Thunderbirds make it five straight with 4-3 OT win at Kamloops

Heading into Friday night’s game, Seattle forward Ryan Gropp had yet to score a goal in his hometown of Kamloops.

Playing in Kamloops’ Sandman Centre he would change that in a big way by potting his second career hat trick.

Gropp’s heroics helped set up a Keegan Kolesar overtime winner to give the T-Birds their fifth straight win as they outlasted the Kamloops Blazers 4-3. Kolesar added a pair of assists and Mathew Barzal assisted on all three of Gropp’s scores as the T-Birds survived a blown third-period 3-1 lead.

“I’m not surprised it went down to the wire, I kind of expected it to,” Seattle head coach Steve Konowalchuk said after. “We got the win – they don’t give up that team, that’s been their thing of late. Their goalie keeps them hanging around. He played a heck of a game today.”

Blazers netminder Connor Ingram stopped 37 Seattle shots to keep the game from getting out of hand. Seattle built a two-goal lead after two periods but would see the Blazers tie it up with two scores in the first six minutes of the third period.

With the score tied, Konowalchuk called a timeout and got his team back on track.

“Just buckle down there,” Konowlachuk said of his message during the timeout. “We got to get going, you know there was a little bit of turning there, hoping we get the loose puck and go on the rush. We need to start and stop, grind it out and get back to playing our hockey.”

Seattle did that and if not for Ingram would have won the game easily in the final frame. They poured 16 third-period shots on the Kamloops net and each time Ingram would keep them at bay.

“They battle back but once they tied it up 3-3 I thought we played some of our best hockey,” Konowalchuk said. “Just putting pucks in the right area, out working them down low, using our speed to create down low. I thought it was some good poise there to get back to the way we want to play.”

The momentum of the third period carried over into overtime where Scott Eansor – playing his first game after missing the last nine contests – created a turnover in the neutral zone. The puck made its way to Kolesar, who was in alone on Ingram and won the game on the backhand.

“It was nice to see Scotty back. His speed sure helps,” Konowalchuk said. “He creates that last goal, not sure what it shows on the box score but he creates that goal on a hard back check so we keep the puck in their end.”

After falling behind in the first period when Colin Shirley got behind the T-Birds defense, the T-Birds came out firing in the second.

Gropp got on the board just over a minute into the second when Barzal fed him in the slot. The goal tied the game and was just the beginning for the New York Rangers prospect. Gropp would pot his second goal four minutes later when he backhanded a rebound on the power play past Ingram. He would complete the natural hat trick later in the period when he lost the puck trying to go from his back hand to his forehand. The puck slid off his stick and through Ingram anyway.

When the horn sounded, Gropp had given Seattle a 3-1 lead.

“He’s playing hard,” Konowalchuk said. “He’s blocking shots. It shows the way he’s into the game right now. He’s killing penalties, huge blocked shots in that second period as well. Playing hard hockey, with his skill level, if he plays that hard he’ll get results.”

The hat trick gives Gropp 13 goals on the season and he has eight markers in his last seven games. Seattle’s top line was big again as the three combined for four goals and five assists.

The T-Birds also got a boost from Eansor’s return.

The feisty center looked like he hadn’t missed a beat since his last game. He was fast, caused havoc in the Blazers’ zone and ended up contributing to the game-winning goal.

“The speed and the tenacity that he can bring just wears out the other team,” Konowalchuk said. “And you see the chances he created, some he creates himself. It gave us three pretty good lines in the game.”

The Blazers got the game even in the third period with two quick goals. Patrik Maier got the comeback started when he somehow got a shot through Seattle goalie Taz Burman for his second of the season. Matthew Campese would tie it two minutes later when he slammed home a rebound from the slot.

Unlike the two third-period leads Seattle blew on its recent road trip, it would recover Friday and dominate the last part of the game and overtime to get the win.

Seattle won’t have long to revel in this victory however as it has a long bus ride home before hosting the Portland Winterhawks Saturday at the ShoWare Center. It’s the first time Portland will appear in Kent this year and it comes in having won four games in a row.

Notes

• Barzal extended his point streak to five games and the three assists give him eight multiple-assist games so far this year. He has 28 helpers in 18 games and has risen his career assist-per-game average to an impressive .93.

• Kolesar’s three-point night also extended his scoring streak to five games. He’s had five goals and four assists over that stretch.

• Sahvan Khaira – who played a mix of defense and forward on Friday – picked up an assist on Gropp’s third goal. It was the first point of the season for the second-year player.

• Taz Burman made his first start in six games and made 24 saves on the night. His biggest came in the second period when Shirley was loose on a breakaway. Burman got his pad down and made two quick saves.

Follow Andy Eide on Twitter @andyeide.

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