Winterhawks take down Wild as Klassen nets career goal No. 100

PORTLAND — The Portland Winterhawks’ offense continued to thrive on Wednesday, scoring six-plus goals for the fourth straight game and picking up a fourth straight Western Hockey League win, 7-2 over the Wenatchee Wild.

Gabe Klassen scored his 100th career goal and also had an assist, and Jack O’Brien had two goals for Portland (19-9-1-1).

Josh Zakreski also had a goal and assist, while Luca Cagnoni had four assists.

Goaltender Justen Maric earned a third consecutive win with 26 saves on 28 shots.

The Winterhawks opened the game with three consecutive goals in 21:55 for an early lead.

O’Brien scored the first, rifling a loose puck in the high slot into the top corner of the net 15:44 into the contest.

Josh Davies and Marcus Nguyen boosted that advantage in the second period, scoring twice in the first two minutes — both on the power play.

Davies’ 21st of the year marked a new career-high, while Nguyen showed off his speed and tucked a low shot into the far corner for No. 10 on the season.

Graham Sward responded for Wenatchee with a power-play blast at 7:53, but Klassen’s 100th career goal at 13:41 quickly restored the three-goal lead.

Assisted by James Stefan for his 200th career point, Klassen fired a wrist shot from the left circle to make it 4-1 Hawks and become the 27th Winterhawk all-time with 100 career goals.

A late second-period strike from Luke Shcherbyna gave Wenatchee more life heading into the final frame, but three Portland goals in the third put the game on ice.

Zakreski bagged the first midway through the third after some strong work from Kyle McDonough to set him up, while O’Brien notched his second of the night with an empty-netter at 17:53.

In the final seconds, Portland’s power play found paydirt one more time as Hudson Darby snuck home his third of the season.

The Winterhawks open up a home-and-home with the Spokane Chiefs on Friday on the road before returning to Portland on Saturday for Holiday Sweater Night.

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WINTERHAWKS 7, WILD 2

Wentachee 0 2 0—2

Portland 1 3 3—7

First Period — 1, Portland, O’Brien 11 (Buttazzoni, Thompson) 15:44.

Second Period — 2, Portland, Davies 21 (Klassen, Cagnoni) 0:41 (pp); 3, Portland, Nguyen 10 (Sotheran, Jugnauth) 1:55 (pp); 4, Wenatchee, Sward 7 (Wood, Friesen) 7:53 (pp); 5, Portland, Klassen 17 (Cagnoni, Stefan) 13:41 (pp); 6, Wenatchee, Shcherbyna 5 (Moore, Pankey) 18:10.

Third Period — 7, Portland, Zakreski 11 (McDonough) 10:41; 8, Portland, O’Brien 12 (Zakreski, Cagnoni) 17:53 (en); 9, Portland, Darby 3 (McDonough, Cagnoni) 19:59 (pp).

Shots on goal—Wenatchee 11-7-10—28. Portland 14-14-11—39.

Power-play opportunities—Wenatchee 1 of 7; Portland 4 of 5.

Goalies—Wenatchee, Gee (38 shots, 32 saves). Portland, Maric (28-26).

A—2,523.

Referees—Jackson Kozari, Tatu Kunto. Linesmen—Eric McLaughlin, Toby Wolfe.