Thunder Host Ontario in Middle Match-Up

Published on December 21, 2013 under ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


The Stockton Thunder (13-8-0-4) continues their three games in three days series with the Ontario Reign (18-3-1-3) at home at Stockton Arena tonight. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. PT. The teams will then head back to Ontario after the game to finish off the series on Sunday.

Fans who can't make it out to the game can watch live video of the broadcast through AmericaONE sports or listen to free live audio through Spreaker.com and StocktonThunder.com.

It's the sixth meeting between the Pacific Division rivals this season with the Reign having won all five of the previous meetings. The Thunder have picked up two points from the season series with two shootout losses, both coming on the road. That's how the game was decided on Friday night, as the Reign took a 3-2 win after a marathon nine-round shootout produced just one goal.

The game was a back-and-forth contest with the first period dominated by the Reign who took a 1-0 lead on a goal from Jake Hauswirth. The Thunder's Landon Oslanski tied things up four minutes into the second period with a power play goal in a frame largely dominated by the visiting team. The third period was an even one with both teams controlling stretches of play. It was the Reign who took the lead though as defenseman Jake Newton continued to enjoy life against the Thunder, scoring his 8th goal of the season and 4th in 5 games against Ontario's Pacific Division rivals.

However, as the Thunder had done in both their last two games, the team found a way to tie things up in the third period. Defenseman Lee Baldwin picked up his first point as a Thunder player in his team debut, finding Ben Rosen at the point to blast one past Reign goalie Michael Hutchinson and make it 2-2.

The game moved through an entertaining but scoreless overtime period where the Thunder's best chance came in the final seconds. Joey Martin found Greg Miller with a nifty lofted pass to put the Cornell graduate in on goal alone, but Hutchinson shut the door to send the game to a shootout. Both Hutchinson and Thunder goalie Brian Foster carried over their stellar play to the shootout competition. Both teams' original five shooters were all stymied and the game went to sudden death to decide who would get the two points.

In the ninth round of the shootout, Hauswirth scored on a shot that glanced off the glove of Foster and in to put Ontario up. Mike Dalhuisen went for the Thunder to try and extend the shootout, but he denied on a backhand shot as the Reign picked up their third shootout win of the year.

Overall, Ontario has had 11 of their 25 games this season go past regulation, the most of any team in the ECHL. They have won 7 of those games while losing 3 in a shootout and just 1 in overtime. The Thunder meanwhile has had six games finish past regulation. Ironically, while the team has lost all four shootouts they've played in, they have not lost a game in overtime.

With their victory Friday night, the Reign now have 40 points on the season giving them a 4-point lead over the Mountain Division-leading Colorado Eagles at the top of the Western Conference. Ontario also has the best record in the entire ECHL with one more point than the Eastern Conference's South Carolina Stingrays.

The Thunder were playing a bit shorthanded on Friday as Michal Spacek, Nick Larson, Mathieu Gagnon, and Jason Clark were scratched with minor injuries. Combine those four players with the two on injured reserve (Ryan Hayes and J.P. Burkemper), and the fact that the team's leading scorer Andrew Clark was called up to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on a Professional Try-Out, lead to the Thunder dressing one fewer player than they normally do.

The Thunder were nearly shorthanded two men heading into Friday's match-up, but a late contract offer was extended to Mitch Bruijsten, who fans may recall played for the Thunder in the preseason. Bruijsten, who was the second leading scorer on the Mississippi Surge of the SPHL, was thrown into action on a line with Martin and Miller. The Nijmegen, Netherlands native had some pep in his step despite a long travel day that saw him fly from Mississippi to Los Angeles, and making it just in time for the game.

The Thunder get another crack at earning their first win against Ontario since March 15th of last season, when they host the Reign tonight. The Thunder will hope to spread some holiday cheer with a good performance in their final home game before Christmas. The first 3,000 fans entering Stockton Arena can pick up a holiday decoration in the form of a holiday-themed Garet Hunt poster! It's also a "Never-Wasted-Ticket" night where season ticket and mini-plan holders can exchange unused tickets from an earlier Thunder game for tickets to tonight's match-up.



ECHL Stories from December 21, 2013


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