The Young and the Restless

The pace is about to pick up.  After playing just eight times over the first month (30 days) of the new season, the Thunderbirds open a stretch where they will play eight games in 16 days, starting when they travel north to Prince George this coming weekend. 

The Thunderbirds should be chomping at the bit.  I think you could see they are frustrated with the slow start to the season in regards to number of games played. Four times this past month they played just once on a weekend. It's hard to get any rythm, any chemistry or consistency. when you play just one game over the course of twelve days. Yet here they are at 8-0-0-0.

As a result you get a sluggish first half of the game as we saw Saturday night in their 8-3 win over Spokane. They did get out to a two goal lead but weren't playing with any sense of urgency. They weren't crisp with their passing game. They weren't hard on pucks in the D-zone. It wasn't until they surrendered that lead early in the second period that they picked up the pace.

The Thunderbirds have had lots and lots of practice time, but what looks good on the practice ice, doesn't always translate to the game.  But you don't know that until you play the games. Game speed, game scenarios, are much different than a practice session. Seattle just hasn't had the opportunity to play many games yet. As a result, they're still working on their team chemistry. They're still trying to find out the best line combinations.

Seattle's five NHL drafted players are all off and running. Through the first eight games of the season that group has accumulated 58 points (23g, 35a) and are a combined +48.  The teams's best players are leading the way most every game night.

But as I have written about in the past, despite all the experience on the roster, thanks in large part to long playoff run last spring, the T-Birds are still one of the youngest teams in the WHL.  The average hockey age on the team is 17 years old. That means Seattle's young players have to contribute now. Some nights they may be the differnce between getting a win and taking a loss. We forget some of these players are just entering their second year in the WHL, others are true, first year rookies. 

Against the Chiefs Seattle had six rookies and four second year players in the lineup. By comparison, Spokane had four rookies and three second year players on the ice.  Yet it was those young Seattle players who helped spark the team to the win.  Together they contributed nine points (2g, 7a) and were +13 on the night. Seattle's youth wasn't a hinderance to getting the win, they were an eqaul part of earning it.

Lots has been said about the elite players from the 2020 WHL Prospects draft with Regina's Connor Bedard at the head of that class.  But the 2021 draft ain't too shabby either.  We saw the first overall pick from that draft, Berkly Catton, in the lineup for Spokane and he had two assists and was dangerous all night.  Second overall pick, Jordan Gavin, has 12 points in ten games with Tri-City.  But Seattle's top three picks from that 2021 draft are holding their own.  

Tij Iginla went ninth overall and he's just now hitting his stride and has four points in just seven games.  Meanwhile two second round picks, defensemen Hyde Davidson and Bryce Pickford, are logging regular minutes and look like they will anchor the Seattle blue line for the next four seasons. 

We forget defenseman Sawyer Mynio is just starting up his second season.  He was a regular in the lineup last year as a 16 year old, both in the regular season and the playoffs.  With two goals and six assists, he is averaging a point a game through the first month of this season. He's not flashy, but he's steady. he knows when to jump up and join the rush but he takes care of the defensive zone first. He's a good skater.  He has a heavy, lethal shot.  He's currently listed at 6'1", 173 lbs.  He's not done growing.  

If he continues on his current trajectory, I'm confident he'll hear his name called next summer at the NHL Draft. On a team with a Kevin Korchinski, it could be easy to forget there is a Sawyer Mynio. I don't think NHL scouts will.

What is it you hear often in hockey circles? Our goalie is so good, we feel comfortable playing in front of him. Translation? We're willing to take chances and gamble because our goalie will bail us out. Against Spokane the T-Birds felt too comfortable playing in front of Thomas Milic. They were sloppy with the puck in the D-zone, but time and time again Milic bailed them out. 

My T-birds Three Stars for the Weekend:

Third Star: G Thomas Milic. See above.  That could easily have been an 8-6 or 8-7 game if he wasn't at the top of his game. Two really solid efforts in his last two starts. In just over a month he should be heading to camp with Team Canada looking to earn a spot on their National team for the World Junior Championship tournament. 

Second Star: C Tij Iginla. The confidence level in his game has shot up ten fold the last few outings.  Scoring that first WHL goal a week ago seems to have done the trick.  Strong on the puck all night against the Chiefs.  His assist on Seattle's last goal is top ten Plays of the Week material.  He won a faceoff, got knocked to the ice but never quite battling for the puck. he made a perfect pass from the seat of pants to set up the goal.

First Star: C Jordan Gustafson.  Since returning to the T-Birds from training camp with the NHL's Vegas Golden Knights, I think he has been Seattle's most consistent player. You get that same 100 percent effort at both ends of the ice every game. He earned his three assists against Spokane.  He was 12/20 in the faceoff circle and two of Seattle's goals were a direct result of a Gustafson faceoff win.  

Oh Postive

This weekend was like one of those Oprah shows where everyone in the audience finds a gift under their seat.  "You get a point, and you get a point...".  The Thunderbirds broke out the offense in two games, striking for 18 goals in a pair of lopsided wins.

Ten different players scored a goal this past weekend, led by four from Lucas Ciona.  Of the 20 skaters who dressed in either of the two games, 16 earned at least a point.  And it just wasn't about scoring or getting an assist.  It was about playing to the Thunderbirds identity.  

No one exemplified that more this weekend than Gabe Ludwig.  Ludwig was one of the players who got a point, assisting on a late power play goal Friday against Edmonton, but it was his play all over the ice that showed what it is to play the T-bird way. he was constantly in the mix on puck battles. He went to the drity areas as he was grinding out every shift.  

Another player who stood out was 16 year old defenseman Bryce Pickford. He would probably be best described as an offensive defenseman but he plays the 200 foot game the Thunderbird coaches covet.  He can be physical when need be, and he makes good reads on plays in the defensive zone. His hockey IQ is tremendous for such a young player as I watched him break up more than a few scoring opportunities for the opposition.  Seattle found a gem in the second round of the 2021 WHL Prospects draft with the Pickford selection.

At the end of the day, the Thunderbirds are winning because their best players are being their best players most nights. Of their top eight scorers, five are NHL draft picks. Two are eligible for the NHL draft for the first time next summer and one is a 20 year old point producing machine. I would still argue not one of them has hit their stride yet.  

Everett's Angel of the Winds Arena has always been a tough place to play for Seattle, even more so the past five years. Coming into this season the T-birds were just 3-9-1-1 in that building over that span. Don't look now though because Seattle has won their last two road games in Everett.  The commmon denominator in those two wins? Lucas Ciona.  Last March 5th in a 4-3 Thunderbirds win he had the game winning goal. Saturday he had a six point night, including a hat trick.  His stat line from his last two road games against the Silvertips reads: 4g, 3a, 7 pts +7.  

When you outscore two opponents by a combined 18-3, goaltending can get lost in the wash. This weekend both Scott Ratzlaff and Thomas Milic were outstanding. Together they stopped 58 of 61 shots. That's a .951 save percentage and a 1.50 goals against average. They surrendered just one even strength goal. Ratzlaff stopped a penalty shot and Milic made a number of top notch saves early against Everett with Seattle getting into penalty trouble.  In doing so, he helped settle the team down until they got going. 

There are a lot of new faces in the WHL officiating crews, especially it would appear among the referees. I think that is why you get a games with double digit power play chances. The new officials are going to call it by the book until they get used to the WHL level. Seattle also has to be more disciplined.  As Sam Popowich told me after the Everett game, playing with a large lead can be a challenge. Players have to stick to the systems and not veer off or take short cuts looking for easy points.  

With Everett looming on the schedule, Seattle didn't look past a struggling Edmonton team. Instead they put the hammer down and beat the Oil Kings, 7-0. If the T-birds want to get off to an 8-0 start they can't look past Spokane next Saturday either. I have a feeling they won't.

The Thunderbirds have compiled their 7-0-0-0 start to the season with a roster that has an average hockey age of 17. That makes them one of the youngest teams in the league. I haven't included 19 year old Mekai Sanders in that breakdown because he hasn't played yet this season.  He would only bring that average age up slightly (17.2).  But I also didn't count 17 year old Sam Oremba who has been traded after playing in two games. he would bring that average age down slightly (17.1). So it s a wash.

My T-birds Three Stars for the Weekend:

Third Star:  D Jeremy Hanzel. Three points on the weekend including his first goal. he finished at +3.  Such a clever bank pass to spring Jared Davidson on his shorthanded goal Friday night.  That's how you kill a penalty.  He has points in four straight games. He leads the team with a +11.

Second Star: C Jared Davidson.  He had a six point weekend with two goals and four assists.  He was also 25 of 36 in the faceoff circle, a 69 percent success rate.  A reliable player in all situations and continues his role as a team leader. There were a couple of instances this weekend I can recall where he was on the ice with a young group and helped the T-birds get out of trouble by winning puck battles deep in the defensive zone.

First Star: W Lucas Ciona.  Statistically the best weekend of Ciona's Thunderbids career with nine points and his first WHL hat trick. He's now tied for second in league scoring with 14 points.  He does a lot of the grunt work for the Seattle power play by screening the goalie and retrieving pucks. Most of his goals will come from within a few feet of the net but he's getting better shooting off the rush and from distance.  He's also gained a lot of confidence pushing the puck up ice and skating it through the neutral zone.  

History in the Making

For the first time in franchise history, the Seattle Thunderbirds have opened the season with four consecutive wins.  The closest they had come to this previously was the 1998-99 season when they started 3-0-1 (remember ties?).

The Thunderbirds will try to make it 5-0 when they host the Medicine Hat Tigers Tuesday at the accesso ShoWare center.  It won't be easy. So far on their trip through the Pacific Northwest, the Tigers are giving the U.S. Division all they can handle. Friday they handed Everett their first loss of the season with a 6-3 win. They then took Portland to overtime Saturday before falling, 4-3.  

Funny thing about the T-bird hot start? They've been far from perfect and we definitely haven't seen them play their best hockey yet. In fact, far from it. There's lots of room for improvement. Every game has been a nailbiter and Seattle's sheer talent advantage has pushed them over the top.

What are the issues in the early going? Well, for one they haven't had a lot of time together as a group.  With so many players away at NHL camps they didn't get a chance to spend a great deal of time together working on their systems, their special teams or their chemistry.

Also, as head coach Matt O'Dette has said, they are working on reestablishing their identity that made them such a tough out the second half of last season and through their long playoff run. Even with so many returning players, they are not the same team that went all the way to Game Six of the WHL Championship Series back in June.

Six key components from the roster of the 2022 Western Conference Championship team are no longer here, including three of your top six defensemen (Bauer, Knazko and Gottfried) and three of your top six forwards (Rybinski, Svejkovsky and Rempe).  That's both a loss of a lot of offensive weapons and leadership.

Do they have the talent to replace those players? Yes, but it takes time to get those players acclimated to the Thunderbirds way.  They have eleven new faces on the team to start the season and outside of Kyle Crnkovic, they are all young (18 years old and younger) and mostly inexperienced at the WHL level.  

With the loss of those veteran d-men from a season ago, Seattle's back end is young.  Most nights there are two if not three rookie defensemen in the lineup including two 16 year olds. The eye tests will tell you those two are going to be elite d-men by the time their WHL careers are over but right now they are going through growing pains. They're going to make mistakes as they get their on the job training. In the end, the good will far outweigh the bad.

I would also expect that Seattle will get their opponents best effort every night.  There is a target on the Thunderbirds back. They're the defending conference champs and they are ranked in the top five of the CHL Top Ten Poll.  Opposing teams want to knock you off your perch.

Meanwhile, there are times when Seattle is not getting out of their own way.  They are taking too many penalties.  They survived it this weekend with the two road wins, but that was playing with fire.  The T-birds strength last season was puck possession and dominating at 5-on-5. It was a relentless forecheck that would wear an opponent down, forcing them into taking penalties.  That's what they need to reestablish.

And again, not to beat a dead horse, but the T-birds are not yet whole.  They still have room on the roster for a third 20 year old.  They currently have room for a second Import.  With the recent trade of Sam Oremba they now have the draft capital (two* 2023 first round picks and two 2024 first round picks) to fill those spots with high end talent. Of course if Brad Lambert shows up at some point they solve the Import situation (and their stock of first round picks is reduced to three). While that is looking less and less likely, it's not a closed door.

My T-birds Three Stars for the Weekend:

Third Star: W Lucas Ciona.  Ciona came up big on three goals this weekend.  He set up Jordan Gustafson's goal in Kelowna Friday with a nice give and go feed out of the corner.  Saturday he made a strong drive to the net before dishing the puck off to Gracyn Sawchyn on Seattle's second goal against Vancouver.  Then in overtime, he retrieved a puck and got it back on the sticks of the team's playmakers. He then went to the net to screen the goalie on the game winning goal.  

Second Star: G Scott Ratzlaff.  Seattle continues to give up way too many Grade A scoring chances, even if they're not giving up a lot of shots in total.  Saturday in Langley Ratzlaff was making big time saves, especially as Seattle paraded to the penalty box and gave the Giants eight power play chances.

First Star: D Kevin Korchinski.  Back from NHL training camp with the Chicago Blackhawks and he picks up four points (1g, 3a) in his first two games, including an overtime game winner. With a team going through early season growing pains, he can be a difference maker.  When the puck is on his stick, you expect something good to happen. A nice security blanket to have. 

A Banner Night

Home openers,with pregame banner raising ceremonies and all the other pomp and circumstance that comes with it, and Teddy Bear Toss games both share a lot common traits.  There is a lot of anticipation and emotion involved.  Players are excited and feed off the crowd.  The adrenaline is really flowing. We saw that last night in Seattle's 6-4 win over the Vancouver Giants.

The team was really amped up from the start, especially with five players back from NHL training camps and inserted into the lineup for the first time this season. The crowd at the accesso ShoWare Center was in full throated, midseason form.  

That combination led to the Thunderbirds jumping out to a quick two goal lead just ninety seconds in. Halfway through the game Seattle was up 5-1.  Then they kind of let off the gas.  Maybe the adrenaline wore off or they got comfortable with the sizeable advantage. Once they did that they spent much of the rest of the game, especially the third period, on their heels.  They never really got that momentum back. 

Credit the Giants.  A lot of teams, when they fall behind 5-1 in a hostile environment, will just wilt. Vancouver never did. They stuck to their systems and continued to play hard. They made a game of if over the final 28 minutes. Hopefully a lesson learned. The Thunderbirds, for all their talent...and in the end it was their talent that got them the victory...they are still a relatively young team.

Case in point? The Thunderbirds blue line corps.  Seattle started three rookies on the back end, two 16 year olds and a first year 17 year old d-man.  Their best d-man on the night may have been an 18 year old with limited WHL experience. Was Seattle's young blue line the reason their four goal lead nearly melted away?  No. It was a team effort. But you have to expect mistakes and growing pains from such a young group.

With the two 16 year old d-men, Hyde Davidson and Bryce Pickford, I'm reminded a little bit of another pair of 16 year defenseman and their development with the T-birds back in the 2011-12 season.  Then head coach Steve Konowalchuk kept throwing Shea Theodore and Jared Hauf out on the ice every night, usually together. He put them out in all situations.  He put them out late in games. 

The results most nights weren't pretty. Combined Theodore and Hauf played in 125 games that season and were a -68. But we know the results of that experiment.  Theodore turned into a first round NHL draft pick and, at age 20, Hauf helped lead Seattle to the 2016 Western Conference Championship.  

Here's the difference though for Davidson and Pickford.  They are surrounded by a much more talented group of players. That 2011-12 T-birds team finished 25-45-1-1 and missed the playoffs. Burke Gallimore led the offense that year with 40 points.  Heck, Theodore was the third leading scorer on that team with 35 points.  Last night Davidson and Pickford combined for three assist and were +3. Their growing pains aren't going to be as painful as the ones Theodore and Hauf experienced and their potential is off the charts.

I thought one of the issues for Seattle after building the big lead was too many forwards trying to take short cuts or trying to do too much on their own.  That won't sit well with Matt O'Dette.  Stick to the systems!  When you have a team down as the Thunderbids did, finish them off. 

Seattle put enough quality chances on goal the first half of the game to score 7-8 times in the first period alone.  Giants goaltender Jesper Vikman, a 2020 Vegas Golden Knights draft pick, kept it from being a complete blowout before the first intermission. He gave Vancouver an opportunity to comeback and put a late scare in the Thunderbirds. Still, as well as he played, Seattle still produced a five spot against him. 

The Thunderbirds haven't figured out their line combinations yet. They haven't been together as a complete team yet either.  They are integrating returning players back into the lineup. They have a young D corps. Their special teams have not impacted either of their first two games.  They are awaiting the return of Kevin Korchinski. They have only two 20 year olds. But here they are, 2-0. 

My T-birds Three Stars for the weekend:

Third Star: C Jared Davidson.  First game back from NHL camp with Montreal and he's already had a big impact with a goal and an assist. Took him ten games a season ago to record his first goal, enroute to a 42-goal campaign. He scored in his first game this season. Can he hit 50?

Second Star: W Kyle Crnkovic.  Seattle traded for his offense and through two games he has delivered with a pair of goals, an assist and a shootout goal.  He has delivered the goods.  For a guy known for his offensive accumen, I appreciate his commitment to a 200 foot game.

First Star: C Jordan Gustafson.  I thought he had jump from the get go and was one of the few players who played a complete sixty minute game. His assist on Lucas Ciona's goal was a thing of beauty and showed his ability to read the ice. He's an underrated skater and puck handler.