The Sno-King Amateur Hockey Association’s 14U Junior Thunderbirds defeated the Seattle Junior Admirals 14U to capture the Washington state championship in Spokane on March 19.
The Junior Thunderbirds won in dramatic fashion in sudden death overtime to earn the right to represent Washington at the USA Hockey Tier II National Championship Tournament in Coral Springs, Florida, April 6-10. They will compete against other state champion bantam teams from throughout the country.
The Junior Thunderbirds rallied from two goals down to tie the game in regulation. Two minutes into overtime, Matthew Klenk scored the winning goal.
“This is an incredible accomplishment for our team,” said coach Ron Ortloff. “We’ve been working toward this goal all season long and are thrilled to represent Washington at nationals.”
The Junior Thunderbirds team had a spectacular season:
It won the Flight Two league championship with a record of 13-1-6. This league is the second highest in the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association (PCAHA) in British Columbia, Canada.
The team then went undefeated in the PCAHA Presidents series – the highest a non-Canadian team can achieve.
The Sno-King Junior Thunderbirds team is made up of players 14 years old and younger from throughout the Puget Sound area, practicing at rinks in Kirkland and Renton. The roster includes Alex Bolshakov of Auburn Mountainview High School and Mark Hanscom of Mill Creek Middle School in Kent.
“We had a great experience playing the best of the best in British Columbia and Washington, but now we are eager to take on the best of the best in the U.S.,” said team captain J.T. Rimorin, a freshman at O’Dea High School and a member of last year’s national champion Sno-King Junior Thunderbird 14U team.
With only a couple of weeks between winning the state tournament and attending the national tournament, the team is actively fundraising to help cover the costs for the 16 players and family members to attend the tournament.
Anyone interested in donating to help with travel costs may do so on the team’s webpage: 14U.SnoKingHockey.com
