Chiefs Score Early, Top Winter Hawks Leeb, Jones Register In First Period As Spokane Beats Division Leaders

Thu., March 5, 1998

Greg Leeb and Ty Jones scored first-period goals Wednesday night, helping the Spokane Chiefs surprise Portland 3-1 in the Rose Garden and strengthen their grip on second place in the Western Hockey League’s West Division.

Leeb tapped in the game’s first goal after only 1 minute, 17 seconds, starting the Chiefs to their 43rd victory of the season. Spokane has 90 points, nine more than third-place Prince George.

Portland, which has 104 points, has wrapped up the division title. The Winter Hawks have lost only three times at home this season, twice to Spokane. The Chiefs (2-1-1) are the only team in the WHL that has a winning record in Portland this season.

Fifteen minutes after Leeb collected his 43rd goal of the season, Jones connected for his 35th at the 16:55 mark.

Brenden Morrow put Portland on the scoreboard with his 32nd of the season at 6:08 of the second period. Spokane’s Marian Cisar, after assists from Jones and Leeb, cashed a power-play goal to conclude the scoring just 55 seconds later.

Cisar’s goal was his 31st of the season.

Jones, who also assisted on Leeb’s goal, finished the night with three points. Cisar also had an assist.

With less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Chiefs retained their perfect record (29-0) in games they have led after two periods.

Wednesday, Spokane outshot Portland 35-31. Chiefs goaltender Aren Miller turned back 30 of Portland’s 31 tries.

, DataTimes

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.

Chiefs Score Early, Top Winter Hawks Leeb, Jones Register In First Period As Spokane Beats Division Leaders

Jesse Tinsley

Jim Meehan

Molly Quinn

Rob Curley

Mark Few reveals Gonzaga 'sliding doors' moment one day before Tommy Lloyd leads Arizona into Final Four

WSU QBs Caden Pinnick, Owen Eshelman go throw-for-throw at open practice in Spokane

Updated: Jo Adell robs 3 home runs as Angels stun Seattle Mariners