The Kelowna Rockets have long been bracing themselves for the possibility Tyler Myers and Colin Long have played their last games in the Western Hockey League.

Their permanent departures seemed a little more likely this week as both players gained a vote of confidence from their respective NHL cubs.

The 6-foot-8 Myers survived the Buffalo Sabres last cuts on Wednesday, while Long signed a three-year entry level deal with the Phoenix Coyotes.

Long is will start the 2009-10 regular season with the Coyotes’ American Hockey League affiliate in San Antonio.

“Colin’s goal was to go there, get himself a contract and play pro,” said Rockets head coach Ryan Huska. “Now it’s up to him to make sure he stays and, I think the longer he is there, the less likely we are to see him back with us.”

In Myers’ case, the lanky blue liner will begin the season in Buffalo where he can play in nine games before the Sabres will need to make a decision whether to keep him, or return him to the Rockets.

Once Myers plays in his 10th NHL game, the first year of his entry-level deal would take effect and would be counted against Buffalo’s salary cap.

As a 19-year-old, Myers isn’t eligible to play in the AHL.

Whatever decision is made on Myers’ future, Rockets GM Bruce Hamilton is confident the Sabres will make the right one.

“They’ll decide after nine games whether they want to burn a year of his contract and keep him there, or send him back” said Hamilton. “We learned last year with Luke Schenn (Toronto Maple Leafs) not to count on anything. The way the Sabres have done things in the past, you can be pretty sure they’ll do what’s in the best interest of Tyler Myers.

“If he does come back, we’ll make room for him,” Hamilton added, tongue in cheek.

Unfortunately not all NHL clubs are as considerate of what’s best for young players as the Sabres are, according to Hamilton.

The Rockets GM points to several players from the 2007 NHL draft class who were rushed into the NHL last year as 19-year-olds, including Brandon Sutter (Carolina, Red Deer WHL), Colton Gillies (Minnesota, Saskatoon WHL), and Oscar Moeller (Los Angeles, Chilliwack WHL).

All three will start the 2009-10 campaign in the American Hockey League.

“They all played last year in the NHL and now suddenly, they’re not good enough this year ?” said Hamilton, who is also the Western Hockey League’s chairman of the board. “How does that work? When you look at some of the kids they kept last year, it didn’t help the player or the team. (Colton) Gillies sat on the bench in Minnesota, he should have been in Saskatoon. Look what happened with (Gilbert) Brule in Columbus a few years back, they brought him in at 18 and he’s still trying to catch up.

“The Canucks had it right when they sent Cody Hodgson back (to the OHL) because they didn’t feel he was ready,” added Hamilton. “If players are ready and the teams play them, like they did with Luke Schenn, that’s fine. But it just makes sense to let the players develop properly. If we’re truly the NHL’s partner, then we need to find a better way of doing things.”

Barrie healing

On the good news front for the Rockets, an MRI this week revealed only a sprain to Tyson Barrie’s knee. The 18-year-old defenceman, who was injured last Friday in Kamloops, is expected to miss two to three weeks of action. It was feared Barrie had suffered possible damage to the meniscus and might miss two to three months.

D Mitchell Chapman (shoulder) is expected to be out another two to three weeks, while F Max Adolph (ankle) will miss about a month.

whenderson@kelownacapnews.com