The Cranbrook Bucks pulled off a gritty 3-2 road victory over the Blackfalds Bulldogs last night at the Eagle Builders Centre. Cranbrook jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first period, the Bulldogs roared back with two goals in the second to tie it, and the Bucks found the game-winner in the third for a fluke regulation win that snapped Blackfalds’ recent win streak. For the standings, the two points are huge for the Cranbrook Bucks (currently 4th in the Interior West with 46 points through 53 games), giving them a much-needed boost in their fight for a better seeding as the regular season nears its close They have a good chance of jumping to third. The loss barely dents the Blackfalds Bulldogs, who remain firmly 2nd in the Interior East with 75 points (clinched) and one of the league’s strongest overall records.
Air Force commit Grant Denuccio gets the Bucks on the board early at 2:45 of the first period to make it a 1-0 game for the Bucks. The assists on the goal went to Jack McMinn and Samuel Lyne.
Grant Denuccio scored his second goal of the game at 19:41 of the first period. The assists on the goal went to Adam Csabi and Jack McMinn.
Shots on goal in the first period were 6-5 for the Bucks
Nikolaj Rupi scores against his former team to get the Bulldogs on the board and cut the deficit by 1 at 4:41 of the second period. The assists on the goal went to Krisjanis Sarts and Nikita Meshcheryakov.
Nikita Meshcheryakov tied the game up for the Bulldogs at 18:10 of the second period. The assists on the goal went to Alexx Bosland and Evan Stastny.
Shots on goal in the second period were 11-4 for the Bulldogs
Jack McMinn scored the winner for the Bucks at 17:21 of the third period. The assists on the goal went to Adam Csabi and Samuel Lyne.
Shots on goal int he third period were 16-10 for the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs outshot the Bucks 33-20 in the game.
Jason Tremblay stopped 31 of the 33 shots that he faced and was the sole reason the Bucks won the game (shocked he is not first star). For the Bulldogs Oliver Kiraly stopped 17 of the 20 shots that he faced.
Three Stars of the game were 1) Nikita Meshcheryakov 2) Nikolaj Rupi 3) Grant Denuccio
Attendance in Blackfalds was 895
Bulldogs next game is Saturday March 28th in Sherwood Park against the Crusaders for the final home game of the season. Ironically against who they will face in the first round of the playoffs.
A Night Of Upsets
