Spokane's Oremba Delivers Last-Second Heartbreak Sunday as Wild Fall to Chiefs, 4-3
WHL Wenatchee Wild

Spokane's Oremba Delivers Last-Second Heartbreak Sunday as Wild Fall to Chiefs, 4-3

Published on December 29, 2025 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Wenatchee Wild defenseman Josh Toll
Wenatchee Wild defenseman Josh Toll
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Russ Alman)

WENATCHEE, Wash. - With a weekend sweep against the Spokane Chiefs on the line, the Wenatchee Wild put their whole hearts into Sunday's return to home ice, after a two-week stretch between games in front of their fans at Town Toyota Center.

Those hearts - and the more than 3,300 hearts in the crowd - were broken with a mere 1.4 seconds to play.

Sam Oremba's breakaway goal gave the Spokane Chiefs a 4-3 win in a tightly-contested Western Hockey League tilt, on a day that saw the Wild post two power play goals in as many minutes in the second period, and respond to a Chiefs go-ahead goal in the third with a game-tying marker just 13 seconds later.

The Chiefs built a 16-7 lead on shots in the first period, but the teams remained deadlocked until the 6:14 mark of the second, when Luka Shcherbyna's power play goal put Wenatchee in front. Shcherbyna skated to the edge of the slot, rifling a wrist shot past Carter Esler halfway through the second Wild power play of the night.

Josh Toll came into Sunday's game as Wenatchee's scoring leader, with all 23 points so far coming on assists - two minutes after Shcherbyna's team-best 14 th goal of the season, Toll's wrister from just inside the blue line sneaked by Caelan Joudrey and into the net, giving him his long-awaited first WHL goal.

Spokane took a 2-2 tie into the intermission, with Mathis Preston cutting the lead to 2-1 on a snap from above the right-wing circle just past the game's halfway mark. The Chiefs eliminated the lead with 3:45 to play in the period on a Chase Harrington one-timer, sending the puck past Tobias Tvrznik off a setup pass from Brody Gillespie below the goal line.

Oremba slipped a pass out front for Coco Armstrong to scrape home with 3:48 to play, giving the Chiefs their first lead of the game, but it was short-lived, as Boston Tait's heave from the left point evaded Esler on its way to the net with 3:35 to go, tying the game at 3-3. The winner came off an Owen Martin shot block just inside the Chiefs' blue line, and Oremba raced away with the loose puck, throwing it to the back of the net just ahead of the final horn.

Tvrznik took the hard-luck loss with 41 saves, while Shcherbyna and Toll each finished with a goal and an assist for the Wild. Mason Kraft followed Saturday's game-winning goal in Spokane with three assists Sunday, helping the Wild to a 2-for-5 mark on the power play.

Spokane got a goal and an assist apiece from Oremba and Harrington, and went 1-for-4 on the power play. Esler picked up his ninth win of the season behind a 25-save performance. The Wild dropped to 12-20-1-1 with the loss, while Spokane climbed above .500 for the season at 18-17-0-0.

One home game remains for Wenatchee in 2025, with a New Year's Eve bout against the Seattle Thunderbirds on Wednesday evening. Wednesday's game is also a Kids In Free night thanks to Numerica Credit Union. The opening puck drop at Town Toyota Center is scheduled for 5 p.m.

Tickets for Wednesday's game and all regular-season Wild 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.

Check out the Wenatchee Wild Statistics

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Images from this story

Wenatchee Wild defenseman Josh Toll
Wenatchee Wild defenseman Josh Toll
(Russ Alman)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from December 29, 2025


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