RECAP: Hawks win Game 4, take 3-1 series lead
Another fast start helped the Hawks to a key 5-2 victory in Game 4 as they moved to within one win of a berth in the WHL Championship.
Round 3, Game 4: Portland (5) vs. Prince George (2) [POR leads series 3-1]
SOG: POR (39) – PG (28)
PP: POR (1/4) – PG (2/3)
Saves: Špunar (26/28) – Young (34/39)
COMPLETE BOX SCORE
SCORING:
- POR – First Period – 9:20 – Gabe Klassen (4) from James Stefan and Nate Danielson
- POR – First Period – 15:44 -Diego Buttazzoni (2) from Josh Zakreski and Tyson Jugnauth
- PG – Second Period – 12:47 – Hudson Thornton (5) from Ondrej Becher and Riley Heidt
- POR – Second Period – 16:48 – Marcus Nguyen (5) from Nate Danielson and Tyson Jugnauth
- POR – Third Period – 5:38 – Marcus Nguyen (6) from Jack O’Brien and Nate Danielson
- PG – Third Period – 12:32 – Hudson Thornton (6) from Koehn Ziemmer and Ondrej Becher
- POR – Third Period – 14:53 – Nate Danielson (4) from Jack O’Brien and Marcus Nguyen
The Story:
Four points from Nate Danielson and three from Marcus Nguyen highlighted Portland’s second win of the week as the Hawks took a 5-2 win over the Prince George Cougars in Game 4 of their best-of-seven Western Conference Championship series.
Portland now holds a 3-1 series lead and can win the series with a victory in Game 5 tomorrow night.
The Hawks opened the scoring on a power-play bullet from Gabe Klassen at 9:20 of the first, then made it 2-0 heading into intermission as Josh Zakreski sent a one-handed pass through the crease to a wide-open Diego Buttazzoni at the back door.
Prince George responded midway through the second with Hudson Thornton’s first of two on the night, but Nguyen returned fire to restore his team’s two-goal lead before the break. The 19-year-old then posted his second straight multi-goal game with another strike early in the third, capitalizing on some slick passing with Danielson and Jack O’Brien.
Thornton again gave the Cougars life from there, but Danielson was quick to snuff it out with his fourth of the postseason at 14:53, cementing Portland’s third straight win in the series.
Jan Špunar, fresh off of being named WHL Goaltender of the Month for April, turned aside 26 of 28 for the Hawks, while Ty Young faced down 34 of 39 for the Cougars.
Both teams face off at 7pm tomorrow at the VMC for a potentially decisive Game 5.
–
“The fans really give us a lift. it’s exciting to see how they’ve rallied around the team this year and in the playoffs, so we’re gonna need them tomorrow night for sure.”
Hear from Mike Johnston following the Winterhawks’ Game 4 victory.#WHLPlayoffs | #FeedingTheFuture pic.twitter.com/VMBQ7DZhXr
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) May 2, 2024
“Sometimes the best defense is offense, so it was good that we got some big goals.”
Hear from Tyson Jugnauth and Josh Zakreski following the Winterhawks’ Game 4 victory.#WHLPlayoffs | #FeedingTheFuture pic.twitter.com/GxhwISB3cc
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) May 2, 2024
–
Tickets for the Winterhawks’ 2024 WHL Playoffs run are on sale NOW! Click here to purchase single-game tickets (more games will be added as they are announced/needed) – be there as your hometown Hawks chase a fourth WHL Championship!
–
The Winterhawks trust Riverside Payments for all of their credit card processing as the team’s official credit card processors.
