Game Preview (November 21st)

Story Coming In:

Offensive woes for the Oil Barons has seen them drop four straight games. Fort McMurray only mustered four goals in their last three games, despite out-chancing their opponents in each contest. With November winding down, the Oil Barons need to find the back of the net if they don’t want to fall too far behind the teams ahead of them in the standings. If there’s some good news, it’s been the play of their captain, Keefe Gruener, and Simon Gaul. Both lead the team in points with Simon putting up a team high 11 goals. Meanwhile, Gruener has points in five straight games, including goals in back-to-back contests. Gabe Gratton is also coming off a stellar week, where he stopped 70 of 75 shots he faced, giving his team a chance to both games on the road. He also stole a win against Blackfalds earlier this season, where he posted 57 saves in a 2-1 shootout victory.  

View From Blackfalds:

The Bulldogs are having a road trip to forget. So far on their six game trek away from Eagle Builders Centre, Blackfalds is 0-2-2, with defense being the main culprit. In every game during the road trip, the Bulldogs gave up at least three or more goals, as they saw themselves tumble from the top spot in the league to third place and only three points ahead of Okotoks. If there is one thing that describes the Bulldogs this season, it is their number of weapons on offense. Despite losing (at the time) the league’s top goal scorer in Dakota MacIntosh, Blackfalds still has Brendan Ross and Edward Moskowitz in the AJHL’s top five in points. They also are third in goals scored, have the second best power-play in the league, and they’ve eclipsed the seven goal mark six times in a single game. They are also still ranked in the CJHL’s top 20 this week, indicating they are one of the best teams in the nation. 

 

Stats Leaders For Fort McMurray:

Goals: Gaul (11)

Assists: Gruener (9)

Points: Gaul (17)

PIM: Hoogendoorn (45)

Goalies: Nelson: 4-5-0-1, 3.25 GAA, 0.922%, 1 SO

  Gratton: 3-10-1-1, 3.74 GAA, 0.904%