The Portland Winterhawks took a few days to regroup following their tough first half of the swing through Alberta. Having a few days off allowed the team to plan as it faces the top Central Division.
The first stop was the Gas City, aka Medicine Hat, Alberta. The Hawks looked to face the third-place Eastern Division team in the Hat and hoped their fortunes would turn around. As seems to be commonplace with the Hawks, they gave up the first goal just over five minutes in. Three minutes later, Gabe Klassen ties it up for the visitors. Medicine Hat took the lead on the powerplay under four minutes later. They added to the lead early in the second stanza.
Things got scary for the Hawks as they had to fend off a five-minute powerplay with James Stefan getting the hook for a check to the head, which carries an automatic game misconduct, and one will see if he faces further punishment from the league.
After killing off the penalty, it seemed to wake up the Hawks as Josh Davies scored on the powerplay just past the fifteen-minute mark.
Spunar shut down the Tigers the rest of the way. Jack O’Brien scored early in the third period, and less than a minute later, it was Josh Davies with his second of the night to put the Hawks ahead. Diego Buttazoni scored twice on the powerplay less than a minute apart on his two, and the Hawks reversed their losing streak with a 6-3 win. Portland still sits third in the Conference standings, behind Wenatchee and Prince George, but holds a couple of games in hand over each. The Hawks now have a day off before a Friday matchup in Swift Current, SK, and finish the trip in Lethbridge against the Hurricanes.
Portland still has a pair on the road but will head home following the Lethbridge game. They head to Kamloops on Wednesday, November 8, and Vancouver on Friday, November 10.
The CHL released its top 10, and as suspected, Portland fell from the top spot in the poll. Halifax Mooseheads, hot on the heels of Portland, took over the top spot. Moose Jaw Warriors took over the number 2 spot with amassing 20 points in the young campaign. Prince George Cougars have jumped to third as they continue to get great production offensively and goaltending, but they didn’t take the CHL goaltender of the week. Portland places fourth now as they battle the better teams in Alberta and Saskatchewan over the next four days. Rouyn-Noranda Huskies round out the top five for the QMJHL. The London Knights slide into sixth, with the last WHL entrant, Saskatoon Blades, in seventh. Baie-Comeau Drakkar takes eighth, Mississauga Steelheads and Moncton Wildcats take ninth and tenth, respectively. This week, four teams representing the QMJHL made it to the poll.
The CHL announced its Goaltender of the month for October, and to no one’s surprise, Jan Spunar of the Portland Winterhawks got the nod. Although a couple of games at the end hurt his average, he still has a 1.83 GAA heading to the final three of the Alberta Swing.
The WHL also announced mandatory neck protection for all its players on November 3 or as soon as equipment becomes available to the teams. Skate cuts and pucks to the throat have long been an issue for some teams. Goaltenders already wear a plastic neckguard below the mask, so it was only a matter of time before the players would as well. Any on-ice activities require the wearing of the device ASAP.
After beating the Hawks last week, Kyle Kelsey is moving to Kennewick, WA. The 19-year-old has been traded for a pair of draft picks, a 4th round in 2024 and second round in 2025. Kelsey played six games so far with Red Deer and will bolster the backstop position.
