Seattle Thunderbirds have whirlwind week
by Ed Kobak/Global Sports
Published on January 4, 2009 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Seattle Thunderbirds
The ice plant is dormant, the logo has been removed from centre ice, the lights have faded to black, the fat lady has sang. The Seattle Thunderbirds have left the building-Key Arena at Seattle Center that is.
The Thunderbirds played their last game at cavernous Key Arena on Tuesday night, December 30, home to the Thunderbirds for 13 plus seasons, going out with a final win at the Key.
In the fell swoop of a few months Key Arena not only lost the Sonics but also the Thunderbirds who now make their home down the road 15 miles south of Seattle, in suburban Kent in brand-new ShoWare Center, formerly known as the Kent Events Center.
Gone are the bumpy ice suface and
constantly breaking glass along with the cavernous, impersonal feel of Key
Arena-even with the curtains drawn across the upper bowl.
The
Thunderbirds opened to a sell out crowd of 6,125 in their $85 million new home on
Saturday night against their hated arch-rivals, the Everett
Silvertips.
The opening night pyrotechnic display announcing the
T-birds starting lineup, the crowd was electric in their new state of the art $85
million home-just what the new owners had envisioned back in 2002 when they bought
the franchise from former owner Bill Yuill, who then in turn bought the franchise
rights to the expansion team in Everett, who became the Silvertips and have played
before packed houses in Everett since their inception.
Now, the
Thunderbirds have their own intimate home. One that rivals Comcast Arena in Everett,
as well as a new and drastically increased fan base. The T-Birds kept intact nearly
all of their 1,000 season-ticket holders from the Key and already has doubled that
base to 2,000. By season's end, the T-birds expect to have 3,000 season ticket
holders.
After playing a road-heavy WHL early season schedule, the
T-birds now have 25 of thir final 34 games at home in their new ShoWare
Center.
Saturday night's game score? The T-Birds hung on for a 4-3
win after jumping out to a 4-0 start after two and a half
periods.
What mattered most to the T-Birds besides the win, they
have finally found a new roost with new passionate fans.
It bodes
well for the T-Birds, the WHL, the city of Kent and their new loyal fan
base.
The broken glass along the boards, well, they did bring that along
from their days at the Key when there was a brief stoppage of play during the game
in Kent, to repair the broken glass...
Western Hockey League Stories from January 4, 2009
- T-Birds Extinguish Blades - Seattle Thunderbirds
- T-Birds Get Past Blazers - Seattle Thunderbirds
- Blazers Double Up Giants In Vancouver - Kamloops Blazers
- Seattle Thunderbirds have whirlwind week - OSC Original by Ed Kobak/Global Sports
- Wheat Kings Look For Weekend Sweep - Brandon Wheat Kings
- Blazers snap Giants 11 game win streak - Vancouver Giants
- Seattle's New Home Topples 'Tips, 4-3 - Everett Silvertips
- Americans Tame Cougars 5-2 - Tri-City Americans
- T-Birds Topple Tips in ShoWare Opener - Seattle Thunderbirds
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
