Oyen Eagles face off in ECSHL finals action

By Jordan Parker

The Oyen Eagles find themselves battling against Provost in ECSHL finals action, and rookie Kyle Dorowicz can’t believe how far the team has come.

They finished atop the league in the regular season with a 13-1-1-1 record and 27 points. They now face second-place finisher the Provost Combines.

The first two games of the series have gone the Combines way, winning 7-5 on Friday, March 17 in Oyen and 7-4 in Provost on Saturday, March 18. Dorowicz got thrown in the deep end in the series.

PHOTO: Fans have been out in full support of the Eagles all season. FACEBOOK PHOTO

“I probably know that team the least. I missed a handful of games this season, and two were against them. I hadn’t seen them once this year, or ever for that matter,” he said.

“My teammates said they have great players, and some really talented guys. This series will definitely be a test.”

It’s a formidable match-up, as previous to the series against Oyen, Provost had gone 5-0-0-0 in playoff action, sweeping all competitors. Meanwhile, Oyen traded blows to beat the Sedgewick Sabres most recently.

“That team just turned out to be a well-oiled machine. They ended up being 2-0 against us in the series. In the first game, we gave up a short-handed goal with a minute left, and lost home-ice advantage,” he said.

“Then we laid an egg game two. It was do-or-die for three games, and they came down-to-the-wire, but we pulled the series out.”

He says it was lucky the Eagles found their stride exactly when they needed to.

“We got our swagger back. We were snake-bit for the first few games, and had to figure out how to beat Sedgewick. We saw it go to game five and come down to one goal, but it was great to come back and win,” he said.

“They were a team that could frustrate you. They blocked a lot of shots and their goaltending was great all series. They were a great test for us, but we pushed when our backs were against the ropes.”

Dorowicz recently moved to Oyen with his wife and kids. The Kindersley, Sk. Native already knew a lot of his teammates.

“I played with plenty of them in Eatonia for senior, and this was an easy shift and transition,” he said. “I have a farm just outside of town and three young boys. We needed the space, and moved here from Olds, Alberta in the fall.”

He’s one of the oldest players on the team, and sees the irony of this being his rookie season.

“I’ve played senior hockey for 10 years. It’s just funny age-wise to be a rookie. I’ve known a lot of these guys a long time,” he said.

“The adjustment has been fun, and a lot of the guys are tight-knit. It’s been easy to get things going, and I love that small-town spirit.”

One big thing he’s noticed in Oyen is how everyone has rallied behind the team.

“The crowds are always great. It was standing room only for game five and the town was buzzing. They had tunes cranking, fans were going nuts and airhorns were going,” he said.

“To see the community behind us and pulling for us is amazing. I’m happy we just get to keep playing.”

Game three is on Monday, March 20, 2023, at 8:30 p.m. in Oyen.