Seattle Blasts Americans 6-0
Published on March 8, 2009 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Tri-City Americans News Release
KENT, WA - Over the past couple of seasons, the name Pickard and shutouts have become somewhat synonymous for the Tri-City Americans, but this what a first...Pickard Blanks Americans.
Stopping all 24 shots he faced, Calvin Pickard and the Seattle Thunderbirds (32-31-1-4, 69 pts) shutout the visiting Tri-City Americans (48-18-0-3, 99 pts) 6-0 in front of a sold-out crowd of 5,596 fans at ShoWare Center. With the win, Seattle snapped their three-game losing streak and pulled to within one point of the fifth-place Kamloops Blazers in the conference standings. Meanwhile, the loss dropped Tri-City's record to 2-2 in Kent this season.
A night after claiming their second-straight division crown and, with several players missing from the line-up and two rookie call-ups, the Americans' roster roughly resembled the squad they fielded on Friday night vs. Seattle. But give full marks to the T'birds, who dominated Tri-City on Saturday.
Despite launching the game's first eight shots, the Americans found no luck in the Seattle zone. Meanwhile, utilizing just five shots in the period, the T'birds capitalized twice.
With 3:52 remaining in the first period, Seattle's first goal came off the stick of Greg Scott. While on the power play, Jeremy Boyer sent a pass, cross-ice to Scott, who beat Tri-City starter Brett Martyniuk high on the glove side. Then, just 45 seconds later, Devon LeBlanc banged in a Sena Acolatse rebound, making it a 2-0 game.
With just 5:51 gone in the second period and back on the power play, Acolatse was heard from again. This time, he sent a slap shot from the left circle, past Martyniuk, for his seventh goal of the season. Seattle made it 4-0 at the 11:35 mark of the period, when Scott fired a pass off Jeremy Boyer's skate and past Martyniuk, chasing the rookie from the contest.
Unfortunately for Tri-City, Drew Owsley didn't fare much better, as the T'birds notched two more goals, less than two minutes apart, to start the third period.
Just 15 seconds into the final period of play, Chris Cloud knocked in a Thomas Hickey rebound, stretching Seattle's lead to 5-0. Then, just 1:39 later, Brenden Silvester sent an innocent shot between the pads of Owsley, capping the scoring in the contest.
Martyniuk, who was credited with the loss, and Owsley combined for 22 saves in the defeat.
The T'birds scored six goals on their first 15 shots and finished the night with a 28-to-24 shot-advantage over Tri-City. Seattle finished 2-for-6 on the power play, while Tri-City was 0-for-4 on the man-advantage.
With just three games left in the 2008-09 regular season, Tri-City will now take next week to prepare for a weekend tripleheader. Game 1 is on Friday, March 13 as the Americans travel to Veterans Memorial Arena to take on the Spokane Chiefs. Game time is 7:00 p.m. Despite having the division title wrapped-up, Tri-City is still gunning for the franchises' second 100+ point season and has a chance to reach the 50-win mark for the second consecutive season. Meanwhile, Spokane is in a heated race with Kelowna for the #3 seed for the upcoming WHL Playoffs. The Americans have won their last two meetings with the Chiefs, but are 1-3-0-1 at Veterans Memorial Arena this season. The 12-game season series is currently tied at 5-games apiece. The game will be broadcast live on KVEW-TV's My Network channel 280 or 35.2/42.2 on your digital tuner. Also, fans can catch all the action live, via WHL WebTV, at the Americans' home away from home, Kimo's Sports Café and R.F. McDougall's in Richland, starting at 7:00 p.m. And, as always, you can catch all the action live on NewsTalk 870 AM, starting with the Sterling Savings Bank Warm-up Show at 6:45 p.m.
Western Hockey League Stories from March 8, 2009
- Gritty Hawks Shutout Everett 2-0 - Portland Winterhawks
- Co-Captain Comes Through - Edmonton Oil Kings
- Join Schenn Chat Monday Night - Brandon Wheat Kings
- Wheaties Sweep Weekend - Brandon Wheat Kings
- Giants Fall in OT 3-2 - Vancouver Giants
- Seattle Blasts Americans 6-0 - Tri-City Americans
- Six different T-Birds score in 6-0 victory over Tri-City - Seattle Thunderbirds
- Chilliwack Rallies to Defeat Hawks 5-3 - Portland Winterhawks
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