Thunder and Jackalopes Swing a Deal
After struggling through the first half of the season, the Wichita Thunder have made their second deal in less than a week this time working with the Southern Conference leading Odessa Jackalopes in a three-player deal.
The Thunder acquire forward Paul Kelly and defenseman J.R. Bria in exchange for second-year forward Troy Ofukany. Just before New Year’s the Thunder made a deal with Mississippi receiving defenseman Steve Makway, forward Kevin Cooper and goaltender Ian Keserich.
Wichita-Odessa Trade:
Thunder Receives:
F- Paul Kelly
D- J.R. Bria
Jackalopes Receive:
F- Troy Ofukany
Kelly has played in 31 games with the Jacks this season scoring 12 goals with nine assists. Two seasons ago, the Peabody, Massachusetts native scored 26 goals with the Tulsa Oilers.
Bria had an assist and was a +2 in the first five games of the season but has been on injured reserve ever since. He is expected to be back in action in the coming days recovered from his injury. Last season, Bria had two goals and 14 assists with a +15 plus/minus rating with the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs.
Ofukany had a strong rookie campaign a year ago scoring 36 points with 122 penalty minutes. This season he has struggled somewhat with five goals and four assists along with a -24 plus/minus rating in 31 games.
