‘I've enjoyed it, it's been really fun': Local pastor keeps getting mistaken for Oilers head coach
A pastor in Sherwood Park has been recognized a lot more in the past few years since he looks a lot like Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch.
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A local pastor has had a few laughs over the past two years as fans keep mistaking him for Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch.
Matt Ziprick is a pastor at Bethel Lutheran Church in Sherwood Park.
He also looks very similar to Kris Knoblauch.
Sherwood Park pastor is Kris Knoblauch's doppelganger
Since Knoblauch joined the Oilers in 2023, Ziprick has been occasionally stopped by people who think he's the head coach. His basketball teammates first pointed it out by 'congratulating' him on getting the job as the Oilers bench boss.
'I've enjoyed it. It's been really fun and I can honestly say that I think everybody that I've met through this has enjoyed it too,' Ziprick said.
'It's just been a lot of fun connections and yeah, I'm rolling with it, riding the wave.'
Ziprick has gotten a bit of local fame through being Knoblauch's doppelganger, even being shown on screen during an NHL broadcast of a playoff game between the Oilers and the Dallas Stars.
Now that people are more familiar with him, he still gets noticed, but people are starting to be able to correctly identify Ziprick.
'I do feel like I've let a few people down just by not being Kris, and so that's been kind of funny too,' Ziprick said.
At the end-of-season press conference, the real Kris Knoblauch seemed amused by the doppelganger situation.
'He was so handsome, almost (like) Brad Pitt,' Knoblauch said.
Matt Ziprick
Matt Ziprick, a Sherwood Park pastor who looks like Kris Knoblauch, posing with Oilers fans. (Matt Ziprick)
One thing Ziprick hopes to be able to do is have Knoblauch come to his church and hold up a sign saying, 'I'm the real Matt Ziprick,' as the reverse of what Ziprick did.
'(I) love his sense of humor, and (I'm) just really glad that he's maybe enjoying some of this too. It's just been a lot of fun,' Ziprick added.
Matt Ziprick
Matt Ziprick, a Sherwood Park pastor who looks like Kris Knoblauch, posing with Oilers fans. (Matt Ziprick)
Ziprick, 51, is actually five years older than Knoblauck, 46, so one has to wonder if that would technically make Knoblauch the doppelganger even though he's more famous than Ziprick.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa
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They've got Tom Willander, Elias Pettersson and Jonathan Lekkerimäki at the top of the heap, plus guys like Aatu Räty, Arshdeep Bains, Linus Karlsson, Max Sasson, Victor Mancini and Kirill Kudryavtsev in the second tier. Of the former three, only Elias Pettersson is believed to be untouchable, although the Canucks likely won't move Willander, given his solid growth since his draft and the fact he's a right-hand shot, a prized thing for a defenceman. Lekkerimäki scored two impressive goals on Thursday in game four of the Calder Cup final, but those were just his second and third goals in the playoffs to date, hardly an impressive run for a player the Canucks had hoped would be able to quickly add to the lineup and perhaps be a long-term replacement for Boeser. He's also not big, not strong, and not especially quick. His finishing talents are notable, but he needs to grow his overall game to be an impactful NHLer. Article content Pettersson, the defenceman, looks set to move from prospect to NHL regular this coming season. That's how much he impressed everyone with his play in the NHL this past season. The Canucks are hopeful Mancini can grow his game beyond being just a 'very strong guy' while Kudryavtsev has improved greatly as a pro. Now the question is can he do all the smart things he does in the AHL at an NHL pace? Both Bains and Karlsson have a chance to be hard-working grinders who play the game with smarts Both have shown glimpses of this in the NHL but need to be consistent contributors down the lineup, night in and night out. Sasson has good feet and understands the game well. To hang as a fourth-line centre he needs to find ways to get the puck up the ice more. Conversely, can Räty improve his skating enough to become the dependable third-line centre he showed glimpses of in his late-season cameo in the NHL this spring? 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That was pretty much it, they'll be honest he didn't talk too much about hockey, it was a lot of just getting to know each other, stuff away from the rink,' Cootes told CHEK-TV's Donnie and Dhali Show about what Todd Harvey, the Canucks' scouting director, told him about what they liked about the centre's play. Article content We asked an NHL scout, we'll call him 'Anonymous Scout No. 1', about Cootes' value at 15th. 'Fifteen isn't a bad spot,' he said. 'No great targets, but also not many awful options there.' 'If their guy really is Braeden Cootes, that's fine. He has absolutely sick skill and an elite release, but he plays like a grinder so it barely ever pops. Creativity and processing are issues so I think he tops out as a mid-six guy,' he added. A second scout, who we'll call Anonymous Scout No. 2, said the Canucks should keep their eyes on what happens with Victor Eklund. 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Teams who are interested in 15 today may value it less as the moment of selection approaches and vice versa — teams may become more interested in 15 because a player they covet remains available. Article content Latest National Stories
