Two weeks to go in the regular season, and there is still an element of doubt, albeit small, that playoff positions will jockey anymore. Out West, where Everett is assured of first, Spokane is assured of third, due to hybrid placing where Divisional leaders get slots one and two regardless of points, then see teams reseeded next round.
Everett defeated the Portland Winterhawks in the first of three for Portland on the weekend 5-3. He ensured they would take the top spot in the West with pretty much a guarantee of being Scotty Munro Champions and the only team to attain 100 points in the regular season standings, probably.
The game against Everett was just over two minutes old when Everett scored its first goal on a rebound collect, only to see the Hawks tie it less than a minute later with a wrist shot near the blue line. Everett would score twice more before the period ended and led 3-1 at the end of the first. Everett would score again just past the midway point of the second.
Portland would get the only powerplays of the game, and with a two-man advantage, Diego Buttazzoni spread out the penalty kill unit of Everett to score, closing the gap. The Hawks pulled their goaltender and hit paydirt as Josh Zakreski finally pushed the puck in after several Everett saves. However, removing the goalie can result in an empty net goal possibility. Everett did just that by clearing the puck and moving toward the empty cage seconds later for the 5-3 win. Everett was full value at 47-27 in shots, with 19 in the first period alone. Portland was 1-2 on the powerplay, and Everett did not get a man advantage in the game.
Two games then took place in Portland: a televised game against Seattle and a Sunday afternoon game against Vancouver.
Both had implications: Seattle was looking to attain a playoff spot, and Vancouver was keeping ahead of Tri-City to surpass the Hawks.
Portland simply destroyed Seattle 6-1 in that game. After a scoreless first period, Seattle’s Braedon Cootes picked up a loose puck and went in alone with a five-hole shot on Marek Schlenker. It was the only Seattle goal of the game.
Portland thought they had scored when it appeared the puck had crossed the line, but the referee waved it off. Subsequent reviews established that the puck wasn’t completely across the line. Seconds later, Alex Weiermair ensured the puck was as he barreled the puck into the net. Two minutes later, the quiet Reed Brown was “Johnny on the Spot” for the rebound and 6th of the year. And then, a couple of minutes later, Josh Zakreski scored his first of two on the night, a roofer, and with time to one second, Hudson Darby scored to make it 4-1. Josh Zakreski got a great pass from Weiermair as he stretched out the Seattle goaltender to score, and finally, David Hoy stormed in with a blast in front of Scott Ratzlaff, taking over for Grayson Malinowski and capping the scoring. Portland held the decisive edge in shots at 44-30 and 1-3 on the powerplay, with Seattle 0-2 on theirs.
The next day, the Hawks faced Vancouver Giants, who looked to keep ahead of Tri-City while attempting to catch up to the Hawks. They did neither. Portland’s 4-2 win, Diego Buttazzoni started things off for the Hawks with the only goal of the first period; Vancouver scored on an early powerplay in the second to tie things up. Alex Weirermair picked up a shorthanded goal three minutes later, with Kyle Chykowski chipping in his 41st on the year and breaking the 100-point plateau seven minutes after that. Vancouver tried to make it close with another powerplay goal, but the effort was snuffed out in the dying seconds with an empty net goal by Carter Sotheran with just his sixth of the campaign.
Overall with a Portland 4-2 win, the shots were close at 29-27 favoring Vancouver.. Vancouver was 2-6 on the powerplay, with Portland shutout on four tries.
With two games remaining, here are the updated postseason matches. After winning tonight versus Tri-City, Seattle has locked down the 8th and final playoff spot, officially eliminating Wenatchee. Along with Kamloops and Kelowna, Wenatchee will sit idle for the playoffs.
Victoria and Prince George are battling for second place. PG is 2 points up, but Victoria has two games in hand with Kamloops and Kelowna this week and a pair in the HUB City with the Cougars. This will determine if Tri-City goes to Prince George or Victoria. Spokane will host Vancouver, and Portland will either travel to Victoria or PG, and we may not fully know until the end of the regular season,
Out East, it is still murky, with Calgary and Medicine Hat battling for the top spot. The Hat leads by two points, but Calgary has a game in hand. Calgary has a home and home with Red Deer and a game at the end of the season with Medicine Hat. With the away match in Calgary, the Tigers have a home game versus Lethbridge, who was heavy at the trade deadline. Brandon and Saskatoon are tied at 79 points, and with each team having three games left, The Wheat Kings first go to Saskatoon and then home with lowly Regina. Saskatoon, with that home game against Brandon, also has a home and home with Prince Albert, who is a point back of both Saskatoon and Brandon, and has a home game against the lowest team in the WHL, Moose Jaw Warriors, in Prince Albert before that home and home versus Saskatoon Edmonton has an away game in Lethbridge before a home game against Red Deer and is two points back of Prince Albert. They’ll need a bit of help should they wish to move up. About the only team pretty much established in Swift Current Broncos in 8th place. They’ll either travel to Medicine Hat or Calgary to start things off.
The final week of the season is going to be interesting, as the playoffs, which start next week, are anything but city-confirmed.
Who knew the final week could have so many implications? We’ll see if Victoria can break the deadlock with Kamloops and Kelowna this week, or will the spoilers be out in full force? It’s almost a soap opera in a way where we have the cliffhanger until next week.
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