The Okotoks Atom A Oilers are building quite the reputation at their home tournament.
For the second year in a row the Oilers advanced to a shootout in the gold medal game at the Okotoks Female Hockey Classic where they were upended 4-3 by the Fort Saskatchewan Fury, Nov. 18 at Pason Centennial Arena.
Turnabout was fair play in the gold medal game as one year ago the Oilers got the better of the visiting Fury in the shootout to finish on top of the podium.
Oilers defenceman Shaye Parkinson, one of eight returning players on the Atom Oilers, said the team looks forward to the female classic as it’s the highlight of their season.
“It feels good to show our town that we can be at the top,” Parkinson said. “We just play with our hearts.”
The Oilers did just that in the third period with a relentless forecheck to tie the game at 3-3 with under three minutes on the clock.
Meanwhile, rookie netminder Marissa Edler, playing up as a Novice-aged player, put in a yeoman’s like effort between the pipes and turned away a Fury of scoring chances from Fort Saskatchewan.
After a scoreless 20-minute overtime the two teams headed to a shootout.
The Fury scored on the first shootout attempt and it would hold up as the lone tally for the visitors.
“It was definitely tough and we could have made it through but the shootout was a little off,” said first-year Oiler Brooklyn LeDuc. “We still did really good though.”
The Oilers and Fury squared off previously in the finale of round-robin play the night prior where Fort Saskatchewan earned an 8-4 win at the Murray Arena.
“We were just tired last night and learned a little from them,” said Okotoks head coach Barry Borbely. “Our girls came out hard (Sunday) and gave it everything they’ve got.”
Borbely, who coached the team to the gold medal last year, attributed the success of his team to the development of his young players.
“We have got an awesome group of Atom coaches and they start out with the young players and I’m fortunate enough to get them here,” Borbely said. “We have some great first years with a veteran mix this year and have a very good team.”
It’s the second year in a row the Atom A’s have finished as the top team from Okotoks at the female classic, featuring nine Okotoks teams and 34 overall in eight divisions.
The Oilers finished in fourth place in the Midget A division with an 0-3 record and were third in the Midget B division after posting a mark of 1-2.
The Bantam 1 Oilers earned an identical 1-2 record placing third. Okotoks was fourth in Peewee A and Peewee B with 0-3 marks in each division.
Okotoks skated to a 1-2 record in Atom House, good enough for third place, and the Okotoks Thunderbolts and Oilers finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the Novice division.
For more information on the Okotoks Female Hockey Classic tournament go to www.okotokshockey.com
