It has been to say the least, a very busy last month for the Seattle Thunderbirds. And there is no rest for the weary. After playing seven games in ten days, the team had barely time to catch their breath before starting a stretch of eight games in 14 days, with six of those games on the road.
Now I'm not asking for sympathy. The schedule was known long ago and traditionally the T-Birds backload their schedule with the majority of the games coming the second half of the season. There was a stretch at this point last season in which the team played 11 games in 21 days, or on average, a game every other day. They entered the playoffs last spring after playing their last six regular season games over a nine game span.
It's not something new. They have a voice when it comes to drawing up the schedule. And they also knew they would have a vastly different looking team than the one that won the league championship last May. They knew they would be utilzing a younger, inexperienced roster. To quote one of the great coaching cliches "It is what it is." The team didn't fear that scenario though. With all that, they entered the regular season on September 30th believing they would not only compete for a playoff spot, but potientally a top four spot in the conference if everything broke the right way.
What could not be predicted though was the number of games that would be missed due to injury. It is literally on a record pace. Through the first 49 games they have lost 150 games to various ailments. And we're not talking the simple bumps and bruises that keep a player out of the lineup for a game or two. These injuries aren't showing up on the weekly report as day-to-day, but instead are week-to week and month-to-month. By the time we hit March 24th and the regular season finale, don't be surprised if the number of games lost to injury hits the 200 mark.
Seattle really hasn't played that poorly over the last month. They've just been inconsistent. All things considered, the injuries, the busy schedule (featuring eleven games against teams .500 or better), and they're 6-9. The record of most of the teams around them in the standings are similar. The problem is that they haven't gained any traction. At the WHL trade deadline, they were six points out of a playoff spot. A month later they're seven points back and now time is running out.
We knew scoring was going to be a problem and that has played out as Seattle averages a league low 2.7 goals per game. They've scored just one goal in each of their last three games. They knew they would lose four of their top five scorers from their championship team.Then the guy they thought would be their top returning point producer, Kevin Korchinski, surprised many and stuck in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks. All of a sudden your top five offensive weapons from last season are gone and seven of your top twelve.
No worry right? They had their second leading goal scorer from last season back. That is, until Nico Myatovic got hurt just a few games into the schedule and missed half the season and is still working his way back to full strength after a three month layoff. The Jordan Gustafson situation seems like a cruel joke. The guy can't catch a break, at least not of the good variety. Then just as the team was getting healthy they lose Sam Popowich, Coster Dunn and Simon Lovsin to long term injury in back-to-back-to-back games.
Combined that trio has played just once in the last ten games. That's 30 goals out of the lineup on a team struggling to put pucks in the back of the net. Dunn and Lovsin had combined for eleven goals in the first eight games post-Christmas. And it doesn't appear relief is coming anytime soon.
Remember the good old days when all Seattle was doing was counting the days until Colton Dach would join their stacked lineup? It was a simpler time back then, wasn't it? The Thunderbirds margin for error this season was as thin as a sheet of paper. The injuries have been like one of those trick birthday candles that you just can't blow out. It just keep re-igniting and anything you throw on the fire in an attempt to stop the burning, just makes the flames reach higher.
There used to be a show up on the TV in Canada called, I believe, "This Hour has 22 Minutes". That could be the title of this year's T-Birds season becasue that is about how long they had a complete healthy roster available, 22 minutes.
And yet here we are with 19 game remaining and there is still a chance to snag a playoff spot. It won't be easy and they'll probably need outside help along the way, but it is doable. There is no magic elixir that is going to heal up the wounds faster but Seattle has shown that, short bench or not, they can compete with every team on their schedule. But it has to start now.
My T-Birds Three Stars for the busy stretch:
Third Star: F Nishaan Parmar. The confidence that comes from scoring your first WHL goal must be quite a tonic because Parmar seems to have flipped a switch and brought his game to another level. Like most of the rookies on the team he is still a work in progress but he has taken a big stride in the right direction. So much so that he is getting top minutes on the power play and taking key faceoffs.
Second Star: D Jeremy Hanzel. I know a lot of folks out there are wondering why Seattle didn't trade away their stud defenseman, but where would this team be without him? He's not just their leading scorer but he eats up so many minutes on the back end. With captain Jordan Gustafson out of the lineup, he has been the defacto on ice leader. It may not sound fancy but he is the most reliable player on the ice.
First Star G Scott Ratzlaff. Most nights he's all that separates this team from a tough, late game loss and a blow out defeat. He's facing a mountain of rubber most games. I think we forget he is still very young at 18 and it is his first season as a true number one. But he goes about his job without complaint. Don't look at the win/loss record or the goals against average. Check the save percentage that is at .904. That's the real indicator of just how good he has been. He won't get a snif at any post season league honors, but he has been one of the best netminders in the league the last two months.
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