Spokane Picks Up Power Play Pair, Squeaks Out 3-2 Win Saturday Over Wild

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Wenatchee Wild

Spokane Picks Up Power Play Pair, Squeaks Out 3-2 Win Saturday Over Wild

December 8, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Wenatchee Wild's Kenta Isogai on game night
Wenatchee Wild's Kenta Isogai on game night
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Brian Cobbs/Spokane Cheifs)

SPOKANE, Wash. - In Saturday's Western Hockey League tilt at Spokane Arena, the extra man was extra important.

Three of the five goals between the Spokane Chiefs and Wenatchee Wild were scored on the power play, as the Chiefs eked out a 3-2 victory on their Teddy Bear Toss night, with each team enjoying success on the man-advantage. Appropriately, a power play goal made the difference in the final period, in a game that saw the teams trade leads twice, with a pair of ties in between.

The game's first two goals were scored on the power play - the Wild earned the game's first five shots on goal, but Sam Oremba did the honors for the Chiefs halfway through the period on a turn-and-toss in the middle of the slot. Much like the Spokane goal in the first period, the Wild answered with a power play goal just shy of the halfway mark in the second - Kenta Isogai let fly with a wrist shot from the left-wing circle to even up the contest at the 9:17 mark of the period.

With 6:15 left in the period, Wenatchee got its turn with the lead - after entering the Spokane zone 3-on-2, Ashton Brown fed the puck to Maddix McCagherty, who found Zane Saab on the doorstep to bang in a one-timer and put the Wild ahead, 2-1. The lead lasted until the 17:39 mark, when Berkly Catton finished a 3-on-1 rush with a give-and-go alongside Shea Van Olm, and the Chiefs evened the game going to the dressing room.

Spokane's final power play lasted only 14 seconds, ending on Hayden Paupanekis's one-timer from just off the edge of the slot at 5:47 of the third period. Wenatchee put 10 shots on the net in the final 20 minutes and got one more power play opportunity in the third, but was silenced down the stretch.

"I think you've got to be pleased with the effort we put through," said associate head coach Chris Clark. "We played some good hockey tonight - unfortunately, we didn't get the results that we probably deserved, but there's definitely a lot you can build off of from the positive standpoint. I thought our second period was definitely our best period of the night. The power play got us a big one there, and I thought our 5-on-5 play was good. We created a lot of opportunities."

Oremba had the only multi-point game for either team, posting a goal and an assist. Isogai returned to the scoring column for the Wild with his goal, one night after seeing an eight-game point streak snapped, while Miles Cooper notched an assist to extend his scoring run to four straight games. After going scoreless on the power play in Friday's game, the Wild were right back in familiar territory on Saturday, finishing 1-for-5 with the extra skater. Zach Zahara took the hard-luck loss with 31 saves.

Spokane finished 2-for-4 on the power play, and handed Dawson Cowan the win behind 33 saves. The win was the Chiefs' eighth straight, climbing to 20-9-0-0 on the year, while the Wild finished the night with a 9-14-3-1 mark.

Wenatchee's own Teddy Bear Toss night is slated for Sunday, presented by the Kenady Group, as a visit from the Everett Silvertips marks the final home game for the Wild prior to the holiday break. The opening puck drop at Town Toyota Center is scheduled for 4 p.m., with live coverage on 1340 The Hawk and WHL Live. Tickets for that game and all regular-season home games are on sale now by phone at 509-888-7825, or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team's website and on the team's social media platforms on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

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Images from this story

Wenatchee Wild's Kenta Isogai on game night
Wenatchee Wild's Kenta Isogai on game night
(Brian Cobbs/Spokane Cheifs)		   

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