BROOKS, AB (March 13, 2018) – For the first time since 2014, the Brooks Bandits will take on their closest geographical rivals, the Drumheller Dragons, in the playoffs. Tickets are now on sale for the AJHL South Semifinal, which begins Friday and Saturday in Brooks, it was announced today.
The best of seven series will begin with 7 o’clock puck drops at the Centennial Regional Arena in Brooks on Friday and Saturday nights, before shifting to Drumheller for games 3 and 4 on Monday, March 19th and Tuesday, March 20th. If necessary, a fifth game would be Friday, March 23rd in Brooks, a Game 6 would be Sunday, March 25th in Drumheller, and a decisive Game 7 would be Tuesday, March 27th in Brooks, with all games scheduled for 7:00 PM.
It will be the fourth time in franchise history that Brooks and Drumheller have met in the post-season, and the second time it’s happened in the AJHL South semi. In 2014, Drumheller beat the Bandits in the Division Final in five games, a year after the Bandits dispatched the Dragons in five games in the division semifinal en route to an RBC Cup win. Previously, the Dragons had swept the Bandits in three games in the first round in 2008.
The Bandits earned their spot in the series by virtue of a 3-game sweep of the Canmore Eagles in the opening round, in which the defending league champions outscored their opponents 15-1 in the series. Drumheller scored a whopping 24 goals in its 4-game series win over the Calgary Canucks, including 16 goals in the final two games, to advance to the second round for the first time in three years. Brooks has won its division semifinal series for the last six consecutive seasons.
Tickets for Friday and Saturday’s series-opening games can be purchased online at tickets.brooksbandits.ca, with prices $16 for adults, $11 for youth (12-17) and $6 for children (3-11). Tickets can also be bought over the phone at (403) 501-0122, or in person at the Centennial Regional Arena.