Oilers End Road Trip with 5-2 Loss to Cutthroats
March 2, 2013 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release
DENVER, CO - With an opportunity to gain ground in the CHL playoff race, the Oilers were foiled by the Denver Cutthroats in a 5-2 loss on Saturday night at the Denver Coliseum.
Sean Erickson opened the scoring for Tulsa with a powerplay one-timer past Kent Patterson at the 5:54 mark of the first period. Denver responded with three unanswered goals by the likes of Brad Smyth, Gabe Gauthier, and Mikael Bedard. The three Cutthroats goals came on 12 first period shots as the home team quickly regained control of the contest.
After a scoreless second period, it looked as though Erickson had brought the Oilers back within one. His shot from the slot beat Patterson, but the goal was waved off by referee Peter Tarnaris. Patrick Schafer collided with Patterson and Tarnaris ruled that Schafer had interfered with Denver's netminder. Instead of pulling themselves back into the game, the Oilers found themselves shorthanded and A.J. Gale made Tulsa pay. On a 4-on-3 advantage Gale banked a shot of Oilers goalie Shane Madolora to give Denver a 4-1 edge. Just 49 seconds later, with his team down a man, Gale and Troy Schwab executed a perfect 2-on-0 that ended with Gale burying the puck past Madolora to extend the Cutthroats lead to 5-1. Ryan Menei netted a late powerplay goal for the Oilers to extend his point streak to five games.
Patterson turned aside 35 of the 37 shots he faced to earn the victory while Madolora made 24 saves in a losing effort.
Tulsa finished its four-game western road trip with a 1-3-0 record and remains 10 points behind Bloomington for the eighth and final CHL playoff spot.
With a goal and an assist in the first period, Cutthroats forward Brad Smyth recorded his 1,200th career point.
The Oilers return home on Tuesday for the first game in a back-to-back series with the Arizona Sundogs. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m. CST.
Central Hockey League Stories from March 2, 2013
- Rapid City Tops Arizona with 3-2 Win - Arizona Sundogs
- Cutthroats Bounce Back in 5-2 Win over Tulsa - Denver Cutthroats
- Americans Clinch a Playoff Spot with 3-2 Win over Missouri - Allen Americans
- Oilers End Road Trip with 5-2 Loss to Cutthroats - Tulsa Oilers
- Rush Double up Sundogs 4-2, Complete Weekend Sweep - Rapid City Rush
- Mavericks Defeated by Americans in Hard Fought Battle, 3-2 - Kansas City Mavericks
- Thunder Snap Skid with 6-3 Win over Blaze - Wichita Thunder
- Blaze Battle After Early Deficit, Fall at Wichita - Bloomington Blaze
- Central Hockey League Announces Suspensions - CHL
- Voucher for Jersey, Free Ticket to Upcoming Game for First 1,000 Fans 12 and Under - Quad City Mallards
- Americans Shut Out Wichita 4-0 On Mcdonald's Night In Allen - Allen Americans
- Sundogs Lose Tough Battle against Rush, Final 2-0 - Arizona Sundogs
- Cutthroats Fall Short in 4-2 Loss to Tulsa - Denver Cutthroats
- Oilers Rise up on the Road for 4-2 Win over Cutthroats - Tulsa Oilers
- Rush Blank Sundogs 2-0 - Rapid City Rush
- Mavericks Earn Point in Shootout Loss to Quad City, 3-2 - Kansas City Mavericks
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
