06/18/2008 10:01 AM -
Tom Zanoski's fearless approach helped produce 12 goals and 98 penalty minutes in just 42 games last season as a rookie. (photo by George Steckler)
Scrappy, young winger is first to return to Thunder lineup for 2008-09
STOCKTON, Calif. - The Stockton Thunder, the ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers and American Hockey League's Springfield Falcons, has agreed to terms with left wing
Tom Zanoski (Zah-NAW-skee), Thunder head coach
Chris Cichocki announced today. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"Tom made a big impact for us in the second half of the season after coming out of college and we felt he was an ideal piece to our puzzle for next season," said Cichocki. "He plays an irritating, abrasive style that a lot of teams want out of a player like him and that our fans took a liking to."
Zanoski, 24, was signed by the Thunder as a free agent on December 27, 2007 and appeared in 42 games for Stockton last season as a rookie, scoring 12 goals, 20 points (12g-8a) and tallying 98 penalty minutes. The Brampton, Ontario native also appeared in four Kelly Cup Playoff games, registering one assist.
Listen: Chris Cichocki's comments on the return of Tom Zanoski
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound forward previously competed for two years (2005-07) of his Canadian college hockey career at
Dalhousie University (CIS), scoring 50 points (19g-31a) in 52 career games for the Tigers, achieving career-highs as a 2006-07 sophomore by scoring 29 points (12g-17a) in 24 games with 39 penalty minutes, ranking fourth on the program in goals (12) and tying for second amongst all Tigers in power-play goals (6).
Zanoski tied for the program lead in assists (14) while scoring 21 points (7g-14a) as a 2005-06 freshman and spent four prior years (2001-05) of his junior career with the Ontario Hockey League's Owen Sound Attack and Mississauga Ice Dogs, scoring 126 points (45g-81a) with 345 penalty minutes in 242 career games. The Brampton, Ontario native ranked second on Mississauga in points (50) and goals (20) in 2004-05, tallying career-highs in both categories.
"I wanted to be back from the beginning and I'm glad we got it all worked out early," said Zanoski. "Stockton is a great place to play. It has a great organization, the fan support is second-to-none and it's an environment that really helps you as a hockey player. We weren't too far away from beating Las Vegas in the first round last year so I'm looking forward to helping us win more games, build on that and go a lot further in the playoffs this next season."
ABOUT THE ECHL
Began in 1988-89 with five teams playing in four states, the Premier ‘AA' Hockey League has grown into a coast-to-coast league that will have 24 teams in 16 states and British Columbia playing 864 games from Oct. 17, 2008 to Apr. 4, 2009. Nineteen of the 24 teams have played at least five years in their current city.
The third-longest tenured professional hockey league behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League, the ECHL averaged 4,174 per game last season, marking the fourth year in row and the 16th time in the last 18 years that the league has averaged over 4,000 fans. The league has drawn over four million fans each of the last five years and 11 times in the past 12 seasons.
The Thunder opens the 2008-09 regular season at home on Saturday, October 18 against the local rival Fresno Falcons at Stockton Arena, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Thunder season ticket holders enjoy the highest-demanded seating locations in Stockton Arena, preferred parking options, benefits including admission to season ticket holder-only events, discount opportunities on Thunder merchandise, a free e-newsletter, admission to the first two rounds of the Kelly Cup Playoffs and more. Details on Thunder promotional and giveaway nights will be announced soon.
The Thunder has led the ECHL in attendance for three consecutive seasons and drew 239,337 fans to Stockton Arena in 2007-08. Season tickets for 2008-09 are now on sale and begin at just $335. A deposit of just $50 reserves your seat for the 2008-09 season! For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit
http://www.stocktonthunder.com/.
