Post Training Camp Vibes

While there are still many unanswered questions about the Thunderbirds heading into the 2022-23 preseason portion of the hockey calendar, there is one question answered following this past weekend's training camp. The Thunderbirds continue to do a masterful job of scouting and keeping the cupboard full so they can acheive their stated goal of consistently competing for championships. Has Seattle spent some draft capital recently to acquire players like Lukas Svejkovsy, Brad Lambert and Kyle Crnkovic? Yes, but there is still plenty of talent in the pipeline.

Because of Covid, this was the first training camp for the T-birds 2021 draft class. But three players from that draft, Tij Iginla, Hyde Davidson and Bryce Pickford, have already played in meaningful games for Seattle. In fact Pickford even suited up and played in eight playoff games last spring. Iginla probably would have made it into the lineup for a postseason game or two had he not been dealing with a minor injury.

At training camp all three of those players looked the part of signed WHL prospects taken high in that 2021 draft by the T-birds.  Simon Lovsin, who like Davidson and Pickford, was taken in the second round of that draft last December, is signed as well. He's going to get a long look during the preseason games in Everett and Kennewick. But if training camp is any indication, he's going to be a solid player for the T-birds.

We're a bit spoiled at the moment with the goaltending tandem of Scott Ratzlaff and Thomas Milic. Seattle doesn't have a signed, young goalie though. Well, I guess technically Ratzlaff is just entering his 17 year old season, so he qualifies as young by WHL standards but he plays like a seasoned vet.  But at some point Seattle will have to address the future at that position. The T-birds did draft Spencer Michnik in the fifth round last December and picked Aaron Sachs in round two of the 2022 U.S. Prospects Draft as well. So it will be interesting to keep an eye on those two or any other goalie prospect on their radar.  

Five other members of the 2021 Thunderbirds draft were at camp to begin making their case they belong in a Seattle jersey at some point. 

Meanwhile, Seattle has already signed their top three picks from the 2022 draft. General Manager Bil Laforge actually moved up six spots in round one of the draft, surrendering a third round pick in the process, to take Braeden Cootes tenth overall.  I can see why. Cootes was a standout at training camp and even earned third star honors in the annual Blue-White game. Right behind him are a pair of second round selections, Kaleb Hartmann and Kazden Mathies.

In recent drafts, Seattle has been able to harvest top talent in mid to late rounds. Reid Schaefer is the latest example. Schaefer was selected in the eighth round of the 2018 WHL Draft only to go in the first round of this summer's NHL Draft.Who among the 2021 and 2022 Thunderbirds drafts will be the next Schaefer?

What is Seattle getting in Gracyn Sawchyn? Sawchyn was the first ever player selected in a WHL U.S. Prospects Draft, chosen by Red Deer back in 2020. The T-birds used a second round pick to aquire his rights and then signed him to a standard WHL Player Agreement this summer.

I think when NHL Central Scouting Services puts out their Ones to Watch list for the 2023 NHL Draft, Sawchyn will be listed as either an A or B skater.  Seeing him on the ice for the first time at camp this past weekend, it is easy to see he is a highly skilled player. He's going to be an offensive option in this lineup. But what I liked about his game is that he has a little sandpaper to him, some grit and can be a bit of an agitator.  

A couple of other players really intrigue me.  One is Brayden Dube.  Dube was a second round selection of the T-birds in the 2020 draft. He was the last cut coming out of camp last fall.  He has always been a point producer at every level he's played.  in 2019-20 he put up 130 points in 36 games at the U15 level.  Last season with the Dauphin Kings of the MJHL, playing with an older roster, the 16 year old put up big points, 46 in 49 games playing Junior A.  I think that point production at those other levels can translate for him in the WHL. 

The other player is Coster Dunn. Dunn was taken by Seattle in the seventh round of that same draft that saw Dube go in round two.  He played 11 games last season for the T-birds and showed flashes as he finished with two goals and one assist.  He looked so much more confident in training camp this past weekend. His game reminds me a little bit of Nico Myatovic (himslef a sixth round 2019 pick, by the way).  Maybe not as strong yet, but like Myatovic he posesses a huge upside and is a willing student. 

Let's not forget the forgotten man in all of this, Mekai Sanders.  Sanders is doing some skating but not able yet to take contact as he rehabs from the injury that cost him much of the second half of last season. He's told me he is ahead of schedule. I initially heard late December or early January for Sanders to get back in the lineup, so if he's back late November or early December, that's a huge boost for the T-birds.  I had a scout tell me that if Seattle had Sanders in the lineup during the WHL Championship Series against Edmonton, they might have been able to get that series to Game Seven.  That's how much they value his presence in the lineup. He's fast, he's physical and has a non-stop motor.

There are other players to watch as we go through preseason the next two weekends. Can newcomers Easton Kovacs and Kai Knak help solidify a very young D group. Are Sam Oremba and Sawyer Mynio ready to take the big step up from 16 year old rookies to second year players, as they enter their first season of NHL Draft eligibility?  At camp Oremba sure looked like he added another gear to his skating ability.

If you're trying to piece together a roster that will carry Seattle through the 2022-23 season, remember teams usually carry 13-14 forwards and 7-8 defenseman along with their two goalies. I would guess at the start of the season they will carry some extra players, as they await the return of players from NHL camps, but at some point the roster will be pared down to 23.  There are some hard decision to be made, for sure.

We start to answer a lot of these questions next weekend in Everett. Hockey is back!

Where Do We Go From Here?

What a great two days for the Thunderbirds with four players, and a potential fifth player, selected in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft in Montreal. Kevin Korchinski going seventh overall to Chicago makes him the highest drafted T-bird since Thomas Hickey was taken fourth overall by the LA Kings back in 2007.  Reid Schaefer goes from late round WHL draft pick to late first round NHL draft pick, ending up with his hometown team, the Edmonton Oilers.  

If Brad Lambert, who was chosen 30th overall by Winnipeg, ends up in Seattle next season that would give the T-birds three NHL first round picks on their roster. Then there is Jordan Gustafson, who I think was a steal by Vegas, going in round three. A complete, 200 foot, all situations player.

The feel good story of the draft has to be Jared Davidson, picked by the Montreal Canadians at the top of round five. Davidson came to training camp with Seattle in 2018 as a 16 year old camp invitee. Never drafted or listed by the T-birds, he was invited to camp partly at the suggestion of the son of the T-birds goalie coach at the time, Ian Gordon. You see, at age 15, Davidson was the captain of a team that Gordon's son played on and Gordon's son suggested his dad bring Davidson to Seattle for a look see. 

So, when you add in Conner Roulette and Lucas Ciona, Seattle goes into next season with as many as seven NHL Draft picks on the roster. I know what you're thinking. Well, the T-birds were a young team in 2021-22. They surprised everyone by advancing to the WHL Championship Series before falling in six games to the veteran laden, NHL draft pick heavy, and built for a title, Edmonton Oil Kings. With all that playoff experience now under their belts and with so many players returning, surely this means that Seattle will be the favorites in the WHL next season, right? A straight shot to another long postseason run in 2022-23!

Tap the brakes folks. A contender? For sure. One of the favorites? Most likely.  A sure fire lock for another Championship Series appearance? Not quite.

First, while the Thunderbirds return a terrific core group of players that won the Western Conference Championship, their roster losses, while minimal, are significant.  Chiefly, they lose their second and fourth leading point producers in Lukas Svejkovsky and Henrik Rybinski.  Together those two combined for 105 points in just 80 games (43g, 62a).  That's 1.3 points per game out of the lineup. 

And while Ryan Gottfried wasn't a significant point producer, he was a steady presence on the blue line, a top penalty killer on a unit that finished second in the league in that category, and a terrific shot blocker. In addition, do not underestimate the leadership all three of those 20 year olds provided.  To a lot of the young players on the team, Gottfried was looked upon as their "big brother".

Seattle finished the year with just five 19 year olds on the roster. Most, if not all of them, could be absent when next season begins. Three of them, Matt Rempe, Ty Bauer and Sam Knazko, are signed NHL draft picks.  I'd say there are two chances any of those three are back next season, slim and none.  Sending a signed 20 year old back to the WHL, ala Ryan Gropp, is the exception, not the rule. I fully expect all three to be playing in the American Hockey League next season. If they return, it is an unexpected bonus.

Then there is Davidson. Now that he's drafted could he be in the AHL next season? Quite possibly.  42 goal scorers don't grow on trees and at age 20, he's eligible.  Now I think Montreal has a deep talent pool and they may not need Davidson in Laval, but you never know. 

The other 19 year old who could be a 20 for next season is Chase Lacombe.  But Seattle just added two more defensemen to the fold this offseason, acquiring Easton Kovacs in a trade with Lethbridge and selecting Kai Knak in the Import Draft. That gives the T-birds a deep pool of young defensemen going into the 2022-23 campaign. You have Kevin Korchinski, Jeremy Hanzel, Sawyer Mynio, Niko Tsakumis, Ethan Mittelstaedt, Bryce Pickford and Hyde Davidson also in the mix. And I'm not sure of the status of Leon Okonkwo Prada. 

Knak just signed, but Lambert is still a question mark. Is LOP still in the mix for an Import slot? Because Lambert is a first round NHL pick, I believe the T-birds still retain Okonkwo Prada's rights and can bring him to training camp.  Either way, all those young defensemen are going to need ice time. Is there room for Lacombe and/or LOP?

At the very least, the T-birds are shopping for two, possibly three 20 year olds to fill out their 2022-23 roster.  

Teams that make deep playoff runs and win titles at the WHL level usually are led by a strong, deep group of 19 year olds.  Look at Edmonton.  Their Chynoweth Cup winning roster featured ten 2002 born, or 19 year old, players.  Seattle is in good shape in that regard with eight 2003 born players eligible to return next season at age 19. Will they, at some point, look to add another 2003 born player to the fold? 

So how do the T-birds get a little older? Where do they get those 20 year old players to fill out their roster?

Okay, you say, Seattle has a stockpile of high draft picks to make trades and acquire those seasoned players from the WHL's non-contenders.  Seattle did have an extra 2023 first round pick but no more. They used it, along with a second round pick, to acquire Lambert's rights from Saskatoon.  Now, if he doesn't come to Seattle, the pick reverts back to Seattle.  Right now though that pick is in limbo. The T-birds also used a first and a second last December to acquire Sjvejkovksy from Medicine Hat.

 Meanwhile, most of the other draft picks acquired in those trades with Kelowna, have been spent over the last two drafts. Those young players selected are in the system but too young to have a significant impact on the coming season and there are rules in place about trading young, signed prospects.

What it means is, by using those draft picks and already signing those players, Seattle has accumulated a lot of talent to carry them through the foreseeable future. Young players like Pickford, Gracyn Sawchyn, Tij Iginla, Braeden Cootes, Hyde Davidson and Kaleb Hartmann and many more, are already T-birds. I think this means LaForge will not hesitate to trade away future first and second round picks if necessary to help make a long run next spring.

But here's the caveat. Kamloops is hosting the Memorial Cup in 2023.  They already have a good team but will be looking to add top end players. They don't want to go into the Cup as just hosts, but as WHL Champions.  Kamloops has an extra 2023 first round pick to dangle.   In the Eastern Conference, Winnipeg, much like Edmonton this spring, is built for next season. They too will be looking to add a final, high caliber piece or two to their roster. Teams like Moose Jaw and Portland will be in the hunt as well. The non-contending WHL teams know this. That means the price to trade for available, top end talent will be high. Seattle found that out in just acquiring the rights to Lambert.  

How high?  Well, be prepared for sticker shock.  Let's just look at what the Oil Kings did to strengthen their roster for their 2023 run to the Cup. Starts off pretty inexpensively with a swap of 4th rounders and throwing in a 7th rounder to Seattle for Simon Kubicek.  To acquire Luke Prokop Edmonton sent two prospects, a 2nd round pick and a 4th to Calgary. Not long after, they would send a 2nd and a 4th to Lethbridge for Cole Miller. Not bad. but then the price goes up.  They sent two prospects, two 1st round picks, a 3rd and a 6th to Prince Albert for Kaiden Guhle.  

They were done, right?  Nope! In January they sent Jacob Boucher and two more first round picks to Vancouver for Justin Sourdif.  That's five players, four 1st rounders, three 2nd rounders, a 3rd, three 4ths, a 6th and a 7th in exchannge for five players.  And they weren't bidding against themselves. Those prices were high because other teams were trying to acqire those players.  It will be the same scenario for next season and the prices could be higher because Kamloops is hosting the Memorial Cup. In fact, Seattle may have set the price when they made the deal with Saskatoon for Lambert.

Lastly, while it would seem following up this season with another strong run next season would be inevitable for the T-birds, nothing is guarenteed.  Before this last season began  the Vancouver Giants thought of themselves as a serious challenger for the Chynoweth Cup.  They had a veteran team that included twelve 19 year olds and five NHL draft picks. Among them were two first and one second rounder.  

Yet for various reasons, including many injuries, they barely squeeked into the playoffs with a losing record as the 8th seed. They went from being potential deadline day buyers to selling off two of their best players. While they did pull off the first round upset of Everett, they were quickly dispatched in Round Two. 

Seattle has their work to do.  Right now, they are a very good but incomplete team.  They have talent to build around and some assets to spend but nothing is a sure thing.  If the first half of the season goes as well as we think it will, I expect Seattle to be buyers at the January trade deadline. It just means we're once again in for a wild ride!

Never Say Never

Someone opined the morning before Game 6 in Edmonton that, were the T-birds able to come back from being down three games to one in the WHL Championship Series, this team would have been the stuff of legends.  They would have been talked about for decades. 

They would have come from behind in their last three playoff series.  They would have won eight straight do or die games.  They would have won six of eight elimination game on the road, including four in a row. And they would have won Games 5, 6 and 7 of the Championship Series in their opponent's barn.  

Alas, while they came close, they fell just short, falling in Game 6 and losing the Chynoweth Cup to the Oil Kings four games to two.

Maybe they won't be hockey or WHL legends, but they will be Thunderbirds legends.  Had they pulled off the fete I would have placed the 2021-22 team at the top of the class in T-birds history. Yes, even ahead of the 2017 team which won the franchise's first ever championship, which is saying something considering how good that team was.

As it is, they are probably right on that team's heels for best in franchise history. Great things were expected from that 2017 version of the T-birds.  Nobody outside the T-birds organization had this version getting to Game 6 of the league final this season. Certainly not in the fashion they did it, time after time refusing to go quietly into the night, with their season on life support seven times.

You'll hear a lot of talk outside of the organization that this team overachieved. You'll hear they exceded expectations and weren't built to win this season but were expected to compete for a title next season or the season after that. But inside the T-birds room, they would say none of that is true. In fact, they will tell you that falling short of the Cup means they didn't meet their expected goal of winning it all. Because from day one, this team confidently believed they could win the whole enchilada. 

And that's the way they should view it.  Certainly they accomplished a lot in 2021-22, including a Western Conference Championship. But the goal for this franchise should always be to compete for the crown and win it.  You can't have the mindset of, we're playing for next year, because next year is not guarenteed. Tell the graduating players that winning this season wasn't the goal. That's a slap in the face to all their hard work and their dream of hoisting the trophy. They're not here next season.  This was their year.

If General Manager Bil Laforge was waiting for next season, he wouldn't have spent a first round draft pick and more to acquire Lukas Svejkovsky.  But he saw the Western Conference was wide open.  He saw he had a talented group of players. Young? Yes, but with the skill to win against anyone. He saw this team battle throught Covid and injuires and still said, we're in it to win it.  And they almost did.

What they accomplished this season and what they almost accomplished was no fluke. It wasn't luck.  It was hard work paying off.  In the end they were the second best team in the WHL and that is something to be proud of, the stuff of legends

Thomas Milic was the T-birds playoff MVP, no question.  I would like to think that his 25 game postseason performance will get him drafted into the NHL next month but it's no sure thing.  It will certainly get him an invite to an NHL camp next fall.  He went up against four drafted or signed goaltenders and, in my opinion, outshined them all. 

I'd hate to think Ty Bauer's last game as a T-bird was just a couple of shifts in the first five minutes, and then an early exit as a result of a questionable five minute major that led to a two game suspension.  In the 21 or so years I've been with the franchise, he's been the best captain I can remember and Seattle has had some great leaders wearing that C.

Sam Knazko coming over from Finland in late November was a bit of luck, but his arrival meant Seattle didn't have to spend more valuable draft capital to seek a high end defenseman at the trade deadline.  He quickly solidified the T-birds back end.

Matt Rempe saved his best for last.  What a terrific postseason he had with eight goals, including a first round, overtime series clincher.  And I think he's only scratching the surface of his potential.  He's still learning to play with his size and frame. 

My T-birds Three Stars are Seattle's three 20 year olds.  

Third Star: D Ryan Gottfried.  Gotts came in a trade early in the 2019-20 season.  He was the second of two defenseman Seattle traded for as injuries decimated their back end.  He was the one who stuck. He made himself into a reliable reargaurd. He was especially adept at blocking shots and killing penalties and he was a great role model for Seattle's young group of d-men.

Second Star: W Lukas Svejkovsky.  He only played six months as a T-bird but Seattle got from him exactly what they were hoping for when they made the trade to acquire him right after Christmas, instant offense.  In 33 regular season games as a Thunderbird he accumulated 36 points (22g, 24a). In 24 playoff games he earned another 28 points (11g, 17a). He was the final piece to the puzzle in their drive to the Championship Series.

First Star: C Henrik Rybinski.  The tone setter for this team.  A heart and soul guy.  He never gave you less then 100 percent on any shift.  He played the last two games of the Championship Series while dealing with an upper body injury.  If he was going down, he was going down swinging.  In Seattle's two, game-seven postseason wins he had seven points (2g, 5a) including a game winner in the Western Conference Championship Series. 

It's going to be a very interesting offseason for Seattle.  Lots of talent coming back but some holes on the roster to fill.  Stay tuned!

On to Round Two

Seattle versus Kelowna in the playoffs is becoming a tradition.  This was the ninth time these two teams have faced each other in the postseason since 2001.  The Thunderbirds have now won five of those series, including three in row. In fact, Seattle has ended the Rockets season in three of the last five WHL postseasons.

The series went just five games but the last two went overtime before being decided and the last three games were tied going into the third period.  This was another typical Seattle-Kelowna postseason matchup. It's the second time in their last three postseason meetings that the series winner was scored in overtime by a Seattle player named Matt: Wedman in 2016 and Rempe in 2022.

Where was this series decided? Well, the T-bird top four-point producers from the regular season (Davidson, Svejkovsky, Roulette and Rybinski) produced 31-points in the five games.  Meanwhile, Kelowna's top four regular season point producers (Dach, Cristall, Novak and Kydd) mustered just eight points total in the five games.  

I'm not sure what the T-birds game plan was for controlling Colton Dach, who led Kelowna during the regular season with 79-points (29g. 50a) in 61-games, but it worked. Seattle held Dach, a second-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks, to zero points. That's right, none. No goals no assists in five games.  Meanwhile, the T-birds leading scorer from the regular season, Jared Davidson had 11 points (3g, 8a).

Seattle's next two best point producers in Round One? A couple of first time draft eligible 17-year-olds in Kevin Korchinski and Jordan Gustafson. Both players had nine points in the series. NHL scouts want to see how these two handle the pressure of postseason play, when the stakes are bigger, and the spotlight shines brighter.  So far, so good for this duo. Gustafson set up the game winning overtime, series clinching goal in Game Five, by stealing the puck from a 20-year-old Rockets defenseman.

Another area that helped decide the series in the T-birds favor?  Goaltending.  Seems strange to say with how well the Rockets Talyn Boyko played in the final two games, but Seattle's Thomas Milic was the more steady, consistent goalie in the series. Just go back to the first two games when Boyko allowed 12 goals against while Milic only surrendered three.  The numbers back it up too. In the series Milic finished with a 1.89 GAA and .923 SVPCT.  Boyko finished with a GAA of 4.68 and his SVPCT was .875.

Playoff hockey in the WHL is built for teams with a strong, deep group of 19-year-old players.  Or at least traditionally it is.  Yet the T-birds have only five 2002 born players on their roster; Ty Bauer, Sam Knazko, Jared Davidson, Matt Rempe and Chase Lacombe. By comparison Seattle's 2017 championship roster featured eight 19-year-olds.  But I believe they are still deep enough to make a deep playoff run. Just know, that as much of a battle Round One against Kelowna was, it only gets tougher from here.  

Of the five teams still remaining in the Western Conference hunt, the rosters for most of them are fairly young. Each team is, of course, carrying the requisite three 20-year-old but as mentioned, Seattle has just five 2002 born players on their roster, Portland has just six, Kamloops has seven. Everett and Vancouver are the older teams. The Silvertips have eight 2002s on their roster. Vancouver is carrying ten, but three of them are goalies.  Kelowna, the team Seattle just eliminated, had just four. So, it looks like talent, more than experience, is going to decide the Western Conference.

For the second time this season, in a game against Kelowna, Seattle challenged a Rockets goal for offside.  They did it in a regular season game in Kelowna back in December and then again in Game Five Friday, issuing a coach's challenge on the Rockets tying goal in the third period. The result each time was the same. The goal was allowed to stand because of inconclusive video evidence. On the challenge in Game Five, it appeared a Rockets player may have entered the offensive zone ahead of the puck.

Because the WHL doesn't deploy as many cameras as the NHL, you are more than likely to get an inconclusive call on review.  Was it a gamble by the T-birds coaching staff? Sure. If they are wrong not only does the goal stand but they are also assessed a bench minor, which would have put the Rockets on the power play.  To be assessed the penalty though, there has to be clear and irrefutable evidence that clearly showed the Rockets were NOT offside.  

Seattle coaches knew the video available probably wasn't enough to overturn the call on the ice, but if it showed anything, it appeared to show a Rockets player entering the zone ahead of the puck. The hope was the video review judge would agree with them.  In the end it was a worthwhile challenge, no harm, no foul.

My T-birds Three Star of Round One.

Third Star: G Thomas Milic. As stated above, he was consistent from the opening faceoff of Game One to the final moments of Game Five.  In the playoffs, that's what you want from your goalie.  His teammates are confident playing in front of him because they know he is reliable.  He didn't face as much rubber as his opposing number, but he still came up with a number of clutch saves.

Second Star: C Matt Rempe. Not only did Rempe score the series clinching overtime goal in Game Five, but he tied for second on the team in goals scored with three, while playing in just four of the five games.  And that's the other story for the New York Rangers prospect. He played much of the series against the Rockets at less than 100-percent.  But it's the playoffs and he gutted it out. Two goals in a series clinching win is stepping up and embracing the moment.

First Star: C/W Jared Davidson.  He led the team in scoring in the regular season and he's leading the team in scoring in the postseason after the opening round.  You want your best players to be your best players in the postseason and Davidson is being just that.  Seattle was pumping a lot of shots on the Rockets net in Game Five, with no results.  They then fell behind.  His tying goal in the second period was a reminder that if you stick to the process, and don't get frustrated, thing will work out.    

The Calm Before the Storm

Sitting here Saturday morning and it's rather strange to have just one game on the final weekend of the regular season and it's already out of the way.  Of course, these final four games the T-birds played were either make up dates for games postponed earlier in the season, or a game pushed back a week from its original date.

Either way it will be nice to have a little time off before the second season arrives, because once the playoffs are here, those postseason games come at you fast and furious. Had these past four games been playoff games, I think we would have seen everyone dressed and in the lineup. Even Ryan Gottried, who missed the last ten games with an injury to his foot.  To get him the extra rest means he'll be that much closer to 100-percent come Game One of the opening round series against Kelowna.

You know those financial services ads that say past performance is not indicative of future earnings, or something to that affect?  Well, that doesn't hold up when you talk about a Seattle vs. Kelowna playoff series. No matter the round, these two teams always seem to go the distance or close to it. You should just expect the series to go the full seven games. The T-birds four game sweep of the Rockets in the 2016 Western Conference Final was the exception not the rule. The next spring, they went six games in a physical, knock 'em down, drag 'em out Conference Final.

Who can forget the year Seattle won the first three games in overtime, only to see Kelowna come back to win the final four?  Then there was the year Seattle won three times on the road but lost all three at home without scoring a goal on home ice. And what about 2008? The T-birds dropped the first two games at home, then won four of the next five games, including two on the road.  

Crazy things happen when these two teams meet in the postseason, so I'm just saying you should expect that again.  

The teams met four times this past regular season.  The T-birds went 3-1-0-0.  From the Rockets perspective, they were 1-2-0-1.  All four games were decided by a single goal.  Seattle won in a shootout, 2-1 in Kent back on December 7th.  A few nights later in Kelowna, the T-birds came from behind in the third for a 5-4 victory.

The two rivals met for a pair of games at the accesso ShoWare Center in the second half of the season.  The Rockets prevailed, 4-3 February 27th.  Two nights later, Seattle scored two goals in the final minute of play to roar back for a 4-3 win of their own.  

The T-birds used both goalies in the regular season series. Thomas Milic was 2-0, while Scott Ratzlaff was 1-1.  In the four games Seattle outshot Kelowna 154-101, but Seattle consistently outshot most of their opponents all season, even when not a full strength due to injuries.  Of the twelve goals the T-birds allowed to Kelowna, Milic surrendered just four.  Both teams were awarded 16-power plays in the four games. the Rockets scored four times, Seattle three. 

What do I take from their four game regular season series?  Nothing, absolutely nothing.  The slate is wiped clean come Friday.

First and foremost, the WHL is a development league.  The main purpose is to develop and prepare players for a future as a professional hockey player.  Seattle is succeeding in that task. Seven players on the roster are already drafted into the NHL. Three of them have already signed an NHL entry level contract.  Three more players are listed by Central Scouting for the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.  

There are more coming.  We've seen Seattle use six APs, or affiliated players, the second half of the season.  Those are players drafted in the last two WHL Prospects Draft but haven't joined the team yet on a fulltime basis. Five of the six have already recorded their first WHL point. Only Hyde Davidson, who played in just one game, the last game of the regular season, did not.  The other five combined for 46 games. They scored six goals added three assists and together finished +9.  They're knocking on the door. They're ready to bust it down.

My T-birds Three Stars for the 2021-22 regular season:

Third Star: D Kevin Korchinski.  He's generating enough buzz now that many draft prognosticators are moving him up their draft lists. In one instance into a top ten position. So, it's not a question of if he'll be drafted, but how high.  Terrific skater who rarely makes the wrong decision with the puck. He has great hockey instincts. 61-assists in 67 games.  Personally, I wish he'd shoot more, but I said the same thing about a guy named Mat Barzal and things seemed to work out okay for him.  And Korchinski is still just 17.  

Second Star: C Henrik Rybinski.  Twice he had his season interrupted by injury. When he's not on the ice it's noticeable. He's your number one center. He's an energy guy, a tone setter. He plays in all situations.  He plays with a near reckless abandon. He also contributes on the stat sheet.  Sixty-five points in just 47-games. His 1.38 points per game average was just off the team pace set by both Lukas Svejkovsky and Jared Davidson at 1.39. had he played the full 68-game schedule he was on pace for 94 points.  

First Star:  C/W Jared Davidson. Davidson is more than just a goal scorer, though he does that very well, leading the team with 42, the most by a T-bird's players in 13-seasons.  His goal total this season is more than double his total from his first three seasons combined (19). But like Rybinski, he is a complete player and plays in all situations. Versatile too, as he can play at center and on the wing. He led the team in goals, points and plus/minus and was second in assists. His game keeps improving, so I would expect even more from him in the future.  He could very well have done enough to put himself in a position to be drafted this summer by an NHL team.  

Two for the Money, Two for the Show

The Seattle Thunderbirds have locked up home ice advantage for their first-round playoff matchup with the Kelowna Rockets. They did it with a 4-1win Sunday over Everett, coupled with a Kelowna loss earlier in the day to the Vancouver Giants. Or maybe they actually locked up home ice earlier in the season?

Quite often head coach Matt O'Dette will talk about the value of two points earned early in the season being just as valuable as two points earned in the final week.  So, let's go back to a couple of games where the T-birds earned a couple of critical wins that now loom large in their securing home ice advantage versus the Rockets.

December 11th, third to last game before the Christmas break, Seattle at Kelowna.  This is the second of back-to-back nights playing up in the British Columbia interior.  The previous night Seattle stunned Kamloops up at the Sandman Centre with a convincing 6-1 victory.  But it was a costly win as the T-birds lost their captain, Tyrel Bauer, to a knee injury in the third period, an injury that would keep him out of the lineup for 33-games.

Seattle is already missing Sawyer Mynio and Leon Okonkwo Prada so are heading into the game in Kelowna with just five defensemen.  To remedy the situation, the T-birds call up affiliated player, 16-year-old, Niko Tsakumis. It will be just his second game in the WHL and first in a month.

The Thunderbirds fall behind, 2-0, after twenty minutes before battling back to take the lead in the second with three goals, including a go-ahead tally from Tsakumis, who scores his first in the WHL. They lead 3-2 after two.

The lead doesn't hold up as the Rockets strike twice in period three to grab a 4-3 advantage with just under seven minutes to play. Down a goal late, missing your captain? Just take the two-game split, get home and heal up your wounded, right?  Except if there is one thing we've learned this season about this T-birds team it's that there's no quit in them.  

Just seventeen seconds after Kelowna took the lead, Kevin Korchinski ties it up and a minute after that Mekai Sanders strikes. Just like that Seattle has comeback to take the lead late. Scott Ratzlaff and the team then shuts down the Rockets over the final five minutes and the T-birds skate away with a 5-4 win and two big road points.  

March 1st, the T-birds are hosting the Rockets at the accesso ShoWare Center. Seattle has dropped three straight games, including 4-3 setback at home to Kelowna two nights earlier.  It's looking like the rematch is going to get Seattle the same result.  Two of the team's leaders, Bauer and Henrik Rybinski are out of the lineup and midway through the third period the Rockets score to break a 2-2 tie. 

As the clock ticks down Kelowna holds their one goal lead.  With under two minutes remaining, O'Dette pulls his goalie for the extra attacker and the strategy pays off when Lukas Svejkovsky scores with 61-seconds left, tying the game at 3-3.

Time to prepare for 3-on-3 hockey. Both teams are ready to take the point and settle this in overtime or a shootout, right?  Not quite.  The T-birds win the ensuing face off and got right back on the attack.  With twelve seconds left in regulation, Sam Knazko pounces on a loose puck in front of the Rockets goal and scores. Not only does Seattle win, 4-3, but by winning in the dying seconds of the third they n get the two points, and they prevent Kelowna from getting even one. 

Those two come-from-behind wins are now the difference in both the season series against Kelowna (The T-birds finished 3-1 in the four games, outpointing the Rockets, 6-3), and in the Western Conference standings.  Had the T-birds not played the full sixty minutes in both those games, they'd be in fifth place staring up at the Rockets and preparing to start the postseason on the road.  If they had just "settled" for a different fate late in those games, they'd be sitting on forty wins, not forty two, 88-points, not 92.  

Points matter, no matter what point in the season you're at.

Notice anything similar in Seattle's three home wins this season against Everett?  Well, the scores are similar. The T-birds won 5-2 back on December 17th, 5-1 January 15th and were 4-1 winners Sunday.  Even in their shootout loss back on October 15th, the T-birds scored five goals.  But the similarity I'm talking about is the Seattle roster.  In those four games, especially in the three wins, Seattle played with a nearly complete and healthy lineup.  

If Seattle is to make a deep playoff run, they'll need that full and healthy lineup and they'll need those kinds of efforts both at home and on the road. 

My T-birds Three Stars for the Weekend:

Third Star: G Thomas Milic.  Milic went 2-0 as he gears up to carry the load in net come playoff time.  In the two games he allowed just three goals, posting a 1.50 GAA and a save percentage of .930.  Seattle's goalies don't face as many shots on average as their opponents, but the T-birds have a penchant for giving up ten bell scoring chances and Milic was their both nights to shut the door. 

Second Star: D Ty Bauer.  Bauer scored his first goal since the night he was injured, back in early December.  It was a big one.  After Spokane crawled back within 3-2 Saturday, the captain unleashed a blast that pushed the T-birds lead back up to 4-2, enroute to a 6-2 win.  Bauer doesn't score a lot but of his five goals, two are game winners and two are insurance goals, like that one against the Chiefs. Then Sunday versus Everett he was the T-birds emotional leader. Did he take a few penalties? Yes, but he didn't back down in a chippy rivalry affair. He helped set a physical tone.

First Star: W Lukas Svejkovsky.  What do you do for an encore after you've just signed your three-year NHL entry level contract? Why you go out and score three goals in two games. Svejkovsky, who signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins earlier in the week, is now on a seven-game point streak, accumulating 15-points in the process (10g, 5a).  He is now 20th in the WHL in scoring with 76 points.  

Healing Powers

I know we are three months past Christmas, but I'd really like to ask Ol' Saint Nick for one last, belated gift: a healthy Thunderbirds team for the playoffs. This team has demonstrated, that even at much less then 100-precent, they can compete with any team in the Western Conference.  The case in point was Saturday down in Portland. Even down four goals, on the road and with key players out, Seattle showed they can come back and play toe-to-toe, if not outplay one of the top teams. It's not an excuse for the loss. The T-birds started that game way too slow. It is a fact though. Put a healthy Gustafson, Ciona and Gottfried in the lineup and the T-birds are a better, deeper team.

Probably shouldn't play the "what if game" but if the T-birds had been at or close to full strength more the second half of the season, I believe they'd be fighting for the top of the conference.  It is what it is but remember, right before the Christmas break, Seattle was neck and neck with Everett for first place in the U.S. Division.  But how many games the second half have the T-birds dressed less then 18-skaters?  How many times have they had not two or three, but six or seven of their best players sitting up in the stands? 

So, the only wish I have right now is for this team to get healthy for the postseason. I don't think home ice is going to matter. Right now, Seattle has more road wins than home wins. I don't think finishing higher in the standings is going to matter. Give me a mostly complete Seattle roster and I like this team's chances in the playoffs. I'm not saying it guarantees a run to the Cup, but it levels the playing field.  Seattle's advantage is their depth, but depth only means something if all the players are healthy and available.

This past weekend the Thunderbirds played about sixty minutes of really good hockey.  The problem was, there were 120 minutes of hockey played this weekend.  Seattle got away with it Friday in their 6-4 win over Tri-City, building a 5-0 lead before too many players abandoned the game plan and they had to hold on at the end. 

Saturday in Portland the T-birds were full marks for most of the second and third period.  The slow start, the sleepy first period, really was the difference in the game.  Maybe you can get away with a less than sixty-minute effort against the Americans, you can't get away with it against Portland.

Here's a link to the altercation in the third period in Portland that led to the Winterhawks game winning power play goal.  This is why you have to stay disciplined.  I know it's hard. You've just been hit along the boards, a very dangerous hit at that. You want to retaliate. You want to stick up for your teammate. 

But in a close game where you've just roared back from a four-goal deficit to tie it, you just can't do that. There was going to be a boarding penalty on Portland. Maybe the first retaliation is okay but then there's a second and Seattle goes from, about to go on the power play, to having to go on the penalty kill. 

https://youtu.be/D8A09NS4J5w

Despite that last penalty on Rybinski, I loved his game Saturday in Portland.  I thought that was the first time in a while we've seen the complete Rybinski. That 200-foot tone setting play, the Energizer Bunny forechecking Rybinski and the crashing the crease with abandon Rybinski. Injuries have impacted his season but when we get that Rybinski on the ice, the rest of the team feeds off it.  

My T-birds Three Stars for the Weekend.

Third Star: W Lukas Svejkovsky.  The reigning WHL Play of the Week stretched his point streak to five games with two goals and two assists in the two games.  41-points now in his 31 games with Seattle and has a +19 rating. 

Second Star: W Conner Roulette.  Roulette finished the weekend with four points (1g, 3a).  He sparked Seattle's comeback in Portland with a nice power play goal.  Over his last three games he has seven points (3g, 4a).  that's the Roulette Seattle will need in the playoffs.

First Star: C Henrik Rybinski.  I think he got shorted an assist down in Portland and should, after review, end up with a three-point game (1g, 2a) and that would give him a four-point weekend.  But as stated above, it's his tone-setting 200-foot game that drives the T-birds engine. A healthy Rybinski is imperative for a long playoff run.