OKOTOKS, AB (October 8, 2016) – Cale Makar (Calgary, AB) had three points, as the Brooks Bandits (6-2-2) registered their first win of the season against the Okotoks Oilers (7-2) in the third game of their season series, 4-2 on Saturday night at Pason Centennial Arena.
The win puts the Bandits one point behind the first-place Calgary Canucks in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) South division, with a game in hand, while tied with the Oilers in points with Okotoks holding a game in hand.
Brooks opened the scoring 13:27 into the game when Parker Foo (Edmonton, AB) sped past two Oiler defenders to earn a breakaway, and tucked a shot past Oiler goalie Riley Morris to make it 1-0. The Bandits doubled the lead when Ty Mappin (Big Valley, AB) found Oliver Chau with a pass to the right-wing circle; the Bandit rookie fired home his team-leading sixth power play goal to make it 2-0 at 16:58.
After a scoreless second, the Oilers finally beat Bandit goalie Alex Horawski (Toronto, ON) with two quick goals in 21 seconds to eliminate the Bandit lead. First, Carson Beers scored on a slapshot from the left half boards, and on the next shift, Jordie Lawson found Tanner Laderoute alone in front of the Bandit net for an easy breakaway goal and a 2-2 scoreline.
But only 49 seconds after the Oilers tied it, the Bandits reclaimed the lead, when Makar passed a puck from the left point to Josh McKechney (Calgary, AB) at the right circle, who lifted a high shot over Morris for the eventual game-winning goal and a 3-2 lead.
Makar fired in the empty net goal from the Okotoks blue line with 15 seconds left to seal the deal.
The Bandits went 1 for 10 on their power play while Okotoks was 0 for 6. The Bandits outshot the Oilers 32-22 and still have not been outshot in a game this season.
Brooks is next in action at home on Friday night, hosting the Canmore Eagles at 7:00 PM at the Centennial Regional Arena in the first of a back-to-back home weekend, with the Grande Prairie Storm in town on Saturday night at 7. Tickets for both games are available online at tickets.brooksbandits.ca.