The Seattle Thunderbirds have finally wrapped up a great season after a trip to the Memorial Cup in Windsor last weekend. Although the Thunderbirds ended in last place at that tournament, the WHL championship title that they won in Regina a few weeks prior takes precedent in the memories of the athletes.
A number of players from Yorkton and surrounding areas helped make the season what it was for the Thunderbirds.
D-man Turner Ottenbreit and forward Zack Andrusiak are both from Yorkton. Ethan Bear is from Ochapowace, and Donavon Neuls is from Grenfell.
The WHL championship was the first in the franchise’s history. Ottenbreit said that made the season a pretty big accomplishment.
“That’s what we worked for all year, was to win that trophy,” he said. “Coming into the summer, we knew we had a good team this year, as long as we were willing to work for it and just do it. It worked out.”
Ottenbreit said the success the team had on the ice was due to the relationships they had off the ice.
“We were a close-knit group. It was fun coming in every day and it makes it more enjoyable when you’re with a team like that,” he said.
Individually, Ottenbreit reached career highs in a number of categories this season. Humbly, he credited the rest of his team for his personal success.
“It just goes to show how good the team was, they were a huge part of that. You obviously can’t do that on your own,” he said.
Ottenbreit reached a career high in points, racking up 32 throughout the regular season, and an additional 10 in the post season. He also hit a high in assists with 25 during the regular season, and added another seven in the post. He played a total of 94 games with the Thunderbirds this year.
He said having teammates from around the Yorkton area who he played with in the past helped make the season a bit easier. The familiarity of having people from home made it more comfortable.
Zack Andrusiak had similar feelings.
“I was pretty excited when I got traded there because I knew some of the guys. I hadn’t played with them since peewee, so I was looking forward to that. And getting to win with them was amazing,” said Andrusiak.
Andrusiak was traded to Seattle in October from the Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL. He said his first season with the team was something like no other.
“It was a great run and everything, it was a pretty special season,” he said. ‘The Memorial Cup didn’t go the way we wanted but to be able to win the WHL cup - I wouldn’t have traded this season for anything.”
Andrusiak played a total of 73 games with the Thunderbirds in the regular and post season combined. He put up a respectable 12 points.
He said while there were a lot of big moments throughout the year, nothing tops winning the WHL championship. He credited his experienced teammates for the success of the season.
“The team went to the league final last year, so we had lots of veterans this year who knew what it would take to get back there, and what it took to win,” he said. “We had lots of depth in all of our lineups. And our top players – I can’t say much more than they’re amazing, and got the job done.”
When it came to the Memorial Cup tournament, Andrusiak said the wear and tear of a long season was their downfall.
“It showed not only with us but with the other championship teams there,” he said. “It was hard to amp it up and get going. We weren’t ourselves that tournament.”
As for next year, both Ottenbreit and Andrusiak are hoping to return to Seattle for another season with the Thunderbirds. But for now, they’re both spending some time at home after a long, tough and amazing season.
