Wichita survives in ever-changing minor league hockey landscape

In 1992, the Wichita Thunder was dropped into a professional hockey landscape that barely had room for it.

About 100 Double-A franchises occupied the landscape then, and the Thunder was part of the Central Hockey League’s inaugural season with five other Midwestern teams.

Four of the original CHL teams no longer exist, but the Thunder found a foothold as the sport became popular in Wichita while natural rivalries, championships and the Kansas Coliseum shaped the early years of the franchise and enabled longevity.

The Thunder, now in the ECHL, begins its 25th anniversary season on Saturday against Tulsa at Intrust Bank Arena with a product that has changed markedly since Year 1. It remains healthy and viable thanks, in part, to a first-year affiliation with the NHL’s Ottawa Senators.

“You look at minor-league sports and they don’t last as long anymore in different places,” said former Thunder forward Jason Duda, who leads the franchise in most offensive categories and played for the Thunder from 1996-2010. “A lot of places have teams for three or four years and they fold.

“I think it goes to the people of Wichita and the sponsorships and the people that stick with it for 25 years. To keep a minor-league hockey franchise in the Midwest is pretty impressive, and I think everybody should be proud of that.”

The early years of the CHL were highlighted by high-scoring journeymen, who helped each team score at least four goals per game, and fights that brought crowds in Plains states who hadn’t necessarily been familiar with the sport.

The Thunder often won the CHL award for rowdiest fans, but in the early 1990s it took a lot to be noticed among groups that cheered passionately for their teams – and against the opposition.

Wichita developed rivalries with Tulsa and Oklahoma City and with those teams’ players such as Doug Lawrence and Joe Burton, and Thunder fans like Robert Risser and Grant Norris made sure their visits weren’t hospitable.

“A bunch of annoying little things,” said Risser, who had Thunder season tickets for 23 years. “Nothing in particular, we were just always on them. Guys would come looking to the crowd and some of the guys would talk back.”

The Thunder won championships in 1994 and ’95, its second and third seasons. Wichita improved its attendance by 1,600 fans in 1993-94, drawing more than 6,000 per night to the Coliseum.

The seating at the Coliseum, which the Thunder occupied from 1993 until Intrust Bank Arena opened in 2010, was close to the ice and created a noisy, chaotic environment that fit the mood of the league.

“There’s ups and downs in every sport in every level,” Duda said. “Those fans that stuck with the team, they’ve been there for a long, long time. I think those are the people that probably kept this thing going. Without them, there wouldn’t have been enough people, not enough support. They have such a loyal fan base, and that’s kept them going.”

The Thunder has often been saved from prolonged disappointment by timely decisions and occurrences.

After a nine-win 2009-10 season, the Thunder hired Kevin McClelland as coach. McClelland got Wichita to the playoffs the following season and guided the Thunder to consecutive CHL Finals appearances in 2012 and 2013.

In 2011, brothers and businessmen Brandon, Johnny and Rodney Steven bought the Thunder from Chicago-based Horn Chen, who was losing interest and thinking about walking away.

“As I tell many people, if Rodney and Brandon didn’t come along and buy the Thunder, we might not be here,” said general manager Joel Lomurno, who has worked for the team since 1993. “It’s been great. They’re huge fans, they come to every game, and they want to see us win as much as everyone else.”

The Thunder has missed the playoffs three straight years, the last two in the ECHL, but the Senators affiliation might be the latest savior.

New coach Malcolm Cameron orchestrated the one-year agreement which has seen several potential higher-level players assigned to the Thunder by Ottawa. It’s a short-term deal that brings true prospects to Wichita for the first time and may help spur the next quarter-century.

“I don’t think anyone 20 years ago realized that there would go from five Double-A hockey leagues to one,” Lomurno said. “Of the 100-plus Double-A hockey teams that have been around since ’92 or popped up in between, only 27 are left. That says a lot about the staying power.

“I don’t think anyone thought we’d be playing in the one Double-A hockey league, but it’s great. Being an affiliated team like the other (ECHL) teams, it’s very exciting for the organization.”

This story was originally published October 12, 2016 at 7:27 PM with the headline "Wichita survives in ever-changing minor league hockey landscape."