CALGARY, AB (September 1, 2023) — The Okotoks Oilers got five goals from five different goal scorers, breaking a 2-2 deadlock with a three-goal third period to take their 2023 preseason opener 5-2 over the Calgary Canucks on Friday night on the road.
Rookies Thomas Matte (Calgary, AB) and Robert Bird (Acampo, CA) had two-point games, as did veterans Connor Gourley (Calgary, AB) and Jagger Tapper (Calgary, AB).
Gourley opened the scoring with the only goal of the first, tipping home a Tapper shot at 15:23. Zephyr LaPlante tied it for the home side 37 seconds into the second, before Shayne Tibbles (Calgary, AB) deflected a puck home from close range to make it 2-1. Quinn Keeler tied it again for Calgary just over a minute later.
In the third, Rowland backhanded home the game-winner just 31 seconds in, before a Rylan Brown (Sherwood Park, AB) point shot found its way home through traffic at 2:29 to make it 4-2. Matte capped off the scoring with his first at 13:02, taking a pass from Justin King (Calgary, AB) at the net front, spinning and putting home a forehand shot to notch the 5-2 final.
Alex Scheiwiller (Calgary, AB) stopped 18 of 20 shots in the first half of the game, while Christian Green (Boothwyn, PA) went a perfect 11-for-11 in the back half.
The teams meet Saturday night in Okotoks for a rematch at 7 PM. Tickets are available online at tickets.okotoksoilers.ca.