T-Birds Streak Snapped in Lethbridge
LETHBRIDGE, Alta. –The Seattle Thunderbirds were held off the scoreboard for the first time this season, dropping a 5-0 decision to the Lethbridge Hurricanes Wednesday at the Enmax Centre, snapping their six-game winning streak. The loss was also Seattle’s first on the road in six away games. The T-Birds will continue their six-game road trip Friday in Swift Current against the Broncos. The Thunderbirds next home game is Friday, November 3rd against the Spokane Chiefs. Game time is 7:05 p.m.
“It’s part of the learning process, learning how to play these games,” head coach Matt O’Dette said of his team playing back-to-back nights for the first time this season. “This is life in the WHL, you’re going to see all sorts of scenarios. We need to learn how to play in these situations.”
The game turned on the Thunderbirds (7-2-0-0) midway through the first period when they gave up three goals in less than three minutes. Falling behind, 3-0, they couldn’t mount an effective response. “We’ve been really good in that department but obviously not tonight,” explained O’Dette. “When you have a young team, you can have these off nights and stumble, and this was one of those games.”
Lethbridge added another goal midway through the second period and scored again early in period three. Seattle was limited to just 22 shots on goal on the night and generated just one power play.
The one bright spot for the Thunderbirds was their penalty kill which was a perfect 4-for-4 and generated several shorthanded scoring chances. “That was a positive we can take forward,” O’Dette remarked. “We’re going to have to search for some others to take out of this game. There might not be many of them, but we can highlight the PK.” The T-Birds are now first in the WHL on the penalty kill at 90.6-percent, killing off 29 of 32 shorthanded situations.
The last time Seattle lost, they answered with a six-game winning streak. O’Dette hopes they can repeat that after the setback in Lethbridge. “We want to see the response, the pushback. I think a lot of the same problems that bit us in that Portland loss, were coming back tonight, so we have to correct these things again,” he said. “We won six a row, we had a stinker tonight. We’ve done a lot of good things the last six games, so we’ll put this one behind us, learn from it and get back on the path.”
T-BIRDS EXTRAS
Despite the loss this is still the second best start to a season in franchise history, eclipsed only by last season’s 9-0-0-0 start.
Still dealing with multiple injuries, Seattle recalled RW Brayden Holberton. Holberton played one game for the T-Birds earlier this season, the season opening win in Wenatchee.
Prior to the home game on November 3rd, the T-Birds will retire the number 12 in honor of Patrick Marleau. Marleau played for the Thunderbirds from 1995-97, leading them to the 1997 WHL Championship Series. He was selected second overall in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft by the San Jose Sharks. He holds the NHL record for most regular season games played at 1,779.
Boxscore: Seattle Thunderbirds at Lethbridge Hurricanes – Wednesday, October 25, 2023 (chl.ca)
