Dawson Cowan strong early, Spokane Chiefs put clamps on tired Portland in 5-1 win

The Spokane Chiefs are on a roll. And with a bunch of road games within the division on the horizon to end the calendar year, every win salted away at home takes on higher significance.

Berkly Catton scored on the power play to give the Chiefs a multigoal lead that they never surrendered in a 5-1 win over the Portland Winterhawks in a Western Hockey League game at the Arena on Saturday.

The Chiefs (17-9-0-0) won their sixth in seven games, which included a 4-3 shootout win over first-place Everett (21-3-2-1) on the road.

The Winterhawks fell to (13-10-2-0). The two teams square off at the Arena again on Sunday.

“That game against Everett, I think, was kind of the turning point,” Catton said. We just really took a step in the right direction since then. Beating one of the best teams in the country, we’ve just been rolling ever since, really.”

“Our guys are figuring some things out,” Chiefs coach Brad Lauer said. “We’re doing a lot of good things. We’re still working on it. That’s how team sports are. But right now the identity that we want is more consistent which is nice to see.”

The Chiefs are on the road for six of nine games in December.

“These are must-win games for us, if you look at the schedule” Catton said of three consecutive home games to close out November. “I don’t think it really matters who we’re playing right now, it’s about getting out there and establishing our hard forecheck and when we have chances to bury the puck, bury it.”

Goalie Dawson Cowan made 25 saves – 14 in a penalty-filled first period – as the Chiefs outshot Portland 48-26.

“The first period there the whole thing was on the special teams,” Cowan said. “I got some looks there and we kind of took over the game there in the third period. I just want to build off of it and keep going for tomorrow.”

“That’s what you want from your No. 1 starter,” Lauer said. “When he does gets challenged you want him to be right there for you, and he’s done that for the most part which is nice to see.”

The Chiefs opened the scoring 6 minutes, 55 seconds into the contest when Sam Oremba stuffed home a rebound from Smyth Rebman for his sixth goal of the season.

They added a second 16 seconds later on a power play goal by Catton, his 12th of the campaign, and the Chiefs led 2-0 not halfway through the first period.

“It’s always nice to get out there and create,” Catton said.

An extended offensive zone possession midway through the second saw the puck eventually make its way to Will McIsaac at the right point. His shot-pass into the slot was deflected by Asanali Sarkenov and past goalie Ondrej Štěbeták for the big-bodied winger’s third goal of the season.

Chiefs defenseman Brayden Crampton fought Brodie Hankel late in the second after a hard open-ice hit, but it was Portland that took the momentum after Crampton was assessed the additional 2-minute penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

On the ensuing power play, Winterhawks defenseman Ryder Thompson ripped one from the point past Cowan to make it a two-goal game heading into the third.

The Chiefs added two more goals in the third, an empty-netter by Mathis Preston and Sarkenov’s second of the game with 9 seconds to go. The Chiefs outshot Portland 19-5 in the third.

“We played a team that played yesterday, had to travel so we knew that in the third and wanted to make sure it was a 200-foot game,” Lauer said. “We did the right things and managed situations in the right way. And when the opportunities to make plays were there, we made plays.”

“My favorite saying is the best defense is a good offense,” Catton said. “If you have the puck on your stick it’s easy to play defense – you don’t have to. Early on Dawson held us in it. One or two of those squeakers go in it’s a different ballgame, so credit to him. But when it was time to hold it down, I think all the boys did a good job.”