Seattle full of good memories for some Wheat King players

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This article was published 23/01/2018 (2793 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The last game the Brandon Wheat Kings played in Kent, Wash., won’t soon be forgotten.

The Wheat Kings beat the Seattle Thunderbirds 8-4 on May 13, 2016, to win their third Western Hockey League title. Just 620 days later, Stelio Mattheos, Ty Lewis, Connor Gutenberg, Linden McCorrister, Logan Thompson and James Shearer will be the only Wheat Kings still active with the team as they visit Seattle tonight.

Caiden Daley, then 15, was on the trip but didn’t play.

Arriving at the ShoWare Centre in Kent, Wash., a short drive south of Seattle, will trigger the first recollections, Shearer said.

“I think it will start as soon as we pull up to the rink, and all the memories will rush back,” he said. “It’s definitely going to be a really exciting game. That’s the biggest game that I’m looking forward to on this trip.”

The matchup is Brandon’s fifth in seven nights as the team makes its annual trip to the West Coast, this year against U.S. Division teams. The Wheat Kings finish the trip with a pair of games against the Kootenay Ice on Friday and Saturday in Cranbrook, B.C.

But they had a little bit of reminiscing to do first.

“Just going into the visitors room and into the hotel, everything really,” Mattheos said. “We’re going to remember everything from that day. I don’t really know what it’s going to feel like but I’m really excited for those memories to come. It will be happy day going back.”

It was a happy day going there the first time, too. After a pair of 3-2 overtime victories in Games 1 and 2 to start the series, with the goals coming from Tanner Kaspick and Jayce Hawryluk, the Wheat Kings headed to Seattle for the next three games.

On Sunday, May 8, the two teams flew together on a charter flight to Abbotsford, B.C., and then the squads caught separate buses across the border.

The series resumed with Game 3 on Tuesday, May 10, and the players quickly learned the Seattle crowd was a new experience completely.

“Their fans are pretty crazy and that’s one of the memories we remember the most,” Gutenberg said. “You kind of feed off that and it was something that I don’t think any of us had played in. I think I’ll always remember that.”

The Seattle crowds have a number of things they like to do, including a healthy “Brandon sucks” chant that they graciously change for every visiting team.

Coincidentally, tonight’s game will feature the same Tuesday night ticket and concession specials that made Game 3 the rowdiest of the league final, with 6,152 loud Seattle fans in attendance.

“The States have pretty great crowds and it’s cool with the chants they do when they score and at the start of a period and that kind of stuff,” Lewis said. “It’s different than playing in Canada and definitely a cool experience. I’ll never forget the final night of the finals and the chants. It was kind of a surreal experience.”

Because they’re in the dressing room, the players don’t see between the second and third period when the lights are turned down. Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” comes on and fans wave their lit-up cellphones above their heads.

Brandon won Game 3, once again in overtime by the score of 3-2, when Reid Duke sniped.

It wasn’t just heating up inside the rink, however. Outside, the temperatures rose from a high of 17 C on the day the team arrived to highs of 19, 23, 26, 24 and 28 on the final Friday.

“I remember that it was super hot outside, which was really weird,” Mattheos said. “We were playing sewer ball outside and it was a different feeling than any regular season game, like we’re really deep into the playoffs. Inside it was just a crazy atmosphere with loud fans and maybe a bit obnoxious at times. They were some of the best crowds to play in front of. It’s a bit hostile in there.”

The team stayed in a hotel about a 10-minute drive north of the ShoWare Centre, and a 10-minute walk from a giant shopping centre.

The Thunderbirds finally responded a night later in Game 4 with a dominant 6-1 win.

In Game 5, John Quenneville scored three minutes in, but Josh Uhrich tied it five minutes later. After Macoy Erkamps and Tyler Coulter put Brandon up 3-1, Uhrich scored his second, and Jerret Smith and Alexander True also sniped in a 10-minute span to give Seattle a 4-3 lead.

But Hawryluk scored tied it late in the period, and the teams went to the dressing rooms after two periods with a score of 4-4.

The Roblin product was unstoppable in the third period. After he assisted Nolan Patrick’s goal to put his team up 5-4, Hawryluk counted the next two goals, and Mattheos scored a late empty-netter as Brandon won its third WHL crown in franchise history.

Gutenberg remembers what the feeling was like on the bench as those final minutes ticked away.

“I think it was just excitement,” Gutenberg said. “I remember at the time I was standing beside Linden and we were in our first playoffs together. Being able to share that with everyone was pretty incredible. It’s something that we’re obviously going to remember for the rest of our lives.”

Mattheos, who played a key role on the team’s checking line as a 16-year-old rookie with Brandonites Duncan Campbell and Tanner Kaspick, agrees.

“At that point it was just pure joy and excitement and the feeling that we did it,” Mattheos said. “It’s hard to put into words.”

Daley and the other healthy scratches, Mark Matsuba and Garrett Armour, along with Thomson, who was injured in the game, skated out after the final buzzer to join their teammates.

“It was almost like I was part of the team,” Daley said. “I was only there for about a month or so but I felt like I was there from day one and had experienced everything. It was amazing and a pretty surreal moment getting to skate around with the trophy in my hand.”

At the final buzzer, the Wheat Kings mobbed goaltender Jordan Papirny against the boards, with hugs, wide smiles and a noisy celebration ensuing.

“It was a very exciting day looking back on it,” Lewis said. “I know that it’s a memory I’m going to have for the rest of my life, winning a championship for the Brandon Wheat Kings. It was a great experience for a young guy. I was 17 and found out what it takes to win a championship. The game wasn’t really out of reach until the last couple of minutes near the end and at that point it kind of hits you. It’s surreal.

“Our older guys did a great job of helping the younger guys and stepping up for big games like that. It was a great feeling and a great experience and I’m looking forward to getting back there.”

While just seven of the 23 players remain from that moment of sheer ecstacy for the team, the players expect it will bring back some memories and be talked about after they arrive.

“I think we’re all going to get some chills,” Gutenberg said. “It’s one of those experiences that you’ll never forget. I think it will be pretty special for us guys and those memories will come back.”

McCorrister agreed.

“Winning there was obviously special and getting to play there again this year is going to make it that much better,” McCorrister said.

Daley said he has no doubt that the Seattle fans will be ready for them all over again.

“It’s probably going to give me a little bit of goosebumps from what happened before,” Daley said. “It’s going to be a great atmosphere and a good crowd and they’re going to remember what we did a couple of years ago. I think it’s going to be a good game.”

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