Thunderbirds push Ice to the brink with pull away victory in game four
By Charles Hamaker
Kent, WA – Same result, different path for the Seattle Thunderbirds in tonight’s game four victory. The Winnipeg Ice struck first this time as again it was Carson Latimer to get his team on the board as Seattle's Jeremy Hanzel couldn’t retrieve a puck that glided back into his zone. The Thunderbirds were able to pick up the phone to answer, scoring the next two goals thanks to defenseman Kevin Korchinski and a power play goal by forward Gracyn Sawchyn, but the Ice weren’t going to melt away just yet. Winnipeg tied things up going into the final frame but Seattle’s Dylan Guenther, arguably the best player in these WHL Playoffs, delivered the game winner before an insurance empty-net goal put the nail in the coffin to push the Ice to the brink.
“A bit of a heart-breaking loss. We played more like we have to play. The game was there. We had chances when it was 2-2, even when they went ahead we had chances and we weren’t able to get the go-ahead [goal] or [game-tying goal]… We have to focus on the process. We can’t think about the what-ifs. We just have to focus on playing the game the right way. We cleaned up a lot of our game from [Game 3]. There’s still some little areas that need improvement. We’ll focus on playing the best game possible and we’ll worry about the result when it’s all said and done.”
Pre-game scenes outside of the Showare Center in Kent and prior to puck drop ahead of game four of the WHL Championship between the Winnipeg ICE and Seattle Thunderbirds (Photos by Liz Wolter)
Keeping pace
It wasn’t a low scoring affair in game four, but it wasn’t quite game three’s outburst of three goals in 45 seconds for Seattle either. Carson Latimer’s hustle play to take advantage of the puck sailing back into the Seattle zone gave Winnipeg a much-needed boost after they had been bludgeoned the day before and needed some sort of life. The Ice looked to propel themselves off that goal like a launching point, but any jump was intercepted by the Thunderbirds as defenseman Kevin Korchinski launched a bomb from just inside the blue line a little over three minutes later to tie things up in the dying moments of the period. Following a brutal loss like the blowout they had suffered a day before, Winnipeg needed to have a good start to get things going the right way, but that response and in the dying moments of the period? Not good for momentum
Winnipeg Ice forward Carson Latimer scored the first goal of the game, getting his team out to a better start than the past game (Photos by Liz Wolter)
If you don’t believe me, things continued poorly for the Ice as Winnipeg’s Ty Nash was sent to the box for roughing. More undisciplined play that resulted in the second Thunderbirds power play of the night, and then the second goal of the night as Gracyn Sawchyn tapped home a box that had banged off the boards from Jeremy Hanzel in the high slot. Nearly perfect geometry from Hanzel left the puck right to Sawchyn who was parked next to the crease, guiding it into the goal as Ice goaltender Daniel Hauser scrambled to get over but failed. Things seemed to be headed Seattle’s way thanks to the two goals and taking advantage of Winnipeg taking penalties, but the Ice were not going to go quietly into the night. Two Winnipeg skaters were able to make camp on both sides of the Seattle crease, getting behind the Thunderbirds skaters, leaving Evan Frisen to tie things up.
Seattle Thunderbirds forward Dylan Guenther’s night through pictures (Photos by Liz Wolter)
Dylan delivers once again
Seattle forward and Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Guenther has been arguably the best player in the WHL Playoffs, and he continues to contribute for this Thunderbirds team as they chase hardware. After the first two periods saw this game tied at two goals each, things remained intense in the final frame including a mad scramble for Seattle that somehow didn’t result in a score and a Winnipeg goal that got overturned upon official review. Somebody had to break through, and it was Seattle who found the dagger on a crisp play that was punched home by Guenther. A triangle of passing from Luke Prokop to Reid Schaefer found Guenther in the slot, just on the bubble of the faceoff circle, ripping a shot past Hauser’s glove side that he wasn’t prepared to snag. An empty netter by Nico Myatovic put the final stamp on things, and the Thunderbirds had taken a three games to one lead in the WHL Championship.
“These are the games you want to play in, those are the moments you want to play in as a player. You dream of these kind of games – in the finals when the game is on the line and it’s tight checking. It’s a lot of fun to be in it.”
“A go-ahead goal in the third period, that was a huge goal for us. Our bench was pretty fired up after that. I thought our play in the third was pretty stable the rest of the way. But that was a monster goal... That was a very hard-fought game. Tight-checking, close game, not a lot of margin for error. I’m happy with the way our team finished the game. We had a good third period, we needed it. We buckled down and found a way to win the game.”
Things in the WHL Championship between the Winnipeg Ice and Seattle Thunderbirds have been physical the whole way through, and that should be no different in game five. (Photos by Liz Wolter)
Quick notes
Wednesday’s loss represents the first time all season the Winnipeg ICE have lost three consecutive games
For the first time in the 2023 WHL Championship Series, Winnipeg Jets prospect Brad Lambert (Lahti, Finland) was held off the scoresheet
The Thunderbirds finished the game 1-for-5 on the power play
The ICE went 0-for-3 with the man advantage
Seattle owned a narrow edge in the faceoff circle, winning 50.8 per cent of the draws (32/63)
Buffalo Sabres prospect Matthew Savoie (St. Albert, Alta.) was the top faceoff man between both Clubs, winning 61.1 per cent of his draws (11/18)
What’s next?
Following this back-to-back for games three and four, there will be a “day off” between now and game five of this series. Preparations will be made on both sides, as surely Winnipeg head coach James Patrick will preach discipline and focus following these back-to-back losses and giving the Thunderbirds five power plays in tonight’s game. On the other hand, Seattle head coach Matt O’Dette will likely look to have his group ready and as level as they can be heading into a potential clinching game while also trying to do better than converting on just one power play. Game five will take place here at the Showare Center on Friday, May 19th with a puck drop time of 7:05PM PST.