OKOTOKS, AB (March 8, 2024) — Sam Huck (Calgary, AB) and Brett Wilson (Calgary, AB) both tallied two goals and added an assist on Friday night as the Okotoks Oilers took the Brooks Bandits to overtime and fell by a 7–6 final score.
The Oilers blew a 4–3 lead in the third period but battled back from a 6–4 deficit to force overtime against the top-ranked Bandits. Jagger Tapper (Calgary, AB) and Hayden Fechner (Edmonton, AB) also scored in the setback.
Playing in front of a crowd of more than 1,000 fans at Okotoks Centennial Arena, the Oilers and Bandits put on an extremely entertaining show that could go into the books as the best game of the 2023–24 BCHL regular season. The two teams combined for 13 goals and both registered exactly 38 shots in the Friday night fracas.
The Oilers fell behind by a 1–0 score exactly four minutes into the first period when Hunter Wallace split the defense and sent a quick shot past Christian Green (Boothwyn, PA). But after being held off the board for the rest of the opening frame, the Oilers exploded for four goals in the second period compared to just two for Brooks.
After Wilson and Danylo Korzhelytski exchanged goals four minutes apart in the first half of the period, Tapper and Fechner scored two goals in 54 seconds just past the midway mark to give the hosts their first lead. Mirko Buttazzoni scored on a 5-on-3 to restore the tie with 59 seconds remaining in the period, but Sam Huck responded on a shorthanded breakaway 29 seconds later to send the Oilers into the intermission with their one-goal lead intact.
Things started to unravel for the Oilers in the early goings of the third period. Korzhelytski, Logan Sawyer, and Parker Lalonde all scored in a span of just 102 seconds around a quarter of the way into the final frame to put the Bandits up by pair.
But after a key timeout call by the Oilers’ coaching staff, the hosts started to rediscover their earlier mojo. Huck brought the Oilers back within a goal with a well-placed one-timer past Bandits goaltender Sam Scopa; then, after a solid 10 minutes of Oilers pressure (including a power-play chance), Wilson found a loose puck in the Bandits crease and made no mistake from close range to tie the game at six.
Despite the Oilers’ best efforts, Brooks ultimately sealed the deal in overtime. They managed the only two shots of the extra frame and got the win at the 2:12 mark when Sawyer beat Green on an end-to-end rush. But the Oilers picked up a critical standings point as they continue to chase the Blackfalds Bulldogs for the No. 3 seed in the AB Division side of the 2024 BCHL Playoffs.
The Oilers have a chance to build upon their strong effort on Friday night when they return to action on the road on Saturday for a tilt against the Spruce Grove Saints. You’ll be able to hear that game on The Eagle 100.9 with Oilers broadcaster Tyler King starting at 6:45 p.m. MT.
Recap: Mike Gould
Photo: Chad Goddard
