The Wenatchee Wild have been somewhat of a dose of kryptonite for the Cranbrook Bucks this season, particularly when the Bucks have been on the road. The Bucks began their final regular season trip to Wenatchee on Saturday to kick off another double header with their south-of-the-boarder rivals, and they finally took a stateside victory in a 4-2 final.
The Bucks jumped out to an early lead, just over one-minute into the first period. Brendan Rogers was able to find a rebound off a point shot from Bauer Morrissey and slipped the puck past Wild goalie Tyler Shea. Cranbrook outshot Wenatchee 12-8 through the first twenty minutes, and they took a 1-0 lead into second period action.
Wenatchee’s shooters came alive in the second period, firing 17 shots on Nathan Airey in the middle frame. The Wild would be rewarded for their efforts, and they pulled even just shy of the halfway mark. Wenatchee forward Ean Somoza tallied his 13th goal of the season at 8:57 to move the Wild into a 1-1 tie. Cade Littler put Wenatchee into a 2-1 lead at 13:20. Cranbrook found themselves down 2-1 with the third period on the horizon.
The Bucks didn’t waste any time to even the score in the third period. Tyson Dyck began a big finish when he sent a puck on goal deep in the Wenatchee zone from a bad angle, and it found its way past Shae. Dyck’s 29th goal of the season tied the game 2-2 just fourteen seconds into the final frame. Dyck restored Cranbrook’s lead near the ten-minute mark, just after a pair of coincidental minor penalties had expired. The Bucks’ leading scored netted his second goal of the game when he had a swipe at a loose puck at the Wild crease, and he sent Cranbrook into a 3-2 lead at 9:55. Dyck completed a rare natural hattrick at 12:54 after some good work down low in the Wild zone, putting his Bucks up by 4-2. Cranbrook was able to hang on to finally pick up their first win in Wenatchee, beating the Wild 4-2.
With the win on Saturday, Cranbrook’s record improves to 25-18-2-2. The Wild outshot Cranbrook 38-31, the Bucks went 0/3 on the power play and 2/2 on the penalty kill.
The Bucks meet the Wild again tomorrow in Wenatchee to close their latest double-header.
Buck Tracks:
- 5 straight wins for Bucks goalie Nathan Airey.
- Natural hattrick for Tyson Dyck (8 points through current 4 game point streak).
- First road victory versus Wild in Bucks history (1-3 record in Wenatchee).
- 8 points for Declan Ride since joining Cranbrook (1 assist vs Wild Saturday).
