ECHL Tulsa Oilers

Oil Drops: Tulsa Oilers Weekly Report

December 29, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release


LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Friday, December 26 at Allen Americans (5-3 L)

Sunday, December 28 vs. Allen Americans (4-3 W)

UPCOMING GAMES

Tuesday, December 30 vs. Rapid City Rush - 7:05 p.m.

- $1 Hotdogs

Friday, January 2 vs. Brampton Beast - 7:35 p.m.

- Blanket Drive with Tulsa's Channel 8 - donate new or gently used blankets at the BOK Center

Saturday, January 3 vs. Rapid City Rush - 7:35 p.m.

- Selfie Jersey Night - jerseys auctioned off immediately following the game

Sunday, January 4 vs. Rapid City Rush - 7:35 p.m.

- Post-game skate with Oilers players

TEAM CAPSULE

Overall: 14-14-1-2

Home: 10-8-1-1

Road: 4-6-0-1

Last 10: 3-7-0-0

Rank: 4th in Central Division

TEAM LEADERS

Goals: Adam Pleskach - 18

Assists: T.J. Caig, Drew Fisher - 20

Points: T.J. Caig - 31

+/-: Ricards Birzinsh +8

PIM: Tommy Mele - 105

WEEK IN REVIEW

Coming off a four-day holiday break, the Oilers traveled to Allen on Friday and suffered a 5-3 loss to the Americans. A 1-1 contest was broken wide open in the third period when the Americans scored four goals in the span of seven minutes to hand the Oilers their sixth straight defeat. Drew Fisher scored a pair of power play goals for the Oilers and rookie center Jeff Jubinville chipped in three assists in the losing effort.

Back at the BOK Center on Sunday, the Oilers trailed the Americans 3-1 heading into the third period. Tommy Mele's goal pulled Tulsa back within one and Adam Pleskach and Scott Macaulay netted the game-tying and game-winning goals in the span of just 27 seconds to give the Oilers an improbable 4-3 comeback victory. The Oilers' six-game skid finally came to as they picked up a win over Allen for just the second time in the last nine meetings.

AND THERE WAS MUCH REJOICING

A nightmarish six-game losing streak, the Oilers' longest skid since December of 2012, came to a joyful end on Sunday with a dramatic comeback win over the Allen Americans. Tulsa tasted victory for the first time in over two weeks and snapped a string of three straight losses to Allen. After allowing the Americans to average five goals per game in the first 11 meetings of the season series, the Oilers surrendered only three goals on Sunday and moved back to .500 with an overall record of 14-14-1-2. Defenseman Scott Macaulay notched his team-leading third game-winning goal and rookie goaltender Kevin Carr turned aside 30 shots in the Oilers' triumph.

CLUTCH IN CRUNCH TIME

In Sunday's win over Allen, the Oilers shutout their opponent in the third period for the first time in five games. Tulsa scored three goals in the final frame for the first time since opening night on October 24 in a 9-6 win over the Americans.

READY FOR THE RUSH

After enduring a stretch of four straight games against Allen, the Oilers will play six of their next seven against Rapid City. The Rush invades the BOK Center on Tuesday, Saturday, and Sunday before the Oilers make the trek to South Dakota for three games the following week. Tulsa is 1-1-0 against Rapid City this season with a 6-4 win on November 14 and a 4-0 loss on December 19.

ENJOY IT WHILE IT LASTS

The Oilers have four games remaining in their five-game home stand and after this weekend, hockey games at the BOK Center will be few and far between. From January 5th to March 12th, a span of 67 days, the Oilers will play on home ice just five times.

STREAKERS

Tulsa forwards Drew Fisher, T.J. Caig, and Adam Pleskach, are riding four-game point streaks. Fisher has posted seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) in the last four games and is now tied for the team lead with 20 assists on the season. Caig, who leads the Oilers with 31 points, has registered five points (1 goal, 4 assists) during his current streak. Pleskach, tied for the league lead with 18 goals, has found the net in three of the last four games and has registered a total of five points (3 goals, 2 assists) in that span.

BOORAS BRINGS BOOST

Center Jon Booras, who missed six consecutive games with an upper body injury, returned to the Tulsa lineup on Friday night in Allen. Although he was held without a point in his first game back, the 32-year old veteran dished out a pair of assists in Sunday's win over the Americans including a helper on the game-winning goal. Despite his lengthy absence, Booras is still tied for ninth in the ECHL scoring race with 29 points.

BACK ON TRACK

Winless in his previous three starts, Kevin Carr earned his 13th victory of the season on Sunday with a 30-save performance against Allen. The rookie out of Unionville, Ontario kept the Americans off the scoreboard for the final 36 minutes of the contest to get his first win since December 10. Carr has made 30 or more stops in ten of his 13 wins and continues to lead the ECHL in minutes and total saves.

OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS

Tulsa's power play is slowly trending up while the penalty kill unit is slipping in the league rankings. After a four-game drought, the Oilers have three power play goals in their last two games. The Oilers allowed three power play goals on Sunday for only the second time all season and have given up seven power play goals in their last five contests.

EXTRA DROPS

Nathan Lutz will play in his 800th professional game on Saturday against Rapid City...Drew Fisher recorded his 100th career point with a power play goal on Friday night in Allen...Defenseman Kevin Noble has accumulated half of his 74 total penalty minutes in the last ten games.

Check out the Tulsa Oilers Statistics



ECHL Stories from December 29, 2014


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