PURPURA STOPS 36 IN 6-1 WIN OVER LIONS

TROIS-RIVIERES – Vinnie Purpura made 36 saves and the offense scored four times in the second period as the Adirondack Thunder defeated the Trois-Rivieres Lions on the road Wednesday night from Quebec, 6-1.

After no scoring in the first period, the Thunder put Patrick Grasso opened the scoring to give the Thunder a 1-0 lead on the power play. Grasso’s wrist shot beat goaltender Joe Vrbetic at 4:50 of the second frame with assists from Yushiroh Hirano and Topias Vilen. With the goal, Grasso tied Brian Ward for most all-time goals in Thunder history.

Shortly after, Tristan Ashbrook beat Vrbetic with assists from Colin Felix and Grant Jozefek to give Adirondack a 2-0 lead. The goal was Ashbrook’s seventh of the year and came 1:11 after Grasso’s opening goal.

Travis Broughman got in on the scoring in the second period after a great move by Jace Isley. Isley cut through the hash marks and tapped a backhand pass to Broughman for the tap-in goal at 6:42 of the second. The goal was Broughman’s fourth of the year from Isley and Ryan Orgel for a 3-0 lead. With that goal, the Thunder scored three goals in just 1:52 of the second.

Adirondack took a 4-0 lead when Grant Jozefek snapped a wrist shot by Joe Vrbetic from the left circle later in the second. The goal was Jozefek’s second of the year with the lone assist going to Topias Vilen and the Thunder took the four-goal lead into the third.

Charles-Antoine Paiement got the Lions on the board early in the third period to decrease the Thunder lead to 4-1. Topias Vilen and Yushiroh Hirano each scored late in regulation in the 6-1 victory. Vinnie Purpura picked up the win in net, denying 36 of 37 shots.

The Thunder return home Friday against Maine at 7 p.m. and Sunday against Trois-Rivieres at 3 p.m. Fans can enjoy $3 Labatt Blue Light om Friday and Sunday is the annual Kids Day Game. Special kid-designed jerseys and a FREE postgame skate with the Thunder after the game!

View the 2023-24 schedule HERE.

Season tickets for the 2023-24 season are on sale now! For more information on ticket packages, call the front office at 518-480-3355 or visit HERE. For all the latest Adirondack Thunder news, follow the team on all social media @ECHLThunder.

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