Defenseman Tyrel Bauer has been named team captain for the Seattle Thunderbirds this shortened 2020-2021 season while right wing Keltie Jeri-Leon, center Henrik Rybinski and center Matthew Rempe have been named assistant captains.
“Since Ty’s arrival as a 16-year old he has displayed unique leadership skills,” said head coach Matt O’Dette in a press release. “As the rest of his game has grown, so has his leadership skills. He is the right player for the job and will have great support in Keltie, Henrik and Matt.”
Bauer is the 39th captain in team history. Matthew Wedman and Conner Bruggen-Cate were the team captains during the 2019-2020 Western Hockey League season.
In 2019-2020, his second season as a T-Bird, Bauer had three goals and 14 assists for 17 points in 60 games. He was selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the sixth round, 164th overall, in the 2020 NHL Draft on Oct. 7. In two seasons Bauer has played 124 games and has five goals and 26 assists for 31 points.
Jeri-Leon was second on the team in scoring 2019-2020 with 23 goals and 18 assists for 41 points in 63 games. Jeri-Leon was acquired from the Lethbridge Hurricanes in 2019. In 227 games with the T-Birds, Hurricanes, Tri-City Americans, and Kamloops Blazers he has 41 goals and 42 assists for 83 points.
In his first full season as a T-Birds in 2019-2020, Rybinski had 31 points on 11 goals and 20 assists in 53 games. Rybinski was acquired from the Medicine Hat Tigers in 2019, for the rights to defenseman Aidan Brook, a 2019 second-round bantam pick, and a 2020 third-round bantam pick. In 163 games with the T-Bird and Tigers he has 22 goals and 61 assists for 83 points. Rybinski was selected by the Florida Panthers in the fifth round, 136th overall, in the 2019 NHL Draft.
Rempe, a rookie last season, had 12 goals and 19 assists for 31 points in 47 games. He was selected by the New York Rangers in the sixth round, 165th overall, of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Seattle opens the season at 6:05 p.m. Friday, March 19, against the Spokane Chiefs at accesso ShoWare Center. No fans are allowed at games due to COVID-19 restrictions.
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