SPOKANE, Wash. – The Spokane Chiefs scored three goals in the first period on their way to a 6-1 rout of the rival Tri-City Americans in front of 9,352 fans at Spokane Arena on Friday night. Rookie forward Jaret Anderson-Dolan led the way with four points.

Spokane got on the scoreboard at the 4:28 mark of the opening period as Danish forward Nik Andersen flipped a nifty backhand over starting Tri-City goaltender Nicholas Sanders’ shoulder.

Rookies Taylor Ross and Anderson-Dolan paired up for the Chiefs’ second goal as Ross tossed a puck to the net from the left corner. The puck, intended for Anderson-Dolan on an extended give-and-go play, instead deflected off a Tri-City defender’s skate and past Sanders to make it 2-0.

Markson Bechtold scored his 15th of the season at the 9:12 mark to make it a 3-0 game as the 19-year-old forward took advantage of a delayed penalty call to penetrate the Tri-City zone and bounce a shot off Americans’ defenseman Juuso Valimaki’s skate.

Tri-City’s Parker Bowles took things into his own hands to fight back for the Americans and make it 3-1 midway through the second period. The veteran center fended off three Chiefs while shorthanded to control the puck and beat Chiefs’ goalie Tyson Verhelst to the top-right corner.

The Chiefs did not let the Americans back into the game as they regained a three-goal lead with Keanu Yamamoto’s 21st goal of the season on rebound opportunity at 14:28 of the second. Anderson-Dolan and defenseman Tyson Helgesen each earned assists on the play – they each finished with three for the game.

Anderson-Dolan found the net for his 14th goal of the season on a power play at the 17:21 mark of the middle frame as Presten Kopeck found him in front of the net from the left wing for an easy tap-in.

Austrian forward Dominic Zwerger punched in his team-leading 26th goal of the season on a rebound created by his own shot with 1:26 left in the second to complete the scoring for the night. Anderson-Dolan and Curtis Miske picked up assists.

Verhelst earned second star honors with 30 saves on 31 shots faced. Sanders played 9:12 and stopped 2-of-5 shots faced for Tri-City while Evan Sarthou came on in relief and made 25 saves on 28 shots in 50:48.

Spokane finished 1-for-4 on the PP and 6-for-6 on the penalty kill. They are now six points ahead of Tri-City for the final playoff berth in the WHL’s Western Conference and carry one game in hand. They are one point behind Portland for third place in the division.

The Chiefs host the Kelowna Rockets for their final home game of the regular season at 7:05 p.m. on Saturday night at Spokane Arena. Tickets are available via TicketsWest online at www.ticketswest.com and via the Chiefs’ Ticket Office in-person at Spokane Arena and over the phone at 509-535-PUCK.