BROOKS, AB (October 19, 2018) – The Brooks Bandits (12-1) got six goals from six different scorers, with 14 skaters recording at least one point, as they downed the Calgary Mustangs 6-3 on Friday night at home.
The win streak is the longest for the franchise since the 2016-17 campaign. Brooks outshot Calgary 42-10 in the game.
Joseph Karpyshyn got Calgary on the board first, poking home a backdoor pass from Cole Basnett just 3:48 into the game. But the Bandits responded at 9:12 when Tyler Campbell (Winnipeg, MB) sped down the left side, in behind the Calgary net, and wrapped the puck around and past goalie Ashton Abel to tie it 1-1.
On the ensuing shift, Simon Gravel (Boucherville, QC) collected a loose puck off a rebound at the top of the crease and backhanded it up over a sprawling Abel and into the net to give Brooks its first lead.
At 12:47, Mack Hancock (Kingston, ON) chipped a puck from the right side of the net to Taylor Makar (Calgary, AB) at the backdoor. It popped off of his stick and up in the air, where the Bandit rookie batted it from mid-air into the Calgary net for his first Junior A goal and a 3-1 lead.
With just under four minutes left in the period, Arnaud Vachon (Ajax, ON) sped down the right side, cut around a Calgary defender, then powered to the front of the net and swept a puck in past Abel from the left side of the cage for a highlight reel breakaway tally and a 4-1 Brooks lead after 20.
Early in the second, with Brooks on a power play, Abel accidentally played the puck from his own end wall straight to Ryan Mahshie (Stoney Creek, ON) of the Bandits at the left circle, who one-timed it into the empty net before Abel could get back into position for a 5-1 lead.
At the 8:06 mark, Karpyshyn set up Basnett from the end wall for a net front one timer past Bandit goalie Pierce Charleson (Aurora, ON) to cut the lead to 5-2, but just over four minutes later a Simon Boyko (Mississauga, ON) pass from the right circle on the power play deflected off Jakob Lee (Owen Sound, ON) and in for a 6-2 Brooks lead.
Brady Barclay scored off the rush on the power play for Calgary at 10:09 of the third, but it was as close as the Mustangs would get.
The Bandits will attempt to extend their win streak to 13 when they host the winless Olds Grizzlys on Saturday night for Country Night at the CRA, presented by the Brooks Hotel. Tickets are available online at tickets.brooksbandits.ca.