Game Day Capsule: Wichita at Elmira, December 7th

WICHITAHOME: 6-4-0-1AWAY: 3-3-1-2OVERALL: 9-7-1-3

LEADING SCORERSGauthier, 21 pts (11g, 10a)Lowe, 17 pts (5g, 12a)Miller 15 pts (7g, 8a)

ELMIRAHOME: 8-5-0-1AWAY: 3-2-0-2OVERALL: 11-7-0-3

LEADING SCORERSShamanski, 14 pts (4g, 10a)Tassone, 13 pts (7g, 6a)Seidel, 12 pts (6g, 6a)

HEAD TO HEAD - This is the first and only meeting of the season between Wichita and Elmira. Wichita faces the Jackals for the first-time ever this afternoon at First Arena.

TODAY - Wichita finishes its eastern swing this afternoon in Elmira, NY to take on the Jackals for the first time in franchise history. The Thunder are coming off a 3-1 comeback win against Brampton while the Jackals lost last night 6-2 to Toledo. This will be the only meeting of the season between the two teams. Elmira is led by Steven Shamanski, who has 14 points and former Thunder forward Matt Tassone, who leads the team in goals with seven. Danick Gauthier leads Wichita in scoring with 11 goals and 21 points while Ian Lowe has 12 assists and 17 points.

HATS OFF - Danick Gauthier recorded his first professional hat trick yesterday afternoon against Brampton. The third-year pro got Wichita started shortly after the Beast had recorded the first goal of the game. He went on to record the next two, including the game-winner and tallied the natural hat trick. He leads the team in goals with 11 and points with 21.

TIMMMMY - Tim Boron was solid betwen the pipes for the Thunder, earning his fifth victory of the season. He stopped 32 of 33 shots and improved his goals against average to 2.77 along with his save percentage to .894.

UNLOADING - In their two-game series against the Beast, Wichita fired 84 shots on net and moved up to ninth in shots for per game (31.55). The Thunder defense continues to limit teams in terms of their chances on net and are second in the league in shots against per game (25.75).

REUNION - Three former Thunder players will suit up for the Jackals this afternoon. Justin Sawyer, who was just acquired in a trade with Rapid City, played for the Thunder in 2011-12. Ryan Hand, who was just called-up from Fayetteville of the SPHL has appeared in two games for Elmira. Hand was in Wichita on two separate occasions. Matt Tassone leads the team in goals. He played in three games in 2012-13 before being released.

THUNDERBOLTS… Kenton Miller and Danick Gauthier are tied for fifth place in power play goals (4)...Since November 16th, the Thunder penalty kill has given up two power play goal, killing off 35 of 37 chances for the opponent...Wichita is 2-1-0-1 when leading after one...Wichita is 5-2-0-0 when tied after one…Wichita is 4-3-1-1 when tied after two periods…Wichita is 7-5-0-2 when outshooting the opponent…Wichita is 6-1-0-0 in two-goal games...

JACKALS NOTES - Kellan Tochkin was traded to Elmira from Missouri after Thanksgiving...Andrew Conboy leads the team in penalty minutes with 42...Travis Fullerton is 7-2-0-2 in net this season in 13 appearances...Elmira is last in the ECHL on the penalty kill (77.2%) and have given up 17 power play goals at home...

AROUND THE ECHL - There are three other games today in the ECHL. Wheeling heads to Brampton. South Carolina plays at Reading. Missouri heads to Texas to take on Allen.

Individual tickets are on sale now. Don't delay! Tickets can be purchased at the INTRUST Arena Box office, by calling 755-SEAT or go online at www.selectaseat.com. Stay up-to-date on all the news during the season by visiting www.wichitathunder.com.

About the ECHL

The ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown into a coast-to-coast league with 28 teams in 20 states and one Canadian province for its 27th season in 2014-15. There have been 541 players who have started their career in the ECHL have gone on to play in the National Hockey League, including 29 who made their NHL debuts in the 2013-14 season. The ECHL had affiliations with 26 of the 30 NHL teams in 2013-14, marking the 17th consecutive season that the league had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL. Further information on the ECHL is available on its website at ECHL.com, as well as on Twitter and Facebook.

-Thunder-