MCLAUGHLIN NETS TWO IN ONE-GOAL LOSS TO WINGS

MCLAUGHLIN NETS TWO IN ONE-GOAL LOSS TO WINGS

Oilers score final two goals of game, but first period deficit too much to overcome in 3-2 loss

KALAMAZOO, Mich. —The Tulsa Oilers, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks and the AHL’s San Diego Gulls, fell to the Kalamazoo Wings 3-2 at the Wings Event Center

Coale Norris snuck the puck through Riley Morris’ pads as he was going post-to-post, giving the Wings their first lead of the weekend 4:28 into the action. Mason McCarty followed up with 5:29 left in the period, finishing off a tertiary rebound, making it a 2-0 Kalamazoo lead. Matheson Iacopelli closed the first period 3-0 Wings with a snipe from the left-wing wall in the final minute of the frame.

Blake McLaughlin cut the Wings lead to two, bouncing the puck off a Kalamazoo player and spoiling Evan Cormier’s shutout 36:16 into the game. McLaughlin’s tally was the lone goal of the second period, sending the score 3-1 into the third period.

McLaughlin scored his second of the contest, ripping a power-play one timer through Evan Cormier exactly seven minutes into the third. Dante Sheriff picked up assists on both of McLaughlin’s goals, giving the rookie a team-high, eight-game point streak. Despite several close chances six-on-five, the score remained 3-2 at the final buzzer in favor of Kalamazoo.

The rubber match of the three-in-three series comes tomorrow, March 5 at 2 p.m. CT at the Wings Event Center.