In a season that is quickly headed nowhere for the Oil Kings and Rebels, the Oil Kings decided that it was time to wake up following the Christmas break. It was a nice gift to their fans as they had been sitting in the basement of the WHL for some time and hadn’t really had anything to cheer about.
The Oil Kings would give them back to back wins for the first time this season. They are now just four points back of the Calgary Hitmen and five from the Rebels in the race for last place in the entire Western Hockey League.
For the Rebels it was more of the same, an offense that sputters, defensive lapses and goals against at the worst possible times.
Another early goal against the Rebels-this time it was rookie Brian Harris with his second goal of the season to put the Oil Kings in front. Carter Souch made a nice move at the blue line while getting rubbed out on the boards to get the puck to a streaking Harris who then went high glove-side on Ethan Anders.
The Rebels would tie the game up on a play in front of Oil Kings starter Josh Dechaine. Brandon Schuldhaus’ point shot would make its way through traffic to Grayson Pawlenchuk (13) and the captain would redirect it past Dechaine.
The Oil Kings would out shoot the Rebels 9-5 after 20 minutes but the score would remain tied at one.
Nearly 12 minutes into the second period, David Kope would steal the puck in his own end from Mason McCarty and split the Rebels defenders to create a breakaway for himself. He’d go backhand forehand and tuck the puck under Anders as he slid into the netminder. The puck was across the line before the net came off and it would give the Oil Kings the lead back. For Kope it was his fourth goal of the year.
With their best player in the penalty box the Oil Kings were left chasing the puck around their own zone. The sputtering Rebels power play would find some magic on the stick of Dawson Barteaux, who scored his first WHL goal, and tied the game up at two. His slap shot from the point whizzed past everyone after a pass from Alexander Alexeyev. Reese Johnson would also register an assist.
Just a minute and a half later the Rebels would take their first lead of the game when Mason McCarty (17) collected a puck from behind the net, turned just across the red line and shot it home. Grayson Pawlenchuk missed on his original opportunity, which led to the puck being behind the net and available for McCarty.
Conner McDonald would score his third goal of the season, this time it was he who collected a loose puck. The Oil Kings had made their way into the Rebels zone and made a few passes. Davis Koch put the puck towards the net, it hit a the Rebels goaltender and landed on McDonald’s stick. He waited just a moment, made a slight move and tucked between the pads of Anders. This goal came with 8:50 to go in the game. The teams would trade a few chances but ultimately needed extra time to settle this one. The shots at the end of regulation would be 26 a piece.
In the overtime, the teams would trade chances with the three-on-three format. With about 20 seconds left to go the Rebels looked exahusted after a long shift and Trey Fix-Wolansky was fed the puck at the blue line. He danced in past two Rebels players, and wristed a shot over the extended glove of Ethan Anders. The Oil Kings players would stream onto the ice and end the night that much closer to climbing out of the basement.
Rebel Yell… Dawson Barteaux was named the first star on the night, David Kope and Davis Koch were the other two stars. Reese Johnson won 15 of 26 faceoffs while Tomoas Soustal won 10 of 15. Brandon Schuldhaus had five shots to lead all players while three Oil Kings took three shots a piece, only two Oil Kings had zero shots. Alexander Alexeyev has points in five straight games, three goals and five assists in that time. The Rebels returned to Red Deer last night, they have practice this morning and then head to Medicine Hat for a 7:30 game on Saturday. The Oil Kings remain at home to host the Kootenay Ice on Saturday.
