On Sunday February 19th, 2017, the Thunderbirds traveled down to Portland to play the third game of a three-games-in-three nights weekend. They had already played that weekend with a few key players out of their lineup, splitting the first two games: a 4-2 road loss that Friday in Kennewick and a 5-3 home win over Portland on Saturday.
They had played both the Friday game and the Saturday game with just 17 skaters, one under the limit. But they had most of their big guns available, like Barzal, Kolesar and Gropp. But even a few of those players were dealing with the normal minor bumps and bruises from a long season and when they got down to Portland for the Sunday game there were a couple key players who were game time decisions.
Seattle was already without Scott Eansor, Matthew Wedman and Nolan Volcan. Kolesar took warm-ups but was a late scratch after suffering an injury the night before. Rylan Toth was scheduled to get the start in net but took ill and at the last second, had to be replaced in goal by Matt Berlin. When the puck dropped on the first period, the T-birds were down to just 16 skaters: seven defensemen and just nine forwards.
Playing with that short bench, playing their third game of the weekend, it appeared to be taking its toll. Seattle fell behind, 4-2, with 11 minutes remaining. It was a valiant effort but no shame in dropping a game like this to a good Portland club. Just one of 72 games on the schedule and there would be better days ahead. Take the L, lick your wounds, heal up and get ready for the next game.
Except the Thunderbirds didn't fold up their tent and go home that day. That injury/illness depleted roster dominated the second half of the third period. They outshot the Winterhawks 21-11 over the final twenty minutes. Donovan Neuls put Seattle within one with eight and a half minutes remaining. But the T-birds took a late penalty and put Portland on the power play. It appeared time would run out on their comeback bid. They killed off the penalty though. Then, with the game winding down, Seattle pulled Berlin for the extra skater and with 45-seconds left, Sami Moilanen tied it up. At the very least, the T-birds had salvaged a point.
The game headed to overtime where Seattle pumped six more shots on goal. No dice, so off to the shootout. When Moilanen, the T-birds third and final shooter, scored, the comeback was complete. Seattle won, 5-4.
It was after that game, on that Sunday down in Portland, after witnessing what that team could do with only 16 skaters, dominating the third period of a third game in three nights, that I believed that team was destined for greatness and of course they went on to win the 2017 WHL Championship.
I bring up this story because I see similarities between that 2016-17 squad and this year's team. They don't quit. They don't give up. They can outplay good teams when they don't have all their chips available. They are stronger at the end of games then at the beginning.
We saw that in both games this weekend. We saw it in their comeback win over Kelowna last week. Seattle has seven NHL drafted players on their roster and at various times over the past week, five of them have been out of the lineup, often at the same time. No Rybinski, no Bauer, no Ciona, no Rempe, no Knazko? No matter, next man up. And while Seattle didn't fully complete the comeback in either game this weekend, they were the better team on the ice at the end of the night in both games. Just like they were on that Sunday in late February, down in Portland in 2017.
Am I saying this year's squad is on par with that 2017 championship team? No, not quite. Just that there are similar traits. The one big difference is experience. That 2017 team was an older, seasoned, playoff tested club that had been through a long playoff run and a league final the season before. This 2022 team is much greener and playoff experience is almost non-existent.
The players missing from the lineup this past weekend, are all 19 years or older (Ciona turned 19 in early January). So, the team that Seattle iced this weekend was, for the most part very, very young. When you see them do what they did this weekend, and at other points of the season with a less than full roster, your first thought is, I can't wait to see what they can do at full strength. But there is no guarantee we'll ever see that. Just when it looks like every player will be available, another player goes down. Injuries keep popping up, injuries to their best and oldest players.
And I will say this, what's the common denominator from that 2017 team and this year's team? It's head coach Matt O'Dette. He was the assistant coach on that 2017 team and an invaluable asset to, then head coach, Steve Konowalchuk. I doubt he'll get any consideration for a Coach of the Year honor, but he should.
O'Dette has held this team together all season. His captain has missed half the year. His number one center has missed big chunks of action. Another of his top defensemen has been in and out of town because of international duty. He has one of the youngest goaltending tandems in the league. He hasn't had his full roster available to him at any point since early December, yet he has this team playing winning hockey. He puts his young players in position to succeed.
His biggest challenge might be ahead of him. His team is, you guessed it, banged up and will be undermanned this coming week as they try to hold onto fourth place and a top four seed in the Western Conference. He'll have to rely even more on his younger players. I think he's up to the challenge.
My Three Stars for the Past Two Weeks:
The T-birds just finished up a stretch of playing nine games in 16 days. A lot of hockey in a short time.
Third Star: D Sam Knazko. Back from the Olympics and with hopefully no more interruptions in his season, we are seeing now, on a nightly basis, why he was a third-round pick of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets, and why the Blue Jackets have already signed him to his entry level contract. He is a 200-foot player, not just an offensive defenseman. He can be physical; he skates well and acts rather than reacts on the ice. A very mature player focused on his craft.
Second Star: W Lukas Svejkovsky. He battled through a recent illness but with each passing game he looks more and more comfortable out on the ice with his T-bird's teammates. In 22 games with Seattle, he has 29 points (10g, 19a) and a +9 rating. In his last six games he has nine points on three goals and six assists. He finished the weekend on a four-game point streak.
First Star: C Jared Davidson. In his last seven games he has 12-points (6g, 6a). He leads the team with 69 points (29g, 40a) putting him 12th in the league as well. In the absence of Henrik Rybinski, he has been the T-birds number one center and consistently has been winning in the faceoff circle, especially in key moments late in games.
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