Oilers game preview
March 26, 2006 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release
Curtain Comes Down: The Tulsa Oilers wrap up their season today, hosting the Austin Ice Bats. The Oilers have assured themselves a winning record, however will not qualify for the CHL playoffs.
Records: Oilers are 29-27-7 with 65 points in fourth place in the Northwest Division. Austin is 33-27-3 with 69 points in third place in the Southeast Division.
Season Series: This is fourth and final meeting of these teams this season. Austin leads the season series, 2-1 having won both games in Texas (on March 17th the game was played in Belton, Texas). The Oilers won the game in Tulsa on March 10, 6-4.
Recent Action: The Oilers and Austin both had their most recent games in Memphis. The Oilers won there last night, 5-4. Austin lost there, 7-1 on Friday night.
Missing You: Two players are on injured reserve to end the season for the Oilers. Defenseman Mario Joly (elbow) and right winger Mike Lukajic (hand) will both miss today's season finale. The Oilers signed right winger Alec Hines. He played last night and appeared in two games in February.
Playoff Scenarios: While the Oilers will not be in this year's playoffs, today's game has significant impact on the southern conference playoff race. There are two spots to be determined. Amarillo (which plays at home today against Lubbock) has 71 points; Rio Grande Valley (which plays at home today against Corpus Christi) has 70 points; and Austin enters the day with 69 points. So Austin must earn at least one point today AND get some help to qualify for the playoffs. If all three teams in the race have the same result today (i.e. all three win or all three lose) Austin will not qualify for the playoffs. The Northern Conference playoff pairings will have Colorado playing Oklahoma City and Bossier-Shreveport playing Wichita in the best of seven conference semi-final series.
First 400 The Hardest: Henry Kuster notched a career milestone last night, playing in his 400th career professional game. Kuster has 175 career goals and 204 career assists for 379 points.
Next Up: The Oilers will begin their 15th season in the CHL in October to start the 2006-07 season. An Oilers win today in regulation time, will also end the season for Austin. If Austin wins, the Ice Bats will await the outcomes of this evening's games to know if they qualify for the playoffs.
Central Hockey League Stories from March 26, 2006
- Gorillas Clinch Playoff Spot with 1-0 Shutout Win over Kings - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- Bucks Blast Rayz 6-1 - Laredo Bucks
- Rayz close eighth season in Coastal Bend - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Mudbugs to Face Wichita in Round One - Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs
- He's Hahn-Real - Amarillo Gorillas
- Cotton Kings Road Game Preview at Amarillo - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- Brahmas' season ends with 4-2 loss - Fort Worth Brahmas
- Oilers game preview - Tulsa Oilers
- Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees game notes - Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees
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