Oil Kings and Thunderbirds set for WHL Championship
As the Edmonton Oil Kings and Seattle Thunderbirds get set to face off for the WHL Championship, a pair of midseason acquisitions are certainly paying off for both teams.
Edmonton’s Kaiden Guhle has the fourth best +/- in the WHL Playoffs as well as the fourth most points by any d-man. Seattle’s Lukas Svejkovsky has the third most points in the postseason with 24.
“I’m trying to do whatever it takes to help our team win,” Svejkovsky, a Pittsburgh Penguins draft pick, said. “I got traded here for a reason; that was to score goals and be an offensive producer.”
He arguably had his biggest impact in Game 7 against Kamloops Tuesday night. The 20-year-old tallied assists on all three T-Birds goals as they won 3-2 to advance to the WHL Championship for the third time in five seasons.
The Thunderbirds had found themselves in a 3-2 series hole against the Blazers before their Game 7 win and in the previous round against Portland, they overcame a 3-1 series deficit to advance.
And how crucial has Svejkovsky been to the T-Birds? He is currently on an 11-game point streak where he’s tallied 18 points (five goals).
“I think our team has a tremendous amount of heart,” Svejkovsky said. “Our group is super tight, and that was a big reason why we came back in those series. The belief was always there, even when some people had [written] us out and it wasn’t looking great facing elimination three games in a row against Portland and then with Kamloops having to go into their building in Game 7, do or die, and not having the home ice advantage. Stuff like that definitely makes the group a lot tighter.
“I think we can overcome just about anything.”
Svejkovsky, who was acquired from Medicine Hat Dec. 27, trails Jared Davidson by one point for the T-Birds postseason scoring lead. On the back end, 2022 NHL Draft eligible prospect Kevin Korchinski has continued to shine and has mustered six goals and 16 points in 19 games.
The opposing blue line sees Guhle anchor a deep Oil Kings squad. Edmonton swept Lethbridge and Red Deer before they disposed of Winnipeg in five games to advance to the WHL Championship where they will seek their first title since 2014, the same year they won the Memorial Cup.
“We’re a confident group,” Guhle said. “We believe in ourselves. We’ve got a good team coming in in Seattle and we’ve got to watch them the last few of days. They’re a good team, big, heavy team, very structured.
“We’re confident and we believe in this group and are excited to get going on Friday.”
The Oil Kings acquired Guhle from Prince Albert Dec. 1 in a blockbuster deal. He played just 25 regular season games with the Oil Kings as he suffered a lower-body injury March 12 and did not return to the lineup until the first game of the postseason on April 21 as he seeks to win a second career WHL title after victory in 2019 with the Raiders.
“I’ve got a bigger role [now] so it’s important for me and the team to try and take this all the way to the Memorial Cup,” the Montreal Canadiens prospect said. “I know I want it badly … I know all these guys are excited to finally get a kick at the WHL Championship and the Memorial Cup so it’s important for all of the guys.”
While Guhle was a prized acquisition, so was Justin Sourdif. Edmonton acquired the Florida Panthers prospect from the Vancouver Giants at the WHL Trade Deadline and alongside Dylan Guenter, Jake Neighbours and Carter Souch, it makes for a game-changing group of forwards.
“He was a great acquisition for us and a great player our team,” Guhle said of Sourdif.
For both Guhle and Svejkovsky, this is their final opportunity to claim not only the Ed Chynoweth Cup, but also the Memorial Cup. Guhle seems poised to go pro next season while Svejkovsky will complete his over-age season before he embarks on a professional career within the Penguins organization.
“I love the city of Seattle and playing in front of our fans has been unreal,” Svejkovsky said. “I’ve cherished my time here and there’s no other spot I’d want to finish my junior career at.”
The 2022 WHL Championship can be seen in its entirety on CHLTV. Furthermore, Games 3-7 will be shown LIVE exclusively on TSN.