Thunderbirds return to win column with close victory over Chiefs
By Charles Hamaker
Kent, WA – Following their shutout loss to I-5 rivals Everett yesterday, the Seattle Thunderbirds made sure to wash the bad taste out of their mouth as they defeated the Spokane Chiefs in a low scoring battle. The final score of 3-1 may seem inflated due to Thunderbirds forward Kyle Crnkovic’s empty net goal with 30 seconds left to play, but Seattle doubled Spokane’s shots at 52-21. Thunderbirds captain Lucas Ciona said a few games ago that this team needs to simply shoot the puck and good things will happen. Seattle did just that and while they did succeed, it was at a rate slightly lower than the Thunderbirds would have liked.
Thunderbirds top line center Jared Davidson brings the puck up the ice as teammate Brad Lambert looks on (Photo by Liz Wolter)
Davidson delights the home fans with assists on all three Seattle goals
Jared Davidson centered Seattle’s top line and had a stellar performance, as the Montreal Canadiens prospect dished out three total assists on the night. On the first goal of the night, Davidson immediately whipped a loose puck along the boards to Hanzel at the blue line. Hanzel, having received a pass from Davidson who was surrounded by three Chiefs skaters, collected and quickly fired a shot to the glove side of Spokane goaltender Cooper Michaluk. Michaluk never saw the puck properly, as he was screened by two of his teammates, and Seattle was on the board a little under five minutes into the first period.
Seattle forward Brad Lambert looks to take a shot (Photo by Liz Wolter)
For Seattle’s second goal of the night, Davidson recorded the secondary assist on Brad Lambert’s laser of a goal. Left all alone in the faceoff circle, Lambert received a pass from Kevin Korchinski on the power play and displayed some front-hand back-hand. After effectively putting the opposing skaters to sleep with his display, Lambert rifled a wrist shot towards goal. Once again Spokane goaltender Cooper Michaluk was screened, this time by Lucas Ciona, never getting a chance and the Thunderbirds had their second goal of the night.
Thunderbirds captain Lucas Ciona has some not so friendly words with Chiefs skater Cade Hayes (Photo by Liz Wolter)
Ciona relatively quiet in return, but his presence will be key moving forward
Seattle captain Lucas Ciona returned to the lineup tonight, playing as the left wing in the top Thunderbirds line along Jared Davidson and Brad Lambert. While Ciona did record the secondary assist on Jeremy Hanzel’s first period goal, Ciona’s presence is a key factor for this Seattle group going forward. The newly minted captain has the task of keeping this extremely talented group together, while playing on a top line for one of the best teams in all of the WHL. His play making and ability to score are big deals, but the intangibles that are don’t go in the stat sheet are what make Ciona more than just a talented skater. He’ll help welcome his newest teammate, yet another extremely talented hockey player brought in to chase a title for Seattle...
Dylan Guenther joins Seattle from the Arizona Coyotes (Photo by Andy Devlin)
Thunderbirds appear to be forming their version of the Avengers with Guenther news
The Thunderbirds have been able to add talent to their roster all season long, and that continued in one of the more stunning pieces of news of the past week. Arizona Coyotes forward Dylan Guenther joins an already stacked Seattle roster that is clearly intent on winning a championship. Following last year's loss in the WHL Finals against Edmonton, the Thunderbirds have added the likes of Luke Prokop, Brad Lambert, and now Guenther through big time trades that have sent numerous picks away. It is very clear that Seattle has their eyes on winning a title and have assembled something resembling the Avengers in doing so.
To give you some background on Guenther and to explain why this was big news, let’s meet Dylan Guenther. He was drafted ninth overall in the 2021 NHL Draft by Arizona, is a gold medalist for Team Canada from this years IIHF World Juniors, and is a 2022 Ed Chynoweth Cup champion. Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong stated that this is a move to get Guenther top line minutes with Seattle and to essentially continue his development while chasing a title. Through 33 games this year with the Coyotes, Guenther has a stat line of six goals, nine assists to total 15 points while spending ten minutes in the penalty box.
Seattle forward Kyle Crnkovic celebrates his empty-net goal (Photo by Liz Wolter)
Quick notes
Thunderbirds forward Kyle Crnkovic’s goal tonight was the 275th point of his WHL career.
With the win, Seattle remains undefeated (7-0-0-0) against the Chiefs this season
With the addition of Dylan Guenther, the Thunderbirds have ten NHL Draft picks on their current roster.
Seattle went 1-4 on the power play tonight, raising the Thunderbirds power play percentage to 19.35% total and 22.22% at home.
The Thunderbirds held the Chiefs scoreless on when Spokane had the man advantage, as the Chiefs went 0-4 on the night.
Seattle forward Nico Myatovic hugs his goaltender Thomas Milic (Photo by Liz Wolter)
What’s next?
The Thunderbirds get five days between games after the win over Spokane, and they will be greatly appreciated following Seattle’s three consecutive contests. The next time the Thunderbirds hit the ice is February 10th against the Red Deer Rebels at the Accesso Showare Center. With a puck drop time of 7:05PM PST, it’ll be the first battle between the two teams this season at only the second in the past five years. Top scorer Kai Uchacz will lead Spokane into battle as the Thunderbirds will look to shut down the second ranked team in the Eastern Conference.