BROOKS, AB (December 16, 2016) – The Brooks Bandits (26-3-4) got seven goals from seven different goal scorers, dispatching the visiting Lloydminster Bobcats 7-0 as Alex Horawski (Toronto, ON) registered his second consecutive shutout, stopping all 23 shots he faced.
The win gives the Bandits a 4-point lead for first overall in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), while the team’s sixth shutout puts it just 2 back of the franchise record for a season.
The eventual game-winning goal came just 7:21 into the game when defenceman Parker Huebner (Leduc, AB) fired a slap shot from the left point that floated over the shoulder of a standing Jeremy Kelleway and into the Bobcat net. Just under ten minutes later, Tyler Carangelo (Hamden, CT) carried in on a 2-on-1 and feathered a pass from the right circle to Dennis Cesana (Providence, RI), who hammered in his second goal in as many games to make it 2-0.
Nic Hamre (Ottawa, ON) slipped by the Bobcat defence on a Carangelo setup just 7:39 into the second, and snapped a short side shot in for a 3-0 Brooks lead, while Nathan Plessis (Salmon Arm, B.C.) tipped a Vinny Renda (Montreal, QC) point shot home at 12:12 to make it 4-0 and give Renda his first point in a Bandit uniform.
With time ticking down in the second, Parker Foo (Edmonton, AB) spun a pass through the crease to Josh McKechney (Calgary, AB), who kicked the puck to his stick and lifted it over a sprawling Kelleway to give Brooks a 5-0 lead with just 3 seconds left in the period.
Brooks added two more goals in the second; the first an Arnaud Vachon (Ajax, ON) breakaway goal at the 2:49 mark, the second Foo’s own goal on a one-timer at the right circle set up by McKechney to notch the 7-0 final score.
The Bandits went 0 for 1 on the power play and a perfect 2 for 2 on the penalty kill. They remain home to host the Fort McMurray Oil Barons Saturday night for the team’s final game before the Christmas break, with puck drop at 7:00 PM and tickets available online at tickets.brooksbandits.ca.