CAMROSE, AB (September 29, 2018) – The Brooks Bandits (6-1) won their sixth consecutive game, and completed a sweep of their schedule at the 2018 AJHL Showcase, downing the Whitecourt Wolverines 5-2.
Ray Christy (St. Paul, MN) had a goal in his Bandits debut, while Arnaud Vachon (Ajax, ON) led the way with a goal and two assists. The Bandits went 3 for 5 on the power play and a perfect 5 for 5 on their penalty kill.
Whitecourt opened the scoring at the 9:05 mark when Mackenzie Harden scored on a 2-on-1 rush. But Vachon tied it just over four minutes later on a one-time shot from the slot on the power play set up by Nathan Plessis (Salmon Arm, B.C.) from the end wall.
In the second, Luke Bast fired a point shot through a screen and past Whitecourt goalie Ben Rishaug to give the Bandits their first lead of the night at the 4:24 mark. Just over a minute after that, Tyler Campbell (Winnipeg, MB) slapped home a loose puck from the high slot to make it 3-1. Christy’s first as a Bandit then came with 1:29 left in the second when a puck pinballed off a skate in the slot to the newcomer waiting backdoor to tap it in for a 4-1 lead.
Whitecourt pulled closer on a Carson Laport rebound goal at 7:47, but it was as close as they would get as Pierce Charleson (Aurora, ON) stopped 28 of 30 shots for the win.
The Bandits capped off the scoring at 9:10 when Simon Gravel (Boucherville, QC) wristed home his first AJHL goal off the rush as linemate William Lemay (Marieville, QC) carried in down the middle and dished it to his linemate on the left side.
The Bandits are back in action next Saturday, taking on the Canmore Eagles on the road with a chance at a seventh consecutive win.