‘You can feel it’: Wichita Thunder could clinch conference championship at home soon
The Wichita Thunder could seal its first conference championship in nearly a decade this weekend at Intrust Bank Arena.
With five games remaining in the regular season, the Thunder have the edge in percentage of points won (66.7%) over the Fort Wayne Komets (62.2%) atop the ECHL Western Conference standings with a magic number of five.
After taking two of three on the road from Fort Wayne recently, Wichita clinching this weekend is now a reality when it hosts the Tulsa Oilers at 7 p.m. Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday. The Thunder are looking for their fourth conference championship in franchise history, as they could join the squads from the 1994, 1995 and 2012 in the rafters.
With Wichita Thunder playoff hockey coming, fans can purchase tickets through Select-A-Seat or by calling the Thunder ticket office at 316-264-4625.
“You can feel it in the locker room and with the guys we’re getting to that special time of the year and playoff season is about to start,” Thunder coach Bruce Ramsay said. “We want to do the best job of putting ourselves in the best possible position to get ready for the postseason. We want to end the year on a high note playing our best hockey and after this last weekend, I feel like that was some of our best hockey we’ve played all year.”
After playing the majority of the season without contract players, the Thunder are receiving a significant boost for the postseason with last week’s announcement that the Toronto Marlies have loaned forwards Gordie Green, Jeremy McKenna and Bobby McMann, as well as defenseman Noel Hoefenmayer to the Thunder ahead of the playoffs.
Not only do the four newcomers give Ramsay some much-needed depth, but all three forwards figure to play a critical role in the Thunder’s attack in June.
“Every one of those guys are elite players, so we’re excited about what they’re going to do for us and how much they’re going to help,” Ramsay said. “Toronto wanted them to gain experience that you only get from playing in the playoffs, so they thought it would be beneficial for their futures to come down and be apart of what we have going on this year. It’s been a special year with a special group of guys, so we’re looking forward to adding them to the mix.”
If the Thunder don’t clinch the Western Conference title this weekend, then they should have chances on the road next week when they play at the Allen Americans next Wednesday and at the Kansas City Mavericks next Saturday.
“Right now we’re just a team that’s taking things game by game,” Ramsay said. “We’re not looking ahead. It’s nice to get some extra players at this time of the year. It’s been a long season, so now we’re finally going to be able to rotate some guys in and out of the lineup. I have complete confidence in every one of these guys to step up and help this team win.”
This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 6:00 AM.
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