Thunderbolts Tie Team Record for Seventh Straight Win; Sweep Knoxville 4-1

Evansville, In.:  The Thunderbolts once again battled late in regulation by breaking a late 1-1 tie with three goals in the final 3 minutes, defeating the Knoxville Ice Bears 4-1 on Saturday at Ford Center, and tying a franchise record with seven consecutive wins.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Friday, December 5th against the Macon Mayhem at 7:00pm CT.

After a scoreless first period, Evansville broke the deadlock late in the second period as Myles Abbate found Will van der Veen moving up from the blue line amidst a mad scramble in the Knoxville crease, with Van der Veen scoring at 17:50 to give Evansville the opening lead, also assisted by Matt Hobbs.  Knoxville broke the shutout bid for Evansville 11:43 into the third period as Davide Gaeta finished off a similar scramble in the Evansville zone.  Tied 1-1 down the stretch, Evansville stole the puck deep in Knoxville territory, Jordan Simoneau found Abbate, and Abbate scored with 2:20 remaining to put Evansville back ahead 2-1.  The Thunderbolts added two unassisted empty net goals, Eelis Laaksonen at 18:43and Derek Contessa at 19:43, to seal the victory for Evansville at 4-1.  Laaksonen’s goal was also his first in professional hockey.  The win ties the Thunderbolts franchise record win streak at 7 games, previously accomplished in the 2019-20 season between November 29th and December 20th.  The Thunderbolts will have the opportunity to break the record this Wednesday, November 26th on the road at Macon.

Abbate scored the game-winning goal and added an assist, while Van der Veen, Laaksonen and Contessa scored one goal each.   In goal, Kristian Stead finished with 35 saves on 36 shots on goal for his 9th win of the season.  The Thunderbolts and Ice Bears meet again on Friday, March 6th at Knoxville Civic Coliseum, with Evansville leading the season series 2-0.

Season tickets, Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for the 2025-26 season.  Call 812-422-BOLT(2658) or visit our website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.

About Evansville Thunderbolts: The Evansville Thunderbolts is the area’s only professional hockey team. The Thunderbolts are a proud member of the SPHL.  The team is owned and operated by VW Sports, L.L.C, a subsidiary of VenuWorks, Inc. www.evansvillethunderbolts.com

Thunderbolts Tie Team Record for Seventh Straight Win; Sweep Knoxville 4-1

Evansville, In.:  The Thunderbolts once again battled late in regulation by breaking a late 1-1 tie with three goals in the final 3 minutes, defeating the Knoxville Ice Bears 4-1 on Saturday at Ford Center, and tying a franchise record with seven consecutive wins.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Friday, December 5th against the Macon Mayhem at 7:00pm CT.

After a scoreless first period, Evansville broke the deadlock late in the second period as Myles Abbate found Will van der Veen moving up from the blue line amidst a mad scramble in the Knoxville crease, with Van der Veen scoring at 17:50 to give Evansville the opening lead, also assisted by Matt Hobbs.  Knoxville broke the shutout bid for Evansville 11:43 into the third period as Davide Gaeta finished off a similar scramble in the Evansville zone.  Tied 1-1 down the stretch, Evansville stole the puck deep in Knoxville territory, Jordan Simoneau found Abbate, and Abbate scored with 2:20 remaining to put Evansville back ahead 2-1.  The Thunderbolts added two unassisted empty net goals, Eelis Laaksonen at 18:43and Derek Contessa at 19:43, to seal the victory for Evansville at 4-1.  Laaksonen’s goal was also his first in professional hockey.  The win ties the Thunderbolts franchise record win streak at 7 games, previously accomplished in the 2019-20 season between November 29th and December 20th.  The Thunderbolts will have the opportunity to break the record this Wednesday, November 26th on the road at Macon.

Abbate scored the game-winning goal and added an assist, while Van der Veen, Laaksonen and Contessa scored one goal each.   In goal, Kristian Stead finished with 35 saves on 36 shots on goal for his 9th win of the season.  The Thunderbolts and Ice Bears meet again on Friday, March 6th at Knoxville Civic Coliseum, with Evansville leading the season series 2-0.

Season tickets, Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for the 2025-26 season.  Call 812-422-BOLT(2658) or visit our website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.

About Evansville Thunderbolts: The Evansville Thunderbolts is the area’s only professional hockey team. The Thunderbolts are a proud member of the SPHL.  The team is owned and operated by VW Sports, L.L.C, a subsidiary of VenuWorks, Inc. www.evansvillethunderbolts.com

Thunderbolts Score Six in Sixth-Straight Win; Defeat Ice Bears 6-2

Evansville, In.:  The good times keep rolling for the Thunderbolts, who won their sixth consecutive game on Friday night at Ford Center, 6-2 over the Knoxville Ice Bears to move back into 2nd place in the league standings.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Saturday, November 22nd against the Knoxville Ice Bears at 7:00pm CT.

In a mostly even first period, Jordan Simoneau broke the ice 17:17 into the game with a power move to the net, scoring on a power play from Scott Kirton.  Evansville built on their lead immediately in the second period, with Kirton scoring only 20 seconds in off a net front pass, assisted by Tyson Gilmour and Keanan Stewart.  At 3:55, a loose puck near the net was cashed in by Derek Contessa, assisted by Aidan Litke to make it 3-0 Evansville.  The Ice Bears clawed their way back in, as Jared Westcott scored at 15:08 to make it 3-1, and at 9:17 of the third period Eric Olson closed the gap to 3-2.  Just minutes after scoring, Olson nearly scored again but was denied by Kristian Stead, who made a sprawling toe pad save to keep the Ice Bears from tying the game.  The save sparked the Thunderbolts, who at 15:24 regained the multi-goal lead as Eelis Laaksonen stole the puck and set up Litke at the net-front to make it 4-2.  With 2:50 remaining, Evansville drew two penalties in the same sequence, one resulting in a power play and the other drawing a penalty shot.  Matthew Hobbs scored on the penalty shot, while Contessa scored on the ensuing power play at 17:43, assisted by Matt Clark and Isaac Chapman to round out the scoring at 6-2.  Evansville’s six goals are the current season-high, and the six-game winning streak is Evansville’s longest in the regular season since December 2019, when Evansville won seven games in a row between November 29th and December 20th, that streak currently standing as the franchise record.

Contessa led the way with two goals, Litke and Kirton scored a goal and assist each, and Simoneau along with Hobbs scored the other Evansville goals.   In goal, Kristian Stead finished with 34 saves on 36 shots on goal for his 8th win of the season.  The Thunderbolts and Ice Bears meet again on Saturday, November 22nd at Ford Center, with Evansville leading the season series 1-0.

Season tickets, Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for the 2025-26 season.  Call 812-422-BOLT(2658) or visit our website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.

About Evansville Thunderbolts: The Evansville Thunderbolts is the area’s only professional hockey team. The Thunderbolts are a proud member of the SPHL.  The team is owned and operated by VW Sports, L.L.C, a subsidiary of VenuWorks, Inc. www.evansvillethunderbolts.com

Thunderbolts Sign Forward Keanan Stewart to SPC; Peters to IR

On Wednesday, the Thunderbolts and Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Bes announced a pair of transactions, led by the signing of forward Keanan Stewart to a standard contract.

Stewart joins the Thunderbolts after just over one season in the ECHL, most recently with the Adirondack Thunder and Iowa Heartlanders in 2024-25.  The Guelph, Ontario native played two seasons of junior hockey in the GOJHL with the Elmira Sugar Kings and his hometown Guelph Hurricanes between 2016-2018 before moving up to the OJHL, playing with the Burlington Cougars between 2018-2020 alongside Thunderbolts captain Matt Hobbs.  Stewart scored 50 goals and 102 points in 102 regular season games with the Cougars before heading to the United States to begin his collegiate career.  Stewart attended Mercyhurst University and played four seasons of NCAA Division 1 hockey between 2020-2024, where he scored 18 goals along with 29 points in 85 regular season games, before turning professional with the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones in the second half of the 2023-24 season.  Since beginning his professional career, Stewart recorded 3 goals and 11 points in 54 regular season games with Cincinnati, Adirondack, and Iowa, where he was also briefly a teammate of defenseman Connor Federkow.

In additional transaction news, defenseman Dilan Peters was placed on 14-Day Injured Reserve.

Thunderbolts Rally for Fifth Straight Win, 2-1 over Quad City

Moline, Ill.:  After some early struggles, the Thunderbolts battled back to tie in the second period before defeating the Quad City Storm in overtime by a 2-1 score on Saturday night in Moline, the win extending Evansville’s streak to five consecutive victories.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Friday, November 21st against the Knoxville Ice Bears at 7:00pm CT.

Quad City came out firing on all cylinders on their home ice and managed to take the game’s first lead at 17:28 of the first period, as Dmitri Toporowski scored through traffic to open the scoring.  The Thunderbolts responded well and gradually took over the momentum in the second period, and on a power play, Myles Abbate scored to tie the game 1-1 from Matthew Hobbs and Tyson Gilmour at the 11:21 mark.  The third period was scoreless, despite numerous chances, including a late shorthanded partial breakaway for Gilmour in regulation’s final two minutes.  Evansville shined in overtime, outshooting the Storm 7-1, with Aidan Litke scoring the winning goal at the 3:27 mark, assisted by Matt Clark to win the game for Evansville, 2-1.  The victory improves Evansville’s record to 7-2, including a perfect 3-0 on the road, and moves Evansville into a tie with the Huntsville Havoc for 2nd place, one point behind first-place Pensacola.

Litke and Abbate scored Evansville’s goals, while Kristian Stead shined in goal once again with 32 saves on 33 shots on goal for his 7th win of the season.  The Thunderbolts and Storm meet again on Sunday, December 14th at Vibrant Arena at the MARK, with Evansville leading the season series 3-1.

Season tickets, Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for the 2025-26 season.  Call 812-422-BOLT(2658) or visit our website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.

About Evansville Thunderbolts: The Evansville Thunderbolts is the area’s only professional hockey team. The Thunderbolts are a proud member of the SPHL.  The team is owned and operated by VW Sports, L.L.C, a subsidiary of VenuWorks, Inc. www.evansvillethunderbolts.com