CHL Tulsa Oilers

Tulsa Wins 4 Straight For First Time This Year

Published on February 9, 2004 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release


The Tulsa Oilers went 4-0 last week, marking the team's first four-game winning streak of the season. The Oilers now stand at 17-20-9, 43 points, 5th place in the CHL's Northwest Division. Tulsa trails fourth-place Oklahoma City by 8 points.

The Oilers opened up their week hosting the Indianapolis Ice last Tuesday. Goaltender Rod Branch set a new league-high with 58 saves, and Branislav Kvetan and Dan Gravelle each lit the lamp as Tulsa came back to defeat Indianapolis 2-1 at the Tulsa Convention Center. Trailing 1-0 in the third, Oilers head coach Butch Kaebel, upset about a bench minor penalty, was ejected for throwing sticks and water bottles onto the ice. That proved to be the spark the Oilers needed, as Tulsa scored two third-period goals to claim the win.

Tulsa hoped to continue its winning ways Friday night, as the San Angelo Saints came to town for their only matchup of the season. Rod Branch and San Angelo's all-star netminder Scott Reid stole the show, with Reid making 49 saves and Branch, 37. Tulsa got the early 1-0 lead on a goal by Wes Scanzano. However, San Angelo tied it late in the second period, and neither team scored the rest of regulation, so it forced overtime, where Tulsa had not fared well all season. However, this time, the Oilers managed to pull it out with another last-second goal. This time it was Rob Meanchoff, who scored his first goal of the season at the 4:59 mark of the extra frame to give Tulsa back-to-back wins for the first time since November 21st.

The next night, the Oilers hit the turnpike and went to Oklahoma City to take on the Blazers. Deadlocked at 2-2 heading into the third period, Oilers newcomer Chris Page took over, scoring a natural hat trick to lead Tulsa to a 6-2 victory before an announced crowd of 16,929. Doug Pirnak scored two goals for the Oilers, and Jason Bermingham and Todd Marcellus each recorded three assists. Dan Gravelle tallied a goal and two assists in the game, and Rod Branch again came up big between the pipes, stopping 41 Blazer offerings. The Oilers power-play also began clicking again, connecting on 4 of 9 opportunities.

Sunday, the Oilers concluded their week with a trip to Austin to take on the Ice Bats. For the second straight night, Tulsa gave up an early goal. But the Oilers responded again, as Jason Bermingham and Dan Gravelle each scored twice, and Wes Scanzano racked up a four-point night (one goal, three assists) as Tulsa defeated Austin 5-3 before 3,483 at the Travis County Expo Center. Rookie goaltender Tim Kelleher made 42 saves to pick up his second victory of the season, and first since October 24th. The rejuvenated Oilers power-play came through again, as Tulsa scored 4 power-play markers for the second straight night, this time going 4-for-5. The Oilers have surged to 8th in the league on the man advantage at 15.76 percent. A week ago, Tulsa was 15th at 12.90 percent.

TEAM LEADERS:

Goals: Jason Bermingham 25
Assists: Todd Marcellus 31
Points: Marcellus/Bermingham 52
Plus/Minus: Jason Bermingham +16
PIM: Shawn Scanzano 111
PPG: Jason Bermingham 11
SHG: Marcellus/Gravelle 2
GWG: Jason Bermingham 5
Shots: Jason Bermingham 196
SH Pct: Wes Scanzano 18.7
Shootout G: Todd Marcellus 5
Wins: Rod Branch 15
GAA: Rod Branch 2.75
Save Pct: Rod Branch .924
Saves: Rod Branch 1,138
Minutes: Rod Branch 2031:09

This week, the Oilers have another four-game week. Tulsa opens the week with home games against Colorado on Tuesday and Oklahoma City on Friday, then travels to Indianapolis for a pair of games with the Ice.

Individual game tickets can be purchased at the Oilers ticket office, at Carson Attractions, in the Tulsa Convention Center, or at the Drug Mart locations in Tulsa, Owasso, and Broken Arrow.

Phone orders for game tickets can be made by calling 918-584-2000 or 918-632-7825.

Check out the Tulsa Oilers Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Central Hockey League Stories from February 9, 2004


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.

OurSports Central