Seattle Sprints to Finish Line Tuesday as Wild Fall, 7-3

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Wenatchee Wild

Seattle Sprints to Finish Line Tuesday as Wild Fall, 7-3

December 11, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Wenatchee Wild News Release


Wenatchee Wild forward Luka Shcherbyna
Wenatchee Wild forward Luka Shcherbyna
(Wenatchee Wild, Credit: Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds)

KENT, Wash. - The schedule for the Wenatchee Wild is a sprint to the holidays, with six games in a nine-day span ahead of the break. Tuesday's game at the Seattle Thunderbirds wrapped up a four-game stretch over five days, and the sprint to the end of Tuesday's tilt at Accesso Showare Center came from the Thunderbirds, with the hosts picking up a 7-3 win. Wenatchee would cut the lead to a single goal on three separate occasions, but the game's final three goals came from Seattle in the third period.

The Thunderbirds hopped into the lead 4:26 into the game, when Antonio Martorana tapped in a chance off a takeaway in front of the Wenatchee net. Arjun Bawa pushed the Seattle advantage out to 2-0 on a redirect from the left wing at 12:18, but the Wild carried the momentum into the dressing room thanks to Brendan Dunphy's first WHL goal with 1:35 remaining, on a snap from the edge of the right-wing faceoff circle.

With 96 seconds off the second-period clock and just a fraction of a second remaining on a power play, Braeden Cootes made it a 3-1 game, driving the puck to the front of the net before tucking it inside the post. Just past the game's halfway mark, Miles Cooper found Luka Shcherbyna on the back post for a tap-in to narrow the lead again, but Simon Lovsin would sneak a chance through underneath Daniel Hauser with 3:46 left on the clock to make it 4-2.

Just like the first period, the Wild carried some late momentum to the locker room, thanks to Maddix McCagherty, who received a pass from Cooper before walking the puck to the net and slinging it in with 1:50 remaining.

Seattle picked up two goals in quick succession in the third period to take control for good, starting with Bawa's short-side wrister from the doorstep at the 4:36 mark. Kaleb Hartmann hammered a slap shot from the top of the offensive zone at 6:25 of the period to put the Thunderbirds ahead 6-3, before a right-point wrist shot from Radim Mrtka with 6:48 left gave them their final four-goal cushion.

Hartmann led the way for Seattle with a goal and three assists, while Cootes had a goal and two helpers. Grayson Malinoski made 27 saves for his third win in a Thunderbirds uniform, as his team went 1-for-6 on the power play. Wenatchee went scoreless on three power play opportunities in the game.

Shcherbyna wrapped up the night with a goal and an assist, while Cooper finished with two assists. Hauser took the loss with 25 saves, while Zach Zahara stepped on in relief and made saves on nine of 10 Seattle shots. The Thunderbirds bumped their record to 11-17-2-1 with the win, while the Wild came out of the matchup at 9-16-3-1 on the year.

The Wild continue a four-game road stretch on Friday with a visit to the Everett Silvertips. The opening puck drop at Angel of the Winds Arena is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., with live coverage on Newsradio 560 KPQ and WHL Live.

Wenatchee returns to home ice on Saturday, December 28 for Margaritaville Night against the Spokane Chiefs, presented by Riverside Payments. Tickets for that game and all regular-season home games are on sale now by phone at 509-888-7825, or by visiting the team office at Town Toyota Center. Updated news and information on Wild hockey are always available through the team's website and on the team's social media platforms on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

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Images from this story

Wenatchee Wild forward Luka Shcherbyna
Wenatchee Wild forward Luka Shcherbyna
(Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds)		   

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