Thunder Open up Three-In-Three with Alaska Tonight

Published on March 27, 2015 under ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


The Thunder host the Alaska Aces tonight at 7:30 p.m. to kick off a stretch of three games in three nights.

Arena: Stockton Arena

Date : Friday, March 27

Time : 7:30 p.m. - Doors at 6:30 p.m.

Giveaway : Green Reusable Tote Bags to the first 500 adults 18-years and over

Broadcast : ECHL.TV and Spreaker beginning at 7:15 p.m. PST

This Year's Record : Stockton is 2-8-1-0 vs. Alaska

Follow the Thunder Facebook Page for occasional updates or follow @StocktonThunder on Twitter for the play-by-play tweeting!

Heat Rises in Fall 2015

During the first intermission of the March 12th watch party, Team President Dave Piecuch and Mayor Anthony Silva revealed that the Stockton AHL team will be known as the Stockton Heat.

The Heat name was selected over the Blaze, Scorch, Inferno and Fire after fans stuffed the boxes with names related to the parent club in Calgary.

Season tickets are on sale now for the first year of Heat hockey! For just $50 per seat, you can reserve your spot as the new team kicks off play for the 2015-16 AHL season. Call 209-373-1500 or visit StocktonThunder.com/ahl !

Vote now for your Fan Favorite

Who makes you get out of your seat and cheer? Who do you love seeing out in the community or at the autograph table?

The ballots are open right now for who YOU believe should be awarded the Thunder's "Fan Favorite" this season. Will it be Garet Hunt, who's won the award every year for the last six seasons or will there be a new player to dethrone him? It's up to you to decide!

Vote now by clicking over to StocktonThunder.com/fanfavorite and cast your vote now. Voting ends this Monday, March 30, at 5:00 p.m. and the winner will be given the award at the conclusion of the final ever Thunder home game on April 11.

Shattock is on Fire

Tyler Shattock has been one of the best players in the ECHL over the last two months.

Shattock has scored 11 goals and added 13 assists in 21games thus far since February began. Of the 21 games, Shattock has points in 16 of them, missing out on just 5 games.

His 53 points this season has obliterated his previous pro high of 20 points that he picked up while playing for the Chicago Wolves of the AHL last season. While it was initially thought that Shattock increased his point streak to a season-high six games on Wednesday, scoring corrections actually took the assist away from him, meaning that his tied season-high five game point streak will end there.

During this streak he had 4 goals and 3 assists for 7 points. He looks to begin a new one tonight against the Aces.

Last Time vs. Alaska

You have to go back to the beginning of last month for the last time these teams faced each other when the Thunder had a three-in-three in Anchorage on February, 6, 7 and 8.

The Thunder completed a three-in-three and their final ever game in Anchorage on a sour note as the Aces would score the game's first 7 goals spanning from the 7:54 mark of the first to the 14:27 mark of the second.

James Henry and Tyler Maxwell would score two in the final period and Tyler Shattock would score to make the game closer but it would end an 8-5 win for the Aces. While the result wasn't what the team was hoping for, the Thunder's five goals scored in the final period set a new season-high for goals in a single period.

Tonight

The Thunder begin a three-in-three with the Alaska Aces at home with the thought of trying to spoil Alaska's attempt to pick up the fourth and final playoff spot in the Pacific Division. The Aces sit three points back of the Utah Grizzlies for fourth place in the division. Utah is also in action tonight against the Idaho Steelheads.

Who to Watch

While it was a difficult loss on Wednesday there was a player who really looked good out there, especially considering that after another injury to the blueline occurred, his minutes got bumped up considerably!

Brad Stebner looked like Drew Doughty out there, wheeling and dealing throughout the night on the offensive and defensive sides of the ice. Certainly Stebner is no stranger to taking the puck for a skate as we've seen throughout his tenure this year and last with the team, but something unleashed the beast on Wednesday in one of Stebner's best games for the Thunder.

He started the game with an assist on the power play when he got the puck in over the blueline and dished it to James Henry. Henry tossed a slick pass to Alex Mallet who then scored in his first game back from injury. Initially the assist was given to J.T. Barnett but it was changed to Stebner, the rightful player for the helper.

Later on in the game though, just as he did two weeks prior, Stebner caught a break when a puck went under an Ontario player's stick while the SoCal side was enjoying an extra man opportunity. Stebner picked it up and started the skate up the ice for a potential shorthanded chance. With two Ontario defenders back, Stebner kept both players occupied long enough to free J.T. Barnett into space. Stebner slid the puck over to the former Reign man and Barnett did the rest for the second shorthanded goal in as many games against the Reign. It was Stebner's first ever multi-point game as a pro and he was one of just three players to finish the game even or better.

We liked Stebner's game so much that he's going to be one to watch tonight. With injuries continuing to impact the Thunder, expect Stebner's workload to be high and expect the dividends to be higher for the brand new father.

All-Time Watch

The scoring situation between Garet Hunt, Ryan Constant and Mike Lalonde is in danger of falling to one of the Thunder's star players very soon.

Lalonde's 156 career Thunder points is in jeopardy as Garet Hunt tied Lalonde's mark with his 156th point while Ryan Constant sits right behind them both at 151.

Both Hunt and Constant have missed time due to injuries this season as Hunt missed 11 games while Constant was placed on Injured Reserve on December 14.

Hunt is the only one close to Lalonde's all-time record of 72 goals with his 62 markers, putting the Thunder captain 10 shy of tying the record.

Interesting Fact

Garet Hunt has points in half of his 8 games played against Alaska this season.

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ECHL Stories from March 27, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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