Kent, Wash.- Smaller ice and bigger minutes have proven to be a recipe for success for rookie Seattle Thunderbirds defenceman Radim Mrtka.
The 6-foot-6, 216-pound right-shot blueliner from Havlickuv, Cze. is generating a lot of NHL buzz in his first season in North America- and having fun doing it.
“I actually love the smaller rink,” Mrtka said. “For me, it’s better. I’m the big guy and when it’s bigger it’s just easier for the small guys to just get around me. (I) just like it more. I’m enjoying more, and I think that I even play better on the small rink.”
Beyond Mrtka’s imposing stature, Thunderbirds Head Coach Matt O’Dette has been impressed by the 17-year-old’s seamless transition to the WHL.
Since making his debut on November 29, 2024, Mrtka has solidified himself as an all-situations player who quarterbacks the team’s first powerplay unit and penalty kill.
“He can really move, which is rare for his age and size,” O’Dette explained. “Generally, those guys haven’t got their coordination yet, but he’s got his feet under him. He’s got really good vision with the puck, can make plays and also defends really well. He’s smart, uses his stick well and is skating really well to defend. He can handle those minutes. He’s in really good shape. He’s very efficient in the way he plays, which allows him to handle those minutes. He controls the game when he’s out there, but it doesn’t put himself in situations where he’s taxed on the ice.”
Mrtka has piled up three goals and 28 assists (including one tally and 10 helpers on the powerplay) for 31 points in 32 games.
He sits second on the Thunderbirds in assists and fourth in points, while ranking ninth in points-per-game (.97) among all WHL blueliners- a list dominated by NHL prospects like Tyson Jugnauth and Lukas Dragicevic (Seattle Kraken), Carter Yakemchuk (Ottawa Senators), Tanner Molendyk (Nashville Predators) and exceptional status defenceman Landon DuPont.
NHL Central Scouting has ranked Mrtka sixth among all North American skaters in the agency’s midterm 2025 NHL Draft rankings, while TSN’s Bob McKenzie has the youngster slotted in at 12th overall in his latest mock draft.
“It feels really good, because I know what I have to do to get here, like all the hard work,” Mrtka said of the recognition. “But I don’t really think about it. I’m just thinking about (the) team, like, what do we have to do for the best of the team and make the playoffs.”
A strong start to the second half of the regular season has launched the Thunderbirds from rebuild mode firmly into the Western Conference playoff race.
Seattle is 7-2-1-0 in its last 10 games to sit in the final playoff berth in the west.
Some of the most important victories in this recent stretch include a 3-1 decision against the league-leading Everett Silvertips (Mrtka and fellow top 2025 Draft-eligible Braeden Cootes assisted Brayden Schuurman‘s game-winning goal) and a shootout win against the Eastern Conference’s top-ranked Medicine Hat Tigers (Mrtka registered an assist and the clinching goal in the 11th round of the shootout).
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“He loves it over here,” O’Dette added. “He loves being a Thunderbird, which is also endearing for us. In the short amount of time that he’s been here, he’s very proud of the team that he plays on and really wants to do well for the logo on the chest. That’s been really impressive, to see him kind of buy into being a Thunderbird.”
Mrtka admits he didn’t know much about the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area when he was drafted by Seattle in the second round of the 2024 CHL Import Draft, but says he pushed hard to make the jump to the WHL for his draft year.
His first overseas hockey experience came with Czechia at the 2023 U17 World Hockey Challenge in Summerside, PEI and the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton, Alta, where he suited up alongside current WHLers like his now-teammate Matej Pekar, Vit Zahejsky (Kamloops Blazers), Dominik Pavlik (Moose Jaw Warriors) and Ondrej Stebetak (Portland Winterhawks) en route to a silver medal.
With 12 games left on Seattle’s regular season slate, Mrtka is dialled into helping the Thunderbirds return to the postseason for the first time since winning it all in 2023.
Seattle (23-29-3-1) will go head-to-head against the Silvertips at Everett’s Angel of the Winds Arena on Friday, February 28 in the final regular-season meeting between the Pacific Northwest rivals.
