.
One down, fifteen to go
The Cranbrook Bucks are off to a good start in their first-round playoff series versus the Wenatchee Wild, they lead the best-of-seven 1-0 following Friday’s 3-1 win in game one.
Both teams took traded chances through the first period, but Wenatchee’s Andy Vlaha and Cranbrook’s Nathan Airey stood tall in their creases to fend off opposing attackers. The crowd at Western Financial Place popped loudly when Bucks forward Blake Cotton was awarded a penalty shot midway through the opening frame, but Vlaha came up with a big save for the Wild to keep the scoreless deadlock intact. Cranbrook outshot the Wild 13-8 in the first period as the teams remained at a 0-0 tie at intermission.
The game took a turn to the offensive in the second period. Cranbrook opened the scoring at 4:59 thanks to a Carsyn Good wrist shot into traffic. Wenatchee tied the game 1-1 at 13:59 when Parker Murray converted an Ean Somoza pass on a Wild rush. However, the Bucks had a response via a Cooper Boulanger goal at 15:08. Cranbrook made it a 3-1 game about a minute later thanks to a solo effort from Donovan Frias. The Bucks took a 3-1 lead into the third period.
The final twenty minutes featured plenty of close calls, both teams had potential goals reviewed by officials, but both were disallowed. Each side fired nine shots in the third period, but the goalies held their ground. Wenatchee went with an empty net in lieu of an extra skater for the final three minutes, but they were unable to gain any ground on the Bucks, and the home team skated to a 3-1 win.
Cranbrook has a chance to extend their series lead to 2-0 in game two Saturday night.
Buck Tracks:
- Bucks lead the series 1-0, it’s the first time the franchise has led a playoff series in its brief history.
- First career BCHL playoffs goals for Carsyn Good, Cooper Boulanger and Donovan Frias.
Lead Photo by Trevor Crawley
