The Portland Winterhawks had a forgettable time in Kennewick, with their unbeaten string snapped by the Americans. 4 goals on 8 shots in the first period did them in as they fell 7 to 3.
The first period ended at 5 to 1 as Marek Alscher broke the zero for Portland. Alex Thompson and the returning from injury Gabe Klassen added markers in the third period but saw Tri-City get the last goal to make it 7-3. Portland outshot Tri-City 47-25, went 1 for 4 on the powerplay, and saw Tri-City going 2 for 7 on theirs.
With that out of the way, they focus on a pair of games against Kelowna Rockets on the weekend, where the parents of the players visit.
The Central Scouting ranks are out, with Luca Cagnoni as a B pick, while Carter Soutern and Jan Spunar are listed as C picks. A picks are thought of as first-round locks, B is a 2nd and 3rd round, with C looking at 4 to 6 rounds. The rankings may change with the final ranks coming before the Draft in June.
Seattle made the first volley on trades in their hopes of being Memorial Cup champions. They traded a first-round pick in 2025 and third-round pucks in 2024 and 2025 to obtain the rights to Luke Prokop, based out of the Edmonton Oil Kings. If he is sent down to Juniors, Edmonton will receive those picks. Edmonton looks like a seller as they are mired in last place in the Eastern Conference.
The first team to potentially see Luke in action will be the Prince George Cougars, who are set to play the Thunderbirds in a doubleheader this weekend.
Portland also announced the TV schedule for the upcoming season.
Portland will play eight games on TV against Seattle, with two games home and away versus Spokane sandwiched in the middle. The games will be on CW 32 Cable 3. Note the December 10 game in Portland has a 5 pm start, as most Saturday games have a 6 pm start.
• Friday, November 4– Seattle at Portland – 7:00 pm.
• Friday, November 25 – Portland at Seattle – 7:05 pm.
• Saturday, December 10 – Seattle at Portland – 5:00 pm.
• Saturday, January 28 – Portland at Seattle – 6:05 pm.
• Sunday, January 29 – Spokane at Portland – 5:00 pm.
• Saturday, February 11 – Seattle at Portland – 6:00 pm.
• Saturday, February 25 – Portland at Seattle – 6:05 pm.
• Friday, March 10 – Portland at Spokane – 7:05 pm.
• Saturday, March 18 – Seattle at Portland – 6:00 pm.
• Saturday, March 25 – Portland at Seattle – 6:05 pm.
