T-birds Rally Falls Short – Seattle Thunderbirds

PORTLAND, OR. –The Seattle Thunderbirds overcame a four-goal deficit before ultimately falling, 5-4, to the Portland Winterhawks Saturday at the Portland Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The loss snapped Seattle’s four game winning streak. Seattle returns home to battle the Spokane Chiefs next Saturday at the accesso ShoWare Center. Game time is 7:05 pm

Seattle (40-18-4-2) got the game’s first power play, after a four-minute minor was assessed to Portland’s Kyle Chyzowski five minutes into the game. Instead of converting on the man advantage, the T-birds surrendered a breakaway, shorthanded goal to Jaydon Dureau.

Two minute later the Winterhawks doubled their lead on a Gabe Klassen goal, as the team’s skated four aside. Things didn’t get any better for Seattle when the second period started, surrendering another goal to Dureau just 21-seconds in. Then, just past the three-minute mark of period two, Josh Mori made it a 4-0 game.

The Thunderbirds began their comeback when Conner Roulette converted on the power play at 7:41, assisted by Kevin Korchinski. “Our first two power plays in the first period, we didn’t execute it well,” said T-birds head coach Matt O’Dette. “We addressed it between periods, and we started to execute better. We followed up that power play goal with some momentum, a couple quick ones, and the next thing you know, we’re in the game.”

Indeed, less then a minute after the roulette goal, Sam Popowich scored his eighth of the season with Henrik Rybinski and Reid Schaefer assisting. Then at 11:40 of the second period the T-birds pulled to within one on a wrap around goal from Sam Knazko. Lukas Svejkovsky had the lone assist.

While O’Dette gave his team credit for fighting back, he was hoping for a better start. “We needed that earlier in the game to get off on the right foot.”

The T-birds completed the comeback and tied the game at 4-4 with another power play goal. This one came from Rybinski at 11:32 of the third period with Roulette assisting. But no sooner had Seattle tied it when they took a penalty on a center ice scrum and handed the Winterhawks a power play. Portland took advantage to score the game winning goal as Dureau completed his hat trick less then two minutes after the T-birds had tied the game.

“Discipline is a factor in these games against Portland,” lamented O’Dette. “They have good special teams. I thought we could have been smarter during that situation that led to the go-ahead goal.”

In addition to their home game next Saturday against Spokane, Seattle also plays at home next Sunday, against the Everett Silvertips, a 5:05 pm clash.

T-BIRD EXTRAS

Seattle finishes the regular season series 4-6-1-2 against Portland.

With one assist, Lukas Svejkovsky stretched his point streak to five games (7g, 5a). Jared Davidson was held off the scoresheet and saw his point streak end at eight games. Roulette has seven points over its last three games (3g, 4a).

While Gabe Ludwig and Sam Knazko returned to the lineup against the Winterhawks, Seattle continues to be without Jordan Gustafson (upper body injury), Ryan Gottfried (lower body injury) and Lucas Ciona (upper body injury. Mekai Sanders is lost for the season with a lower body injury.

O’Dette says one focus over the final four games of the regular season is getting healthy. “It’s been quite some time since we’ve had a full compliment of players, four lines of forwards, etc. We want to get healthy and get some games under our belt where we’re locked into our formula and our identity. Hopefully we get a few games where we can do that.”

Full box score: WHL Network