Thunder gears up for test against league-best Aeros

Tim Graham

Friday, Jan. 16, 1998 | 11:54 a.m.

Siskel and Ebert would be split on this one.

There would not be two enthusiastic thumbs up. There certainly would not be a pair of thumbs down.

The reviews following the Las Vegas Thunder's 2-0 victory over the Grand Rapids Griffins Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center are mixed to say the least.

Even the team is unsure what the relieving triumph means as it heads into back-to-back home games against the Southwest Division rival Houston Aeros, who own the best record in the International Hockey League.

Tonight's meeting takes place at 7:05. Saturday night's game starts at 8:05.

While everyone associated with the Thunder agrees these games are important in every way, not all are in concert when discussing whether the team's problems got straightened out Wednesday. The Thunder was 2-5-2 in its previous nine games.

"We are coming off our best win of the season on Wednesday, and it's important to carry that momentum and confidence into the weekend," third-year Thunder head coach Chris McSorley said.

"We were committed all over the ice for 60 minutes. We went to the body; we went to the net; we made some quality shots; we outshot our opponents 2-1.

"Our team turned the corner, but we need to play that way each evening from here on in."

But the attitude in the Thunder locker room is a little less enthusiastic. While the players will accept Wednesday's victory, they aren't quite ready to claim satisfaction.

"I think we gotta be honest and look at Wednesday night," said Patrice Lefebvre, who leads Las Vegas with 57 points on 14 goals and 43 assists. "We did play well, but they were missing three or four players."

Grand Rapids' leading scorer, Michel Picard, recently signed with the St. Louis Blues. Top defenseman Kerry Huffman was out with the flu. Another defenseman, Travis Richards, left the team for the birth of his child.

"We should have won that game more than 2-0," Lefebvre said. "We can't kid ourselves and think everything's fine.

"We have the hottest team in the IHL coming into town. We have to raise the level of play a couple of notches higher."

That is a topic upon which everyone is in agreement. The Aeros are 30-10-4 to lead the Southwest and the IHL with 64 points. The Thunder is fourth in the five-team division at 20-16-5 for 45 points.

"This weekend is important because if we're going to climb the ladder in the Southwest Division, it's the second rung in the ladder," McSorley said. "The first was Wednesday. If you miss a step, you fall, and you have to start all over."

Houston sports the IHL's top goaltending corps with Fred Chabot and Ryan Bach. Each is expected to get a start in Las Vegas.

Chabot, last season's league MVP, is 8-1-0 with a 1.78 goals-against average and a .938 save percentage. Bach is 14-4-2 with a 2.01 GAA and a .927 save percentage.

Las Vegas will counter with Konstantin Simchuk. "We're going to ride the hot horse," McSorley said. Simchuk recorded the shutout Wednesday with 21 saves. He is 4-2-1 with a 3.16 GAA and a .895 save percentage.

The Aeros' top offensive threats are center Brian Wiseman and winger David Oliver. Wiseman has 11 goals and 45 assists, while Oliver has a team-leading 22 goals and 18 assists in 42 games.

Former Thunder defenseman Greg Hawgood always is dangerous. He leads Aeros blue liners with 10 goals and 28 assists in 43 games.