Photo Credit: Tim Matwey
Sunday afternoon marked the final road game of the regular season for the Cranbrook Bucks. The Noah Quinn show made a matinee appearance in the Okanagan, but another big performance from the skilled forward wasn’t enough to secure a valuable two-points for his club – as the Vernon Vipers were able to take a 3-2 shootout win.
Vernon was able to open the scoring just past the two-minute mark of the first period, via Cam MacDonald’s 11th goal of the season. The Bucks had plenty of chances to tie the game in the opening frame, but Vernon goalie Roan Clarke turned aside all of Cranbrook’s 14 shots – with many chances coming via power play. The Vipers were able to take a 1-0 lead into the second period.
Bucks forward Noah Quinn broke Clarke’s shutout bid just over halfway through the second period. The Nelson native took a pass from Tyson Dyck near the Vernon blueline, skated up and blasted a wrist shot from a toe-drag to put the Bucks in a 1-1 tie. Vernon recaptured their lead shortly before the end of the middle frame. Reagan Milburn snuck one past Nathan Airey with nine-seconds to go before the buzzer to give Vernon a 2-1 lead through forty minutes.
The Bucks were rewarded with a tying goal seven-minutes into the third period. Quinn had his skill on display again, he busted out a quick deke in the slot to open a shooting lane on the Vernon goal and sunk his second goal of the game. The score maintained at a 2-2 tie through regulation. Cranbrook outshot Vernon 6-1 in overtime, but the game would require a shootout to decide a winner.
The Bucks opened the shootout with a Liam Hansson goal and a Nathan Airey save to win round one, but both of Vernon’s next shooters found paydirt while Roan Clarke held Cranbrook off the board the rest of the way. The Vipers won the shootout 2-1 to take a 3-2 victory in their final game versus Cranbrook in a tightly contested season series.
With Sunday’s shootout loss, Cranbrook gains a point to move up to 59 this season, with a 27-19-2-3 record. The Bucks finished 1/5 on the power play and 2/3 on the penalty kill. Cranbrook outshot Vernon 41-25 through sixty-five minutes.
It’s home sweet home for the Bucks for their final three regular season games. The Bucks begin a double-header at home versus the Penticton Vees on Friday.
Buck Tracks:
- 2 goals for Noah Quinn (4th multi-goal game of the season, 12th multi-point game)
- Captain Rhys Bentham returns to lineup after missing most of Friday’s game vs Merritt (1 assist).
- Vernon wins season series 4-2 (5 of 6 games decided by 1 goal, 3 shootout wins for Vernon).
