Heartlanders and Thunder collide in road trip finale

Heartlanders and Thunder collide Saturday 

 

Wichita, KS – The Iowa Heartlanders, proud ECHL affiliate of the Minnesota Wild and Iowa Wild, conclude a seven-game road trip and visit the Wichita Thunder Saturday at 7:05 p.m.

The Heartlanders are 3-3-0-0 through the first six games of the trip, beating Cincinnati twice and Indy once.

Wichita is in the third of five straight at INTRUST Bank Arena. 

Friday, Iowa scored with 2:30 to go and nearly tied the Wichita Thunder with multiple chances in the final seconds, but the Thunder held on behind 35 saves from Trevor Gorsuch to outlast Iowa, 4-3, at INTRUST Bank Arena. Kevin McKernan scored twice. Wichita scored three goals in the third to take a 4-2 lead. Next, Casey Dornbach assisted Kyle Masters’ third-career goal with 2:36 left, jolting Iowa within one. In the final minute, Evan Boucher (2a in debut) had a pair of shots toed away by Gorsuch in spectacular fashion. 

The Heartlanders return home to face the division rival Wheeling Nailers Mar. 13, Mar. 15 and Mar. 16 at Xtream Arena. Tickets are available for all home games by visiting iowaheartlanders.com and calling 319-569-4625 

Get tickets for Heartlanders Home games: Iowaheartlanders.com/tickets

 

Game Day Guide: 

6:50 PM: FloHockey broadcast and audio broadcast starts

7:05 PM: Puck Drop 

Watch on FloHockey: https://flosports.link/3tVsLmd

Listen on Mixlr: mixlr.com/goheartlanders

Affiliates: Iowa Heartlanders (Minnesota Wild/Iowa Wild) | Wichita Thunder (San Jose Sharks/San Jose Barracuda)

Need to know

- The Heartlanders are playing their fifth game ever at Wichita. 

- Kevin McKernan scored two goals Friday, his first career multi-goal game. He has played 310 professional games, all in the ECHL. Evan Boucher assisted both strikes. 

- Kyle Masters scored Friday for his first strike since Jan. 24 at Cincinnati.

Not much left on the road 

The Heartlanders have three road games left after Saturday’s matchup against Wichita. Those three games are at Kansas City on Mar. 27, Mar. 29 and Mar. 30. 

Despite Iowa sitting outside the playoff picture at the moment, 12 of the final 15 games of the Heartlanders’ season are at home, giving Iowa a chance to use home ice down the stretch. 

This season has seen highs for Iowa both home and away; the Heartlanders established team records in home winning streak (6), home points streak (7), road winning streak (6), road points streak (6) and overall winning streak (7) and points streak (9).

All-time series 

The Heartlanders have had some of their most competitive games ever against Wichita; all ten games between the clubs have either been tied or within a goal in the third period.

Four of the ten have gone to overtime or a shootout and seven have been decided by exactly one goal. Wichita has won six of the seven games decided by a goal ever between the clubs. 

Because of the close nature of the games, scoring first has meant relatively little; the team to score first has only won four of the ten all-time games. 

Wichita and Iowa square off three more times at Xtream Arena Mar. 22-24 to complete the eight-game season series. 

Next up

The Heartlanders are next at home to take on the Wheeling Nailers Mar. 13, Mar. 15 and Mar. 16 for three games at Xtream Arena. Iowa hosts Wheeling on Wed., Mar. 13 at 6:35 p.m. and Fri., Mar. 15 at 6:35 p.m. March 16th is St. Hat Trick’s Day, featuring a Heartlanders Mascot Dash Bobblehead giveaway to the first 500 fans, theme jerseys available for auction and a special appearance by the Kelly Cup, the ECHL’s championship trophy. 

On Fri., Mar. 22 at 6:35 p.m., the Heartlanders oppose the Wichita Thunder in the 100th home game in team history, featuring $5 youth tickets (online only, with purchase of adult ticket). 

Sat., Mar. 23 at 6:05 p.m. is Heartland Heroes Night against Wichita, honoring the frontline workers that selflessly serve eastern Iowa. 

On Sun., Mar. 24 at 2:05 p.m., Iowa wraps up the weekend against Wichita with Faith and Family Day, a team photo giveaway, and the final postgame skate of the season. 

Join the fun at Xtream Arena in the 2023-24 season

Here are some of the best options to make sure you experience the family-friendly entertainment of Heartlanders Hockey at Xtream Arena this season!

Flex Plans: Enjoy the service, savings and game dates that work best for you! Flex plans include “any game” ticket vouchers that are good for any home game during the 2023-24 regular season.  

12-game plans: Grab tickets to your favorite 12 games! 12-game plans include savings on individually-priced tickets!

Group Tickets: Make a big impact with your group and spend an evening with the Heartlanders. Starting at a special rate of $15/Ticket. A group comprises 10 or more people and is perfect for parties, families, co-workers, clients and more.

Season Ticket Memberships now available for 2024-25 season

Deposits now available for new season ticket holders: The Heartlanders are excited to welcome new season ticket members to our family for the 2024-25 season and deposits for tickets are now available. Call 319-855-1775 and visit https://iowaheartlanders.com/tickets/season-memberships to start your easy process to becoming a Rose Club Season Ticket Member.

Renewal Process: The Heartlanders have started the renewal process for full season plans (Rose Club memberships) for the 2024-25 season, and the renewal application is now available online here. Once you log in, simply click “Season Renewal Application” under the “My Tickets” tab on the right, then complete the process. Our sales representatives are available to help with the renewal process by calling 319-855-1775. You can also stop by the Mediacom Season Ticket Table behind section 109 at any future game to secure your seat for the 2024-2025 season. 

The Heartlanders have added new seating options for the 2024-25 season, debuting Attack Zone Lower, Attack Zone Upper, Defense Zone, and Corner sections to allow fans additional price points to fit their budget. 

To retain your seats for the 2024-25 season, a $50 deposit per seat must be made by March 24. On March 25, all seats without deposits will be released and available for purchase by new season ticket holders.