Quick Start Lifts Chiefs Over Pats

Heading into a 5-2 Thanksgiving Eve loss to the Spokane Chiefs, Donald Choukalos led all Western Hockey League goaltenders with 1,116 minutes of action.

But the Regina Pats goalie got the rare hook Wednesday night in the Arena just 8:15 into the game.

Getting off to the kind of volcanic start that characterized so many of their wins a year ago, the Chiefs struck for three first-period goals.

When Spokane’s Jeff Lucky, David Boychuk and Mason Wallin scored inside the first 8:15, Regina coach Lorne Molleken yanked goaltender Choukalos, who could stop only three of the Chiefs’ first six shots.

With a sweep of the two-game season series with the Pats - who will host the Memorial Cup tournament in May - the Chiefs moved back into second place in the WHL West, one point behind the idle Seattle Thunderbirds. Choukalos was faultless on the Lucky goal.

Lucky stripped the puck in the neutral zone, skated off on a breakaway and patiently put a backhander by the exposed netminder 2:05 into the game.

Boychuk scored on a slap shot just inside the blue line, settling a bouncing puck passed by Tim Smith, who picked up his team-high 30th assist and 34th point of the season.

Wallin’s snap shot was the finishing touch on crisp passing between Lucky and Jeff Kehler, who assisted on Wallin’s fifth goal of the year.

On came backup goalie Chad Davidson, who gave the Pats a chance to climb back into it.

In a wild second period in which the Chiefs had 5-on-3 power-play opportunities on five different occasions, the Pats found a way to make it a two-goal game by the second intermission.

The Chiefs put the game away in the third with Brandin Cote’s 11th goal of the year and Brad Schell’s third.