FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 29, 2019
BAD BOUNCE BURNS OILERS AGAINST GRIZZLIES
Two strange bounces lead to Utah goals in 2-1 nail-biter, as Tulsa falls in first game of the week.
TULSA, OK – Twice Tuesday, the Utah Grizzlies (25-13-4) benefited with goals off of crazy bounces, and goaltender Joe Cannata stopped 36 of 37 in a 2-1 win over the Tulsa Oilers (25-15-6) at the BOK Center.
The Grizzlies led 1-0 after one, thanks to a late power play goal from Jake Marchment. The shot came in from the right-wing boards and was kicked out by Evan Fitzpatrick, but caught an Oilers skate in front and deflected back into the net. Tulsa outshot Utah 12-5 in the frame.
Oilers rookie forward Ian McNulty evened the score 3:50 into the middle frame, when he snuck in behind the Grizzlies’ defense and slid a backhander through the legs of Cannata to make it 1-1. Tulsa held a slight 11-10 shots advantage in the period, but led in that department 23-15 through 40 minutes.
A fluky bounce burned the Oilers again in the third period, which turned out to be Utah’s game-winning goal. Josh Anderson fired a shot from the blue line that went wide of Tulsa’s net. Fitzpatrick played the initial shot from the edge of the crease, but the carom came right back into the crease. While Fitzpatrick spun to control the rebound, he inadvertently knocked it into his own net with 9:22 remaining. Cannata stopped 36 of 37 shots to earn the win for the Grizzlies.
The Oilers’ wrap up their five-game home stand Wednesday against the Grizzlies at 7:05pm on the York Plumbing Ice at the BOK Center, before Tulsa hits the road for Toledo Friday and Cincinnati Saturday.
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