Chiefs Survive, Beat Moose Jaw 5-4 In Shootout
SPOKANE – Sixty minutes wasn’t enough, but the Spokane Chiefs scored twice in the shootout to beat the Moose Jaw Warriors 5-4 Friday night at the Spokane Arena.
The win snapped a two-game skid for the Chiefs, who never trailed in the game. But the Warriors scored with just under three minutes left in regulation to force overtime. But Spokane outscored Moose Jaw 2-1 in the shootout to take the game.
Spokane jumped on the scoreboard first. Curtis Kelner scored the only goal of the period with 7:14 remaining to give the Chiefs a 1-0 lead. The Chiefs had three power play chances, but failed to score on any of them.
The Chiefs extended the lead early in the second period, when Drayson Bowman scored to make the score 2-0. But the Warriors fought back to tie the game. First, Terrence Delaronde scored a shorthanded goal 6:13 into the second to cut the lead to 2-1. Then, five minutes later, Jason Bast got a breakaway goal to tie the game at 2-2. That’s how it stayed as the third period began.
Spokane grabbed the lead back just over eight minutes into the third period. Ondrej Roman scored a power play goal to give the lead back to the Chiefs. But Jordan Knackstedt tied the game up again with a power play goal of his own five minutes later.
Judd Blackwater put the Chiefs ahead again less than a minute after Knackstedt’s goal. But with 2:54 remaining in regulation, Brad Riege scored to tie the game and send it into overtime.
After little happened in the five minute extra period, the game went to a shootout. Blackwater and Brayson scored for Spokane, while Knackstedt tallied for Moose Jaw. But Keaton Ellerby was stopped by Spokane goalie Dustin Tokarski to start the shootout, and when Tokarski saved Bast’s shootout attempt, Spokane got the win.
Tokarski was very busy on the evening, getting 36 saves through the three periods and overtime. Moose Jaw’s Joey Perricone stopped 25 Spokane shots for the evening.
The Chiefs are back in action on Saturday night to take on their long-time rivals, the Tri-City Americans in Kennewick. Spokane is only two points ahead of Tri-City in the U.S. Division of the Western Hockey League.
