WICHITA, Kan. (Jan. 6) – Strauss Mann stopped 41 shots, Brayden Watts had four points and Wichita earned a 4-1 win over Idaho on Friday night at INTRUST Bank Arena.
Jay Dickman tallied two goals and Michal Stinil added two points. Quinn Preston, Dylan MacPherson, Cole MacDonald and Chris McKay each had an assist.
With the victory, the Thunder stopped the Steelheads winning streak at 12 games and claimed their 13th home win of the year.
Watts opened the scoring midway through the first period. The Thunder capitalized on a hooking call against Patrick Kudla. Watts hammered a one-timer from the right circle past Adam Scheel to make it 1-0.
Early in the second, Dickman added another power play marker. He walked off the goal line and beat Scheel to make it 2-0.
Justin Misiak put Idaho on the board with less than a minute left in the frame. He cut across the front of the net and redirected a shot past Mann. The goal was reviewed for possible goaltender interference, but the goal stood.
Late in the third, Stinil caught a long outlet pass from MacPherson, came in on a breakaway and beat Scheel through the five-hole to increase the lead to 3-1.
Idaho lifted Scheel for the extra attacker with just under three minutes left. Dickman pounced on a loose puck and fired a shot into the empty-net to close the scoring at 4-1.
Wichita went 2-for-4 on the power play and has at least two power play goals in six-straight games. Idaho was 0-for-2 with the man advantage.
Watts had a season-high four points (1g, 3a), giving him points in his last 10 games and assists in five-straight. Stinil finished with a goal and an assist, giving him two points in eight-straight. Preston added an assist, extending his point-streak to 14 games. MacDonald has assists in five-straight and points in his last eight games.
