T-Birds eliminate Blazers from WHL playoffs with Game 7 win on road

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Jared Davidson scored twice in the second period, including once on the power play, to lead the Seattle Thunderbirds to a 3-2 Game 7 victory on Tuesday night against the Blazers in Kamloops.

With the win in front of 5,400 fans at the Sandman Centre the T-Birds advance to the Western Hockey League Championship series to play the Edmonton Oil Kings, with the winner of that best-of-seven series moving on to the Memorial Cup.

Henrik Rybinski also scored for Seattle, who won Sunday’s Game 6 in Seattle 2-1 to force the do-or-die showdown.

Fraser Minten scored a first-period goal for the top-seeded Blazers, who were outshot 37-35. Daylan Kuefler scored with seven seconds to pull the Blazers to within one, but the Blazers ran out of time.

Two of the games in the tight series went into overtime.

The T-Birds will play Game 1 in Edmonton on Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 31, 2022