head of Saskatoon's Teigan Zahn. The suspension came down today after it was announced as indefinite over the weekend.

Watt has sat out two games of the six. It appears the WHL is taking blows to the head more seriously. The hit in the Blades corner left Zahn unconscious as he laid motionless on the ice. The hit isn't visible from the webcast replay but the aftermath sure is. They must have had a different angle to review at the league level.

Could there be another suspension coming? Colton Tuebert of the Regina Pats hit Moose Jaw star Riley Holzapfel in open ice away from the puck last night. Moose Jaw didn't like the hit and took exception to Tuebert's action twice. Once when the incident happened and another at the end of the game when Riley Grantham attempted to get at him. It's a tough call. Not sure what the league will choose to do on this one.

-------------------

We had our "Monday Night Best Western Meet the Bronco" tonight at Kabos Family restaurant. Dale Wiese and Erik Felde were our guests from 5-7pm. We had some supper, talked to some fans and did some cut-ins.

I've known Dale quite well over the years and we always talk pretty open. It was my first real chance to talk to Erik other than the pre-game interview or casual chat on the bus.

Erik knows what he wants - team success which will equal personal success and a pro contract next season. I like to think I have a pretty good feel for someone who is able both mentally and physically to play pro next season and Erik fits the bill for sure.

He told me a lot about growing up in Anchorage, AK and his road to the WHL. It's quite interesting. He excited for our U.S. swing in December - he can act as our tour guide.

Dale was there sporting his thumb cast. He might be in action by the end of the month if all goes well but we'll wait and see. He just started to get hot when he suffered the thumb injury. I always get a sense of leadership and confidence with him.

He knows this year's team has the tools to be a contender. He calls our top two lines probably the best in the WHL right now. 40 goals in 10 games can back that up. Of course he's a big part of the that top six forward group and he will be missed.

Next week we will be at BP's... come down for a visit.

We're on the air Tuesday night at 7pm with the Bronco Big Show. Jeremy Schenderling will be my pre-game guest. The first thing he said to me today was "what is up with the Broncos?" in a very emphatic way. He's been keeping track and is quite pleased with their start. His regular season in Augusta, GA with the Lynx starts Friday night.

Jon

No comments: