Portland scored on their first shot of the game, ended up with 4 goals in the 1st, and rode that the rest of the way to an easy 6-2 win over Spokane at Memorial Coliseum. Luca Cagnoni led the way with 2 goals, including that first-shot goal, and an assist. Marcus Nguyen, Jack O’Brien, and Robbie Fromm-Delorme each had 2 points.
It was a nice way to finish the season series with Spokane, who gave them trouble for much of the season. The series finishes 6-2 from Portland’s point of view, 2-4-1-1 from Spokane’s.
Portland now finishes the season with 4 out of their last 5 with the juggernaut Seattle.
| 0:38 POR Luca Cagnoni (Jack O’Brien) 1-0 |
| 9:34 SPO Berkly Catton (Chase Bertholet, Mac Gross) 1-1 |
| 12:35 POR Luke Schelter (Josh Mori, Diego Buttazzoni) 2-1 |
| 17:18 POR Marcus Nguyen (Jack O’Brien) 3-1 |
| 18:52 POR Luca Cagnoni (Robbie Fromm-Delorme, Gabe Klassen) 4-1 |
| 29:17 POR (pp) James Stefan (Luca Cagnoni, Robbie Fromm-Delorme) 5-1 |
| 37:32 POR (pp) Josh Zakreski (Marek Alscher, Marcus Nguyen) 6-1 |
| 58:20 SPO Cameron Parr (Will Jamieson, Jaren Brinson) 6-2 |
| Lead | Time |
|---|---|
| Portland leads by 2+ | 42:42 |
| Portland leads by 1 | 13:39 |
| Tied | 3:39 |
| Portland trails by 1 | 0:00 |
| Portland trails by 2+ | 0:00 |
Pregame: Portland prepping for the playoffs, in one of their only two games left where they were favorites.
1st period: Portland took advantage of some really shoddy defense and goaltending by Spokane. After the game was 1-1, Portland outshot them 9-4 and scored 3 goals. Luca Cagnoni was all over the place offensively.
2nd period: Portland pretty much in control and added two power play goals.
3rd period: Garbage time, with 15 penalties and 3 fights.
Won on offense, defense, or special teams: Mainly Portland’s offense. 2 power play goals in the 2nd finished the game off, and Portland went 7 for 7 on the penalty kill.
Best team won?: Yes.
Injuries/suspensions: Not to overstate his importance, but Spokane’s defense has struggled since losing Saige Weinstein. A coincidence in many ways but not totally.
| Top 10 | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Luca Cagnoni | POR | 2 goals, 1 assist | Points in 5 of his last 6. |
| Jack O’Brien | POR | 2 assists | |
| Marcus Nguyen | POR | 1 goal, 1 assist | 5-game point streak. |
| Jan Špunar | POR | 31 saves-33 shots | |
| Robbie Fromm-Delorme | POR | 2 assists | |
| James Stefan | POR | 1 goal | 10 shots on goal. |
| Ryan McCleary | POR | ||
| Carter Sotheran | POR | ||
| Gabe Klassen | POR | 1 assist | |
| Berkly Catton | SPO | 1 goal |
| Other notables | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Zakreski | POR | 1 assist | 3-game point streak. |
| Cooper Michaluk | SPO | 42 saves-48 shots | |
| Cade Hayes | SPO | 3-game point streak snapped. | |
| Raegan Wiles | SPO | 3-game point streak snapped. |
| Portland | Spokane | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 39-17-4-3 | 14-40-4-5 |
| Goal difference | +34 | -108 |
| Goals/game | 3.7 | 2.9 |
| Goals allowed/game | 3.1 | 4.6 |
| Power play | 24.6% | 16.9% |
| Penalty kill | 82.4% | 69.7% |
| Power plays for/game | 4.1 | 4.0 |
| Power plays against/game | 4.1 | 4.3 |
| Outshooting opponents | 47-14-2 | 24-39 |
| After 1 period | 25-16-22 | 9-38-16 |
| After 2 periods | 28-20-15 | 13-39-11 |
| Score, last 10 games | 25-34 | 34-44 |
| Score, last 20 games | 53-71 | 53-73 |
Portland
It’s only the 2nd time in their last 13 games that they’ve scored more than 3 goals. Both of those were against Spokane. Slowly getting back on track.
Spokane
Not a good game, and the short stretch where they were good at preventing goals has passed. They will still have an effect on Portland even though the season series is over. They play Tri-City 3 times and Everett twice, so they’ll have an impact on who finishes 5th and who finishes 6th and has to play Portland.
Friday at Seattle, 7pm
Saturday vs. Seattle, 6pm
Tuesday vs. Vancouver, 7pm
Looking ahead: Friday 3/31, Game 1 of the playoffs
