A crucial matchup is on deck for Minor Hockey Day in Spruce Grove as the Saints (16-21-5-0) host the Okotoks Oilers (19-21-2-0) on Sunday afternoon at Grant Fuhr Arena.
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Breakdown:
Spruce Grove:
Overall Record: 16-21-5-0 (9th in Interior Conference – 18th in BCHL)
Home Record: 8-9-4-0
Road Record: 8-12-1-0
Power Play: 25-for-141 (17.7% – 16th in BCHL)
Penalty Kill: 128-for-170 (75.3% – 17th in BCHL)
Okotoks:
Overall Record: 19-21-2-0 (8th in Interior Conference – 16th in BCHL)
Home Record: 14-6-1-0
Road Record: 5-15-1-0
Power Play: 15-for-142 (10.6% – 21st in BCHL)
Penalty Kill: 108-for-143 (75.5% – 16th in BCHL)
Season Series:
Friday, December 6th @ Grant Fuhr Arena (7-3 Saints) (BOXSCORE)
Friday, December 13th @ Viking Rentals Centre (5-4 Oilers) (BOXSCORE)
Tuesday, January 14th @ Viking Rentals Centre (6-2 Oilers) (BOXSCORE)
Saturday, February 8th @ Viking Rentals Centre (8-1 Oilers) (BOXSCORE)
Sunday, February 23rd @ Grant Fuhr Arena (2:30 PM)
Friday, March 7th @ Grant Fuhr Arena (7:00 PM)
Looking Back:
Spruce Grove comes into action on Sunday afternoon following a huge victory in front of just shy of 1200 fans on Friday night at Grant Fuhr Arena, earning a 5-2 win over the Trail Smoke Eaters. Matheson Mason tallied twice in the game in the second period while Stephen Kirkpatrick, Carson Lloyd and the first BCHL goal from Carson Olsen capped the scoring for the Saints. Ryan De Kok got his first start in just under a month and was terrific in goal, turning aside 30 of the 32 shots thrown his way in his 7th win of the season.
The Oilers enter action on Sunday following a Friday night win of their own, picking up a 3-1 triumph over the Vernon Vipers at Viking Rentals Centre. Kade Duell, Ryan Boyce and Jamie Hikida each found the back of the net in the winning effort for the Oilers while Olivier Ciarlo turned aside 21 of the 22 shots thrown his way in collecting his 17th win of the season.
Saints Leading Scorers:
Josh Polak (16-16-32)
Austin Peters (8-19-27)
Ryan Johnstone (14-12-16)
Stephen Kirkpatrick (8-16-24)
Max Seguin (10-12-22)
Oilers Leading Scorers:
Jackson Rowland (16-17-33)
Hunter Sawka (5-25-30)
Brett Wilson (14-15-29)
Kade Duell (12-15-27)
Brock Souch (11-13-24)
Who’s Hot:
Spruce Grove:
- Carson Lloyd – Defenceman – Toronto, Ontario
Adding insurance late in the game with his 3rd goal of the season on Friday night, Lloyd has enjoyed a string of offensive success as of late in earning points in three of his last four contests including an assist to go along with his goal on Friday for his second multi-point game in a Saints uniform. The Toronto native has posted a goal and three helpers for four points over his last four games and possesses a cannon of a slap shot which helped the Saints double their lead on Friday.
- Matheson Mason – Forward – Toronto, Ontario – Lake Superior State University
The LSSU commit continues to be on watch after another two-goal effort on Friday, including the game winning goal in the 2nd period, and has brought his goal total up to 12 on the season. The Toronto native has six goals and two assists for eight points over his last five games and five points over his last two contests and has helped the power play find it’s rhythm as well, scoring three times with an extra man on the ice in those five games.
Okotoks:
- Kade Duell – Forward – Taber, Alberta
Duell has been one of the most consistent forms of offence for the Oilers over the last handful of games as he has collected points in six of his last seven contests. The Taber product has two goals and six assists for eight points during that seven-game stretch and opened the scoring in Friday night’s game against Vernon to now sit with 12 goals on the season and rank fourth on the team in that regard.
- Jamie Hikida – Forward – Richmond, BC
Lining up against the Saints for the fifth time this season, Hikida has scored in all but one of the four previous head-to-head matchups between the two sides and had his most impactful game of the season against the Saints in their last meeting on February 8th where he had a pair of goals and an assist for three points. So far this season, the Richmond, BC native has scored four goals and added an assist for five points against Spruce Grove in four games.
The Saints and Oilers get set for their fifth of six head-to-head meetings in Spruce Grove on Sunday afternoon. Puck drop is slated for 2:00 PM with tickets available for purchase online at tickets.sprucegrovesaints.ca.
