(Photo by John Howe)
Independence, MO (March 11, 2016)–Despite a determined effort from start to finish, the Oilers were not able to beat the Missouri Mavericks and fell by a score of 3-1, on Friday.
Missouri opened scoring early when forward Reed Seckel buried a centering feed from Chris Ownes at the 2:26 mark of the first period.
Tulsa forward Andrew Johnston scored his fourth on the season — 4:24 into the second period — off of a pass from Tom Kroshus.
Defenseman Trevor Ludwig blasted a one-timer from the blue line past Tulsa goaltender Kevin Carr on the power play at the 5:07 mark of the second period. Zach Tolkinen and Adam Courtney earned the assists on the goal.
Hoping to shift momentum for the Oilers, Mathieu Gagnon and Eric Neilson had a heavyweight fight at center ice 9:38 into the second period. Both players received 7 minutes in the penalty box due to them removing their helmets.
Missouri would put the game away at the 13:23 mark of the third period when David de Kastrozza scored on a breakaway. Reed Seckel earned his second point on the night with the assist.
The Oilers still remain in a playoff spot after their seventh straight loss.
Tulsa will return to home ice on Friday, March 18 to play the Missouri Mavericks at 7:05 p.m. For ticket information call 918-632-7825.
One of Tulsa’s newest Oilers is forward Stefan Legein. Legein stems from Oakville, Ontario. Legein has had a tremendous amount of experience to bring to town. He played for the Mississauga IceDogs of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), and moved to Niagara with the team in 2007. In 2007, Legein was drafted 37th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Since turning pro, Legein has played in four separate leagues. The American Hockey League, the East Coast Hockey League, and two European Leagues. Most of his eight year professional experience has been spent in the American Hockey League, the lone league separating the ECHL from the National Hockey League. After a shoulder injury sidelined him for months, Legein decided that hockey was no longer a path he wanted to travel down. A few months later, after his injury was healed and his mind cleared, Legein decided to come back to the sport that he had once dedicated his life to. As a second round pick for the Columbus Blue Jackets, Legein was assigned to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. In his first season, he reported to the team in January 2009, he scored a goal during his 26 games. The next season, he spent only six games with the Crunch before heading to the Adirondack Phantoms.
Prior to coming to Tulsa, Legein spent thirty eight games of the 2015-2016 season with the Manchester Monarchs where he scored eight goals and assisted in thirteen goals for a total of twenty one points. Be on the lookout for Stefan Legein to put on an Oilers jersey for the first time in one of our upcoming home games.
Finnish goalie Jussi Olkinuora, is back in Tulsa after being called up to the Manitoba Moose at the beginning of last season. Olkinuora, a six foot, two inch 200 pound netminder spend his undergraduate years studying and playing hockey for the University of Denver. Olkinuora transition from the Pioneers to the St. John’s IceCaps of the American Hockey League. While with the IceCaps, Olkinuora split time with the Ontario Reign under Tulsa’s current coach Jason Christie. While with Coach Christie in Canada, Jussi clocked over 2,500 minutes in forty three games, with one shutout. His goals against average was a personal best at 2.4 for a total of twenty seven wins, nine losses and six overtime losses.
This season, Olkinuora has spent time both in Tulsa and with our AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose. Although he started the season in an Oilers sweater, he quickly switched it out when he was called up to Canada in the first part of the season. While in a Moose jersey, Olkinuora saw six games, a total of 222 minutes. Currently, Olkinuora is back in Tulsa where he is sharing the net with goalie Kevin Carr. Jussi has played in fourteen games in an Oilers jersey.
If you are looking to catch an entertaining evening right here in Tulsa, come down to the BOK Center to watch some pucks fly at high speeds(probably by someone such as Stefan Legein), as well as someone who is willing to be the only thing between the puck and a potential victory (goalie, Jussi Olkinuora). You aren’t going to want to miss one of the few remaining games we have left here at Tulsa’s BOK Center. While we only have five home games left of the regular season, it is all about quality, not quantity. The next five games are sure not to disappoint. We have contests against the Missouri Mavericks, Allen Americans and the Colorado Grizzlies in the 918. Our next home game is Friday, March 18th against the league front runner, Missouri Mavericks. Only two teams have managed to beat Missouri at their rink in Independence, Missouri- a suburb of Kansas City. The Tulsa Oilers have done it twice, and as we speak, our playing a game in Independence which is still tied at zero. The next night, Saturday, March 19th, the Tulsa Oilers will host the Allen Americans with a 7:05pm start time. Fast forward to the end of March, following a long road trip to both Allen and the Utah Grizzlies, the Oilers will be back at the BOK Center back to back when the Colorado Eagles take over the visiting locker rooms on Tuesday and Wednesday, March 29th and 30th. Our final regular season game will be on April 9th when the Wichita Thunder makes the trek down the Turnpike to face the Oilers on Fan Appreciation night.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Oilers are on a six game losing streak—their longest of the season. One of those losses came from the Missouri Mavericks just last Sunday when they were defeated 2-1 in Independence. Tulsa returns tonight in their first contest since playing in Silverstein Eye Center Arena.
KELLY CONTENDERS
The Oilers are 8th in the Western Conference (16th overall)—a spot that puts them playoff eligible if the season ended today. The Missouri Mavericks are the first and only team to have clinched a spot. After a win for Quad City on Thursday, the Mallards are only one point behind the Oilers in the standings.
SPRING BREAK
Tulsa’s last game in the BOK Center was on February 23 against the Idaho Steelheads. Since, the Oilers have traveled to Cincinnati, Fort Wayne, Evansville and Missouri. The Oilers break from the BOK ends on March 18 and 19 when they host the Missouri Mavericks and Allen Americans before spending another week on the road in Utah.
