WHL | Three mistakes cost Tips in Game 3 loss

EVERETT — Three colossal miscues in Game 3 have put the Everett Silvertips on the brink of elimination in the Western Hockey League playoffs.

The Spokane Chiefs scored three times off Everett errors and then into an empty net to win 4-1 and go up 3-0 in the best-of-seven opening-roundseries.

Game 4 will be in Everett on Friday. If the Silvertips can extend the series, Game 5 will be in Everett on Saturday.

"We've won four straight before, and we just have to stay positive," said Everett's top scorer, Dan Gendur. "They're a top team in the league and if we give them chances like we did tonight, they're going to score."

The first big mistake occurred with Everett on the power play. Gendur momentarily misplayed the puck at his own blueline.

Levko Koper swooped in, gathered the puck in full stride and skated in on a breakaway.

Koper, who had 12 goals in the regular season, lifted a backhanded shot over Leland Irving to put Spokane ahead 1-0 at 7:15 of the first period.

The Chiefs made it 2-0 when goaltender Irving served up a soft rebound after a soft backhanded shot by Ondrej Roman. The Spokane winger followed in his own rebound at 2:09 of the second period to put Everett in a deep hole.

"Those were harmless plays," Everett coach John Becanic said. "It was our best effort of the series, but we just couldn't score. We played a hard, physical game, but when they got their chances, bang, it was in the back of the net. When we had our opportunities, we couldn't score."

The Silvertips cut the lead to 2-1 at 13:49 of the second period when Gendur scored, but the third big mistake came when Everett failed to clear the puck out of its own end and Drayson Bowman jammed it in to make it 3-1 at 15:20 of the third period.

Judd Blackwater scored into an empty net to finish the scoring.

Spokane coach Bill Peters said it will take a better effort to close out the series Friday.

"We generated more offense in the first two games, but we were more opportunistic tonight," Peters said. "We're going to have to have a better effort on Friday night to get it done, and I'm sure we will have a better effort. We didn't play as well as we had in the first two games."

The Chiefs got 28 saves from goaltender Dustin Tokarski, who has won all three games in the series.

"We've had good goaltending all year," Peters said.

The Silvertips advanced past the first round in all four of their previous seasons. In all four of those seasons, Everett ended its season losing four in a row, twice in the second round, once in the Western Conference finals and once in the WHL championship series.