OKOTOKS, AB (February 28, 2025) – The Okotoks Oilers saw Kade Duell (Taber, AB) continue his hot hands with a hat trick but, came out on the wrong side of an 8-3 hockey game against the Chilliwack Chiefs tonight (Feb. 28) at Viking Rentals Centre with 1,168 fans in attendance.
Olivier Ciarlo (Laval, QB) and Ben Vatis (Phoenix, AZ) would split time in the net in the first-ever game against the Chiefs. Ciarlo made 18 saves on 24 shots before Vatis came in relief, making 25 saves on 27 shots to finish out the game.
Caleb Malhotra opened the scoring 5:04 into the first period to give the number one seed in the Coastal Conference a 1-0 lead. Less than five minutes later Carter Anderson found the back of the net for his first goal of the game.
Duell answered for the Oilers on the power play with his 14th goal of the 2024/2025 BCHL season. Luke Calabria (Huntington, NY) picked up the primary assist for his sixth point on the season, with Hunter Sawka (Cochrane, AB) getting the secondary assist for his 27th helper. Anderson would earn another goal before the period’s end to give Chilliwack the 3-1 lead.
The second period saw the Chiefs continue to get on the board with four goals as Mateo Mrsic picked up his 30th of the season, and Anderson completed his hat trick. Dwayne Jean Jr, along with Nico Grabas added the two other second-period markers.
Anderson wasn’t done as he added his fourth goal of the game 14:38 into the third period. The Green and Gold didn’t go away quietly as Duell completed his hat trick with two goals coming 19 seconds apart. Ryder de Nys (Canmore, AB) would get the lone assist on Duell’s second of the night, and Brennan Hocher (Calgary, AB) picked up the assist on Duell’s hat-trick goal. With the hat trick, Duell has now scored five goals in the past three games.
Okotoks will head to Cranbrook for their second game in as many nights when they face the Bucks tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. MST.
Recap: Scott Savard
Photos: Chad Goddard
About the Okotoks Oilers
The Okotoks Oilers are a not-for-profit, community-run junior hockey franchise competing in the BCHL and operating out of Viking Rentals Centre. The Oilers are currently in their 20th year of play and their first full season since officially joining the BCHL in January 2024. For more information, visit okotoksoilers.com or follow the Oilers on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
