Fill Those Stockings, Fill the Net

The Thunderbirds reach the Christmas break hoping Santa will put a few goals under their tree. Seattle finished the three game weekend scoring just one goal in each game. No surprise then that the T-Birds lost all three games.

With the exception of an ugly seven minute span in the first period Saturday in Everett, the T-Birds didn't give up much either. The Thunderbirds lost 2-1, in overtime, Friday at home to the Vancouver Giants.  They dropped that game to the Silvertip 7-1 before losing 3-1 Sunday to the Giants in Langley with the third goal being an empty netter.

Those three losses came after Seattle had traveled to Spokane last Wednesday and posted a 5-3 win. But four of the goals versus the Chiefs were scored on the power play. The T-birds scored just one even strength goal in their last four games. And since a 10-for-23 stretch with the man advanatge, the Thunderbirds are zero-for-their-last-six.  

You can't rely on your power play for fifty percent of your scoring. Somehow, someway the T-birds have to start generating more even strength goals. Is it a lack of opportunity? Are they spending too much time in their own end? I would say no. Sure, there have been occasions when they struggle to get the puck up ice but that wasn't an issue in any of their last four games.

In those last four pre-Christmas games Seattle averaged 36 shots on goal, twice breaking the 40 shot barrier. What they are missing is some finish.  Sunday's game against Vancouver was a prime example as Seattle created numerous ten bell scoring chances but either flubbed the chance, shot wide or put the puck right in the middle of the goalies jersey. During the first intermission Sunday in Langley, one observer up in the press box said the T-Birds skated themselves out of three goals.

With just 78 the Thunderbirds have scored by far away the fewest goals in the WHL thus far this season. Yes, part of that can be explained by having played a league fewest 29 games at the break but their goals per game average is just 2.6 goals per game and that number drops to 2.1 over their last ten outings.

The injuries to Nico Myatovic and Jordan Gustafson, the month missed by Gracyn Sawchyn, are factors. Not getting Kevin Korchinski back from the Chicago Blackhawks has played into the lack of offensive production as well. It has left Seattle with little margin for error as they skated through the first half with one of the youngest rosters in the WHL.

It's realistic to think that had the Thunderbirds not lost so many games to injuries with their top players, they woud convievably have 4-5 more wins.  But every year teams go through the injury bug. Some more than others, but you know it's coming. Seattle just hasn't had the veteran depth  to survive it, like they did a season ago.

As a result the optimism at the start of the season gave way to the reality of a 12-15-2-0 record heading into the holiday break. The question is, how will they respond when play begins again December 28th?

The T-Birds used fifteen rookies the first half including eight 16 year olds and five 15 year olds.  That's unprecedented. Hopefully it pays off in the future but what does Seattle do in the present? Do they get healthy and stand pat? Or do they break up the gang and trade away valuable veterans? It will be an interesting next month.

My T-Birds Three Stars for the First Half:

Third Star: C Sam Popowich. He has been the most reliable of Seattle's forwards. He plays in all situations and is one gig reason why both of Seattle's special teams, the power play and the penalty kill. have been consistently near the top of the WHL. He needs two more goals to establish a new career high in the WHL. He sticks up for his teammates and provides needed leadership.

Second Star: W Antonio Martorana. On a team full of rookies, he has stood out in the crowd. The 16-year old former 4th round draft pick leads the team in goals at the break with 12. He gets many of them by going to the net. He should only get better as he begins to play more minutes on the power play. A couple goals in the first few games? Maybe you could discount that as flukey, but a dozen goals in 29 games is no fluke.  He's the real deal.

First Star: D Jeremy Hanzel.  The 20 year old defenseman is playing his best hockey right now, building off what was a terrific season a year ago and doing it with a lesser supporting cast around him.  He's taken over the role of quarterbacking the power play that would have been Korchinski's if he were here and he is flourishing. He plays a ton of minutes and he's so often able to skate the T-Birds out of trouble. The Colorado Avalanche have to be happy with the way his season has gone the first three months. They picked him in the sixth round last summer, now let's hope they reward him with a contract. 

Please Bear With Us

The annual Teddy Bear Toss game is a highlight of the season on every team's schedule. Not only do the fans look forward to it, but so do the players. Scoring the Teddy Bear Toss goal is a big deal. Only one player gets to do it. Often times, it comes from an unexpected source. 

That wasn't the case Saturday against Kelowna as Gracyn Sawchyn is one of Seattle's better offensive weapons. I guess the only real intrigue was whether Sawchyn would be in the line up.  He missed over a month with a lower body injury. He did play in last Friday's home game against Saskatoon but wasn't in the lineup last Saturday in Kelowna. Tht's a nice way to announce your return.

Certainly the game was in doubt going into the third period.  The T-Birds were down by one and some quality scoring chances in the second period came up just short.  Head coach Matt O'Dette admitted that led to a little bit of frustation, and understandibly so.  Entering the game the T-Birds had scored just five times in their last four games. They were getting chances and not finishing.  

But they stuck with it and continued to play the T-Birds brand of hockey, the key to which is a strong forecheck. It led to a few power play chances in the final period and they eventually capitalized.  They earned that win. The old saying is you usually get the result you deserve and recently Seattle had been coming up just short.  Small mistakes were adding up and ending up in the back of the T-Birds net.  The Thunderbirds were basically playing  the "close but not quite" game.  It was nice to see them find the necessary finish to close out a win.

Seattle's tying and winning goal came from two players who are noted as prolific goal scorers. Luca Hauf had the tying goal on the power play. In 66 previous games in the WHL he had scored just twelve times. That's one goal about every six games. How long had it been since his last goal? Six games.

Sam Popowich scored the game winner. It was his 23rd career WHL goal, in his 183rd game. That's a goal every eight games.  It was his first goal in sixteen games, after scoring in four straight games to start the season. 

These aren't two players who are going to consistently light the lamp. What they are is a pair of Swiss Army knives.  They bring a little bit of everything in their toolboxes.  They can play up and down the lineup. They play in all situations and they bring grit and they bring energy.  

The goals they do bring seem to be of the timely variety. Four of Hauf's goals this season have been scored on the power play. Three of Popowich's five goals this year have been game winners.  Yes, you win games by scoring more goals than your opponent but you don't win by soley scoring goals.  You claim victory by winning puck battles, killing penalties, blocking shots and getting pucks out of harms way. You win by doing the hard work, the dirty work,  and both Hauf and Popowich excel in those areas. 

After the game Hauf didn't tell me he just wanted to score more goals, he emphasized wanting to score more greasy goals. he's willing to go to the net and take the abuse, getting whacked and hacked, to get to loose pucks and second chances.  Popowich isn't ever going to be the biggest player on the ice but so often we see him standing around the opposing net, looking for deflections and redirects.  To score more than your opponent, you have to keep the puck out of your net as well. That takes some sacrifice and these two players do that.

Seattle and Kelowna played three games in eight days with the T-Birds winning twice.  Goals scored so far in the season series? Seattle 7, Kelowna 6. They're not division opponents but it is one of the T-Birds better rivalries over the past 20 years.  

My Three Stars for Saturday's win:

Third Star: W Luca Hauf. For me, the power play goal was the key goal for Seattle and he fought off a Rockets defender to get to the net and take the pass from Antonio Martorana. he then found a small space to get it through the Rocket's goalie. He followed that up with the prmary assist on Popowich's game winner.

Second Star: G Scott Ratzlaff. After the Rockets tied the game in the first period, they were buzzing around the Seattle net for a lot of the second half of that first period.  Ratzlaff kept them at bay. Then, after Seattle grabbed the lead in the third period, he came with with a few key late stops as Kelowna was looking for the equalizer. As a result his save percentage is now at .900 and his goals against average is just a tick above 3.00 and heading down in the right direction.

First Star: C Sam Popowich.  It just wasn't the game winning goal, though that was the best moment for him, but when the Rockets pulled their goalie for the extra skater in the final two minutes, he won a number of defensive zone face offs, allowing Seattle to get puck possession. He was just nine of 20 in the faceoff circle in the game but I'm guessing two or three came in the final two minutes. He was also part of Seattle's big penalty kill at the end of the second period.  If the T-Birds allow a goal there, they probably don't comeback in the third for the win.