Tulsa hands Thunder a fourth straight loss

Lurking around every comfortable 16-minute stretch of hockey are the nine words that can define a team’s fate.

The first or last two minutes of a period.

The Thunder has often excelled in the chunks of three periods that form 48 minutes of a game. Their nine-words ratio, however, is unfavorable.

Tulsa scored three goals during the first or final 120 seconds of a period during Friday’s 4-2 win over the Thunder at Intrust Bank Arena. The other, which broke a 2-2 tie, came with 2:48 to go in the game.

Too often during a four-game losing streak that has evened its record at 7-7, the Thunder has neglected the blank slate those nine words offer, handing the chalk to the opponent for decisive goals and game-changing plays.

“Lack of buy-in,” Thunder coach Malcolm Cameron said. “We had four different players turn over the puck four different times for (Tulsa’s) first goal, when they had plenty of time and space to get the puck in deep. That’s a lack of commitment to our system and our philosophy.”

The Thunder’s best period was probably the first, which ended in a scoreless tie. Wichita was outshot in the period but avoided the mistakes that had haunted the team over the previous three games, namely allowing too many close-range, barely contested goals.

Before two minutes had passed in the second period, the Thunder trailed 2-0. Wichita reverted to careless passes and individual playmaking that pushed aside the teamwork and cohesion preached by Cameron.

The Thunder squandered a chance for momentum and a chance to gain Cameron’s belief that the team can capitalize on such opportunities.

“Right now I don’t,” Cameron said. “We have too many of those important lapses in the game – too many. Both goals that they scored in that minute and fifty were preventable. The only thing I can come up with is a lack of buy-in.

“Because guys know better. We do more video – we practice game situations all the time. We did it today. I know that we hammer on key elements of the games that we saw tonight that cost us goals. It’s not like they’re not instructed, it’s not like they don’t know.”

The Thunder accomplishes plenty in those 16-minute stretches. On Friday, Wichita scored a pair of power-play goals and tied the score 2-2 with about eight minutes to go.

When the final two minutes approached, Tulsa seized. The Thunder had the puck in its offensive zone and was organizing the offense when a turnover occurred. Tulsa turned it into a 2-on-1 chance and Ben Murphy converted with less than three minutes to play. The Oilers added an empty-net goal later.

The elements appear to exist for the Thunder to reverse its losing streak and rediscover the form that guided a strong start to Cameron’s first season. Wichita’s current obstacles are nine words and trying to reclaim the chalk.

“Our special teams continue to be awesome,” Cameron said. “We’ve played (Tulsa) five times and they haven’t scored a power-play goal, yet they’ve beaten four out of five. But we’re burning home games here, we’re burning division games here. …You can’t hope that you’re all of a sudden going to catch fire on the road. You’ve got to win your home games.

“We’re just not doing it.”

Tulsa 0 2 2 -- 4

Wichita 0 1 1 -- 2

First period

Penalties—Tulsa, Poe (slashing), 2:25; Wichita, DeBlouw (hooking), 15:04; Tulsa, Bates (hooking), 17:22.

Second period

Scoring—1. Tulsa, Brewer (unassisted), 1:00; 2. Tulsa, Astles (Wilson, Poe), 1:50; 3. Wichita, Loiseau PP (Lowe, Oslanski), 10:38. Penalties—Wichita, Melindy (slashing), 4:54; Tulsa, Cunningham (hooking), 9:47; Tulsa, Astles (roughing), 11:22; Wichita, Tesink (interference), 11:22; Wichita, Melindy (holding), 14:03; Tulsa, Joyaux (slashing), 18:34.

Third period

Scoring—4. Wichita, Melindy PP (Erkamps, Moon), 12:01; 5. Tulsa, Murphy (Brewer, Gauthier), 17:16; 6. Tulsa, Pleskach empty-net (Brewer), 19:31. Penalties—Wichita, Dunn (slashing), 3:31; Tulsa, Gauthier (roughing), 7:44; Wichita, Trecapelli (slashing), 7:44; Tulsa, Cunningham (interference), 11:40.

Power play—Tulsa 0-4, Wichita 2-5. Shots—Tulsa, 9-14-17—40, Wichita 7-10-10—27. Saves—Tulsa, Stevens 25-27; Wichita, Greenham 36-39.

T—2:00. A—4,401.

This story was originally published November 25, 2016 at 11:05 PM with the headline "Tulsa hands Thunder a fourth straight loss."