Thunderbolts Announce New Star Wars Night Addition

Evansville, In.: Due to the winter storm that has recently hit Evansville, the Thunderbolts are happy to announce a new Star Wars Night that will be added to the Friday, February 27 game against the Quad City Storm. Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm CST. Doors open to the general public at 6:15 pm CST. 

This Star Wars Night will be hosted alongside our $3 Tall Boys, Union Night, and College Night that is being held at the Ford Center on Friday, February 27. Star Wars characters are set to join us once again and will be walking around the concourse/lobby for pictures! There will be NO specialty jersey for this night. Enjoy $3 Tall Boys (specifically Bud Light, Budweiser, Busch Light, and Michelob Ultra) all night long as well. Bring a group of 10 or more and receive a discounted rate when you call our ticket office at 812-422-BOLT (2658).

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 Come Up Just Short in Peoria in 3-1 Loss

Peoria, Ill.:  A tough weekend for the Thunderbolts came to a close on Sunday afternoon in Peoria, as the Thunderbolts finished strong but came up short in a 3-1 defeat to the Rivermen.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Wednesday, February 4th against the Peoria Rivermen at 7:00pm CT.

Evansville outshot the Rivermen 12-10 in the first period but quickly fell behind 3-0 in the period’s second half, with Rivermen goals by Brandon Stojcevski at 11:44, Michael McChesney on a power play at 15:35, and Connor Szmul at 18:38.  The Thunderbolts successfully stopped the bleeding after the first period, holding the Rivermen scoreless in the second period.  Evansville’s best hockey came in the third period much like it did against Quad City on Saturday, outshooting Peoria 9-3 in the final frame and refusing to roll over, while spoiling Peoria’s shutout bid with 6:03 remaining with a power play goal by Keanan Stewart, assisted by Matt Clark and Matt Hobbs.

Stewart scored Evansville’s goal, while Cody Karpinski stopped 20 of 23 shots on goal.  The Thunderbolts and Rivermen meet again on Wednesday, February 4th at Ford Center, with Peoria leading the regular season series 4-3.

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

Third Period Rally Falls Short in Thunderbolts' 4-2 Loss to Storm

Evansville, In.:  After a difficult second period in which Evansville trailed 4-0, the Thunderbolts got halfway back in the third period but fell short, 4-2 the final score against Quad City on Saturday afternoon at Ford Center.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Wednesday, February 4th against the Peoria Rivermen at 7:00pm CT.

After a scoreless first period, the Storm burst ahead in the second period with four unanswered goals, starting with back to back goals on 2-on-1 rushes only 41 seconds apart, scored by Brodie Girod at 1:36 and Devin Sanders at 2:17.  On a power play chance, Girod scored once again at 9:42, followed by a goal from Jesper Tarkiainen at 17:48 to make it 4-0 before the end of the middle frame.  Off a giveaway from Zane Steeves, Evansville broke shutout at 6:04 as Derek Contessa scored from Scott Kirton to make it 4-1.  In the fading seconds, Evansville made it a 4-2 final with Tyson Gilmour’s goal at 19:50, assisted by Isaac Chapman and Will van der Veen.

Contessa and Kirton scored one goal each for Evansville, while Kristian Stead stopped 31 of 35 shots on goal.  The Thunderbolts and Storm meet again on Saturday, February 27th at Ford Center, with Quad City leading the regular season series 6-5.

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 Extend Point Streak to 6 Games; Fall in OT to Bulls

Evansville, In.:  The goaltenders stole the show in more ways than one on Friday night at Ford Center, highlighted by the Thunderbolts’ first-ever goalie fight, and the Bulls’ goaltenders allowing only one goal on 47 shots as Evansville fell 2-1 in overtime.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game at Ford Center will be on Saturday, January 24th against the Quad City Storm at 3:00pm CT.

Evansville grabbed the first lead of the game only 5:42 in, as Scott Kirton deflected a shot on a power play to make it 1-0 Evansville, assisted by Tyson Gilmour and Keanan Stewart.  In the second period, Drake Glover tied the game 1-1 for the Bulls, scoring on a back-door pass from Danny Weight on the rush.  Shortly after the Bulls tied it, Kristian Stead was run by Birmingham’s CJ Walker, drawing a response from Evansville skaters as well as Stead himself, his involvement drawing the attention of Bulls goaltender Hayden Stewart at the other end of the ice, and both goaltenders decided to duke it out at center ice in the Thunderbolts’ first-ever goalie fight which saw Stead knock Stewart to the ice three times.  The game remained tied 1-1 despite the Thunderbolts outshooting Birmingham 26 to 9 since the goalie fight, before the Bulls won the game in overtime on a power play goal by Weight at 1:32, as the Bulls’ goaltending tandem of Stewart and Talor Joseph stole the game for Birmingham.

Kirton scored the lone goal for Evansville, Stead stopped 9 of 10 shots on goal to start the game, and Cody Karpinski stopped 12 of 13 shots faced in relief.  The Thunderbolts and Bulls meet again on Friday, January 30th at the Pelham Civic Complex, with Birmingham leading the regular season series 3-2.

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 Announce Time Change for Saturday's Game

Evansville, In.:  Due to the heightened risk of inclement winter weather, the opening face-off for this Saturday’s game at Ford Center between the Evansville Thunderbolts and Quad City Storm has been moved up from 7:00pm to 3:00pm CT.  Opening face-off for this Friday’s home game against the Birmingham Bulls remains unchanged at a 7:00pm CT opening face-off.

The Ford Center Box Office will now open at Noon on Saturday.  The jersey auction for this Saturday’s game-worn Star Wars jerseys will be moved online via DASH, instead of in-person.  The auction will run from Friday, January 23rd at 8:00 am CT to Monday, January 26th at 6:00 pm CT, through the following link:  https://bit.ly/4bN8yWv.  

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