WHL Championship Series Tied 1-1
May 13, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Winnipeg Ice News Release
The Seattle Thunderbirds broke a third-period tie with two goals in an eight-second span, evening the 2023 WHL Championship Series presented by Nutrien at one game apiece with a 3-2 win over the Winnipeg ICE Saturday at Canada Life Centre.
Winnipeg Jets prospect Brad Lambert (Lahti, Finland) scored twice for Seattle including the go-ahead marker at the 5:02 mark of the third period. Linemate, and Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Guenther (Edmonton, Alta.) chipped in with three assists while goaltender Thomas Milic (Coquitlam, B.C.) turned aside 29 shots.
"It's special to be playing for the WHL Championship," Lambert said. "It's unbelievable and not many guys get the chance, so I'm just trying to make the most of it. For it to be in Winnipeg, it adds a little more to it."
For the second consecutive evening, the ICE opened the scoring in the first period, going ahead 1-0 at the 4:11 mark of the first period through 2023 NHL Draft prospect Zach Benson (Chilliwack, B.C.).
Benson scored the first of his two Saturday goals after defenceman Graham Sward (Abbotsford, B.C.) drove into the Seattle zone before distributing the puck to the speedy forward, who wired a puck from the left-wing circle into the top corner of the net.
Winnipeg held its 1-0 advantage through 20 minutes, though Seattle held a 16-12 edge in shots.
"Much better game for us, I thought we played more to our identity and executed the game plan the way we needed to," said Matt O'Dette, Head Coach of the Thunderbirds. "Night and day compared to last night. There were some spurts that could have been better, but overall, much happier with the effort in the game tonight.
"Our team as a whole, there was an adjustment phase in Game 1, just getting used to how Winnipeg plays with their fast pace and quick transitions. Managing that a lot better tonight gave us opportunities to attack more. Managing the puck better - if you're turning over the puck against a transition team like this, you're going to be in deep trouble. Taking care of the puck a little better allowed our offensive guys to play more in the O-zone and have opportunities to create."
The Thunderbirds evened the score on their 17th shot of the game at the 1:24 mark of the second period. Defenceman Jeremy Hanzel (Coquitlam, B.C.) one-timed the puck from the point after Nashville Predators prospect Reid Schaefer (Spruce Grove, Alta.) sent a puck across the high slot from left to right in the ICE zone.
The remainder of the middle stanza belonged to the two goaltenders, with Winnipeg netminder Daniel Hauser (Chestermere, Alta.) turning aside 14 shots including point-blank chances from Thunderbirds forwards Lucas Ciona (Edmonton, Alta.) and Jared Davidson (Edmonton, Alta.) in the final minute.
"He's unreal, he's been a rock back there all season for us," Benson said of Hauser. "He's one of the best goalies in the league for a reason. He's been outstanding in this series and the whole playoffs."
Milic turned in his best save of the period with 4:35 to play, lunging with his right skate to deny Buffalo Sabres first-round pick Matthew Savoie (St. Albert, Alta.) at the right post.
Lambert broke the tie with a solo effort five minutes into period three, putting Seattle ahead with a hard snap shot after capitalizing on a turnover in the offensive zone.
Schaefer then extended the Thunderbirds lead eight seconds later, cashing in after a pass from behind the Winnipeg net by Guenther.
After Benson brought the home side to within a goal at the 8:27 mark, Lambert closed out the evening's offence with a breakaway goal with 2:46 to play.
"I thought tonight our puck management hurt us," said James Patrick, Head Coach of the ICE. "It wasn't our defending, it wasn't our D-zone coverage, it was strictly puck management gave them some opportunities they capitalized on."
"I thought they did a good job on our entries and I thought it took a while till we adjusted. I thought we started winning some battles and we got some looks. We got some scoring chances on the power play. Even on the four-minuter, I wouldn't describe it as negative energy because we had some point-blank looks off it, it's just [about] capitalizing."
The Thunderbirds and ICE resume the 2023 WHL Championship Series presented by Nutrien Tuesday, May 16 with Game 3 at accesso ShoWare Center (9:05 p.m. CT, CFRW 1290 AM Radio / TSN).
Notes: At eight seconds apart, Seattle's second and third goals were the two fastest goals scored by one team during the 2023 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien ... Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Guenther led all skaters in Game 2 with three points (0G-3A) ... Montreal Canadiens prospect Jared Davidson won 15 of his 23 faceoff attempts (65.2 per cent) ... Buffalo Sabres prospect Matthew Savoie went 14/21 for an efficiency of 66.7 per cent in the faceoff circle ... Nashville Predators prospect Reid Schaefer extended his goal-scoring streak to five games ... the trio of Zack Ostapchuk, Savoie and Connor McClennon shared the ICE lead in shots on goal with five each .
Western Hockey League Stories from May 13, 2023
- T-Birds Get the Road Split - Seattle Thunderbirds
- WHL Championship Series Tied 1-1 - Winnipeg Ice
- Thunderbirds Claim Game 2 of 2023 WHL Championship Series Presented by Nutrien - WHL
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