The C.D. Dodd Perth Thunder will travel to Melbourne this weekend for a pair of games against the Melbourne Ice, needing just a single point to punch their ticket to the 2019 AIHL Finals series.  

Melbourne Ice (6-W/17-L/3-OTW/0-OTL-24 PTS)
Perth Thunder (14-W/10-L/1-OTW/1-OTL-45 PTS)

Saturday 24th August at 3:00pm (AWST) & Sunday 25th August at 12:00 pm (AWST). 

Complete Team Effort As Thunder Thump The Bears

The C.D. Dodd Perth Thunder put forth one of their finest team performances of the season as they downed the Sydney Bears 5-1 at Perth Ice Arena in a third place show down on Saturday evening.  Louick Marcotte led the offense with three points (2G-1A), while Keven Veillleux and Ben Breault each chipped in with two assists.  A highlight for the Thunder and their fans was seeing local player, Lynden Lodge, score one of the prettiest goals of the season in the second frame, with a top-shelf snipe that Bears goaltender, Anthony Kimlin, had no chance of stopping.

The final home game of the season was an intense affair as both teams came out with a lot of intensity, the importance of the result not lost on either team.  A fast paced opening period that saw just one stoppage over the first ten minutes of play, ended with Perth leading 1-0 on Louick Marcotte’s 19th goal of the season, a power-play strike with just 38 seconds remaining.    Lodge’s beauty was the only goal of the second and third period markers from Shaun Tobin, Andrew Cox and Marcotterounded out the Thunder scoring on the day.

Thunder goaltender Nico Viksten was superb, stopping 30 of the 31 shots he faced, the only blemish being a Jacob Ratcliffe goal to spoil the shut-out bid with 4:46 to play in the game.  Viksten was chosen as the Thunder player’s game MVP for his performance.

Thunder In Pole Position To Grab Third Place

The Thunder victory against Sydney stretched their lead over the Bears to five points (reduced to two when the Bears defeated Adelaide on Sunday) in the race for third place on the AIHL ladder.  As the teams enter the final weekend of the regular season, the Thunder can clinch third spot with victories in their final two games against the Melbourne Ice.  The Thunder will clinch a Finals appearance if they gain a single point against the Ice, or if the Melbourne Mustangs fail to score maximum points in their final two games.  A third place finish will set up a likely semi-final match-up against the Newcastle Northstars, while finishing fourth would set up a date with the all-conquering CBR Brave.

Thunder Look To Finish Strong In Melbourne Against The Ice

The Thunder take to the road for a pair of games against the Melbourne Ice to complete their AIHL regular season.  The Thunder have defeated the Ice in two previous meetings this season, by scores of 5-2 and 9-3, with both games played at Perth Ice Arena.  The Thunder will be striving for a strong finish to their season and will be looking to secure wins in both games as they look to finish in third place and book their spot in the AIHL finals.  The Thunder could still finish in second place if they win both games and the Newcastle Northstars drop their remaining two games.  The focus will be winning one game at a time and first up is the Thunder vs the Ice at 3:00 pm (Western Time) on Saturday, 24th August.  The final regular season game for the Thunder will be on Sunday, 25th August at 12:00 pm (Western time), also against the Melbourne Ice.

Thunder Announce 2019 Season Award Winners

Following the Thunder’s 5-1 win over the Sydney Bears on Saturday, the Thunder invited fans, sponsors, and volunteers to join the players and coaching staff in the Cross Bar for the announcement of the Thunder’s 2019 Team Award winners.  The following awards were presented:

200 Game Milestone:  ?Jordy Kyros
Most Improved Player: ?Lynden Lodge
Best Defenceman: ??Rob Haselhurst
Best Local Player: ??Kieren Webster
Most Valuable Player: ?Kieren Webster?

Congratulations to all the award winners on a terrific regular season and thank you to all the fans who came along for the final home game and stayed around for the awards presentations. 
 

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