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WHL Portland Winterhawks

Stefan Scores Hat Trick But Blazers Take Game 1

April 15, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Portland Winterhawks News Release


The Winterhawks rallied late but a Blazers' blitz in the final 40 minutes gave Kamloops a 1-0 series lead.

Round 2, Game 1: Portland (4) at Kamloops (6) [KAM leads series 1-0]

SOG: POR (32) - EVT (38)

PP: POR (2/5) - EVT (1/2)

Saves: Špunar (32/38) - Ernst (28/32)

COMPLETE BOX SCORE

SCORING:

KAM - 8:30 - First Period - Emmitt Finnie (4) from Dylan Sydor and Shea Van Olm

POR - 9:50 - First Period - James Stefan (5) from Gabe Klassen and Kyle Chyzowski

KAM - 13:45 - Second Period - Jakub Demek (1) from Aapo Sarell and Ryan Hofer

KAM - 15:22 - Second Period - Fraser Minten (1)

POR - 17:04 - Second Period - James Stefan (6) from Marek Alscher and Kyle Chyzowski

KAM - 19:36 - Second Period - Jakub Demek (2) from Olen Zellweger and Logan Bairos

KAM - 1:03 - Third Period - Matthew Seminoff (1) from Logan Stankoven

KAM - 4:26 - Third Period - Logan Stankoven (5) from Olen Zellweger and Dylan Ernst

POR - 16:48 - Third Period - Marcus Nguyen (5) from Robbie Fromm-Delorme and Marek Alscher

POR - 19:58 - Third Period - James Stefan (7) from Robbie Fromm-Delorme and Luca Cagnoni

The Story:

James Stefan's hat-trick effort helped Portland stay afloat, but a potent attack gave Kamloops a 6-4 victory in Game 1 of their second-round WHL Playoffs series.

After Emmitt Finnie opened the scoring for the hosts 8:30 into the contest, Stefan got to work on his fifth goal of the postseason 80 seconds later as he poked home a loose puck in front.

The teams spent much of the second period tied at one apiece, but a pair of quick strikes from Jakub Demek and Fraser Minten just past the midway point of the frame put the Blazers up by a pair. Stefan's second of the night brought Portland back within one at 17:04, as he deflected a Marek Alscher blast from the blue line, but Demek's own second of the game two minutes later restored Kamloops' two-goal advantage heading into the third.

Before the Winterhawks could think about a third-period comeback, Kamloops potted two more in the first five minutes from Matthew Seminoff and Logan Stankoven. Still, Portland pushed late, and late power-play goals from Stefan and Marcus Nguyen gave the Hawks some positive momentum for Game 2.

Nguyen struck first, tipping home a Robbie Fromm-Delorme shot through an open crease. Fromm-Delorme then set up Stefan for a one-time blast in the dying seconds of play for his first playoff hat-trick and seventh goal in six games this postseason.

Dylan Ernst picked up the win with 28 saves while Portland's Jan Špunar turned aside 32 of his own. The teams meet again tomorrow at 7:00 P.M. for Game 2 at the Sandman Centre in Kamloops.

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT presented by BBF TECHNOLOGIES:

"I thought we did a lot of good things tonight. I really liked our first ten minutes. I thought we were jumping from the start. Everyone was up on the bench and we were really excited and I think that showed. We got a lot of chances in tight tonight. A couple mistakes here and there, but we just need to capitalize on our chances."

Winterhawks forward James Stefan

Check out the Portland Winterhawks Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from April 15, 2023


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