LLOYDMINSTER, SK (May 19, 2016) – Jeff Malott (Waterdown, ON) and Cale Makar (Calgary, AB) had a pair of goals each, and the Brooks Bandits (3-1) rode a 4-goal first period outburst to a 5-4 win over the Carleton Place Canadians (0-3-1) in the team’s final round robin game at the 2016 RBC Cup.
The win guarantees that the Bandits will have the last line change for their semifinal game on Saturday, as they cannot finish lower than second place. Carleton Place was eliminated from the tournament with the loss.
Photo credit: Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images
Carleton Place opened the scoring just 61 seconds into the game when Jacob Moreau poked a loose puck that was lying behind goalie Garret Hughson (Foremost, AB) into the back of the Bandit net, for a 1-0 lead that Carleton Place would hold until just after the media timeout at the halfway mark of the period.
After that timeout, the Bandits responded with two goals in the span of just 12 seconds. First, Makar scored right off of an offensive zone faceoff, skating in front from the left corner and tucking a puck past goalie Colton Point to tie the game. Right off the next faceoff, a point shot by the Bandits bounced off of Point’s pad and provided a rebound that Malott wired home for his first, and the Bandits’ first lead.
Malott added a second less than two minutes later, skating his way in front off of another offensive zone faceoff and tucking a backhand shot past Point for a 3-1 lead.
Carleton Place clawed closer at 14:43 when Bryce Van Horn scored on a breakaway, but Makar replied with his second with less than 3 minutes to go, carrying into the Carleton Place zone, faking a slapshot, then skating to the slot and firing a wrist shot past Point to make it 4-2.
In the second, Derek Lodermeier (Brooklyn Center, MN) scored on a power play shot from the high slot to make it 5-2 at the 17:39 mark, as the Bandits outshot Carleton Place 19-11 in the first and 14-9 in the second.
The Lodermeier goal would end up being vital, as Carleton Place scored twice in the third to make the game interesting late. Lucas Batt fired in a power play goal off the rush at 6:26 to make it a two goal game, and Braedyn Asselstine fired a shot through a screen pat Hughson with 1:02 left and an empty net to get the Canadians close to a tie.
But the Bandits held on for the dramatic regulation win, ensuring a top-two finish in the round robin.
Brooks will await the winner of the final round robin game between the Trenton Golden Hawks and Lloydminster Bobcats before knowing their semi-final situation. If Trenton wins, the Bandits will play West Kelowna in their semifinal, and Trenton will choose the times. If Lloydminster wins, it will be the Bandits taking on the Bobcats, and Brooks will choose what time that game happens.