Zach Benson scores hat trick to lead ICE past Chiefs
Dec. 9, 2022 Updated Fri., Dec. 9, 2022 at 10:15 p.m.
From staff reports
WINNIPEG, Manitoba – Each time the Spokane Chiefs took a step forward on the scoreboard, the Winnipeg Ice knocked them two steps back.
Zach Benson posted a hat trick, and Conor Geekie added two goals for Winnipeg in a 6-3 win over the Chiefs in a Western Hockey League game on Friday night.
Spokane’s Tommaso De Luca scored the first of his two goals just 83 seconds into the game for a 1-0 lead, but Geekie tallied his first goal 37 seconds later to even the game at 1-all.
Benson’s first goal at 3:37 in the opening period gave the Ice a 2-1 lead before the Chiefs’ Carter Streek knotted the score at 2-2 with a goal 13:05 into the second period.
Benson scored 44 seconds into the third period to give Winnipeg the lead for good, and Geekie added an insurance goal for a 4-2 lead at the 7:37 mark.
De Luca scored again at 12:22 to pull Spokane within 4-3, but Benson (16:53) and Vladislav Shilo (18:45) put the game away with respective goals for the Ice.
Spokane goaltender Cooper Michaluk made 38 saves.
Winnipeg’s Daniel Hauser stopped 25 shots.
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