RE:swimming against the tideThere is no reason why they can't de-lever and reward shareholders simultaneously.
Buying back 2 million shares for around $16 million would look pretty good at some point and the interest savings the company would forego by not using that capital to reduce debt is peanuts ($750k/yr). alternatively and preferably IMO, the company could just keep the capex budget at $60mm instead of hitting the high point of their stated range and then you’d have your $16mm buyback funded. The return on capital deployed to a NCIB vs the return on what you'd get by drilling an additional 8 wells could be massive (with really no incremental risk). In that scenario, the company wins (or at least doesn’t lose) regardless of what the price of oil does.
In the picture some, notably you, have painted about the future (3+years out), those shares would be worth many multiples of the existing price and could be used to materially repair the balance sheet without dilution from where we sit today.
The company should be taking advantage while they can, the current environment is perfect: fundamentals greatly improved, a seemingly endless supply of selling pressure and a 6 month trailing volume high enough for the company to get it done reasonably quickly.