T-Birds snap losing streak with 3-2 win in Everett

EVERETT – For the fifth straight game the Seattle Thunderbirds found themselves locked into a close one-goal affair Friday night. Unlike the previous four, they found a way to hang on and win.

Seattle (10-11-2-2) held on to beat the Everett Silvertips 3-2 in front of 6,573 cowbell ringing fans at the XFINITY Arena, snapping its frustrating four-game losing streak.

Seattle got 20 saves from Taran Kozun and goals from three different players in the win.

After struggling with Everett (16-5-2-1) in their previous three meetings, the T-Birds found a way to grind out a win against the division-leading Silvertips. With the score tied at two late in the second period, Seattle got a lucky bounce to take a lead that it would end up holding on to.

Defenseman Scot Allan blasted home a shot from the blue line for his first WHL goal to give the T-Birds the lead. It was a strange play in that the puck had deflected high into the air and Allan was the only guy on the ice who saw it land. He leaned into a slapper that beat Everett goalie Austin Lotz clean.

“It was huge for us,” Donovan Neuls said of the win. “Especially going off of four straight losses. Get the feeling back in the dressing room and I think it’ll be good for everybody.”

Neuls was key in the win, picking up a goal and an assist and centering a line that was strong all night. The two points was a career-high for the 16-year-old rookie from Grenfell, Saskatchewan.

Due to an injury to Lane Pederson in practice, the T-Birds found themselves in need of a forward, and Even Wardley stepped up and played right wing on the Nuels line along with Nolan Volcan.

“That line was huge for us,” head coach Steve Konowalchuk said. “Wardley did a nice job up front there forechecking. Volcan plays a hard game and that was a really good line for us.”

For Wardley, it was a bit of an adjustment to move up and play forward. He had one day to prepare for the position change and ended up asserting himself well.

“Being a defensive defenseman, making that jump is hard,” Wardley said. “But I just knew I had to keep it simple, listen to what Steve said and it will work out fine.”

It did work out fine and Wardley was on the ice for all three Seattle goals, ending the night with a plus-3 rating. His size and strength gave the Silvertips fits on the forecheck and Neuls appreciated the hard work his 20-year-old teammate put in.

“He did really well,” Neuls said. “He created space for me and my other linemates. We’re not very big and he does the dirty work. He’s good in our own end.”

That line got the T-Birds going early in the game. A strong forecheck by Wardley caused an Everett defender to cough the puck up in the neutral zone. Neuls picked it up, skated into the Everett zone and ripped a wrist shot from the high slot for his second goal of the season.

“I just came across the blue line and let one rip,” Neuls said. “It was early in the game and I wanted to get shots on net.”

The T-Birds then struggled with something that has plagued them in the past couple of weeks – they started taking penalties. Late in the first the T-Birds went short handed and Patrick Bajkov beat Kozun with a point shot that may have deflected off of a Seattle defender to tie the game at one.

On the night Everett was given six power plays to Seattle’s one. That disparity in power plays has cost Seattle in recent games, but it was able to overcome it on Friday.

The power play has played a huge role in the season series. Everett has had 20 power-play attempts to Seattle’s 10 in their head-to-head matchups, and seven of Everett’s nine goals against Seattle have been off the power play.

“I don’t know if there were any undisciplined ones,”Konowalchuk said of the penalties. “We still have to work on being smarter. When the refs are calling it that tight then you’ve got to adjust to the game plan.”

The T-Birds would go back in front half way through the second period when Ethan Bear walked around Everett defenders and scored on a wrist shot. Just as they had in the first period, however, the T-Birds coughed that lead up by giving Everett another power-play opportunity. This time it was Noah Juulsen who capitalized with a slap shot from the point.

Allan would then score his big goal to give the T-Birds the lead late in the period and Seattle would go on to pick up the win.

Friday night was the 14th one-goal game the T-Birds found themselves in and after dropping four straight, there was some relief in finally winning one.

“It’s gratifying to win one that’s close of late,” Konowalchuk said. “We’ve been playing one-goal games there for a while. It’s good learning experience.”

The win provides Seattle with some much needed momentum as it has two more games this weekend. They had been struggling to score despite generating numerous chances each night, and this win may help relieve that pressure moving forward. They went on the road and beat a quality opponent in front of a loud and hostile crowd.

“That was a lot of fun,” Neuls said. “Even if we’re getting booed I enjoy it. It’s a nice win.”

Seattle will be back on the ice Saturday night when they host the Kootenay Ice at the ShoWare Center.

Notes

• Konowlachuk said that Pederson was injured in practice and is day-to-day with an upper body injury. He joined Kaden Elder and Mathew Barzal as injured scratches Friday night.

• Neuls and Volcan continue to be a high energy line for the T-Birds. Despite their size, they are tough to play against and get under the opponents skin. “We like to work other team’s lines and it makes them frustrated,” Nuels says. “They get mad and think ‘Why are these little kids beating us’? I don’t know, I just go and play hockey.”

• The win was the first for Seattle over their Puget Sound rivals on the year and brings their record to 1-1-1-1 against Everett on the season.

• Everett had its modest two-game win streak snapped. Prior to that they had lost two in a row but still lead the U.S. Division by five points over the Tri City Americans.

Follow Andrew Eide on Twitter @andyeide

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