T-Birds Dethrone the Royals
February 19, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Seattle Thunderbirds News Release
KENT, Wash. -Jared Davidson and Kyle Crnkovic each scored twice, and Kevin Korchinski chipped in four assists as the Seattle Thunderbirds defeated the Victoria Royals, 8-1, Saturday at the accesso ShoWare Center. It was Seattle's sixth consecutive win and improved their season record to 41-9-1-1. The Thunderbirds now head to Vancouver Island for a pair of games against the Royals. First up is a Monday matinee at 2:05 p.m.
Thunderbirds head coach Matt called it a complete team effort, something he's been looking for from his club. "That's how it should look when we're playing the right way," he said. "The buy in was contagious. Line after line we were playing the right way. It was nice to see. We've been waiting for a complete effort for a while now."
Seattle got it started early with a Mekai Sanders goal two and a half minutes into the game. The Thunderbirds doubled their lead with Davidson's first of the night at 7:14. Just over a minute later it was 3-0 on a Brad Lambert power play goal.
Korchinski assisted on all three goals. "We're all good players," he said. "We want to push each other. The depth we have is something that's going to be crucial for us down the stretch and in the playoffs."
Seattle added three more goals in the second period. Davidson potted his second of the game at 2:34. He leads the team on the season with 31. "A couple of elite goal scoring plays," said O'Dette of Davidson. "He has the patience and poise to find the shooting lanes."
Goals from Crnkovic and Lucas Ciona gave the Thunderbirds a 6-0 lead after two periods. They stretched the lead to 7-0 when Crnkovic scored again at 16:38 of the third as Korchinski gathered up his fourth assist. "On that 2-on-1, I was trying to find Crank," explained Korchinski. "He can really put the puck in the net. When you play with good players you want to get them the puck. It's just a testament to how good our team is as a whole."
Victoria finally got on the scoreboard at 17:09. A late power play goal from Sawyer Mynio closed out the scoring for the Thunderbirds. It was Mynio's second goal in as many games. He added an assist in the second period as well.
"I'm definitely shooting the puck a bit more," said Mynio of his recent offense. The goal at the end of the game was a rare chance for him to show what he could do on the power play. "We have a lot of talent on our team this year, a lot of guys who could be out there on the power play, so it was good to get out there."
Following games Monday and Tuesday in Victoria the Thunderbirds return home to the accesso ShoWare Center Friday to host the Tri-City Americans. Game time is 7:05 p.m.
T-BIRDS EXTRAS
Colton Dach, acquired at the January 10th trade deadline from the Kelowna Rockets, made his Thunderbirds debut against Victoria. He had been out with an upper body injury, suffered December 31st, while playing for Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championships. He finished the game with two assists.
"I thought he was really good," said O'Dette of Dach's first game with Seattle. "He's a big body, big skilled player. He's hard to handle with his size and he came as advertised tonight."
With an assist on Seattle's sixth goal Reid Schaefer now has 100 points in the WHL. Kevin Korchinski now has 130 points in 130 WHL games. Jared Davidson is one point away from 200 points.
Western Hockey League Stories from February 19, 2023
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- Rockets Top Winterhawks - Kelowna Rockets
- Blades Win Fourth Straight With 2-1 Win Over Giants - Saskatoon Blades
- Winterhawks Heavily Outshoot the Rockets in 3-1 Road Loss - Portland Winterhawks
- Wheat Kings Playoff Push Continues with Win in Swift Current - Brandon Wheat Kings
- T-Birds Dethrone the Royals - Seattle Thunderbirds
- Royals Fall In Road Contest Against Thunderbirds - Victoria Royals
- Blades Squeak Out 2-1 Win Over Giants - Vancouver Giants
- Rebels Sneak Past Tigers in Overtime - Medicine Hat Tigers
- Chiefs Blanked 3-0 by Tri-City Americans Saturday Night - Spokane Chiefs
- Slow Start Costs Broncos in Loss to Brandon - Swift Current Broncos
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