Royals too much for Winterhawks in 5-1 win

The #Hawks game at a glance is presented by @Toyota: pic.twitter.com/H5h3JeWmCH

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 14, 2016

First periods have been good to the Portland Winterhawks this year. They are among he league leaders in goals in the opening session with 129. Tuesday night in Victoria, though the Hawks were outscored 3-0 and could not muster enough of a comeback to overcome this margin in a 5-1 loss to the Victoria Royals. The Royals were led by two goals and an assist by Ryan Peckford and three assists by Matthew Phillips.

Regan Nagy helped get things started by corralling a loose puck behind the Portland net and swiftly gettign the puck to Jack Walker in front. The overage forward banged away at it and got it under the pad of Portland goalie Cole Kehler. Just 1:16 later the speed of Matthew Phillips doubled Victoria's lead. He burst past Portland d-man Brendan De Jong and found linemate Ryan Peckford in the low slot. Peckford couldn't get a good shot on initially but found the puck in De Jong's skates before the blue liner could and beat Kehler. The Royals added another first period goal and it was scored the way Carter Folk usually scores his goals. The overage grinder wouldn't be tied up by Colton Veloso or found by De Jong and poked home a puck that Jared Dmytriw got on net. The goal was just Folk's second of the season.

Portland cut into the Victoria lead while on the power play 12:33 into the second period. Skyler McKenzie fired a cross-ice pass right onto the tape of Joachim Blichfeld and the Danish forward sniped a shot over Victoria goalie Griffen Outhouse's shoulder. The Royals got that one right back though as Matthew Phillips got the puck to Dane Hannoun in front just five seconds into the power play and the speedy Hannoun potted his 13th of the year.

Portland would push back in the third period, but another goal from Ryan Peckford would help put the game out of reach and stellar netminding from Griffen Outhouse would keep them from making it a closer game. A stand out glove save with just under five minutes left in the game on a one-timer from Skyler McKenzie was one such example.

Outhouse was solid in this game, stopping 32 of the 33 shots he faced. Kehler was handed his first loss in four outings. He turned away 29 of the 34 shots he faced.

Portland went 1-2 on the power play, while Victoria went 2-8.

Game Notes:
-When the Hawks lose it certainly seems like a large penalty differential is always a primary issue. Hats off to Matthew Phillips who drew two different power pays. He drew a third penalty, but was also whistled for embellishment.
-In the last two games with the Royals, Phillips has been the most outstanding skater out there. After a slow start to the season, he has 19 points in his last 10 games.
-Ryan Hughes was scratched with an upper-body injury. This is the first game he has missed this year.
-Blichfeld now has a six-game point streak, while Caleb Jones has a seven-game one.
-Keegan Iverson took a double-minor for spearing in the second period. Portland's captain just cannot lose his cool like that. His team is at it's best when he is on the ice, not in the box for a after-the-whistle penalty.
-Brendan De Jong has had an amazing season, but was not at his best in this game. He was on the ice for Victoria's first three goals and had chances to block or break up the plays that led to the markers.
-Portland and Victoria get back at it Wednesday night. Same place, same time.

Skyler McKenzie makes it rain bears and hats in 5-2 Portland win

Squad goals. #Hawks pic.twitter.com/mG0cF6Bo8A

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 11, 2016

Skyler McKenzie had so much fun with making over 11,000 teddy bars rain down on the ice, he decided to add some hats as well. The 18-year-old from Edmonton scored the official teddy bear toss goal just 2:31 into the game, but would add two more goals, to give him his first career hat trick. His three goals and one assist, along with Keegan Iverson's four points led the Hawks to a big 5-2 win over division rival Everett. The Winterhawks are now 10-1-1 over their past 12 games and have retaken third place in the U.S. Division from Seattle.

It should not surprise anyone who made a wager on the teddy bear toss scorer that McKenzie and his line were the ones that broke the seal holding back the mountain of fur. Keegan Iverson made a nice play behind the net, feeding Cody Glass in tight. Everett goalie Mario Petit made a nice save on Glass, but the rebound came out to a waiting McKenzie. He put it away giving another early lead. Just like the previous night, the Hawks could not keep it through the period. Parick Bajkov started the scoring for the 'Tips and was the engine that started the play as well. He surveyed the scene from the Portland blue line and fed linemate Dominic Zwerger down to Portland goalie Cole Kehler's right. The Austrian play maker drove the front of the net and tried to tuck a backhand shot past Kehler's left pad. Kehler made the save, but Bajkov pounced on the rebound tying the game at one.

The Hawks again fell behind in the second period. While on the power play, defenseman Kevin Davis's slap shot went wide and off the end-boards. The ricochet went right to Matt Fontyne's backhand and the center quickly lifted it past Kehler. It was an unfortunate bounce for Portland and it came just 30 seconds into the middle frame. Portland responded on a three-on-two rush up the ice. Caleb Jones drew the attention of the defense and found Keegan Iverson with a quick pass. Cody Glass drove the net and provided a screen just in time to keep Petit from seeing the Iverson shot. Under two minutes later, Portland got the eventual game-winning-goal from Danish center Joachim Blichfeld. The Dane was able to exit the zone and get the puck up to Colton Veloso. He then got a pass back in stride and cut to the right wing, looking for a shooting lane. He found one and picked a top corner on Petit for his 11th goal of the year. Later in the period, while Everett was putting pressure on the Hawks, while on the power play, McKenzie delivered a gut punch level short handed goal. Keegan Iverson gained possession and sprung Skyler McKenzie for a breakaway. McKenzie slipped a backhand past Petit for the two-goal Portland lead. The SH goal was just Portland's fourth of the year and two of those have been against Everett.

Portland got some more insurance on a power play goal just 50 seconds into the third period. Keegan Iverson's shot was turned away by Petit, but the rebound came right to Joachim Blichfeld in tight. Instead of just trying to jam the puck in under Petit, he brilliantly passed over to a wide open McKenzie. The winger buried it, giving him his first career hat trick. He had three career two-goal games, but had yet to breach the three-goal mark until this night.

Game Notes:
-McKenzie has 20 goals and 20 assists for 40 points. This puts his 11th overall in the WHL. He has 19 of those points over Portland's 10-1-1, 12-game stretch.
-Glass is out of the top-five in WHL scoring now with 45 points in 32 games. In that same 12-game stretch, he has 20 points.
-Leading the trio over the past dozen games though, is Keegan Iverson. He has 21 points in that span and now has 39 this year. He had his very second four-point night of the year in the win.
-Everett was missing both Noah Juulsen and Carter Hart, who were off at Hockey Canada's U20 World Junior camp.The 'Tips' power play looked a lot different with Kevin Davis running the point, as opposed to Montreal's signed first round pick.
-Hart's replacement: Mario Petit struggled with containing rebounds, something he has been incredibly stellar at against Portland in previous games.
-Portland got their first win over Everett this year and now trail in the season series 3-1. Going back to last season, the Hawks had dropped nine straight to the 'Tips.
-Joachim Blichfeld has a five-game point streak going. He has seven points over that span. He has climbed up to sixth overall in WHL rookie scoring with 27 points. The move to the middle seems to be agreeing with him. Head coach Mike Johnston must have notice his superb vision and put him in a spot to create. He has done just that.
-Caleb Jones has a six-game point streak going. Over that span he has nine points. He has slowly climbed the charts for d-men and now sits tied for seventh in the Dub with 29 points. If I were pressed as to how the Hawks have made this current run, I would start with the improvement Jones has shown. He has settled into his roll on the team and has gotten away from trying to hit a home run every time up the ice.
-Portland added 17-year-old d-man Darren Gisti to the roster. They expect to be without Jones, who heads off to the U.S.A.'s World Junior camp. The camp starts on Friday, December 16th. Gisti is a list player, who was signed after an impressive Neely Cup.
-The Hawks now head to Victoria for games on Tuesday and Wednesday, completing their four-game season series. The Hawks have four games away from home this coming week, before taking nine-days off for Christmas break.

Ryan Hughes plays overtime hero in 5-4 win over Victoria

The game at a glance from tonight's 5-4 OT win is presented by @Toyota! pic.twitter.com/c03gpVVkYg

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 10, 2016

The Portland Winterhawks appear to have found their next clutch goal-scorer in 17-year-old Edmonton native Ryan Hughes. On Friday night at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum he completed a comeback for the Hawks with the game-winning-goal at 4:05 mark of the five-minute OT. Giving them a 5-4 win over the visiting Victoria Royals. Over the last 10 games, Hughes has two OT winners and five game-winning-goals overall. Not bad considering Hughes had no game winners over his first 21 games this season. Offensively the Hawks were led by Caleb Jones and Cody Glass, who both had three points.

Portland opened the scoring on an incredibly smart play by Cody Glass. The Winterhawks were changing lines and Glass controlled the puck near Victoria blue line. He waited until Lane Gilliss and Brett Clayton were in front of the net, before firing a shot/pass towards the Royals' net. Clayton got a stick on the shot, tipping it past Victoria goalie Griffen Outhouse. The goal was Clayton's first this year and just his second career goal. L.A. Kings' prospect Chaz Reddekopp made an incredible dash up the ice to tie the game while on the power play. He dished a pass along the right wing, before driving the net, receiving a pass and roofing a shot in tight on Portland goalie Cole Kehler. The defenseman is known more for his size than his skill, but he showed that there is more to his game in that highlight-reel play. The Hawks regained the lead with another late-period goal. After a Portland one-timer missed the net, Keoni Texeira tracked down the ricochet and fired a brilliant pass down to the right face off circle, where Colton Veloso one-touched a shot past Outhouse. Texeira did a great job of getting Outhouse and the rest of the Royals thinking shot, before finding Veloso. The 19-year-old from Winnipeg also did a great job, by anticipating the pass and opening up his frame, so that he could get a good forehand shot towards the net.

Just 30 seconds into the second period, the Winterhawks made it 3-1. While on the power play, Joachim Blichfeld showcased his great vision by selling the fact he was going to shoot, before throwing a cross-ice pass onto Cody Glass's stick tape. Portland's leading scorer buried it for the two-goal lead. The Royals and Matthew Phillips specifically were not about to go away quietly into the night though. They scored three straight over the next 26 minutes of game action. Just 27 seconds after Glass's goal, Phillips flew up the ice, driving wide past Portland's defense and found linemate Dante Hannoun back door for the tip-in goal. Phillips is one of the speedier guys in the league, as was evident on this goal. Phillips set up the game-tying goal with another asset: creativity. He spun around in the Portland zone and fired off a slick backhand pass to Ryan Peckford. The 17-year-old fired it into the body of Cole Kehler, but got enough on the shot, that it squeezed through Kehler's body and over the line.

Victoria completed their comeback in the third period after taking advantage of a bad line change by Portland. The Royals attacked the reeling Winterhawks and Jack Walker found Reagan Nagy for a tip-in goal at the 5:52 mark of the period. Speed was again on display for the Royals and the Hawks were not ready for it. Kehler helped give his team a chance to tie it with two different big stops on Matthew Phillips on clear breakaways. His team wouldn't disappoint him as Henri Jokiharju knotted the score with just 54 seconds left. With Kehler pulled for an extra-attacker, Caleb Jones flipped a nifty pass over to Jokiharju at the other point and the Finnish blue liner blew a slap shot past Outhouse, sending the game to overtime.

Both teams had good looks to win the game in the extra session, but it would be Hughes that would give his squad the extra point. After corralling the puck along the right side-bards, Hughes used his body to keep Victoria d-man Ralph Jarratt off the puck, while driving towards the middle of the ice. He then fired a hard wrist shot over Outhouse's glove for the win.

Kehler turned away 33 of 37 shots in getting his 14th win. He had four total WHL wins coming into this year. Outhouse stopped 46 of 51 shots and has stopped 85 of 93 shots in his two games vs. Portland this year. That's a whole lot of rubber.

Portland's power play went 1-2, while Victoria's went 1-5.

Game Notes:
-Brett Clayton has been a different player since returning to the team in late November. He had zero points in three games before being reassigned to the Brooks Bandits of the AJHL. Since his return, he has three points in 10 games. Outside of the points though, he has been more physical and has been an integral part of what has been a very good fourth line for Portland (along with Jake Gricius and Lane Gilliss).
-Matthew Phillips had an incredible game for the Royals, but has to be thinking about the two breakaways he couldn't score on that gave Portland a chance to tie the game. He was all over the ice; flying around and making plays. His previous outing in the Rose City left a lot to be desired as he took two poor penalties on Cody Glass.
-Nic Petan's cousin: Dante Hannoun had a goal and two assists and now has 32 points in 32 games. The five-foot-six winger has fit in well with Peckford and Phillips. Their line is full on speed and creativity.
-Jokigharju showed how hard and accurate his shot can be. If there was one thing, we were hearing he needed to work on this year, it was his slap shot. He relied heavily on getting wrist shots on  net from the point. If he can consistently get his slap shot on net, it will give Portland another weapon.

Winterhawks bounce back with big 5-3 win over visiting Tigers

Check out the @Toyota game at a glance from the 5-3 #Hawks win! pic.twitter.com/sZXp9Hms6s

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 5, 2016

The Medicine Hat Tigers were a desperate team Sunday evening at Veterans Memorial Coliseum. After vaulting to the top-overall record in the WHL, the Tigers had stumbled to two straight losses to start their U.S. Division road trip. They play a system that relies upon speed, so the 3,112 fans at Veterans Memorial Coliseum were treated to a back-and-forth game. If Las Vegas set an over-under for the game, it probably would've been seven or higher.

The two teams combined for 33 first period shots and found the back of the net five times. Skyler McKenzie opened the scoring off a great feed from Cody Glass. McKenzie smartly parked himself to the right of the net and waited for Glass to dig the puck out of the left, side boards. Glass threw a backhand pass that found it's way through two Tigers' defenders and onto McKenzie's stick. After Kehler made two big saves on Steven Owre breakaways, the Hawks extended their lead to two. Caleb Jones got around the defense and fed Keegan Iverson cutting to the front of the net. The overage forward roofed a shot in tight for his 12th goal of the year. Portland extended their lead off another great set up by Henri Jokiharju on the power play. The Finnish d-man fired a shot wide and used the end-board bounce to get the puck to Evan Weinger on a tight angle. Weinger banked his shot off of Medicine Hat goalie Nick Schneider's back and in. The Tigers finally scored a goal just eight seconds later. A shot from Mason Shaw caromed off of goalie Cole Kehler's pad and right to defenseman David Quenneville in front of the Portland net. The WHL's leading scorer among d-men put home the rebound to cut Portland's lead to two. Before the period was over, that lead would be down to one. Swedish forward John Dahlstrom protected the puck in tight on Kehler, getting him to stretch out on the ice and make a save. He then corralled the rebound and fed Mason Shaw, who shot the puck over the down and out Kehler.

The back-and-forth play continued in the second period with Schneider and Kehler doing their best to keep the goal scoring limited. Portland would strike first in the period on a goal from Ryan Hughes. Joachim Blichfeld, back at center on the Hughes and Weinger line, used a nice cut to get around the Tigers defense in the corner of their zone and found Hughes in the high slot. Hughes waited out Schneider, while protecting the puck and put his shot over the goalie. The Tigers would not go away though and cashed in on a power play with 1:28 left in the frame. Chad Butcher helped create the goal by driving hard into the Portland zone and getting the defense to close on him. He then got the puck to Max Gerlach, who fired a shot on Kehler. The 19-year-old goalie made the save, but John Dahlstrom poked home the third rebound to cut Portland's lead back to one. The two teams exchanged 32 shots in the crazy period.

The Winterhawks tightened up in the third period and only allowed six shots to get in on Kehler. They, themselves threw 16 on Schneider in pursuit of an insurance goal. They appeared to have one when Keegan Iverson lit the goal lamp with a shot from a tight angle. The goal was reviewed and was disallowed after the replay showed that his shot had gone off of the cross bar. Cody Glass then nearly scored, but his shot went through Schneider's legs and sat on the goal line, before being covered. He finally got the insurance marker after a fantastic outlet pass from rookie d-man Matt Quigley. He set up Cody Glass with a two-on-one and Schneider and d-man Clayton Kirichenko expected him to pass. Instead he sniped a shot glove side to give Portland a 5-3 lead. The Tigers went with four forwards with just over three minutes left and also pulled their goalie relatively early. Portland's defense did not allow much towards the net though and the Hawks pulled out a big win.

Kehler responded well after his first loss in awhile, turning away 43 of 46 shots. Schneider, who is signed by the Calgary Flames turned away 36 of 41 shots.

Portland and Medicine Hat each potted one power play goal on three chances. The Tigers are atop th league in this category with a 30.2 percentage, while Portland is fifth with 25.0.

Game Notes:
-This match up featured eight of the top-20 scorers in the WHL. By the end of the night, Shaw had two points and now has 42; Glass had three points and now has 41 and Butcher had two and now has 42. Shaw and Butcher are tied for third in league scoring, while Glass is fifth. Regina teammates Adam Brooks and Sam Steel are numbers one and two overall.
-Shaw, Glass and Butcher are all pass-first guys. What is interesting is that Glass and Shaw had two-on-one looks. Shaw passed, despite Kehler selling out to stop his teammate and Glass took advantage of a similar situation and scored.
-Butcher really stood out to me. He has a ton of speed and can create from anywhere in the opponent's zone. If I were to bet on a Tigers' player to win the scoring title, it would be him.
-Mike Johnston went with a forward unit of Alex Overhardt, Jake Gricius and Colton Veloso, holding onto a lead late in the game. Overhardt and Veloso started out this year as two of Portland's, relied upon defensive forwards, but Gricius has grown into that role. It's been interesting to watch Portland's coaches start to trust him more and more. He even took a face off, despite Overhardt also being on the ice.
-One thing the Hawks have not quite figured out, is who will center the Hughes and Weinger line. They have tried Blichfeld there, despite him not really being a natural centers and have moved Hughes to center at times. Neither seems to be a great fit. With the Hawks having 33 points in 30 games, Johnston is put in a tough spot. Does he stay with the youth and try to sneak in as a wild card, or does he make a deal for an overage center to play with Hughes and Weinger and try to get into the U.S. Division bracket as a two or three seed?
-I get the impression that Johnston will make a move for a center. An overage would make a lot of sense, but I wouldn't be shocked if he finds a younger option (18 or 19). This team looks to only lose Iverson up front and the more continuity that they can keep among this group, the more they will be a real contender next season. I don't think he'd have to move their 2017 first rounder in such a deal.
-Of course Blichfeld has produced as a center as well. He had an assist in this game and has four points in his last three games.
-Sklyer McKenzie had three points and has 14 points in his last 10 games.
-Portland is now 8-1-1 in their last ten games.
-They next take on Victoria at home on Friday. They won the first game of the four-game season series.

Lee leads Ice past Winterhawks 3-2

The game at a glance is presented by @Toyota: pic.twitter.com/dReOWtUfVJ

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 4, 2016

In order to keep the Portland Winterhawks and Trail Blazers' games apart from one another this year, some Hawks games were moved to 2pm starts. This was the case Saturday afternoon at Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Despite Kootenay playing an overtime game in Kent and Portland playing in Kennewick the night before, they were scheduled to play an early afternoon game. Overage goalie Payton Lee was the freshest Ice player and he looked it, turning away 55 of 57 shots helping the Ice steal a game from Portland. After two periods, Portland had fired 42 shots on Lee and had only beaten him once. Lee is one of the goalies in the WHL that Portland has sen a whole lot of. His career record vs. Portland is 3-9-0-1 now, but he has not faced them since he played for Vancouver two years ago.

Th first period was a horror show for the Hawks as they peppered Lee with 2 shots, but somehow came out of the period down 2-0. The Ice started the scoring by taking advantage of a Portland turnover. Conor MacEachern, under pressure by Matt Alfaro, tried a pass across the front of his own net that kicked off Alfaro's skate. The overage Ice center jumped on the loose puck and fed Vince Loschiavo in front. The 18-year-old forward potted the goal for his second in two games. Then, later in the first after Alex Overhardt collided with Lee in the crease, the Ice were awarded a power play. Kootenay took advantage as Alfaro did a good job of getting a shot on net through traffic and defenseman Dallas Hines poked home the rebound. To recap, the Ice were out shot 20-11, but came away with a two-goal lead.

Things would get worse before they would get better for the Winterhawks in the second period. A loose puck came along the side boards in the neutral zone and Skyler McKenzie, who is normally quite adept in this area on the ice, could not corral the puck. Sergey Zbrosoky peeled the puck off the boards and skated in a two-on-one. He picked a spot right above Portland goalie Cole Kehler's blocker and put in his 21st goal on the season. Portland would finally get a shot past Lee with just 3:51 left in the second. After Caleb Jones drew a penalty, the Portland power play cashed in. After Cody Glass won a draw in the Ice zone, Joachim Blichfeld got the puck back to Jones for a point shot. Lee made the right pad save, but Keegan Iverson made a slick move, kicking the puck to his stick in order to backhand his shot past the goalie. The Ice entered the game's final frame up by two goals.

Portland continued the pressure in the third period, getting a lot of good looks. However, they would only get one more shot past Lee, which was not quite enough. With Kehler pulled for an extra attacker and the Hawks on the power play, Henri Jokiharju skated one-on-four into the Ice zone and sniped a shot past Lee from just inside the blue line. More chances would follow, but this afternoon was all about the 20-year-old, Cranbrook, B.C. native in net for the Ice.

Kehler was handed his first loss in seven starts as he stopped only 21 of 24 shots. The Hawks' power play was 2/8, while the Ice PP went 1/3.

Game Notes:
-Cody Glass came oh so close to extending his point streak to eight games on the Iverson goal. Unfortunately, Blichfeld played the puck back to Jones, giving him the secondary assist.
-After Iverson's seven game point streak was snapped last week, he has another streak going. A goal gives him points in three straight.
-Another goal for Jokiahrju. Over his first 25 WHL game,s he had just one goal. In his next four games, he has three.
-The penalty that was called on Overhardt and led to the Ice's game-winning-goal, was a controversial one. Overhardt appeared to be checked into the Ice goalie after the whistle was blown. However, Overhardt was the second man to skate right up in Lee's face and it was well after the play was dead. Despite these factors though, this call does not get made very often.
-After centering Ryan Hughes and Evan Weinger for the last couple of games Joachim Blichfeld over to the wing with Overhardt and Colton Veloso.
-Brad Ginnell was scratched and his absence was somewhat noticeable. Despite only having three points this year, Ginnell seems to be growing in confidence offensively. He has several quality scoring chances each game and is becoming a better puck-possession player in the opponent's zone. I think Portland's best lineup has him in the top-nine, which is high praise for a 16-year-old.
-Next up for Portland is Sunday evening, at home vs. Medicine Hat.

Winterhawks take latest in season series over Americans 5-2

Check out the game at a glance, presented by @Toyota, for the 5-2 victory over @TCAmericans! pic.twitter.com/MHnWg67afo

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 3, 2016

In the first of three-game-in-three nights, the Portland Winterhawks rebounded from an early deficit and took down the Tri-City Americans 5-2. Despite Rylan Parenteau winning the last four Tri-City-Portland match ups, Evan Sarthou got the start and the streak was ended. Sarthou was not the only rare starter in net as Portland's Michael Bullion got the nod in net and was a key reason for three of Portland''s goals. The WHL schedule can be odd at times and Portland has taken on Tri-City seven out of their first 28 games, or 1/4 of their total games. The Americans lead the season series 4-3 now.

The Ams scored just 11 seconds into the game on a goal from Vladislav Lukin. Parker Wotherspoon drove into the Portland zone right off the face off and dropped a pass to Lukin. The Russian forward drove a shot that Portland goalie Cole Kehler could not quite stop. Before the period was over, the Hawks would not only get that goal back, but take a lead. Michael Bullion, who was getting his first start in nearly two weeks, was the unlikely igniter of the Hawks' first goal. He made a big pad save on a chance from Tyler Sandhu, starting a Portland rush the other way. Ryan Hughes fired an outlet pass to Evan Weinger, who got in alone on a breakaway. Weinger buried the opportunity to tie the game. Just over a minute later the Hawks took a lead on a goal from Colton Veloso. Caleb Jones drew the attention of the Tri-City defense and backhanded a pass to the front of the net where Veloso buried the puck past Sarthou.

Portland extended their lead to two just over four minutes into the second period from a recent source for goals either scored or assisted: Henri Jokiharju. Ryan Hughes and Joachim Blichfeld set up Jokiharju with a shot form the point that appeared to deflect off an American defender and in. Then, just over a minute later another Bullion save sparked an odd-man Portland rush the other way. Cody Glass found Keegan Iverson for a shot and Skyler McKenzie poked home the rebound to give Portland a 4-1 lead. 

Tri-City cut into the Portland lead 2:24 into the third period with a goal from top 2017 NHL draft prospect Michael Rasmussen. Parker Wotherspoon got his second assist of the game by firing a shot towards the net, that was deflected on net by Morgan Geekie. Bullion, stopped the Geekie chance but Rasmussen was there for the rebound. The Americans almost got within one but a shot that squeaked through Bullion but was pulled off the goal line by defenseman Caleb Jones. Joachim Blichfeld put the game away after Bullion kicked out another save that freed up Colton Veloso to get Blichfeld into space with a smart board pass. 

Michael Bullion earned his first win in nearly two months by making 26 saves on 28 shots. Sarthou has struggled in his three most recent outings including this one. He let in four goals on 25 shots.

Portland only earned one power play and was not able to convert on it. Tri-City meanwhile went 1/4. 

Game Notes:

-Alex Overhardt and Parker Wotherspoon had a couple tense exchanges, but the first one was a rather odd one. Wotherspoon dropped his glove,s but Overhardt did not on their initial dust up. As soon as they were out of their penalty boxes, the two, both dropped gloves and exchanged blows.

-Keoni Texeira quietly has blossomed into a shot down defenseman. He made an excellent play in breaking up a one-on-two sequence. Not only did he take away the pass, he kept the shot from the puck-carrier to one side of the net.

-Brett Clayton kept up his strong play since coming back to the Hawks. His defensive play has been superb and it was on display Friday night in Kennewick. He came back for the back-check and lifted the stick in a net fornt battle. This took away a prime scoring chance.

-Blichfeld could break 30 goals this year. While he is at 10, through 28 games, his quick release and growing comfort in Portland's system should increase his scoring opportunities.

-Next up for Portland is an early game Saturday vs. Kootenay. 

Portland holds off Spokane 2-1

This game at a glance from a gutty 2-1 win in Spokane is presented by @Toyota pic.twitter.com/Ywa0mPoW0r

— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 1, 2016

It's been a season of streaks for the Portland Winterhawks so far in 2016. After dropping nine straight close games, they won their fourth straight and six of their last seven, Wednesday night in Spokane. Portland jumped on the Chiefs early, scoring twice on the power play before the game was seven minutes old. They then exchanged chances and shots off posts the rest of the way, before holding on for yet another tight contest with Spokane.

Portland got the first goal of the game off some great PP puck movement. Cody Glass got to a rebound to the right of Spokane goalie Jayden Sittler's net. He cycled it around the net to the other side to Skyler McKenzie. Portland's left wing then moved it back to Caleb Jones who fired a quick shot towards the net. Glass, who had moved to the high slot, got a stick on the shot, deflecting the puck past Sittler for his 14th goal of the year. Then after Brett Clayton drew a penalty by driving the net, Portland found twine on the man advantage again. Alex Overhardt, in his first game back from injury, after receiving the puck along the right boards at the blue line, used his body to shield the puck away. This allowed him to send Evan Weinger in with speed. Weinger then fed Ryan Hughes in front of the net. Hughes had out-muscled Spokane defenseman Evan Fiala to get positioning in front of the net. Hughes roofed his shot, without much room to maneuver.

In the second period neither team could find the net, but both came very close. Both teams struck multiple posts in the period on some high quality chances.

In the third, Spokane began to put more pressure on the Hawks, but Cole Kehler was stalwart between the pipes, making many saves in tight on loose pucks right in front of him. Spokane could not beat Portland's 19-year-old goalie until they pulled Sittler for an extra attacker with just over two minutes left in the game. They scored after Kehler made several saves over to his right on one of those loose pucks. The puck was worked around to Keanu Yamamoto in the high slot over to Kehler's left. Yamamoto's slap shot got through a heavily screened Kehler. Spokane was unable to get anymore quality chances in their quest to tie the game, as Portland clamped down defensively.

Cole Kehler turned away 36 34 of 35 shots in getting the win. Spokane's overage goalie Jayden Sittler stopped 38 of the 40 Portland shots he saw.

Portland's power play was 2/3, while Spokane's was 0/2. After having a lot of games with 5-7 penalties, Portland cleaned things up and kept the game at five players aside for a majority of the game.


Game Notes:
-Keegan Iverson had his career-high six-game point streak snapped.
-Cody Glass extended his point streak to seven games with his goal. During that span he has 13 points. He is now fourth in WHL scoring with 38 points.
-Skyler McKenzie, with an assist in the game, is just outside the top-10 scorers in the league. He is tied for 11th with 32 points.
-Alex Overhardt had an assist in his return to the lineup from injury. He hadn't seen any game action for 11 days.
-There aren't many goalies in the WHL playing better than Cole Kehler right now. Over his last six games, he has a save percentage of 0.913 or higher in each game. He likely will start two of the three games this weekend, with Michael Bullion getting the other. Kehler has crawled all the way up to sixth in the league in save percentage (among goalies who've played seven games or more).
-Joachim Blichfeld played his first game at center in the WHL and did a solid job, while learning the role on the fly. He centered a line with Ryan Hughes and Evan Weinger on his wings.
-Brett Clayton had one of his better games this year as showed good speed in bursting by a Spokane defender and drawing the penalty that set up the eventual game-winning-goal.
-Brad Ginnell put home his own rebound for what would've been his third WHL goal. However, Colton Veloso and a Chiefs' d-man collided into the post, knocking the net off before he scored.
-Portland's defensemen did a great job of driving into the Spokane zone and at least getting puck deep. They did not allow a lot of odd-man chances the other way by doing this.
-17-year-old d-man Matthew Quigley looked way more comfortable. Up until this game, he often exhibited signs of being nervous and always making the absolute safest play possible. He made several solid defensive plays in the game, by keeping Spokane forwards from getting good looks in prime scoring chances.
-Caleb Jones has definitely turned his season around and was Portland's best skater in this game. It seemed like every single time Spokane tried to get a pass to a player camped in front, he had their body or stick (or both) tied up.
-Next up for the Hawks is Friday night in Tri-City.
-Ty Kolle was reportedly reassigned, but there has yet to any announcement on where he was sent to.