BLACKFALDS, AB (February 11, 2023) – Aiden Fink and Elliot Dutil both scored twice, and for the third time this year, the Brooks Bandits erased a 3rd period deficit to win 5-3 over the Bulldogs at the Eagle Builders Centre on Saturday.
The Bandits (46-5-2) have won five straight games, and three straight on the road. They also won the season series with Blackfalds, four games to two. Ethan Barwick (St. Albert, AB) made 25 saves for the win.
Bulldogs forward Brett Meerman opened the scoring at 11:20 on the powerplay, one-timing a right circle shot to make it 1-0. It was the first goal the Bandits surrendered since the 15:37 mark of the 3rd period against the Thunder on February 3rd. Barwick entered the game with back-to-back shutouts. Meerman doubled the lead to 2-0 with 0.1 seconds left in the period, scoring on a forehand shot to beat the buzzer.
Bandits forward Mikhail Simchuk (Kyiv, UK) got the Bandits on the board, banking a shot from the corner off a Bulldog and into the net to make it 2-1 at 5:30 of the 2nd period. However, the Bulldogs got it back on the powerplay to make it 3-1 at 13:59 as Jason Siedem scored on a one-timer. Late in the period at 18:35, Fink (Calgary, AB) cleaned up a loose puck and backhander a goal past Bulldogs starter Matt Hennessey to cut the Blackfalds lead to 3-2.
After much of the 3rd period was scoreless, Dutil (Montreal, QC) changed that by tapping in a Danylo Korzhyletskyi (Kyiv, UK) pass at 15:28 to tie the game 3-3. Then on the powerplay at 16:26, Fink one-timed a Sam Court (Winnipeg, MB) pass to give Brooks their first lead, 4-3. Still on the powerplay 17:34, Dutil got the insurance marker with a one-timer to make it 5-3, the final. Shots were 39-28 Brooks.
The Bandits are back in action on Thursday, February 16th, when they travel to Camrose to face the Kodiaks. Game time is 7:00, listen on Real Country 105.7 FM.