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WHL Portland Winterhawks

Who's Next? Previewing Portland's Potential Round Two Opponents

May 1, 2022 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Portland Winterhawks News Release


It's been four days since the Winterhawks became the first team to advance to round two of the 2022 WHL Playoffs, and the team's next opponent still remains a mystery.

After dispatching the Prince George Cougars in four games, third-seeded Portland's next opponent will either be the second-seeded Kamloops Blazers or fourth-seeded Seattle Thunderbirds. It all depends on what happens in the #1 vs #8 first-round matchup between the Everett Silvertips and Vancouver Giants. As it stands, Vancouver owns a 3-2 series lead after a 3-0 shutout of the 'Tips in Everett last night. Game six of that series is slated for M0nday night at Langley Events Centre, which means we could find out the Hawks' second-round foe as soon as tomorrow, or as late as Wednesday night if that series goes to seven games.

If Vancouver finishes off the series against Everett, Portland will play Seattle as the I-5 Rivalry returns in the postseason. The Winterhawks would have home-ice advantage, though a schedule will not be determined until the matchups are fully set. Portland topped Seattle in nine of 13 contests during the regular season, including four straight road wins and four straight overall wins to wrap up the season.

Should Everett pull off the comeback, it'll be Portland against Kamloops in round two. The two clubs finished tied on points with 98 apiece in the regular season, but Kamloops owns the playoff seeding tiebreaker with 48 wins to Portland's 47, giving the Blazers home-ice advantage in this potential duel. The Winterhawks saw the Blazers just four times in 2021-22, and after struggling early in the season series, they found their footing in the latter portion of the season with a pair of impressive victories. Most recently, Portland took a dramatic 5-4 overtime win in Kamloops on Apr. 9 when Jaydon Dureau grabbed the deciding tally as the regular season wound down.

So, now that we've got all that laid out...who's it gonna be?

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