WHL Morning Skate: April 28

NEED TO KNOW

– Chase Harrington played hero in overtime to give Spokane a 2-0 series lead after holding off a tremendous comeback attempt from Portland

– Spokane is 4-0 in overtime in the 2025 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien

– Washington Capitals prospect Andrew Cristall’s 33 points are the most of any WHL skater in the postseason since Brad Morrison’s (Lethbridge) 37-point playoff in 2018

– The 2025 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien resume on Tuesday, April 29, with Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Championship

TOP PERFORMER- APRIL 27

Andrew Cristall’s second playoff hat trick has lifted the Spokane Chiefs to a formidable 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference Championship. The WHL Player of the Year nominee now has goals in six straight games to put Spokane within striking distance of reaching the WHL Championship Series for the first time since 2008. Cristall’s first tally in Game 2 came with a long screened shot from the high slot to level the game at 2-2 before tying things again midway through the frame with a snapper on the powerplay. Early in the third, Cristall created a Portland turnover that allowed the Chiefs to pile on the pressure, culminating in Cristall’s hat-trick goal to give Spokane its first lead of the night. The Buranby, B.C. product leads the WHL scoring race with 17 goals and 16 assists for 33 points in 12 games. He’ll be on milestone watch for the remainder of the postseason with one of the highest-scoring playoff runs in modern WHL history. Regina’s Dale Derkatch holds the all-time record with 53 points in the 1984 WHL Playoffs, while Calgary’s Pavel Brendl’s 46 points in 1999 are the most in the WHL’s internet era (1996-present).

RESULTS

Portland 5, Spokane 6 (OT)

Spokane leads 2-0

The Chiefs nearly collapsed in the third period, but managed to stay perfect in overtime to leave the friendly confines of the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena with a 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference Championship. The Portland Winterhawks may have ultimately fallen short, but they proved they were never out of the game with a much stronger effort than we saw in Game 1. Diego Buttazzoni opened the scoring just over two minutes into the match with a powerplay with a wild one-timer. 2025 NHL Draft-eligible Assanali Sarkenov scored his first of two goals to level the game before Josh Zakreski swatted a big rebound home to restore the Portland lead. The seesaw continued with Andrew Cristall and Ryan Miller trading blows, but it appeared that Spokane had taken full control of the match with three straight goals to close out the middle frame and open the third to take a two-goal lead with just over 10 minutes left. Max Psenicka, another draft-eligible skater, stepped up in a big way with a clever shot that went high glove side on Dawson Cowan. Captain and Player of the Year finalist Kyle Chyzowski ensured fans would be treated to some bonus hockey with a one-timer and his 12th goal of the postseason late in the game. Chase Harrington silenced the Portland bench by stealing an attempted Hawks breakout pass, wheeling around the offensive zone and snapping the game-winning goal top shelf. Portland will try to dig deep and pull out a win at the Glass Palace in Game 3 on Wednesday, April 30.

THREE STARS

1- Andrew Cristall, SPO

– 3G

2- Assanali Sarkenov, SPO

– 2G-1A

3- Chase Harrington, SPO

– 1G-1A

ON TAP

The WHL Playoffs resume on Tuesday, April 29