The Wichita Thunder are at the midpoint of the 2022-23 season, playing 37 of their 72 contests. The All-Star break is passed, and the team is now set to make a stretch run, looking to make the playoffs after missing out last season.

Tale of the Tape:

Record: 21-13-3, 2^nd in Division, 4^th in conference
Home Record: 14-6-2
Away Record: 7-7-1
Record in Last 10: 5-4-1
Goals For: 124
Goals Against: 107

The Season in Review

This has been the season focused primarily on two teams – the Allen Americans and the Tulsa Oilers. Wichita has faced Allen 11 times already, going 5-5-1, while facing Tulsa 10 times, going 6-4-0. That is 21 of their first 37 contests, and they have gone 20-12-3 against the Mountain Division, playing 35 of their 37 games within the division.

The first four games of the season saw the team split four games with the Allen Americans, winning then losing by identical 5-3 scores to open the year, then splitting 2-1 decisions the following weekend. The first five games of the season were against Allen, seeing the Thunder go 3-1-1.

Next came the Oilers, as the club lost the first game against Tulsa, then earned back-to-back overtime victories. An overtime victory over the Iowa Heartlanders (November 12) was followed by two contests on successive Sundays against the Kansas City Mavericks, winning 5-2 at home before losing the following weekend in overtime, 5-4.

Around the Thanksgiving holiday, Wichita had five straight games against Tulsa, seeing the low point of the season as the club dropped three of the four games, only winning an overtime thriller on November 26, 3-2. After losing 3-2 to the Indy Fuel on November 30, the only other out of division game for the club, Wichita saw themselves at 7-7-2.

The Thanksgiving holiday became a turning point for this club, however, primarily because of the performance of Michal Stinil, Brayden Watts, and Quinn Preston. Watts was clearly having the better season of the three, scoring seven goals and adding six assists through the first 11 contests. Stinil had a goal and five assists while Preston had a goal and four helpers.

The team lost three of the four games around the holiday, but this trio clicked, combining to score 10 goals and added 10 assists in the four contests. That then led to a prolific December that saw the team go 10-4-0. Preston scored seven goals and added eight assists during that span while Watts had eight goals and nine assists. Both had a spectacular December, but it was Stinil setting the pace, earning ECHL Player of the Month honors after scoring 10 goals and adding 15 assists. He recorded the first hat trick of his career and had a four-point performance as well.

The team had an incredible month overall, outscoring opponents 55-35. That included Jay Dickman, who has scored 10 goals and added seven assists since December 17, a span of 14 games. Two defensemen also had big a big December as Cole MacDonald had 14 points in 14 games and Dylan MacPherson led the team with a +10.

The club trails the Idaho Steelheads by 12 points entering the second half of the season. Idaho benefited from a 12-game winning streak, which came to an end when they lost to the Thunder on January 6, 4-1.

What Has Gone Right

Goal scoring has been a big plus for this team. Last year, the team struggled offensively, and it was a big reason why they failed to make the playoffs. This season, scoring has not been an issue, as the team is seventh in the ECHL in total goals.

The power-play has been spectacular, ranked third overall at 24.3%, scoring 44 goals on 181 chances. That is an average of slightly over one power-play goal per game, but the team has been ridiculous on the power-play since December 21, scoring 26 power-play goals on 70 chances, a 37.1% clip. At home they are second in power-play production (29.2%).

Watts is second in the ECHL in points (49) and is tied for fourth in goals (19). Stinil is right behind him in points (48) and is third in assists (30). Stinil is first in power-play assists (18) while Watts is second (17), and Cole MacDonald is tied for fourth (14). Stinil is first in power-play points (24) while Watts is tied for second (22).

What Needs to Improve

None of the team’s goaltenders are ranked in the top 20 in goals-against average, with Evan Buitenhuis just outside of the top 20 at 2.95. Call ups for Strauss Mann and Zachary Émond have limited the pair to just 14 total starts while Buitenhuis has dominated between the pipes, starting 23 games. All three have respectable goals-against averages, despite the fact that they are facing a ridiculous number of shots.

Wichita has given up 1354 shots, an average of 36.6 shots per game. Only Savannah has allowed more shots this season (1392) and they are in last place in the South Division. It is a testament to how well these goaltenders have played that they have been peppered night after night, but have helped this team to the 12th best record overall. The number of shots needs to be reduced because a club cannot give up 36 shots or more per night during the playoffs and expect to advance to the championship.

First Half MVP

While there have been several players who have had outstanding seasons, it is Stinil and Watts who have been two of the biggest forces in the ECHL. They are second and third in points entering the weekend, but both are likely to be punished because of the success of the other. While either one could be the top player in the ECHL, it is likely that they will split the vote.

However, for the sake of this midseason review, the MVP of the Thunder is Stinil. Watts has put up a sensational season and was the lone representative for Wichita at the All-Star game. However, the team began to roll as Stinil caught fire. This was a .500 club when he was at six points, but he has delivered 42 points over the last 20 games and the team has rode on his coattails.

What to Expect:

This is a playoff team. There is no doubt about that. There are only two questions to answer for this club.

The first is if they are going to be kept together. When a team is having so much success, they are going to draw a lot of attention, not only from their AHL affiliate, in this case the San Jose Barracuda, but from other AHL clubs as well. Injuries to the San Jose Sharks or the Barracuda could lead to call ups by players such as Timur Ibragimov and Dillon Hamaliuk, and that will hurt the depth of this team. Plus, one always has to worry about the health of James Reimer, meaning that both Émond and Mann could move up.

The second is where the team will finish in the standings. As long as this club does not lose anyone off the Kid Line (Watts-Stinil-Preston), they are going to continue to score goals. They likely will not catch Idaho and the biggest threat to second-place appears to be Rapid City. Wichita has seven games left with both Kansas City and Rapid City, so they can solidify second-place by taking care of business against these teams.

By Robert Pannier