Thunder Host Rivermen Tuesday While Honoring Local Hockey Organizer
March 3, 2014 - SPHL (SPHL)
Bloomington Thunder News Release
The Bloomington Thunder honor a local hockey organizer in their only home game of the three scheduled for the week.
Head-to-head: The Thunder (17-28-2, 36 points, 10th Southern Professional Hockey League) host the Peoria Rivermen (24-16-6, 54 points, 4th SPHL) on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. in the final Bloomington meeting of the season between the rivals. The Thunder are 6-8-1 against the Rivs and have won the last three meetings, most recently a 2-1 victory in Bloomington on February 11. Thunder captain Travis Granbois leads the team in overall scoring (11 goals, 27 assists, 38 points) and scoring against the Rivermen (3g, 8a, 11p). Rivermen rookie Garrett Vermeersch (25g, 27a, 42p overall, 14g, 7a, 21p vs. Thunder) leads his squad. The Thunder won last Tuesday 1-0 over Knoxville in Bloomington after a nine-round shootout but dropped a 4-2 decision at Huntsville on Friday and a 5-0 contest on Saturday in Knoxville. The Rivermen grabbed a 2-1 win over Louisiana on Friday but fell to the Ice Gators 6-5 in a shootout on Saturday in a pair of games in Peoria.
Above-average Joe: Tuesday is Joe Olson Night at U.S. Cellular Coliseum, honoring the long-time Central Illinois hockey organizer and the director of hockey programs at the Pepsi Ice Center on his induction last month into the Illinois Hockey Hall of Fame. Kids 12 and under who wear their hockey jerseys are admitted for only $5. The night is also a $2 Tuesday featuring hot dogs, popcorn, soda and beer for only $2 each.
Meet the Henderson: The Thunder signed forward Mike Henderson on Friday. The 5-10, 190-pound native of Bloomington, Indiana recorded 11 goals and 8 assists for 19 points and four penalty minutes in 18 games with the Federal Hockey League's Danbury Whalers. Henderson registered two goals in his debut at Huntsville on Friday.
Playoff picture: With nine games remaining, the Thunder are 11 points out of the playoffs behind the Mississippi Surge and the Columbus Cottonmouths, who are tied for seventh and hold the last two spots currently with 47 points. The Thunder's elimination number is 8 points (points missed by the Thunder combined with points earned by either the Cottonmouths or Surge). Peoria's magic number to earn a President's Cup playoff berth is 6 (combination of points earned and points missed by ninth-place Fayetteville). The Thunder travel to Columbus for games at 6:30 p.m. Central this Friday and Saturday while the Rivermen host the Surge this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Junior Blaze finish season: The Bloomington Junior Blaze concluded their season on Sunday with a 7-3 loss to the Berkley Bruins on Sunday in suburban Detroit. The Junior Blaze finished 15-26-1 with 31 points, fifth in the Midwest Junior Hockey League standings. Dylan Farmer led the team with 22 goals and 37 assists for 59 points while local product Micah Young scored a team-leading 26 goals with 17 assists for 43 points.
Home sweet home: The Thunder are home for six of the remaining nine games, with the only road contests a two-game swing this weekend to Columbus, Ga. and a March 18 trip along I-74 to Peoria. Road games are shown on the big screen at Six Strings, 524 N. Center St. in downtown Bloomington. Thunder games can be heard in U.S. Cellular Coliseum on 93.7 FM and online at WJBC.com and America One subscription video. Links to the online feeds are at www.bloomingtonthunder.com, Facebook and Twitter (BLMThunder), where the latest Thunder information can also be found. For individual and game day tickets, visit the U.S. Cellular Coliseum box office or call 309-434-2679. For group discounts and other questions, call the Thunder office at 309-434-2980.
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- Thunder Host Rivermen Tuesday While Honoring Local Hockey Organizer - Bloomington Thunder
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