The rising price of oil and a recovering commodities market has UBS excited about a return to investments in the Canadian oilfields.

"Since establishing a bottom in early March our coverage list has risen 113%, defying market fundamentals as investors look beyond the cycle and position for the rebound," UBS analyst Chad Friess said in a note Thursday.

As companies search for riches in unconventional resource plays such as the Monteny, Bakken and Horn River, oilfield service companies will be in demand. These hot plays should “result in operators directing additional capital to their development.”

Calgary’s Peters & Co. Ltd. recently detailed who could be the big winners: pressure pumpers and directional drillers should come out on top, with drilling contractors and drilling fluids companies also riding the coattails of excitement in these resource plays.

More and more attention these days is being focused on unconventional resources plays, such as the Montney and Horn River in British Columbia, the Bakken in Saskatchewan and the Utica in Quebec. Advances in completion technology and horizontal drilling techniques are making it easier and more profitable for operators to exploit these shale formations.

In recent weeks, EnCana Corp. (ECA) and Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM) have noted growing commitments to their unconventional assets and on Monday, Shell Canada Ltd. [SHL.BE] said it had entered into an agreement to buy Montney-rich Duvernay Oil Corp. (DVNLF.PK) for C$5.9-billion.

Activity levels in the oil sands are poised for an earlier-than-expected recovery putting to an end almost two years of weakness in the oilfield services sector, says CIBC World Markets analyst Jeff Fetterly.

In a note to clients he wrote:

While the magnitude and length of a recovery remain uncertain, we believe the outlook for the oilfield services sector has improved significantly in recent months.