Game Day Preview: Winterhawks @ Americans

Friday February 7, 2014
Portland Winterhawks (36-13-2-3, 77 pts.) At Tri-City Americans (26-22-2-3, 57 pts.)
Toyota Center, Kennewick WA; 7:05 p.m. PST
Local Radio Broadcast: NewsTalk 870 AM, 6:45 p.m.
Watch: WHL Live

Previous Game

Portland: 02/01/14 vs. Seattle (3-0, Win)

Tri-City: 02/01/14 at Red Deer (4-2, Win)  

2013/14 Point Leaders

Portland: Nicolas Petan 26G-60A-86PT, Oliver Bjorkstrang 37G-39A-76PT, Brendan Leipsic 31G-36A-67PT

Tri-City: Brian Williams 33G-13A-46 PT , Phil  Tot 15G-21A-36PT , Lucas Nickles 14G-17A-31PT,

 

Game Overview

The Tri-City Americans host the U.S. Division rival Portland Winterhawks for the eighth of ten meetings this season. The Americans lead the all-time series with a record of 128-104-6-1 historically, while posting an efficient 76-40-2-1 record on home ice. So far this season, Tri-City holds a 3-3-1-0 record against Portland, playing tough against the team with the league’s third-best record.

Players to Watch

Portland:

Nicolas Petan- The Americans are faced with the tough task of stopping Petan who comes into tonight’s game with 86 points,  ranking first in the WHL with 60 assists and second in points behind only Spokane’s Mitch Holmberg. The British Columbia native has scored a goal and four assists in four games against Tri-City this season and has twice been held without a point.

Oliver Bjorkstrand- Another dangerous player the Americans will have to face tonight is Bjorkstrand who ranks second in the WHL goal scoring race and third in total points. The 18-year-old forward is averaging over a point a game against Tri-City this season, tallying four goals and four assists in seven head-to-head meetings.

Brendan Burke – Burke enters tonight’s game as the reigning CHL goaltender of the week where he recorded two shut outs. The Winterhawks net minder has a 2.82 goals against average this season, but the Americans have had success against him this season with three victories against him.

Tri-City:

Brian Williams- Williams continues to supply the Americans with consistent offense, leading the team with 33 goals this season. The California native is averaging a point a game against the Winterhawks this season, tallying six goals and an assist in seven meetings.   

Parker Bowles- It’s been nine games since Bowles returned from his second significant injury of the season and the 18-year-old hasn’t quite been able to find the touch that he had before going down in November. But, it is only a matter of time before the Kelowna native starts finding the scoring sheet on a regular basis.

Eric Comrie- The second half of tonight’s star studded goaltending matchup is Eric Comrie who is fresh of being named the WHL goaltender of the month. The 18-year-old allowed just 1.35 goals against in the month of January and currently ranks second in the WHL in both goals against average and save percentage.

Game Notes

Previous Game: The Americans are coming off of a 4-2 victory against the Red Deer Rebels to conclude its Alberta road trip last Saturday night. Mitch Topping scored the winning goal in the second period, playing in his home town of Red Deer for the last time in his WHL Career.  Eric Comrie made 27 saves, allowing only two goals on the night.  

Home Sweet Home: The Americans are looking to continue its hot streak at home, riding a season-high seven-game winning streak at the Toyota Center. Tri-City has a record of 18-8-1-0 on home ice and will look for another big one tonight as the WHL hits the three-quarter point of the season.

Six Games in Nine Nights: Tonight begins a busy stretch of the Americans schedule, where it will play six games in the next nine days. The team will play back-to-back games at home against Portland and Spokane before departing on a western conference road trip where it will visit Kamloops, Victoria, Seattle and Spokane.

Eric Comrie Named Goalie of the Month: This past week, Americans goaltender Eric Comrie was named the Vaughn WHL Goaltender of the month for January. The 18-year-old played in 11 games for Tri-City this past month, posting a 1.35 goals against average and a 0.962 save percentage. Comrie currently ranks second in the WHL in both goals against average and save percentage with a 2.29 and a 0.932 respectively.

Playoff Update: With 19 games remaining in the 2013-14 regular season, the Americans currently sit in the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Tri-City sits just three points back of the Everett Silvertips for the seventh spot and six points shy of the Vancouver Giants for the six seed in the west. With the Silvertips inactive tonight, a victory for the Americans would pull the team within one point of jumping its division rival.

Next Game

Tri-City: vs. Spokane 02/08/14

Portland: vs. Everett 02/08/14