(Everett, WA) For the first time in its history, the Portland Winterhawks have won eight straight playoff games and swept the first two rounds of the WHL Playoffs.
A three-goal second period helped propel the Winterhawks to a 5-0 Game Four win over the Everett Silvertips on Friday night, clinching a spot in the Western Conference Final for the first time since 2015.
With their season on the line, the Silvertips came out firing shots at Portland’s starting goalie Jan Špunar. The 19-year-old from Czechia stood tall and allowed the Winterhawks skaters to find their legs.
“I like every game against Everett because it is always the same pressure to start with so many shots,” Špunar said.
Portland’s president, general manager, and head coach Mike Johnston was prepared for how the Silvertips were going to attack, saying, “We know Everett is a quick starting team, so I thought the first seven or eight minutes they had the advantage in play. After that, I thought we did.”
One of the biggest turning points of the game came at 18:49 of the 1st period. With Luca Cagnoni in the penalty box for tripping, Eric Jamieson’s one-timer found the back of the net. The Silvertips thought they had a 1-0 lead; however, the officials huddled at center ice and called the goal off.
“I thought one (of the officials) waived it off when I looked at it live on the ice. So, there was a lot of through-the-crease action,” Johnston said when asked about the explanation he received. “When I saw it on the overhead replay, I thought they bumped Špunar, so it probably should’ve been called off. You never know how that is going to go because they can’t go to replay.”
Unlike the NHL, goaltender interference is not a reviewable play in the WHL.
As the teams exited the ice for the first intermission, Portland held the advantage in shots 12-9. James Stefan led the way with four on Tyler Palmer, including one on a shorthanded rush, but the Silvertips overager netminder was able to deny all four chances.
Stefan’s persistence paid off five minutes into the second period. He took a perfect pass from Tyson Yaremko and had the entire net to deposit the puck. The goal was his sixth of the 2024 playoffs.
With signed Florida Panthers prospect Josh Davies out of the lineup due to injury, Johnston elevated Yaremko from his usual fourth line position to the top line alongside Stefan and captain Gabe Klassen.
“I thought Tyson managed the puck well and made a good play on the goal, and I liked the way he played. He is a little bit older, so he can handle pressure situations like that,” Johnston said of the decision.
Throughout the middle frame, Portland’s defense was active in the offensive zone, giving Everett defensive coverage fits.
“Our defensemen are an integral part of our offensive scheme. Whether it is on the rush and being active, or in the offensive zone sliding in and moving, they are really key,” Johnston said.
First, Carter Sotheran and Tyson Jugnauth worked together to score the Winterhawks’ second goal of the game. Sotheran shook off a check and kept his balance before passing the puck across to a wide-open Jugnauth on the far side of the ice. The Seattle Kraken prospect had time and space to pick his spot on Palmer.
Jugnauth’s fourth goal of the series and postseason kept the momentum on the visitors’ side.
Less than four minutes later, Ryder Thompson joined in on the goals from the blue line as he executed a give-and-go with Stefan. Once the Russell, Manitoba, native passed the puck, he made a direct line to the net. Stefan took a shot to the blocker side of Palmer, generating a rebound, where Thompson was in a perfect position to capitalize.
Describing his first goal of the series and playoffs, Thompson said, “It is something we practice and a set play where the guy coming down the wall kicks it back to the forward, and then obviously I picked up some garbage at the front of the net. It was nice to finally see one go in.”
Portland again outshot Everett in the period, this time 18-13.
Špunar was again solid between the pipes. The Silvertips tested him down low, but he was able to his leg pads to direct pucks away from the dangerous areas.
“I thought he’s gotten better and better as the playoffs have gone along,” Johnston said of Špunar’s play. “He looked comfortable in the third (period). We had a couple of breakdowns, but overall, in the third period, we didn’t give them too many good looks.
By the time the clock read 9:51, the Winterhawks had pushed their lead to four on Jack O’Brien’s second goal of the playoffs and only allowed one shot to Everett.
The final dagger came when Kyle Chyzowski scored a power-play goal at the front of the net. It was the 19-year-old’s sixth goal in the four-game series after he scored once in the quarterfinals against Victoria. With Davies sidelined, Chyzowski moved up to the top power-play unit and scored a third-period power-play goal for the second consecutive game in Everett.
A late double-minor high-sticking infraction on Ryan Miller put the Portland penalty killers back on the ice to help Špunar to his second career playoff shutout.
“Guys blocked so many shots for me,” Špunar said. “We didn’t want to spend another night here, so we just played for each other. In the third period we played our game chipping pucks down.”
Portland’s penalty kill finished Game Four a perfect 4-for-4.
“Whether it was denying their entry, getting in shooting and passing lanes, it was about giving them nothing, and then Špunar was unreal tonight. We were just trying to help him out as much as we could, and he bailed us out a couple of times,” Thompson said of the team’s success while down a skater.
Thompson then credited his team’s depth with helping Portland limit Everett’s chances after the early portion of the game.
“We have four lines that we can roll. We are not just relying on two lines to do all the work. Everyone is chipping in, and we are getting some depth scoring, which is good to see,” he said.
Everett’s depth was limited due to injury as the Silvertips played the entire series without captain Austin Roest, overage forward Teague Patton, and defenseman Cameron Sytsma. Then forward Jesse Heslop left Game One with an injury and did not play in the rest of the series. Lastly, late in Game Three, Tarin Smith, the Silvertips first-round pick in the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft, was injured, so he, too, missed Game Four.
After the final horn sounded, the traditional handshake line occurred at center ice as the two U.S. Division rivals, who played each other 12 times in 2023-2024 between the regular season and playoffs, shook hands.
“It is just humbling,” Thompson said of the experience. “The three 20-year-olds on their side, it is sad to see their careers come to an end, but it is also a congratulations to them on great careers. It was a great battle during the regular season and playoffs.”
Once the Winterhawks left the ice, they celebrated their win and almost immediately turned their attention to the Prince George Cougars, their opponent in the Western Conference Final.
The two teams split the four matchups during the regular season, including each team winning a 2-1 game in February.
Johnston expects the series to resemble what fans saw in February, saying, “It is likely going to be really close. Home ice may make a difference, but I just think both teams are so good that it may not be as big of a factor. We saw in the series with Victoria how we came out for the Everett series in Game One (after closing the series out in four games). That rest really helped us, and we had great energy and focus coming out. So at this time of the year, if you can finish the series early and get that rest time, it is critical.”
Games One and Two will be played at the CN Centre in Prince George on Friday and Saturday.
Between now and then, Thompson said the team’s focus is consistency. “It is putting time in at the rink, but not too much time there. Obviously, we will go through video, tactics, and need to be good with our execution at practice. Away from the rink, it is about getting good sleep, nutrition, and all the good stuff about recovering. We need to be smart away from the rink and prepare really well so we are confident going into Prince George.”
