Playoff bound Thunder close home schedule at 18-12-5 before 5,388 fans

March 31, 2011 - ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


STOCKTON, Calif. - Colin Long denied a third period comeback attempt by the Stockton Thunder (35-23-12, 82 points), scoring a go-ahead goal with 10.1 seconds left in regulation to boost the Las Vegas Wranglers to a 2-1 victory before 5,388 fans at Stockton Arena on Wednesday.

Long provided Las Vegas' offense with a pair of goals, denying the Thunder a chance to take over first place in the Pacific Division after Ontario defeated Bakersfield, 7-5 earlier in the evening. Stockton's lone goal was scored by Jordan Fulton, who earned his 18th goal of the season.

The win drew Las Vegas to within a point of the Thunder in the division, anchored by Michael Ouzas' 34 stops. Thunder goaltender Tyson Sexsmith made 22 saves, absorbing his first defeat in regulation since returning from the AHL.

"We didn't execute consistently for the full sixty minutes, and as a result it cost us two points," said Thunder head coach Matt Thomas. "The other team completely outplayed us. They played smarter and boxed us out. We just weren't producing offensively and capitalizing on the opportunities given to us during the game."

The Thunder drew a crowd enough to register its third largest regular season attendance total in franchise history (229,751) and largest since 2007-08, when they drew an average of 6,648 fans (239,337 total).

Stockton's next home game is Game 3 of the first round, on a date next week to be determined - either on Thursday or Saturday.

The first period began with Garet Hunt and Blair Riley trading haymakers, six seconds after the opening faceoff. Not to be outdone by his brother, Trevor Hunt (making his Las Vegas debut) and Bretton Cameron also dropped the gloves a minute later- earning all four of them a trip to the box with fighting majors.

A costly turnover in the Thunder's zone resulted in an early goal at 2:43 of the first period. After getting possession of the puck, Colin Reddin sent a pass to teammate Long, who was stationed directly outside the blue paint. Long deftly deked past Tyson Sexsmith and popped the puck above his left pad to give Las Vegas a 1-0 lead.

The second period was scoreless, as goaltender Michael Ouzas stood tall against the Thunder's 14 shots and multiple odd-man rushes. Stockton's best chance came from Johan Motin, whose shot went wide of the net and hit the post during the Thunder's second power play of the game.

Two consecutive penalties incurred by Las Vegas in the third period gave the Thunder an ample opportunity to get into the game. Aaron Power received a holding penalty at 8:08, and Greg Collins went to the box with a minor penalty after he tripped Jarrett Konkle ten seconds later, putting the Thunder on a 5-on-3 power play for 1:51.

Stockton finally cashed in at 10:01 when Cameron fed the puck to Fulton as he skated over to the right side of the Wranglers net, for an easy tap-in that tied the score, 1-1.

After Hunt laid a hard hit on Power that cut his face, he received a roughing minor, fighting major and a game misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct. Before Las Vegas could set up their power play, Blair Riley went to the box for a hooking minor and gave way for some 4-on-4 hockey for the remaining minute of the game.

Though the game seemed headed into overtime, Las Vegas capitalized in the last seconds of the game, to gain the lead, 2-1 and take the victory.

Long split the defense, consisting of Motin and Daryl Marcoux and slid the puck off the backhand past Sexsmith's right leg as he went into his butterfly.

NOTES: The Thunder scratched Dan Ringwald (injured, day-to-day), Fraser Clair (injured reserve), Ryan Constant (injured, day-to-day), and Jason Pitton (injured reserve) ‚¬Â¦ the Thunder announced its annual team award winners following the game: Fraser Clair (Most Valuable Player), Chris Lawrence (Offensive Player of the Year), Ryan Constant (Defenseman of the Year), Garet Hunt (Unsung Hero), Jordan Fulton (Rookie of the Year), Garet Hunt (Fan Favorite) ‚¬Â¦Stockton led in shots-on-goal, 35-24 ‚¬Â¦ the Thunder went 1-5 on the power play, getting a goal during a 5-on-3 ‚¬Â¦ Stockton finished the regular season home schedule with a 18-12-6 record.

The Thunder heads back to the road for the remaining two regular-season games, visiting the Las Vegas Wranglers at Orleans Arena on April 1st, game time beginning at 7:05 p.m. The game can be heard on radio at 1280 KWSX and is available for viewing (pay-per-view video charge) at www.StocktonThunder.com, courtesy of AmericaOne.

A two-time recipient of the ECHL "Award of Excellence," Thunder was voted "Best Local Sports Team" by readers of the San Joaquin Magazine, led the ECHL in attendance for four consecutive seasons and drew over 200,000 fans for the fifth consecutive season in 2009-10. Season Tickets, mini-plans and individual tickets for 2010-11 are on sale now. For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit http://www.stocktonthunder.com/.

THREE STARS

1. LV- 29 Michael Ouzas

2. LV- 17 Colin Long

3. STK- 29 Tyson Sexsmith



ECHL Stories from March 31, 2011


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