Game 24: Thunderbirds score three late goals to defeat Swift Current
Nov 29, 2011, 9:47 PM | Updated: Nov 30, 2011, 3:30 am
(11-12-0-1) Seattle Thunderbirds 4, (11-15-2-1) Swift Current Broncos 2
“We were denied a few times so we just kept with it and we got that finish in the third.”…Shea Theodore
“They stood with it. If we didn’t win it would have been frustrating but even if we didn’t win I wouldn’t have been disappointed cause we stuck with it and everyone pitched in and they got rewarded for it.”.. Head Coach Steve Konowalchuk
KENT- The Birds get a big late comeback to defeat the Broncos. Trailing with under three minutes left they scored three goals in just over two and a half minutes to win 4-2.
Great chance for the Birds to get the first goal but Burke Gallimore missed a wide open net.
Taylor Vause (16) put the Broncos on top 1-0 at 13:57 when he beat Calvin Pickard (11-9-0-1) just inside the right post.
The Birds were down 1-0 after 20 minutes and were being outshot 16-10.
Sean Aschim (6) got the Birds even on the power play at 5:14 of the second period. He threw the puck towards the net and it went off a Broncos player and past Jon Groenheyde (9-9-1-2). Connor Sanvido and Braeden Laroque got the assists.
It didn’t take long for Swift Currrent to get the lead back as some sloppy play by the Birds in front of their net allowed Coda Gordon to score his 12th goal of the season. The Broncos were up 2-1 at 5:58.
Seattle was down a goal at 2-1 after two periods. The Broncos led 32-20 in shots.
Shea Theodore (2) tied the game 2-2 at 17:11 of the third period. Tyler Alos got the assist.
Just 35 seconds later Chance Lund (8) put the Birds up 3-2. Justin Hickman and Luke Lockhart got the assists.
After a penalty to Swift Current they pulled their goalie for an extra attacker and with .4 seconds left Burke Gallimore (13) hit the empty net and Seattle had a huge come from behind victory, 4-2. Marcel Noebels and Kyle Verdino had the assists.
Quotes of the game
Shea Theodore on his game tying goal..
“I was told to walk down and throw it on net and that’s definitely what happened.”
On the Birds having some trouble finding the back of the net for most of the game..
“We were denied a few times so we just kept with it and we got that finish in the third.”
On being a force on the power play…
“Ever since pee-wee they put me on the power play. I used to be more of a forward but I became an offensive defenseman and that’s worked pretty good for me.”
Head Coach Steve Konowalchuk on the comeback win..
“They stayed with it. That team (Swift Current) played exactly the way we thought they would. They don’t give you free stuff. We just stuck with the game plan, it’s a game that could have gone either way. They stayed with it.”
On the effective penalty kill being a key to the win..
“They have a really good power play, you can see why they are up there because they have three big forwards who are big and skilled.”
On the lack of success offensively until the last three minutes..
“We were shooting more at times for a rebound. Sometimes we just hesitate a bit too much, we stop and we shoot instead of shooting right away. We just need the mindset of shooting quicker.”
On the teams effort tonight…
“They stood with it. If we didn’t win it would have been frustrating but even if we didn’t win I wouldn’t have been disappointed cause we stuck with it and everyone pitched in and they got rewarded for it.”
On losing Troock and being a bit thin up front…
“Troock and Rouse were playing well before they got hurt. Now guys are getting their chances. Everyone gets a chance. Sanvido played a good, hard game.”
On if tonight’s win was the biggest so far this season..
“It’s another win. As a team we always talk about playing the same way from start to finish. You can’t always control the result but you can control the process. There will be bigger wins in the future.”
Plus side:
-Birds don’t give up and fight till the end even though it had been a frustrating night offensively.
-The young blood (Theodore) changes the momentum of the game with his tying goal.
– Seattle gets some scoring from Sanvido, Aschim and Theodore to help fill the gap left by injuries to Rouse and Troock.
– Pickard makes 42 saves on 44 shots to keep the Birds in the game till their late surge.
– PK goes 3 for 3 against the number one power play in the league. All three kills come with the Birds already down 2-1.
Minus side:
– Some missed opportunities in the first two periods make the late comeback necessary. Birds need to do a better job of getting to rebounds and putting more shots on net and bodies in front.
– Sloppy play in front of their net allows the Broncos to take a 2-1 lead.
– Birds give up the first goal and are outshot. This has been the case in the majority of games this season and it’s something they will want to turn around to make their lives easier.
Game Notes:
– F Branden Troock is out with a broken first rib (four weeks).
– F Brendan Rouse is out with a hand injury.
– D Evan Wardley was back in action playing up front.
– D Cason Machacek is out with a three game suspension.
A quick word on this: The league informed the Birds that F Brendan Ranford will not be getting a suspension for his hit on Troock which resulted in the injury. Ranford was assessed a double minor but will not be suspended. You have to wonder why a double minor was assessed when there was no blood drawn. Did the official see it as an egregious minor? If so why, and why wasn’t it then a five minute major and a game misconduct and a suspension? Especially since it resulted in a bad injury. Ironically, Machacek was given the suspension because of an action late in the game that Ranford retaliated against.
– The Birds improve to 6-5-0-1 at home. They are 4-0-0-1 in their last five home games.
MyNorthwest.com three stars:
First star: Shea Theodore (game tying goal)
Second star: Calvin Pickard (42/44 saves)
Third star: Taylor Vause (goal and assist)
The Thunderbirds play Friday night at the ShoWare Center against the Tri-City Americans. Game time is 7:30 pm and the action can be heard live at MyNorthwest.com.
Game Summary is on the WHL website.
