Barzal leads Thunderbirds to 3-1 win over Everett; series tied 1-1

KENT – Facing the possibility of going down two games in their second-round playoff series with Everett, the Thunderbirds got a big game from their best player.

Center Mathew Barzal scored two goals Sunday evening to pace Seattle to a crucial 3-1 win in Game 2 at the ShoWare Center.

Known more for being an elite play-maker, Barzal was looking to shoot the puck on Sunday.

“Just trying to put a puck to the net,” he said. “It doesn’t come out too often, but tonight I had a shooting mentality and tried to put pucks on the net. I think (Carter) Hart was getting screened and I was lucky enough to find a hole.”

The biggest of the two goals came early in a tied third period when Barzal flung a wrist shot from the point through traffic and past Everett goalie Carter Hart. It gave the T-Birds a 2-1 lead, and their defense and goal-tending from Landon Bow made the lead stick.

“Today was a little more gritty than it was yesterday,” said Bow, who made 23 saves. “But we know that’s how the playoffs go. Every game it gets more and more intense, especially against a great rival like these guys.”

Sunday’s affair was much more physical than Game 1 on Friday night. Especially in the second period, when it seemed that each team was trying to one-up the other with big hits. That, of course, brought out a lot of emotion. A night after giving Everett nine power plays, the T-Birds managed to maintain their composure and not get undone.

“I thought it was a little emotional in the second,” head coach Steve Konowalchuk said. “They tied it up and we were getting a little emotional and we’ve got to make sure we keep in check. Our guys did a pretty good job of staying in control.”

Seattle was able to get two key players back in the lineup for Game 2. Defenseman Jerret Smith, who missed Game 1 with an illness, was back and gave the T-Birds stability on the blue line. Up front, big winger Keegan Kolesar was back after serving a two-game suspension and played a strong game.

Kolesar assisted on Barzal’s third-period goal and put the game away after winning a race down ice to pot an empty-net insurance goal with 13 seconds left in the game.

His return also allowed Konowalchuk to deploy his regular line combinations. Kolesar was back on the top line with Barzal and the line of Nolan Volcan, Scott Eansor and Donovan Neuls was back to take on Everett’s top line. Eansor and company pitched a shutout against that line and the T-Birds were able to roll their lines as they had during their late-season hot streak.

“You get your chemistry back,” Konowalchuk said of Kolesar’s return. “Three lines with guys that have been playing together for a bit, so it’s definitely nice to have. He played well.”

Barzal got the T-Birds on the board in the first period when he skated through the zone and fired an impressive back-hand shot past a screener into the Silvertips’ net. It was the first goal of the playoffs for Barzal, who had chipped in seven assists in the first five games.

The Silvertips tied the game in the second period when defenseman Cole MacDonald found room on a power play and split the Seattle penalty killers to move in on Bow alone to score. The T-Birds regrouped in the third to set up Barzal’s game-winner.

Seattle got a strong performance from Bow in net and the big netminder was perhaps at his best late in the game when Everett had the extra attacker. He made several key saves, which allowed Kolesar to get the puck and the empty-net goal at the other end.

Goal-tending is front and center in this series, which features two of the league’s best. Bow tries not to worry about what Hart is doing at the other end.

“I just go out and play,” he said. “I know what I have to do. I just go out and have fun and stop the puck. I just try to keep my mind calm and play in the moment.”

With the series now shifting to the XFinity Arena in Everett for Games 3 and 4, the T-Birds had to find a way to grind out a win on Sunday. They did it by shaking off the first regulation loss they’ve suffered in nearly two months. After losing home ice advantage in Game 1, they have a chance to snatch it back in Everett.

“We knew that if we went down 2-0 tonight, the table would be turned towards their side going back to their rink,” Barzal said. “We needed to get a split tonight and that’s what we did.”

Game 3 in Everett is Wednesday night at 7.

Notes

• Konowalchuk liked seeing the shots from Barzal and said that the shooting mentality in this series is important, for Barzal and everyone else on the team. “It’s the way you have to beat (Hart) and this team,” he said. “They’re good defensive hockey team and they’re in a lot of shot lanes and you’re not going to get a lot of 10-bell chances out there. So just try and get pucks there, and crash and bang.”

• Seattle’s power play continues to struggle in the postseason. It went 0 for 4 on Sunday and now is without a goal in nine chances in the second round.

• Hart is one of the best goalies in the WHL and Sunday he added some offense to his game. He picked up the lone assist on MacDonald’s power-play goal. It was his first career postseason point.

• The T-Birds got off to a good start again on Sunday and out-shot the Silvertips 16-9 in the first period. In the first two games, they have come out of the gates to take a 32-10 first-period shot advantage. The difference on Sunday is that the T-Birds managed to score, something they did not do on Friday.

Follow Andy Eide on Twitter @andyeide.