The Cranbrook Bucks had some tense moments in the bottom half of their double-header with the Merritt Centennials on Friday night, but the Bucks were able to put in another strong third period finish to cruise to a 6-3 victory.
It was déjà vu all over again for the Cranbrook Bucks in the first few minutes of the opening frame. The Centennials jumped out the gate for a good start, and they were rewarded with an early goal on a 5-on-3 power play. Ben Ward was able to knock in a rebound off a Geoff Bjarnason point blast to give the Cents a 1-0 lead at 4:12. The Bucks outshot Merritt 15-8 in the first period, but the home team trailed 1-0 through the first twenty minutes.
Cranbrook managed to tie the game just shy of the two-minute mark of the second period. Jarrod Smith’s fifth goal of the season made it a 1-1 game. Merritt regained their one-goal lead with another power play goal at the 8:37 mark from Davide Patella. The second period seesaw battle continued when Tyson Dyck converted a rebound off a Cam Kungle shot to tie the game 2-2. The Bucks took the lead with a Luke Pfoh power play tally with only twenty-seconds remaining in the middle frame. An action-packed second period ended with Cranbrook holding a 3-2 lead.
The Centennials stuck around in the third period, and they were able to briefly tie the game at 3-3 when Connor Farren snuck a wrist shot past Bucks goalie Evan Gartner at 6:19. However, the Bucks were not in the mood for an overtime finish on Friday night, and they would end the game with three unanswered goals from Johnny Johnson, Andrew King and Bauer Morrissey. The final score was a 6-3 Bucks victory.
With Friday’s win, Cranbrook’s record improves to 27-19-2-2. They outshot the Centennials 50-24 on Friday. Cranbrook’s power play finished 2/3, their penalty kill unit finished 3/5.
The Bucks get a day off on Saturday before heading to Vernon for their final road game of the regular season on Sunday.
Buck Tracks:
- 3 assists for Cam Kungle (2nd straight game with 3 assists)
- Bucks win season series vs Centennials 4-0-1.
- 1g, 1a for Jarrod Smith (2nd multi point game of season).
Photo Credit: Dale Fletcher
