Tulsa continues battle for final playoff spot

TULSA, Okla. – With just two days remaining in the 2011-12 CHL regular season, seven of eight playoff spots have been filled. That means one race for the playoffs remains, and if the Tulsa Oilers have anything to say about it, their battle with the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees for the final Berry Conference spot will continue through Sunday.

Trailing the Killer Bees (30-27-7) by eight points last Sunday, the Oilers (29-28-7) have won three straight and pulled within two points of the final spot. Tulsa reeled off home victories against Missouri, Laredo and Texas in the past week as their struggling offense finally came to life, combining for 16 goals in those three games. In a must-win game Friday night at BOK Center, the Oilers took control of their game with the Texas Brahmas early and never looked back. Playing like a team on a mission, they peppered CHL Rookie of the Year Mark Guggenberger with 35 shots, while Tulsa net minder Ian Keserich turned in his third shutout of the season in a 6-0 win.
 
All three of his shutouts have come at the expense of Texas. The Oilers will face off twice with the Missouri Mavericks, who clinched the final playoff spot in the Turner Conference on Friday night. The Oilers have beaten the Mavericks just once out of seven tries this season, claiming a 5-4 win last Sunday in Tulsa. They will face the Mavericks tonight at the Independence Events Center, a place the Oilers have not won at since January 29, 2011. They will then close out their brief series with Missouri at home in a Sunday matinee. While Tulsa faces a difficult task, they do seem to be hitting their stride at the right time. Forward Gary Steffes paces the squad through the last five games with eight points by way of five goals and three assists, including two markers on Friday night. Rookies Dylan Clarke and Mike Ullrich have also bee red hot lately, contributing eight and seven points respectively in the last five outings. Veteran Marty Standish has also added six assists during that span. Keserich has picked up two-straight wins, while maintaining a GAA of 1.65 in the last five games. He has not allowed a goal in 92:34 after turning away all 12 shots he faced last Tuesday in relief of Steve Christie, sparking a come-from-behind win over the Laredo Bucks. Defensively, the team has also seen improvement and the addition of Travis Mealy has helped relieve a defensive unit that has been shorthanded the last month. So to put it simply, the Oilers must win out. That takes care of half of the equation. They also need some help from the Laredo Bucks. Laredo, who has lost their last three games by a combined score of 19-5, will take on Rio Grande Valley in a pair of road games Saturday and Sunday. The Killer Bees lead their season series with the Bucks 9-6, having won the last five games and five of six at home. In order for Tulsa to make the playoffs, Laredo must break Rio Grande Valley’s streak. If Rio Grande Valley can pick up a win and at least an overtime loss, they will claim the final playoff spot, regardless of how Tulsa fares against Missouri. A pair of wins for the Bees does the same. Two regulation wins by Laredo and a pair of wins by Tulsa ensures the Oilers the spot. If Laredo beats Rio Grande Valley once in regulation, and Tulsa wins out, the CHL would then proceed with a tiebreaker. The first tiebreaker takes into account each teams number of non-shootout wins. Tulsa currently has 28 non-shootout wins, while Rio Grande Valley has 26. Since Rio Grande Valley must lose at least one game in regulation for Tulsa to have a chance to catch them, this tiebreaker would be the only one used in the event of a tie in standings points. No matter the outcome, one thing is certain. For fans of the Tulsa Oilers and Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, this will be one exciting, heart-pumping weekend of hockey. It’s just a shame that one of those two groups of fans will have to wait until next October to see their team play again. Contact the writer at: john.hall@prohockeynews.com
Photos by Les.Stockton@prohockeynews.com