Tulsa in the midst of a solid start

TULSA, Okla. – What a difference one season makes. At this point last season, the Tulsa Oilers were finally getting things turned around following a nine game skid after opening the season 2-0. During that losing streak it seemed that everything that could go wrong for the team did, including a bus fire while en route to a game against the Missouri Mavericks. Fast forward one year and the Oilers find themselves playing solid hockey and sitting in third place in the Central Hockey League’s Berry Conference (6-4-1, 13 points) behind the conference leading Wichita Thunder (8-2-0, 16 points) and the second-place Allen Americans (6-2-3, 15 points). The Oilers have also won their last two games, and have gained standings points in their last three.  Granted, it’s not a perfect start, but the team is in much better shape than they were at this point last season and they are seeing production from several players on their young squad. Rookie Dylan Clarke is enjoying a nice start to the season, as he is tied for the team lead in points with veteran Michel Beausoleil. Clarke has posted three goals and nine assists for 12 points, while Beausoleil has identical numbers in just nine games.

Rookie Mike Ullrich and second-year forward Gary Steffes are a close second with 11 points each. Ullrich has contributed six goals and five assists while Steffes has netted five goals and six assists, including five points in the last two games. Newcomer David Solway has also been solid for the Oilers. Since being added to the roster, the Green Bay, Wisconsin native has been credited with six points (2 G, 4 A) in six games. On the defensive side, fourth-year Oiler Sean Erickson and rookie Jeff Terminesi lead the way with seven points each. Second-year defenseman Luke Lucyk leads the team in the +/- category with a +9 rating while Derek Foam owns a +8 rating through eight games. They currently rank second and third respectively in the league in +/- rating behind Wichita’s Jarred Mohr (+13). Netminder Ian Keserich has been seeing a lot of action this season and has responded well to the extra workload. Keserich has played in all 11 games for the Oilers and currently owns a record of 6-3-1. He leads the league in minutes played (639:42), wins (6), saves (316) and ranks tenth in save percentage (.916) while posting a respectable 2.72 goals allowed average. Keserich has been one of the biggest pickups for the Oilers since they claimed him off the waiver wire on November 5, 2010 from the Wichita Thunder. Will fatigue be a factor for Keserich? It doesn’t appear to be the case as the Oilers made a move Thursday, picking up 24 year-old goaltender Mike Garman and releasing Jon Olthuis. Olthuis saw action in just one game for Tulsa, and was chased after surrendering five goals in the first 21 minutes of action at Missouri last Friday night. Garman comes to Tulsa after being released by the Colorado Eagles of the ECHL. Garman, who graduated from Cornell University in just three years, saw action in two games with the Eagles this season. In 2007-08 he led the Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL to the regular season title, posting a 23-11 record. “Mike is a young guy with an impressive resume,” third-year Oilers Head Coach Bruce Ramsay said. “He’s played at a very high level of college hockey and he was extremely successful as a junior goalie. He’s a great addition to our club and I look forward to seeing him perform well at the CHL level.”  It remains to be seen if the Oilers can continue to ride their current momentum, but one thing is certain – they are in good shape moving into a difficult portion of their schedule. Tonight, the Oilers will host the Wichita Thunder, beginning a stretch of six games in just nine days, with four of those games coming against the Thunder. Home games against the Arizona Sundogs and Laredo Bucks are sandwiched between two home-and-home series with the Thunder. The puck will drop at the BOK Center this evening at 7:35 pm CST. Contact the writer at john.hall@prohockeynews.com Contact the photographer at les.stockton@prohockeynews.com