The 2024-25 Adirondack Thunder season was not a pretty one, as the Thunder went from the top team in the East during the 2023-24 season to the worst team in the East during the 2024-25 season. Adirondack would use 51 different players during the 2024-25 season, including 18 different defenseman throughout their 72-game schedule. Adirondack would also see a number of different faces behind their bench during the 2024-25 season, including Pete MacArthur, Mike Bergin, Zach Walker, Shane Harper, Glenn Merkovsky, and Mark Voakes.
“There’s a lot of them. This place hasn’t changed, it’s still the coolest place to play in the coast by far, fans, coaches, ownernship, this is a really special place. Every year when it comes to an end, it’s tough. Obviously not the season we wanted or the fans wanted but to see even the last home game for all of them, the biggest sellout. It’s just such a special place here and I’m just fourtnate to be here.
Adirondack Thunder Captain Darian Skeoch on his intial thoughts on the 2024-25 season
Team Performance
Record: 26-41-3-2 (7th in North Division, 14th in Eastern Conference, 28th in ECHL)
Stats:
Goals For (GF): 2.64 (24th)
Goals Against (GA): 3.42 (22nd)
PP %: 14.8% (28th)
PK %: 74.4% (28th)
“Between this year and last year, it’s obviously extreme going from the number team in the East and making a deep playoff run to not making the playoffs and quite frankley we weren’t close this year. Certaintly last year we were one of the better teams in goal with Vinnie Purpura, Jeremy Brodeur, and Isaac Poulter came down and won a lot of games, we were trementous in goaltending last year, we weren’t in great in goal this year. We lost a lot of goal scoring last year and we didn’t replace it and we didn’t score a lot of goal. Special teams, this year frankly we weren’t good, we didn’t score a lot of power play goals and we gave up a lot of goals shorthanded. Those are three pretty important parts of the game and we gotta get a lot better at all three next year. Add all three up and that’s why were done very early this year. We gotta get a lot better at all three of those three key elements of the game”
Adirondack Thunder President Jeff Mead on his thoughts on the 2024-25 season
Key Players
Ryan Conroy– There weren’t many bright spots during the 2024-25 season for Adirondack, and that was especially true on defense. Conroy, 24, put up solid numbers in his first full season with the Thunder, putting up eight goals and 21 assists for 28 points. He would end up playing top-line minutes for Adirondack and did some solid work on the penalty kill, as he had three points short-handed and added another six assists on the power play. There’s no doubt the Thunder will need a makeover on the blueline, but bringing back Conroy would be a good place to start.
Josh Filmon– For the first time since the 2021-22 season, the Adirondack Thunder didn’t have a 30-goal scorer; in fact, they only had one player who had at least 20 goals, and that was Josh Filmon. In 65 games with the Thunder, the 21-year-old forward had 20 goals and 16 assists for 36 points, including 11 points on the PP. The sixth-round pick of the Devils back in 2022 will likely be back in Adirondack next season as he still has two more years left on his entry-level contract.
Kevin O’Neil– There’s no doubt that it was a rough year for O’Neil, as he had a career low 49 points while putting up 19 goals and 30 assists. Despite the career lows, his 30 assists and 49 points would lead the Thunder. He would lead the team with six PP goals and three short-handed assists. One of the biggest things that hurt O’Neil is that Adirondack didn’t have an established point-getter to help take some of the load off of O’Neil during the season. There’s no doubt that if the Latham, NY native decides to come back to Adirondack next year, he could have a bounce-back season.
“It was incredible. I was like 45 mintues away from home, my girlfriend was here all her family and my family and even my grandfather was here for the last weekend of the season so that was really speical”
Kevin O’Neil on being able to play close to home this season with the Thunder
Emerging Talent
Kaleb Ergang– The Adirondack Thunder did a lot of mixing and matching with the roster last year as they tried to find pieces that might fit for next year, and one of those players was Kaleb Ergang. In 13 games, Ergang put up six goals and three assists for nine points, three of which came on the PP. The Spruce Grove, Alberta native has a good shot and could be a promising middle-six piece for the Thunder heading into next season.
Isaiah Fox– At the end of the season, the Adirondack Thunder were bringing in several college rookies to try and find some pieces for the 2025-26 season. One piece that seems likely to pan out is Isaiah Fox, who in 17 games with Adirondack, put up three goals and seven assists for 10 points. Fox not only has a knack for putting up points but also has no problem throwing his body around and playing the “ADK” style of hockey.
Goaltending
The Adirondack Thunder would see appearances from five different goaltenders during the 2024-25 season, which is one more than they had during the 2023-24 campaign. As expected, Jeremy Brodeur and Tyler Brennan carried the load, playing in a combined 53 games this season. Brodeur, who was coming off a career season, went 11-11-1 with a 2.89 GAA, .905SV%, and four shutouts. The Essex Falls, NJ native would also pick up his 200th pro win during the season. His four shutouts were also a career high. His best numbers this season came in the AHL with the Utica Comets, where he went 4-0 with a 2.16 GAA and .923SV%. Tyler Brennan had another injury-riddled season as he saw action in just 29 games and would once again have his season cut short. Brennan would go 9-16-3 with a 3.48 GAA and .878SV%.
David Fessenden, who came into the season as Adirondack’s third goalie, would play in 11 games for the Thunder, going 2-5-1 with a 3.23 GAA and .874SV% before suffering a season-ending injury in January. The 27-year-old goaltender would give the Thunder faithful a memory they won’t forget as he dropped the gloves in his first career start with Reading’s Keith Petruzzelli. Adirondack would also see appearances by Colby Muise and Henry Welsh.
Attendance Records Set During The 2024-25 Season
The performance on the ice for Adirondack was certainly disappointing, but that didn’t stop the fans from coming out. During the 2024-25 season, the Thunder set a franchise record with 16 sellouts, averaging a crowd of 4,534, which is almost 300 fans more than they did during the 2023-24 season. This also comes with the Thunder selling out their final two games of the regular season. Adirondack’s last game of the season had a franchise record 5,560 fans in the building. This is amazing to see, especially in a small community that win or lose, that this fan base will be there. Adirondack fans are passionate, and it’s not just the home games that the fans are showing up; Thunder fans also tend to travel well when the team is on the road.
“Ya, certaintly off the ice it was a couple record-breaking season, average attendence of 4,534 and 16 regular season shutouts, that part of the tremendous and we’re very fornuate to our fanbase and community for the dedication and the loyalty over the year so very happy with that part of the business this year”
President Jeff Mead on the Thunder attendence during the 2024-25 season.
The End To The Pete MacArthur Era
The Adirondack Thunder will have a new head coach for the 2025-26 season after Pete MacArthur stepped down on May 2nd with one year remaining on his contract. A lot went wrong for the Thunder during the 2024-25 season, including their special teams, which struggled throughout the season. Adirondack’s big guns couldn’t get much going as Josh Filmon was the only player who scored 20 goals last season, and Kevin O’Neil had a very disappointing season, putting up just 19 goals and 30 assists for 49 points in 60 games. The 49 points were a career low for O’Neil.
Despite the lows last year, a couple of positives can be taken away. Pete MacArthur always seemed to find the right puzzle mid-season, and last year was no exception. Kishaun Gervais and Grant Loven are the two names that came to Adirondack, quickly made an impact, and played an important role for the Thunder down the stretch. Gervais came in and helped Adirondack with scoring, playing the rough and tough “ADK Style” of hockey that MacArthur had kept mentioning. Grant Loven came in and proved to be a solid all-around piece for the Thunder and could play wherever he was needed in the lineup.
A Busy Off-Season Ahead
The Adirondack Thunder will have their hands full this off-season, and they not only have some needs they need to address, but they also need a head coach. One of the biggest pieces that Adirondack needs to find this off-season is some scorers. On paper, heading into last season, it looked promising with guys like Tag Bertuzzi, Ryan Francis, and Patrick Polino all expected to play a key role; combined, they played in 67 games, putting up 18 goals and 18 assists for 36 points.
On the blue line, there are many things that need to be addressed and many holes that need to be filled. There’s no doubt that there’s room to bring in 3-4 defensemen at least, and that’s with the hopes that you can bring back Brendan Less, Ryan Conroy, and Darian Skeoch. Aside from those three, Adirondack doesn’t have much to work with. They also need to add some more experience on the blueline, as the youth experiment didn’t work, as Ty Gibson wasn’t much of an asset, and Taylor Ford missed most of the season with injuries.
ITR 44: We Have A Champion…Again – Inside The Rink
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