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WHL Wenatchee Wild

Wild Score Early in Front of Sold-Out Crowd, But Fall 2-1 to Spokane Saturday

January 20, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Wenatchee Wild's forward Kenta Isogai
Wenatchee Wild's forward Kenta Isogai
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Russ Alman/Wenatchee Wild)

WANATCHEE, Wash. - Saturday's Western Hockey League showdown between the Wenatchee Wild and Spokane Chiefs wasn't so much short on scoring as it was long on defense and goaltending. If Saturday's game did lack scoring, it was by far the only thing the game did lack.

It certainly didn't lack scoring chances...or energy, or crowd noise. The Wild registered their first sellout as a Western Hockey League club, welcoming the fourth-largest regular-season crowd in Wenatchee junior hockey history - 4,218 fans turned out for the organization's 15th annual Guns & Hoses promotion as Spokane squeaked out a 2-1 win at Town Toyota Center behind a 37-save performance from goaltender Dawson Cowan.

All of Saturday's scoring came in a tidy two-and-a-half-minute span of the first period - just 17 seconds into the first power play of the night, the Chiefs opened the scoring at 10:55 of the first when Brayden Crampton fed Conner Roulette for a right-wing one-timer. Fresh out of the penalty box, Kenta Isogai answered to tie the game just 14 seconds later, but Berkly Catton found Chase Bertholet on the left wing for the eventual difference-maker with 6:43 remaining in the period.

Both teams had their chances in the final 40 minutes and change - Wenatchee turned away all three remaining Spokane power plays, but the Chiefs held off all seven Wild power plays in Saturday's contest. Wenatchee rattled off 28 shots over the last two periods, and won 13 of its 18 faceoffs in the middle stanza, but the Wild were never able to get the tying tally that they battled for.

"The guys really battled hard. It's just unfortunate, they ran into a bit of a lull, as far as scoring goals," said assistant coach Andrew Sarauer. "Pucks were bouncing on us, and we tried getting cute at times instead of just getting to the dirty areas and trying to get an ugly goal when we needed one. When you're not scoring goals, you just have to get back to keeping it simple and taking away the goalie's eyes. The guys battled hard, and it was a good crowd with good energy. The guys competed hard, but we fell a little bit short."

Roulette finished with a goal and an assist, while Catton notched two assists of his own. Cowan earned his 10th win of the season, while Daniel Hauser took the hard-luck loss on 29 saves. Isogai extended his point streak to six games with his first-period marker, while Briley Wood earned an assist to bump his scoring run to seven straight games.

Wenatchee's month-long homestand takes a brief break Sunday as the Wild return to the road for a visit to the Seattle Thunderbirds. The opening puck drop at accesso Showare Center is slated for 5:05 p.m., with live coverage on Newsradio 560 KPQ and WHL Live. The Wild return to home ice Wednesday as the Tri-City Americans drop in for a midweek bout, presented by Riverside Payments. Tickets for that game and all home regular-season contests are on sale now at 509-888-7825, or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Wild playoff packages and 2024-25 season tickets are now on sale as well - updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team's website and on the team's social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

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Images from this story

Wenatchee Wild's forward Kenta Isogai
Wenatchee Wild's forward Kenta Isogai
(Russ Alman/Wenatchee Wild)		   

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