GDB #51 vs Vancouver

Oil Kings (50 33-11-2-4) vs Giants (50 28-19-1-2)

The Oil Kings are right back at it tonight as they host the Vancouver Giants at Rexall Place.  It is the lone appearance of the G-Men in Edmonton this season.  The Kings are coming off a 6-2 win over the Brandon Wheat Kings last night.  Henrik Samuelsson had a pair of goals and Michael St. Croix passed Dylan Wruck for the franchise record for points in a season as he registered his 79th point of the year.  TJ Foster and Martin Gernat each had a pair of helpers as well.

The Giants were in action last night as well, being shut out in Calgary 2-0.  Hitmen goaltender Chris Driedger stopped all 32 shots he faced, and Collin Bowman was the only man to beat Adam Morrison, Trevor Cheek iced it into an empty net for Calgary.  Vancouver has lost back to back games after losing 4-2 in Red Deer on Wednesday.  The Giants did get some good news last night as both Adam Morrison and World Junior star Brendan Gallagher made their return from injury.  Tonight's matchup will also feature brothers going head to head as the Giants have recalled their 2011 first round bantam pick, Thomas Foster, the younger brother of Oil King vet TJ.



Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Season Series:  This is the second of three meetings between the two clubs this year.  Vancouver took the earlier matchup at the Pacific Coliseum, 4-1.  It wasn't the best effort for the Oil Kings and they will look to bounce back with a better game.  The Kings have traditionally struggled with the Giants picking up just one victory in nine all time matchups.  The two teams meet up again in Vancouver in February.

Up Next: The Oil Kings are in the midst of a five game homestand.  They will enjoy almost a complete week off before their next game with their biggest rival, the Red Deer Rebels, who visit on Friday night.  Griffin Reinhart will play in the top prospects game in Kelowna on Wednesday.  The Giants also have the coming week off, they wrap up a three game roadtrip here tonight and head west.  They meet up with Kamloops on Friday on the west coast.

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Leaders:

Goals- EDM- Michael St. Croix (32)
VAN- Brendan Gallagher (28)

Points- EDM- St. Croix (79)
VAN- Gallagher (55)

Wins- EDM- Laurent Brossoit (28)
VAN-Adam Morrison (24)

PIMS- EDM- Mitch Moroz (99)
VAN- Wes Vannieuwenhuizen (90)

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)

VAN-Adam Morrison- Philadelphia (3rd, 2009), Brendan Gallagher- Montreal Canadiens (5th, 2010), David Musil- Oilers (2nd, 2011), Marek Tvrdon- Detroit Red Wings (4th, 2011).

Photo: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings

Injury Report:
EDM: #21, Travis Ewanyk, Upper body, week to week
#22, Ryan Dech, Lower body, 1 month+
#24, Mason Geertsen, Upper body, 2 weeks

VAN: #9, Dalton Sward, Upper body, 2 weeks

Notes: Oil Kings forward Michael St. Croix is 3rd in league scoring (79), Dylan Wruck is 11th (64). Defenceman Martin Gernat is tied in 8th in rookie scoring (35), Curtis Lazar is tied in 17th (24). Gernat is also tied in 12th in scoring amongst defencemen. Oil Kings netminder Laurent Brossoit is 4th in GAA (2.45), and is 3rd in wins (28). For Vancouver, Brendan Gallagher is 20th in scoring (55).  Marek Tvrdon leads all rookies in scoring (50). Adam Morrison is 7th in GAA (2.56). This is the second of three meetings between the two clubs this year. Pregame show at 6:45, the puck drops at 7:00 on the Team 1260.