Following a slow start to the season, the Portland Winterhawks have begun to find their momentum in the second week of the regular season. On the final night of their first three-in-three weekend of the year, the Winterhawks shut out the Spokane Chiefs for their second straight win of this young season.
Goaltending was the name of the game
Dante Giannuzzi stood tall in net for the Winterhawks, earning himself a 29-save shutout, the first of Portland’s season and the second of his WHL career. In his second appearance of the weekend, the goaltender from Winnipeg, Manitoba, continued to get better as the game went on. While he may have been the man of the hour, Giannuzzi credited his teammates for pulling off this momentum win.
Tonight's first star gave credit to his team for a strong showing on Sunday. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/KmHebNkcgQ
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) October 11, 2021
For Spokane, Campbell Arnold started the game and played through the first 20 minutes. After allowing three goals on eight shots, Mason Beaupit led the Chiefs out for the second period, preventing any more damage and stopping all 24 shots faced throughout the game’s final two periods. The Chiefs were also on their third game in as many nights and the tandem finished the game with 29 saves on 32 shots.
The scoring squad
It all came together for the Winterhawks on Sunday night, as the team saw three exciting goals to match their stellar goaltending.
Jack O’Brien, Robbie Fromm-Delorme, and Cross Hanas all found the back of the net for the Winterhawks during the first period. Coming out with a strong start, O’Brien opened the scoring 2:04 into the game. In the dwindling minutes of the period, Fromm-Delorme and Hanas added their tallies. just over a minute-and-a-half apart with one scoring at 17:16 and the other at 18:49.
Clay Hanus, Aidan Litke, Gabe Klassen, and Luke Schelter all added their names to the assist column on the scoresheet.
The Winterhawks have now scored seven goals in their last two games as everything seems to be clicking on the ice once again.
Let there be penalties
With the division’s top two penalty-taking teams facing off, a total of 21 penalties were assessed throughout the game. The result was three powerplay opportunities for the Chiefs and seven for the Winterhawks.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs have to be satisfied with their penalty killers. Their special teams allowed just one goal on their seven disadvantages. Even more, they saw a couple of good shorthanded opportunities in front of the Portland net.
Final thoughts
Spokane seemed to improve as the night went on, but with stellar goaltending from Giannuzzi and a 3-0 lead from the first period, the Winterhawks held their own and pulled off the win in front of the home crowd.
Fans can look forward to seeing Giannuzzi remind everyone why he is the trusted starting goaltender for the typically powerhouse Portland Winterhawks. On his rest nights, Lochlan Gordon has shown that he is prepared to hold down the crease. It is time to prepare for a big season as we start to see this momentum just continue to build.
The Winterhawks will be at home for their next four games, with their next outing being Saturday, October 16 against the Tri-City Americans. Puck drop is set for 6 pm PDT as Portland looks for redemption from a 5-4 opening night shootout loss in Tri-Cities.
