BROOKS, AB (November 3, 2018) – Ryan Mahshie (Stoney Creek, ON) and William Lemay (Marieville, QC) had two goals each, while Ray Christy (St. Paul, MN) had a career-high four assists, as the Brooks Bandits (17-2) won their third game in a row with a 6-2 victory over the Calgary Canucks at the Centennial Regional Arena on Saturday night.
With the win, the Bandits remain two points ahead of Bonnyville for first overall in the AJHL with two games in hand.
The Bandits outshot Calgary 44-21 in the game, including 14-5 in the opening period, but found themselves down 2-1 after 20 minutes; just the second time this season the Bandits have entered an intermission trailing. An Arnaud Vachon (Ajax, ON) tip of a Ray Christy power play shot gave Brooks the lead just 3:31 in, but Justin Giacomin scored on a breakaway at 13:21, and three minutes later Cooper Johnson scored on a power play net front scramble to put the Canucks ahead.
But the Bandits dominated the middle frame, scoring four times. It began with a Mahshie wrister from the right circle that slid by Calgary goalie Blake Pilon to tie the game, before Lemay scored his first when a shot from the left side was blocked, but his second try fluttered through a screen and in for the eventual game-winning goal.
Just over a minute later, Mahshie stormed in on a breakaway and tucked a low shot by Pilon to make it 4-2, before Carter Wolski (Sexsmith, AB) scored on a long point shot in the final minute of the period for a 5-2 advantage.
In the third, Lemay fired a perfectly placed top-left corner shot from the right faceoff circle to notch the 6-2 final score.
Josh Graziano (Williamsville, NY) recorded his third win in as many games as a Bandit, stopping 19 of 21 shots, while Pilon stopped 38 of 44.
The Bandits hit the road next, to take on the Fort McMurray Oil Barons on Friday night and the Bonnyville Pontiacs on Saturday night. Pre-game coverage of both games starts at 7:15 PM on Real Country 105.7.