WHL Spokane Chiefs

Chiefs Put up Fight, Fall 7-5 to Seattle in First of Back-To-Back Contests

December 28, 2022 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Spokane Chiefs News Release


Seattle, Wash. - The Spokane Chiefs' offense came out hot in their first game back from the holiday break as five different skaters scored goals in Tuesday's matchup against the Seattle Thunderbirds. Despite Spokane's strong start, a three-goal third period by Seattle led them to a 7-5 victory.

The Thunderbirds got on the board first at 3:40 when Nico Myatovic opened the scoring with help from Lucas Ciona and Jeremy Hanzel.

The Chiefs would answer with three goals in two minutes, starting with team captain Raegan Wiles' seventh of the season at 4:20 after Tommaso De Luca swiped the puck away from Seattle in the slot.

Next up was Kooper Gizowski at 5:30 as he picked up a pass in the middle and fired it into the net to put Spokane up 2-1. Wiles and Michael Cicek picked up assists on the play.

The Chiefs kept their foot on the gas as Ty Cheveldayoff flew the puck down the ice on a breakaway and found the twine at 6:19 for his 13th of the year. Wiles picked up another assist, along with Chase Bertholet.

But Seattle was quick to answer as Gracyn Sawchyn notched his 10th of the season just 33 seconds later to bring the Thunderbirds within one.

The Chiefs managed to hold them off until 18:56, when Jared Davidson capitalized on the man advantage to tie things up at three apiece.

The middle frame featured half as many goals, as the Thunderbirds got things going at 4:34 with a goal from Lucas Ciona.

Momentum was in the Chiefs' favor for the rest of the period, though, as Michael Cicek again tied it up at 10:15 with a power play goal of his own - his second of the year. Blake Swetlikoff and Tommaso De Luca earned assists on the play.

Spokane took the lead once more at 15:19 when rookie Berkly Catton chipped in a Cheveldayoff rebound from right in front of the net for his seventh of the season. Bertholet also earned an assist on the play, which put the Chiefs up 5-4 heading into the final frame.

The third period was all Seattle, though, as the Thunderbirds scored three unanswered goals (two power play goals and and empty netter) to secure the 7-5 victory.

Rookie netminder Dawson Cowan started in net for Spokane, turning away 25-of-31 shots throughout his 58:15 played.

The Chiefs went 1-for-3 on the power play and 2-for-5 on the penalty kill. They were outshot by Seattle, 32-29.

Up next, the Chiefs will face the same Seattle Thunderbirds at Spokane Arena Wednesday night in their first home game of the second half of the season. It's a TicketsWest Player Magnet Giveaway - the first 1,000 fans through the doors will get a fridge magnet featuring a Chiefs player courtesy of TicketsWest. Collect them all throughout the season!

-

The Chiefs' next home game is Wednesday, December 28 versus the Seattle Thunderbirds. It's a TicketsWest Player Magnet Giveaway - the first 1,000 fans through the doors will receive a refrigerator magnet featuring a Chiefs player courtesy of TicketsWest. Collect them all throughout the season! Tickets for December 28 and all regular season games are available online at spokanechiefs.com/tickets.

Check out the Spokane Chiefs Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from December 28, 2022


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central