DRUMHELLER, AB (January 8, 2016) – Making his first start in a Bandit uniform, goaltender Garret Hughson (Foremost, AB) stopped all 21 shots he faced en route to a 3-0 shutout win for Brooks (30-6-2) over the Drumheller Dragons (17-20-4) in Drumheller on Friday night.
Hughson, who had only arrived in Brooks on Tuesday, stopped 7 shots in each of the three periods.
The Bandits opened the scoring 6:11 into the game when Dylan McCrory (Kirkland, PQ) chipped a puck from behind the net to captain Derek Lodermeier (Brooklyn Center, MN) at the side of the net; the captain’s quick backhand tuck beat goaltender Xavier Burghardt to make it 1-0 Bandits.
Just over a minute later, the Bandits doubled their lead when Kyler Nachtigall (Calgary, AB) fired a puck in through a screen from the left-wing faceoff circle, doubling the Brooks advantage. The Bandits outshot Drumheller 13-7 in the first.
In the second, Brooks outshot the Dragons 9-7 and converted once more with an insurance goal from former Dragons leading scorer Ty Mappin (Big Valley, AB). Mappin’s shot from the slot appeared to have been saved by Burghardt, but slipped behind the Dragon goalie and slid over the goal line to give Brooks the 3-0 advantage.
In the third, Drumheller had the 7-4 shot advantage but Hughson completed the perfect debut. Brooks went 0 for 4 on the power play and a perfect 5 for 5 on the penalty kill.
The two teams meet Saturday night for the rematch at the Centennial Regional Arena, with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 PM. Tickets are available online at tickets.brooksbandits.ca, by phone at (403) 501-0122, or at the door.