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Cichocki Signs Three-Year Contract Extension

April 5, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


STOCKTON, Calif. - The Stockton Thunder, the ECHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League, has re-signed head coach Chris Cichocki to a three-year contract extension, Thunder president Dan Chapman announced today. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

In his second season as Thunder head coach, Cichocki has orchestrated a 36-point improvement in the standings from last season with a 38-22-10 record (86 points), with only two games remaining in the regular season. This is the best turnaround for a team to date in the ECHL. Additionally, Cichocki has guided Stockton into the 2007 Kelly Cup Playoffs, the first postseason berth in Thunder history as the team surpassed last season's total for points (50), wins (18), home wins (8) and road wins (10).

"The 2006-07 Thunder has more than doubled our win total from a year ago and our 36-point increase is the highest increase of any team in the ECHL," said Chapman. "This is exactly the type of improvement we had hoped for and it doesn't happen without the leadership and ability of our head coach, Chris Cichocki. We are very pleased to be able to present him with this new contract that has very clearly been earned."

"I'm extremely happy and truly honored to serve this organization and great fan base for the next three years," said Cichocki. "I'm looking forward to continuously help developing the Stockton Thunder into a team that will be a perennial playoff contender year-after-year, and be identified as one of the prime powerhouse teams in this league."

Cichocki was instrumental in coordinating the Thunder's current affiliation with the Oilers. Under his guise, former Thunder defenseman Bryan Young was promoted to the NHL with the Oilers this season, while center Tyler Spurgeon earned a promotion to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League and right wing Troy Bodie was promoted to the Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL.

Additionally, Thunder goaltender Devan Dubnyk, a first-round selection (14th overall) of the Oilers in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, is currently third in the ECHL with a .922 save percentage, earned a selection to Team Canada for the Spengler Cup Tournament in December of 2006, a selection to the National Conference team at the 2007 ECHL All-Star Game and was promoted briefly to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in January 2007.

Cichocki has been selected to the ECHL All-Star Game as a coach three times in his career and was named to the National Conference bench this season. He previously made two appearances with the Southern Conference while serving as Head Coach for the Arkansas RiverBlades in 2001 and 2003. Cichocki was named the first head coach in Thunder history on May 11, 2005, joining the Thunder after serving as an assistant coach with the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League from February 2005 until the end of the 2004-05 season.

The Detroit, Michigan native was Head Coach and General Manager with the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL in 2003-04 and was Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations with ECHL's Arkansas RiverBlades from 2000-2003. He has twice guided his teams to the Kelly Cup Playoffs, including the 2002-03 season when Arkansas was 37-24-11 and set team records with 37 wins and 85 points. Cichocki was Associate Head Coach and Director of Player Personnel for Cincinnati of the International Hockey League after spending two seasons as the team's Assistant Coach.

Cichocki's professional playing career spanned 13 seasons, including stints with the Detroit Red Wings and New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League, scoring 23 points (11g-12a) in 68 games. The right wing's career-best 36 goals came with the American Hockey League's Utica Devils in 1987-88. He scored 574 points (280g-294a) in 800 career games. Cichocki played three years of college hockey at Michigan Tech University, scoring 121 points (67g-54a) in 116 career games, and was signed by the Detroit Red Wings as a free agent in June 1985.

Recently named host of the 2008 ECHL All-Star Game, the Thunder drew 228,364 fans to Stockton Arena in its inaugural season, and 244,085 fans during its second season, earning the ECHL's best attendance mark for the 2005-06 and 2006-2007 seasons. Ticket packages and individual tickets for the Kelly Cup Playoffs presented by Diede Construction and California Welding Supply Co. are on sale now. Fans may also purchase 2007-08 Thunder season tickets, which includes a ticket to the 2008 All-Star game, at this time. For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit www.stocktonthunder.com.



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