Friday: El Paso Rhinos 6 @ Tulsa Oilers 3 – Game 1 against the Tulsa Oilers is today as we travel on to Oklahoma to challenge them on their home turf! The puck dropped at 7:00 pm local time and both teams didn’t hesitate to get straight into a fight for puck control! The first player to break through was Marek Gallenberger to put the Rhinos up 1-0 by the 8:30 mark in the first period. Defense holds through the rest of the period and we’d move in to the second period.
Stone Baulch of the OIlers snatches a goal to tie up the game with 16:34 left in the period, but just a couple minutes later Rhinos are reado to take back the lead. Austin McPherson and Boston Cornic take back-to-back goals and just like that Rhinos are back on top with a 3-1 lead. Gallenberger finds himself in position to take another for the Rhinos off a powerplay so graciously handed to us by the Oilers and with 10:16 left on the clock in the second period Rhinos make it 4-1. Oilers aren’t out of the game yet though with just 15 seconds to go in the second period Rodoin Dubrovin manages to sneak one more in, cutting the Rhinos lead to 5-2.
After one last intermission we return to the ice where the Oilers’ Logan Donham brings the game to a 2 point gap by taking their third goal of the day. Unfortunately for the Oilers, the Rhinos’ Cornic followed by Chase Mathews earn two more, securing a 6-3 win tonight here for game #1.
Rhinos lead tonight’s shots on goal with a whopping 50 shots to Tulsa’s 16, Goaltender Brayden Macko saving 13.
Saturday: El Paso Rhinos 6 @ Tulsa Oilers 1 – It’s a wonderful Saturday night in Tulsa and a perfect time for another Rhino Rampage. Hot off last night’s victory, the Rhinos’ morale is high and they aim to take a second win here tonight in Tulsa. Gallenberger and Cornic are back again tonight and take two successive goals just eight minutes in to the game before the Oilers can even mount a defense. Gallenberger follows a few minutes later for seconds, putting the Rhinos up 3-0 with 6:05 left to go. Chase Boswell does manage to take one for the Oilers before the period is out, but Rhinos maintain a 3-1 lead.
Second period is relatively uneventful score-wise, but goaltender Brayden Macko does holdfast, preventing any further scoring for the Oilers this period sending us to the third period still at 3-1.
With one more period to go El Paso & Tulsa return to the ice to settle this series once and for all. Chase Mathews makes it 4-1 with 14:32 left in regulation time, blazing bast Tulsa defense and in a very similar way to last night with just over 12 minutes to go in the period Rhinos take back-to-back goals (Tucker Sarkisian & Parker Brinner.) With no further scoring Rhinos take this one with another victory, this time at 6-1.
Rhinos are up 75 shots over Tulsa’s 20 tonight, with Brayden Macko saving all but 1 in a true showing of defensive prowess.
