Written by: Scott Savard
Okotoks, AB (October 25, 2025) – The Okotoks Oilers and Spruce Grove Saints couldn’t solve tonight’s game in regulation as the Green and Gold fell short with the Saints taking it 5-4 in a shootout.
With the Oilers pushing the game past regulation, the Green and Gold came away with three points out of a possible four.
The Oilers, who had already played a close game the night prior against Vernon, faced the Saints tonight at Viking Rentals Centre, who came in fresh as they had the night out on Friday.
Eric Young (Mill Bay, BC) played outstanding, making 37 saves and then adding another nine in the shootout to give the Oilers a chance against Spruce Grove. Saints tenured goaltender Ryan De Kok, who has seen the Oilers for the past three seasons, made the start on the other end of the ice.
The Saints struck first during the opening period with Tre Peck scoring on the game’s only power play goal. The Oilers would only have a single power play while the Saints had three.
Jamie Hikida (Richmond, BC) would tie things up shortly after with his third of the season and second in the last four games. Holden Pajor (Eden Prairie, MN) picked up the primary assist, with Michael Kowalski (Chicago, IL) grabbing the secondary assist for his third assist in four games.
The second period would see the Oilers and Saints trade a pair of goals each. Brandon Funk and Carson Llyod would give the Saints a two-goal lead at the 6:32 mark of the second period. Oilers assistant captain Hunter Sawka (Cochrane, AB) answered back 30 seconds after the Saints made it 4-2 with his fourth goal of the season, extending his points streak to five games. Michael Mikan (Edina, MN) picked up his first point of the night by adding the assist.
Josh Wiebe (Calgary, AB) would follow suit as he tied up the game with his fourth goal of the 2025-2026 BCHL season. Joradn Murray (Decker, MB) picked up the assist for his second point in as many games with the Green and Gold.
In the third frame, Sawka, who had six goals last season, scored his fifth goal of the season, making it 12 points in 11 games for him so far this season. Markus Jakobsen (Odense, Denmark) got the primary assist for his eighth point in eight games played this season, and Mikan got the secondary assist for his 10th point on the season.
Funk wouldn’t let the Oilers lead last long as he answered back for the Saints less than 10 seconds later to tie things up at 4-4.
Overtime wouldn’t solve anything, as both teams headed to a lengthy shootout that went 11 rounds. Assistant captain for the Oilers, Jacob Goudreau (St. Albert, AB), who had a penalty shot earlier in the game, got his redemption on De Kok by scoring the Oilers’ lone shootout marker. Brady Witkin and James Richards scored for the Saints in the shootout to finish the game.
The Oilers and Saints will meet another six times this season, with the next meeting in Spruce Grove on November 15.
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.
