Off the snide, Thunderbirds hope to build on recent success

The Thunderbirds got back on the right track in a big way last weekend, taking two games from the Western Conference-leading Victoria Royals at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Center. The two wins, plus one more in Medicine Hat, leave Seattle on a three-game winning streak following a disappointing Eastern Conference road swing. When the T-Birds come home to the ShoWare Center Tuesday, it will mark the end of an eight-game road trip that lasted over two weeks.

Seattle will return to the friendly confines of Kent first against the Swift Current Broncos, who hold an 8-10-2-0 record and sit in ninth place in the East. The only meeting this season between the two teams will mark the homecoming of former T-Birds Calvin Spencer and Kaden Elder, who were both traded to the Broncos in the past three months. Neither player features strongly in Swift Current’s offense, but both will surely come out with something to prove against their former teammates.

While it may disappoint the fans filling the ShoWare Center, the Broncos will be without forward Jake DeBrusk, the 14th overall pick in last June’s NHL Draft by the Boston Bruins. DeBrusk was one of the players that many were surprised to see selected ahead of Seattle’s Mathew Barzal.

That’s not to say that Swift Current doesn’t have a number of other potent weapons, both up front and on the blue line. At the beginning of October, the Broncos acquired Jon Martin from the Kootenay Ice, and his 31 points in 16 games with Swift Current already marks a career high. He’s been a pleasant surprise for a Broncos team that has struggled to score goals, notching only 52 so far this year, which places them 11th in the East.

Defensively, Swift Current excels, ranking second in the East in goals against and fourth in the WHL on the penalty kill. Goaltenders Landon Bow and Travis Child are a one-two punch that many teams would have difficulty matching. Also worth keeping an eye on is defenseman Max Lajoie, a 2016 NHL Draft hopeful who has 10 points in 20 games.

Seattle will enjoy a short break before heading up to Kamloops to face the Blazers on Friday. Kamloops struggled early in the season but is a club that no one wants to face right now. The Blazers are 8-1-1-0 in their past 10 games, and are currently on a seven-game point streak.

The acquisition of Las Vegas native Gage Quinney has been a big factor in the turnaround, as he’s posted 17 points in his 11 games since coming over from the Kelowna Rockets. Joining him up front are Colin Shirley and Matt Revel, both point-per-game players that the T-Birds will need to keep close tabs on.

Seattle and Kamloops have faced each other once so far this year, a blowout 7-2 win by the T-Birds that saw multi-point games from Scott Eansor, Ryan Gropp, Barzal, Matthew Wedman, and Keegan Kolesar. The Blazers sit just ahead of Swift Current at third in the WHL on the PK, but their power play has struggled, converting at just a 17.9 percent clip, placing them 17th in the league.

The T-Birds close out the weekend on Saturday when they host hated rival Portland, whom they defeated 3-2 in their only contest of the season so far on Oct. 11. The Winterhawks are also a team that has been hot of late, winning seven of their past 10 and their last three straight.

Unlike in past years, Portland is not top heavy, no longer led by dynamic talents such as Nic Petan, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Chase De Leo. Instead, the Winterhawks feature a more balanced team that places them fourth in the West in both goals for (66) and goals against (56).

One player who was not wearing the Indian head the first time these teams faced each other was Latvian import Rihards Bukarts, whom the Winterhawks acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings on Oct. 29. He has helped strengthen Portland’s depth up front, joining players like Dominic Turgeon, Paul Bittner, Keegan Iverson, Alex Schoenborn, and fellow import Rodrigo Abols to give the Winterhawks multiple capable lines up front.

Portland’s biggest strength this year lies in its goaltending, where Adin Hill has established himself as one of the league’s best. His .922 save percentage, three shutouts, and 2.71 goals-against average all rank in the top 10 in the WHL.

In front of Hill, the Winterhawks boast a deep defensive group, led by NHL-draftees Caleb Jones, Jack Dougherty, and Blake Heinrich. Unlike past seasons, the Winterhawks don’t simply try to outscore you. This year, they are just as likely to keep the puck out of their own net.

This week will mark a difficult slate of games for the T-Birds, as they begin with a contest on Tuesday against a Swift Current team capable of stealing two points, then follow that up by facing two of the WHL’s hottest teams back-to-back on Friday and Saturday. Regardless, Seattle appears to have gotten back on track and seems to have found its mojo again after a less-than-stellar stretch at the beginning of November.

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