WHITECOURT, AB (November 27, 2021) ““ Rieger Lorenz (Calgary, AB) scored his first career hat trick, and goaltender Jack McNaughton (Calgary, AB) posted his third straight win since joining the Okotoks Oilers (12-14-1), in a 5-3 road win over the Whitecourt Wolverines on Saturday night.
The Oilers extend their lead for fourth in the AJHL South division to two points over Blackfalds and Canmore, though the former has two games in hand.
Power play prowess paid off for the Oilers early, with Ty Yoder (Tofield, AB) sniping a wrist shot from the right half-wall at 2:16 to give them a 1-0 lead, in a period in which they outshot the Wolverines 12-9.
Okotoks dominated the second, outshooting Whitecourt 16-5 and scoring twice on goals from Rieger Lorenz (Calgary, AB). His first came on a power play wraparound at 3:39, and the second a long wrist shot from the high slot at 11:52 to make it 3-0.
But Whitecourt retook control in the third, charging back with a goal 12 seconds into the third period on shot off the rush by Thomas Vela. It brought the shutout streak of goaltender Jack McNaughton (Calgary, AB) to an end after over 160 minutes without allowing a puck in the net.
Whitecourt”™s push continued after a Travis Baker point shot on the power play at 9:27 beat McNaughton through a screen, cutting the lead to just 3-2.
With Okotoks on a power play late in the period, a key chance for an insurance goal instead led to the tying goal, as Chase Broda scored on a shorthanded 2-on-1 rush to make it 3-3.
But less than 2 minutes later, Lorenz completed his hat trick, spinning at the right circle and firing a shot home for the eventual game-winner and a 4-3 lead. Brendan Boyle (Lake Country, BC) scored the empty netter with just over a second left to notch the 5-3 final.
The Oilers will next take on the Drayton Valley Thunder on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 PM. Pre-game coverage starts at 1:45 PM on The Eagle 100.9.