Written by: Scott Savard
Headline photo: Scott Savard
Okotoks, AB (January 25, 2026) – The Okotoks Oilers break the curse against the Bandits in Brooks tonight after Michael Kowalski (Chicago, IL) played hero by scoring the game-winning goal in overtime for his fourth point (2G, 2A) of the weekend.
The Oilers, who started nine points back of the Spruce Grove Saints for the final Interior East playoff spot, closed the gap to just five points, and they hold two games in hand against their northern rivals as they continue to treat each game here on out as a playoff game.
Kowalski was a big reason the Oilers came away with a win on Friday at home against the Saints, and picked up an important win on the road tonight in Brooks. None was more important than his game-winning overtime marker tonight, which saw him deke around a Bandit, then cut to the left side of the net where he would put the puck between his legs and beat Bandits’ starting netminder Zach Zahara.
“Obviously, the boys knew what we had to do this weekend. We just went in there and played our game, and together. It took all of us both games. We are in the second half now, and we have to start turning it around. We just have to continue to play together, and I believe we will have much more success,” Kowalski said about the Oilers picking up two wins over the weekend.
“I think my success over the weekend was fueled by our team’s focus on playing defensively. As well as trying to step up personally in the second half to make a push here.”
Jordan Murray (Decker, MB) would also break his curse of not getting on the scoresheet away from an arena he hasn’t called home, as he picked up two assists in the game, including a helper on Kowalski’s goal. Prior to this, Murray had all but one of his 14 points at Viking Rentals Centre, where his other point came at his previous home with a goal in Cranbrook.
This is an especially big win for Oilers captain Brett Wilson (Calgary, AB), as well as assistant captains Hunter Sawka (Cochrane, AB) and Ryder de Nys (Canmore, AB), as all three have donned the Oilers sweater since the jump to the BCHL. All three have been through many battles with Brooks and have finally snapped the Bandits’ win streak against the Green and Gold during the regular season.
The last time the Oilers came out on top against the Bandits was back on home ice in Game Six of the BCHL 2023-2024 Alberta postseason, where former captain Dean Spak (Calgary, AB) played hero in overtime, just like veteran forward Kowalski did tonight.
Wilson collected an assist on Kowalski’s game-winner to extend his point streak to three games and has accumulated seven points (2G, 5A) in the last six games.
“Yeah, the win against Brooks feels super good. It’s been a long time for this organization to secure that win, and it marks a crucial part of our season, too. With the mindset that we’re in playoff mode now, in order to give ourselves the best chance to find a playoff spot, we need to refocus and use this momentum into our roadtrip this week for “game 3” of playoffs,” Wilson said.
Another key player for the Green and Gold tonight was Holden Pajor (Eden Prairie), who picked up the Oilers first goal of the game and added an assist on a game-tying goal in the second period.
“I would say just playing with confidence, not just me, but the whole team. That helped me pick up a couple points, and our team’s confidence helped us win that game. For me, just playing smartly and executing on the chances I was given,” Pajor said about getting on the scoresheet tonight.
“I loved the response after the first 10 minutes when they were dominating us early. I felt like the rest of the game, we dominated. Our penalty kill played amazing in the third, preventing them from taking the lead late. Lastly, every single guy bought in, and it was a whole team effort that helped us win tonight.”
The Oilers were disciplined early, as they only gave up one penalty in the first 45 minutes of the game, which Brooks made them pay for with an opening power-play goal. The Green and Gold headed to the sin bin a handful of times late in the third period, but killed off three of the five penalties they faced in the game.
Eric Young (Mill Bay, BC) made the start in net for the Oilers, collecting his 14th win of the season after going into extra time. Young stood tall in net, making 30 saves on 34 shots for the win on the road. The Oilers made the most of their opportunities as they scored five goals on Zahara with 26 shots.
Jack Rosensteel opened the scoring just under five minutes into the first frame with the game’s first power play marker. The Bandits would take their only two-goal lead of the game just over halfway into the first period with Jack Good collecting his lone goal of the evening.
Pajor would respond three minutes later with his 10th of the season, while on the power play with Kowalski and Joey Gugino (Buffalo, NY) collecting the assists to close out the first frame.
Just over two minutes into the second period, Marko Lisica (Plainsview, NY) added his third goal of the season to tie the game up at two goals apiece. Pajor and Nate Porter (Hingham, MA) collected the helpers on Lisica’s tying goal. The Oilers would continue to put the pressure on Brooks as they added another two goals for a 4-2 lead at the midway mark of the second period.
Jamie Hikida (Richmond, BC) added his ninth of the season with Murray picking up his 10th assist of the season on the primary helper, and Brady Engelkes (Middleton, WI), who continues to stay hot as he grabbed the secondary assist. Josh Wiebe (Calgary, AB) got redemption against his former team as he added the Oilers fourth goal of the night and his third goal of the weekend. Porter would grab the lone assist for his fourth point (1G, 3A) of the weekend.
Harry Ahlberg got Brooks back to within one goal before the final buzzer of the middle frame. Luke Melnik would force things to go into overtime after potting a power play goal midway through the final frame. It wouldn’t be enough to stop the Oilers this time around, as Kowalski’s heroics will be the lasting image of tonight’s game in Brooks, as Okotoks has finally conquered the Bandits during the 2025-2026 BCHL regular season.
The Oilers will be back on the road for a Wednesday night game against the West Kelowna Warriors.
The Okotoks Oilers are a not-for-profit, community-run junior hockey franchise competing in the BCHL and operating out of Viking Rentals Centre. For more information, visit okotoksoilers.com or follow the Oilers on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
