Tri-City remains Thunderbirds’ kryptonite

Seattle Thunderbirds fall to Tri-City Americans

By Callaghan Bluechel, edited by Charles Hamaker

Kent, WA – The Seattle Thunderbirds lost 4-1 on Friday against the Tri-City Americans, as they failed to put together a cohesive effort on either side of the puck. Despite Ratzlaff’s best efforts in net, the defense around him crumbled, giving Tri-City too many opportunities for Ratzlaff to handle. Meanwhile, the offense was not nearly as clinical as it needed to be, missing would-be golden opportunities through bad passes and frantic play in front of the net.

Though the Tri-City Americans had lost the previous four games, their previous game against the T-Birds, played on November 21, was a 5-0 blowout win by the Americans, and Tri-City shut out Seattle’s offense for a little over 59 minutes on Friday.

Pregame sights and scenes ahead of the Seattle Thunderbirds loss against the Tri-City Americans at the accesso Showare Center, on Friday, December 8th, 2023. (Photos taken by Liz Wolter)

Thunderbirds fall in hole over first two periods

Seattle had some issues with quality over the first period on both offense and defense. The Thunderbirds were unable to finish up front, getting the puck past the blue line many times but only managing weak shots that Tri-City goaltender Lukas Matecha easily batted away or ate up.

The T-Birds also had issues with giving the puck away on defense, struggling to consistently clear the zone. Though Ratzlaff played very well with some impressive saves, the team was unable to get the kill on the only power play of the period, with Tri-City forward Jordan Gavin sinking a goal at 6:13 in the period.

The second period looked very similar to the first. The T-Birds again were unable to consistently clear the zone on and again gave up a goal, this time in the beginning of the period while at full strength. The offense seemed to be even more uncoordinated in the second period. They didn’t put together many opportunities, even with a power play in the middle of the period. Seattle did, however, improve on the penalty kill in the second, killing both of Tri-City’s power plays.

The first period was a rough one for the Thunderbirds, who were unable to get much going offensively and ran into a physical Tri-City team. (Photos by Liz Wolter)

Americans double lead in third period despite Seattle’s renewed offensive vigor

While the game remained within striking distance during the first two periods, the Tri-City Americans put it away in the third period. They got a power play around halfway through the period, and although Seattle almost killed the penalty, Tri-City center Deagan McMillan took advantage of yet another missed clearance by the Thunderbirds, bringing the score to 3-0. Any hope of coming back died with the Americans’ fourth goal, scored by right defenseman Lukas Dragicevic a little over a minute after McMillan’s power play goal.

The Thunderbirds were somewhat more cohesive on offense, though. They had a power play early in the third period and aggressively pursued their first goal, racking up six shots on goal over the two minutes, but Matecha blocked, deflected, or caught all of them. Later on, after Tri-City’s third goal, young left winger Samuel Charko had an excellent chance to score, as he weaved the puck behind Matecha, but his shot went parallel to the net, between the goal and Matecha, and the T-Birds remained scoreless.

Seattle Thunderbirds defenseman Jeremy Hanzel fights Tri-City Americans forward Carter MacAdams. (Photos by Liz Wolter)

Game ends in chaotic final minute, Seattle avoids 2 straight shutouts against Tri-City

It appeared that the Tri-City Americans would shut out the Thunderbirds for the second time this season, but Luca Hauf had other ideas. With just 33 seconds remaining in the third period, he scored Seattle’s first goal of the game, bringing the deficit down to 4-1. While there were no illusions that a comeback was even remotely possible, it was a bright spot on the day, and it notched rookie right winger Brayden Holberton his first assist of the year.

The Thunderbirds even had a chance to score another time, but Matecha continued his impressive performance, making a couple saves before falling down with an apparent leg injury with around twenty seconds left. Seattle kept making attempts as time ran out, but nothing else would find the back of the net, not that it would have mattered.

The Tri-City Americans were ultimately able to pull away from the Seattle Thunderbirds in the third period, as Luca Hauf’s third period score was too little and too late. (Photos by Liz Wolter)

Final score: Tri-City Americans 4 – Seattle Thunderbirds 1.

Game Stats

Tri-City Americans:

Goals: Jordan Gavin (13), Carter MacAdams (2), Deagan McMillan (10), Lukas Dragicevic (6),

Assists: Max Curran (20, 21), Lukas Dragicevic (15), Parker Bell (12), Carter McAdams (2),

Shots on goal: 36

Seattle Thunderbirds:

Goals: Luca Hauf (7)

Assists: Hyde Davidson (4), Brayden Holberton (1)

Shots on goal: 24

Luca Hauf celebrates his third period goal with his Seattle Thunderbirds teammates. (Photos by Liz Wolter)

What’s next?

With this loss, the Seattle Thunderbirds have dropped below .500 for the first time this season. They remain in ninth place in the Western Conference with 23 points, though they have played significantly fewer games than any other team in the league and are 7th in winning percentage.

Having completed their homestand, the Thunderbirds will start a 2-game road trip, with their next game on Saturday, December 9th against the Portland Winterhawks with a puck drop time of 6:00 PM. The second game of the road trip will be on Wednesday, December 13th against the Spokane Chiefs, with a puck drop time of 7:05 PM. The T-Birds’ next home game will be next Friday, December 15th against the Vancouver Giants, with a puck drop time of 7:05 PM.

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