T-Birds Defuse Rockets – Seattle Thunderbirds
KENT, Wash. –The Seattle Thunderbirds broke a scoreless tie with a pair of third period goals and shutout the Kelowna Rockets, 2-0, Saturday at the accesso ShoWare Center. The victory moves Seattle, winners of eight in a row, to 27-4-1-1. The Thunderbirds now take to the road for their next six games. The road trip through the Eastern Division gets underway Friday in Regina.
Thunderbirds head coach Matt O’Dette said it was a hard-fought battle with an opponent that always plays Seattle well. “I think in these situations in comes down to who can be the more efficient team and dig deeper.” He said both teams were facing the same situation of playing their fourth game in five nights. “I thought some of our good work from the previous game, last night, carried over into tonight and paid off in the third period.”
Seattle broke the scoreless game with a goal at 7:55 of the third period. Skating 4-on-4, Lucas Ciona got to a loose puck at center ice and carried it into the Rockets zone. Jeremy Hanzel jumped up to join the rush. Ciona found Hanzel with a pass at the top of the crease and Hanzel scored his seventh of the season. “I saw Ciona 1-on-1 with the d-man. I was the next guy so I decided to jump up into the play. Ciona made a nice pass and I got to finish it.”
The Thunderbirds then killed off a Kelowna power play to maintain their one-goal lead. Shortly after, they checked the Rockets in their end of the ice. Jordan Gustafson took a pass from Luke Prokop and found Sawyer Mynio on the wall. Mynio flung one on net that found its way into the back of the goal. For Mynio, who has been stymied by some great saves since coming off the Christmas break, it was a goal he’ll take. “Yeah, definitely take that one. Get the monkey off my back. I don’t know when the last time I scored. It’s been a while, but it feels good to get this one.”
Scott Ratzlaff picked up his third shutout of the season with his eighteen save performance. That leads the WHL. In two starts against Kelowna this week he allowed just one goal on forty shots.
With six games out east next up on the schedule, the Thunderbirds next home game will be January 20th versus the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
T-BIRDS EXTRAS
Seattle finished the calendar year with 52 wins, 66 wins when you add in their playoff wins last spring.
Lucas Ciona is on a five-game point streak compiling 12-points (6g, 6a) and is now 12th in the league in scoring with 35 points.
Both teams were 0-for-5 on the power play.
Seattle’s 146 goals through 33 games is the most in the league.
Box score: WHL Network