Slumping Chiefs Are At Least Scoring Well Off The Ice

Spirited practices and a strong scholastic report highlighted the Spokane Chiefs’ week away from Western Hockey League action.

But as encouraging as workouts have been, and as good as coach Mike Babcock feels about his team’s classroom performance, the fundamental priority remains.

“Nobody pays to watch us go to school,” Babcock said as the Chiefs prepared for tonight’s game in the Arena with the improving Tri-City Americans. “We’ve got to get it turned around on the ice.”

The Chiefs have lost three straight and are a woeful 3-10-1 since Nov. 6. They’ve dropped from first into a tie for third in the West Division, only four points up on the fifth-place Kelowna Rockets - a 6-4 winner over Prince George on Wednesday night - and six up on the sixth-place Kamloops Blazers.

The Chiefs, who don’t need any more bad news, took another hit this week in the injury department when they lost Kris Graf and Marc Brown. Graf broke his hand in Sunday night’s loss to the Swift Current Broncos. Brown has a knee injury. Both forwards are out indefinitely.

Tri-City was without Mike Hurley in Tuesday night’s 4-3 loss to Swift Current. Hurley injured a shoulder in Saturday night’s 5-1 win over Spokane and is listed as day-to-day. Curtis Capjack is out with a fractured leg.

The loss of Graf may affect the balance of power in a series that grew nastier Saturday night in Kennewick, when in the last 3:14 eight fights broke out. Graf and Tri-City tough guy Shawn Legault have squared off in four of the previous six meetings between the two.

Without Graf to spar with, Legault may feel downright left out in Spokane.

The Chiefs were back at the drawing board this week, “practicing more times than there are days (in the week),” Babcock said. “I was very satisfied with what I saw. We’ll get her turned around.”

Marc Magliarditi gets the start in goal for the Chiefs.

With Graf out, the good news is that Jay Bertsch continues his comeback from a recurrence of the trauma-induced migraines that plagued him earlier in his career.

The Americans, who are coming off a Tuesday night 4-3 loss to Swift Current, are 1-12-2 on the road but 3-5-2 in their last 10 overall.

Left wing Ken McKay, picked up two weeks ago in a trade with Red Deer, had one of the Ams’ three goals against Swift.

Tri-City this week also added left wing/ center Roman Pylner, an 18-year-old seventh-round draft pick of the Colorado Avalanche. The Ams got him for future considerations from Calgary, where he had four assists in 20 games.

The lukewarm turnaround in Tri-City can be traced to an improved power play. It began when coach Bob Loucks put Zenith Komarniski and Brent Ascroft on the point of the PP. The Americans have scored power-play goals in 10 straight games.

As for the Chiefs in class, Babcock said the team grade-point is 3.0, the best it’s been in his three seasons here.

“You always have a few problem children but overall it’s been excellent,” he said.

Around the WHL

As expected, former Spokane assistant Parry Shockey will return to the Arena on Jan. 22 as coach of the East/Central team in the league’s all-star game… . Sergei Varlamov, who had a goal and an assist in Swift Current’s 2-1 win here Sunday night, is the league’s player of the week… . The Chiefs are in a tailspin but attendance doesn’t reflect it. The Chiefs are averaging 7,159, up slightly from last year’s record… . WHL owners are expected to return to interlocking play next season when they meet during all-star week here in January. That way, fans get to see every club in the league… . Owners rejected an application this week from Boise, according to the Regina Leader-Post’s Rob Vanstone, who quotes a WHL source as saying, “Boise is just too far removed.” … Boise’s new 5,000-seat building may become the new home of a West Coast Hockey League franchise next fall, but don’t count the WHL out. “Boise is off the table now but that doesn’t mean we won’t be discussing it again,” commissioner Dev Dley said. “We never slam the door in anybody’s face. Some of the unresolved issues involve travel.” … Travel strains could be relieved somewhat by realignment, with Boise, Spokane, Tri-City, Portland and Seattle in a South Division.

, DataTimes