WICHITA, Kan. (May 17) - Wichita finished a four-game homestand over the weekend. Get caught up on the team with this edition of Thunder Weekly. LAST WEEK'S GAMES - Tuesday, May 11Kansas City at Wichita, 5-2 W recapWatch highlights HERE Friday, May 14Rapid City at Wichita, 5-3 W recapWatch highlights HERE
Saturday, May 15Rapid City at Wichita, 3-2 L recapWatch highlights HERE
Sunday, May 16Rapid City at Wichita, cancelled
THIS WEEK'S GAMES - (All times are Central) Friday, May 21Wichita at Fort Wayne, 7:00 p.m., FloSports Hockey or online stream on the Mixlr app and The Sin Bin app on your smartphone. Saturday, May 22Wichita at Fort Wayne, 6:30 p.m., FloSports Hockey or online stream on the Mixlr app and The Sin Bin app on your smartphone.
Sunday, May 23Wichita at Fort Wayne, 4:00 p.m., FloSports Hockey or online stream on the Mixlr app and The Sin Bin app on your smartphone.
**All games can be heard on Mixlr by searching The Sin Bin or on your smart phone with The Sin Bin App** **Join Matthew Harding and Matthew Will before every game for the Sin Bin Wichita Thunder Pregame Show. The show starts at 6:25 p.m. for home games and 6:35 p.m. for road games. For Sunday home games, the show starts at 3:25 p.m. and 30 minutes before puck drop on the road. You can listen on the Sin Bin app.** WICHITAHOME: 18-11-3-1AWAY: 20-6-3-1OVERALL: 38-17-6-2Last 10: 5-2-2-1Streak: 0-1-0-0Rank: 1st, Western Conference, 84 points, .667 winning % TEAM LEADERSGoals: Matteo Gennaro, 24Assists: Anthony Beauregard, 49Points: Anthony Beauregard, 71+/-: Anthony Beauregard, Jay Dickman, +27PIM: Mathieu Gagnon, 113
CLINCHED - Over the weekend, Wichita became the first team in the ECHL to clinch a playoff berth. Wichita sits in first place in the West with a .667 winning percentage and 84 points. Due to the game on Sunday against Rapid City being cancelled, the Thunder would have a higher points percentage than the Rush, who are currently in fifth place. The Thunder earned their second-ever berth in the Kelly Cup Playoffs and first since the 2017-18 season. ALL-TIMER - Stefan Fournier took over the franchise lead in ECHL points on Saturday night. He netted a goal and an assist and now has 109 points in a Thunder uniform. He moves past Ralph Cuddemi, who recorded 107 points while with the Thunder.
CAREER-HIGH - Beau Starrett has been coming on strong over the last month. He has a goal and an assist in back-to-back games, points in six-straight and points in nine of his last 10 contests. Starrett set a new career-high with 31 points (14g, 17a) in 60 games. Last year as a rookie, he had 29 points (16g, 13a). SIX PACK - Jay Dickman is also riding a six-game point streak. He is currently sitting in second in the rookie scoring race with 46 points. Oddly enough, his last three goals are all empty-netters.
BOOTS - Evan Buitenhuis has wins in his last four appearances. He came on in relief on May 6 and knocked off Kansas City at Cable Dahmer Arena. He made starts in his next three and won each contest. He leads the league in goals-against average (2.38) and save percentage (.930). The Hamilton College product has been a solid addition to the Thunder lineup since being acquired in a trade from Florida. PLAYOFF PREVIEW? - Wichita will travel this weekend to Indiana for a potential playoff preview against the Fort Wayne Komets. The Thunder and the Komets only play three times during the regular season, which makes the series crucial for playoff positioning.
ON THE ROAD - Wichita leads the league with 20 wins on the road, which ties a franchise record. The Thunder have won 20 road games twice prior to this season. In 1994-95, Wichita went 20-12-1 on the road. The Thunder went 20-11-2 away from home in 2011-12.
THUNDERBOLTS...Wichita is first on the penalty kill on the road (87.8%) and first overall (87.5%)...Spencer Dorowicz is tied for the league-lead in shorthanded points (5) and fourth in shorthanded goals (3)...Anthony Beauregard and Jay Dickman are tied for first in the ECHL in plus/minus (+27)...Jay Dickman is second in rookie scoring with 46 points...Dean Stewart leads all rookies with 29 assists...Mathieu Gagnon is tied for fourth in penalty minutes (113)...Wichita is outscoring opponents 76-47 in the third despite being outshot 697-537...Wichita is 14-0-1-0 when leading after one...Wichita is 24-1-0-0 when leading after two...Wichita is 17-9-2-2 when tied after one...Wichita is 8-3-3-1 when tied after two...Wichita is 18-9-6-2 in one-goal games...Wichita is 28-4-1-1 when scoring first...