Four new Okotoks Oilers goalscorers helped produce a key inter-conference triumph.
Logan Broten, Joey Meredith and Otto Hanson scored their first goals as members of the Okotoks Oilers with blueliner Ryder de Nys notching his first of the campaign as the Green and Gold bested the Prince George Spruce Kings 6-3 in their first ever BCHL meeting Friday night at the Viking Rentals Centre.
“It’s good to get back in the win column going into the Showcase and a couple of games on the road, we’ve got to get rolling a bit here,” Hanson said. “We had a good first period and kept that rolling for the rest of the game.
“It’s good to get rolling and a bunch of key guys getting some goals here, that was good to see.”
Broten, a rookie defenceman from Minnesota, scored on his first shot as an Oiler with a no-doubter from the blueline in his debut with the team on Friday.
“I was dealing with some adversity at the start, things weren’t going well,” Broten said. “But you stay consistent in practice and the team has been great, coaches have been great with the opportunity.
“And the work paid off with that shot.”
Hanson, a third-year junior new to Okotoks, notched his first goal late in the opening frame on a wicked wrist shot in the high slot.
A wild second period saw the visitors even the score through Trent Ballentyne answered by three straight from the Oilers over a four minute span.
First, de Nys showcased his open ice speed with a breakaway tally, tucking a five hole shot past the Spruce Kings’ Carter Wishart. Meredith, a rookie forward from Ohio, then made it a two-goal lead with a one-timer on a brilliant cross ice set up from linemate Kade Duell.
Hanson rounded out the scoring in the middle stanza by jumping on a rebound off the boards and stuffing the puck through the crease.
Captain Jackson Rowland added the late insurance tally on the empty net to sew up the two-point effort.
Oilers goalie Olivier Ciarlo made 22 saves for his second win of the season.
“That was fun and competitive the whole game, just fighting back and forth and that’s what you get in the BCHL,” Broten added. “That’s what we’re looking forward to this year, it will be really good every night.”
Friday marked Okotoks’ first foray at a BCHL Coastal Conference opponent with the first six games of the season within the Interior Conference.
“They’re a fast team, they’re strong,” Hanson said. “It’s good we got a win against them.”
Okotoks (2-5-0) is in for another first next week.
The Oilers will take part in the BCHL Showcase, Oct. 15-17 in Chilliwack and Abbotsford, B.C. The three-day scouting event features all 21 teams in the league.
“This will give us momentum going into Showcase,” Broten said.
“Those teams are all good and fast and I think we can step up our game and play with them and I think they’ll realize that.”
Okotoks will play the Penticton Vees on Oct. 15 and Langley Rivermen on Oct.17.
The Oilers then close the busy stretch with an Oct. 18 clash with the Coquitlam Express.
“I’m excited,” Hanson added. “It’s a good chance for us to prove ourselves.”
The Oilers are next at home on Oct. 20 versus the Vernon Vipers.
For more information, go to okotoksoilers.com.
