The revival of the Portland Winterhawks moves to another level this weekend.
The Winterhawks begin postseason play for the first time since the 2005-06 season when the Spokane Chiefs visit the Rose Garden to start the best-of-7 first round series with games at 7 p.m. Saturday and 5 p.m. Sunday.
Postseason hockey is something most of the Winterhawks have been waiting a lifetime for. Only two Hawks have participated in the Western Hockey League playoffs.
The question is: will that lack of experience tilt the series to a veteran Spokane team in a matchup that otherwise seems pretty level?
“It’s a big factor, but certainly it’s not something we can do anything about,” Winterhawks coach and general manager Mike Johnston said.
In fact, Johnston said his team has something Spokane possessed a couple of years ago when the Chiefs won the Memorial Cup: Youthful exuberance.
“We have youth, energy, and enthusiasm, which is what those (Chiefs’ players) had two years ago,” Johnston said.
The significant difference in playoff experience might be offset by Portland playing at home to open the series. Though Spokane is the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and Portland No. 5, the series starts in Portland Saturday and Sunday because Spokane is hosting NCAA tournament basketball games.
Johnston hopes his club can take advantage of starting the series at home, but given his team’s success on the road — including winning all four games at Spokane this season — he doesn’t believe there is make-or-break pressure to win this weekend.
Portland won the season series 5-3, with one of Spokane’s win coming via shootout. Seven of the games between Portland and Spokane were in the first half of the season, so those results might not be a good measure.
“It’s nice to know we won the season series,” Johnston said, citing the confidence his young club can take from that. But the coach noted that all eight regular-season meetings were tightly contested, and he expects the same from this series.
The series might turn on which team defines the pace of the game. Portland wants to attack quickly, generating as many chances as possible from transition play. Spokane is one of the top defensive teams in the league.
The Hawks scored the third most goals in the Western Conference. Their 266 goals was sixth most in the WHL — and 90 more than a season ago when they missed the playoffs for a third consecutive season.
Chris Francis, who was around for the three lost seasons, led the Hawks with 82 points (26 goals, 56 assists). Swiss rookie Nino Niederreiter had a team-leading 36 goals in 65 games and on Thursday was named a second-team Western Conference all-star.
Spokane allowed only 179 goals, third fewest in the league. Goalie James Reid posted a league-best 38 wins in goal.
“Each team is going to try to play its style,” Johnston said. “They play that good, solid defense. And we’re going to play our transition game. But they can score goals and we can play good defense, too.”
The pre-series intrigue centered around the league’s top goal scorer, Kyle Beach. Beach, who scored 52 goals in 68 games, was hurt in a knee-to-knee collision last weekend and his availability for this series was uncertain.
Both teams enter the playoffs feeling good about themselves. Spokane won five of its last six games, including a 4-0 win in Portland. The Winterhawks’ 44 wins and 91 points are the most for the franchise since the 1997-98 team that won league and Memorial Cup titles. Portland closed the regular season with four consecutive wins, including victories over Tri-City and Everett, the top two teams in the U.S. Division.
