Submitted by Fox First at Ten on December 19th
Portland scored midway through the third period and held off a late charge from Spokane as they defeated the Chiefs 4-3 in front of 4,619 fans at the Spokane Arena Tuesday Night. Todd Fiddler scored his team-leading 24th goal as the Chiefs fell to 13-4-0-0 at home and 23-10-1-0 overall.Spokane struggled to keep the puck out of their zone in the first period and it cost the Chiefs as they spotted Portland a pair of early goals. The Winterhawks got on the board first at 6:29 as Taylor Peters grabbed a rebound and fired it past Eric Williams for the score. Portland added their second goal at 10:14 with Nicolas Petan beating Williams glove-side on a backhand.The Chiefs notched their first score at the 14:31 mark on a one-timer from Fiddler off assists from Blake Gal and Tyler King. Mitch Holmberg notched the equalizer at 18:17 as he snuck a shot through the five-hole of Mac Carruth with assists from Mike Aviani and Reid Gow. Spokane and Portland each recorded 11 shots in the period.Portland's Petan struck again at 11:50, scooting a shot through the legs of Williams to give the Winterhawks a 3-2 lead. The Chiefs responded with a goal of their own at the 16:35 mark with Blake Gal converting off a superb centering pass from Fiddler. Spokane outshot the Portland 15-8 in the period.Portland's Adam DeChamplain scored the eventual game-winner at 10:40. Carruth stopped all 14 shots he faced in the third. Williams was 22 of 26 on save opportunities while Carruth finished 37 of 40 for Portland. Spokane went 0 for 3 on the power play and 3 for 3 on the penalty kill.The Chiefs play a home-and-home series against the Kootenay Ice starting on the road Friday, December 28th before returning to the Spokane Arena to host the ice on December 29th for Coeur d'Alene Casino Buck Night and Lucky You Night.Spokane struggled to keep the puck out of their zone in the first period and it cost the Chiefs as they spotted Portland a pair of early goals. The Winterhawks got on the board first at 6:29 as Taylor Peters grabbed a rebound and fired it past Eric Williams for the score. Portland added their second goal at 10:14 with Nicolas Petan beating Williams glove-side on a backhand.The Chiefs notched their first score at the 14:31 mark on a one-timer from Fiddler off assists from Blake Gal and Tyler King. Mitch Holmberg notched the equalizer at 18:17 as he snuck a shot through the five-hole of Mac Carruth with assists from Mike Aviani and Reid Gow. Spokane and Portland each recorded 11 shots in the period.Portland's Petan struck again at 11:50, scooting a shot through the legs of Williams to give the Winterhawks a 3-2 lead. The Chiefs responded with a goal of their own at the 16:35 mark with Blake Gal converting off a superb centering pass from Fiddler. Spokane outshot the Portland 15-8 in the period.Portland's Adam DeChamplain scored the eventual game-winner at 10:40. Carruth stopped all 14 shots he faced in the third. Williams was 22 of 26 on save opportunities while Carruth finished 37 of 40 for Portland. Spokane went 0 for 3 on the power play and 3 for 3 on the penalty kill.The Chiefs play a home-and-home series against the Kootenay Ice starting on the road Friday, December 28th before returning to the Spokane Arena to host the ice on December 29th for Coeur d'Alene Casino Buck Night and Lucky You Night.
