MacKinnon, Mooseheads vs. Jones, Winterhawks, set for Saturday: Tuesday’s coast-to-coast

Combing all corners of the country and the blogosphere for your junior hockey headlines ...

WHL

Off the ice, the Saskatoon Blades pulled out all the stops to get a place in the MasterCard Memorial Cup. (Saskatoon StarPhoenix)

Seventy per cent of of host teams reach the tournament final, so the Blades do have a big advantage. (Saskatoon StarPhoenix)

Portland Winterhawks coach Travis Green was "expecting maybe 20 people, or 50 people" to greet the Ed Chynoweth Cup champs when they arrived home. Instead there were an estimated 800. (The Oregonian)

What does Portland centre Taylor Leier have in store for a tournament in his hometown? (Oregon Live)

While scouts gush over Seth Jones, his D partner on the Winterhawks, Calgary Flames prospect Tyler Wotherspoon, is thriving as the quiet one on that shutdown pairing. (Calgary Herald)

Chances are, Edmonton Oil Kings assistant coach Steve Hamilton will be running someone's bench next season. (Edmonton Journal)

The dethroned Oil Kings have a decent enough nucleus to stay near the top of the Eastern Conference pack next season, writes John MacKinnon. (Edmonton Journal)

OHL

What Steve Clark said: "For the Memorial Cup committee to award a tournament to the same city for the second time in four bid processes is not exactly sharing the wealth and likely makes cities a little hesitant to exhaust their resources in a process with a low guarantee of success." (Thoughts From The Broadcast Booth, London Free Press)

London will be called champions, but there might be more enduring memory of how Barrie fought tooth and nail before losing two last-shot-wins games. (Barrie Examiner)

What's next for Winnipeg Jets prospect Mark Scheifele after leading the Barrie Colts to precipice of a Memorial Cup berth? (Arctic Ice Hockey)

As far as the London Knights rallying from 3-1 down goes, remember that Scott Harrington foreshadowed it. Smart guys, those guys from Kingston. (Knights Outright, London Free Press)

Erie Otters lease talks have stalled, reigniting rumours of a move to Chatham, Ont. (Chatham-Kent Sports Network)

Greg Gilbert, who was coach of the year in 2012, has a new deal with the Saginaw Spirit. (Saginaw News)

Guelph Storm first-rounder Garrett McFadden, of Kincardine, Ont., has signed on for his rookie season. (Bayshore Broadcasting)

QMJHL

No reason for Nathan MacKinnon to hide his feelings about playing against Jones on Saturday: "I'm a competitor and I want to prove I can be No. 1." (Metro Halifax)

Building a league champion in his hometown means the world to Halifax Mooseheads GM Cam Russell: "I’ve got to live in this town. When the season’s over, I’m not jumping in my car and heading to the States or Quebec." (Halifax Chronicle-Herald)

Trekking west means the Mooseheads get the dreaded 3-in-4 schedule: vs. Portland on Saturday, Saskatoon on Sunday and London on Tuesday. (CBC)

Monty Mosher has a should-read about former high school defenceman Benjamin Gray, who had to give up hockey after suffering three distinct brain injuries. (Halifax Chronicle-Herald)

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet. Please address any questions, comments or concerns to btnblog@yahoo.ca.