Game One – Kamloops Blazers

The Tri-City Americans wrapped up a seven-game stretch against B.C. Division opponents Tuesday night in Kamloops. The Americans rallied behind a 44-save night from Lukas Matecha to win 4-1 and improve to 4-0 on the season against the Blazers, sweeping the season series.

Kamloops were all over the Americans and got on the board first at 10:51 for their lone goal of the night to open scoring. Max Sullivan burst into the American zone and carried the puck behind the net before attempting a wrap-around. Matecha made the initial stop and Sullivan paid the price, getting laid out by Nick Anisimovicz.

However, the puck lay in front of the blue paint and Connor Radke banged at it before lifting the puck up and over Matecha’s pad and in. Tri-City had two power-play opportunities to get the game back square in the first from a Max Sullivan high-sticking penalty early on in the game and Jager Gugyelka slash. However, the Americans came up empty, and the Blazers led 1-0 after the first twenty minutes. The score could have fared worse for the Americans as well. In just the first period alone, the Blazers outshot Tri-City 19-10.

Early on in the second period, Tri-City got on the board and drew the game even. Jackson Smith above the left circle served up a pass to Austin Zemlak at the point. Zemlak fired a one-timer which took a bounce off Logan Edmonstone, and he lost sight of it for a moment. Kainoah Brankovich, who due to injuries and a shortage of forwards for the Americans, was forced to play forward, pounced on it.

Brankovich swept at the puck, and it flipped over Edmonstone’s glove and in. The Americans got the power play rolling following a Rhett Ravndhal slash to take the lead at 7:41 in the second period. Nick Anisimovicz snapped a pass to overager Carter MacAdam’s, who sat beside the net. MacAdam’s used his big frame to force himself right in front of the net and jammed the puck five-hole on Edmonstone for his sixteenth goal of the season.

Tri-City carried a 2-1 lead into the break after killing off three penalties in the second and converting on a power play. Kamloop’s power play seemed to be off all night as multiple key power play pieces were missing in the lineup for the Blazers. Emmitt Finnie, the Blazer’s top goal scorer, was the biggest piece missing. Shots went the way of the Americans, 11-10 in the second.

In the third, the Blazers would come out chucking everything at Matecha but could not find crack him. Kamloops had an early chance on the power play, but it looked very unorganized as stated before, many players were getting minutes on that power play they were not used to. The Americans would make it 3-1 with just a few minutes left in regulation and would make it a mountain to climb for the Blazers to comeback. Jake Gudelj attempted a wraparound, which was saved by the pad of Edmonstone. The puck then laid in the blue paint, and a mad scramble ensued. Brandon Whynott would come out with the puck and spun around with it, firing a wrist shot by Edmonstone’s blocker and in.

If the game wasn’t over after the Whynott goal, it would be now as just fifteen seconds later, Captain Jake Sloan netted the fourth goal of the night for Tri-City and put the Blazers to bed. Harrison Brunicke dropped the puck off to nobody behind the Blazer net and Nick Anisimovicz came up with it. Anisimovicz being pressured, quickly passed the puck to Curran sitting beside the net.

Curran then served up a pass to Jake Sloan who was coming right down broadway in the slot, burying a one-timer from close range five-hole on Edmonstone. On the goal, Nick Anisimovicz was awarded an assist, which would go down as his second of the night. That was good enough for a new single-game high for Anisimovicz in assists.

The final score would be, as stated, 4-1 in favor of Tri-City, with the Kamloops Blazers outshooting the Americans 45-30 in the contest. Kamloops, in total, went a whopping 0/5 on the power play, while Tri-City would go 1/3.

For stars, the lone goal scorer for the Blazers, Connor Radke, came away with the third star. While Captain Jake Sloan, who closed out scoring in the game with a goal, nabbed the second star. And perhaps the man who won the game for Tri-City, Lukas Matecha, came away with the first star after having, as stated, a 44-save night, tied for the third most saves he’s made in a game this season.

Game Two – Spokane Chiefs

The Americans played their lone home game of the week as they began a home-in-home series with the Spokane Chiefs Friday night. Tri-City will play the Chiefs four times over the next eight days, after only playing the Chiefs four times all season up to this point. The game would go down as another one to add to a list of storybook games between the two clubs, with Tri-City slipping by in the shootout 5-4.

Tri-City got on the board first just before the halfway point of the first period after playing a real solid first ten minutes. Charlie Elick broke into the Chief zone on a potential two-on-one with Carter MacAdams if he hurried. Elick fired a beautiful saucer pass by the Chiefs defenseman Kaden Allan and found MacAdams on the backdoor, who shoved it in, giving him his 50th career WHL goal and goals in back-to-back games. The Americans held onto the lead as Spokane applied more pressure with a power play with just five minutes left in the first but did not capitalize. Tri-City led 1-0 after twenty minutes and were being outshot 10-5.

It’s essentially a ticking time bomb when Andrew Cristall and Berkly Catton are on the ice together, and five minutes into the second, the two helped the Chiefs convert on a power play that stands at 29% on the year, the second-best power play in the WHL, following an Ismail Abogouche unsportsmanlike conduct that was added on to his five-minute major fighting penalty.

Crampton, at the blue line, turned and flipped a pass to Catton outside the left circle. Catton then quickly zipped a pass back across the zone to Cristall, who fired an absolute bullet past the glove of Matecha and in for his first goal of the night. Tri-City did not take long to reinstate their lead following a sensational shift just minutes after the Cristall goal.

After what seemed to be a minute of the Americans dancing around a tired group of Chiefs in the Chief’s zone, Savin Virk found Grady Martin at the hashes of the left circle. Martin launched a one-timer that would go bardown on Dawson Cowan and in for his fourth goal of the season, doubling his goal output from last season.

Tri-City would carry the 2-1 lead into the break and were being outshot 20-11. So far in the season series, the team leading after the second period had won every game. Spokane would search under every nook and cranny of the Toyota Center to change that in the third. A chaotic and action-packed third period started with a bang five minutes in as Andrew Cristall netted his second goal of the night and thirty-seventh of the season.

Berkly Catton skated into the American zone with numbers before stopping, turning, and dropping the puck off to Andrew Cristall who was wide open in the slot. Cristall, the most dangerous shooter in the league, had no problem of going bar down on Matecha to make it 2-2. Yet again, Tri-City had a quick answer to a Chief goal, as just one minute following Cristall’s second goal, Max Curran got the Toyota Center rocking at just under 100 decibels.

On a Chief breakout, Savin Virk poked the puck away and Jake Sloan came up with it, quickly skating into the Chief zone along the left wing. Sloan shook one Chief defenseman off him, sliding towards the slot, and flipped the puck to a wide-open Curran in the slot. Curran fired a one-timer blast by Cowan’s blocker and in. 24 seconds later, Jaxen Adam got his third goal of the season with a bit of luck to double the American lead while Curran’s goal was being announced.

Margolis fired the puck around the boards in the Chief end, and Jaxen Adam let a wrist shot go along the boards. The puck then deflected off of the skate of Chief Defenseman Owen Schoettler, who was standing net-front and in. The Chiefs did not go away and began to throw the kitchen sink at Matecha, landing 22 shots on him in total in the third period, while Tri-City was held to just 6, the Americans never had more than 6 shots on net in a period all night.

Spokane’s top line was virtually out there for the last three minutes of the game, and they were all over the Americans. Berkly Catton drew the game back to one with just 2:30 to go. Andrew Cristall from the left-wing boards passed across the zone to Berkly Catton. After some drama out net-front, Lukas Matecha was knocked over, and Catton simply shot it over Matecha and in. For the fourth time, the Chiefs top line found the back of the net and tied the game with just 50 seconds remaining to complete the late comeback.

Andrew Cristall along the right-wing boards dropped the puck off to Brayden Crampton at the point. Crampton wound up and hammered a one-timer. The puck was going wide, but at the last moment, deflected off Terrell Goldsmith’s skate and through Matecha’s five-hole. The last forty seconds were chewed up, and overtime, which looked very unlikely with even five minutes remaining, was upon those at the Toyota Center.

In overtime, Spokane controlled the puck for what seemed to be the entire overtime period, outside of a few spurts. However, no side could register a shot on the net, and the shootout was next. This would go down as the fourth shootout of the year for Tri-City, to be exact. Tri-City shot first, and it was rookie Cruz Pavao who stepped up to the plate. Pavao walked in slowly and showed off his soft hands before going backhand and lofting the puck over Cowan’s pad and in.

Matecha then denied the very dangerous Andrew Cristall with a pad stop, and up next came Brandon Whynott. Whynott slowly went in as usual and fired a wrist shot off the pad of Dawson Cowan. Mathis Preston had an opportunity but lost the puck at the last moment, and a sprawled-out Matecha saw the puck go just wide of the net.

Savin Virk had the game on his stick and drifted along the right wing and into the slot. Virk saw his opportunity after catching Cowan way out of position and firing one past Cowan’s blocker and in, sending the fourth-largest crowd at the Toyota Center this season home.

The final score would be 5-4 Tri-City, and the Americans extend their winning streak to three games, the longest winning streak they’ve had since late November. Spokane outshot the Americans 42-18 as Lukas Matecha, yet again, put the team on his back, making 38 stops. While Dawson Cowan himself had a night he’d love to have back in the Spokane net. Cowan only stopping 14 of 18.

Jaxen Adam received the third star for his goal, which at the time had doubled the American lead in the third period. Grady Martin’s lone goal, which regained the American lead midway through the second period, was deemed good enough by the judges for the second star. Lukas Matecha would get the first star in back-to-back games as he made 38 saves.

Coach Stu Barnes commented Saturday night about the 1200th win milestone in Americans history, and how he felt as the coach for it.

“That’s kind of cool actually, I didn’t even know that was the 1200th win. It’s great, and I am proud of the franchise and for something like that to happen is really cool.”

Game Three – Spokane Chiefs

Tri-City made their way to Spokane to finish out the home-in-home Saturday night. The Chiefs made sure to get their get back after just letting one fall out of their hands Friday night. A four-goal third-period surge lifted Spokane over Tri-City 6-3 on the Chiefs Fight Cancer night.

Heading into the first media timeout, things were relatively even as both sides had limited opportunities. But Tri-City held a slight edge with six shots on net to the Chiefs three. However, things would change rather quickly. Following an Owen Schoettler delay of game after throwing the puck out of the play shortly after the first media timeout, the red-hot Americans power play got to work.

With just seconds remaining on the power-play, the Americans struck first, giving them a power-play goal in five of their last six games. Savin Virk had a shot from inside the right circle that was saved by Cowan, but the puck lay right in front of the net. Jake Sloan pounced on it and banged it home over the pad of Cowan to give him his team-leading twenty-fourth goal of the season.

Barnes after the game commented on how the power play had been progressing when asked on it.

“The power play all year, to be quite honest with you, has not been great, but it is getting better. You know, we’ve tried to continue to grow and get better at it, and I think, you know, now we’re starting to finally get some traction on it, so it is nice to see.”

Tri-City would make a costly mistake late in the first that would spark the Chiefs, as the Americans got caught with too many men on the ice. It took the Chiefs just ten seconds to capitalize on their second powerplay opportunity. Berkly Catton at the left circle found Owen Martin standing beside the net. Martin then lofted one up to Shea Van Olm who smacked one over the glove of Ryan Grout and in.

Stu Barnes following the game had nothing but good things to say about the Chiefs top line when asked about that line.

“They are really, really a very talented group, the combination of really high-end skills, smarts, speed, all three of them are just excellent hockey players.” The three players Barnes is referring to are Shea Van Olm, who has forty-three goals, Berkly Catton, a Seattle Kraken first-round pick, and Andrew Cristall who now has over 100 points this season and is a Washington Capitals second-round pick.

Then, just after the Van Olm goal had been fully announced in the building, the Chiefs took their first lead of the night. Owen Martin found Mathis Preston who then charged into the Americans zone along the left wing. Then from just inside the left circle, Preston launched a wrist shot that beat Grout glove-side. After the first period had been fully settled, Spokane led 2-1 after a late surge, and both teams had a power-play goal to their name with Tri-City 1/1 so far and the Chiefs 1/2. Tri-City were outshooting the Chiefs as well 12-9.

Seven minutes into the second, Shea Van Olm bumped over Ryan Grout and Terrell Goldsmith took offense to it, chasing down Van Olm and dropping the gloves. Goldsmith threw a few jabs and quickly dragged Van Olm to the ice following a quiet start to the second. Spokane’s Chase Harrington would get a tripping penalty 7:38 in, and the American’s power play got rolling again, converting for the second time this evening to tie the game. Dawson Cowan was way out of his net as he made the initial stop off a Jake Sloan shot in the slot. The puck unfortunately for Cowan bounced right to Savin Virk waiting on the backdoor. Virk then smacked the puck into an open net.

With around five and a half minutes left in the second period, Savin Virk got another goal to give the Americans the lead for the second time. Jake Gudelj powered his way into the Chief zone and muscled his way past Will McIsaac. Gudelj then dropped the puck off to Jake Sloan. Sloan then zipped it across to Savin Virk in the left circle, who ripped a shot quickly that went bardown on Cowan.

With two minutes to go in the second, Jake Gudelj and Owen Schoettler were barking at each other, leading the two to drop the gloves just outside of the American’s zone. Schoettler would get the better of Gudelj as he dropped him with a few good rights, causing the Veterans Memorial Coliseum to go into an absolute frenzy. Dawson Cowan would come up huge with just under a minute to go in the second, making a sprawled-out pad save from close range to keep it a one-goal game heading into the final frame.

Officially after forty minutes, Tri-City led 3-2 thanks to a two-goal second-period effort from Savin Virk, and the scene was set for a dramatic third period much like the night before. Shots were 10-7 in the second and 22-16 overall, both favoring the Americans, a stark difference from the night before. The Chiefs in back-to-back nights made sure to bring their best stuff in the third, and blew the Americans away, dominating the entire period, and outshooting the Americans 11-4.

Just under five minutes into the third, Austin Zemlak made a critical error that flipped the entire script of the game after high-sticking Andrew Cristall and getting him to bleed. This gave the Chiefs four minutes on the power play, and Spokane made sure to not waste a second of the powerplay.

Stu Barnes made sure to highlight the top line pairing once again when asked what was behind the Chiefs third-period surges in both nights.

“The penalty hurt us; it lights their offensive guys up, they get on the ice more, more scoring opportunities. And again, they were down in the third originally, so that top line was going to get more minutes, and at the end of the day, that’s the result of them being on the ice.”

After Ryan Grout made some phenomenal saves, and Jake Sloan took a shot off his leg and was unable to get up, Brayden Crampton held the puck at the point. Crampton then cranked a slap shot past the glove of Grout who was screened. Just under a minute after the Crampton goal, rookie phenom Mathis Preston would give Spokane the lead and make it 4-3 to give the Chiefs two goals on the Zemlak double minor. Asanali Sarkenov at the blue line fed Chase Harrington, who was making a beeline for the left circle. Harrington then made a picture-perfect backdoor feed to Mathis Preston, who jammed the puck past the diving Grout for his second goal of the night.

Spokane kept laying it on Tri-City, and not before long, the Chiefs lead would double as Owen Martin made it 5-3. Andrew Cristall got the puck across the blue line and, from the right-wing boards, chipped the puck to Owen Martin. Martin charged into the right faceoff dot and ripped a shot from a fairly sharp angle that went perfectly under Grout’s glove and in.

Shortly afterward, Dawson Cowan decided to come out and play the puck. However, his pass went by Nathan Mayes and right to Savin Virk at the point. Virk closed in and had several options, including Jake Gudelj on the backdoor, and Jake Sloan standing beside the net, but fired a shot instead that was saved by Cowan who was still way out of his crease. Shea Van Olm would put the dagger in the game, pumping in an empty net goal at 18:26.

Spokane would officially win the game 6-3 after an outstanding four-goal third period. Officially, the Chiefs went 3/4 on the power play, while Tri-City went 2/5. Shots on goal after all sixty minutes were 27-26 in favor of the Chiefs. The season series is now evened up at 3-3. This was the first time that the team leading after the second period during this season series did not win the game.

Although not in the spotlight, Kainoah Brankovich and Ismail Abogouche have played a valuable role in the lineup. The two have been filling in as forwards the past three games due to injuries at the forward end even though both are naturally defensemen. Stu Barnes praised the bunch following Saturday’s defeat.

“I think they both have done a tremendous job. It’s a new thing for them, I am sure they played a bit of forward back in the day in minor hockey and all that kind of stuff, but obviously, this level is different and overall, they have done a great job.”

Overager Carter MacAdams after playing Friday night was missing from the lineup on Saturday, Stu had very limited knowledge of the extent of the injury to MacAdams. MacAdams is having a career season with seventeen goals and twenty-four assists.

“He’s just out for now, and hopefully, tomorrow night, we’ll be able to figure out what’s exactly wrong with him.”

Injuries

Gavin Garland is still out week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Cash Koch remains day-to-day but should be back in the lineup soon as he has been practicing all week.

Carter MacAdams is unknown on return status as there has not been any news on what the injury is or the extent of the injury.

What’s Next