Four-goal second period sparks Spokane past Portland
Goals from Marcus Nguyen and James Stefan couldn’t overcome a second-period stumble as the Hawks fell 6-2 in Spokane.
Game #52: Portland (2) at Spokane (6)
SOG: POR (27) – SPO (36)
PP: POR (1/5) – SPO (1/6)
Saves: Giannuzzi (16/21), Špunar (14/14) – Cowan (25/27)
COMPLETE BOX SCORE
SCORING:
- SPO – 7:48 – First Period – Mac Gross (7) from Jake Gudelj and Kooper Gizowski
- POR – 14:43 – First Period – Marcus Nguyen (18) from Marek Alscher and Aidan Litke
- SPO – 0:35 – Second Period – Berkly Catton (15) from Chase Bertholet and Cade Hayes
- SPO – 4:36 – Second Period – Grady Lane (4) from Kooper Gizowski and Raegan Wiles
- SPO – 5:37 – Second Period – Ty Cheveldayoff (18) from Berkly Catton and Jake Gudelj
- SPO – 7:09 – Second Period – Berkly Catton (16) from Raegan Wiles and Chase Bertholet
- POR – 6:06 – Third Period – James Stefan (21) from Gabe Klassen and Luca Cagnoni
- SPO – 19:12 – Third Period – Cade Hayes (13) *EN
The Story:
The Winterhawks (36-12-2-2) tallied twice but a dominant middle frame by the Spokane Chiefs (10-35-2-4) saw them take a 6-2 win on home ice on Wednesday.
Spokane grabbed the game’s first goal early in the first as Mac Gross snuck a puck in from a tight angle. The Winterhawks soon punched back, though, on Marcus Nguyen’s 18th of the year. As the Hawks finished up a power play, Nguyen collected a pass at the bottom of the left circle and rifled a shot into the roof of the net to knot things at one heading into the break.
The Chiefs’ rampant second stanza kicked off early as Berkly Catton grabbed his first of two in the period just 35 seconds in, followed four minutes later by Grady Lane and 61 seconds after that by Ty Cheveldayoff. Catton capped off the second-period flurry at 7:09 to push Spokane’s lead to 5-1.
After that tough middle 20, the Winterhawks bounced back with a strong push and got back on the board with a James Stefan power-play goal at 6:06. Luca Cagnoni and Gabe Klassen played a bit of catch on the left side before Portland’s captain wove through the defense from the top of the zone and dished a no-look pass to Stefan on the right wing for an easy finish. The comeback bid ended there, though, as Dawson Cowan and the Chiefs held strong in their own zone and added an empty-netter for a 6-2 win.
Portland’s road trip rolls on with a cross-border matchup against Kelowna at Prospera Place on Saturday.
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT presented by BBF TECHNOLOGIES:
“We know we’ve been playing well as of late, with tonight being the exception. I think we know what we’re capable of and how we can play. We know every team in this league is good and every night is a different challenge. We’re confident with our game and we’re just trying to get it going on this road trip.”
Winterhawks forward Gabe Klassen
