On May 18th, 2024, the Pittsburgh Thunderbirds (0-2) took down the eventual UFA Champion Minnesota Wind Chill (2-0) in what was the biggest shock of that week. It was the Wind Chill's home opener, and as Director of Broadcast Strategy and play-by-play announcer for the UFA Evan Lepler said at the time, "...[the game] immediately goes on the short list for most stunning early-season results in recent years across the league."
In 2024, Pittsburgh had been outscored 41-25 in their opening two losses, both at home, one of which came against Minnesota back in Week 1. In 2025, Pittsburgh has been outscored 55-26 in their past two games (vs Minnesota and vs Carolina), and now travel back to Sea Foam Stadium in Minneapolis to once again look to run the script back.
The win last season did more than just provide exhilaration and a win for Pittsburgh in 2024; it's given the current 2025 Pittsburgh squad an air of confidence ahead of tonight's match-up.
"Every once in awhile before a game, I'll have a moment where I think, 'there's no way we're going to win this one'", says Thunderbirds Captain Charlie Vukovic. "After we lost to Minnesota at home and knowing our history playing them on the road, that doubt definitely crept in. But then we went out and beat them in Minnesota, and now whenever that doubt tries to come back, I remind myself of that win. That game proved to me that every game we play is winnable".
That feeling was punctuated in 2024 when Vukovic tallied a game shifting Callahan in the 2nd quarter of the contest.
Charlie Vukovic celebrating his Callahan in mid-air! pic.twitter.com/DcVA4OHNaY
— PGH Thunderbirds (@PGHThunderbirds) May 20, 2024
Returning to the field after missing the prior two weeks is Anson Reppermund. His presence was missed both on the offensive side and the defensive side as he's off to a strong start to the 2025 campaign recording 6 assists, 5 goals, and 1 block in 3 games played.
Carl Johnson and Walt Johnson, brothers, are suiting up and playing in a game together for the first time in their careers.
Making their road debuts are power thrower Anil Driehuys, dynamic playmaker Alex Mullen, and gunslinger Aiden Landis. Together, these three have combined for over 2,000 total yards of offense between 5 total games played among them.
Mullen, having come off a Nationals run with his college team Penn St, had a dynamic performance in his 2025 debut against Carolina, throwing 2 assists on 33/33 passing, and scoring 2 goals on 320 yards of total offense.
On the flip side of things, Pittsburgh will be without center handler Will Hoffenkamp for the first time all season as he battles a heel injury he sustained in the Thunderbirds 25-21 victory over the Indianapolis Alleycats on May 2nd. Pittsburgh will also be without the services of defensive playmaker Michael Dillard who sustained a quad injury on Tuesday and Thunderbirds captain Jimmy Towle who has been battling a hamstring issue he suffered on May 2nd vs the Alleycats.
Minnesota also is missing a few key pieces. Listed out are James Pollard, Matt Rehder, Brandon Matiis, and Quinn Snider.
Pittsburgh is a +10.5 underdog in this contest according to a weekly Reddit thread dedicated to setting betting lines.
"We were probably a 17.5 point underdog or whatever it was last year and look what happened," says General Manager Andrew Gardner. "These guys are competitors. They're Pros. They're not going to back down from a fight or give up. If that were the case, we wouldn't have even bothered to fly out here."
First pull begins at 7PM ET, 6PM CT.
GAMEDAY INFO
Broadcast: The game is available to watch on WatchUFA.tv - it will also be replayed on SportsNet Pittsburgh on tape delay. Check your local listings for the re-air.
Updates: X: @PGHThunderbirds Facebook: @pghthunderbirds – Instagram: @pghthunderbirds
Weather: 72 Degrees, partly cloudy, 20% chance of precipitation, 11-13 mph winds at game time.
FanZone: Win prizes by predicting the score! Check out the Thunderbirds roster, and download the UFA app!
