Thunderbolts Sign Forward Killian Rowlee to PTO

On Friday, Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Bes announced the signing of forward Killian Rowlee to a professional tryout (PTO).

Rowlee joins the Thunderbolts following the conclusion of his collegiate career at Curry College, where he was teammates with Thunderbolts rookie forward Eelis Laaksonen for three seasons between 2022-2025 and together were members of Curry's 2024-25 CNE Conference Championship team.  Over 4 seasons of D3 collegiate hockey between 2022-2026, Rowlee scored 35 goals and 52 points in 83 regular season games, including a team-leading 14 goals along with 19 points in 23 games this season, his 19 points tied for second-most on the team.  The native of Fulton, New York played a full season of Junior A hockey with the OJHL's Lindsay Muskies in 2021-22 prior to enrolling at Curry College, scoring 14 goals and 25 points in 53 games.

Thunderbolts Sign Forward Sean Bunting to SPC

On Thursday, Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Bes announced the signing of forward Sean Bunting to a standard contract.

Bunting joins the Thunderbolts following the conclusion of his collegiate career at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.  Over 4 seasons of D3 collegiate hockey, Bunting scored 19 goals and 46 points in 79 regular season games, including 6 goals and 15 points in 25 games this season.  The native of Phoenix, Arizona played a full season of top-tier junior hockey in the USHL with the Sioux City Musketeers in 2018-19, tallying an assist in 43 games before playing in the BCHL with Langley in 2019-20, scoring 4 goals and 15 points in 50 regular season games.  In one final season of junior hockey, Bunting suited up for the NAHL's Shreveport Mudbugs in 2020-21, scoring 10 goals and 24 points in 54 games before enrolling in college.

Kristian Stead wins Warrior Hockey Goaltender of the Month for the Second Time

HUNTERSVILLE, NC (March 4, 2026) - The SPHL announced today that Kristian Stead of the Evansville Thunderbolts has been named the Warrior Hockey SPHL Goaltender of the Month for February.

Stead went 6-2-0 last month, posting a 1.51 goals against average, a 0.938 save percentage, and three shutouts to help Evansville move from fifth place to second in the standings, as the Thunderbolts’ 7-2-1 record in February was tied for league-best.

A native of Merritt, BC, Stead also earned inaugural Warrior Hockey SPHL Goaltender of the Month honors for October/November. Stead currently leads all netminders in wins (21) and minutes, ranks second in saves, is third in goals against average (2.07) and shutouts (three - tied), and fourth in save percentage (0.925).

Thunderbolts Trade Fensterstock to Mayhem for Rights to Huffman

On Monday, Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Bes announced a trade that sends forward Cooper Fensterstock to the Macon Mayhem in exchange for the rights to defenseman Caleb Huffman.

The Thunderbolts trade Fensterstock to the Macon Mayhem in exchange for defenseman Caleb Huffman.  Huffman is in his first full professional season, having played 26 games with the Macon Mayhem, scoring 4 goals and 9 points along with an even plus/minus rating.  Huffman turned pro late in the 2024-25 season, playing 6 games with the Wichita Thunder of the ECHL.  The native of Fairbanks, Alaska played three seasons of junior hockey in his home state with the Kenai River Brown Bears of the NAHL, recording 5 goals and 24 points in 86 regular season games and captained Kenai River in 2022-23.  Huffman enrolled at the University of Alaska-Anchorage and played a season and a half of Division 1 NCAA hockey between 2022-2024, scoring 1 goal and 2 points in 42 games before playing a final season of collegiate hockey at Simon Frasier University in British Columbia in 2024-25, scoring 3 goals and 16 points in 20 games before joining Wichita.  

Thunderbolts Trade Woernle to Fayetteville for Fensterstock

On Monday, Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Bes announced a trade that sends defenseman John Woernle to the Fayetteville Marksmen in exchange for forward Cooper Fensterstock.

Fensterstock joins the Thunderbolts after starting the season with the Fayetteville Marksmen, tallying 1 goal and 9 points in 23 games. The Charlotte, North Carolina native played three seasons of NCAA III with SUNY-Geneseo between 2022-2025, tallying 19 goals and 48 points along with only 16  penalty minutes in 69 regular season games. Before heading to college at SUNY-Genesco, Fensterstock spent two separate seasons with the Amarillo Bulls of the NAHL, where he had 35 points in 39 games his first season and 35 points in 52 games his second season.