A step forward, but still a loss

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An example was Friday night’s 4-1 home-ice loss to the Seattle Thunderbirds, the top-rated team in the Canadian Hockey League with only four regulation losses this season.

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Heading into the game, the T-Birds and Rockets were going in opposite directions, and it looked like a mismatch on paper.

Truth be told, it was.

Seattle had points in 11 straight games and had just one loss in their last 18.

The T-Birds had as many wins (25) than the Rockets, Victoria Royals, and Spokane Chiefs combined.

The Rockets were losers of three straight after giving up 12 goals in back-to-back losses Tuesday and Wednesday against BC Division-leading Kamloops.

Despite the discrepancy in points heading into the game, Seattle was tied with Red Deer and Winnipeg for the WHL lead with 52, the Rockets were sitting in eighth in the Western Conference with 27, the three-goal win by the road team was anything but easy.

In a quick and feisty opening period, where the T-Birds attempted to maintain physical dominance, once the Rockets made the adjustment to pushback as much as they were pushed upon, the ice seemed to be even after an opening 20 minutes where Seattle was the better team.

The T-Birds opening two goals were anything but pretty. They were hardnosed, throw it on the net, and crash for rebounds, something many believe Rockets head coach Kris Mallette wants more from his team.

While quick in transitioning the puck up ice, the T-Birds didn’t have to Harlem Globetrotter the puck into the net, but on two separate occasions, literally willed it past starting goaltender Talyn Boyko.

It shows that even the T-Birds, who have scored the most goals in the WHL this season (144), averaging 4.52 goals per game, can play simplistic hockey with four of its best players attending the world junior hockey championships with Team Canada.

What the T-Birds were able to do, that the Rockets have yet to attain, is the ability to play physically without taking many fouls.

The Rockets managed just one power play opportunity, with Andrew Cristall scoring his team-leading 23^rd goal of the season and moving without five points of Regina Pats forward Connor Bedard for the WHL scoring lead.

Cristall also rang a shot off the goal post, as did teammate Nolan Flamand, who has just one goal in his last 20 games.

In a game where playing timid exposed you like a naked man running across a soccer field with security quickly attempting to make an arrest, even those that typically shy away from the rough stuff had to take a courage pill to adapt.

Sadly, if the Rockets played with the type of effort they had against the T-Birds on most nights, they wouldn’t be winless in five straight home games nor would they have 17 losses, with eight of them coming in front of the hometown crowd.

In a possible first-round playoff matchup, much like we saw a season ago when the T-Birds ended the Rockets season in five games, the teams meet again tonight at the Accesso ShoWare Centre, in a building where only the Portland Winterhawks have been fortunate enough to escape with a victory.