OUTLIERS PREPARE FOR OKLAHOMA CITY BLAZERS

The Utah Outliers return to the Acord Ice Arena for a three game home stand against the Midwest Division Oklahoma City Blazers this upcoming weekend. Both teams are usually amongst the leaders at the top of the league standing, and this year is no different. The Outliers come in with a record of 6-3-0 and the Blazers are coming in at a perfect 6-0-0 mark. Last weekend OKC pulled off a very impressive sweep, beating the Northern Colorado by a margin of 12-4 in three games. Utah is looking to get back on a winning track after dropping two games to in state rivals the Ogden Mustangs.

This is only the second matchup between these two powerhouses of the WSHL, with the first and only prior meeting coming last season at the Las Vegas Showcase. Utah was able to dictate play throughout the contest and skated away with an impressive 3-0 win. Both clubs secured spots in the round robin playoff down in El Paso, TX, however they were placed in the same bracket and did not face one another.

TALE OF THE TAPE

UTAH STATISTICS

Team Record: 6-3

Powerplay Efficiency: 26%

Penalty Kill Efficiency: 91%

Top Goal Scorers: Jan Dvorak (7) Zak Albers (4) Zach Dornseifer (4) Ryley Bast (4)

Top Assist Leaders: Jan Dvorak (8) Anthony Masanotti (7) Alex Charin (7)

Goalie Stats: 23 goals against on 227 shots  / 90 Save Percentage

OKLAHOMA CITY STATISTICS

Team Record: 6-0

Powerplay Efficiency: 25%

Penalty Kill Efficiency: 100%

Top Goal Scorers: Vitali Mikhailov (7) Tobias Thorner (5) Harri Koll (5)

Top Assist Leaders: Vitali Mikhailov (6) Domini Loubert (6) Stephane Doering (5) Jordan Sgro (5)

Goalie Stats: 6 goals against on 138 shots / 96 Save Percentage 

 Some players to take note of for Oklahoma City come in the forms of leading goal and point scorer Vitali Mikhailov, returning goaltender Bobby Cloutier, and WSHL veterans Harri Koll (formerly with West Sound Warriors) and Stephane Doering (formerly with Springfield Express).  Mikhailov is a veteran of over 100 games and has almost reached 200 points in the WSHL. Cloutier returns to OKC after proving he is among the elite goaltenders, and both Koll and Doering earned over 70 and 80points respectively.

For Utah, Jan Dvorak has been leading the charge, showcasing a great offensive punch in critical moments. As is the normal for the boys in black, team scoring and depth will play a crucial role in helping the team get on the board and create offense. Between the pipes, Oscar Wahlgren has earned the bulk of games thus far, however both Kenton Kim and Jack Walsh have shown they can get the job done.

Both the Outliers and the Blazers are looking to show the rest of the league that they deserve a place with the elite teams in the league. The games this weekend should be action packed and very exciting. A key feature of the weekend is clearly special teams. A league ranked number one powerplay (UT) faces off with the number one ranked penalty kill (OKC). Something has to give in this battle, so you won’t want to miss it. Come on out this weekend, Friday at 7:00 PM, Saturday at 6:30 PM, and 12:00 PM. Also this weekend, the Utah Outliers will be having the “Haunting at the Acord” and will be giving out tons of cool prizes and will be doing some Halloween themed games and will be handing out candy to those in costumes.

Go Outliers!