You can’t say the Winterhawks haven’t been creative in their 4-game losing streak. They lost to the best team in the conference, then the worst team in the conference, then lost despite outshooting the opposition by 31. Monday was a new one in Winterhawks history, losing despite shutting out the opposition. Dante Giannuzzi’s 30-for-30 effort was matched by Prince George Cougars goalie Tyler Brennan’s 31-for-31. Overtime didn’t settle it, and neither did 6 rounds of the shootout, where Portland had 5 chances to win with a save or goal. They went 0-for-5, and then Zac Funk’s goal in the top of the 7th ended up being the winner, as PG won 1-0.
It was a spectacular goalie duel that got better as the game went on.
It’s Portland’s first time all season losing 4 in a row. They’ll try to avoid making it 5 in the rematch on Tuesday.
No goals
| Lead | Time |
|---|---|
| Portland leads by 2+ | 0:00 |
| Portland leads by 1 | 0:00 |
| Tied | 65:00 |
| Portland trails by 1 | 0:00 |
| Portland trails by 2+ | 0:00 |
Pregame: Even with a 25-point gap, you could make the case that Prince George was the favorite, given Portland’s recent form. Although the Cougars had lost two in a row, to good teams. Robbie Fromm-Delorme was a scratch; despite his recent slump, they’re better with him playing than without.
1st period: Edge to Prince George, and they led the shots 12-5. Both goaltenders, Giannuzzi and Brennan, were good.
2nd period: Portland evened up play some until a late-minute charge by the Cougars.
3rd period: The goaltending went up to another level, with big saves both ways.
Overtime: And it went up another level to the spectacular as the duel between Brennan and Giannuzzi continued.
Shootout: Ondrej Becher answered Luca Cagnoni’s goal in a do-or-die shot for Prince George in the top of the 3rd. Then three scoreless rounds before Funk scored and Brennan stopped Josh Zakreski.
Won on offense, defense, or special teams: Defense.
Best team won?: 0-0 through regulation, and the shots 31-31 (I think because PG gets a shot for their shootout win). Which is the first time this season Portland has drawn the shot totals, if that number holds.
Injuries/suspensions: We’ll have to see what the story is with Fromm-Delorme, as well as Aidan Litke.
| Top 10 | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tyler Brennan | PG | 31 saves-31 shots | Tri-City and Everett don’t want to see Brennan rounding into form. |
| Dante Giannuzzi | POR | 30 saves-30 shots | Good return from a poor game last week against Spokane. |
| Zac Funk | PG | Shootout winner. | |
| Ryan McCleary | POR | ||
| Luca Cagnoni | POR | ||
| Hudson Thornton | PG | ||
| Riley Heidt | PG | ||
| Jack O’Brien | POR | ||
| Gabe Klassen | POR | ||
| Ondrej Becher | PG | Saved PG in the shootout. |
| Winterhawks | Cougars | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 36-13-2-3 | 25-23-4 |
| Goal difference | +42 | +16 |
| Goals/game | 3.8 | 4.0 |
| Goals allowed/game | 3.1 | 3.7 |
| Power play | 26.0% | 27.4% |
| Penalty kill | 83.3% | 71.8% |
| Power plays for/game | 4.1 | 4.3 |
| Power plays against/game | 4.0 | 3.9 |
| Outshooting opponents | 42-11-1 | 25-23-4 |
| After 1 period | 22-13-19 | 17-24-11 |
| After 2 periods | 26-16-12 | 19-23-10 |
| Score, last 10 games | 23-36 | 45-25 |
| Score, last 20 games | 68-68 | 84-66 |
Portland Winterhawks
For a team that has overachieved for so much of the season, they’re coming back to the pack a little bit. In the last 4 games they have 3 goals on 140 shots. There’s no real reason for it, it’s just a slump.
At worst they’re locked into 3rd place, and they’ll be favorites to beat the 6 seed in the 1st round of the playoffs.
Prince George Cougars
It’s looking less and less like the Cougars are going to be that 6 seed. They’re 5 behind Tri-City with 2 games in hand and a much easier schedule, and 3 behind Everett with 1 game in hand and an easier schedule. They’ve cut their goals allowed recently, and that’s what was holding them back.
Tuesday at Prince George, 7pm
Friday at Spokane, 7pm
Saturday at Seattle, 6pm
Next home game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Tri-City, 6pm
Looking ahead: Friday 3/17 at Seattle, 7pm
