ZaM! POW! BooM! Oil Kings defeat Broncos, 4-1, on Superhero Night at Rogers Place
The Edmonton Oil Kings soared through the neutral zone, came to the rescue of their goaltender, and avenged their fans after a loss to a villainous opponent two nights prior.
Scott Atkinson (1G, 1A) and Jalen Luypen (1G, 1A) each had two-point nights to help guide the Edmonton Oil Kings (42-11-6-4) to a high-flying, 4-1 win over the Swift Current Broncos (10-47-1-3) during Superhero Night, which drew a heroic crowd of 10,577 to Rogers Place.
The victory matched the win total of last year’s 2018-19 squad (42-18-4-4), with five games remaining in the regular season.
Beck Warm (20-16-3-3) reached the 20-win mark for the second straight season, and improved his record as an Oil King to 11-2-0-2. The 20-year-old, Whistler, BC native did well to keep focused and sharp, despite seeing lulls in action when the Oil Kings commanded the play in the offensive end.
Warm’s counterpart Isaiah DiLaura took the loss (4-10-0-2), surrendering three goals on a whopping 46 Oil Kings shots. The Oil Kings fourth goal of the night came by way of the empty net.
It’s been a difficult road this season for the Broncos to say the least, as they continue to rebuild after their 2018 WHL Championship. The loss tonight was the 16th straight for the Club, who have the fewest points (24) among all Canadian Hockey League teams.
Atkinson gave the Oil Kings a 1-0 lead with his 13th of the season, scoring on the wraparound from behind the net assisted by Vladimir Alistrov and Wyatt McLeod, at 3:45.
It was the lone marker of the first 20 minutes, which saw the Oil Kings outshoot the Broncos by a 16-6 margin.
In the second period, a chip shot by the Broncos found its way in the back of the Oil Kings net to tie the game, 1-1, at 5:29.
Josh Williams made the voices – and bellies – of the fans roar when he scored just over ten seconds into the Popeyes Chicken Minute, as his 24th of the season sent everyone in attendance home with a voucher for chicken and a biscuit, courtesy of Popeyes. It was the fifth Oil Kings goal this season scored in the Chicken Minute, coming at 12:09 with Luypen and Atkinson picking up the assists on the 2-1 goal.
Luypen himself found the scoresheet just over three minutes later, taking a pass from behind the net and dancing out front, all alone. He backhanded the puck into the top right corner, shorthanded, at 15:29.
The Oil Kings took the 3-1 lead into the second intermission, outshooting the Broncos 15-7 in the frame, and 31-13 after 40 minutes.
The final goal of the game came with DiLaura pulled in favour of an extra attacker in an attempt to erase the deficit, but Riley Sawchuk hit the quarter-century mark in goals with his 25th of the campaign into the empty net, assisted by Jake Neighbours and Matthew Robertson, at 17:41 to secure the 4-1 victory.
The Oil Kings doubled up the Broncos on the shot clock in the third, 16-8, for a game total of 47-21.
Swift Current was 0-for-4 on the power play, while Edmonton was held without a man advantage but managed a shorthanded goal.
Carter Souch (EDM) (3), Scott Atkinson (EDM) (2), and Jalen Luypen (EDM) (1) were selected as the Three Stars of the Game.
Wyatt McLeod, Matthew Robertson and Ethan Cap each wore an “A” and skated as alternates to captain Scott Atkinson.
The Oil Kings travel to Medicine Hat to take on the Tigers tomorrow night, Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 PM. They return to Rogers Place for their second-to-last home game of the regular season on Sunday, March 15 when they take on the Lethbridge Hurricanes for Fan Appreciation Day presented by RAM at 4:00 PM MT.
Their last game of the regular season goes Saturday, March 21 when they face the Red Deer Rebels at 7:00 PM MT at Rogers Place.
The 2020 Playoff Pass is on sale now! For only $125, your Playoff Pass guarantees you the same great end seat to every playoff home game at Rogers Place during the playoffs; the more we play, the less you pay!
If you purchase your 2020 Playoff Pass before March 21, you will also receive a voucher for the final Oil Kings home game in the 2019-20 regular season. To purchase a 2020 Playoff Pass, click here.
EOK365 Season Seat Memberships, 8-Ticket & 18-Game Flex Packs and single game tickets are available for every Edmonton Oil Kings game this season, with single game tickets starting as low as just $20 per seat! Call 780-414-GOAL (4625) or email [email protected] for more information.
