Oilers down Bandits in triple overtime thriller to tie series
BROOKS, AB — A crowd of 1,708 at the Centennial Regional Arena was treated to the seventh-longest game in Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) history on Tuesday night, but was sent home heartbroken as Tanner Laderoute tipped a point shot at 9:23 of the third extra frame to give the Okotoks Oilers a dramatic 5-4 win over the Brooks Bandits.
The win ties the series at two wins a piece, meaning the series will stretch to at least a Game 6, which will be Sunday night in Brooks.
Okotoks opened the scoring just 45 seconds into the game when star defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker was left alone in the slot to fire one by Mitch Benson. But on Brooks’ first power play of the game, Luke Bast scored from the right circle to tie it 1-1 at the 5:27 mark.