The Portland Winterhawks win 5-3, their fifth consecutive victory, after overcoming a 2-0 hole and a 22-4 run in shots by the Tri-City Americans. They score five of the game’s final six goals.
After taking nine days off for Christmas, it was Portland’s first game back. On Saturday, the same two teams will play at Tri-City.
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Game preview
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Game thread with game updates and postgame reaction.
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The off day forum
Scoring summary
| 1st 15:26 TC Jordan Gavin (Savin Virk) 0-1 | A nice shot by Gavin from the left dot, set up Virk from behind the net. Jake Sloan helped win a corner battle with Cole Slobodian and might get an assist. |
| 2nd 6:20 TC Grady Martin (Nick Anisimovicz, Jaxen Adam) 0-2 | Ondrej t bet k leaves out the rebound of an Anisimovicz long shot right up the middle to Martin, who was wide open in the slot, splitting Hudson Darby and Tyson Jugnauth, and he had enough time to stickhandle past t bet k. Adam made a long outlet pass to start the play. |
| 2nd 11:33 POR Carsyn Dyck (Luke Wilfley, Carter Sotheran) 1-2 | A nice rush by Dyck down the right side and he beats Ryan Grout 1 on 1. Sotheran made a long outlet to center ice, and Wilfley got the pass to Dyck from center past Jackson Smith to set Dyck free and pick up his first WHL point. |
| 2nd 12:23 POR Diego Buttazzoni (Kyle McDonough, Tyson Jugnauth) 2-2 | A big rebound of a shot by McDonough goes to Buttazzoni on the right wing and he snipes it. Jugnauth protected the puck along the blue line and got it to McDonough. Josh Zakreski intercepted a pass at center ice to get it going. |
| 2nd 17:43 POR Alex Weiermair (Kyle Chyzowski, Tyson Yaremko) 3-2 | Chyzowski from behind the net centers it through the crease to Weiermair just left of the slot and he snaps it. Yaremko behind the net got it across to Chyzowski. Jugnauth was involved in the play also. |
| 3rd 4:05 POR Alex Weiermair (Kyle Chyzowski) 4-2 | Chyzowski with another setup, winning the puck in his own zone, weaving along the boards toward the middle and setting up Weiermair from the right circle. |
| 3rd 5:33 TC Brandon Whynott (Jake Sloan) 4-3 | A great move by Whynott, taking a pass from Sloan at the Portland blue line, blowing by Carter Sotheran, and beating t bet k 1 on 1. |
| 3rd 16:19 POR Hudson Darby (Carsyn Dyck, Joel Plante) 5-3 | A blocked pass by Plante to Darby sets up a 2 on 1, and Darby beats Gavin Garland to the net to take the pass from Dyck and score. |
| Portland leads by 2+ | 5:09 |
| Portland leads by 1 | 17:08 |
| Tied | 20:46 |
| Portland trails by 1 | 11:44 |
| Portland trails by 2+ | 5:13 |
Narratives
Pregame: Everyone makes their debut. Luke Wilfley, 16, debuted for the Winterhawks in the league. After two successful seasons with little playing time in the BCHL, 17-year-old Ryan Grout made his WHL debut for the Ams. After winning four straight games, Portland welcomed back Kyle McDonough and the two Darbys from injuries. Despite losing five of six games, Tri-City was three points ahead of Portland in the standings.
First period: The Americans had the next twelve shots after the Winterhawks had the first ten. Jordan Gavin scored on a rip for the Ams. During his first WHL stint, Grout was flawless.
Second period: The patterns persisted. Together with the opening session, Tri-City had 10 of the first 13 shots to start the period and take a 2-0 lead. However, everything changed suddenly when the Americans gave in to the pressure from Portland. The Winterhawks outscored them 10-3 in the remaining minutes, tying the score twice in 50 seconds and taking the lead three times in 6:10.
Third period: Portland ended the game with a strong performance. They took a two-goal lead immediately after killing a Tri-City penalty. After the Ams reduced it to one, they merely applied mild pressure, and Hudson Darby was able to secure the insurance goal. Portland ended the game with a 26-14 run after the Ams scored a 22-4 run in the midst of the game.
How it was won: 1) The Winterhawks performed significantly better than the Ams on the poor ice. They were likely more accustomed to it, and their speed and skill made the difference. For a large portion of the game, Tri-City was stumbling, slipping, and turning the puck over.
2) With Alex Weiermair and Kyle Chyzowski scoring two goals and the Ams’ top players remaining relatively quiet, Portland prevailed in the fight of the top lines, which were frequently pitted against one another.
3) Carson Dyck made two outstanding plays that resulted in goals from practically the fourth line.
4) In the fight of the goalies, I wager that I will outlast Grout. Grout was ahead in the beginning, but I’m willing to wager that K won the points.
Key stretch/moment: With the score 2-0 Tri-City in the second period, Dyck broke the ice by beating Ryan Grout on the rush after a great pass from Wilfley. Fifty seconds later, the game was knotted.
Surprisingly, Portland has been below average and Tri-City has been among the league’s stronger second-period teams, but the Ams collapsed in the second.
It should come as no surprise that the ice is poor again.
There are no disputes.
Depending on who you ask, the best squad won. However, absolutely.
Portland’s three players that missed the previous games returned, but there were no injuries or suspensions.
The players
| Top 10 | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Weiermair | POR | 2 goals | 5-game point streak. He has 5 goals and 5 assists in 7 games since joining the team. His shooting percentage is .250, which would be top 6 if he had enough games. Can he keep it up? |
| Carsyn Dyck | POR | 1 goal, 1 assist | Two big plays at important times, giving Portland two goals from an unlikely source. |
| Kyle Chyzowski | POR | 2 assists | 3-game point streak. 2 great setups. Now tied for 3rd in the league in scoring. |
| Ondrej t bet k | POR | 33 saves-36 shots | One bad rebound goal, was very good otherwise. Creeping up toward the .900 mark. |
| Grady Martin | TC | 1 goal | Probably not a good sign that he s TC s best player, but had a nice goal and a couple of good plays. |
| Brandon Whynott | TC | 1 goal | A nice move to pull the Ams within one. |
| Diego Buttazzoni | POR | 1 goal | 8-game point streak. Tying goal when the Ams were vulnerable. |
| Tyson Jugnauth | POR | 1 assist | 8-game point streak. Leads all WHL defensemen in scoring by 8 points. |
| Luke Wilfley | POR | 1 assist | First WHL point in his first game, and it came at a very important time. |
| Ryan Grout | TC | 35 saves-40 shots | Started off well, but in the end didn t get quite enough help from his teammates. |
| Other notables | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tyson Yaremko | POR | 1 assist | 5-game point streak. |
Postgame
| Winterhawks | Americans | |
|---|---|---|
| Record |
19-12-2 (.606) |
19-9-2-1 (.661) |
| Goals/game |
3.9 |
4.0 |
| Goals allowed/game |
3.8 |
3.7 |
| Team shooting % |
.114 |
.115 |
| Team save % |
.889 |
.893 |
| Power play | 28.2% | 16.5% |
| Penalty kill |
80.6% |
81.5% |
| Power plays for/game | 4.3 | 3.7 |
| Power plays against/game |
3.8 |
3.8 |
| Outshooting opponents |
13-19-1 |
18-13 |
| After 1 period | 10-13-10 |
11-10-10 |
| After 2 periods |
12-16-5 |
15-8-8 |
| Score, last 10 games |
44-36 (+8) |
33-38 (-5) |
| Score, last 20 games |
85-70 (+15) |
81-75 (+6) |
The Portland Winterhawks
The worst time to undertake a serious assessment is during a winning streak, but we may still dream at the moment. They are tied for fifth overall in the league, and a victory on Saturday night would put them ahead of Tri-City.
Americans from Tri City
sixth defeat in seven games. You could see how errors and Portland’s skating advantage may cost them even though they were ahead 2-0 and had a significant lead in shots. Eventually, they did. In a game that is rather crucial, they get to play the rematch at home.
Next games
Tri-City, Saturday, December 28, 6 p.m. PST
Everett vs. Tuesday, December 31, 5 p.m. PST
Spokane vs. Thursday, 1/2, 7 p.m. PST
Tri-City, Friday, 1/3, 7 p.m. PST
1/4 vs. Wenatchee on Saturday at 6 p.m. PST
Future plans: Friday, January 10 at Brandon, 5 p.m. PST (7 p.m. CST)
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