Wild Wednesday

Thunder Acquire Three Players In Two Trades

(Stockton, Ca.)--It was a very busy Wednesday for Stockton Thunder Director of Hockey Operations Gary Graham.

In three separate trades, the Thunder acquired the Federal Prospects Hockey League playing rights to four players in deals with three different teams. Three of the players are defensemen, and one is a forward. The Thunder will open training camp in early October.

In a deal with the Fresno Falcons, the Thunder receive veteran defenseman Timur Rasulov in exchange for future considerations. Capping the busy day, Graham made a deal with the Baton Rouge Kingfish, getting defenseman Chris Ciolek and forward Blake Keller and sending the rights to Sam Turner and Don Carter Jr. to the Louisiana capital city.

“These moves help solidify our back end and bring an exciting forward in Blake Keller to the 209,” Graham said.

Rasulov is a veteran of many European seasons. In his only North American season last year with Pee Dee of the FPHL he had one goal and 34 assists for 35 points in 56 games. The smooth playmaking blueliner also registered an eye-popping plus/minus rating of +35.

Ciolek has played in 134 FPHL games with four different teams in the last three seasons. In that span he’s scored six goals and 31 assists for 38 points.

Keller, the lone forward of the acquisitions, has played exactly 100 FPHL games the last two seasons for teams in Mississippi and Baton Rouge. He’s had 21 goals, 25 assists and 46 points in his FPHL career.

Fans will have a chance to learn about these players and more plans for the upcoming season as the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce hosts a ribbon cutting at the team’s administrative office at 110 N. San Joaquin (corner of San Joaquin and Weber) on Thursday August 20th at 2 p.m. Along with ticket information and other details on the upcoming season, fans will also get the first look at the Thunder’s new retail store open in the team’s office.

The Thunder will play its first home game at Adventist Health Arena on Saturday October 17 against Oceanside. For tickets and more information about the Stockton Thunder, visit www.stocktonhockey.com or follow the team on Instagram and Facebook at @stocktonthunderhockey.

#### It’s Hockey Time in the 209! ####