In terms of the math, Wednesday’s 6-1 win at Everett was a big deal in the Portland Winterhawks pursuit of the U.S. Division championship.
But coach Jamie Kompon did not make a big deal about it.
“You can’t put too much importance on one game,” Kompon said on Thursday from Spokane, where the Winterhawks take on the Chiefs Friday night. “You start placing a priority on certain games and the message gets lost.”
That message is: Every game matters, that no single game will get the team to its goal. The message is that it is as important to correctly prepare for games against Spokane and Tri-City as it is to gear up for division-leading Everett.
Portland — with 17 wins, one regulation loss and two overtime losses in its last 20 games — is now within two points of the division lead and has two more games than Everett in which to earn points.
“We understand that. But we still have seven games to take care of here and anything can happen,” Kompon said.
The flip side of Portland’s games in hand is its frenetic finish to the regular season. Wednesday’s game in Everett was the first of eight over 12 days to complete the regular season.
“It is a lot of hockey with a lot of travel,” Kompon said.
The Winterhawks play at Spokane on Friday, in Portland Saturday and Sunday, then back at Spokane next Wednesday.
The Winterhawks will be looking to replicate a busy final two weeks of January when they went 8-0,
Wednesday was a positive start. After giving up an early goal to Everett, Portland dominated. An end-to-end rush by defenseman Adam Henry produced a 3-1 lead in the second period and provided a big momentum boost.
“That was one of those goals where guys on the bench were asking ‘Did that just happen?'” Compon said.
Around the rink
This week: At Spokane, 7:05 p.m. on Friday; host Prince George, 7 p.m. Saturday (Memorial Coliseum); host Spokane, 5 p.m. Sunday (Memorial Coliseum); 7:05 p.m. Wednesday at Spokane; 7:05 p.m. March 20 at Tri-City.
Last week: Beat Seattle 7-1; beat Tri-City 6-2; beat Everett 6-1.
Where they stand: At 40-20-2-3, the Winterhawks have 85 points and are second in the U.S. Division, two points behind first-place Everett and 10 points ahead of third-place Seattle. Portland has seven games remaining and Everett has five.
Remaining schedule: Portland plays Spokane three times this week and Prince George once, then finishes with two games against Tri-City and one against Seattle. Everett plays Seattle twice this weekend, then closes with two games against Victoria and one against Spokane.
Playoff picture: The U.S. Division winner will likely open the playoffs against Spokane, while the second-place team will likely face Seattle in the first round.
Bjorkstrand stands alone: Oliver Bjorkstrand scored four times on March 6 in a 7-1 a win over Seattle. It was his 12th consecutive game with a goal, setting a new franchise record by surpassing the 11-game goal streak of Tony Currie in 1976-77.
His goal streak ended the next night, though Bjorkstrand did have two assists in the Saturday win over Tri-City. Then on Wednesday at Everett Bjorkstrand scored twice — including a shot that blasted right through the net. He now has 54 goals in 52 games and is the first Winterhawks player since Dennis Holland in 1987-88 and 1988-89 to score 50 goals in consecutive seasons. Bjorkstrand enters the weekend with 99 points(54 goals, 45 assists), one off the WHL lead.
Petan climbs assists list: Nic Petan has played a key role in Bjorkstrand’s scoring streak. Petan has 23 points over his last seven games, 22 of those assists. He is now second in the league with 68 assists over only 47 games, seven fewer than leader Trevor Cox of Medicine Hat who has 75 assists in 63 games.
Hawks on TV: Friday’s home game against Spokane is scheduled to be shown live on Root Sports.
