Photo Credit – Chad Goddard:
The Brooks Bandits rebounded from a disappointing Game 2 loss in the AJHL South Final, scoring four times in the opening frame and riding a hot start to a 6-1 win in Okotoks over the host Oilers in Game 3, taking a 2-1 series lead in the league semifinal.
Jake Theis (Chanhassen, MN) led the way with four points (two goals, two assists) while goaltender Pierce Charleson (Aurora, ON) made 21 saves on 22 Okotoks shots.
Theis’ first of the game opened the scoring at the 7:22 mark on a rebound goal set up by Tyler Campbell (Winnipeg, MB), with the 1-0 lead holding until fewer than five minutes remained in the first. At that point, Brooks scored three more times in the span of only 63 seconds. First, Simon Boyko (Mississauga, ON) swept in a power play goal from the left circle to double the Brooks advantage. Forty seconds later, a long shot from the blue line by Randy Hernandez (Miami, FL) found its way by Brady Parker through traffic to make it 3-0 Brooks. 23 seconds after that, Campbell scored one of his own on a net front tip to give Brooks a 4-0 advantage heading into the 2nd, outshooting the Oilers 14-5 in the frame.
Theis scored his second of the game on a net front scramble at the 1:02 mark of the second period, and just over four minutes later Mack Hancock (Kingston, ON) scored a rebound goal to make it 6-0 for the visitors. Dylan Holloway scored on the power play at 6:11 on a shot from the slot to cut the deficit to 6-1, but it was as close as the Oilers would get as Charleson stood tall the rest of the way, making 13 saves in the third period alone.
Both teams were 1 for 6 on their respective power plays. They reconvene Tuesday night for Game 4 with pre-game coverage starting at 6:45 from Okotoks on Real Country 105.7.
