The Seattle Thunderbirds are a major junior ice hockey team based in the city of Kent, Washington. They are part of the U.S. Division of the Western Conference in the Western Hockey League. Founded in 1971 as the Vancouver Nats, the team arrived in Seattle in 1977 and played as the Breakers until 1985, when they adopted the Thunderbirds name. The team played in Seattle for three decades before moving to the accesso ShoWare Center in nearby Kent in 2008. The Thunderbirds are two-time WHL champions, with their most recent title coming in 2023.
The team was founded in 1971 as the Vancouver Nats of the Western Canada Hockey League, but moved to Kamloops, British Columbia, after just two seasons to become the Kamloops Chiefs in 1973.[1] In 1977, the team moved again, this time to Seattle, and was renamed the Seattle Breakers.[1] The move came just years after the city narrowly missed out on securing a National Hockey League franchise.[2] The Breakers began play in 1977–78, and played out of the Seattle Center Arena. Through eight seasons, the Breakers finished with a regular season record of 225 wins, 319 losses, and 32 ties; and playoff record of 11 wins and 21 losses, twice advancing as far as the West Division finals.[3] The team nearly folded in 1982 when, under owner John Hamilton, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This reality, combined with novel promotions like honoring unused Seattle Seahawks tickets at the gate, boosted attendance at Breakers games.[4] This was also helped by on-ice success. Despite the off-ice challenges, the team, under coach Jack Sangster, swept the Victoria Cougars in the playoffs to advance to the Division finals. There, they faced the rival Portland Winter Hawks, dropping the series to the eventual champions 4 games to 2.[4]
After the 1984–85 season, the Breakers were sold to new owners and renamed the Seattle Thunderbirds as part of an extensive re-branding.[5] Along with the new name, the team changed its color-scheme from orange, blue, and white, to green, blue, and white, announced a renovation plan for its home arena, and by 1990 began playing some of its games at the larger Seattle Center Coliseum.[5][6] New management promised to spare no expense and to turn the team into a contender. This included hiring Russ Farwell as manager and Barry Melrose as coach—the two had been instrumental in the Medicine Hat Tigers' 1988 Memorial Cup championship.[7] However, despite the scoring exploits of Glen Goodall—Goodall set new league records for goals (262) and points (573) and had his number 10 jersey retired when he turned professional in 1990[8]—it would be twelve years before the Thunderbirds broke through to their first league final. Led by star forward Patrick Marleau, the Thunderbirds faced the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 1997 championship series, which they lost in a sweep.[9] Although the Thunderbirds would win their first and second regular season Division titles in 2002–03 and 2004–05, the eighteen seasons after their first finals appearance would see the team advance past the second round of the playoffs just once.
In 2006, the Thunderbirds announced their intention to move to a brand new arena being constructed in Kent, south of Seattle.[10] The purpose-built arena was a major attraction for the team.[11]
2015 marked the beginning of the most successful period in team history, as the Thunderbirds advanced to the finals four times in eight seasons, twice capturing the Ed Chynoweth Cup as league champions. Led by the likes of Matthew Barzal, Ethan Bear, and Keegan Kolesar, the 2015–16 season saw the Thunderbirds capture their first Division title since 2005 and make their deepest playoff run since 1997 when Matthew Wedman's game four overtime goal sent the Thunderbirds past the Kelowna Rockets and into the championship final.[12] They lost the final in five games to the Brandon Wheat Kings.[13] The following season, the Thunderbirds returned to the final, where they faced the Regina Pats. They defeated the Pats in six games, with Alexander True scoring the title-winning goal in overtime of game six to secure Seattle's first championship.[14] With the win, Seattle advanced to the 2017 Memorial Cup tournament, where they were eliminated after three straight losses in the preliminary round.[15]
After two straight first-round exits and two years without playoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Thunderbirds again emerged as a contender in the 2021–22 season. That season, the team returned to the finals and faced the Edmonton Oil Kings to contest the first league playoff title since 2019. Seattle lost the final in six games.[16] The following season was the best in Thunderbirds' history with the team posting 54 wins and 111 points.[17] In the playoffs, the eliminated the Memorial Cup-host Kamloops Blazers in the Western Conference championship, moving on to face the Winnipeg Ice in the title series.[18] They defeated the Ice in five games to earn a berth in the 2023 Memorial Cup tournament.[19] There, led by Dylan Guenther and goaltender Thomas Milic, the Thunderbirds advanced to the tournament final, which they lost to the Quebec Remparts.[20]
The Thunderbirds are one of five teams based in Washington, along with the Tri-City Americans, Spokane Chiefs, Wenatchee Wild, and Everett Silvertips. The Thunderbirds have built an enduring rivalry with the Portland Winterhawks, dating back to the 1980s.[6][21] Everett is the closest team to Seattle and a natural rival; and the two teams have met regularly in the playoffs, including a three-year stretch between 2016 and 2018 where the winner of the series between the two made it all the way to the championship series.[22]
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties OTL = Overtime losses Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Updated May 30, 2024.[23]
Several National Hockey League players started with the Thunderbirds:[citation needed]
Four Broncos Memorial Trophy (WHL player of the year)
Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy (WHL rookie of the year)
Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy (WHL top defenceman)
Del Wilson Trophy (WHL top goaltender)
Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy (WHL coach of the year)
Doc Seaman Trophy (WHL scholastic player of the year)