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Bandits downed 3-1 in Prince George, Doyle Cup tied 2-2

May 2, 2019 | 10:06 AM

PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. —  The Brooks Bandits saw a 1-0 lead evaporate as the Prince George Spruce Kings took Game 4 of the 2019 Doyle Cup on Wednesday night, defeating the AJHL champions 3-1 at the Rolling Mix Concrete Arena.

The Bandits led after the first period, holding the Spruce Kings to just four shots, but were outshot 24-11 the rest of the way en route to the loss.

Jakob Lee opened the scoring 8:11 into the game when he tapped in the rebound of a Brandon Scanlin power play point shot to give Brooks the 1-0 advantage.

But Prince George tied it just 1:49 into the second on a power play of their own, after a two-pass play in front of the net led to a tap-in by Nolan Welsh to knot the game up. After William Lemay was denied on a breakaway in the period, Patrick Cozzi scored on a one-on-one rush to give Prince George its first lead of the night.

Soon after the Cozzi goal, the Spruce Kings were awarded a penalty shot when a Bandit defenceman covered the puck in the crease off a net front scramble. But Layton Ahac’s one-handed poke check attempt was stopped by Pierce Charleson to keep the Bandits within one.

Prince George held the Bandits at bay in the third, however, outshooting Brooks 10-5 in the period and 28-19 in the game. With time dwindling, Lemay was again denied by goalie Logan Neaton when his shot from the left circle was barely stopped by the sprawling netminder. An errant pass in the defensive zone was then picked off by Welsh who deposited the empty net goal from the high slot to cap off the 3-1 win for the home side.

Game five will go in Prince George on Thursday night with pre-game coverage starting at 7:45 PM Alberta time on Real Country 105.7 FM.