THE CANADIAN PRESS
PORTLAND, Ore. — Back in January, the Kootenay Ice gave up five players and three draft picks to pry star forward Cody Eakin away from the struggling Swift Current Broncos.
The cost was heavy, but the gamble paid off Friday as the Ice beat the Portland Winterhawks 4-1 to take the Western Hockey League final in five games.
With the win, Kootenay qualified for the Memorial Cup, which gets underway May 20 in Mississauga, Ont.
Matt Fraser scored his league-leading 16th and 17th goals of the post-season to lead the way for Kootenay, which trailed 1-0 early in the first period.
Steele Boomer scored in the first period, and Jesse Ismond added at empty-netter with 41 seconds left in the third.
Nathan Lieuwen stopped 26 shots for his 16th win of the playoffs, while Mac Carruth made 36 saves for the Winterhawks.
Eakin was held off the scoresheet Friday, but led the Ice with nine points in the series and had 27 points in 19 playoff games.
The Ice finished fourth in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, but lost just three playoff games on the way to its first league title since 2002.
Kootenay’s longest series was a six-game triumph over Moose Jaw in the first round. The Ice then swept away the top-seeded Saskatoon Blades and third-seeded Medicine Hat Tigers to win the East.
After dropping Game 1 of the finals to Portland, the Western Conference’s top team, the Ice won four straight to take home the Ed Chynoweth Cup.
Portland lost in its first trip to the league finals since 2001. The Winterhawks are now 2-7 all-time in WHL championship series.
The Winterhawks had been battling slow starts throughout the post-season, but got going quickly Friday on Tyler Wotherspoon’s one-timer from the slot 2:26 into the first period.
Kootenay evened the score on an odd play. Boomer deflected the puck off the crossbar behind Carruth and it bounced down on the ice past the goal-line, but the officials waved the goal off and play continued for nearly three minutes until a whistle.
On video review, Kootenay was quickly awarded the goal to make it 1-1.
Kootenay took a 2-1 lead on a power-play goal late in the second. Brayden McNabb faked a shot from the high slot and passed to an open Fraser, who beat a flailing Carruth with a one-timer for his league-leading 16th goal of the post-season.
Fraser potted an insurance goal on another one-timer with 5:44 left in the third period before Ismond scored into an empty net.
