Adam Beckman, Luke Toporowski lead Spokane Chiefs to 3-1 win over Kamloops

Injuries have forced the Spokane Chiefs to give a lot of ice time to the team’s younger players, and two youngsters came up big in Spokane’s 3-1 win Saturday night over the Kamloops Blazers.

Seventeen-year-olds Adam Beckman and Luke Toporowski did the heavy lifting for Spokane. Beckman had two goals and Toporowski had a goal and an assist. Goaltender Bailey Brkin stopped 17 shots and made some key saves in the latter half of the third period with Kamloops pressing.

Chiefs head coach Dan Lambert deploys his youth in all kinds of situations, whether it’s the power play, the penalty kill or an own-zone faceoff with the game on the line.

“They play in big moments for us, and it was nice that they stepped up in a game that I thought we more or less controlled for a lot of it,” Lambert said. “At the end we needed Brkin to make some saves, and he did.”

Beckman’s two goals give him 12 on the season, tops among Western Hockey League rookies.

“It’s tough when your top players go down, but it’s nice to get the chance to play as well,” Beckman said. “I’m just trying to run with it as much as I can.”

The Chiefs and Blazers were scoreless through the first period and into the second before Beckman got Spokane on the board. He skated in back-door and took a pass from Toporowski, who was up against the boards near the circle. Beckman roofed a shot past Kamloops goaltender Dylan Ferguson.

“We were on the forecheck, and Toporowski made a great play to win the battle and passed it right to me in the slot,” Beckman said.

Beckman’s goal came at 15:45 of the second. A little less than 3 minutes later, Toporowski made it 2-0 with a shorthanded goal after he skated in on Ferguson and got his rebound while being taken down.

Brodi Stuart scored the Blazers’ lone goal on the power play at 12:09 of the third out of a net-mouth scramble.

With the Blazers putting on late pressure, Brkin made some key saves to preserve the lead, including a stop on Martin Lang in which Brkin had to go side-to-side and stop a point-blank shot.

“I thought (Brkin) was really solid,” Lambert said.

“I thought he looked in control, saw the puck well and played a lot like the way he was at the start of the year.”

Brkin got his second start in a row after getting the win last Sunday at Everett. He and Dawson Weatherill have each seen time between the pipes throughout the season’s first 24 games.

Brkin did his job in net late in the game. Beckman sealed the win with an empty-netter at 18:58 of the third.

“I got a nice pass from (Eli) Zummack and gained some space,” Beckman said. “I wanted the red line, so I could get it down without icing it. I was lucky enough to get the puck across the red line and put it in.”

The Chiefs entered the game with the league’s top power-play unit but failed to score in their two opportunities. Kamloops was 1 for 3 on its power plays.

The Chiefs (13-8-1-2, 29 points) are back at the Arena on Wednesday when they welcome the Prince George Cougars.