The Portage Terriers picked up their first win of the preseason on Wednesday night beating the Dauphin Kings 6-3. The Terriers iced a more veteran laden lineup than they did on Sunday against Virden and it showed.
It was Dauphin though that jumped out of the gate early in the first period. Noah Wagner scored on an end to end rush up the ice. The Kings got into some penalty trouble minutes later and the Terriers took over. Kian Calder scored on a 5 on 3 power play and then less than a minute later Rhys Raeside also banged one home with the man advantage. Portage never looked back after taking the 2-1 lead.
As is customary in the preseason, halfway through the second period both teams changed goalies. Chris Fines started the game for Portage and made 11 saves on 12 shots. Jayden Catellier took over and finished the night with nine saves on 11 shots. Cody Blight took a nice feed from Kian Calder midway through the second period to make it 3-1 Portage. Jayden Jubenville responded for Dauphin 31 seconds later. Penalty trouble would haunt the Kings again as Jacob Piller scored on the power play.
The Terriers increased their lead in the third period. Colby Lubachowski snapped home a quick wrist shot, and Reece Henry finished off a back door feed. The game continued to get more physical as the score got more lopsided. Dauphin added a goal midway through the frame but it was too little too late.
“It was pretty good. It felt good to get the win and meet all the new guys. Everyone worked hard and everyone is trying to earn their spot on the team.” says returning defenceman Peyton Gorski.
He has some advice for the new players. “Don’t grip your stick too tight and make the simple play. Everything else will come.”
The Terriers now get ready for their final preseason game which is Friday against Virden at Stride Place at 7:30pm. Admission is $5 at the door.
Season Tickets will be available to be picked up at Stride Place.