Chiefs top Americans, jump into tie for second place

It was a playoff atmosphere in the Arena on Saturday night – a showdown between two rival teams tied in the standings in front of the biggest crowd of the season.

The Spokane Chiefs and Tri-City Americans battled to a tie through 54 minutes before the game was settled in a wild way.

David Rutherford’s controversial goal with 5:30 remaining in the game was the winner as Spokane posted an important 2-1 win over Tri-City in Western Hockey League play.

The win allowed Spokane (23-15-3-2, 51) to move into a tie for second place with Seattle as it heads out on an eight-game road trip. Tri-City (24-16-0-1, 49) fell two points behind those teams with the loss.

Rutherford’s goal just inside the top corner from just outside the right post wasn’t initially allowed by referee Andy Thiessen. However, the goal judge turned on the red light immediately and blinked it several more times to indicate it had gone into the net.

Then, at a stop in play 56 seconds later, Thiessen conferred with the goal judge via headset and counted the goal.

“I guess I beat him at his own game, waiting him out,” Rutherford said of Price. “I know coming down I’ve always shot glove on him every time. When he slid out – when I faked the shot – I just went to my backhand and threw it high.”

The goal capped a somewhat improbable comeback for Spokane, which was outplayed by the Americans for most of the first 30 minutes.

Tri-City staked itself to a 1-0 lead at the 8:22 mark of the first when Colton Yellow Horn redirected a shot from the point by defenseman T.J. Fast. Fast put the shot on net from the right point, just inside the blue line, and it went high to the far side on Spokane goalie Kevin Armstrong.

It was the only dent in the armor of Armstrong and the Chiefs’ defense on this night. His defensemen blocked many shots in front of him, but Armstrong made 33 saves to improve his record to 15-10-2-1.

His play kept the Chiefs in the game as they struggled through the first period and a half to match the intensity of the Americans. Spokane needed a spark of some kind and it came after the team stepped up its play and started creating chances.

Then, with 9:12 left in the game, Spokane product Derek Ryan had one of the biggest goals of his WHL career. It came as he and linemates Drayson Bowman and Mitch Wahl raced up ice with a 3-on-2 opportunity.

Ryan, moving up the right wing, sent the puck into Bowman in the middle. Bowman put a hard shot on net from the top of the circle, which dribbled through the legs of Tri-City defenseman Roman Teslyuk. Ryan kept skating and was waiting for the puck as it ended up near the right post. He buried the chance and the Arena crowd erupted.

Now, with the scored tied at 1, the Spokane players raised their intensity level and began to dominate play. They kept the puck in Tri-City’s end for much of the next five minutes until Rutherford’s goal gave them the win.

The Chiefs withstood a minute-plus of 6-on-5 when the Ams pulled Price near the end of the third period.

Chiefs 2, Ams 1

First Period—1, TC, Yellow Horn 16 (Fast, Vey) 8:22. Second Period—None. Third Period—2, Spo, Ryan 16 (Bowman) 10:48; 3, Spo, Rutherford 22 (Grabner) 14:30. Power-play Opp.—Tri-City 0 of 1; Spokane 0 of 6. Saves—Tri-City, Price 30 saves. Spokane, Armstrong 33 saves. A—9,231.