Wheat Kings have Hitmen on the ropes: WHL playoff roundup

The Western Hockey League’s conference final series have been great, but the outcome will even be better. The major junior league will have a new matchup in its championship series for the first time since 2011. Either the Brandon Wheat Kings or Calgary Hitmen will take the Edmonton Oil Kings’ spot out of the Eastern Conference while the Portland Winterhawks are battling the Kelowna Rockets in the Western Conference for a fifth straight trip to the finals.

Here is a recap of the WHL’s conference final series.

Eastern Conference

Brandon vs. Calgary (Wheat Kings up 3-1, host Game 5 on Friday)

From the refs kicking Hitmen head coach Mark French out of Game 1 to a handful of highlight-reel goals, there has been no shortage of excitement in the Eastern Conference final.

Even though he was outstanding in Round 2 against the Medicine Hat Tigers, the Hitmen made it evident that Mack Shields is on a short leash after he let in five goals on 22 shots in Game 1. The club didn’t go back to the Saskatoon, Sk., native in the following three contests. Brendan Burke stood tall in Games 2 and 3, only letting four pucks get by him, but he was pulled in Game 4 following letting in four goals on 14 shots.

Jordan Papirny, meanwhile, has played well at the other end of the ice. He’s won the goaltending battle in all three of his club’s wins and posted a .938 save percentage in a 2-1 overtime loss in Game 3.

Twenty-one goals in four games later, no one is questioning Brandon’s offensive abilities. They have made it known that it’s out of the question to shut down their elite scorers because there's simply too many of them. Calgary's only hope is to try to contain them while beating them at their own game.

Jake Virtanen’s three-game suspension for a head shot has drawn a lot of attention for hurting Calgary’s chances against Brandon. It’s without question a big blow, but not having Connor Rankin and Chase Lang in the their lineup because of injuries has made an even bigger impact in the series. The Hitmen don’t have the offensive depth to make up for the 135 points that the two veterans combined for in the regular-season.

That said, the pressure has been on New York Rangers draft pick Adam Tambellini to carry the offense. He’s undoubtedly done his fair share with three crucial markers, including the overtime winner in Game 3, which gave him four game-winning goals in the post-season.

Western Conference

Kelowna vs. Portland (series tied 2-2, Rockets host Game 5 on Friday)

With three games ending in a 3-2 score, it has been a neck-and-neck series. It seems it could come right down to the wire in a Game 7.

The Winterhawks’ top guns have made their mark on the score sheet. Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Oliver Bjorkstrand (3G-3A), draft prospect Paul Bittner and Winnipeg Jets picks Nicolas Petan (2G-4A) and Chase De Leo (2G-2A) combine for roughly 65 per cent of Portland’s offense. In addition, overage blueliner Adam Henry (1G-4A) has produced more offense than Kelowna’s Madison Bowey (1G-1A) and Josh Morrissey (pointless) combined.

The Rockets’ offense has been spread out against the Winterhawks. Edmonton Oilers prized draft choice Leon Draisaitl (2G-2A) is their only player who has scored multiple goals in the series. The team has needed depth players to step up as some of their stars such as Nick Merkley and Tyson Baillie are yet to find the back of Portland’s net.

It’s fair to point out that Kelowna has had to overcome some injury obstacles. They have been without San Jose Sharks prospect Rourke Chartier and Nashville Predators pick Justin Kirkland at times, and Morrissey is likely not 100 per cent after coming off a leg injury.

Albeit Jackson Whistle has had some stellar performances such as turning aside 40 shots in Game 4, Adin Hill has the edge in the goaltending battle. The Calgary, Alta., native has a .930 save percentage in the series and made 79 save in Portland’s pair of wins. He’s doing a good job of making Jamie Kompon look smart for trading Burke at the deadline and rolling with him in net.

Kelly Friesen is a Buzzing the Net columnist for Yahoo! Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KellyFriesen