Gordon's Five-Point Night Lifts Oilers Past Rush
February 12, 2014 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release
RAPID CITY, SD - Tulsa forward Ben Gordon was a one-man wrecking crew in the first period of Tuesday night's tilt in Rapid City. The sixth-year pro scored four goals in the span of 4:29 and assisted on another as the Oilers surged to a 5-1 lead and held off the Rush for a 5-4 victory in front of 4,003 at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center.
After Rush forward Jared Brown slipped a shot through the legs of Oilers goalie Shane Madolora to open the scoring at 11:32, Gordon tallied his first goal of the night on the power play by banking the puck off of Rush goalie Tim Boron to even the score at 1-1 at the 13:51 mark. Just 69 seconds later, Gordon roofed a backhand over the glove of Boron to give Tulsa its first lead of the night. At 17:29, Gordon orchestrated a two-on-one rush and set up Kyle Bochek for his 12th goal of the season and the visitors enjoyed a 3-1 advantage. Only 29 seconds after his assist, Gordon completed his first period hat-trick by clanging a snap shot off the crossbar and into the net. Boron was lifted from the game after allowing four goals on 16 shots but Gordon still wasn't finished. Back on the power play a mere 22 seconds later, the Minnesota native one-timed a feed from Scott Macaulay past Keaton Hartigan to become just the second player in the CHL this season to record four goals in a single period. Tulsa rookie Adam Pleskach found the net four times in the second period on November 23 in Allen.
Playing like a team with nothing to lose, the Rush outshot the Oilers 14-5 in the second period and managed to cut the Tulsa lead in half thanks to goals from Scott Brannon and Konrad Reeder. The Oilers carried a 5-3 edge into the final frame.
Tulsa played sound defensive hockey throughout the third period and picked up crucial stops from Madolora as the clock ticked down. Reeder re-directed a Brett Kostolansky shot into the net with exactly one minute remaining in regulation, but on the strength of key face off wins by Bochek, the Oilers were able to hold off Rapid City's final push and secure the win.
Gordon finished with his third five-point outing of the season and his third hat-trick in the last two months (23 games). Nathan Lutz chipped in three assists for the Oilers while Ryan Menei added a pair of helpers as the Oilers picked up two points for just the second time in their last ten road games.
In their 47th game of the season, the Oilers earned their 22nd win and tied their win total from the entire 2012-13 campaign. Tulsa won its third straight contest and improved to 2-0-0 in Rapid City this season. The Oilers and Rush complete their mid-week series tomorrow night at 7:05 p.m. MST at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center.
Central Hockey League Stories from February 12, 2014
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- CHL Suspends Rapid City's Kevin Harvey - CHL
- Mavericks Sign Gagnon, Waive Zych - Kansas City Mavericks
- Former Oilers Owner and President Jeff Lund to be Inducted into CHL Hall of Fame - Tulsa Oilers
- Central Hockey League Hall of Fame Class of 2014 Announced - CHL
- Ben Gordon's Four-Goal First Period Downs Rush - Rapid City Rush
- Gordon's Five-Point Night Lifts Oilers Past Rush - Tulsa Oilers
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