The Portland Winterhawks entered the weekend with two games against teams below them in the standings. By the end of it, one of those teams had jumped ahead, but Portland managed to salvage a point to keep a little breathing room.
It began with an unusual Thursday night matchup in Portland against the Victoria Royals. Griffin Darby opened the scoring at 11:08 of the first period, but Victoria responded quickly with two goals in a span of just over two minutes to take the lead. The Hawks answered right back. Jordan Duguay tied it, and Alex Weiermair followed with a power play goal to restore Portland’s advantage.
Victoria evened the game early in the second period. Portland reclaimed the lead four minutes later, but the Royals struck again in the third to force overtime. After a scoreless extra frame, the game went to a shootout. Victoria converted on its first attempt, while Portland came up empty on all three tries, falling 5-4. The Royals edged the Hawks 37-36 in shots. Portland went 1-for-6 on the power play, while Victoria finished 2-for-5.
Next up were the Spokane Chiefs, who were looking to overtake Portland in the standings. The Hawks came out flying. Duguay scored less than 90 seconds into the game, and Max Psenicka and Nathan Free added goals just over a minute apart, with Free’s coming on the power play. At that point, Portland held a 10-2 shot advantage and full control.
But hockey is a 60-minute game.
Spokane erupted for three goals in just 50 seconds late in the first period to erase the deficit and tie the game before intermission. The Chiefs added goals early in the second and third periods, giving them five unanswered tallies. Nathan Brown cut the deficit to one with a power play goal midway through the third, and Ondrej Stebatek was pulled for the extra attacker, but Portland could not find the equalizer and fell 5-4.
After the hot start, Spokane dominated the shot count 45-29. On a positive note, the Hawks went a perfect 2-for-2 on the power play and killed off both Chiefs opportunities.
Looking ahead, Portland travels to Kent to face the Seattle Thunderbirds, then heads north to take on the Vancouver Giants before returning home to host Seattle again. The Hawks remain in seventh place, just one point ahead of Tri-City, which has a game in hand. Vancouver currently holds the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, while Seattle sits four points back with two games in hand.
With fewer than 15 games remaining, playoff spots are starting to lock in around the CHL. Everett has clinched the U.S. Division. In the WHL’s Eastern Conference, Prince Albert, Edmonton, and Medicine Hat have secured postseason berths.
In the OHL, five Western Conference teams have clinched: Kitchener, Flint, Windsor, Sault Ste. Marie, and London. The Eastern Conference is tighter, with Brantford, Barrie, and Ottawa currently in.
In the QMJHL, Blainville-Boisbriand, Drummondville, Rouyn-Noranda, and Shawinigan have clinched in the West, while Moncton, Chicoutimi, and Newfoundland have secured spots in the East.
The road to the playoffs is officially underway. With positioning still very much up for grabs, the final weeks of the regular season promise plenty of drama.
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