Wild Storm Back for 5-2 Preseason Finale Win

Down Two, Then Everything Changed

The Wenatchee Wild spent Sunday afternoon's opening minutes camped in the offensive zone and had nothing to show for it. Owen Kraft pinched in Tri-City's first goal at 4:29, Ryan Gibbs added another with 18 seconds left in the period, and the Wild headed to the room down 2-0 despite outplaying the Americans for long stretches.

That intermission was the turning point of the game. Kalen Miles cut the deficit in half just 98 seconds into the second, rolling one in from just off Karter Gibson's left. Two minutes later, Wenatchee turned a Tri-City icing whistle into a tying goal, Mathias Silaban firing directly off a faceoff win from Alexandre Andre.

Five Unanswered, and a Goalie Who Didn't Budge

Boston Tait supplied the turning point midway through the period, intercepting a Tri-City outlet pass along the wall, carrying it to the top of the right circle, and snapping a wrister home to give Wenatchee a lead they'd never surrender. Kayden Longley's sharp-angle power-play goal at 3:08 of the third made it 4-2, and Rui Han sealed it with an empty-netter inside the final minute.

Carsten Leyerzapf was the difference in net. He stopped all 20 shots he faced over the final 40 minutes, finishing with 33 saves and the unofficial win. Gibson made 29 stops for Tri-City in the loss.

Momentum Heading Into Opening Night

Eleven different Wild players recorded points Sunday — a good sign for a team about to start counting standings points for real. Tate Hardacre's assist tied him with Riley Brown for the preseason team lead at five apiece. Special teams held up too: 1-for-5 on the power play and a perfect penalty kill against four Tri-City chances.

Wenatchee opens the 2026-27 regular season Saturday night against the Seattle Thunderbirds - the team's Home Opener presented by Town Toyota, with puck drop at 6 p.m. Single-game, group, and flex packages for all 34 home games are available at 509-888-7825 or at the team office inside Town Toyota Center.