Best to put a rocky start behind you and aim for the future.
The young Okotoks Oilers put an opening AJHL regular season 4-2 loss to the Camrose Kodiaks on Sept. 17 in the rear-view mirror by coming back to beat the Kods 6-2 the following night in the backend of the Oilers two-game road trip to the Rose City.
“You could tell it was a lot of the guys first game and there was a lot of nerves,” said Oilers coach Tyler Deis. “But I thought rebounding from that first game was really good.”
A 17-year-old rookie got the thrill of putting the Oilers ahead 1-0 early in the victory over Camrose on Saturday.
Forward Conyr Hellyer scored his first AJHL goal midway through the opening period.
“I had one in the pre-season, but this was my first one in the regular season and it felt good for sure,” Hellyer said. “It was a great pass by Bow (Bowden Singleton) and I was able to tap it in.
“It was nice to get my first goal early – get it off my mind a bit and try to play my game.”
The Oilers didn’t slow down as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Ben Johnson scored a minute after Hellyer’s opener. Oiler Brendan Boyle then upped the lead by three with a goal five minutes into the second stanza.
Okotoks appeared to be on Easy Street but they got a quick change of address.
The Kodiaks’ Carson Whyte potted a pair of goals to close the gap to 3-2 with seven minutes remaining in the second period.
The Oil would take a two-goal lead into the locker-room after 40 minutes thanks to a goal by Kade Turner.
Okotoks put the game away with a pair of Rieger Lorenz empty-net goals in the final two minutes to make the final 6-2.
Goalie Austin Zavoda, 18, picked up his first win with the Oilers by stopping 23 of 25 shots.
If you learn from your mistakes, the Oil got a quick lesson in their 4-2 loss in the season opener Friday.
Okotoks fell behind 1-0 after a powerplay goal by Whyte 65 seconds into the season. Whyte would strike again with a short-handed marker to make it 2-0 early in the second.
The Oilers didn’t panic thanks to some calming words from the coach.
“(I told the players) relax out here, stay focused and stick with the game plan and everything will work out,” Deis said. “There are going to be some learning moments this year. There will be games when we are going to be down and games where we are going to be up.
“These young guys need those experiences, so when we go into the playoffs we have those experiences.”
The Oilers held their own for the final 35 minutes.
Singleton scored Okotoks’ first goal of the season with a short-handed effort to close the gap to 2-1 with five minutes left in the second period.
The Oilers’ second goal was a powerplay effort by captain Tucker McRae.
Parker Sawka got the start in net and stopped 24 of 27 shots (one empty net goal). The Oilers had 17 shots on Camrose goalie Logan Willcott.
Not a perfect weekend, but one to grow on for the young Oilers.
“I think we are pretty happy how it went, sure we would have liked to have four points” Hellyer said, who played for the U18 Bow Mark Oilers last season. “We’re looking forward to a good week of practice and then getting back to it this weekend.”
This weekend is the home-opener for the 1-1 Oilers. They host the 2-0 Camrose Eagles Sept. 24 at the Pason Arena at 7 p.m.
“It’s exciting, especially for me being a hometown kid,” said Hellyer, a Holy Trinity Academy student. “As a team we are looking at coming out aggressive and really get on the gas – we want a good start.”
They are back on the ice at the Pason on Sept. 25 to take on the 2-0 Drumheller Dragons at 7 p.m.
Patrons of the Pason will have to show proof of at least one vaccination or a negative result from a COVID test within 72 hours or proof of a medical exemption for the vaccine. Masks must be worn at all times except when eating or drinking.
For more information go to okotoksoilers.ca
