Winterhawks edge Chiefs, 4-3
Portland scored midway through the third period and held off a late charge from Spokane as they defeated the Chiefs 4-3 in front of 4,619 fans at the Spokane Arena Tuesday Night. Todd Fiddler scored his team-leading 24th goal as the Chiefs fell to 13-4-0-0 at home and 23-10-1-0 overall.
Spokane struggled to keep the puck out of their zone in the first period and it cost the Chiefs as they spotted Portland a pair of early goals. The Winterhawks got on the board first at 6:29 as Taylor Peters grabbed a rebound and fired it past Eric Williams for the score. Portland added their second goal at 10:14 with Nicolas Petan beating Williams glove-side on a backhand.
Winterhawks edge Chiefs, 4-3The Chiefs notched their first score at the 14:31 mark on a one-timer from Fiddler off assists from Blake Gal and Tyler King. Mitch Holmberg notched the equalizer at 18:17 as he snuck a shot through the five-hole of Mac Carruth with assists from Mike Aviani and Reid Gow. Spokane and Portland each recorded 11 shots in the period.
Portland’s Petan struck again at 11:50, scooting a shot through the legs of Williams to give the Winterhawks a 3-2 lead. The Chiefs responded with a goal of their own at the 16:35 mark with Blake Gal converting off a superb centering pass from Fiddler. Spokane outshot the Portland 15-8 in the period.
Portland’s Adam DeChamplain scored the eventual game-winner at 10:40. Carruth stopped all 14 shots he faced in the third.
Williams was 22 of 26 on save opportunities while Carruth finished 37 of 40 for Portland. Spokane went 0 for 3 on the power play and 3 for 3 on the penalty kill.
The Chiefs play a home-and-home series against the Kootenay Ice starting on the road Friday, December 28th before returning to the Spokane Arena to host the ice on December 29th.
