WHITECOURT, AB (January 22, 2023) — The Okotoks Oilers fell behind early, and despite a late charge the team dropped a 5-3 decision in Whitecourt to the host Wolverines on Saturday night.
Okotoks allowed four goals in the first period but held their opponents at bay the rest of the game until an empty netter in the third sealed it. The Oilers outshot Whitecourt 35-24 in the game.
Goals at 2:10 and 2:41 on wristers from the faceoff circles gave Whitecourt a 2-0 lead before Sam Huck (Calgary, AB) responded with a goal from the halfboards. But Whitecourt pulled away, scoring on a shot from the slot at 9:30 to chase Oilers goalie Alex Scheiwiller, who was replaced by Parker Sawka. Sawka allowed a point shot goal at 15:22 from Caleb Macdonald off a draw but was perfect the rest of the way, stopping 16 of 17 shots.
The Oilers then got a late first period goal from Zeth Kindrachuk (Calgary, AB) and a second period backdoor tap-in from Jagger Tapper (Calgary, AB) to make it close, but Whitecourt got the empty netter with 1:02 left to notch the 5-3 final score.
The Oilers now slip 2 points behind Blackfalds for 2nd in the AJHL South, but will play their game in hand on Sunday afternoon in Drayton Valley against the Thunder. Pregame coverage starts at 1:45 PM on The Eagle 100.9.