The Portage Terriers picked up their first regulation home win of the season Friday night, beating the Neepawa Natives 5-1. The Terriers looked dominant from start to finish and outshot the Natives 34-25.
Portage kicked of the first period with a bang, scoring three goals. Defenceman Cole Dekoninck, who was acquired in a trade this week from the Dauphin Kings, scored his first goal of the season 6:32 into the game. Reece Henry finished off a 2 on 1 with Jacob Piller less than two minutes later, while shorthanded, to give Portage a two goal lead. The Dogs wouldn’t stop there; Parker Johnson found the back of the net on the power play. Jaeger Lapointe scored the lone goal of the night for Neepawa with five minutes to play in the period.
Portage continued to look strong in the second frame and found the back of the net twice more. Kian Calder banged home his 4th of the season in front of the net. Tyler Van Deynze broke up a play and ripped a shot upstairs seconds later to put the game out of reach.
Cole Johnston made a huge pad save breaking up a two on one early in the third period, and Neepawa wasn’t able to gain any momentum after that. Johnston finished the night with 24 saves. The Terriers ended the game 1/4 with the man advantage.
Portage had four new players in the lineup: Cole Dekoninck, Noah Wagner, Dylan Winsor and Reese Belton. They all found the gamesheet. Dekoninck notched a goal, Wagner and Winsor both took minor penalties, and Belton got into a scrap with Rhys Bremner.
The Terriers now visit Neepawa on Saturday night to wrap up the weekend. Puck drop is set for 7:30 pm.
For the complete box score CLICK HERE.
Don’t forget that the first group of jerseys in the Terrier Alumni Jersey Auction end on Nov. 1 at 5 pm.