FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 17, 2018
OILERS RETURN HOME SATURDAY FOR 90th BIRTHDAY BASH
Tulsa to honor first Oilers hockey team from 1928-29 season in return from long road trip.
OVERALL RECORD: 13-8-6
LAST WEEK: 0-2-1
RESULTS
Wednesday, Dec. 12 – Cincinnati 4, Tulsa 1 (U.S. Bank Arena – Cincinnati, OH) | Box Score
>> The Oilers faced off against the leaders of the Central Division for the first time Wednesday and fell behind 2-0 in the first period, thanks to two goals from the Cyclones on 2-on-1 rushes. Tulsa scored its first power play goal of December 1:51 into the second period when Kyle Rhodes fired a shot through a screen from the point to make it 2-1. Midway through the third, Cincinnati added an insurance goal, and later buried an empty net goal to seal the 4-1win.
Friday, Dec. 14 – Indy 2, Tulsa 1, OT (Indiana Farmers Coliseum – Indianapolis, IN) | Box Score
>> In the first of two matchups with the Indy Fuel,Tulsa stepped up and scored first 11:19 into the opening frame. Ian McNulty set up the play when he stick-handled around a Fuel defenseman in the circle and slid a centering pass across the crease to Scott Henegar,who tapped in the goal. Indy tied the game at 1-1 on a late first period breakaway.After a scoreless final 42:53 of regulation, the teams went to 3-on-3 overtime where Olivier Labelle won it for Indy with 20 seconds left in the extra session. Tulsa earned a point in the standings in the overtime loss, but remained winless in December.
Saturday, Dec. 15 – Indy 5, Tulsa 4 (Indiana Farmers Coliseum – Indianapolis, IN) | Box Score
>> Tulsa fell behind early in the finale of its six-game Central Division road trip, when Josh Shalla scored the Fuel’s Teddy Bear Toss goal. Adam Pleskach evened the score 31 seconds later, but Indy jumped back ahead 2-1 before the first break. The Fuel added to their lead with a fluky goal from the corner with 5:50left in the middle period, and made it 4-1 after scoring a short-handed goal with22 seconds remaining in the frame. Kyle Rhodes beat the buzzer on a power play snipe with less than one second left to send the Oilers to the locker room down by just two. Again, Indy moved ahead by three goals when they scored midway through the final stanza, but Pleskach added his second goal of the game with 7:04 left to make it 5-3. Ryan Tesink tallied a fourth goal for Tulsa with 4.9 seconds left, but the Oilers ran out of time. It was Tulsa’s eighth straight defeat in December (0-6-2), as the Oilers finished the road trip (0-4-2).
THE WEEK AHEAD
Friday, Dec. 21 – Tulsa AT Kansas City, 7:05pm – Silverstein Eye Centers Arena (Independence, MO)
Saturday, Dec. 22 – Kansas City vs Tulsa, 7:05pm – BOK Center (Tulsa, OK)
FAST FACTS
- Adam Pleskach had 8 points (3g, 5a) during Tulsa’s six-game road trip.
- Ryan Tesink has 10 points (7g, 3a) in 8 games in December.
- Ian McNulty has assists in back-to-back games and4 assists in his last 6 games.
TEAM TRENDS
- Tulsa is 9-0-4 when scoring first.
- The Oilers scored twice in the final 5 seconds of a period Saturday at Indy (2nd– 19:59, 3rd – 19:55).
- Tulsa is 13-4-4 against the Mountain Division, and plays 39 of its final 45 games against Mountain teams.
STATISTICAL LEADERS
POINTS: 24 – Adam Pleskach, Ryan Tesink
GOALS: 10 – Adam Pleskach, Ryan Tesink
ASSISTS: 14 – Adam Pleskach, Ryan Tesink
PLUS/MINUS: +9 – Scott Moldenhauer*
PIMS: 48 – Mike McKee
PP GOALS: 3 – Kyle Rhodes
SH GOALS: 1 – Peter Sivak, Jared Thomas**
GW GOALS: 3 – Steven Kaunisto
SHOTS: 112 – Adam Pleskach
WINS: 7 – Evan Fitzpatrick**
GAA: 2.66 – Evan Fitzpatrick**
SAVE %: .901 – Evan Fitzpatrick**
*Recalled to San Diego (AHL)
**Recalled to San Antonio (AHL)
SPECIAL TEAMS
POWER PLAY: Overall – 12/107 (11.2%) – 26th in the ECHL
Last Week – 2/13 (15.4%)
PENALTY KILL: Overall – 81/97 (83.5%) – 18th in the ECHL
Last Week – 11/12 (91.7%)
LAST DROPS
Adam Pleskach is 2nd in the ECHL with112 shots on goal… With two goals Saturday in Indy, Pleskach (144) is just one goal away from 3rd place all-time in franchise history, behind Sylvain Naud (145)… Kyle Rhodes is tied for the league lead among defensemen with 9 goals… The Oilers lead the ECHL with the most shots on goal per game (35.48) and the fewest shots against per game (26.96)… Tulsa is outshooting its opponents in the second period348-228, a difference of 120 through 27 games… The Oilers have outshot their opponents in 22 out of 27 games.
SATURDAY – 90th BIRTHDAY BASH / UNIFIRST BLANKET DRIVE
The Tulsa Oilers return home Saturday for their first home game at the BOK Center in 18days. The Oilers host the Kansas City Mavericks at 7:05pm and will be celebrating the 90th Birthday of the first Tulsa Oilers team that competed in 1928-29. Tulsa will wear special retro jerseys resembling those worn by the 1935 Oilers and the game-worn jerseys will be auctioned off following the game. Saturday will also be the Oilers’ annual blanket drive, presented by Unifirst. Bring new blankets to the game to donate to those in need during the winter months.
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