Hockey fans had the treat of witnessing two overtime battles as the Drumheller Dragons and the Okotoks Oilers met at the Memorial Arena for the second round of the AJHL playoffs.
The Dragon dispatched the Calgary Canucks and on Friday, March 18, hosted the Okotoks Oilers for game one.
The Oilers struck first, scoring just six minutes into the game, but Adam Raesler evened it up with a minute and a half left in the first period. The Dragons went up 2-1 with a goal from Van Yuhas at the 4:12 mark of the second period.
The Dragons outshot the Oilers 36-30 over three periods and only had two penalties. A high sticking call in the third led to a powerplay goal by the Oilers. This led to overtime. The Dragons outshot the Oilers 16-9 in extra time, but it took until 2:34 into the second overtime for the Dragons to take a 3-2 win.
On Saturday, March 19, the attendance was again pushing the 1,200 mark as fans came out for Game 2. After a scoreless first period, the Oilers went ahead 22 seconds into the second, but 10 minutes later Raesler tied it up. The Dragons went ahead early in the third period with a goal from Hayden Prosofsky, but the Oilers tied it up again, forcing overtime for the second time in as many games. Just 1:34 into extra time the Oilers took the 3-2 win. Dragons outshot the Oilers 36-26.
The Dragons were in Okotoks on Tuesday, March 22 for game 3. Results are not available at press time. They will face the Oilers again on the road on Wednesday, March 23, and are back at home on Saturday, March 26.
