The Fort McMurray Oil Barons dropped a 4-2 decision to the Grande Prairie Storm, but the good news is the Barons have home ice advantage after their win Monday night. The Oil Barons were able to claw back from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game at 2, but then the Storm pulled away. The Storm also won the special teams battle going 2/7 on the power play, while the MOB were 1/11.

Grande Prairie took a 1-0 when Darren Kramer deflected an Adam Young point shot past MOB goalie Jesse Kallechy 4:31 into the game. 35 seconds later, Zahn Raubenheimer fed a great pass from the half wall to Travis Dunstall who tipped it in for a 2-0 lead. The Barons were outshot 11-4, just like in the first period of Monday’s game.

The MOB looked strong in the second period as they outshot the Storm 11-5, and scored the only goal of the period. Brendan Wright blasted one from the point on the power play past Chad Carder to cut the GP lead in half.

The Barons had 6 seconds left of power play time remaining heading into the third. The MOB used that time well as Branden Gracel carried the puck in and fed a great backdoor pass to Seymour to tie the game 14 seconds in. But 1:41 later, Kramer put the Storm ahead for good when he deflected a Dunstall shot past Kallechy. Dan Coreale added an insurance marker at the 6:53 mark. The Oil Barons outshot the Storm 13-5 in the third and 28-21 overall.

The MOB host the Storm for games three and four Thursday and Friday at the Casman Centre. You can get tickets by calling 780-743-5509, ext. 0. Face-off is at 7:30 with the pre-game show starting at 7:15 on Country 93.3.

James Isaacs and Chad Golanowski each scored late in the third period and Jesse Kallechy kicked aside 35 shots as the Fort McMurray Oil Barons skated past the Grande Prairie Storm 2-1. With the win, the MOB take a 1-0 series lead and more importantly gain home ice advantage, regardless of what happens tomorrow night.

The first period was a slow one for the Oil Barons, who were outshot 11-4 in the opening frame. However, the Storm jumped out to a 1-0 lead with 14.7 seconds left when Dan Coreale fed a backdoor pass to Tanner Fritz. The MOB had a 5-3 power play for 1:33 in the period, but were unable to capitalize. The second period didn’t produce any goals, but the Oil Barons outshot the Storm 14-12 in the frame.

A huge turning point came for the MOB when they were able to kill off a Grande Prairie 5-3 early in the third thanks to some timely saves by Kallechy, as well as tenacious penalty killing by Brooks Robinson. With 7:02 left, Isaacs moved from the blueline to the high slot and wired one off the crossbar past Chad Carder to tie the game. Then with 3:35 left in the game, and a ton of bodies in front of Carder, Brendan Wright got a shot off, and Golanowski was there to bury his first of the post season for the lead, and in the end, the win.

The MOB were 0/3 on the power play, while the Storm were 0/4. Chad Carder made 24 saves for the Storm. Game two goes tomorrow night at the Canada Games Arena. The pre-game show starts at 7:15 on Country 93.3 with the puck drop set for 7:30.

Brooks Robinson couldn’t have picked a better time to score his first playoff goal as the Fort McMurray Oil Barons came from behind to edge the St. Albert Steel 4-3 in overtime. Markus Gerbrandt and Dylan Seymour were in close on goalie Sean Reilly, and the puck deflected in off Robinson at the 6:27 mark to nook a second round series between the Oil Barons and the Grande Prairie Storm. At the 4:55 mark of OT, Branden Gracel took down Justin Morello, who was in alone after getting past Brad Stebner to five Morello a penalty shot, and Kallechy closed the door.

The Steel took a 1-0 lead at the 10:15 mark of the first when Ryan Edens fired a point shot, which went in and out fast, but it ended up being a goal. The Barons tied it up when Seymour deflected a Brendan Wright shot past Reilly on the power play with 1:42 left in the period. In the second, the Steel would take a 2-1 lead as Spencer Pommells took a great back door feed from Reed Linaker with Mason Conway in the box. The Steel then went up 3-1 at the 12:38 mark when Linaker was able to pounce on a loose puck in the slot area, and beat Kallechy.

That’s when the Fort McMurray faithful at Servus Credit Union Place saw what the MOB Mentality was all about. Matt Szpak fired a low shot from the right pint, and Gracel deflected it past Reilly only 1:22 after the Steel went up by 2. In the third, Gracel carried the puck in on the right side, and was able to get a great shot off, but the puck went to Nolan Rossiter on the weak side, and he buried it with 4:58 left in regulation to tie the game at 3. Another huge turning point for the MOB came with 2:07 left in regulation. Colton Yaremovich took a holding penality but the Oil Barons penalty killing came up with their biggest kill of the season.

Gracel and Seymour each finished the game with a goal and an assist, while Gerbrandt had three assists. Kallchy made 28 saves for the win, while Riley kicked aside 31. With Grande Prairie’s 4-1 win over Lloydminster, the battle of the north will hit the postseason as the MOB battle the Storm. The series will start in GP with dates and times to be determined.

The other north division semi-final will see the Bonnyville Pontiacs take on the mighty Spruce Grove Saints. In the south, the sixth seeded Canmore Eagles advanced by sweeping the Olds Grizzlies. The Calgary Canucks now trail Brooks 2-1 after a 5-3 win tonight, while the Calgary Royals stayed alive with a 3-2 OT win over Camrose.

Fort McMurray mixed martial arts star Dwayne Lewis needed two rounds, but stopped Ryan McLain at the 2:08 mark of the second round. With the win, Lewis extends his fight winning streak to seven and improves his record to 11-4. Lewis got the win in by grounding McLain and pounding him. Despite the win, Lewis felt his performance wasn’t all that strong. Lewis said he’d been sick with the stomach flu while he was training for this fight. The fight was in Edmonton, but Lewis had his usual strong crowd support. Lewis said it was so loud he couldn’t even hear his manager, Sandy Bowman. Lewis isn’t sure when his next fight will be, but wants to improve on his wrestling technique and ground game.

The Fort McMurray Oil Barons took a 2-0 series lead after a 3-2 win over the St. Albert Steel in a heated battle at the Casman Centre. Branden Gracel led the way with a goal and an assist as the MOB went ¾ on the power play. Jesse Kallechy had another strong night in between the pipes kicking aside 25 of 27 for the win.

After being blanked 5-0 Friday night, the Steel were looking for a spark, so 6’4 blue liner Nolan Smith went after Barons forward Gui Glasspoole and both went off for fighting. The fight energized the St. Albert bench, but it was the Oil barons who would strike first. Defenseman Jesse Altheim got a knee out on his man and that put the MOB on the power play. Fort McMurray captain brad Stebner fired a shot in from the point, and the rebound was buried by Gracel five minutes in for a 1-0 lead. Later in the frame, David Carr and Justin Rose also fought, but that one was a split. With 3:35 left in the period, Steel star forward Bryce Williamson streaked across and waited for Kallechy to go down before firing home the first Steel goal of the series.

The Oil Barons wasted no time scoring their second goal. 14 seconds into the second, Williamson was penalized for high sticking. Nine seconds later, James Isaacs blasted his first of the playoffs past goalie Sean Reilly for a 2-1 lead. In both periods, the MOB outshot the Steel 13-9.

In the third, the Steel would tie it up as Taylor Fraser fired a shot past a screened Kallechy near the midway point of the third. The MOB would use the power play again to take the lead only 2:11 later. Markus Gerbrandt was tripped up by defenseman Ryan Wilkinson. On the man advantage, Gracel took a shot from the left side circle and beat Reilly for the game winner. Reilly made 35 saves for the Steel, while the MOB held St. Albert scoreless on the power play in four tries.

The Barons will try and wrap the series up Monday night at Servus Credit Union Place. The pre-game show starts at 6:45 on Country 93.3.

19 year old goaltender Jesse Kallechy started off the second season the same way he started off the regular season, with a 5-0 shutout win. Kallechy, who was making his AJHL playoff debut stopped 33 shots downed the St. Albert Steel to take a 1-0 series lead.

The MOB got on the board first as Tyler Helton walked out from behind the net and jammed it past Steel goalie Chad Ketting at the 2:31 mark on the power play. Midway through the period, Steel forward Baxter Niziol checked his man from behind giving them Oil barons another power play. Mason Conway used his cannon to score to give the Oil Barons a 2-0 lead. In the second period, the lone goal came from Adam Johnson, who took advantage of a defensive turnover by St. Albert at the 8:32 mark.

The MOB dominated the third period outshooting the Steel 23-8. Gracel and Lake scored to seal the deal. The MOB and Steel collide tomorrow night at the Casman Centre. Face-off is at 7:30, and the pre-game show starts at 7:15 on Country 93.3.

Suncor brought a Canadian alpine ski legend to town to spend some time at Vista Ridge.
Ken Read competed in the Olympics in 1976 and in 1980 as well as world cup events.
Read says he's here for the Olympic Toast.
Read adds that if his appearance inspires even one child to join a ski or snowboarding club, then his visit was worthwhile.
Read was part of the Canadian ski team the "Crazy Canucks" in the 1970's and 80's.

The McMurray Sno-Drifters have their Poker Rally coming up Saturday, March 6th. You must register the night before at their storage building of Highway 63 the night before between 7:00 and 10:00 if you’re doing the long run, which will take you through the Anzac and Stoney Mountain Trails. You must complete the run and check in at the Stoney Mountain check stop by noon or you’ll be disqualified.

The short run will be the Anzac trail only and they start at noon. There will also be a free breakfast an lunch for those involved. The registration fee is $25.00 and it includes a ticket to the banquet after at the Sawridge Inn and Conference Centre. The banquet starts at 6:00 with cocktails, and dinner to follow at 7:00. You must also have a trail pass to take part in the poker rally, and if not, you can buy a day pass.

For more information, call Real Chartrand at 780-743-0088.

The Fort McMurray Oil Barons had a tough start to their three game road swing dropping a 6-3 decision to the St. Albert Steel 6-3. Special teams hurt the Oil Barons as the Steel were 4/8 on the power play, while the MOB only scored once in 13 chances. The Barons also ran into a goalie in Sean Reilly who stopped 40 of 43 shots in his AJHL debut for the win.

The Steel got on the board first as AJHL leading scorer Bryce Williamson carried on puck in and wired the puck over Joey Quattrocchi 3:54 into the period. The Barons tied it up with 4:40 left in the frame when Gui Glasspoole took a great backdoor pass from MVP candidate Branden Gracel, but Spencer Pommells re-established the Steel lead with1:39 left in the period on the power play. In that period, the MOB had a 5-3 for 31 seconds they were unable to capitalize on.

The Oil Barons had four straight power plays to start the second, including a couple of five on threes, but couldn’t capitalize. With 3:07 left, Gracel stepped into Steel territory and fired a shot past Reilly to tie the game at two. However, former Oil Baron David Carr got his team back in front with 14 second left with Adam Johnson already in the box, and a delayed cross checking call to Mason Conway.

With Conway in the box to start the third, Nolan Smith fired a shot past Quattrocchi for a 4-2 lead 33 seconds in. The MOB would get it back at the 4:05 mark on the PP as Brooks Robinson tipped a Kris Steedsman point shot past Reilly. In the second half on the third, Philip Gervais and Taylor Fraser scored 19 seconds apart to seal the win for St. Albert. Quattrocchi made 23 saves. The MOB are in Lloydminster to take on the Bobcats tomorrow night. The pre-game show starts at 7:15 on Country 93.3 or www.country933.com.

With the loss and Grande Prairie's 4-1 win over Drayton Valley, the Storm clinch second place. The MOB and Sherwood Park Crusaders are tied for third with 75 points, but the Oil Barons hold the tie breaker because they have more wins. The Cru, who downed the Bobcats 5-3 take on Spruce Grove Sunday.

Five members of the Fort McMurray Oil Barons have been nominated for some major AJHL hardware.

19 year old centre Branden Gracel is up for MVP honours. So far, the Calgary native has 86 points in 55 games and has made players around him better. Gracel is also not scared to go to rough areas of the ice and compete for loose pucks. Cody Kunyk of Sherwood Park, John Dunbar of the Calgary Canucks, as well as Lee Reimer of the Canmore Eagles are also up for the honour.

Oil Barons Captain Brad Stebner is up for outstanding defenseman. Stebner has an outstanding combination of size and skill. Stebner has a scholarship to Michigan Tech next season. He's very steady in his own end, and can jump into the rush at anytime, and his shot has created plenty of rebounds that usually result in MOB goals. Stebner is up against Bonnyville's Matthew Register, Quinn Sproule of Okotoks, and Frank Carbonaro of Olds.

18 year old Edmonton native Markus Gerbrandt is up for Rookie of the Year. Gerbrandt has been the top scoring AJHL freshman for most of the season and is one of five Oil Barons to surpass the 20 goal plateau this season. Gerbrandt's competition comes from Spruce Grove defenseman Dillon Simpson, Camore goalie Sam Brittainand Calgary Canucks forward John Baird.

19 year old rookie goalie Jesse Kallechy is up for goaltender of the year. Kallechy said he wasn;t sure if he was going to make the team in training camp but now sits third in the league in goals against average and save percentage. He's up for the honour despite missing a month earlier in the season with a broken wrist. Coach Gord Thibodeau praises Kallechy's focus and consistency. He's up against Travis Rolheiser of Spruce grove, Brittain, and Sean Cahill of Okotoks.

Thibodeau meanwhile is up for coach of the year. Thibodeau has guided a young team that now sits in third place in a very competitive north division with a shot at second with only three games left. Thibodeau says an award like this is more of a team award. He's up against last year's winner, Steve Hamilton of Spruce Grove, Andrew Mile of Canmore, and Calgary Royals bench boss Jeff Peters.

The winners will be announced Tuesday.