Generals, Eagles Seek To Host 2017 Allan Cup

The Bentley Generals hosted the Allan Cup in 2013
and hope to do so again in 2017

The 2017 Allan Cup championship tournament finds itself without a host.

Both the Bentley (soon to be Lacombe) Generals and Innisfail Eagles hope to fix that. 

The Kenora Thistles, who hosted the Allan Cup in 2011, were to do so again next year. That changed when the Thistles suddenly folded this month. Team President Gary Forsyth confirmed the news through a post to the Allan Cup message board.

In light of the news, Hockey Canada has issued a nation-wide call to find a replacement host for the 2017 tournament. Both the Generals and Eagles, along with Stony Plain, will be bidding to take over from Kenora.

Rebels Confident Their Shelves Remain Well-Stocked Following Trades

Shaun Sutter

“The Red Deer Rebels are selling the farm to load up for the Memorial Cup!”

This has been a common refrain from pundits near and far in wake of the blockbuster trades the Rebels have made over the past couple of weeks.

There’s a concern out there that the Rebels are doomed to follow the lead of the Saskatoon Blades in going all out now by giving away their future. (We all know how that worked out for them )

Team brass, however, is confident in their belief that the Rebels cupboard for next year and beyond is not as empty as many believe.

Assistant GM Shaun Sutter spoke with Cam Moon during Wednesday night’s broadcast on 106.7 The Drive of the Rebels’ 5-0 win in Saskatoon. Sutter presented the team’s case that they are indeed not talent-strapped for the post-Memorial Cup era.

“A lot of people see what’s going out the door, the abundance of draft picks and players going out,” Sutter noted. “But, we’ve accumulated an abundance of draft picks for this reason, to hopefully keep our younger players in the fold, those on our roster and those who aren’t on our team, so we can have success down the line.”

REBELS: Skill and Size improved with additions of DeBrusk and Rattie

There's no secret about what Taden Rattie is expected to bring to the Red Deer Rebels.

The team acquired Rattie's WHL rights from Portland Monday in exchange for a 4th round pick in the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft. Rattie reported to the Rebels Tuesday morning. 

He's here to make his imposing presence felt and make the Rebels a tougher team to play against, and Rattie has the credentials.

"My size factor, they [Brent and Shaun Sutter] talked about it," Rattie said prior to his first practice with the Rebels. "I'm 6'4" so I've got to use my body out there, finish checks and just forecheck hard and do what I can."

The Airdrie native has racked up 297 penalty minutes in 87 career games in the AJHL, including 142 in 34 games with the Calgary Mustangs this season (3rd in the league).

It's Official, Bentley Generals Moving to Lacombe

Photo: Rod Ince, Fast Photo

The Bentley Generals will moving base camp a few miles east next year.

Lacombe City Council voted unanimously Monday to approve a $3.4-million plan to build new dressing rooms for the Barnett Arena, including a new team area for the Generals.

Team officials weren't sure what to expect ahead of Monday's vote. They were relieved once council approved the plan following a short discussion.

In response to questions from a couple of city councillors, Generals officials at Monday's meeting said they will make their new area available for use by other groups during their off-season. Negotiations will take place over the coming months.

The two sides will also look at how they can work together on fundraising endeavors for the arena expansion. Council is optimistic the project can be done for less than the budget $3.4-million.

Work on the new dressing rooms is expected to this spring and be completed in time for the Generals to play in Lacombe full-time next season.

Bentley Generals On Verge of Moving to Lacombe

The Bentley Generals, two-time Allan Cup champions, await a vote from Lacombe City Council on Monday that would pave the way for them to relocate there next season.

Team officials say they have held on long enough (too long, perhaps) but a move is needed in order to keep the club competitive moving forward.

My story on the impending council vote and potential move...

http://www.1067thedrive.fm/news/bentley-generals-on-verge-of-relocating-to-lacombe/

Rebels Prospects Update

The Red Deer Rebels continue to build toward the future in addition to their mission to win the 2016 Mastercard Memorial Cup they’ll be hosting in May.

The goal is to return to being the perennial championship contender they were in the early 2000’s. For that to happen, you need not only to have a strong current roster but also a full cupboard of prospects.

Cam Moon, being the legendary voice of the Rebels that he is, recently sat down for a chat with Shaun Sutter, Assistant GM and Director of Player Personnel. Sutter, as he does so well, gave Mooner a rundown of some prospects that are off to strong starts this season.

“A lot of guys are playing well and that’s what we want to see,” Sutter said. “We want to see progress and development throughout the year in areas where guys want to work on and where they need to improve.”

“Internally, there is probably as much talk about next year and what we have inside our organization for what we are building going ahead because we are striving toward being a contending team every year and these guys are going to be a part of that.”

Here’s what Shaun had to say about some of them, starting with a hometown Red Deerian…

REBELS: Big Men, Young and Old, Looking To Make Statements This Season

We’ve known for four years that Kayle Doetzel is one of the toughest defencemen to play against in the entire Western Hockey League.

His hard hitting, dependable play in his own zone earned him Rebels Defenceman of the Year honours last year. Now, the 20-year-old blueliner is looking to add more dimensions to his game.

“I worked a lot on my mobility and puck work,” Doetzel said Tuesday regarding his work in the off-season. “For a bigger guy, that’s something you need is to be able to catch some of the smaller guys [in the league].”

Doetzel also said he’s worked hard to become an even more physical player. So, there’s that.

The Rosedale, Saskatchewan native has plenty to prove heading into the new season. After receiving NHL camp invites each of the past two year from Nashville and Toronto, Doetzel found himself left out this year while eight of his Rebels teammates left to skate with big league clubs.

His coach says his first step in getting back on the pro scene is to get off to a strong start to the year.

 “He’s got a history since he was here as a young guy that he doesn’t play to his abilities that both he and we would like [early in the season],” says Brent Sutter. “In the last half, he turns it around and gets going. That’s probably affected him to some degree as to why he’s not at a pro camp this year.”

It is the expectation of both Sutter and Doetzel for #8 to be a standout among what could be the deepest defense corps in the WHL Eastern Conference.

“We’re expecting him to be a leader for us,” says Sutter. “We’re expecting him to be a shutdown defenceman and be a big, strong, solid guy that can log some big minutes. Then, perhaps he can sign a pro tryout again next year and maybe sign a pro contract.”

---

While it’s still only the preseason, Austin Pratt seems to be making a smooth transition to major junior hockey.

The six-foot-two Shattuck’s St. Mary’s alum scored once in each Rebels preseason game this past weekend, a 5-3 win over Tri-City and a 5-3 loss to Spokane.

“He certainly has been good,” Sutter admits. “He’s a big body but his conditioning has been really good and he’s played a hard game, and that’s what he has to play.”

While comfortable, Pratt says his first taste of WHL preseason action has been a learning experience.

“I’ve been expecting it but how hard the hits are and how big and fast the guys are, it still takes time to get used to.”

As far as Sutter is concerned, the sky’s the limit for the Minnesota native.

“When he’s moving and engaged and finishing his checks he can do a lot of things that other 16-year-olds can’t.”

Pratt has been mostly playing on a line with Grayson Pawlenchuk and Jeff De Wit. This will likely continue this weekend as the Rebels take their shorthanded lineup into their final two preseason games Friday versus Edmonton (in Red Deer) and Saturday versus Medicine Hat (in Stettler).

---

** Keep an eye on @RebelsThisWeek and @247RedDeer for video stories on Doetzel, Pratt and this weekend's final preseason games.