Portland spoils Seattle's ceremonies: 6-1

Hawks win! The boys have a banner night in Seattle as they knock off the Thunderbirds 6-1! Check out the @Toyota Game at a Glance: pic.twitter.com/zJeNRH9XLK

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) October 2, 2016

There was a lot of energy in the crowd on the night of Seattle’s home opener. No doubt chills were going down the spines of the 6,138 fans in attendance as an extended ceremony was put on before the game. A video highlighting not just last year’s Western Conference title team, but a few of the big moments in years before as well was part of the presentation. After the banners were raised and homages were paid through, Portland spoiled the festivities with four power play goals en route to a 6-1 victory.

The Thunderbirds were their own worst enemies early and often and Portland’s crisp passing and work in the tough areas while on the power play helped them make Seattle pay.

Portland was led by a career high four assists from defenseman Keoni Texeira, one goal and two assists from Ryan Hughes, two goals and one assist from Keegan Iverson and two points from Cody Glass. Texeira now has seven points in just four games this year, while Hughes has eight.

Not only did the teams face a long delay due to the opening night events, they had to wait another 10 minutes or so just five minutes into the game, for a sheet of plexiglas along the corner boards to get replaced. After the flow of the play finally got going a bit, Ryan Hughes was able to draw a holding call and Portland’s power play went to work. After some nice movement around the exterior, Cody Glass got a good look in tight on Seattle goalie Rylan Toth and Skyler McKenzie was quick to the rebound on the far post to poke it home. Then while on another penalty kill later in the first, Brandon Schuldhaus delivered a crowd-pleasing hit on Alex Overhardt. The center got the puck to Texeira and a mini two-on-one developed off of the hit. Colton Veloso found some room on the far post, deflecting a hard pass in for his first of the season. Seattle really went out of their way imposing their will on Portland, but were finding that it sometimes had a negative impact.

Any hope of a quick comeback in the second period for Seattle was quickly fading as Cody Glass smartly read the play and set up another goal. He did this by waiting for an activated Texeira to create an odd-man rush in Seattle’s zone. Iverson was the recipient of a slam-dunk pass to an out-of-position Toth’s’ right and it was 3-0 Portland. Seattle continued to sustain heavy pressure on Portland, but the Winterhawks’ defense and goalie Cole Kehler bent but did not break. Kehler’s best save of the night and period was in a series of stops during this time, where he deftly flicked out his left pad, turning away a wide-open Nolan Volcan shot. The momentum seemed to be swinging Seattle’s way anyways, until 16-year-old rookie Ty Kolle drew a tripping call on Seattle defenseman Bryan Allbee and Portland’s power play cashed in again. This time it was a strong slapshot from the point by Texeira that came right to Evan Weinger, who was nearly on top of Toth. Instead of trying to just jam the puck in on the down Toth, he cleverly flipped a backhand pass out to a wide open Ryan Hughes in the right slot. Hughes powered home the puck for a 4-0 Portland lead on his third goal of the season. This was the end of the night for Seattle’s overage net-minder as rookie 16-year-old Carl Stankowski came into the game in relief. Toth has given up ten goals to Portland in just around a game and a half.

The goalie change did inspire the Thunderbiurds though as rookie Elijah Brown caught Portland napping and got behind their defense. His try was turned aside by Kehler, but Donovan Neuls found Alexander True alone in the slot as a result and Seattle was on the board.

Instead of this being the start of some great comeback though, Portland put some salt in the wound in the third period, to the tune of yet another power play goal. Cody Glass made a quick drive to the net and drew a high-sticking call on Seattle’s Scott Eansor. Then on the man-advantage, Ryan Hughes made a beauty of a drop pass to Alex Overhardt and the 19-year-old center buried it past Stankowski. Portland would add a late penalty shot goal with Keegan Iverson sending a nifty backhand past Stankowski. Iverson had earned the penalty shot while on the penalty kill off a nice breakaway.

Portland’s power play is now a very impressive 7/14, after going four-for-five on the night. Seattle could not convert on any of the seven chances they had on the man-advantage.

The Winterhawks could be leaning Cole Kehler’s way in the battle of 19-year-old goalies, after he was very impressive, stopping 25 of the 26 shots he faced. Stankowski turned away eight of the ten shots he saw in relief.

Game Notes:

-This was the first of eight straight on the road for Portland, as they now head to the province of Saskatchewan to take on Swift Current on Tuesday night. They will face all six teams in the east division, before returning to the United States to take on Spokane on October 15th.

-Joachim Blichfeld made a good case for Portland to choose him over Rodrigo Abols with some quality play on Portland’s top power play. While he didn’t factor into the scoring, he made several key passes that helped lead to goals.

-Henri Jokiharju is an interesting player to watch for both good and bad reasons. At times, he flashes all-world talent and at times he gives the puck over right in the slot in his own zone. Mike Johnston and company will be working with him to limit these mistakes, while trying to make sure, he continues to take chances.

-Besides Abols, scratched for Portland were Lane Gilliss, Brett Clayton, Brad Ginnell, Conor MacEachern, Jake Hobson. The Winterhawks continue to rotate games around the peripherie of their lineup.

-Cody Glass, Keegan Iverson and Skyler McKenzie are really clicking for Portland. They combined for six points tonight.

-Elijah Brown and Matthew Wedman were lined up with Alexander True and it was a line that I really liked for Seattle. The two younger forwards flash all kinds of skill and True was often able to use his size to create more room for them. I would look for this line to start picking up the scoring as Wedman and Brown gain WHL experience.
-Seattle is definitely a team that needs to find some chemistry in a hurry. They have a lot of talent and if this trend continues, I would not be surprised if deals start being made.

-Keegan Iverson and Cavin Leth were both getting under the opponent’s skin tonight, so it was only fitting the two of them got into a dust up. This one was a little different in that there were two officials actively trying to break them up as they were throwing blows. Both were given ten-minute misconducts and roughing minors.

Hart, 'Tips hand Portland first loss: 3-1

That's all she wrote! pic.twitter.com/h2RIBghdz3

— Everett Silvertips (@WHLsilvertips) October 1, 2016

Carter Hart has had an interesting history, when it comes to playing in Portland. He's been pulled on many occasions and had many others where his team pulled out the win, despite a very average outing by the Philadelphia Flyers' prospect. Friday night at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Hart was every bit the second round NHL draft pick though, turning aside 31 of 32 shots in his first game back from Philadelphia's camp. None of Hart's saves were bigger than the one where he gloved down a point-blank chance from Portland's Alex Overhardt with around five minutes left.

Everett started the scoring Friday night after Everett native Wyatte Wylie found a gap in Portland's defense and fired a perfect feed right onto Patrick Bajkov's stick. The 19-year-old got in alone on Portland goalie Michael Bullion and slipped a backhand shot between his legs. The Winterhawks answered exactly four minutes later, while on the penalty kill. Keegan Iverson, in his return to the lineup, after participating in the Minnesota Wild's training camp, broke up a play in his defensive zone. This sprung, the also freshly returned Caleb Jones. Portland's defenseman drove into the zone, carrying the attention of all three Silvertip defenders. He then deftly fired a pass to Alex Overhardt, who was alone in front of the net. Overhardt gently pushed the puck home to tie the game. This was Portland's first short-handed goal of the short season. 

In the second period, the teams played a pretty tight game, with moments of end-to-end play, but they remained knotted until just 13 seconds remained in the session. After Overhardt took his second tripping penalty of the game, Everett took advantage. Riley Sutter intercepted Colton Veloso's clearance play and Jake Christensen fired a quick shot towards Bullion. Graham Millar was Johnny-on-the-spot and he poked home the rebound of his own deflected shot, for the 2-1 Everett lead. 

The Silvertips extended their lead on a sharp-angled shot by Matt Fonteyne early in the third. The first-line center got Bullion to lean towards the middle, expecting a pass and fired a shot that Portland's goalie was not prepared for. The puck bounced off the right pad of the goalie and into his own net. It is a goal, that Bullion will no doubt want back. The Silvertips pressed Portland early in the third, controlling most of the play. Portland responded with 14 shots on Hart in the last 12 or so minutes of play. However, the Everett goalie was game and he shut the door on Portland, sending home 4,151 very unhappy fans.

Portland goalie Bullion turned aside 30 of 33 shots for his second straight three-goals-allowed game and his first loss. I would expect Cole Kehler to get the start Saturday night in Seattle, as the two continue to trade starts. 

Portland's power play went 0/3 on the night and is now 3/9 or 33.3% on the season. Everett's power play went 1/5 with one short-handed goal against.

Game Notes:
-Hart was the story of the night for me, as he made countless big saves when Portland was pressing. Besides the one on Overhardt, he made a big-time save on a breakaway by Evan Weinger and a couple on driving plays to the net by Rodrigo Abols.
-Abols was back in the lineup after participating in Vancouver's training camp. His return gives Portland three import players, one over the limit. Because they are over the limit, one had to sit and that was Joachim Blichfeld this night. As an overage and import player, Abols takes up two spots and seems likely to be traded.
-Keegan Iverson also returned and had a newly minted "C" on the left side of his jersey. Naming Iverson captain was a rather interesting move, in that he has been an enigmatic player for much of his time in Portland. He has faced suspensions and I've been at games, where he's thrown tantrums and stormed out, after receiving a misconduct. However, after seeing his play and leadership lead to a Neely Cup win for his team at training camp, as well as, the exuberance in victory, that his teammates seemed to enjoy, I'm not surprised. Sometimes teams go with the emotional leader as their captain and Iverson seems every bit this type of leader.
-Jones, Colton Veloso and Keoni Texeira were named the team's assistants. This gives Portland a leadership group that is all 19 or older, on a team that is remarkably young.
-Ilijah Colina, Bronson Sharp, Matt Quigley and Conor MacEachern were the healthy scratches besides Blichfeld.
-Without Colina, the Ryan Hughes and Evan Weinger line didn't show quite the same chemistry. Despite Abols being in the middle of this line, I don't think that he really had that poor of a game. He continues to show flashes of offensive talent and he did multiple times in this game. He navigated traffic a couple of times and got in tight, but could not finish. He needs to start finishing in order to show his value and force Portland to keep him.
-Brett Clayton came back from his preseason suspension and played well on a line with Jake Gricius and Lane Gilliss. The line had several good cycles and Clayton used his size to put some added pressure on Everett's defense.
-Iverson jumped into the right wing spot on the top line that Brad Ginnell and Ty Kolle had kept warm for him. There was a lot to like about the Skyler McKenzie-Cody Glass-Iverson unit and they came extremely close to finding the twine behind Hart.
-Mike Johnston and co. have not quite found the chemistry they want in their top-four. They tried every pairing possible between Brendan De Jong, Jones, Henri Jokiharju and Texeira, but I don't know that they've found two pairings they are completely happy with.
-Brad Ginnell had another great moment in his limited action. He fired a shot right to Hart's right pad, creating a rebound that Overhardt couldn't finish due to being illegally obstructed. I think eventually Portland's coaches will have to decide who between Ty Kolle and Ginnell they will have to reassign and neither is making that decision easy on them.
-Portland now heads on an eight-game road trip, starting with Saturday night in Seattle. The game will have a banner-raising ceremony beforehand.

Hawks score second straight touchdown, beat Americans 7-3

Check out the game-at-a-glance infographic presented by @Toyota from tonight's 7-3 win over the @TCAmericans! #Winterhawks pic.twitter.com/L77xxMOyXc

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) September 26, 2016

The Portland Winterhawks proved that their seven-spot on Saturday night vs. division rival was no fluke Sunday. They did this be scoring seven more goals and taking down another division rival in Tri-City; 7-3. Along the way, Portland scored two goals thanks to new rules, that would not have been possible before this year. Yet another reason that this season is feeling much different for Portland and their fans.

Cody Glass and Ty Kolle each had three assists and four other Hawks had two points. A night after 13 Hawks factored into the scoring, 10 got at least one point.

Portland stormed out to a 3-0 lead after the first period, taking advantage of a slow-starting Americans squad. Henri Jokiharju started the scoring with his first career WHL goal, just over five minutes into the game. The Finnish defenseman fired a low shot that appeared to have deflected off of Tri-City center Tyler Sandhu and past goalie Beck Warm. Then after Portland's other rookie import Joachim Blichfeld drew a cross-checking penalty on Jeff Rayman, Portland doubled their lead. Keoni Texeira appeared to sense a lull in the defense, while on the power play and pounced on the opportunity. He went from behind his own net all the way up the left wing, dipping around a couple defenders, before beating Warm on the near post. The Americans did not appear to be set up for the rush after changing lines and Portland's 19-year-old d-man had the speed to make them pay. Skyler McKenzie made the lead 3-0, just 29 seconds later after Alex Overhardt made an extremely smart play. At the end of his shift, it would have been easy for Overhardt to dump the puck after gaining the red line in and reset, but he instead patiently waited and found a rushing McKenzie in the neutral zone. McKenzie eventually ended up receiving a cross-crease pass from 16-year-old rookie Ty Kolle and he then beat Warm in tight.

The Americans played a more inspired game in the second period and made Portland pay for a taking a penalty. Juuso Valimaki fired a soft shot from the point that Michael Rasmussen expertly topped over Portland goalie Cole Kehler's shoulder. The goal was Rasmussen's fifth in just over four periods of hockey. The Americans then cut the Portland lead to just one with a little unintentional help from Texeira. Sandhu had found Kyle Olson on the rush, setting up a mini two-on-one rush. Olson tried a back door pass to a waiting Morgan Geekie, but Texeira accidentally deflected the puck past Kehler and into his own net. Just like the previous night, Portland responded to adversity by scoring a big goal moments later. 19-year-old winger Colton Veloso made a breakout pass from along his own half-boards, springing Blichfeld and activated d-man Brendan De Jong. Blichfeld fired for Warm's far pad and the puck ended up going right to De Jong. The lanky d-man clearly kicked the puck in, but due to the new rule that allows a distinct kicking motion, as long as it occurs outside of the crease, the goal was allowed. The goal was De Jong's second in as many games.

Skyler McKenzie gave Portland another three goal lead early in the third; scoring from a difficult angle. McKenzie had rushed up the left wing with the puck, finding an activated Jokiharju on his inner lane. The Finn backhanded a quick shot off the pad of a down-on-the-ice Warm and the rebound was left laying there. McKenzie smartly got to the puck and flipped a shot off of the goalie's back and into the net. Early in the season, the small winger is tied for second in goals in the WHL with three. Tyler Sandhu helped Tri-City respond  just over two minutes later. While on the power play, he spun around a defender, while in the slot with the puck and found an open Valimaki. The d-man fired a low shot that Sandhu deflected home. The teams traded chances for the next 10-plus minutes of action, before the dynamic duo of Evan Weinger and Ryan Hughes helped give Portland much needed insurance. Weinger corralled the puck behind the net and used great skate-edge work to spin away from Nolan Yaremko and Dylan Coghlan. With all eyes on him, he found an onrushing Ryan Hughes all alone in the slot. Hughes put his shot over Warm's right shoulder for the 6-3 lead. Tri-City pulled Warm with over five minutes left and put a lot of pressure on Kehler, but the Hawk's goalie made several big saves under duress. The game was then further put on ice when Ryan Hughes outraced Coghlan to the puck thanks to the new hybrid-icing rule. He then found Evan Weinger all alone in front and the Californian scored the easy empty-netter to close out the scoring.

Americans' goalie Warm struggled in net, stopping only 28 of the 34 shots he faced (just like Rylan Toth did the night before). Cole Kehler turned away 26 of the 29 shots he faced for his first WHL win since October 22nd, 2014.

Portland was one-for-two on the power play and is now three-for-six on the season for 50 percent. Tri-City was one-for-three and is now three-for-eight for 37.5 percent.

Game Notes:
-Hughes-Colina-Weinger has been an electric line so for during the 2016-17 campaign. Each player has done a great job of accepting their role on the line. Hughes is the primary puck-carrier, while Weinger uses his speed to set up odd-man rushes and Colina is more responsible defensively. The three of them have combined for 11 points through two games.
-Another unit that I really like is Lane Gilliss-Jake Gricius-Bronson Sharp. They have only factored into one of Portland's 14 goals thus far, but it's only a matter of time before they have a bigger impact on the scoreboard. Gricius and Gilliss have been great together on the cycle as they seem to know where each other will be without needing to look. Sharp, meanwhile has created a lot of rushes for the line with his speed.
-Portland was still missing Keegan Iverson (Minnesota), Rodrigo Abols (Vancouver) and Caleb Jones (Edmonton) as they are all away at NHL camps.
-Tri-City got Dylan Coghlan back from Detroit Red Wings' camp, but are still without Maxwell James (N.Y. Islanders), Evan Sarthou (Arizona), Jordan Topping (Dallas) and Parker Wotherspoon (N.Y. Islanders).
-Coghlan had a terrible game and was not doubt feeling the effect of traveling back from Detroit. He did not seem to be skating as quickly as he usually does and was caught flat-footed on a couple of Portland's goals.
-Ty Kolle drew in for Brad Ginnell and made his case for more ice-time. He had three assists in his WHL debut, a night after Ginnell scored in his first WHL game. Between Ginnell, Kolle and Colina, the future is looking bright for Portland's 2000-born forwards.
-The biggest difference in how Portland is playing this season is how quickly they are getting the puck through the neutral zone. They are quickly moving the puck into their opponent's zone to someone with speed, creating odd-man rushes and great scoring looks.
-De Jong has been given the green light to activate whenever he sees the chance and it has paid off twice in two games now. It did backfire for a goal the other way Saturday, as well, but coach Mike Johnston and Portland will continue to trust the 18-year-old d-man.
-Portland hosts the 2-0 Everett Silvertips Friday night, before going on an eight-game road trip that will take them through the WHL's east division.

Winterhawks start second Johnston era off with bang: 7-3 over Seattle

The #Hawks take the home opener in Mike Johnston's return to Portland & defeat Seattle 7-3! Check out our game-at-a-glance pres. by Toyota! pic.twitter.com/QDoHdvYWlf

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) September 25, 2016

The Mike Johnston teams of 2008-2014 were known for scoring goals in bunches. Those teams, though were loaded with future NHL players like Ryan Johansen, Nino Niederreiter, Ty Rattie, Sven Bartschi and Seth Jones among others. Tonight the Winterhawks' top returning scorer had only 11 goals and they looked to be a team that would struggle to emulate that scoring. Not having a go-to scorer means that this team would have to get production from a lot of different players to succeed.

Saturday night at the Moda Center, Johnston got seven goals from seven different players and his team took down the defending Western Conference champion Seattle Thunderbirds 7-3.  Leading the way with three points apiece for Portland were Evan Weinger (three assists) and Ryan Hughes (one goal and two assists). Those two were part of a line with 16-year-old center Ilijah Colina that had a lot of scoring production in the preseason. That chemistry appears to have carried over to the regular season.

Portland started off the scoring late in the first period, while on the power play. Ryan Hughes drove the zone and went all the way around the net, looking off Seattle defeners, before finding a wide open Keoni Texeira at the blue line. The 19-year-old d-man forced a slap shot over Seattle goalie Rylan Toth's right shoulder for the 1-0 lead.

Seattle still has a quick strike offense, despite missing the likes of Matt Barzal, Keegan Kolesar and Ethan Bear at NHL training camps. They demonstrated this by scoring goals 37 seconds or less into the start of both the second and third periods. In the second, it was Seattle captain Scott Eansor taking advantage of a poor Brendan De Jong pinch; sending Donovan Neuls in alone. Portland goalie Michael Bullion made a great left pad save on the initial shot, but Neuls stomped on the brakes and smartly poked home his own rebound. The 1-1 tie would only last for a few minutes as Alex Overhardt won a board battle and set up Carter Czaikowski with a good look from the point. The official score sheet reflects that Alex Overhardt tipped it home, but it certainly appeared to me that Czaikwski's shot went off of Seattle d-man Anthony Bishop's stick. The goal should have been given to Czaikowski. This would have been (and still might be) the 18-year-old defenseman's first WHL goal. Seattle's Luke Ormsby tied the game again for Seattle as he got in behind both Jake Hobson and Keoni Texeira. He was stopped initially by Bullion, but put home his own rebound. While this switch in momentum could break a lot of teams, it did not do so to Portland tonight. They responded with another goal late in the period to take a 3-2 lead. The goal was scored when Ryan Hughes came off the bench on a change and was found alone in the slot by a beautiful backhand pass from behind the net, by Cody Glass. Hughes made a great adjustment after receiving the pass to battle off a stick check from Seattle's Elijah Brown in order to get his shot off.

Seattle, once again, struck quickly as Henri Jokiharju failed to get the puck out of his zone under pressure and the very skilled Donovan Neuls took advantage. He came out of the left corner with the puck and went to the net, getting all the way to the right side of the net. He waited out Bullion, before sneaking a shot in on the right post. The game opened up a bit after Neuls' second goal of the night, but Toth and Bullion stood tall under pressure. That was until after the mid-period break. In a goal very similar to Hughes' earlier one, Evan Weinger swooped around the net with speed and found Cody Glass alone in the slot. The 17-year-old center had just come off the bench on a line change. He snuck his shot through Toth's arm for the 4-3 lead and eventual game-winning-goal. Portland got some insurance just over two minutes later on the power play, when Weinger came across the blue line with speed and drove the net, passing the puck to Ryan Hughes. Hughes tried a toe drag but lost the puck and Brendan De Jong happened to be right there. The lanky d-man fired a quick shot that Toth was not prepared for. The Winterhawks added two late goals, one of which was an empty-netter, to make the game look more lopsided than it really was. Skyler McKenzie notched his team's sixth goal into a vacant net, after his line-mates Alex Overhardt and Joachim Blichfeld created the turnover. Then on a delayed penalty, Brad Ginnell spun around Seattle's Reece Harsch to receive a pass in the slot and flipped a nifty backhand into the top corner past Toth.

Seattle's Toth struggle in his first game since coming over from Red Deer in a preseason trade. He stopped just 28 of the 34 shots he faced. Bullion had a strong season debut in the other net, facing 30 shots and notching 27 saves.

Portland was two-for-four on the power play, while Seattle was oh-for-one.

Game Notes;
-Portland went with lines of Brad Ginnell-Cody Glass-Colton Veloso, Ryan Hughes-Ilijah Colina-Evan Weinger, Joachim Blichfeld-Alex Overhardt-Skyler McKenzie and Bronson Sharp-Jake Gricius-Lane Gilliss. Ty Kolle was the lone healthy and present forward scratched. Caleb Jones, Keegan Iverson and Rodrigo Abols are all away at NHL training camps.
-The Hawks started with pairings of Keoni Texeira-Jake Hobson, Brendan De Jong-Henri Jokiharju and Carter Czaikowski-Conor MacEachern, but rotated Jokiharju up with Texeira as the game reached the second period. Matt Quigley was the lone healthy and present d-man scratched.
-Gilliss, Gricius and Sharp were a cycling machine throughout the game. They carried a lot of the possession while they were on the ice and created a lot of good scoring looks. None of the three notched a point, but they all had solid games. Gricius used his size well along the boards, making it hard on defensemen to get the puck away from him. This helped Portland's future shifts as they wore down Seattle's defense.
-Speed is the name of the game this year for Portland. Hughes and Weinger both used theirs to create goals from behind the goal line. The Winterhawks failed to generate a lot of scoring chances from behind the goal last year and often just turned the puck over, creating odd-man chances the other way. This year they are generating good looks and that was abundantly clear tonight.
-It appears Johnston and co. are using the Overhardt line as their shut down unit and it was very effective tonight. Blichfeld demonstrated impressive instincts and took chances on intercepting passes, often guessing correctly. McKenzie and Overhardt are also buying into their roles fully and it showed as they protected the lead late in the third.
-Hughes, Glass and Sharp all seem to have taken large strides in their development. This is something you hear often about second-year 17-year-old players. Glass' backhand pass on Hughes' goal demonstrated how comfortable he is with Portland now and the green light he has been given to make a relatively risky play.
-How defensively responsible is 16-year-old rookie Ilijah Colina? He constantly back-checked away good scoring chances and even tied up a Seattle stick, when Bullion was struggling to cover a loose puck in the crease. He seems to have fully grasped his role on a line with two speedy offensively minded wingers.
-One negative that I saw was how much MacEachern and Czaikowski struggled when under pressure. Johnston's system calls for risky passes out of the zone, up the middle. These two turned the puck over quite a bit and didn't react quickly enough when they did. There is definitely room for improvement in this area for them.
-Johnston is already trusting Jokiharju to protect a late lead. As he gets used to the WHL, where he now has played just one career game, he will get a lot better. Sometimes his positioning was awful, as he let forwards get behind him with enough time to get shots off. Other times though, he showed great instincts breaking up passes and shutting down forwards in one-on-ones.
-Portland takes their fresh 1-0 record into a game Sunday evening with Tri-City.

A look at Portland's roster and possible lineup

All begins tomorrow 🌹#year2

— Cody Glass (@Cody12Glass) September 23, 2016

With opening night only a day away, I thought it would be fun to play around with the roster and guess who will play where. Four guys will miss the first two games, while at NHL camps or because of suspension, leaving some ice time for a lot of rookies. They could have as many as eight rookies lacing up their skates over the two weekend games.
It would be fair to expect this young team to struggle in the early going. 

Left Wing	Center	Right Wing
Ryan Hughes	Ilijah Colina	Evan Weinger
Skyler McKenzie	Alex Overhardt	Colton Veloso
Bronson Sharp	Cody Glass	Joachim Blichfeld
Lane Gilliss	Jake Gricius	Brad Ginnell/Ty Kolle

Out: Keegan Iverson (Minnesota Wild camp) and Rodrigo Abols (Vancouver Canucks camp). Brett Clayton (suspension).

-Clayton will serve the fifth and sixth of his six-game suspension this weekend. He will not be eligible to play until Portland takes on Everett next Friday. I would expect Portland to rotate Ginnell and Kolle as their last, dressed forward.

-Mike Johnston has already confirmed that Hughes-Colina-Weinger will be one of their lines, at least to start. The rest are just guesses on my part.

-I like the idea of McKenzie-Overhardt-Veloso as the checking line that M.J. usually likes to put together. They did have some success in the preseason, especially in the final game vs. Kootenay. Also, Glass playing with the speedy Sharp and sniper Blichfeld would be a fun line to watch, though Gilliss would be a good option on one of his wings as well. Despite missing all of the preseason, M.J. assured intrepid journalist Scott Sepich that Glass is healthy and ready to go.

Left Defense	Right Defense
Brendan De Jong	Keoni Texeira
Conor MacEachern	Henri Jokiharju
Carter Czaikowski	Jake Hobson
Matt Quigley

Out:Caleb Jones (Edmonton Oilers camp).

-With how well De Jong played at the Neely Cup, I would expect him to start out in the top pairing. This is a put up year for Czaikowski and since he didn't really stand out too much at the Neely Cup or the preseason, he needs to in the regular season. If he does not, when Jones comes back, he could find himself released. It is no secret that the coaching staff is fond of Quigley and Hobson is a year younger, so it would make more sense for Czaikowski to be pushed out. We have seen flashes of Czaikowski's play-making ability, but we have not really seen it in a game. At five-foot-eight, he needs this to be his calling card, or the team will just go with someone older.

Goalie

Michael Bullion

Cole Kehler

Ethan Middendorf

Winterhawks' News: Caller traded and Winterhawks at training camps

Let's catch up on yet some more Winterhawks related news.

I'd like to thank the @pdxwinterhawks organization, coaching staff, teammates and billets. Excited to get things going with @BladesHockey !

— Jackson Caller (@Jackson_Caller5) September 20, 2016

Caller traded to Saskatoon:
-Jackson Caller was one of four 1999-born d-men on the roster and something had to give. Jokiharju was the biggest lock of the quartet as a potential first-round NHL draft pick. Matt Quigley has been getting rave reviews from the coaching staff since getting signed off the protected list last year and they did not want to move him. That left a choice between Caller and Jake Hobson. In my opinion, Caller looked better at the Neely Cup and in the preseason game I saw, but as a right-shot d-man may've been determined to be more valuable.

Caller gets the benefit of joining a team with fewer 1999-born d-man and gives himself the chance to cement his spot in their present and future.

Coming back the other way for Caller is a fourth round bantam draft pick in 2018. Not a huge return, but then again Caller has only played in eight WHL games and thus hasn't proven himself that much.

This leaves eight d-men in camp for Portland and that number should stay the same, at least until Caleb Jones is returned from Edmonton Oilers camp.

Keegan Iverson with Minnesota Wild:
-The overage, Minnesota native was invited to Minnesota's development camp this summer and back again to represent them at the Traverse City tournament.  It had to be a little awkward when he played against the N.Y. Rangers, the team he represented the previous two years at the same tournament. The Wild went 0-3 in the main tournament, but saved face with a 3-2 win over Chicago to take seventh in the eight team tourney.

Iverson was impressive enough to be one of 60 players invited to the main Wild camp. This begins Thursday and first cuts are not expected to be made until early next week. That would mean he will miss Saturdays' home opener vs. Seattle and Sunday's match vs. Tri-City.

Joachim Blichfeld invited to main San Jose camp;
-Also assuredly out for this weekend's games is new import forward Joachim Blichfeld. The Dane was taken in the seventh round by San Jose in June and the Sharks are taking a long, hard look at him. He recently played in the Inaugural Rookie Showcase event in Westminster, Colorado for San Jose against prospects from Anaheim and Colorado. Blichfeld played on the fourth line with Kamloops' Jermaine Loewen and former Erie Otters' center Jake Marchment and was impressive. 

I would expect him to be sent home early next week.

Caleb Jones on top-pairing for Oilers' prospects:
-Caleb Jones was mostly paired with new-signee for the Oilers: Matt Benning at the Young Stars Classic in Penticton. The Oilers went 3-0 in the tournament, with Jones playing in the first two games. He had one assist, which when he made a nifty play to set up an empty-netter. He then got back on the ice Wednesday for the Oilers' annual exhibition vs. the University of Alberta.  They won that one too: 6-3. Jones now joins the Oilers' main camp and could end up seeing some preseason action as a signed prospect. Their first preseason game is Monday vs. Calgary.

Rodrigo Abols with the Vancouver Canucks:
-Abols also played in his team's first two games at the young Stars Classic and nearly had a goal several times. The Canucks went 2-1 overall at the tournament. Abols is not currently among those listed on the roster on Vancouver's website, but that does not necessarily mean he won't see some training camp time.

Winterhawks' News: Caller traded and Winterhawks at training camps

Let's catch up on yet some more Winterhawks related news.

I'd like to thank the @pdxwinterhawks organization, coaching staff, teammates and billets. Excited to get things going with @BladesHockey !

— Jackson Caller (@Jackson_Caller5) September 20, 2016

Caller traded to Saskatoon:
-Jackson Caller was one of four 1999-born d-men on the roster and something had to give. Jokiharju was the biggest lock of the quartet as a potential first-round NHL draft pick. Matt Quigley has been getting rave reviews from the coaching staff since getting signed off the protected list last year and they did not want to move him. That left a choice between Caller and Jake Hobson. In my opinion, Caller looked better at the Neely Cup and in the preseason game I saw, but as a right-shot d-man may've been determined to be more valuable.

Caller gets the benefit of joining a team with fewer 1999-born d-man and gives himself the chance to cement his spot in their present and future.

Coming back the other way for Caller is a fourth round bantam draft pick in 2018. Not a huge return, but then again Caller has only played in eight WHL games and thus hasn't proven himself that much.

This leaves eight d-men in camp for Portland and that number should stay the same, at least until Caleb Jones is returned from Edmonton Oilers camp.

Keegan Iverson with Minnesota Wild:
-The overage, Minnesota native was invited to Minnesota's development camp this summer and back again to represent them at the Traverse City tournament.  It had to be a little awkward when he played against the N.Y. Rangers, the team he represented the previous two years at the same tournament. The Wild went 0-3 in the main tournament, but saved face with a 3-2 win over Chicago to take seventh in the eight team tourney.

Iverson was impressive enough to be one of 60 players invited the main Wild camp. This begins Thursday and first cuts are not expected to be made until early next week. That would mean he will miss Saturdays' home opener vs. Seattle and Sunday's match vs. Tri-City.

Joachim Blichfeld invited to main San Jose camp;
-Also assuredly out for this weekend's games is new import forward Joachim Blichfeld. The Dane was taken in the seventh round by San Jose in June and the Sharks are taking a long, hard look at him. He recently played in the Inaugural Rookie Showcase vent in Westminster, Colorado for San Jose against prospects from Anaheim and Colorado. Blichfeld played on the fourth line with Kamloops' Jermaine Loewen and former Erie Otters' center Jake Marchment and was impressive. 

I would expect him to be sent home early next week.

Caleb Jones on top-pairing for Oilers' prospects:
-Caleb Jones was mostly paired with new-signee for the Oilers: Matt Benning at the Young Stars Classic in Penticton. The Oilers went 3-0 in the tournament, with Jones playing in the first two. He had one assist, which was when he made a nifty play to set up the empty-netter. He then got back on the ice Wednesday for the Oilers' annual exhibition vs. the University of Alberta.  They won that won too: 6-3. Jones now joins the Oilers' main camp and could end up seeing some preseason action as a signed prospect. Their first preseason game is Monday vs. Calgary.

Rodrigo Abols with the Vancouver Canucks:
-Abols also played in his team's first two games at the young Stars Classic and nearly had a goal several times. The Canucks went 2-1 overall at the tournament. Abols is not currently among those listed on the roster on Vancouver's website, but that does not necessarily mean he won't seem some training camp time.