Brooks, Alberta – The Brooks Bandits welcome both the Sherwood Park Crusaders and the Vernon Vipers to the Centennial Regional Arena this weekend. It marks just the second time this season that Brooks will play two home games in a single weekend.
Sherwood Park opens the doubleheader on Friday, arriving in Brooks with a 9-5-2 record that places them second in the Interior East. Their 67 goals this season also rank second in the division.
“[The Crusaders] are a very offensively gifted team,” said Bandits forward Liam Fitzpatrick. “Their main priority is to outscore their problems.”
The Bandits dominated their last meeting with Sherwood Park in an 8-0 win, but Fitzpatrick expects a closer game this time around.
“I think this time it will be a little more competitive,” he added.
Although recent results have not gone the Bandits’ way, the group remains confident.
“Off the ice we are so close and we have the ability to bring each other up when we are struggling,” Fitzpatrick asserted. “I think team camaraderie correlates directly to confidence on the ice.”
On Saturday, the Bandits face the Vernon Vipers, a team that has stumbled out of the gate. Vernon holds a 3-9-3 record and is tied for the third fewest points in the BCHL (9). Despite that, they have traditionally been a difficult opponent.
“Last year I remember [the Vipers] being a big and physical team,” Jack Good said Thursday. “They are a team that can defend well and that likes to score goals.”
Brooks handled the Vipers last season, outscoring them 26-10 over four games and putting up at least six goals in each contest.
“We had some good battles with them last year,” he added.
Even with their recent dip in production, Good believes the Bandits still have strong offensive potential.
“We haven’t had a lot of trouble generating chances,” Good remarked. “If we can bear down on offence and score more goals, it allows us to make up for some defensive mistakes; If you can score goals, it can swing the momentum of the game.”
The Bandits enter the weekend ranked fourth in the BCHL with 65 goals, just one behind the Crusaders. They also lead the Interior East division and sit second in the Interior Conference with a 26.6 percent power play success rate.
Puck drop for both games is set for 7:00 p.m.
