Chiefs Hot, But Goalie Topic Hotter
They’re the hottest road club in the Western Hockey League, by far.
Coming off another successful trip, the Spokane Chiefs find themselves tied for first in the West this week, largely due to their 9-2 record away from the Arena.
Although they’re a lukewarm 7-4-1 at home, there’s a lot to like about the Chiefs a quarter of the way into the season.
So why all the mumbling about the goaltender?
Talk to almost any Chiefs fan - or media types around the league - and the question comes up.
Is Aren Miller a Memorial Cup goaltender?
More specifically, are the Chiefs prepared to play as the host team in major junior hockey’s Final Four with Miller in net?
General manager Tim Speltz is not one to judge players in public. Nor is he one to duck a question. He says he’ll look at any available experienced player who can help the club at the championship level.
Goaltenders included.
Speltz also stands behind Miller, who this week dropped out of the WHL’s top 15 in saves percentage.
Miller is at .891. Three clubs have two goalies their starter and the backup - with a better number.
Speltz is not pushing the panic button.
Is Miller a Memorial Cup goaltender?
“Yes,” Speltz said. “We feel Aren has the qualities to be a Memorial Cup goaltender. He hasn’t proven that yet, but at the same time he’s going to get the opportunity to make the normal adjustments and improvements that come out of a season.”
There is only one goaltender in the league who has proven he can win a Memorial Cup, Speltz said. That’s Randy Petruk of Kamloops, “and he did it behind a fantastic defense when he was 16 years old,” the GM said.
One recurring rumor is that Kamloops, going nowhere, would send Petruk to Spokane for the right package.
That one was bounced off Speltz Tuesday.
“I’ve never heard that he’s available,” Speltz said. “That makes it a hypothetical question, one of those if things.”
If hypothetical were to become reality - if Petruk, or Donovan Nunweiler of Moose Jaw becomes available - the Chiefs would probably have to take a hard look. Nunweiler stopped 45 shots the other night to beat Portland.
It was a deal for a goaltender, remember Trevor Kidd, that put the Chiefs over the top in ‘91, their only previous Memorial Cup season.
Notes
Miller, incidentally, moved into fourth place in the Chiefs’ record book in minutes played in goal, ahead of Barry Becker. He’s fourth on the Chiefs’ all-time list in victories with 45, six behind David Lemanowicz. Scott Bailey holds the club record with 67 W’s…. With 91 goals in four seasons in Spokane, Greg Leeb is about to take his place among the Chiefs’ top 10 goal scorers over the 13 seasons the club has been here. Leeb is two goals behind No. 10 Joe Cardarelli. He’s 10th and moving up in career assists with 129, five away from John Cirjak and seven from Jason Podollan. … Slovakian hockey officials have asked if the Chiefs will release Marian Cisar for the World Junior Tournament. The Chiefs gave their blessing but Cisar hasn’t started packing just yet. The Slovakians asked last year, too. The Chiefs said O.K. - and never heard from them again… . Observers in Moose Jaw praised the play of the Chiefs’ little-used left wing Justin Ossachuk, who had an assist in Spokane’s 5-4 overtime win… . Rookie Brandin Cote scored in each of the Chiefs four road games last week… . The Moose Jaw Warriors returned Chris Lane to Spokane, but don’t look for the big defenseman here anytime soon. He won’t be added to the roster. At last glance he was playing in the Rocky Mountain League with the Cranbrook Colts.
Ex-Chiefs check
Sean Gillam, who captained the ‘96 division championship team here, is establishing himself with the Detroit Red Wings’ club in Glen Falls, N.Y., the Adirondack Red Wings. Gillam is a regular on the penalty kill and has assumed the role as the club’s most consistent defenseman… . Left wing Cardarelli has had a tougher adjustment. Cardarelli played a regular shift in his first 10 games with Adirondack but has not dressed for the last seven games. Adirondack is owned by the Red Wings but also serves as the AHL affiliate for the Tampa Bay Lightning, who own the rights to Cardarelli. The feeling is that Cardarelli may be headed to Tampa Bay’s East Coast League farm in Chesapeake, in Upper Marlboro, Md., near Washington, D.C… . After a brief visit with the NHL Phoenix Coyotes, Central Valley High grad Scott Levins is back with the AHL Springfield Falcons in a big way. Levins scored the tying goal from in front of the net with five seconds left against Hartford last week.
Around the WHL …
The WHL office is investigating an incident in Prince George that reportedly cost a radio sports director a $550 tape recorder. Doug Hobson, formerly the coach in Prince George, is interim coach in Red Deer. After he took a 6-2 loss in PG, Hobson allegedly took the recorder from Hartley Miller and tossed it on the floor. Miller told the Regina Leader-Post that he asked the coach for some comments and Hobson “went berserk.” WHL vice-president Rick Doerksen said league action will probably come in some form… . The Lethbridge Hurricanes lost leading scorer Jason Hegberg for 4-6 weeks to a broken collarbone. The Hurricanes center apparently lost an edge skating in practice and fell into a goalpost.
, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: ON THE ICE Friday: Seattle at Spokane Chiefs, 7 p.m., Spokane Arena