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Thunder's First Year Is Memorable

April 19, 2006

Scott Linesburgh
Staff Writer
The Stockton Record

STOCKTON, Calif. - Dan Chapman admits he underestimated the passion of local hockey enthusiasts.

He thought the sport could be successful at the new downtown arena. But he never imagined that the Stockton Thunder would be supported better than any other ECHL team.

The Thunder's inaugural season featured more success at the box office than on the ice. No matter - fans embraced the team even when it lost. So in a town with little hockey history, the first-year team won the league's attendance title.

Chapman, the team president, doesn't mind being wrong.

"I thought we'd do well, but not this well," Chapman said. "What an amazing first season this was, and it was something else to watch this unfold." The team finished the season 18-40-14, and it could have been far worse had it had not rallied in the final six weeks. Stockton was competitive most nights, yet still suffered a 15-game winless streak.

But the joyous band of loyalists wearing yellow wigs, caps and jerseys kept coming to the arena, carrying signs and cheering. The fans offered encouragement when they saw the players at stores and restaurants, and some even had the Thunder over to dinner.

Team owner Michael Reinsdorf also was surprised, and promises fans will have more to cheer about in the future.

"I want to thank them for their amazing support," Reinsdorf said. "We struggled this season, and sometimes it was worse than I imagined it would be. But even when we lost, the fans always stuck by us, and that was heartwarming to see."

The Thunder already is planning for next season. Reinsdorf and Chapman announced that coach Chris Cichocki will return, and they are confident the team will be able to attract quality free agents because the Thunder now has a home and won't start the season with a long road trip.

But those plans can wait. For now, it's time to take stock of the inaugural season.

"This will never happen again, and I made sure my players knew how special this first season was," Cichocki said. "I told them that there would be other teams for these fans to watch, but you guys were the first, and they would always remember you."

No one knew how Stockton and its surrounding cities would respond to the idea of a minor league hockey team.

Reinsdorf, the managing partner of International Facilities Group, which manages the Stockton Arena, was hopeful when he bought the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies in January, 2005, and prepared to move the team across country.

The Thunder sold 657 season tickets on the first day of sales, and entered the season with a season-ticket base of about 2,400. Chapman confidently predicted the team could average 5,000 fans per game.

"I thought that was a good goal," he said. "We went soaring past it."

The team played the first 15 games on the road and opened at the Stockton Arena before a sellout crowd of 10,117 on Dec. 10, 2005. Three more sellouts followed.

"We wanted them to know from the very first day that they were our team," said Harold Van Rys of Manteca, a season-ticket holder. "And the thing is, the crowds got bigger, more enthusiastic and learned more about the game as the season went on."

The fans got as much love back from the players as they gave.

"You just don't expect something like that," Thunder goalie Jake Moreland said. "These are the best fans I've ever seen."

The Thunder averaged 6,343 fans, taking away the attendance crown from the longtime champs, the Florida Everblades.

"What happened this season in Stockton is very impressive," said Brian McKenna, the ECHL's commissioner. "The organization did a great job of getting fans out to the beautiful new arena, and the fans realized this was a fun game and kept coming back."

But Reinsdorf said he knows the team has to improve to keep building its fan support. He remembers the words of his father, Chicago Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf.

"I told my father that the Thunder had won the attendance title, and he nodded and said 'You'd better start winning,'" Reinsdorf said. "He's right. Our fans have put a lot of faith in us, and we have to deliver better results."

Cichocki said recruiting for Stockton's first team was tough because the arena was still being built and the Thunder had to start the season on a 15- game road trip.

"You are recruiting to the unknown," Cichocki said. "But we got some very nice players."

Moreland signed first, and was one of the primary reasons Stockton was competitive in most games. Rookie Mike Lalonde had 29 goals and veteran forward Joel Irwin's quiet leadership helped the offense.

The Thunder began with promise, going 4-4-2. Cichocki said it gave him false hope.

"I didn't see some trouble signs," he said. "We played some weak teams, and there were more problems than I originally anticipated."

The Thunder won just eight of its first 52 games.

"I can't tell you how frustrating it was," Reinsdorf said. "I think it helped that we were always competitive, and I think Chris (Cichocki) did a wonderful job."

Cichocki kept making roster moves. He added productive players such as Ned Havern, Jeff Lang and Kevin Gardner.

The changes helped. The Thunder went 10-7-3 in the final 20 contests, including a 4-2 win in the season finale on April 8.

Now the team looks forward with plans to draw more fans and earn more wins. "I've said that hockey in Stockton has gone from an unknown to a hidden jewel," Cichocki said. "After this season, I don't think the jewel will be hidden for long."

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