Pleading the 5th

For those who lost loved ones in Newtown Connecticut and for anyone who has a child. Please take a moment and make sure you tell those young and old how much you care about them.

Carlos Santana from 1976 with his plea to "Let the children play"



Our sympathies and prayers to all of those affected by Friday's events.

Brenden Kichton (Spokane Chiefs)

Friday night turned into a wild and exciting evening of hockey as the New York Ranger and New York Islanders play their way towards the holiday break. With teams missing key players, there were others who were being asked to step up and it was ironic the our stars of the night were both 2011 5th round picks.

First Star Brenden Kichton Spokane Chiefs

So there were Brenden Kichton (NYI 2011 5th) and his Spokane Chiefs trailing the Seattle Thunderbirds 6-2 just 97 seconds into the 3rd period. Things were looking bleak but Spokane caught a break getting a 5 on 3 power play for 46 seconds and that's when the fun began.

Kichton fed Mitch Holmberg who scored with just 2 seconds remaining in the 2 man advantage to make it 6-3 at the 8:09 mark. The duo combined again for a second power play goal at 14:31 to pull Spokane to 6-4.

At 17:09 Kichton once again set up Holmberg for a goal to make it a 1 goal game at 6-5. The Chiefs tied the game at 19:05 to force overtime. A 3 assist night for Kichton but he was not done.

Neither team could score in the overtime setting up a shootout period. Spokane shot first and Kichton was Spokane's 3rd shooter as the teams had a goal and a miss in their first 2 attempts.

Kichton made his attempt and Spokane's goalie Garret Hughson stopped the final shooter to give the Chiefs a 7-6 win. The win allowed Spokane to remain in 3rd place in the WHL's Western Conference 1 point better than the Kelowna Rockets.

For Kichton, the 3 assist evening was his 2nd of the season and the 6th time in his WHL career. Kichton leads the WHL in scoring by a defenseman with a 9-30-39 which is also good for 16th overall.

Kichton was named the game's 3rd star for his efforts.

Shane McColgan (Saskatoon Blades)

Second Star Shane McColgan Saskatoon Blades

So earlier on Friday I commented over at Blueseat Blogs about Shane McColgan (NYR 2011 5th) not having that impressive a season. Which of course means that McColgan has to go out and do something so I would have to eat my words.

Pass the salt as McColgan plays his best game of the season helping his Saskatoon Blades win their 5th straight game 4-3 over the Swift Current Broncos. McColgan had a 1-2-3 +3 evening earning the game's first star.

McColgan's first point of the night came when he set up linemate Josh Nicholls for a goal at 18:52 of the first period giving the Blades a 2-1 lead. McColgan's 2nd point of the game came in the 3rd period when he had a secondary assist on Nicholls 2nd goal of the game which gave the Blades a 3-2 lead.

The Broncos tied the game at 3-3 setting the stage for McColgan to play the hero. McColgan teamed with his newest linemate Nathan Burns and Nicholls on a really nice passing play that McColgan finished off with his 9th goal of the season at 11:21 for a 4-3 lead.

It was McColgan's 3rd game winner as the Blades improved to 4 games over 500 with a 18-14-0-1. McColgan also earned the Buzzing The Net's 3rd star as he is now 9-23-32 on the season.

The Rest of The Prospects

Adam Pelech (NYI 2012 3rd) and his Erie Otters made it 2 straight wins as the Otters handed the Kitchener Rangers a 6-2 loss on their home ice. Pelech did not score but was a +4 on the evening.

Still it was a huge evening for the Otters who matched their win total of last season with their 10th win (Stick Tap to Victor Fernandes of the season.

Andrey Pedan (NYI 2011 3rd) was scoreless as his Guelph Storm were defeated by the Sarnia Sting 4-2. The loss snapped a 3 game win streak for the Storm.

Samuel Noreau (NYR 2011 5th) and his Baie-Comeau Drakkar earned their 3rd straight win 6-2 over the Victoriaville Tigre. Noreau did not score but he was a +2 on 1 shot and got into his 3rd fight of the season.

Loic Leduc (NYI 2012 4th) and his Cape Breton Screaming Eagles dropped a 5-2 decision to the visiting Prince Edward Island Rocket. Leduc was scoreless, a -1 on 1 shot and took 2 minor penalties; one penalty led to a Rocket power play goal.

Scott Mayfield (NYI 2011 2nd) had the primary assist on his 10th ranked Denver Pioneers only goal as they skated to a 1-1 overtime tie with Bemidji State. It was a power play goal and for Mayfield it was his 5th assist of the season bringing him to 2-5-7 on the season.

Cristoval Nieves (NYR 2012 2nd) and his Michigan Wolverines dropped a 4-1 game to the 7th ranked Western Michigan Broncos 4-1. It was Nieves 7th assist of the season as he is 3-7-10 but his team is 5-9-2 on the season.