CHL Tulsa Oilers

Tulsa Oilers Weekly News and Notes

Published on March 11, 2013 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release


Week In Review: Tulsa went 1-3-0 last week over a stretch of four games in five days. For the season, the Oilers are 21-35-4 and have earned 46 points.

Tuesday, the Oilers returned to the BOK Center for the first time in more than two weeks, but were overwhelmed by the Arizona Sundogs in a 7-2 loss. After taking a 2-1 lead in the first period, Tulsa surrendered six unanswered goals and suffered its worst home defeat since an 8-3 loss to Bloomington on December 8. The Sundogs outshot the Oilers 40-19 and newly acquired forward Kevin Baker chipped in two goals and two assists for the visitors.

The Oilers didn't fare much better in Wednesday's rematch with the Sundogs. Arizona scored four powerplay goals in a convincing 5-0 victory. Once again, Baker sparked the Arizona offense with two goals and two assists and Adam Russo made 22 saves to deal the Oilers their fifth shutout loss of the season.

Tulsa bounced back on Friday night, finishing the three-game home stand with a tight 2-1 win over the Bloomington Blaze. It was the Oilers first win of the season over the Blaze and snapped a three-game losing skid. Ryan Cramer provided all of the Oilers offense with two first period goals and Shane Madolora kept the Blaze at bay with 36 saves on 37 shots.

On Saturday night the Oilers made their seventh trip of the season to Wichita. Despite carrying a 3-2 lead into the third period, Tulsa couldn't sustain its momentum and fell to the Thunder, 5-3. It was the first time all season the Oilers lost a game when leading after forty minutes. Ryan Menei scored twice for the Oilers who dropped to 4-6-0 against Wichita this season. The loss, coupled with a Quad City win, officially eliminated Tulsa from playoff contention.

Upcoming Games: The Oilers won't be back on BOK Center ice until the final weekend of the regular season. Saturday, March 23, the Oilers host the Wichita Thunder in the season series finale between the longtime rivals. It will be Fan Appreciation night as player awards are handed out and jerseys will be auctioned off immediately following the game. Tulsa will close out the 2012-13 campaign against the Allen Americans on Sunday, March 24 and all Oilers fans are invited to stick around after the game to skate with the players.

Oilers Raise Money for Deserving Families: Friday night was Military Night at the BOK Center and the Oilers wore special camouflaged jerseys which were auctioned off after the win over Bloomington. The auction raised $9,400 for the Folds of Honor Foundation and another $2,000 was raised by the generosity of Oilers fans during a "pass the bucket" campaign during the game. The Folds of Honor gives scholarships and financial assistance to families of killed and wounded soldiers. The Oilers were proud to partner with Budweiser and the Folds of Honor to pay tribute to our American heroes.

Ready For the Road: This week the Oilers will embark on their second-longest road trip of the season when they make the 873 trek to Rapid City, South Dakota. The Oilers will face off against the Rush three times over the course of five days (Friday, Saturday, Tuesday).

Menei Chases Scoring Title: Oilers winger Ryan Menei ranks second in the CHL scoring race with 76 points. The Winnipeg native trails Missouri's Sebastien Thinel by just seven points with six games to play. Menei leads the Oilers in goals (31), assists (45), powerplay assists (17), and is tied for the lead with four game-winning goals. The sixth-year pro, who has points in eight of his last nine outings, has a chance to match his career high of 87 points which he set during the 2010-11 season as a member of the Rapid City Rush.

Cramer Connecting: With points in four of the last five games, second year winger Ryan Cramer is making the most of his time on the Oilers top line. The 26-year old has five points (3 goals, 2 assists) in his last five outings and has reached the 30-point plateau for the second straight season.

Top Guns Sidelined: With top-line forwards Ben Gordon and Gary Steffes injured, the Oilers are missing nearly a quarter of their total offensive production this season. Despite missing the last seven games, Gordon still ranks ninth in the league with 66 points. Steffes, missing games due to injury for the first time in his three-year career, was only able to play two full games for the Oilers after his return from the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL.

Sensational Stopper: The Central Hockey League announced Wednesday that Oilers goaltender Shane Madolora was named the Warrior Goalie of the Month for February. A 26-year old rookie, Madolora was steady and often spectacular in the Oilers net during February when he posted a 6-3-1 record and went 3-0 in shootouts. Over the month, the California native recorded a 2.54 goals against average and an outstanding .933 save percentage. Madolora earned his first professional shutout in February with a 39 save performance at home against Arizona and was named the CHL Goalie of the Week for the period ending February 17.

Trading the Suit for Skates: Oilers assistant coach Gordon Bell laced up the skates for Tuesday's tilt against Arizona, appearing in a regular season game for the first time since October 30, 2011. The 32-year old has fully recovered from two debilitating knee injuries and suited up for each of the Oilers four games last week. Prior to taking a place behind the Oilers bench this season, Bell appeared in 225 CHL games with three different teams.

Milestones: Tulsa captain Tyler Fleck played in his 200th game as an Oiler on Wednesday against Arizona...Michel Beausoleil played in his 700th professional game on Tuesday against Arizona...Jason Weeks is two games shy of 100 for his career .

Check out the Tulsa Oilers Statistics



Central Hockey League Stories from March 11, 2013


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