T-Birds Falter in Portland
WHL Seattle Thunderbirds

T-Birds Falter in Portland

Published on December 7, 2025 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Seattle Thunderbirds News Release


PORTLAND, Ore. -For the second straight night the Seattle Thunderbirds surrendered the games final four goals and lost, this time to the Portland Winterhawks, 4-3, Saturday at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The loss was the T-Birds fourth in a row. The Thunderbirds complete their three game weekend back home at the accesso ShoWare Center Sunday versus the Spokane Chiefs. Game time is 5:05 p.m.

The night started ominously enough for Seattle (11-12-2-0) when defenseman Radim Mrtka was a late scratch due to illness. "I thought we played pretty well, pretty hard most of the game," said head coach Matt O'Dette. "The game plan was in place a good chunk of the game. But we're going through some adversity right now, losing our top D-man right before the game. We were not expecting that."

Even without Mrtka, Seattle built a three goal lead. Brock England got the only goal of the first period, off a Sawyer Mayes assist. The T-Birds then added a pair of power play goals in period two. Matej Pekar made it 2-0 off a rebound at 2:35. Tai Riley and Simon Lovsin got the assists. Coster Dunn scored at 14:42 with Mayes picking up his second helper.

Portland started their comeback with a power play goal of their own at 17:14. "I thought the turning point was taking that penalty there," remarked O'Dette. "It was an avoidable power play opportunity for them. It gave them some momentum. Up to that point they hadn't had a lot."

The Winterhawks cut the lead to one with a goal in the final 30 second of the period. They tied the game with another power play goal midway through the third period. The game winner came with less than two minutes remaining and moments after a Seattle shot rang off the post.

"We're a young team that's still learning how to win," said O'Dette. "We're in a funk right now but we're gonna continue to battle and grind. Yes, we want to be on the right side of it but these are learning experiences. We'll learn from it and move forward."

T-BIRDS EXTRAS

With the loss Seattle drops to 2-9-0-0 on the road.

Earlier in the week T-Birds defenseman Radim Mrtka was named to the roster of Czechia for the upcoming IIHF World Junior Championships. The tournament gets underway in Minnesota December 26th.

Canada is expected to name their World Junior roster Monday. Seattle's Braeden Cootes is a possible selection for their team.

Check out the Seattle Thunderbirds Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from December 7, 2025


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