Ams Pull Out All The Stops - 63 Of Them Baker Shines In Goal, Flynn Scores Hat Trick To Beat Chiefs

Friday night the Tri-City Americans were out of it.

Saturday night they were in like Flynn.

Rookie Chris Flynn scored three goals and assisted on a fourth as the Americans handed the Spokane Chiefs a costly 5-4 spanking in overtime - some 24 hours after the Ams absorbed a five-goal, Friday night lashing from the Portland Winter Hawks.

Knocked out of playoff contention last week, the Ams had nothing to play for. But goaltender Aaron Baker, who rejected 63 of 67 shots, was too good to lose.

“A goaltender has to be good to be lucky, and lucky to be good,” Tri-City coach Bob Loucks said. “Tonight he had horseshoes in both hands and both feet, and one somewhere where the sun doesn’t shine.”

The Americans won for only the 20th time, but swarmed all over each other afterward as if they’d won a Memorial Cup. They finished 6-10 in their Highway 395 series with Spokane, but won five of the eight games played in Kennewick.

The Chiefs fell to .500, and tumbled into a third-place tie with the streaking Kelowna Rockets.

It happened at 6:29 of overtime, when Tri-City’s Dylan Gyori poked a backhander between the pads of Chiefs netminder Aren Miller.

“That one had eyes,” Loucks said.

Both coaches, by design and by necessity, trotted out the young and the restless for a game that, at the start, had all the promise of an exhibition.

Players took the night off to heal or grieve. Plenty of good seats were available. One club spent most of the night teeing off on the goaltender. Another - the Ams - had nothing but a little pride on the line.

For all of that it turned into pretty fair drama, but what it means is hard to tell, since both clubs went without key veterans.

Spokane defenseman Adam Magarrell is with his family in Domain, Manitoba, following the death of his maternal grandfather.

John Cirjak and Ty Jones were out with the flu. Mike Haley has cracked ribs, which are always slow coming around. Chad Reich is resting a tender shoulder.

Tri-City went without four key vets, leaving this one up to the Kiddie Korps.

Flynn is 16. Joey Bastien, who had a goal, is 16. Darrell Hay is 16. Gyori is 17, Baker, 18. It was a look at his future that impressed Loucks.

“We’ve struggled with the kids who’ve been playing but they’re getting better,” Loucks said. “Flynn has got lots of skill. When his head’s in the game he’s a pretty good player. He made some big mistakes tonight but he made up for them.”

The Chiefs got a pair of goals from Tent Whitfield, one from Jared Smyth and one from Marian Cisar.

Chiefs coach Mike Babcock said, “There aren’t many nights when the goaltender can beat you. I thought (Donovan) Nunweiler did it when we played Moose Jaw, and I thought Baker did it here.”

Americans 5, Chiefs 4 (OT)

Spokane 1 3 0 0 - 4 Tri-City 2 2 0 1 - 5

First period-1, Tri-City, Bastien 5 (Flynn, Hay), 9:52 (pp). 2, Spokane, Whitfield 31 (Cardarelli), 14:44. 3, Tri-City, Flynn 5 (Ascroft, Lapeyre), 15:48 (pp). Key penalties-Hurley, TC, 2:24; Lane, Spo, 8:59; McKay, TC, 13:57; Leeb, Spo, 14:22; Dewaele, Spo, 14:58.

Second period-4, Spokane, Cisar 28, :48. 5, Tri-City, Flynn 6 (Ascroft), 5:36 (pp). 6, Spokane, Smyth 3 (Leeb, Schutz), 10:18 (pp). 7, Spokane, Whitfield 32 (Cisar, Hamilton), 12:34. 8, Tri-City, Flynn 7 (Thompson), 16:34. Key penalties-Suter, Spo, 3:44; Sachl, TC, 8:39; Hurley, TC, 10:30.

Third period-None. Key penalties-Cisar, Spo, :26; Boschman, Spo, misconduct, :26; Whitfield, Spo, 5:39; Anderson, Spo, 10:05.

Overtime-9, Tri-City, Gyori 28 (McKay), 6:29. Key penalties- None.

Power-play opp.-Spokane 1 of 4; Tri-City 3 of 6. Saves-Spokane, Miller 4-6-15-2-27. Tri-City, Baker 20-23-17-3-63. A-4,824.

, DataTimes