T-Birds End Season By Shutting Out Chiefs
Keltie Jeri-Leon ends WHL career with 250 games played
KENT, May 9, 2021 — The Seattle Thunderbirds ended the 2020-21 season with a 3-0 shutout of the Spokane Chiefs at accesso ShoWare Center Sunday night.
This was the last game of Keltie Jeri-Leon’s WHL career. Jeri-Leon, the only 20-year old on the T-Birds roster, played 250 games in the WHL with the T-Birds, Tri-City Americans, Kamloops Blazers, and Lethbridge Hurricanes and had 58 goals and 52 assists for 110 points in his career. He played 120 games with the T-Birds and had 43 goals and 35 assists for 78 points.
Congratulations to Keltie Jeri-Leon on playing 250 games in @TheWHL! #LetsGoBirds pic.twitter.com/gt0raYN5bc
— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) May 10, 2021
The T-Birds played a special Thank You video for Jeri-Leon during the first media timeout of the first period.
Goalie Jackson Berry and Scott Ratzlaff combined to make 21 saves to shutout the Chiefs.
Seattle finishes the abbreviated 2020-21 season in third place in the U.S. Division with a 10-12-0-1 record.
Seattle took a 1-0 lead 33 seconds into the second period on a power-play goal by Jeri-Leon. Jared Davidson moved the puck from the right wall to Kevin Korchinski at center ice. Korchinski found Jeri-Leon in the left circle. Jeri-Leon beat Spokane goalie Mason Beaupoit over the right shoulder for his 17th goal of the season.
The Visit Kent first goal of the game tonight was scored by Keltie Jeri-Leon in his last game as a T-Bird. Find out more about Kent now https://t.co/zpbZIos1M8 pic.twitter.com/Jbn8PmKQMz
— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) May 10, 2021
Mekai Sanders scored his first goal of the season at 10:53 of the second on a delayed penalty call to put the T-Birds up 2-0. Spencer Penner passed the puck to Henrik Rybinski coming off the bench as an extra attacker. Rybinski faked a shot and slid the puck to Sanders to the left of the goal. Sanders swept the puck through Beaupoit for the goal.
Mekai's first of the season put us up 2-0.
🍏 Rybinski
🍎 Penner#LetsGoBird pic.twitter.com/mLY6BpjZvI— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) May 10, 2021
Sam Oremba scored a power-play goal at 15:53 of the second to give the T-Birds a 3-0 lead after two periods. Jeremy Hanzel took a shot that was blocked followed by Oremba getting a shot off that Beaupoit stopped. The puck went into the left corner where Jeri-Leon got it. Jeri-Leon drove hard to the net but the puck was poked away. Oremba got the loose puck in the low left circle and put it over Beaupoit for his second goal of the season.
We're 2-for-2 on the PP tonight.
Sam Oremba gets his second of the year to put us up 3-0.
🍏 Jeri-Leon
🍎 Hanzel#LetsGoBirds pic.twitter.com/2MvAjJcPzg— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) May 10, 2021
The T-Birds held their annual Team Awards Ceremony after the game.
BOOSTER CLUB MOST POPULAR PLAYER – Mekai Sanders
HUMANITARIAN AWARD – Keltie Jeri-Leon
SCHOLASTIC PLAYER – Kevin Korchinski
MOST DEDICATED – Keltie Jeri-Leon
TOP SCORER – Henrik Rybinski
MOST IMPROVED – Jared Davidson
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – Jordan Gustafson
DEFENSEMAN OF THE YEAR – Tyrel Bauer
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER – Henrik Rybinski
SCORING SUMMARY
First period – No scoring. Penalties – Cheveldayoff, Spo (boarding), 18:02. Penner, Sea (unsportsmanlike conduct), 18:02. Toporowski, Spo (), 20:00.
Second period – 1, Jeri-Leon 17 (Korchinski, Davidson), :33 (pp). 2, Seattle, Sanders 1 (Rybinski, Penner), 10:53. 3, Seattle, Oremba 2 (Jeri-Leon, Hanzel), 15:57 (pp). Penalties – Rybinski, Sea (hooking), 5:31. Leduc, Spo (cross checking), 13:53.
Third period – No scoring. Penalties – Schaefer, Sea (tripping), 3:25. Bateman, Sea (tripping), 9:29. Popowich, Sea (delay of game), 13:18. Weinstein, Spo (delay of game), 13:18. Toporowski, Spo (checking to the head), 17:34. Berry, Sea (major-fighting, 10-minute misconduct), 19:29. Beaupoit, Spo (major-fighting, 10-minute misconduct), 19:29.
Shots on goal – Seattle 14-24-20 58, Spokane 9-5-7 21. Goalies – Seattle, Berry 21 shots-21 saves (4-8-0-1), Ratzlaff 0-0; Spokane, Beaupoit 58-55 (3-5-2-0), Arnold 0-0. Power plays – Seattle 2-3; Spokane 0-3. Referees – Jarrod Bowman, Erik Freeman. Linesmen – Eric McLaughlin, Cameron Wetmore.
