Another week is in the books, but this one came with its share of stumbles and some genuinely scary moments along the way. The winning streak came to an end, the Oil Kings lost a bit of ground in the standings, and a pair of key injuries forced the team to adjust on the fly. This week wasn’t all negative though, as with the 2 new injuries the team saw 2 returns from injury. They showed some resiliency and determination to battle through the roster changes. We have another Wiener Wednesday this week followed by the Oil Rumble on Sunday afternoon. Before we get there, let’s catch up on what you may have missed in the last week.
Team Stats
The Oil Kings entered the week on an 8 game winning streak, heading into a big matchup with the Medicine Hat Tigers. Wednesday’s game against the Tigers showed what Edmonton is capable of as they shutdown the Tigers big guns, they battled to a shootout despite losing 2 key players in the 2nd period, and they held their own with the top team in the league. The rematch in Medicine Hat did not go as well, as the Oil Kings played severely shorthanded, but they bounced back with some reinforcements Saturday night to get a victory back at home in the beautiful Fan-made jerseys.
The special teams took a step back over this week, and were definitive in the results of these games. The powerplay went only 1 for 12 through these 3 games, and the penalty kill had one of it’s toughest weeks of the season killing only 8 of 13 chances for the opposition. Despite the 2 losses, Edmonton still sits only 2 points back of the Tigers with 65 points. The Prince Albert Raiders defeated the Tigers on Saturday to move to 66 points in the ultra-tight Eastern Conference standings.
The Oil Kings finished the week 1-1-0-1, going 1-0-0-1 at home and 0-1-0-0 on the road. Friday night’s 7-3 loss in Medicine hat skewed the goal scoring in favor of the other guys to 13-10 for the week. With 2 losses, followed by Saturday’s win, the Oil Kings will look to start another winning streak. This week welcomes the Regina Pats and Saskatoon Blades to Edmonton. The Pats continue to fight for the final playoff spot in the East, while the Blades sit comfortably mid pack, well clear of the cutoff but still far removed from the top three.
Player Stats - Leaders
There’s finally a shake-up at the guys leading the team this week, as all of the long point streak came to an end. Lukas Sawchyn finds himself at the to, with 5 assists, bringing his season total to a team-leading 40 assists so far. Landon Hanson and Carter Sotheran each chipped in with 1 goal and 3 assists, and Andrew O’Neill provided 3 goals on the week.
Captain Gavin Hodnett, and the entire top line, were held quiet in 2 games with the Tigers, but Hodnett came back with 3 points against Tri-City to continue his fantastic pace since returning from injury. Miroslav Holinka was held to only 1 goal on the week with his 11 game point streak coming to an end on Wednesday.
Ethan Simcoe took both home starts this week, and looked stellar in both games. He stopped 14 shots in the 3rd period and overtime against the Tigers on Wednesday to keep the Oil Kings in the game and force the shootout, though he was unable to stop either attempt in the skills competition. He then came back and stopped 17 of 21 shots in the highly entertaining 5-4 victory against Tri-City. For the week, he had a 2.88 GAA and am .864 Sv%. This brings his season stats to 17-3-2-2 with a 2.76 GAA and .896 Sv%
Parker Snell got the start in Medicine Hat and faced an impossible situation with a broken lineup in front of him. He suffered the loss and allowed 7 goals to the Tigers in this game, but that was as much of a team loss as anything that could be attributed to him. He stopped 19 of 26 shots in the game, with a 7.00 GAA and .731 Sv%. This drops his season stats to 13-5-1-0 with a 2.82 GAA and .889 Sv%.
Milestones
Gavin Hodnett reached the 200 point mark with his goal at the start of the third period on Saturday. He became only the 6th modern day Oil King to reach this milestone, and with 3 points on Saturday he moved into a tie with Brett Pollock for 5th overall on the all-time points list. He now sits 43 points back of Trey Fix-Wolansky for the next position on this list.
Jaxon Fuder played his first game with the Oil Kings on Friday night in Medicine Hat. Aaron Obobaifo played his first game with Edmonton on Saturday night in Rogers Place. Both new additions got healthy at the moment they were needed and provided valuable reinforcements to a battered team. New addition Carter Sotheran scored his first goal for the Oil Kings on Friday in Medicine Hat.
Ethan Simcoe’s win on Saturday Night was his 30th, which officially moved him ahead of Torrie Jung and Dylan Myskiw for sole possession of 6th on the Oil Kings all-time wins list. His next milestone to chase is 44 wins, currently held by Kolby Hay.
Injury Updates
Some big changes to the Injury report this week. Aaron Obobaifo and Jaxon Fuder each got healthy and made their debuts with the Oil Kings.
- Max Curran took a big open ice hit in the 2nd period of Wednesday’s game and landed awkwardly on his hands/arms. He went immediately off the ice clutching his wrist or forearm and did not return to any action this week. He was listed as TBD on this week's Roster Report.
- The biggest news of the week is the hit that took out Dylan Dean late in Wednesday’s game. Dylan had to be taken off of the ice by medical staff, and the entire Rogers Place crowd let out a sigh of relief when the update was provided that Dylan was alert and responsive with Medical staff. No further update has been provided, but expect Dean to be out indefinitely.
- Luke Powell continues to be out indefinitely with a listed Upper body injury. He has not played since November 2nd against the Swift Current Broncos.
- Rhys Pederson last played on December 16th in Lethbridge, and is listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury. Interestingly, both Powell and Pederson were injured in games where they also dropped the gloves, which may or may not be coincidence.
- Adam Jecho last played on December 7 before heading to World Juniors camp. Though he was named to Czechia’s roster, a hand injury suffered during camp ruled him out of the tournament. Jecho was spotted taking in the Oilers game Sunday night, and his status has been upgraded to Day-to-Day, so hopes are high that his return is imminent.
Roil Reserves
A couple moves were necessary with the roster shake-up, and Jensen Marsh became the rewarded individual who got the call to join the team in Medicine Hat on Friday night. Rail Schollar was also recalled for the trip to backup Parker Snell, as Ethan Simcoe stayed in Edmonton. Simcoe likely needed a maintenance day, but this decision also allowed him to stay fresh and avoid the trip on a short turnaround.
Schollar was returned to the Calgary Northstars in the AEHL after his one-game backup role, and immediately started their game on Saturday night. He secured a 4-3 overtime victory in that game, bringing his overall stats to 8-7-1 on the year with a 3.22 GAA and .901 Sv%
Jensen Marsh got to play both Friday and Saturday’s games, somewhat surprisingly taking Matthew Williams spot on the 4th line for Saturday. He finished with no points through the 2 games, but was defensively responsible in his limited ice time and never provided opponents with any openings to expose him. He was returned to the Drumheller Dragons on Monday morning.
Elsewhere in the AJHL, Presley Kerner continues to get regular playing time with the Olds Grizzlys. He added 2 more games to his resume this week, but added no points to his season totals. He stays at 10 points through now 29 games. Tucker Tullikopf continues his strong season with the Camrose Kodiaks, as he provided 2 goals and 1 assist in 2 games this week. He’s now up to 38 points in 34 AJHL games on the year.
The CSSHL prospect pool continue to advance their development for their respective U18 prep teams. Holden Wouters returned to St.George’s for 2 games this week, and doubled his season goal total with a 2 goal game on Saturday January 17th. He’s at 13 points in 18 games now. Cole Landreville’s quiet start to 2026 continued, with no points in one game for Pilot Mound Hockey Academy this past week. He stays at 18 points through now 17 games played. The biggest news of the week is that Chris Kokkoris finally made his return to the Yale Hockey Academy after 3 months out of action. He scored the first goal of the game in his return, and added an assist. He was quiet in his second game of the week, but still finished with 2 points over the 2 games. This doubled his season total to now 4 points through 6 games.
Reserve Pulse Check:
- Kayson Anderson had 3 assists in 2 games for the Estevan Bears (SMAAAHL). He now has 31 points in 32 games played.
- Ezekiel Kaebel played 5 games over the last week, and added 6 points to bring his season totals to 77 points over 50 Games with the Dallas Stars 16U AAA program
- Carter Nash has remained quiet to start the year, he still has no additional starts since the turn of the calendar.. He has a 31-10-0 record with 8 shutouts over 41 starts for the Honeybaked 15U AAA program, and a spectacular 1.84 GAA.
Only 2 games this week, both at home, as Edmonton looks to keep this great season rolling along. Wednesday night kicks off the festivities early as another Wiener Wednesday takes over Rogers Place. The Regina Pats come to town, the hot dogs are $2 all game long, and the building is primed for a midweek night that rarely stays quiet for long.Saturday night, Rogers Place turns into a battleground as Love Pro Wrestling storms the building for the third edition of the Oil Rumble. Before the puck ever drops, and again between periods, the ring will be set where the stage usually stands, hosting 5 hard-hitting wrestling matches that promise to shake the walls. While bodies collide in the ring, the Oil Kings will be preparing for their own fight on the ice, determined to leave the night wearing championship gold in spirit if not in belt. Standing in their way are the Saskatoon Blades, arriving with every intention of spoiling the party and stealing a win under the brightest lights. One building, two arenas, and no shortage of competitors looking to make a statement.
Things to watch for:
- Miroslav Holinka is now 3 goals away from the single-season goals by an Import record, currently held by Edgars Kulda.
- Landon Hanson and Gavin Hodnett each have 4 career shorthanded goals, and sit 2 away from the Franchise record of 6.
- Ethan MacKenzie is the next Oil King eying a major points milestone. His assist on Saturday puts him at 85 career points, as his current point-per-game pace has him headed towards his 100th point in the near future.
- Wednesday features the 2026 AJHL Showcase in Edmonton at the Downtown Community Arena prior to the Oil Kings game. Grande Prairie and Drayton Valley open the day’s events with a noon puckdrop, while Tucker Tullikopf and his Camrose Kodiaks will hit the ice at 3pm to take on the Whitecourt Wolverines. If you’re in the area, be sure to check out some great Junior A hockey before heading inside for the Oil Kings to finish Junior hockey day in Edmonton.