FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 3, 2019
FIRST PLACE OILERS BEAT MAVS TO FINISH PERFECT WEEKEND
Tulsa sees Magic Number shrink to seven points with 12 games remaining after taking down Kansas City 3-1 at the BOK Center.
TULSA, OK– There’s a new team atop the Mountain Division, as the Tulsa Oilers (34-20-6) finished off a perfect weekend with a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Mavericks (29-22-4) Sunday at the BOK Center to claim the top spot in the playoff race with 12 games remaining.
The first two periods looked like two completely different hockey games. The Oilers heavily outshot the Mavericks 20-4 in the opening frame and jumped out to a 2-0 lead. Tommy Melecleaned up his own rebound and swept a shot into a yawning cage to start the scoring and Adam Pleskachburied his 31stgoal of the season from between the circles on Tulsa’s second power play of the opening frame.
Kansas City reversed the script in the middle frame, when Darian Dziurzynski scored 1:08 into the period, leading the Mavericks on a barrage against Oilers goaltender Ian Keserich. The Mavs appeared to tie the score on a power play of their own, but the play had already been whistled down. Then late in the stanza, Ian McNultyknocked a puck out of mid-air and in behind Nick Schneider from the edge of the crease to give Tulsa a 3-1 lead entering the third.
The Oilers held off the Mavericks in the final period, as Keserich stopped all seven shots for a total of 26 saves on 27 attempts to win his fourth straight start. Schneider finished with 27 saves in the loss, as Tulsa finished off the 3-1 win. The Oilers’ Magic Number to clinch a playoff berth is now seven points (four wins or Wichita losses).
The Oilers have only one game on the schedule next week, a Saturday night trip to the Lone Star State for a matchup with the Allen Americans at the Allen Event Center at 7:05pm. Catch all the action on the Sports Animal radio network, www.tulsaoilers.comor ECHL.TV, with pregame coverage starting at 6:45pm.
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