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Stockton Thunder prepared to take town by storm

May 23, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


STOCKTON, CA - The Stockton Hockey Franchise Group, Inc. of the ECHL is now officially the Stockton Thunder. The team announced its name and unveiled the team logo and colors to the public in a press conference at Valley Brewing Company on Monday, May 23, 2005.

"We feel the name Thunder represents power, strength and that it can be intimidating," said Thunder Owner Michael Reinsdorf. "That is exactly what we expect from our team...to be powerful, strong and to scare the

opponent."

The team received over 2,000 entries in a team naming contest sponsored by the Record that ran from February 14, 2005 to March 1, 2005. Of the names submitted, six finalists were chosen including: Brawlers, Fog, Skate, Spears, Stallions, and Thunder. The grand prize winner of the "Name the Team" contest was 11-year-old Michelle Costa of Tracy. Costa will receive an authentic, team-signed jersey and a pair of season tickets. Six first prize winners who also submitted the name Thunder will each receive a pair of season tickets. They are: Joey Rurup of Woodbridge, Nick Hunter of Lathrop, Billy Hutto of Travis, and Megan Brodie, Gina Antonini, and Rudy Banuelos of Stockton.

The name announcement marks the second major announcement by the team in the past few weeks, following the announcement of Head Coach Chris Cichocki on May 11, 2005.

"With the naming of our head coach two weeks ago and the announcement of Thunder today, we truly feel our identity is starting to become fully developed," said Thunder Team President Dan Chapman. "Now fans throughout San Joaquin County know that the Thunder is coming and getting ready to make some noise in the Stockton Arena."

The team began selling merchandise bearing the new logo and team colors of black, gold, and silver immediately following the press conference. Currently, t-shirts in adult and youth sizes are available at $18 for adult sizes, and $15 for youth sizes. Additional merchandise will be made available in the upcoming weeks.

Season tickets for the upcoming Thunder season are on sale now. As of mid-May the team has sold almost 1,400 season tickets for its 2005-2006 inaugural season, including over 80 club level seats. For season tickets, merchandise, or other information, please call the Stockton Thunder at (209) 948-3322 or visit www.stocktonprohockey.com.

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