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Andy Contois led the Thunder offense with two assists.
(photo by George Steckler) |
The Thunder responded with rookie
David Rohlfs' sixth goal of the season with 4:22 left in the first period, tying the game at 1-1. Rohlfs, who broke a 16-game goal-scoring drought, corralled
Stephane Goulet's rinkwide pass from the left side, drove the slot on Victoria goaltender Julien Ellis and beat the netminder with a wirst shot over the glove.
Ryan MacMurchy put the Thunder ahead 2-1 with 2:30 left in the first with his seventh goal of the season, finishing an up-ice rush on
Andy Contois' saucer pass from the left wing, followed by MacMurchy one-timing the feed past Ellis from the base of the right circle.
Victoria came back with two goals in the second period for a 3-2 advantage, beginning with Estrada's second of the game and eighth of the year at the 2:51 mark. Wes Goldie began the scoring opportunity with a last-second breakaway on Boron and was forced behind the net by Boron who cut off the right goal post. Boron's momentum carried him out of the crease and with the net wide open, Goldie connected with Estrada who tapped the puck into a wide-open cage.
Jordan Krestanovich tallied his eighth goal of the season with 4:42 left in the second period to help the Salmon Kings regain a 3-2 lead with a power-play goal. Ryan Wade set up the goal with a slapshot from the right point that was stopped by Boron through traffic, followed by Krestanovich picking up the loose puck in the scrum and flipping a forehand shot past Boron's blocker.
Ellis kept the Thunder at-bay with 11 saves in the second period, including a one-timer by L.P. Lachance late in the second period that Ellis snared into his glove while attempting to see the shot around a screen.
Victoria stretched their lead to 4-2 with Ash Goldie's team-leading 19
th goal on the year, coming with a two-man advantage just 1:12 into the final frame. Goldie finished a centering pass from his brother Wes at the left circle, and fired a wrist shot past Boron's blocker.
Brian Lee broke a 12-game goal-scoring drought with a power-play goal to get the Thunder back to a one-goal deficit at 4-3, with Lee's goal coming at the 12:39 mark.
Jonas Almtorp set up Lee at the right point, whose initial slapshot was blocked by traffic. Lee regained the loose puck and ripped a slapshot past Ellis' blocker.
Derek Krestanovich scored his third of the year for an insurance goal at the 15:09 mark, putting the game out of reach when he finished a rebound in the mid-slot.
NOTES: The Thunder fell to 6-8-3 lifetime against Victoria and 0-3-1 in the season series ... the Thunder has scored a power-play goal in eight consecutive games and is 13-for-43 in that stretch ... Goulet's assist extended his point-scoring streak to eight consecutive games and has 11 points (3g-8a) in that span ... newcomer Tom Zanoski was the only healthy scratch, slated to make his pro debut for the Thunder on Saturday at Bakersfield.
The Thunder heads to the road for its next game and faces the Bakersfield Condors tomorrow night at Rabobank Arena, starting at 8:00 p.m. The game can be heard live on radio at 1420-AM KSTN and on the internet (video and audio available) at
http://www.stocktonthunder.com/, courtesy of B2 Networks.
Host of the 2008 ECHL All-Star Game and festivities on Jan. 22 and 23, the Thunder has led the ECHL in attendance for two consecutive seasons and drew 244,085 fans to Stockton Arena in 2006-07. Season tickets, group tickets and individual tickets for 2007-08 are on sale now. For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit
http://www.stocktonthunder.com/.
THREE STARS:
1.
VIC - 19 Kevin Estrada
2.
VIC - 20 Ryan Wade
3.
STK - 8 Andy Contois
