BROOKS, AB (February 17, 2023) – Aiden Fink put on a performance for the Bandits first home game in 13 days, scoring a hat trick as Brooks beat the Calgary Canucks 6-1 on Friday at the Centennial Regional Arena.
It was Fink’s third hat trick of the season, coming on the same day he was named finalist for AJHL MVP and Top Forward. Goaltender Wilson Maxfield (Kelowna, BC) also starred in net, making 34 saves as the Bandits (48-5-2) swept the six games season series with the Canucks.
The 1st period was scoreless, as Maxfield stopped all 17 shots he faced.
Sam Court (Winnipeg, MB) opened the scoring at 1:59 of the 2nd period on the powerplay, shooting a wrist shot from the blue line to make it 1-0. Calgary tied the game at 9:21, as Rylan Jockims cleaned up a loose puck and scored. But Brooks reclaimed the lead at 11:33 as Fink (Calgary, AB) scored off the rush, fooling a Canucks defender from the left circle and sniping his 36th of the season to make it 2-1. Fink scored again at 18:00 on the powerplay, finishing off a Dario Beljo pass from the left circle to make it 3-1.
Brooks extended the lead to 4-1 at 2:36 of the 3rd period, as Hudson Malinoski (Saskatoon, SK) one-timed a Hunter Wallace (Oak Lake, MB) pass. top shelf. Fink completed the hat trick at 12:22, one-timing another Wallace setup to make it 5-1. Forward Mikhail Simchuk (Kyiv, Ukraine) finished the game with a left circle shot that went in at 18:45 to make it 6-1. Final shots were 39-35 Brooks.
The Annual Family Day Game is Monday, February 20th, as the Bandits host the Drumheller Dragons at 4:00 pm. Fans 17 and under get in for free, plus there’s a Skate with the Bandits following the game.