Hockey: Coachella Valley Firebirds win 7-4 over Abbotsford Canucks in Seattle
One Coachella Valley Firebirds staffer described Friday’s “home” opener at Kraken Community Iceplex in Seattle as a dress rehearsal for the new American Hockey League franchise.
In hindsight, that was spot-on, because the team's Sunday game at Climate Pledge Arena in downtown Seattle felt much more like the real thing, with the kind of atmosphere that should accompany the team to the desert in December when their new home arena opens.
With the team's mascot, Fuego, and a few thousand fans cheering them on at the home of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken, the Firebirds did not disappoint.
The Firebirds notched a 7-4 victory over the Abbotsford Canucks on Sunday, with four players scoring their first goals with the organization. Just two other AHL teams have scored more than seven goals in a game this season.
"The game had a lot of everything," Firebirds head coach Dan Bylsma said. "The lower bowl was mostly filled, there was energy in the building, colors flying, Fuego was out there. We entertained them, that's for sure."
The Firebirds are now 3-1 this season, heading into their next game on Friday versus the Calgary Wranglers in Everett, Washington.
Sunday's game included a goal within the first minute and a fight within the second minute as fans caught a preview of the kind of energy that may exist inside Acrisure Arena near Palm Desert.
The Firebirds’ first game inside the half-billion-dollar arena will be on Dec. 18 against the Tucson Roadrunners, the NHL affiliate of the Arizona Coyotes. Coachella Valley will play four games at the 11,000-seat Acrisure Arena in December, and a total of 32 games there this season.
But Sunday was all about the team playing at Climate Pledge Arena, the 18,100-seat home of the Firebirds’ NHL affiliate, the Kraken. Coachella Valley players can be called up to play with the Kraken at any time, as goalkeeper Joey Daccord was on Saturday following an injury to Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer on Friday.
Jimmy Schuldt scored the first goal for the Firebirds, just 42 seconds into the game, and Tye Kartye, Carsen Twarynski, Jesper Froden, John Hayden, Ryker Evans and Andrew Poturalski scored the others.
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The game was tied, 3-3, after an explosive first period, before Froden scored on a diving shot that brought the crowd to its feet.
Abbotsford answered back to tie the score again at 4-4, and Bylsma made a change in goal, switching Christopher Gibson for Callum Booth, and the Firebirds scored three goals in the second period and never looked back. The seventh goal came in the final moments of the third period, on an open net.
On Friday, the Firebirds played the Canucks in the first of four “home away from home” games in Washington. It was a private event that drew a few hundred spectators, and the Firebirds lost, 4-3.
But on Sunday, the Kraken opened their arena for Coachella Valley to take the ice for a game that was open to the public.
“While we’re here, they’ve been great hosts,” said Troy Bodie, the Firebirds’ director of hockey and business operations. “I think it’s important to play a few games here to give them a glimpse of what the future holds.”
Though there was plenty of Kraken apparel in the crowd, and a decent number of Abbotsford fans sporting the blue and green of the Canucks, more than half of those in attendance wore blue and orange Firebirds hats, jerseys, shirts and hoodies and roared throughout the evening for the team from the Coachella Valley.
“I think it was a big reason we won tonight,” said Hayden, a 25-year-old forward from Chicago. “I think we fed off the crowd. It was pretty exciting to play in this building and play in front of a ton of fans.”
Booth said that players felt appreciation for the fans before the game even began, which accounted for the Firebirds' fast start.
“I saw a lady with a very cool drawing of a Firebird in warm-ups,” said Booth, 25, of Montreal. “I thought that was awesome. …There’s a good buzz around the Firebirds and hopefully we can keep that going.”
This game featured the same type of arena lighting, sound system and sound effects that will exist at Acrisure Arena. Whenever the Firebirds scored, fog horns bellowed throughout the arena. Bird calls played when the team was on a fast break, and music blared with a “Let’s-go-Firebirds” jingle as fans celebrated goals.
The atmosphere gave local fans a chance to see some stars of tomorrow in Seattle, and for any visiting from the Coachella Valley, it would have been a peek into what’s coming to town.
“Seeing all that, it’s been really cool, but we’re super excited to get to our real home and get things started there," Booth said. "We’re super excited to get down there, to be able to experience those fans and hopefully they’re excited to have us.”
Players say that the time on the road has helped them get to know one another quickly, as many did not know or hadn't played together prior to this month. They're now all living in the same hotels and many are sharing rooms with teammates.
They opened the season with a pair of wins in Calgary before heading to Seattle on Oct. 19. Then lost to Abbotsford on Friday before Sunday's win.
Hayden said that players have been overwhelmed with the support they've felt in Seattle, mostly from Kraken fans.
“I just think it speaks to the excitement around the whole organization,” Hayden said. “Hockey in the desert, new hockey here in Seattle. I played against Seattle last year and the fans are very passionate, and they didn’t disappoint tonight.
"So, we’re excited to go down to the desert and we know that they’ll be passionate in Palm Springs, too.”
Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA Today Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com and find him on Twitter at @Andrew_L_John.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Hockey: Coachella Valley Firebirds win 7-4 over Abbotsford Canucks
