Game 3 Recap

Seattle drops to 0-3 with a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of the visiting Prince Albert Raiders.

Believe it or not, I didn't think the Tbirds played "that" bad.  Seattle started hot in the first period, posting 21 shots but they weren't able to sneak anything past Raider goaltender Eric Williams.  I counted at least 2 or 3 post shots and the Birds just didn't seem to catch a break.  Adding to the frustration, Williams came into the game struggling a bit as he had given up 14 goals in 3 games. Late in the period, Connor Sanvido was called for Interference, PA cashed in with a pretty backdoor Power Play goal and suddenly the Raiders led 1-0 after Seattle had dominated the 1st period action and it seemed to break the back of the home squad.

Calvin Pickard was excellent again and did extremely well to keep the score from being a lot worse.  Too many breakdowns defensively as Seattle is showing some of the same issues that they have had for 2+ seasons now.

And now some bullet holes... because I'm lazy.

• Branden Troock played for the first time since his 15 year old season and while he didn't play a complete game, he had some very good flashes.  The most important thing was that he took a few hits and seemed to make it through the game without getting hurt.  That is a huge plus for Seattle going forward.  The overall skill and depth of the team is so much better with him on the ice and playing well.
• I've seen the comments that Burke Gallimore looks like he is "going through the motions".  I just don't believe that is the case.  I think when players struggle there is a tendency by fans to think they don't care but I think quite simply it just means they are struggling. I can assure you that the veterans on this team definitely care about winning and they aren't just out there going through the motions.  Gallimore has always been a guy who is going to get a lot of his points via the Power Play and Seattle is now 0 for 9 on the PP.  I'm still not worried... but both him and Lockhart need to snap out of it pretty quick.
• One player who surprised me a lot was Mitch Guiel.  He's a small player but he skates well and has pretty good speed.  Wearing #14, I honestly thought I was looking at the 17 year old version of Charles Wells.  Something to watch.
• Chance Lund has been off to a good start to the season, scoring in the first two games and I said at the time I really needed to see more of it to truly believe it.  Last night made me wonder whether his good start might be for real.  True he didn't score (nobody did) but Lund flashed some wheels I hadn't seen from him in previous seasons. For a player who is that big to also have some speed is a dangerous combination.
• The true downside of last night's game was that there were far too many players who I barely noticed making a true impact on the game.  That isn't good and Seattle just isn't talented enough for players to have off nights and that is why they are 0-3.
• The positive from last night was that they were able to get really good pressure at times and they were downright unlucky to have not scored at all.
• Daniel Cotton relieved Pickard and played just over 9 minutes, making 6 saves and looking sharp.

Tbirds are back at home tonight to host the Victoria Royals for the first time.