T-Birds Blank the Blazers
KENT, Wash. – Marek Sklenicka earned his first WHL shutout with a 36 save effort as the Seattle Thunderbirds blanked the Kamloops Blazers, 1-0, in a shootout Friday at the accesso ShoWare Center. It was the T-Birds final game before Christmas. Seattle resumes play December 27th at home against the Everett Silvertips. Game time is 6:05 p.m.
“I’m really happy with the effort from the guys,” expressed head coach Matt O’Dette of the team’s second straight win. “We traded scoring chances a little bit too much during the game. Some posts were hit from both sides and both goalies were really good. We stuck with it and it was really nice to get the win in the end.”
There was no scoring through sixty minutes, despite the two teams combining for 71 shots. Sklenicka and his Kamloops counterpart, Logan Edmonstone, were able to turn everything aside. Some of the better scoring chances came in the second period when each team had two power play chances but failed to convert.
In overtime, the Thunderbirds (12-14-2-1) outshot the Blazers, 5-0, but again could not find the back of the net, sending the game to the shootout. In round one, shooters for both teams failed to convert. The T-Birds second round shooter, Antonio Martorana finally got a puck behind Edmonstone, while Sklenicka denied the Blazers on their second shot.
Seattle’s third round shooter, Brock England, ended the suspense, snapping home a second T-Birds goal to seal the win.
“It was a great moment for me and for the team,” said Sklenicka of the shutout effort. “I love it here and I loved the game today. To win a shootout with zero goals is unbelievable. I think it’s a good game before the Christmas break.”
“He was pretty sharp the whole game,” remarked O’Dette of his goalie’s performance. “Good angles on those post shots and he made several big saves and was calm and cool throughout the night.”
The T-Birds enter the Christmas break with points in three straight games (2-0-0-1) after a six game losing streak. “Yeah, no matter how you spin it we were struggling for a bit there,” explained O’Dette. “But just like that we’ve got a three game point streak. It just re-emphasizes for the guys how hard it is to win in this league. You need to do the little things that might be the difference in a game. Our guys are starting to understand that.”
T-BIRDS EXTRAS
Sklenicka has now stopped 68 of the last 69 shots he faced over his last two starts, posting a 2-0 record with a .48 GAA and a SVPT of .985.
Martorana is a perfect 2-for-2 in shootouts this season. He also scored a shootout goal last Sunday in a loss in Kennewick to the Tri-City Americans.
The Thunderbirds evened up the season series with Kamloops at 2-2 with one game remaining in March.
Boxscore: Kamloops Blazers at Seattle Thunderbirds – Friday, December 19, 2025
