Thunder Close StoneWolf Casino Series With SO Loss

Wichita, KS (April 10th) - Wichita (32-30-2-7) had one last chance to beat their longtime rivals on Friday night, but fell to Tulsa (37-29-2-3) in a shootout by the final score of 2-1 at INTRUST Bank Arena. Kevin Carr and Tim Boron combined for 71 saves while only giving up one goal a-piece in the second period. The Thunder close the regular season series with a record of 2-7-1-4 against the Oilers in the StoneWolf Casino Cup Series.

After a scoreless first period, Wichita took advantage of its second five-on-three power play of the contest. Justin Mansfield was whistled for hooking and was joined in the sin bin by Drew Fisher shortly after as the Bemidji State product was called for slashing. Ian Lowe capitalized at 8:41, which came right after Mansfield came back onto the ice, and made it 1-0. The Oilers didn't take long to pull even as Dave Pszenyczny caught a pass from behind the net from Adam Pleskach and he beat Boron for his 10th of the season.

The Thunder outshot the Oilers 16-8 in the third period, 6-1 in the overtime session, but couldn't solve the rookie netminder. He made several key saves down the stretch including one on Michael Trebish, who was coming up the left wing and from a sharp angle stopped the wrist shot.

Scott Macaulay scored the only goal in the shootout in the top of round two, tapping his stick on the ice and firing a shot past Boron's blocker. Carr stopped all five shooters and improved to 12-2-0-0 against the Thunder this season.

Wichita fired 40+ shots on net for the second game in a row. The Thunder finish the season 0-5 in games against Tulsa that headed past 60 minutes. It was the first time in the season-series that the two teams played into overtime since November 30th. Lowe reaches the 20-goal plateau for the second time in his four-year career and move into a fourth-place tie in power play goals (11). Boron suffered the shootout loss, stopping 29 of 30 shots. Carr claimed the victory, stopping 42 of 43 shots he faced.

Wichita was 1-for-6 on the man advantage. Tulsa went 0-for-5 on the power play.

Wichita closes out its inaugural season in the ECHL tomorrow night against the Allen Americans starting at 7:05 p.m. Tomorrow night is Fandemonium, Team Photo Night and the annual Alumni Game. Doors to the arena open at 5 p.m. with the opening face-off of the Thunder alumni against the Wichita Junior Thunder starting at 5:15 p.m. Tickets for the Thunder game will get you into both games. Fans can get great prizes throughout the game that have been donated from our partners. Before the game tomorrow, the Thunder team awards will be announced. Team MVP, Defenseman of the Year and Unsung Hero are just a few of the awards that are handed out on an annual basis.

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-