McKenzie big figure in T-Birds' late push

At 6 feet 5 and 222 pounds, Ian McKenzie is hard to ignore.

Yet somehow, the Thunderbirds right wing has slipped under the radar in the Western Hockey League over the past month. And while the T-Birds would prefer to have their first-round playoff series with the Kelowna Rockets in the books by now -- they host Game 7 Tuesday night at KeyArena -- it is unlikely they would have fought back from a 2-0 series deficit without him.

In his final WHL season, McKenzie was hoping to make an impact with a 30-point campaign. The start, though, gave the 20-year-old from Weyburn, Saskatchewan, second thoughts.

McKenzie broke camp on the third line, far from the impact position he hoped to play as an over-ager. But with help from linemates Jan Eberle and Jeremy Boyer and assistant coach Turner Stevenson, he developed into the type of player the T-Birds envisioned when they traded for him last season.

"I wanted to be one of the top six forwards, but being on the third line has been great," McKenzie said. "I'm not sure if there is less pressure, but Jan and Boyer have made my life easy.

"I don't mind being on the third line with those guys at all."

Along with the groove he's found with Eberle and Boyer, McKenzie has soaked up wisdom from Stevenson, who played 11 seasons in the NHL.

"He is the main reason that I'm doing a lot of the small things right," McKenzie said. "He's been to the Big Show. He's won the Stanley Cup. He brings a lot to the table so it's easy to take in what he's saying."

McKenzie carried some outstanding numbers into the playoffs. Over the final six games of the regular season, he scored four goals to go with four assists, finishing the season with 40 points. Now six games into the postseason, he is among the league leaders with nine points on three goals and six assists.

"He played great the whole second half, and he's carried that into the playoffs," Seattle coach Rob Sumner said.

Of McKenzie's nine points in the playoffs, six have come on the power play, an area in which the T-Birds struggled during the regular season, ranking 20th in the WHL with a 14 percent success rate. With McKenzie in the second group on the ice with a manpower advantage, Seattle is converting 33.3 percent in the playoffs -- the best mark in the league.

"Our power play has been a big factor this series," McKenzie said. "It was almost nothing in the regular season, so that's been a bit surprising."

His newfound success has given the T-Birds the scoring depth they've needed against the Rockets. Obtained from the Moose Jaw Warriors for a sixth-round draft pick, he has come a long way since his arrival.

"He's playing with a new level of belief in himself," Sumner said. "He is the player that we envisioned all along."

THUNDERBIRDS

VS. KELOWNA

WHAT: Game 7 of first-round WHL playoff series.

WHEN/WHERE: Tuesday, 7:05 p.m., KeyArena

RADIO: KKNW-AM/1150

SERIES: The T-Birds came back from a 2-0 deficit to take a 3-2 series lead, but the Rockets forced Game 7 with a 4-3 overtime victory Saturday in Kelowna. The series winner will face Tri-City in the Western Conference semifinals.

NOTES: Of the 39 goals scored in the series, 20 have come on the power play. ... The Rockets have had success early, while Seattle has found the net late. Five Kelowna goals have come in the first minute of a period. Seattle has scored five goals in the final minute of a period. ... RW Ian McKenzie (3 G, 6 A) and D Thomas Hickey (1 G, 8 A) lead the T-Birds with nine points each.

-- Matthew Gaschk