( Photo by – Ken Wiegmann )
The Tulsa Oilers were handed their third straight loss on Saturday night when the Fort Wayne Komets defeated them 2-1.
A hooking minor by former Oiler, Randy Cure, was the most action the first period saw. Tulsa outshot the Komets 10-7 but neither would get on the board.
The second frame was sweet to Fort Wayne as they took a lead and then doubled it. Two goals, four minutes apart, found the back of Jussi Olkinuora. First, defenseman Jordon Southorn would tally his sixth of the season with help from Mason Baptista and Cody Corbett. A Jamie Schaafsma goal followed.
A late third period rebound by Phil Brewer would cut the Komet’s lead in half with six minutes left. Adam Pleskach put the puck on net and Pat Nagle stopped it but he couldn’t stop Brewer.
Despite last minute efforts from the Oilers, Fort Wayne would prevail and take the contest 2-1.
The Oilers head to Evansville next Friday and Saturday to visit the IceMen for the second and third time this season.
Nugent isn’t the only one going back to visit their old flames in the extremely near future. Adam Pleskach will be hitting the road towards his old team, Evansville Icemen, next weekend (March 4th and 5th for those of you who lost your schedules). Unlike Nugent, This season makes lucky number three for Pleskach. Before his time in Tulsa, he spent plenty of time preparing for his time with the Oilers through juniors training, collegiate games and a stent with that other team in Indiana.
Pleskach’s start with the Selkirk Steelers of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League showed his promise as a professional player. In his first season, he scored twenty-four goals and had thirty-eight assists. The next year his goals more than doubled and his assists rose to fifty-two. He posted some impressive numbers from his time with the Steelers. When it was all said and done, he had tallied 133 goals and 149 assists in a mere 187 games. His hard work paid off. He was the team’s assistant captain and was the team’s recipient of the Iron Man Award. Not only was Pleskach the team’s MVP, he was also named the MVP of the MJHL’s all-star game. The Steelers won the MJHL Championship.
After his time with the Steelers, Pleskach moved to Massachusetts where he played for the American International College. He started out strong, just in the typical Pleskach fashion no less. He was the leading scorer, with fifteen goals, with four on the power-play and one shorthanded. He tied the school’s Division I record for goals in a single season was the AHA Rookie of the Month in October and was named to the AHA All-Rookie forward team. Pleskach didn’t miss a single game during his college career. The trend for Pleskach continued through his days as an Economics and Finance double major.
Since joining the Tulsa Oilers, Pleskach has scored a total of ninety-two games and had seventy-five assists in 184 games. Last season, Pleskach led the Oilers in goals, at forty-one. and appeared in all seventy-two games. So far, Pleskach is still one of Tulsa’s leading scorers and shows no sign of slowing down.
You can catch both Tom Kroshus and Adam Pleskach right here in Tulsa at one of upcoming games this season. You aren’t going to want to miss catching these two players this season. We only have five regular season games at the BOK Center. March 18th and 19th, as well as another back to back set March 29th and 30th. Our fan appreciation night will be on our final game of the regular season, Saturday, April 9th. These games are the perfect events for family fun. Mark some games in your calendar and make way for some super exciting things to do in Tulsa.
Number nineteen is right wing Brady Ramsey. This season is Ramsey’s second season with the Tulsa Oilers. After a short stint with the Calgary Royals of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, Ramsey started to terrorize the Western Hockey League in a Lethbridge Hurricanes sweater. In a career total of 255 games, Ramsey was able to score fifty-three goals and assist in seventy-six others. He also ended with 405 penalty minutes. Ramsey led Lethbridge in assists, points, and penalty minutes during his final season with the team.
Ramsey’s first professional contract was spent with the Stockton Thunder for the small remainder of the 2013-14 season, where he played in three games and received a single assist. The following year he became a member of the Ontario Reign. Ramsey played thirteen games with the Canadian team before being traded to Tulsa for the remainder of the season. Since he was moved across the border, Ramsey has scored twelve goals for the Oilers and added ten assists to his profile in seventy-six games.
The next player has had experience in four different leagues across American and his homeland, Canada. This offensive defenseman is a product of Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada, Brisebois has a heart for the sport. Considering the close proximity to McGill University, arguably the birthplace of hockey but either way they have a significant impact on the modern day sport, it only makes sense that the sport flows through his veins.
As a juniors player, Brisebois split his first season between the Sherbrooke Cougars and the Lewiston MAINEiacs before becoming a member of the Husky family at Rouyn-Noranda. As a member of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Brisebois found his footing and started posting points beyond belief. In his final season with the Huskies, Brisebois played a total of sixty four regular season games lighting the lamp nineteen times and assisting in fifty-four goals. Brisebois continued into the postseason, scoring three goals and twelve assists in the fourteen game playoff stretch. During his first season with the Huskies, the team finished dead last in the league, however the next season they made a playoff appearance. By Brisebois’ final season with Rouyn-Noranda, Brisebois was among the top defenders in the league and was playing his best season yet which helped the team go to the semi-finals.
