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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Chiefs Open Run Without Top Defenders

Their short-handed phase starts tonight.

The Spokane Chiefs will be without two of their top four defensemen when the Western Hockey League club takes on the East Division-leading Swift Current Broncos in the Arena.

Brad Ference and Zenith Komarniski left Thursday for selection camp with Team Canada, hoping to play for their country in the World Junior Tournament. Tryouts started Friday in Kitchener, Ontario.

Should they make it - and Chiefs coach Mike Babcock guessed this week that both would - their scheduled return is not until Jan. 4. The exodus continues after tonight, when winger Ty Jones heads out for tryouts with Team USA.

“I’ve been ready for this since last summer,” Jones said. “It’s a good opportunity for everybody who’s leaving, and a good opportunity for the young guys to step up.”

The immediate concern here is filling the back end.

“Ron Grimard and Dan Vandermeer will play (for Ference and Komarniski),” Chiefs coach Mike Babcock said. “So it’ll be Grimard, (Kyle) Rossiter, Vandermeer, (Perry) Johnson and (15-year-old) Cole Fischer. We’ll be fine.”

Around the WHL

Swift Current brings in the WHL’s leading scorer, free agent Sergei Varlamov, and the league’s top scoring defenseman, Michal Rozsival… . The Chiefs hope to avenge a 6-3 loss at Swift Current on Nov. 15 and reverse a negative trend. The Broncos have taken three straight from Spokane over the last two seasons… . It was feared that Perry Johnson suffered a separated shoulder in Wednesday night’s win over Red Deer, but Babcock said the veteran defenseman will play tonight. Johnson left the game early because “we were up so much it made no sense (to leave him in)”… Greg Leeb has 16 points in in his last nine games. … Deposed Tri-City Americans coach Bob Loucks is running the Lake Charles (La.) Ice Pirates in the Western pro league.

Ex-Chiefs check

Hugh Hamilton, last year’s Chiefs captain, scored his first goal as a pro last week, nailing a shot from the point of the power play in the Beasts of New Haven’s 6-3 American Hockey League win at Providence. Although Hamilton’s goal came with the extra attacker on, he’s not a regular on the club’s specialty teams. He is, however, making strides. “It’s a bigger adjustment to go from college or junior to your first year in this league, than it is to go from this league after you’re developed, to the NHL,” said New Haven assistant coach Joe Patterson… . Hamilton is on the bubble between playing as the fourth and fifth defenseman. … It’s been a tough season for tough guy Kevin Sawyer with the International League’s Michigan K-Wings. He was suspended for 12 games after leaving the bench to fight on Nov. 12. When the suspension was cut to five games, Sawyer returned on Nov. 29 to pick up an assist, his first point of the season. When he is on the ice, Sawyer piles up the penalty minutes. He’s spent 127 minutes in the box in only 16 games.

A source in the International League says goaltender Marc Magliarditi made a “big mistake” leaving Western Michigan University for junior hockey. Magliarditi came to Spokane to start last season but was traded to Red Deer. Since then, moving has become a way of life. He’s now with the Columbus Chill in the East Coast League after shuffling, in two months, between Detroit, Fort Wayne and Indianapolis in the International League. “He owned the Central Collegiate league,” the source said. “He saw the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. He should have stayed where he was.” Magliarditi has an elevated 4.06 goals-against average with a .877 saves percentage in two games with the struggling Columbus club.

As expected, left wing Joe Cardarelli was sent to the ECHL Chesapeake Icebreakers last week. “The coaches (at Adirondack in the American League) liked his work ethic and his understanding of the game, and he improved his skating skills,” said Greg Hallaman of the Red Wings. But he can’t, or didn’t, create scoring chances. He had like 18 shots in 15 games, and I don’t remember him getting robbed on any of them.” … Sean Gillam continues to develop with Adirondack. He’s a minus2 but Hallaman says, “That’s terrific on this team. We just don’t score. It’s not a horrible team - we’re 11-14-2 - but we live and die by the power play.” Gillam doesn’t play on the power play.

, DataTimes