Bloomington Thunder Weekly
February 4, 2014 - SPHL (SPHL)
Bloomington Thunder News Release
The Bloomington Thunder open a stretch of six games in nine days with the only road games of that string on Friday and Saturday in Huntsville, Alabama.
Snow job: Winter weather prompted the Thunder to postpone Tuesday's game with the Peoria Rivermen one week to February 11 at 7:05 p.m. at U.S. Cellular Coliseum. The game will still feature Pack the House Night specials, including $2 drafts, soda, hot dogs and popcorn. Admission is only $2 when presenting a corresponding number of vouchers to the U.S. Cellular Coliseum box office. The vouchers can be found at www.bloomingtonthunder.com, Facebook and Twitter (BLMThunder).
Standings pat: The Thunder remain in tenth place in the Southern Professional Hockey League with 30 points on a record of 14-20-2, but are only one point behind ninth-place Fayetteville, two points behind eighth-place Knoxville and five points behind seventh-place Columbus. Only seven points separate sixth through tenth place. The top eight teams earn President's Cup playoff berths.
Last time out: The Thunder gained one point in Friday's 3-2 overtime loss at Pensacola, but suffered their worst loss of the season in a lackluster effort in an 8-3 defeat in the Florida panhandle rematch on Saturday. The Thunder gave up four power play goals to increase the season total to 46, most in the SPHL.
Streaking: Leading scorer Travis Granbois (8 goals, 19 assists, 27 points) is on a three-game point streak and has collected a point in seven of his last nine games. Tyler Noseworthy is second in scoring with 23 points (8 goals, 15 assists), but has not collected a point in five games and has one goal and two assists in the last 13 games.
Wreaking Havoc: The Huntsville Havoc (21-13-2, 44 points, 3rd SPHL) have not played since last Friday's 6-4 loss at Columbus. The Havoc are led in scoring by Mike Gurtler (14g, 28a, 42 points), who is second in the SPHL in points and assists. Stuart Stefan and Josh Harris are tied for second in team scoring with 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points each, and Stefan has the league's best plus-minus rating at +22. The Havoc have the best home record in the SPHL at 13-4-0 in Breland Homes Ice Arena.
Following the Thunder: Face-offs are at 7:30 p.m. Central on Friday and Saturday in Huntsville with pre-game on WJBC.com and America One Sports at 7:15. Links to the online broadcasts are on www.bloomingtonthunder.com and are posted to Facebook and Twitter before each game. Fans are also invited to watch all road games at Six Strings, 524 N. Center St. in downtown Bloomington. The Thunder then begin a seven-game home stretch starting with Tuesday's rescheduled game with Peoria. The Push to the Playoffs ticket package presented by Easton Sports provides all 13 remaining home games for only $99, including the same seat (based on availability) and first right of refusal for 2014-15 season tickets. Friday, February 14 is Chicago Blackhawks Night featuring Hall-of-Famer Tony Esposito. For more information, visit www.bloomingtonthunder.com, Facebook and Twitter or call the Thunder office at 309-434-2980.
SPHL Stories from February 4, 2014
- Peppler OT Goal Pushes IceGators Past Pensacola - Louisiana IceGators
- Ice Flyers Fall to Louisiana 3-2 in OT - Pensacola Ice Flyers
- Bloomington Thunder Weekly - Bloomington Thunder
- Surge Netminder Dan Clarke Named Easton Player of the Week - SPHL
- FireAntz Name Olauson Head Coach - Fayetteville Marksmen
- $2 Draft Beers Added to Saturday, February 15 Lineup - Peoria Rivermen
- Pink in the Rink Returns - Mississippi Surge
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