The Portland Winterhawks won the first two games against the Kamloops Blazers, during the west final series of the Western Hockey League. This gives the Winterhawks a strong advantage in their best-of-seven series against Kamloops.
The Portland Winterhawks won the first two games against the Kamloops Blazers, during the west final series of the Western Hockey League.
This gives the Winterhawks a strong advantage in their best-of-seven series against Kamloops. The Hawks are the defending west conference champions, as they won the series last year.
Derrick Pouliot, defenseman for the Hawks and a former Weyburn athlete, scored two assists during Saturday nights win, when the Winterhawks blanked the Blazers 4-0.
During game two, goaltender Mac Carruth stopped all 27 shots he faced, for his third shutout of the playoffs and his sixth career postseason blanking, extending his franchise record.
The Hawks scored the lone goal of the first period at the 15:31 mark. It remained a one-goal game until just under four minutes to go in the second, when the Hawks scored again.
The Winterhawks then struck on a power play just 45 seconds into the third, and then had another power play to score their fourth goal at the 10:01 mark.
During game two, Portland was 2-8 on the power play and had a perfect 5-5 on the penalty kill. It was also a career note for Ty Rattie, who took over fourth place in WHL history with 84 career playoff points.
The night before, Portland had won 4-1 over Kamloops, opening the west final series while playing on home ice.
Kamloops opened the scoring 2:10 into the goal, but that was their only goal of the game. The Hawks tied it at the 15:03 mark.
Just over two minutes later Ty Rattie was awarded a penalty shot after being impeded on a breakaway, and beat the Kamloops netminder to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead.
After a scoreless second period, the Hawks banged in a rebound on a power play 3:17 into the third to further their lead. The Hawks extended their lead further to 4-1, notching their final goal at the 14-minute mark.
During game one, the Hawks were 1-3 on the power play and had a perfect 5-5 on the penalty kill. One of the goals for the Hawks was a penalty shot, scored while being shorthanded.
Game three of the west final series was held Tuesday night. Game four will be held tonight, Apr. 27, in Kamloops.
Games five, six and seven will only be played if necessary. Game five is scheduled for Friday, Apr. 26; game six is Sunday, Apr. 28; and game seven is Tuesday, Apr. 30.
Both the Calgary Hitmen and Edmonton Oil Kings had each won a game, during their best-of-seven east final series. Calgary and Edmonton also played game three of their series on Tuesday evening.
Pouliot has played all 12 playoff games with the Hawks. He is currently ranked sixth as a scoring leader during the playoffs, and is the highest-ranked defencemen for scoring in the Western Hockey League.
In those two games, Pouliot has scored two goals and 11 assists. He is only two goals behind Nicholas Petan, a fellow Hawk, for fifth place.
The Winterhawks last played the Kamloops Blazers in the playoffs in the 2011-12 season, when they won in seven games during the west semifinals.
The two franchises have a long playoff history, with 11 previous matchups.
The Hawks have won five series, Kamloops has won five, and there was a round-robin meeting in 1995.
