The Adirondack Thunder are preparing for a very busy week in which they have a four in five, including three games against the second-place Norfolk Admirals at home beginning on Friday Night. Adirondack is coming off a weekend split on the road as their woes in Maine continued, but they were able to get back on track on Friday Night with a 5-1 win over the Worcester Railers. The Thunder have a chance to put a stranglehold on the top spot of the North Divison as Norfolk is six points in hand, but when the series begins on Friday, Adirondack will have one game in hand on the Admirals and anywhere between a four or eight-point lead depending on the results from Utah vs Norfolk game on Monday and Worcester vs Adirondack game on Wednesday.
Takeaways From the Weekend:
Andre Ghantous had an excellent first weekend as a pro, putting up one goal and three assists over the weekend as he was placed on the Thunder top-line with Shane Harper and Tristan Ashbrook while also seeing time on the Thunder’s top PP unit. There’s no question that with guys like Harper and Grasso out of the lineup. When looking at the impact Ghantous has had on the Thunder already, it reminds you of a guy like Dom Marcinkevics, who came in right away and made an impact for the Thunder.
Vinnie Purpura picked up his first win in almost a month, making 39 saves on Saturday Night for his 14th win of the season and improving to 5-0-1 vs Worcester this season.
“Ya, It feels good, we have a good group that was really welcoming and made it easy to come right into the lineup and play some hockey”
Andre Ghantous Post-Game Remarks on Saturday Night
Adirondack Expecting To Be Buiser Than Expected At Deadline?
Well, it looks like we will have a busier-than-expected week, as with injuries and call-ups, the Thunder have some holes to fill, and it seems like they will fill those spots in the next week and a half. When MacArthur mentions interesting moves, there’s one name that in my mind could be on the move, and that’s Mike Gillespie. The 27-year-old forward signed with the Thunder earlier this season and has played in 42 games, putting up six goals and 10 assists for 16 points. He can play either on the wing or down the middle and could be a solid piece for a playoff contender not only for this season but for next season as well.
Also, here’s a hot take: Isaac Poulter is coming back down, and Vinnie Purpura gets shipped out. I’m not saying it would be the preferred take, but the Devils have a backlog of goalies in their system.
“There’s always plans, we’ll see what happens, their’s going to be some interesting things that are going to happen here in the next seven to 10 days”
Head Coach Pete MacArthur on the Trade Deadline
Injury Update
Head Coach Pete MacArthur mentioned that Patrick Grasso and Zach Walker would miss the Thunder’s next four games. However, he did mention that Brendan Less is expected back for the big weekend series vs. Norfolk Admirals. When asked if Grasso and Walker were both done for the regular season, MacArthur said he didn’t know. Getting Less back in the lineup will be huge for the Thunder as was playing some solid hockey prior to his injury, he had four points in his last two ten games, including his first two goals of the season.
Takeaways From the Weekend:
Andre Ghantous had an excellent first weekend as a pro, putting up one goal and three assists over the weekend as he was placed on the Thunder top-line with Shane Harper and Tristan Ashbrook while also seeing time on the Thunder’s top PP unit. There’s no question that with guys like Walker and Grasso out of the lineup. When looking at the impact Ghantous has had on the Thunder already, it reminds you of a guy like Dom Marcinkevics, who came in right away and made an impact for the Thunder.
Vinnie Purpura picked up his first win in almost a month, making 39 saves on Saturday Night for his 14th win of the season and improving to 5-0-1 vs Worcester this season.
“Ya, It feels good, we have a good group that was really welcoming and made it easy to come right into the lineup and playing some hockey”
Andre Ghantous post-game from Saturday Night
Injury Update
Head Coach Pete MacArthur mentioned that Patrick Grasso and Zach Walker will miss the Thunder’s next four games. However, he did mention that Brendan Less is expected back for the big weekend series vs. Norfolk Admirals. When asked if Grasso and Walker were both done for the regular season, MacArthur said he didn’t know. Getting Less back in the lineup will be huge for the Thunder as was playing some solid hockey prior to his injury, he had four points in his last two ten games, including his first two goals of the season.
