Oil Kings Christmas video

The Oil King vets get in the Christmas spirit with this video.  Includes cameos from equipment manager Rogan Dean, athletic trainer Brian Cheeseman, and assistant coach Jesse Pearson.  What do you think?

GDB #33 vs Victoria

Oil Kings (31 20-8-1-2) vs Royals (34 13-18-1-2)

After a few days of practice it is gameday once again for the Edmonton Oil Kings. It is the second and final meeting of the year between the Oil Kings and Victoria Royals.  The Kings are red hot, winning their past nine straight.  Last time out they downed the Prince Albert Raiders 5-3.  TJ Foster had a pair of goals, and Dylan Wruck chipped in with four assists. 

Photo: WHL

 Earlier today Oil King Captain Mark Pysyk found out he made Team Canada for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.  

Photo: Victoria Royals

The Royals have posted tree victories in their past 16 outings.  They have, however, picked up three of a possible four points in their last two games.  This is their second game of a six game road trip which opened on Saturday in Seattle.  The Royals have had the past few days off and have been staying in Calgary, taking in some of Canada's World Junior Camp.

Players to watch: 

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Edmonton: Laurent Brossoit.  The Oil Kings goaltender has been very steady as of late.  During this streak he, along with fellow netminder Tristan Jarry, has been fantastic especially early in games.  Brossoit, a Calgary Flame draft choice, posted his first shut out of the year against Medicine Hat also has three assists on the season.  While the team in front of him have scored 54 goals during the nine game win streak, the Oil King 'tendys have only allowed 15.

Photo: Victoria Royals

Victoria:  Jamie Crooks.  The 19 year old forward is starting to discover his offensive touch in recent games for the Royals.  He picked up a hat trick in the Royals last win, 8-5 over Lethbridge.  Crooks was named the Royals player of the month for November, he posted four goals and nine points in 11 games.

Season Series: The Oil Kings took the first matchup this season 8-2 in Victoria.  The Oil Kings scored early and often in the matchup.  Curtis Lazar tallied 33 seconds into the game and the Kings scored four second period goals to blow the game open.  Michael St. Croix posted four points.

Photo: Victoria Royals

Leaders:

Goals- EDM- Michael St. Croix (17), Tyler Maxwell (17)

VIC- Kevin Sundher (21)

Points- EDM- St. Croix (46)

VIC- Sundher (52)

Wins- EDM- Laurent Brossoit (18)
VIC- Keith Hamilton (12)

PIMS- EDM- Keegan Lowe (65)
VIC- Tim Traber (74)

Drafted:

EDM- Mark Pysyk-Buffalo Sabres (1st Round, 2010), Kristians Pelss- Edmonton Oilers (7th, 2010), Keegan Lowe- Carolina Hurricanes (3rd, 2011), Travis Ewanyk- Oilers (3rd, 2011), Michael St. Croix- New York Rangers (4th, 2011), Martin Gernat- Oilers (5th, 2011), Laurent Brossoit- Calgary Flames (6th, 2011)

Photo: SBNation.com

VIC- Kevin Sundher- Sabres (3rd, 2010), Tyler Stahl- Hurricanes (6th, 2010).

Injury Report:

EDM:  #15, David Stephens, Upper body, week to week
#21, Travis Ewanyk, Upper body, 1 month +
#27, Curtis Lazar Upper body, day to day


VIC:  #6, Jesse Zgraggen, Upper body, day to day
#7, Tyler Stahl, Upper body, 1 month +

Notes:  Oil Kings forward Michael St. Croix is tied for 8th in league scoring (46), Dylan Wruck is tied for 14th (41).  Defenceman Martin Gernat is tied for 9th in rookie scoring in the WHL (24), Curtis Lazar is tied for 17th (17 points). Gernat is also tied in 10th in scoring amongst defencemen.  Gernat will attend the camp for Team Slovkia for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.  Captain Mark Pysyk will play for Team Canada.  Kristians Pelss has been named to the Latvian preliminary roster.  Curtis Lazar, Mason Geertsen, and Tristan Jarry will play for Team Pacific at the U-17 Challenge in Windsor.  Oil Kings netminder Laurent Brossoit is 3rd in GAA (2.35), and is 3rd in wins (18).  The Oil Kings have the second rated PK in the league, their PP is 4th.  For Victoria, Kevin Sundher is 6th in scoring (52).  Loga Nelson is 2nd in rookie scoring (35).  Keegan Kanzig will play for Team Pacific at the U-17 Challenge.   Former Oil King Robin Soudek and Taylor Crunk will both miss the game due to suspension. Victoria has allowed a league high 166 goals against this season.  This is the second of two meetings between the two clubs this year.  Pregame show at 6:45, the puck drops at 7:00 on the Team 1260.

WHL Top Ten #11

This is a poll of several Team 1260 members who follow the WHL closely and is compiled each Monday of the WHL season.

Week #11 Review

Review: The Oil Kings continue to roll going 3-0 for a third straight week and have won nine consecutive games for the first time in modern franchise history. The week opened with convincing 6-2 win over Calgary, the second time the Oil Kings had scored six against Calgary in less than a week.  They followed that up with a huge 7-3 win over Brandon.  TJ Foster led the way with two goals and two assists.  The week ended with a sloppy 5-3 win over the Prince Albert Raiders.  The Oil Kings did not bring their 'A' game but played well enough to push their win streak to nine.  The Kings have outscored their opponents 54-18 during the streak.


Last Week: Tuesday Dec. 6- Win 6-2 vs Spokane

Thursday Dec. 8- Win 7-3 vs Brandon

Saturday Dec. 10- Win 5-3 vs Prince Albert

Upcoming: The final week of the first half of the season kicks off on Wednesday night when the Victoria Royals make their first appearance at Rexall Place.  Edmonon took the first matchup of the clubs 8-2 on Vancouver Island.  The Hitmen make their third trip to the Rex on Saturday.  The game is the Kings 5th annual teddy bear toss night.  The Regina Pats look to improve to 3-0 against Edmonton on Sunday afternoon.

Oil Kings Teddy Bear toss uniforms unveiled at Rexall Place on Monday.

Leaders: Goals: Michael St. Croix, Tyler Maxwell (17)

Assists: Dylan Wruck (31)

Points: St. Croix (46)

PIMS: Keegan Lowe (65)

Wins: Laurent Brossoit (18)

Firsts: Game- Martin Gernat, Ashton Sautner, Cole Benson @ Red Deer, Sept 25. Tristan Jarry @ Saskatoon, Oct 8. Cody Corbett @ Brandon Oct 29, Brandon Baddock @ Lethbridge Nov. 19.

Goal- Gernat @ Red Deer, Sept 25,Curtis Lazar vs Medicine Hat Sept 30 (first regular season goal, scored in playoffs Mar 31, 2011), Mitch Moroz @ Swift Current Oct. 9, Ashton Sautner vs Portland Oct 21, Cody Corbett @ Victoria Nov. 8, Cole Benson vs Prince Albert Nov. 18.

Point- Gernat, Sautner @ Red Deer Sept 25, Tristan Sieben @ Medicine Hat Oct 1, Laurent Brossoit vs Regina Oct. 14, Corbett @ Victoria Nov 8, Benson, Mason Geertsen vs Prince Albert Nov 18.

Win- Tristan Jarry Oct 26 vs Everett.

Streaks: Dylan Wruck 8 games (4-12-16), Michael St. Croix 7 games (9-10-19), Tyler Maxwell 5 games (5-4-9), Rhett Rachinski 3 games (2-1-3), Mark Pysyk 3 games (1-4-5)

Notes: Edmonton is 8-0 on their long 11 game homestand.  Oil Kings Captain Mark Pysyk is in Calgary at the Hockey Canada Selection Camp for the World Junior Hockey Championship. Martin Gernat leaves on Thursday for the Slovakian camp, Kristians Pelss leaves after the game Sunday for Latvia's camp. The Kings power play is up to 5th in the league at 25.6 percent, their penalty kill is second overall at 83.1 percent. The Oil Kings are first in the Eastern conference with 45 points.

Drafted: Mark Pysyk-Buffalo Sabres (1st Round, 2010), Kristians Pelss- Edmonton Oilers (7th, 2010), Keegan Lowe- Carolina Hurricanes (3rd, 2011), Travis Ewanyk- Oilers (3rd, 2011), Michael St. Croix- New York Rangers (4th, 2011), Martin Gernat- Oilers (5th, 2011), Laurent Brossoit- Calgary Flames (6th, 2011)
Schedule:

Tuesday-

Wednesday- vs Victoria Royals, Rexall Place, 7pm

Thursday-

Friday-

Saturday- Calgary Hitmen, Rexall Place, 7pm

Sunday- vs Regina Pats, Rexall Place, 2pm

Monday- Chrismas Break

GDB #32 vs Prince Albert

Oil Kings (31 20-8-1-2) vs Raiders (33 9-21-1-2)

The Oil Kings return to action tonight at Rexall Place against the Prince Albert Raiders.  The Kings are leading the Eastern Conference with 43 points, while the Raiders are in the cellar with 21 points.  Edmonton is coming off a big 7-3 win over the Wheat Kings on Thursday night, and are looking for their ninth straight win tonight.  The Oil Kings have outscored their opponents 49-15 during the streak.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

The Raiders have been hot as of late as well, winning three of their last four, and coming off a shoot out loss to Calgary last night.  The Raiders built up a 3-0 lead, before Calgary scored four straight goals to take the lead.  Mark McNeill evened the score on a penalty shot sending the game to OT.  The Raiders will be without McNeill tonight as he is down in Calgary at the World Junior Selection Camp, along with Oil King captain Mark Pysyk.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Players to watch: 

Edmonton: Griffem Reinhart.  Reinhart has been a force lately for the Kings.  'The Big Cat' as he is called has five points in his last three games, and has equalled his goal total of last season with six.  He has been a big part of the Oil Kings recent power play success, and with Mark Pysyk gone for the World Junior camp, he will be facing the other teams top offensive players with more regularity.

Brandon:  Mike Winther.  In his second WHL season the 17 year old Winther has begun to discover his offensive game.  He has 13 goals and 23 points in 33 games this season for the Raiders.  He has points in his last three games, including a five point outing against the Regina Pats.  With McNeill gone, look for Winther to receive more offensive minutes for the young Raider team.

Season Series: The Oil Kings are 2-0 against PA this season.  Edmonton posted a 4-1 win in PA early in the season and knocked off the Raiders 4-3 at Rexall back in  November.  The teams will play once more in Prince Albert on January 21st.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Leaders:

Goals- EDM- Michael St. Croix (16), Tyler Maxwell (16)

PA- Justin Maylan (15)

Points- EDM- St. Croix (43)

PA- Maylan (37)

Wins- EDM- Laurent Brossoit (18)
PA- Eric Williams (8)

PIMS- EDM- Keegan Lowe (63)
PA- Tyler Yaworski (91)

Drafted:

EDM- Mark Pysyk-Buffalo Sabres (1st Round, 2010), Kristians Pelss- Edmonton Oilers (7th, 2010), Keegan Lowe- Carolina Hurricanes (3rd, 2011), Travis Ewanyk- Oilers (3rd, 2011), Michael St. Croix- New York Rangers (4th, 2011), Martin Gernat- Oilers (5th, 2011), Laurent Brossoit- Calgary Flames (6th, 2011)

PA- Mark McNeill- Chicago Blackhawks (1st, 2011), Harrison Ruopp- Phoenix Coyotes (3rd, 2011).  Kellan Tochkin signed free agent- Vancouver Canucks.

Injury Report:

EDM:  #15, David Stephens, Upper body, week to week
#21, Travis Ewanyk, Upper body, 1 month +


PA: #17, Todd Fiddler, Lower body, day to day
#20, Shane Danyluk, Upper body, 1 month +

Notes:  Oil Kings forward Michael St. Croix is 11th in league scoring (43), Dylan Wruck is tied for 15th (37).  Defenceman Martin Gernat is tied for 8th in rookie scoring in the WHL (24), Curtis Lazar is tied for 16th (17 points). Gernat is also tied in 7th in scoring amongst defencemen.  Gernat will attend the camp for Team Slovkia for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.  Captain Mark Pysyk is at the selection camp for Team Canada.  Kristians Pelss has been named to the Latvian preliminary roster.  Curtis Lazar, Mason Geertsen, and Tristan Jarry will play for Team Pacific at the U-17 Challenge in Windsor.  Oil Kings netminder Laurent Brossoit is 3rd in GAA (2.35), and is 3rd in wins (18).  The Oil Kings have the top rated PK in the league, their PP is 4th.  For Prince Albert, Justin Maylan is tied for 15th in scoring (37).  Josh Morrisey is tied for 18th in rookie scoring (16).  Mark McNeill is at Canada's camp for the World Junior Hockey Championship. Jonas Knutsen will represent Norway in the B-Pool at the World Juniors.  Josh Morissey will play for Team Pacific at the U-17 Challenge.  PA has allowed a league high 11 SH goals this year.  This is the third of four meetings between the two clubs this year.  Pregame show at 6:45, the puck drops at 7:00 on the Team 1260.

GDB #31 vs Brandon

Oil Kings (30 19-8-1-2) vs Wheat Kings (31 18-11-1-1)

Just one game on the WHL schedule tonight, and it's at Rexall Place featuring the battle of the Kings.  The Oil Kings look for their eighth straight win tonight.  Edmonton is coming off another big victory over the Calgary Hitmen, 6-2 on Tuesday night.  Griffen Reinhart led the way with three points, Dylan Wruck and Tyler Maxwell both extended their point streaks to nine games.  Stephane Legault returned to the lineup and registered a goal and an assist. The Oil Kings have scored at least four goals in each of their last four games, and now sit fourth in goals for in the WHL, they have also allowed the second least amount of goals against in the league.


The Wheat Kings kick off a three game Alberta road swing tonight.  They are coming off a shut out loss against Regina on Sunday.  The Wheaties are sitting in fifth in the Eastern Conference with 38 points, three behind the East leading Oil Kings.  They have struggled a bit as of late with two wins in their last six games. 

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Players to watch: 

Edmonton: Dylan Wruck.  The Kings leading scorer from last season found his grove as the calendar turned to December.  Wruck is on a nine game point streak, and has been a key cog for the Kings.  Along with linemates Michael St. Croix and Tyler Maxwell, Wruck has re-emerged as dominant offensive force in the WHL.  His addition on the point on the power play has led the Kings unit to the fourth best PP in the league.

Brandon:  Mark Stone.  Stone continues to lead both the Wheat Kings and the WHL in scoring as we approach the midway point of the season.  The Ottawa Senator prospect has 25 goals and 61 points on the season.  Stone will be without his linemate Michael Ferland who is serving the final game of his three game suspension.  Stone figures to play a major role for Team Canada in the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.

Season Series: The Wheat Kings took the first meeting this year in Brandon 3-2 on October 29th.  The teams will play four times this season, the next matchup coming  in Manitoba on December 30th.  The Wheaties are back in Edmonton on January 27th.

Leaders:

Goals- EDM- Michael St. Croix (16), Tyler Maxwell (16)

BDN- Mark Stone (25)

Points- EDM- St. Croix (41)

BDN- Stone (61)

Wins- EDM- Laurent Brossoit (17)
BDN- Corbin Boes (11)

PIMS- EDM- Keegan Lowe (63)
BDN- Darian Dziurzynski, Ryley Miller (56)

Drafted:

EDM- Mark Pysyk-Buffalo Sabres (1st Round, 2010), Kristians Pelss- Edmonton Oilers (7th, 2010), Keegan Lowe- Carolina Hurricanes (3rd, 2011), Travis Ewanyk- Oilers (3rd, 2011), Michael St. Croix- New York Rangers (4th, 2011), Martin Gernat- Oilers (5th, 2011), Laurent Brossoit- Calgary Flames (6th, 2011)

BDN- Michael Ferland- Flames (5th round, 2010), Mark Stone- Ottawa Senators (6th, 2010), Darian Dziurzynski- Phoenix Coyotes (5th, 2011) Jordan Fransoo- Senators (7th, 2011), Brandon Anderson signed free agent- Washington Capitals.

Injury Report:

EDM:  #15, David Stephens, Upper body, week to week
#21, Travis Ewanyk, Upper body, 1 month +


BRN: #21, Tyrel Seaman, Upper body, 1 week

Notes:  Oil Kings forward Michael St. Croix is 12th in league scoring (41), Dylan Wruck is tied for 17th (35).  Defenceman Martin Gernat is tied for 6th in rookie scoring in the WHL (24), Curtis Lazar is tied for 15th (17 points). Gernat is also 6th in scoring amongst defencemen.  Gernat will attend the camp for Team Slovkia for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.  Captain Mark Pysyk has been invited to participate in the selection camp for Team Canada.  Kristians Pelss has been named to the Latvian preliminary roster.  Oil Kings netminder Laurent Brossoit is 3rd in GAA (2.33), and tied for 3rd in wins (17).  For Brandon, Mark Stone leads the WHL in scoring 61 points, Michael Ferland is tied for 9th (42).  Alessio Bertaggia is tied for 4th in rookie scoring (27).  Ryan Pulock (32) and Eric Roy (31) are 1-2 in scoring amongst defencemen.  Stone and Ferland have been invited to Canada's camp for the World Junior Hockey Championship. Bertaggia has been invited to Switzerland's pre-tourny camp.  This is the second of four meetings between the two clubs this year.  Pregame show at 6:45, the puck drops at 7:00 on the Team 1260.

GDB #30 vs Calgary

Oil Kings (27 16-8-1-2) vs Calgary Hitmen (26 14-10-1-1)

The battle of Alberta continues at Rexall Place tonight at the Oil Kings face the Hitmen for the second time in a week.  The Oil Kings have won six straight games for the first time in modern franchise history, including a 6-1 win over the Hitmen on Thursday night.  Edmonton is coming off an 8-3 win over over the Saskatoon Blades, in which they scored five power play goals.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

The Hitmen are back in Edmonton after splitting a pair of weekend home games.  They beat Spokane 3-2 in OT, before dropping a 2-1 decision to Medicine Hat.  Chris Driedger started both games, while WHL Goalie of the Month, Brandon Glover last started in Edmonton.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Players to watch: 

Edmonton: Mark Pysyk.  The Oil King Captain has been playing some of his best hockey since returning to the lineup.  He has five points (1-4-5) in the three games.  He has been playing steady in his own end, rarely losing a battle, while leading the rush and playing physical too.  Pysyk leaves for the Canadian World Junior Camp on Saturday.

Calgary:  Victor Rask.  The Carolina Hurricane second round pick has enjoyed a solid start to his WHL career.  He leads the Hitmen with 15 goals in 29 games, and plays in all key situations.  Rask has been named to the Swedish team for the World Junior Hockey Championships.

Season Series: The Oil Kings took the first matchup 6-1 on Thursday night at Rexall Place.  The teams will hook up again, December 17, in Edmonton as well.  It will be the Oil Kings annual teddy bear toss night.  The teams will play three times in Calgary in the new year.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Leaders:

Goals- EDM- Michael St. Croix (16), Tyler Maxwell (16)

CGY- Victor Rask (15)

Points- EDM- St. Croix (41)

CGY- Cody Sylvester (29)

Wins- EDM- Laurent Brossoit (16)
CGY- Chris Driedger (8)

PIMS- EDM- Keegan Lowe (61)
CGY- Spencer Humphries (63)

Drafted:

EDM- Mark Pysyk-Buffalo Sabres (1st Round, 2010), Kristians Pelss- Edmonton Oilers (7th, 2010), Keegan Lowe- Carolina Hurricanes (3rd, 2011), Travis Ewanyk- Oilers (3rd, 2011), Michael St. Croix- New York Rangers (4th, 2011), Martin Gernat- Oilers (5th, 2011), Laurent Brossoit- Calgary Flames (6th, 2011)

CGY- Jimmy Bubnick- Atlanta Thrashers (6th, 2009), Brooks Macek- Detroit Red Wings (6th, 2010), Victor Rask- Hurricanes (2nd, 2011), Alex Roach signed free agent (Los Angeles Kings)

Injury Report:

EDM:  #7, Stephane Legault, Illness, day to day
#15, David Stephens, Upper body, week to week
#21, Travis Ewanyk, Upper body, 1 month +


CGY:  #6, Keaton Lubin, Upper body, week to week
#12, Joe Kornelsen, Upper body, 1 week

Notes:  Oil Kings forward Michael St. Croix is 11th in league scoring (41), Dylan Wruck is 19th (33).  Defenceman Martin Gernat is tied for 6th in rookie scoring in the WHL with Calgary's Victor Rask (24 points), Curtis Lazar is tied for 15th (17 points). Gernat is also 5th in scoring amongst defencemen.  Gernat has also been named to Team Slovkia for the upcoming World Junior Hockey Championships.  Captain Mark Pysyk has been invited to participate in the selection camp for Team Canada.  Oil Kings netminder Laurent Brossoit is 3rd in GAA (2.34).  This is the second of six meetings between the two clubs this year.  They will meet three times in Edmonton before the Christmas break.  Pregame show at 6:45, the puck drops at 7:00 on the Team 1260.