August 6th, the Wichita Thunder announced that Sean Allen will be returning to the Thunder blue line for the 2021-2022 season. This marks the 4th returning player, and the 3rd returning defenseman for the team so far. 

Last season, Allen appeared in 49 games notching 3 assists also appearing in Game 5 of the playoffs last season. 

Eager for his return, coming back to Wichita sounded like an easy option for him. “A big factor that played into me coming back for a third season in Wichita, was the opportunity I get there with coach Bruce & Johnny. Also we have a good core of guys coming back from last season so I’m really excited to see what we can do this upcoming season as a team,” said Allen.

After an exciting season last year, there are some high expectations within the locker room, as he says in an interview “On a personal note, and I think I can speak on behalf of the team that we have high expectations for next season and want to bring a championship back to Wichita for you crazy fans. The fans will expect a stronger/faster Sean Allen with a better skill set as I’m working on all these things day in and day out during this off season.”

Getting eliminated from playoff contention is never fun, but instead it’s serving as motivation for this season, “Just seeing the team we lost to in game 5 in overtime win it all should give us all the motivation in the world to go and capture that 2021-2022 Kelly Cup,” Allen explained.

Like any professional athlete, he’s been spending his offseason training. However, this offseason is much shorter. “After each season is done I come back home and evaluate how my year went overall. This off season I’ve been in the gym and on the ice 3 times a week while doing some intense road biking to build my conditioning. I just have less time to get prepared for the upcoming season so I’m just doing extra of everything to keep my body in the best shape possible.”

Sean Allen is also coming back with only one individual goal. Bringing the Kelly Cup back to Wichita. 

By Gabe Daniel