Thorpe May Play Tonight
It goes largely unnoticed, but Ryan Thorpe is an important part of the makeup of the Spokane Chiefs.
Thorpe skated at practice Tuesday after missing Sunday’s collapse in Kelowna, British Columbia, where the Chiefs blew a two-goal lead in the final 9:30 and lost to the Rockets.
The Chiefs went through a brisk 45-minute workout Tuesday in preparation for tonight’s game in the Arena with the Brandon Wheat Kings. It’s their only game this week.
The injured shoulder that cost Thorpe all of last season has given him trouble this year. Whether he can go tonight was to be determined after a post-practice evaluation.
Although he’s listed with the league as indefinite with a shoulder injury, Thorpe wasn’t wearing a yellow, no-contact jersey at practice.
“If he feels like he can go, he’ll go,” Chiefs coach Perry Ganchar said. “It’s one of those situations where it’s how much he can take with it. I think he’s feeling better.”
The Chiefs are better with Thorpe in the lineup, the coach said.
“You don’t think about it until you look back at the last few games he’s been out,” the coach said. “We’ve been O.K. one night, not good another. Ryan is a big veteran who, when he’s playing his game, can dictate how things go at times.”
Thorpe could make a difference tonight. So would an effective Roman Tvrdon. Tvrdon hasn’t been awful, but his production - two goals in 11 games - is below expectations for the West’s top rookie a year ago.
Ganchar has mixed Tvrdon with different lines and spotted him in different positions in an effort to spark a breakout game from the Washington Capitals draft pick.
“We think we have guys in their best positions now, with the only exception maybe Roman,” Ganchar said. “We’re trying to move him around. We need all-around production from him, not just scoring.”
The Chiefs again spent too much time in their own end in Kelowna, where they wasted a strong night in goal by Barry Brust.
It was Spokane’s fourth game in five nights and third in a row. “That did catch up with us, but we had a 3-1 lead on the road,” Ganchar said, “and couldn’t hold on.
Family and friends were in nearby Kelowna to cheer him on.
“We felt bad we couldn’t get it done for him,” Ganchar said. “It’s kind of his hometown, with friends and family there. Brusty was phenomenal for us.”
Tyler MacKay, who has brought his numbers down a bunch since the start of the season, to a 3.66 goals-against average and an .882 save percentage, starts in goal tonight.
The Chiefs, who don’t play again until Nov. 4, sent 18-year-old right wing Darrel Stoddard home to Red Deer, Alberta. Stoddard wasn’t getting much ice time. The Chiefs are down to four healthy players over the maximum 20 who can suit for games.
This sidebar appeared with the story: NOTES Smith rides streak
Spokane center Tim Smith brings a nine-game point-scoring streak into tonight’s game. Only four others in the WHL have longer ongoing streaks, including Kootenay’s Mike Comrie, who has points in 14 straight… . Kurt Sauer leads the Chiefs in plus/minus with a plus-5. Plus/minus measures the difference between even-strength goals scored and goals against when a given player is on the ice. … Shawn Thompson has the worst plus/minus rating, at minus-7. … The Wheat Kings made the trip west without ex-Tri-City import Milan Bartovic, who’s out indefinitely with a shoulder injury. … Jared Alin, who scored the game-winning goal in Kamloops’ 5-3 win over Spokane Friday night, notched the game-winner the following night at Tri-City.