Game Thunder pushes Admirals all the way

THE second leg of the doubleheader against the West Auckland Admirals was much better for the Dunedin Thunder on Sunday night.

To be fair, it could not have got much worse after the 70 shellacking 24 hours earlier.

The Thunder showed its competitive grit in pushing the Admirals all the way in Auckland before slipping to a 52 loss in the New Zealand Ice Hockey League.

It was a slightly deceiving scoreline, too, as the game was in the balance until the home team rattled in two goals in the final five minutes.

After the Admirals had taken a 20 lead, Billy Sheard pulled a goal back for the Thunder on the assists from Jack Lewis and Noah Gregory.

The second period was scoreless, setting the scene for a tense third period.

West Auckland nudged ahead 31 but again the Thunder responded, Isaak Reid scoring with help from Adam Stitely and Dylan Devlin.

The Thunder then sniffed blood when it had a twoman advantage thanks to some some badly behaved Admirals being in the penalty box.

Instead, the Admirals scored a rare doubleshorthanded goal to make it 42, and the home team completed the scoring when it was back to equal numbers two minutes later.

Dunedin goaltender Toby Shuck had a busy night, saving 49 of 54 shots, while his own team could manage just 23 shots.

It leaves the Thunder with a 111 record in a season that has had the odd high point but has never really got going.

And what lies ahead? That is the sound of the NZIHLleading Southern Stampede heading to Dunedin for the derby this FridaySaturday.

The Stampede had the weekend off but still tops the league on 27 points, ahead of the Canterbury Red Devils (25) and the Admirals (23).

Meanwhile, the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation has confirmed its men’s triple star camp will be held at the Dunedin Ice Stadium on December 24.

The women’s camp follows on December 911.