STOCKTON, Calif. – After only eight games the Thunder have found themselves sitting at the top of the Western Conference (6-1-1), following a 7-4 win over the Alaska Aces on Saturday night at Stockton Arena in front of 8,018 fans. The Thunder is also in the midst of their “Thunder goes Pink VII” breast cancer awareness campaign, as the players donned sweaters with pink thunder bolts and played on pink ice.
This game marked the first time these teams faced each other since the Aces knocked Stockton out of the Conference Semifinals during the Kelly Cup Playoffs last spring. The Thunder are now 27-25-14 lifetime versus the Aces and they never trailed in Saturday’s match, as they snapped the Aces four game winning streak. But this was only game one of ten games the teams will meet this season.
As the game began, the Thunder seemed to be waiting and watching to see what the much talked about NHL guys, Brandon Dubinsky, Joey Crabb and Nate Thompson would bring to an already well-oiled team.
Thunder Toni Rajala admitted, “We just weren’t ready in those first five minutes. They are just normal people; of course they’ve played in the NHL. But we can’t think about that.”
But the watching and waiting did not last long as they got down to the action. In the opening period, the Thunder opened their scoring on a power play opportunity on a Philippe Cornet goal at 6:27. Less than two minutes later, Justin Maylan scored putting the Thunder up 2-0. But it would not last long as Dubinsky responded with a pair of goals to even the score. Dubinsky (8 goals, 3 assists) brought his goal scoring streak to seven goals in four games.
Philippe Cornet – Photo by Jack Lima
Rajala opened the scoring early in the second, with a goal at 1:42 to give the lead back to Stockton. But again, the Aces would find an opportunity again at 9:57 on a Garry Nunn goal that left Tyler Bunz sprawled out on the ice in the flurry. Stockton’s Harrison Reed scored at 12:18 followed by a second Rajala goal at 15:06 to give Stockton the 5-3 lead on Alaska going into the third. The Aces netminder Mark Guggenberger was replaced by Brooks Ostergard, who had been signed earlier in the day, following Stockton’s fifth goal.
The game was fast and furious as Stockton increased their lead in the third. Yannick Riendeau scored at 2:16, followed at 4:35 by a Matt Reber goal. Tommy Mele scored at 7:14, but the Aces could not get back on track, and the Thunder held out for the 7-4 win.
Tyler Bunz – Photo by Jack Lima
In the end, all but five of Stockton’s players earned at least a point for their efforts, leaving coach Matt Thomas pleased.
“I think the first goal settled the guys down a bit and we played really well after that. We did a little too much watching early, but the guys responded after the first.” He said.
Thomas knew this would be a good test of the guys.
It is “more about us playing as a team. [We] can’t worry about who’s on the other team. We are all in the same league. It is a great challenge to see how you stacked up against those players. They are good. We made some nice plays and got a couple of lucky ones too. When you work hard you get the lucky ones,” Added Thomas.
Thomas will work to ensure the players return ready for the next match on Sunday afternoon. It is expected that the Aces will come back looking to even the score.
“No matter what, the tendency is to think it is going to happen again. I’m really proud of their effort. We have got to make sure the work ethic is where it needs to be. Success on this type of weekend is important. It’s nice that we were able to win. We need to make sure we show up [Sunday]. It can ruin a good weekend by not getting the job done.”
Toni Rajala – Photo by Jack Lima
Rajala has earned seven points in his last five games, and the two goals in this game earned him the first star.
The Thunder returns Sunday for the third and final game of the “Thunder Goes Pink VII” weekend.
Contact the writer at Shellie.Lima@prohockeynews.com Follow us on twiter @ProHockeyNews
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