Koules, Shantz Pace Thunder Past Aces

Wichita, KS (March 16th) - Miles Koules scored twice and David Shantz stopped 36 shots to help Wichita (15-36-6-6) claim a 5-1 victory against Alaska (23-33-4-2) on Wednesday night at INTRUST Bank Arena. Christian Isackson and Dan Milan also had two points while three others found the back of the net for the Thunder.

Wichita raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first 11 minutes of the first period. Koules, Logan Nelson and Donnie Harris lit the lamp 7:09 apart for the Thunder. Late in the frame, Justin Breton pushed home a rebound in front of David Shantz to cut the lead to 3-1.

In the second, Kenton Miller recorded his 14th with a wrist shot from the left circle to re-gain a three-goal advantage. Koules tacked on his second of the contest with 27 seconds left in the period to finish the scoring and a 5-1 lead after 40 minutes.

Alaska led in the shot department in the third, 13-4, but couldn't get another past Shantz.

Koules extended his multi-point streak to four games (3g, 5a) with two points in each of those outings. Isackson had a pair of helpers and points in seven of his last eight contests (3g, 6a). Milan had a pair of assists as well and his first multi-point game of the season. Shantz claimed his first assist as well as his 10th win of the year, stopping 36 of 37 shots. DeSerres suffers the loss, stopping 23 of 28 shots he faced.

Wichita was 0-for-3 on the man advantage. Alaska went 0-for-3 on the power play.

Wichita has a few days off before hosting the Missouri Mavericks on Saturday night. Come join us on Saturday to help Fight Cancer, presented by RACE Charities. The team will be wearing a special black and gold uniform that will be auctioned off afterwards.

Individual tickets for all games are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased at the INTRUST Arena Box office, by calling 855-755-SEAT or go online at www.selectaseat.com.

Follow along with us on our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter (@wichita_thunder), Snapchat (wichthunder), Instagram (Wichita_Thunder) and LinkedIn, presented by Wichita Brewing Company.

About the ECHLThe 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-