CHL Wichita Thunder

Wichita Claims First Place Honors in Annual Best-Of-The-Best Poll

March 15, 2012 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Wichita Thunder News Release


Wichita, KS (March 15th) - The Central Hockey League's annual Best-of-the-Best Poll was released Thursday morning and Wichita earned first place honors in several categories including Best Arena, Best Coach, Best Fighter (heavyweight), Most Annoying Player, Best Goaltender in Shootouts, Best On-Ice Promotions, and Best Booster Club.

The poll consists of 50 categories that cover all aspects of the league including on-ice performance, in-game entertainment as well as top venues, concessions, websites, etc. and was voted on by CHL players, coaches and operational staff from all 14 CHL teams (each team submitted one ballot). Each team provided three top choices for each category, with first place votes counting as five points, second place votes counting as three points and third place votes counting as one point.

A feature story on this year's poll was written by Bill Althaus of the Independence Examiner in Independence, MO and can be found here: f-the-Best-celebration

INTRUST Bank Arena won Best Arena for the third straight year, was voted second for Toughest Building to Win In and third in Best Locker Rooms. The facility is a modern, state-of-the-art sports and entertainment venue, perfect for concerts and conventions alike. The arena features 22 suites, 40 loge boxes, and 300 premium seats with a total 15,000-seat capacity (www.intrustbankarena.com). The arena has given Wichita a clear home ice advantage this season, where the Thunder is 22-6-1 at home, and an even more impressive 13-2-0 against Berry Conference opponents. The Thunder has played at INTRUST Bank Arena since January 23rd, 2010.

Head Coach Kevin McClelland has done a remarkable job in turning the Thunder around and was rewarded with Best Coach honors in this year's poll. In two seasons with Wichita, McClelland has 74 wins. Under his tutelage, Wichita went from nine wins back in 2009-10 to 40 wins this season with seven games left.

Erick Lizon took home first place honors for Best Fighter in the Heavyweight division while Alex Bourret was voted as the Most Annoying Player. Adam Russo was named as the Best Goaltender in Shootouts as he leads the league in shootout wins (6).

Wichita beat out Missouri and Dayton in the Best On-Ice Promotions category, claiming 21 points. The Wichita Storm Booster Club took home first place honors in Best Booster Club, taking three first-place votes, claiming 19 points which was 10 points ahead of the second-place Quad City Mallards.

In other categories, Bourret took third in Best Overall Player, Brett Hemingway placed third in Best Shooter in Shootouts, Matt Robinson took third in Most Underrated Player and Andrew Martens voted third in Best Offensive Defenseman. In the category for Most Annoying Fans, Wichita took second place behind the Texas Brahmas.

For Best PA Announcer, Wichita's Mike McQuilliam took second. Wichita also placed in third in Best Use of Social Media,

Overall, Wichita placed third behind Allen and Evansville, appearing in 16 different categories.

Wichita finishes its long run of seeing Turner Conference opponents on Friday night against Quad City before hosting Arizona for a pair of games this weekend. For tickets, call 755-SEAT, visit the INTRUST Bank Arena box office or online at www.selectaseat.com .

Wichita Thunder playoff packages and season tickets for 2012-13 are now on sale. A $50 dollar non-refundable deposit is required for all season tickets. Contact the Wichita Thunder Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at (316) 264-4625 if you are interested in playoff packages or season tickets, or visit the fan relations table behind section 120 at any Wichita Thunder home game. Join the Blue Revolution!

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Central Hockey League Stories from March 15, 2012


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