The Western Hockey League boasts some of the best young hockey players from British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and in some cases, the United States. For Mekai Sanders, his journey to the Seattle Thunderbirds was much shorter in terms of geographical distance. Sanders, a native of Gig Harbor, Washington, was selected by the Thunderbirds in the ninth round of the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft. He was then signed to a Standard Player Agreement a little over a month later, on June 19th, 2018. Reliving that excitement was not a stretch for the young forward.
“It was awesome. As a kid, I came to Thunderbirds games. It was always really nice to be around the rink. The energy in the building was incredible. It is surreal to actually be a Thunderbird,” Sanders recalled.
As a local product, Sanders’ journey to the Thunderbirds franchise was different from an average major junior prospect. Sheets of ice in western Washington have been scarce, making regular playing time difficult for many youth in the area.
“My playing career started in Bremerton, playing a season with the West-Sound Warriors, moved to Sno-King with the Junior Thunderbirds, before finishing my local youth hockey with Seattle Junior in Lynnwood. I don’t miss the Olympic-sized ice at Olympic View.”
After completing his local youth hockey career, Mekai was presented with the opportunity to continue his development in one of the hockey hotbeds of the U.S., taking his talents to Detroit, Michigan.
“The style of play is really different over there. It has some good pace and physical play and [is] really competitive. It was just a whole different style of play than I was used to. It was a really great experience for me. I’m glad I got the opportunity.”
In returning home from Detroit, the offseason loomed. With one goal in mind, Sanders looked to train hard over the summer and give back to the local hockey community.
“Offseason was good. It was hard training, on and off the ice. I think I’ve made some good progress. My goal was just to get bigger, stronger, and faster, and I think I did that. Beyond that, I was able to be an instructor for the second straight year with the T-birds for the adult and youth skills camp that took place a couple of weeks ago. The kids camp was awesome. They’re all just having fun, doing their best. Just doing their best to learn every day. It really reminds me of where I was just a few years ago, here, skating at ShoWare, playing as a kid as well.”
Sanders’ impact in the camp also caught the attention of Thunderbirds General Manager Bil La Forge, who had nothing but the highest praise for the youngster.
“He’s a good hockey player and a great human being. You know, I had two of my nephews in the camp, and they couldn’t stop talking about how nice he was and how good of kid he is and how hard he works. Mekai is a special, special guy, and we’re really happy to have him.”
Mekai has shown tremendous strides in his game throughout camp so far. He’ll have the opportunity to showcase more of his talent next weekend in Everett. However, he already knows exactly what he plans to bring to the table.
“I’m going to bring a lot of fast-paced, physical play, especially in the corners and winning battles”
You can see the Thunderbirds’ first preseason action next weekend at the annual Everett tournament. Seattle will play the defending Western Conference Champions, Vancouver Giants, Friday at 11:30 AM. Saturday, Seattle plays division opponent, the Tri-City Americans, at 3:00 PM. Finally, wrapping up the weekend, Seattle will see the host Everett Silvertips at 7:00 PM.
