The Portland Winterhawks are back in the win column with a 3-1 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes this Saturday night. This win comes one day after the Winterhawks fell in a shootout loss to the Swift Current Broncos. With the win, Portland are on a three game point streak. This was Portland’s 7th straight road game in a row. Since starting this trip, Portland has gone 3-3-1, with two more road games to go.
One massive factor entering this game in Lethbridge was early dominance, and Portland had it in spades. By the end of the first period, the Winterhawks outshot the Hurricanes 14-0. On top of that, the Winterhawks found the opening goal of the game late in the first period. On the power-play, Luca Cagnoni would pass the puck from the goal line to the point. Gabe Klassen would receive the pass, and rip a shot towards the goal. Klassen’s shot would ring off the post, and deflect towards the opposite faceoff circle. Jack O’Brien would then gather up the rebound, and fire the puck into the net with 4:45 remaining in the period.
The momentum started to shift in the second period, as Lethbridge outshot Portland 17-14. However, Portland’s offense was not to be denied. 8:13 into the period, after killing off a power-play, Marek Alscher would come out of the penalty box for the Winterhawks. Thanks to a poke check from Carter Sotheran, the puck would slide towards the point, and Marek Alscher would be able to intercept it. Alscher then found himself 1-on-1 with the last Lethbridge defender, and Alscher was gaining the edge towards the boards. Alscher would be able to speed past the defender, fake a backhand towards the far post, and slide the puck back around the leg of goaltender Harrison Meneghin. Meneghin and Alscher would both slide into the net, but not before the puck would cross the line, giving the Winterhawks a 2-0 lead.
Late in the second period, Lethbridge would cut into Portland’s lead. With just over six minutes remaining in the period, Elias Knoester held possession of the puck down low. Knoester would wrap around the net, take a wide angle, and wrist a shot towards the far post. Winterhawks goaltender Jan Špunar would make the save, but the rebound would kick right out in front of the net. Brayden Edwards would shove another shot towards the goal that Špunar’s leg pad would block. However, that rebound would bounce outside of Špunar’s reach, right to the stick of Kooper Gizowski. Gizowski wasted no time firing the puck into the net, and his 5th goal of the year cut the Winterhawks lead in half.
Unfortunately for Lethbridge, the third period didn’t go as planned. Defense was the name of the game for the final 20 minutes of action, as there were a total of only nine shots in the period. Despite Lethbridge getting the better of the shot total in the period, tallying six to Portland’s three, Špunar and the Winterhawks would hold strong and force the Hurricanes to pull their goaltender. From there, Luca Cagnoni and Gabe Klassen would assist on an empty-net goal from James Stefan, securing a 3-1 victory for Portland.
The Winterhawks’ next game is Wednesday, Nov. 8, at the Sandman Centre in Kamloops, BC. Puck drop against the Kamloops Blazers is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Northwest Sports Desk 