Most of the Spokane Chiefs returned from a nine-day holiday break on Saturday night. Kailer Yamamoto, the evening's No. 1 star, never went anywhere. Read story

Most Chiefs scattered to their hometowns after a 5-0 win at Prince George, British Columbia, on Dec. 17.

But Yamamoto -- who led Saturday night's 5-1 victory over Tri-City with one goal and two assists -- spent the holiday break in Spokane with his older brother and Chiefs teammate, Keanu.

The Spokane natives enjoyed the holiday with family, Kailer said.

"We had a good Christmas at my Grandma and Grandpa's," he said. "It was awesome. It's nice to come back to your hometown.

"I think the break was good for our team. Most people wanted it, but it's good to be back, definitely."

The Chiefs needed less than 1 minute to jump ahead 1-0 as Dominic Zwerger zipped down the right side, past a defender, and fired a shot that Tri-City backup goalie Evan Sarthou couldn't handle.

"It was good to get that first goal, get that weight lifted off our shoulders, and after that we just settled down and played Chiefs hockey," Yamamoto said.

"Chiefs hockey" this year has meant good defense and one of the Western Hockey League's top penalty kills. The Chiefs have allowed one goal combined in their last two games. Their penalty kill, which began the night ranked third in the league at 85.1 percent, went 5 for 6. It only bent when Yamamoto and Liam Stewart picked up third-period penalties 17 seconds apart and gave Tri-City a 5-on-3 power play on which the Americans made good.

But with two shorthanded goals and a power-play goal of their own, the Chiefs had the game well in hand. Coach Don Nachbaur was stumped when it came to recalling when the Chiefs might have last scored two shorthanded goals in a game.

"It's been a long time," he said. "I can't remember, but it was good to see. And our penalty kill has been great for us all year."

 

 

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