For one day in March, Wichita will have two sports franchises with a ‘Wind’ nickname
For one night in March, Wichita will be home to two sports teams with “wind” in their nicknames.
The Wichita Thunder announced Tuesday that it will change its name to the Wichita Wind for a game on Friday, March 20 against the Kansas City Mavericks, a result of a fan vote for the one-day change.
Wichita’s new Triple-A baseball team, which begins play April 14, is named the Wind Surge.
But Wichita hockey and the Wind nickname have a history.
Wichita’s professional hockey team was known as the Wind from 1980-83, and it was also the affiliate for the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers from 1980-82. The Thunder are the ECHL affiliate for the Oilers.
The team will wear the special Wichita Wind uniforms for the March 20 game, then the team will auction them off online.
After a strong start to the season, the Thunder (21-27-8-0) has cooled off and is in 11th place in the 13-team ECHL Western Conference. Wichita returns home to Intrust Bank Arena on Feb. 28 for a game against the Allen Americans.
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