Wednesday, April 17, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
The slate has been wiped clean. What happened before doesn't matter. There's a new number to shoot for -- 15.
That's the number of wins it will take to win the Turner Cup.
Thunder coach Chris McSorley made it simple for his team in its final tuneup for tonight's opening-round matchup with the Phoenix Roadrunners -- win every time you step on the ice at the Thomas & Mack Center, and the championship will be yours.
The math may be simple. But reaching the magic number doesn't figure to be easy, even for a team that won 34 of 41 games on its home ice and dominated the IHL with 57 wins and 122 points.
The Thunder is expected to win, given what it accomplished during the regular season. And that means additional pressure.
Las Vegas also must go further than it ever has in the postseason if it plans on capturing the title. The Thunder has won just one playoff series in its two-year IHL existence.
Of course, the team has been built to go further. And even though a key component is missing in left wing Darcy Loewen (broken ankle), the belief is the Thunder has enough quality depth to compensate.
As general manager Bob Strumm put it, "We're bringing a gun to a knife fight."
More like an AK-47, if the truth be known.
Coach Chris McSorley said the key to postseason success is having the entire team contribute, winning faceoffs, getting solid special teams play and not beating yourself with stupid penalties or sloppy play in your own end.
"We've become repetitive at doing things right," he said. "We've developed good habits during the season and when we brought in new people, they picked up those good habits."
The newcomers could determine how far the Thunder goes.
Veteran Paul DiPietro, acquired at the trading deadline late last month from Houston along with defenseman Marc Laniel, may be the biggest key of all. He will center the line with Ken Quinney and Patrice Lefebvre and will be expected to get them the puck and win faceoffs.
After a slow start, DiPietro has picked up the pace with eight points in his past five games.
"It's the big time of the year," said DiPietro, a member of the 1992-93 Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens. "You've got to pick it up.
"For me, it just took a little time to adjust to the guys. It's a good system, once you get used to it."
McSorley expected it would take DiPietro a little time to adjust to his new environs.
"Like (Joe) Day and (Guy) Larose, you're going to dip before you rise and Paul definitely dipped when he first got here. But now, he's comfortable with the way we play and his talent level is rising to where we expected him to be."
DiPietro's move to center means Day will play left wing on a line with Bill Bowler and Blaine Moore. Day won 65 percent of his faceoffs during the regular season, a very high rate.
"The luxury this team has is we have several people capable of winning faceoffs and we'll use Joe when we have to," McSorley said.
Thunderbolts...
* GET IN FRONT: If the Thunder is ahead after the second period tonight, it's probably lights out. Las Vegas is 46-0-2 when leading after two periods. Coach Chris McSorley said establishing offensive dominance in Game 1 is essential. "You want to set the tone early, especially in a short series," he said. ... Pokey Reddick will start in goal for the Thunder.
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