Crown Chronicles: Playoff Feel
The Edmonton Oil Kings took on the Red Deer Rebels in a home-and-home set this past week with the Rebels snagging a pair of one-goal victories over a nicked-up Oil Kings team.
The Oil Kings are currently on a three-game losing streak for the first time since November of 2019.
Sitting at 46-14-3-1 on the season, the Oil Kings hold a six-point lead over the Red Deer Rebels for top spot in the Central Division and have just four games left on their regular-season schedule.
Highlight of the Week
Tyler Horstmann shows some quick hands to set up Jaxsen Wiebe for a late third period go-ahead goal against the Red Deer Rebels on Sunday afternoon.
Weekly Review
Oil Kings 3 @ Red Deer Rebels 4 (Saturday)
The Oil Kings grabbed three separate one-goal leads at a hostile Peavey Mart Centrium to open their week thanks to goals from Dylan Guenther, Jakub Demek and Justin Sourdif but couldn’t keep the Rebels down for the count as they had a response each time before the league’s leading scorer, Arshdeep Bains, would score the eventual winning goal for the home side with just under eight minutes left in regulation.
Oil Kings 4 vs Red Deer Rebels 5 (OT) (Sunday)
The Oil Kings battled back from an early 2-0 deficit to end up with leads of 3-2 and 4-3 courtesy Jakub Demek, Justin Sourdif, Cole Miller and Jaxsen Wiebe, but for a second straight night, Arshdeep Bains would play spoiler as he scored the equalizer with just under 10 seconds left in regulation, setting the stage for rookie Jhett Larson to give the Rebels the win with his overtime marker concluding a fast and physical weekend set between the two Central Division rivals.
Three Stars of the Week
3. #15 Cole Miller – The rookie Edmonton forward saw an increase in ice-time this past weekend as he was elevated onto a line with Jakub Demek and Josh Williams, while also getting spot duty on the team’s second power play unit. He finished the weekend with a goal and two assists in two games. Amongst Oil Kings rookie skaters this season, his 15 points (8G, 7A) ranks second most. After starting the season with just one goal in his first 21 games, he has now scored seven times in his last 23.
2. #77 Jakub Demek – The Vegas Golden Knights prospect became the 15th rookie skater in the WHL this season to hit the 20-goal mark after scoring in each game against the Rebels. The Slovakian forward currently sits 13th amongst rookie skaters in scoring in the WHL with 53 points (20G, 33A) in 51 games. Over his last four games, he’s tallied three goals and an assist.
1. #42 Justin Sourdif – It’s safe to say that Justin Sourdif loves playing the Red Deer Rebels. In his three games against Red Deer this season, he has put up six points (4G, 2A) after scoring twice and adding an assist in two games this past weekend. In just five career games against Red Deer, he now has 10 points (6G, 4A). The Florida Panthers prospect now has points in 15 of his last 16 games with 12 goals and 14 assists in that span. This season, he is averaging 1.35 points per-game which is 16th best in the entire WHL.
Quick Hits
- The Oil Kings magic number to clinch a fourth straight Central Division championship is two points. Should the Oil Kings win the division, it would mark the first time a WHL team won their division in four consecutive seasons since the Vancouver Giants won five straight B.C. Division titles from 2005-10.
- With his 42nd goal of the season on Saturday, Dylan Guenther moved past Curtis Lazar (2010-14) for the second most goals by an Oil Kings skater in a single-season and now trails only Michael St. Croix’s (2008-13) single-season record from the 2011-12 season by three goals.
- Following the Oil Kings game on Sunday against the Rebels, the team announced their 2021-22 Team Award winners. For a full list of the winners, click here.
- Carter Souch is now tied with Brandon Baddock (2011-16) for the 7th most games played in Oil Kings franchise history with 256.
- Justin Sourdif is now just one point away from 200 career WHL points.
- Jakub Demek is now just six points back of Dylan Guenther’s Oil Kings rookie record of 59.
Injury Report
D Kaiden Guhle, lower-body, week-to-week (Last game: March 12, 6 games missed)
D Graydon Gotaas, lower-body, week-to-week (Last game: March 18, 4 games missed)
Next Up
The Oil Kings have a pair of games against two Central Division rivals this weekend.
First up, the Red Deer Rebels are back at Rogers Place on Saturday for a 2:00 PM puck drop. The game will be the Oil Kings first annual Pride Day Game and their last home game of the regular season.
To celebrate the day, the Oil Kings will be raising money to benefit Edmonton’s LGTBQ2S+ community by selling limited edition Oil Kings Pride t-shirts, an exclusive Oil Kings Pride themed mystery puck and auctioning off game used Pride hockey sticks.
The day will also feature several in-game elements to celebrate Edmonton’s LGTBQ2S+ community while also raising awareness about the importance of inclusion and respect in sport.
The Oil Kings are 3-3-2-0 against the Rebels this season. Jakub Demek (3G, 5A) and Dylan Guenther (2G, 6A) lead all Oil Kings scorers against the Rebels this season with eight points in eight games.
The Oil Kings finish their week with a Sunday afternoon affair at the Saddledome in Calgary as they conclude their season series with the Hitmen.
The Oil Kings are 6-1-0-0 against the Hitmen this season. Josh Williams (4G, 7A) leads all Oil Kings scorers against the Hitmen this season with 11 points in seven games while Kolby Hay is a perfect 4-0-0-0 with a 1.63 goals-against average and .933 save-percentage against the Hitmen.
Edmonton Oil Kings Playoff Passes are on-sale now. For only $129/seat, you get access to every Oil Kings home playoff game. To purchase, click here.
The Oil Kings next home game is their final home game of the regular season and is also the team’s inaugural Pride Day Game on Saturday, April 9 at 2:00 PM when they welcome the Red Deer Rebels to Rogers Place.
