Medicine Hat, Spokane battle for series lead in WHL Final
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The Medicine Hat Tigers and Spokane Chiefs battle to take the Western Hockey League Championship Series lead as the series shifts to Spokane Arena for Game 3 on Tuesday.
Spokane made a statement win in Game 2, handing the Tigers their second loss of the postseason with a 6-2 victory to tie the series 1-1.
Seattle Kraken prospect and team captain Berkly Catton led the way, recording two goals and an assist while forwards Rasmus Ekstrom, Shea Van Olm, Mathis Preston, and Owen Martin each had a goal and an assist.
Washington Capitals draft pick Andrew Cristall continued his strong playoff with two assists in the victory.
"It's a response we wanted," Chiefs head coach Brad Lauer said after the game. "Obviously, we didn't want to give up a goal [in the first minute], but I thought our kids... it didn't faze them. I thought we stuck with it and found a way."
After the win, Catton and Cristall now hold the top two spots in WHL playoff scoring with 40 and 39 points, respectively, this season. Their point totals also place them first and second in all-time Chiefs playoff scoring in a single postseason.
Cristall is also one goal away from surpassing Jason Podollan for the most goals in a single Chiefs' postseason, which was set during the 1995-96 campaign.
"Catton was all over the ice and so dynamic [in Game 2]," said TSN Hockey analyst Nate Thompson after the game. "Every time he had the puck, he was making things happen. What I love about him is every time he gets the puck, he takes it to the net and scores there. He was their best player on the ice and the best player on the ice for both teams."
Goaltender Dawson Cowan came up big when he needed to, making 21 saves to help preserve the victory for the Chiefs.
Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Cayden Lindstrom and defenceman Bryce Pickford recorded goals in the loss for Medicine Hat.
The loss ended the Tigers' 11-game playoff winning streak, which was one off of the league record.
"They were quicker than us in the first period," Tigers coach Willie Desjardins said after the game. "They were just a little bit hungrier. I don't think there's much more than that. They just played a really good game and they all played us tonight, and they deserved the game.
"Both teams are really similar [and] both teams play physical. It's playoff hockey, you're going to have lots of intensity and it'll only grow as the series goes on."
Aside from the victory, perhaps the greatest accomplishment Spokane had in Game 2 was holding phenom Gavin McKenna off the scoresheet, ending his 54-game point streak.
McKenna recorded 40 goals and 137 points during the 54-game streak, which combines both regular season and playoff games and lasted more than half of a full calendar year.
He had 44 multi-point games and eight multi-goal games during that span and averaged 2.54 points per game.
His streak was the longest in the modern Canadian Hockey League era, surpassing Alexander Radulov's streak of 50 games while playing for the Quebec Remparts in 2005-06 and it was only the fourth time this season that McKenna was held scoreless.
"This is the longest streak of the 21st century [in the CHL]," TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button said postgame. "It wasn't just a point here and there, he was averaging 2.54 points during this streak. He had his chances in this game, but Medicine Hat was not at the top of their game.
"It ends in one respect for McKenna, but with every ending there's a new beginning starting with Game 3."
The WHL Championship Series continues on Wednesday with Game 4 at Spokane Arena, which can be seen live at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on TSN1/5, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
The CHL on TSN continues on Wednesday when the Rimouski Oceanic try to get back into their series with the Moncton Wildcats in the QMJHL Final at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on TSN1, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.