Thunder Soundings from Wichita

MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com - WICHITA, KS -THUNDER CAN’T HOLD OFF GORILLAS- The Thunder jumped out to a 2-0 lead but couldn’t hold it, falling 5-3 on Wednesday night in Amarillo. Brad Thompson led the Thunder with a goal and an assist, while Kris Wiebe and Alex Goupil also scored.

RIVERKINGS SHUT DOWN THUNDER- The Thunder scored the first goal for the third straight game, but came up short for the third straight game. Mississippi took a 2-1 lead after one period, then Chad Woollard scored a natural hat trick in the second to give the RiverKings a 5-1 victory. The two teams combined for 98 penalty minutes and eight majors.

THUNDER, SEDEVIE HOLD OFF BLAZERS- The Thunder jumped out to a 3-0 lead and hung on for a 4-3 victory on Saturday night at the Kansas Coliseum. Bruce Richardson led the Thunder with a goal and an assist, while Stan Yanchishyn added his first pro goal. Tyler Liebel and Kris Wiebe also scored for the Thunder. Rookie Layne Sedevie, making his first Thunder start, stole the show in the third period, making 18 saves. Sedevie was at his best while the Thunder was shorthanded two-men for the final 3:20.

LAPLANTE RETURNS- The Thunder activated goaltender Sebastien Laplante from team suspension today. Laplante, who had missed the last four Thunder games, is closing in on a couple milestones. With 44, he is two wins shy of passing Lance Leslie for second place in Thunder history. With four, Laplante is also one shutout shy of tying Greg Smith for the most in team history.

THUNDER NOT AFRAID TO MIX IT UP- Though the Thunder has struggled for wins early this season, they have not lacked in heart. The most physical Thunder team in years, the Thunder continues to flex its muscle while still maintaining their discipline. Through 11 games, the Thunder ranks second in the CHL with 29 major penalties and an average of 36.4 penalty minutes per game. Meanwhile, the Thunder has just 92 minor penalties, second fewest in the CHL. The Thunder is the only team in the CHL averaging over two majors per game (2.63), while Youngstown is the only team close (2.00). 11 different Thunder players have recorded a major penalty, led by Kyle Bruce (5), Tyler Liebel (4), Tyler Hanchuck (4) and Daniel Tetrault (4).

CLAYTON KEEPS ADDING TO MILESTONES- With his first period goal on Friday, Travis Clayton tied former Thunder star Paul Jackson for second place in CHL history with 312 goals. Clayton, who is riding a four-game scoring streak, is now just nine points shy of becoming the third player in CHL history to reach the 800-point plateau.

INJURY REPORT- Veteran left wing Jason Duda, on the 30-day IR since opening weekend, resumed skating and his expected back in the Thunder lineup next week. Duda has missed 10 of the first 11 games.

THUNDERBOLTS- Wichita ranks second in the CHL, averaging 6,222 fans per game…Dominic D’Amour ranks third among CHL defensemen with 53 shots on goal…Wichita ranks 15^th in the CHL on the power play (11.1%) and 16^th in the CHL in penalty killing (77.3%)…The Thunder is the only team in the CHL yet to play an overtime/shootout game this season…Wichita is 3-0-0 when leading after two periods, 0-6-0 when trailing after two…Only Wichita, Corpus Christi and Amarillo have yet to win a road game this season…Early on, Wichita is 10 points out of a playoff spot, but still has between two and five games in hand on the rest of the Northern Conference.

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